by Wendy Vella
“But how was I to know that when we barely know each other, my Lord? And after yesterday, we exchanged hateful words and then you—”
“Nick,” he said, interrupting her as he reached for her hands. “My name is Nick, Grace, and yes we exchanged hateful words and then I came to your room, but now is not the time to discuss that. Now you must tell me about your cousin.”
“I have only ever had Harry, you see, and if something were to happen to him I-I—”
Nick watched as she bit her lip and he saw the tears she battled to keep at bay.
“We shall find him, Grace, I promise you,” Nick pulled her stiff body close and wrapped his arms around her. She began crying into the lapels of his jacket then, clutching him as one sob after another escaped her.
“I need to speak with my colleague now,” Nick said when her tears had stopped. “Will you wait here for my return?”
She nodded and took the handkerchief he handed her.
Nick found Leo still seated at the table where he’d left him.
“Is your wife all right?”
“Her cousin has gone missing and she needs our help. My question to you is, since she now knows my identity, do you have a problem with her knowing yours, Leo?”
His friend studied him for tense seconds. “You trust her, even though she tricked you into marriage?”
“I know now she did not trick me, and yes, I trust her, and believe she will never reveal our identities, but if you are hesitant to reveal yours, I shall take her home and conduct the interview there,” Nick said.
“Your feelings for her have indeed undergone a swift change.”
“Perhaps,” was all he was willing to say on the matter.
“Then if you trust her, I shall too. After all, we have often discussed this situation should it arise, and we all made it quite clear that should one of us take a wife they trust, and wish to share our identities with, we would do so.”
“Yes, we did, but in all honesty I have no right to ask this of you, considering the circumstances surrounding my marriage to Grace and my original distrust of her.”
Leo waved his hand about. “Bring her down and we shall see what needs to be done to find this cousin of hers.”
“Thank you, Leo. I know putting your faith in a woman does not come easy to you,” Nick said, remembering a time when a woman had betrayed his friend.
“No, but trusting you does.”
Nick shook his friend’s hand and quickly left to go to Grace. She was still standing where he’d left her.
“Come.” Nick held out a hand and after looking at it for a few seconds she tentatively placed her fingers in his. “I will take you down to where we have our offices, but I would be grateful if you could keep our identities a secret, as until today, only the four of us and Perkins have known who the Lords of Night Street are.”
“Oh, then I shall stay here, and their identities can remain secret from me… well, three of them anyway.”
“Grace, I have every belief that, unlike other woman, you will hold your tongue, otherwise I would not trust you with this information,” Nick added.
“But how do you know that when we are still so uncomfortable with each other?” She was not looking at him, but down at the hand that held hers.
Grace was not the sort to gossip, Nick instinctively knew that, and if he was honest, she probably had no one to gossip to. Which was a sad thought. “I just do,” he said, leading her to the stairs.
“Lady Attwood.” Leo rose as she entered the room. “My name is Lord Vereton.”
“My Lord,” she sank into a curtsy as Leo bowed. “I shall never reveal your name, Lord Vereton, I promise,” Grace said quickly, which made his friend smile.
“My wife has a problem, Leo.” Nick pulled out a chair and lowered Grace into it. “She believes her cousin has gone missing.”
“I know he has gone m-missing,” Grace added.
“Well, then perhaps we need tea, to discuss this grave matter over,” Leo added, going to the stairs and bellowing up to Perkins to bring down a tray.
“In order for us to help you, Grace, you need to be completely honest with us.” Nick took the seat to her right. Her eyes were red from crying, cheeks pale, and she looked small and lost. He had the urge to pick her up and settle her onto his lap. “Don’t miss telling us anything just because you believe I would not like to hear it.”
She nodded, her eyes shooting from Leo to Nick.
Leo studied Grace, watching her movements, as he did with everyone he met. He was not a man who trusted easily, and Nick understood that having her here, in their domain, was making him nervous. His friend was unsure how to take her. His opinions had been formed without meeting her and simply as Nick’s friend.
“My cousin and I work on translations; we have done so for many years. We do not take money for our work,” she added hastily, and Nick wondered if that was because he would frown upon her earning money.
“What kind of translations?” Leo said, and Nick could see he was intrigued.
“All kinds. Plays, books, papers on botany, we will work on anything that interests us, Lord Vereton.”
“And you believe Harry’s disappearance relates to something you were working on?” Nick asked.
She looked down at her hands briefly before answering. “A Russian gentleman called Mr. Zavorski came to visit Harry, and with him came some papers he wanted translated. There was something about him that unsettled me, but Harry had looked over the work and wanted me to translate them.”
Her voice was soft and sweet as she thought about her cousin, and Nick wondered if she’d ever sound like that when she talked about him. Then he wondered what the hell was happening to him, because suddenly it mattered that she did.
“What happened then?” Leo said.
“Mr. Zavorski went back to Russia, telling us he or one of his colleagues would return in a while, and we started working on them.”
There was a lot more to this woman than he’d assumed, Nick realized as she continued. He wondered what else she had kept hidden behind her dowdy ill-fitted clothes.
“Then one day Harry and I came home to find that someone had stolen the papers, all of them, the originals and the work I had done.”
“You had not completed them?” Nick questioned her.
“No.” She shook her head.
“Tell us now about your cousin, Lady Attwood, and where he went yesterday.” Leo drew her attention back to him.
“He told his butler he was going to follow a lead on the missing papers, and that his direction was Moorgate. I had no idea he was doing that, or I would have cautioned him not to, but Harry is not one to put off until tomorrow if something can be done today.”
“How many languages do you and your cousin speak and read, Lady Attwood?” Leo asked.
“We both know German, French, Italian, and Spanish, but I also speak and read Russian. Actually, Harry can understand a bit, but only enough to get by.”
“So it is you who could complete the papers, and not Harry?” Nick added, shooting Leo a look. Was she in danger also?
“Yes; Harry could do some of the translations, but it would take him longer than I, and there are words he would not be able to work out.”
“May I ask who taught you these languages?” Leo questioned Grace.
“Harry taught me German, French, and Italian, and then had a tutor come to teach me Russian and Spanish.”
“Good God,” Leo said, sitting back in his chair. “We could use your expertise upon occasion, Lady Attwood.”
“Leo, I don’t think that now is the time to ask that of Grace,” Nick cautioned his friend.
“No,” she waved a hand at Nick, “really, it is all right, and I would be honored to help where I can, as I have heard of your work, and the help you have given to so many desperate people.”
She meant it, Nick realized. “Where did you hear of us?”
“Harry is friends with Lady Sutton; you helped her
son, I believe?”
Nick nodded.
“She gave him your card, and that is how I knew where to come to contact you.”
“Tell us anything you can remember now about this Russian gentleman and the translations, Grace,” Nick said.
They questioned her thoroughly and she told them whatever she could remember in clear, concise tones, until Nick thought they had everything they needed to start looking for Grace’s cousin.
“Nick, you take your wife home now, and I shall have the others summoned here. We shall start our investigations at once,” Leo said.
“But I must stay and help, I need to come with you to find Harry.” She rose from her chair, looking first at Leo then Nick.
“You must let us do this our way, Grace. To do that we can have no distractions, and having you with us would be one.” Nick left his chair and came to her side. “I will take you home and then we will start looking for your cousin.”
“You will… immediately?” she said, taking the hand he held out to her and clutching it.
“I’ve told you we will, Grace.”
“Oh, thank you,” she whispered, looking at Leo then him. “I would be so grateful if you could find Harry, and we can—”
“If you are about to offer payment to your husband for this, then I would think again, wife,” Nick cut her off.
She snapped her teeth together, which told him she was about to do just that. They left then, Nick holding her hand in his as he led her back up the stairs and out the front door. As they approached the carriage he heard the sound of barking.
“It is my wish that your dog has not shredded the interior of my carriage or other more nefarious deeds, Grace.” Nick opened the door and helped her inside before following.
A small scruffy dog stood on the seat, wagging his tail frantically as he greeted Grace. She in turn picked the trembling little body up, and hugged him close.
“This is Nipper, my Lord.” She put the dog down, and he immediately leapt across the seats, placed his paws on Nick’s thighs, and proceeded to stare up at him.
“And he is your dog, but your cousin is watching over him for you?” Nick said as he lifted a hand and ran it down the small quivering body.
“Yes, because I did not know if you would allow me to have a dog.”
Her words were solemn and told him once again of the changes she had been forced to make since marrying him. He scratched a finger behind the ear that stood upright and the little dog made a grumbling sound.
“He likes that,” Grace said.
“I’ve never had a dog,” Nick surprised himself by saying then further surprised himself by patting Nipper once more.
“I had never had a dog before Harry brought Nipper for me.”
“Will he chew the chairs and my footwear?” Nick asked as the little dog settled his head on Nick’s leg and looked up at him.
“No, he’s very well behaved. He has a toy, you see, and plays with that. He loves to chase things.”
Nick ran a finger down Nipper’s nose. His fur was soft there, unlike his body.
“I am so s-scared.” Her words were whispered, but Nick heard them.
“I promised you we would get your cousin back, Grace. Will you try and trust me?”
She sniffed and then nodded. Nick had to fight the need to touch, soothe, and comfort her. She didn’t want that from him and in all honesty, he’d never felt the need to do those things with a woman before. But something had changed inside him since he’d made love to Grace. Nick wasn’t sure what it was, only that it had made his chest feel warm and his need to protect this woman had grown.
When the carriage stopped, he handed Nipper to Grace then took her inside the house, where Vidal stood waiting.
“Vidal, take Lady Attwood to her rooms then bring her tea and something to eat, and also something for her dog.”
“At once, my Lord.”
“Grace, I will come to you when I return. Go with Vidal now.” She did not move, just looked up at him with the scruffy little dog in her arms.
“Please take care, Nick.”
“Of course,” he said. “We are always careful.”
She touched his arm, just a light brush of her fingers before turning away, and Nick wondered how he could feel that brief contact when there were several layers of clothing between his arm and her fingers. Shaking his head, he pushed the thought aside. Right now he had to focus on Lord Harrington and what had happened to him, because Nick feared if the man did not return, his wife would be inconsolable.
Chapter Seven
Grace heard Nick the minute he started moving about his rooms, and quickly pulled on her robe. She had waited up for him, sitting in bed attempting to read, then standing and pacing. The hour was late and Nipper had long since given up his vigil of watching her, and curled into a ball at the foot of the bed. He was now gently snuffling. Grace knew her husband must be exhausted, but she had to talk to him, to see if Harry had been found. Her head had filled with so many horrid scenarios that she was quite panic stricken over the fate of her cousin. Knocking on the door that connected their rooms, she waited.
“You should be asleep,” Nick said seconds later, upon opening it. He wore only a loose shirt, pulled from the waistband of his breeches. Grace felt her heart beat faster as she looked at him. The top few buttons were open and she could see the chest that last night she had been pressed against.
“Harry?” Grace whispered.
“We have made progress, Grace, but have yet to find Harry.”
Heart sinking, she followed him into the room, her eyes coming to rest upon the bed. It was large, bigger than hers and draped in a deep green cover. She then saw two chairs and a small table between, set before a fire that was lit.
“Would you like one, Grace?” He held a glass in his hand. She didn’t know what was in it but nodded. She needed something to settle her nerves.
“Sit,” he said, handing her the glass.
“Is he… dear God, I cannot say the words.” Grace took a deep mouthful from her glass then coughed several times as the fiery liquid hit the back of her throat.
“We are certain he is alive, and have several leads to follow, which my colleagues are doing as we speak. In the morning, Leo and I shall continue.”
He did not sit. He instead moved to lean against the fireplace and look down at her.
“How do you find out things?”
“We have informants, and know the right people and places to go to, to get what we need.”
She saw he was restless, his hands drumming on the mantle, tapping an impatient tattoo.
“I am so worried for Harry, Nick; what if he is hurt or—”
“Nothing can come of you speculating. Tomorrow we will know more.”
He drank the contents of his glass in one mouthful, then went to refill it.
“Are you telling me everything, Nick?” Grace stood and followed him.
“Of course.” He lowered his glass before facing her. “I would not lie to you about something this important.”
“I sense a restlessness in you, as if you are disturbed about something,” Grace said, moving to his side.
His laugh held no humor.
“Because the minute you walked into my room, all I could think about was lying you on my bed and making love to you again, Grace. But I do not want to do that until you are ready; I will not hurt you anymore.”
He wanted to lie with her again. Grace had not thought he would, now that the marriage was consummated. Her skin suddenly felt hot, her breasts full, and an ache had started between her thighs as she looked at her husband. His eyes burned into hers, intent, and then travelled slowly over her body.
“You want me?”
“Very much.”
“I should not want this,” Grace whispered, as much to herself as him. “Not after last night and not when my cousin is in danger… but I do.”
“I will not hurt you.” He was closer now, their bodies almost touching a
s he reached out one hand and cupped her cheek. “Let me show you how it can be between us, Grace.”
“I had not thought that we would—”
“Enjoy each other, feel passion for each other?” he whispered against her lips.
“Yes.” Grace sighed, as his lips covered hers in a slow, deep kiss that made her head spin.
“Relax, Grace.”
His hands pulled her close, then she was pressed against his hard body once more and hers sprang to life. She wanted more, so much more, that she lifted her hands, placing her palms flat on his chest.
“I do not know what to do, Nick.” Grace knew a great many things, yet no one had told her about this; the yearning she suddenly felt inside her for this man.
“Do whatever feels right.” His lips had moved to her neck, and his hands were stroking her body, one on her back, and the other over her ribs. Lord, it felt wonderful. Those sensations she had felt last night when he’d touched her breasts were starting inside her once more.
She rubbed one of her hands in a slow circle over his chest and felt his body tense, so she did it again, and then he was kissing her once more. This time it was hard, and Grace wanted more. One of her hands crept upward and wrapped around his neck, her fingers tangling in the hair that curled at his nape.
“I want to take your nightdress off, Grace. Will you let me?”
She nodded while stepping out of his arms. She pulled it over her head and dropped it to the floor.
“You are a beautiful woman,” he rasped, his eyes devouring her. “I am glad that no one else realized what lay under those hideous clothes you wear, or many men would have knocked on your cousin’s door.”
“I should not do this; be feeling this way when Harry is somewhere out there—”
“Shh.” He closed the distance between them, pressing her into his body. “Whoever has your cousin, Grace, wants something from him; they will not harm him until they have it.”
“But what is it?” Grace looked up at Nick.
“I have a few ideas, but we’ll deal with that tomorrow.” He kissed her shoulder and the heat of his breath made a delicious shiver roll down Grace’s spine. “Now I want to make love to my wife.”
