‘Not such a great strategist, are you, if even I can see that we might need to contact one another before Tuesday? I can foresee any number of circumstances arising which might require me to contact you. And there will be no way for me to do so openly. Lady Penrose would never let me have private communication with a young man.’ She shot his scarred face one scathing glance. ‘A relatively young man,’ she corrected herself, ‘without close supervision. Do not be deceived by the fact she allowed us to sit outdoors for the duration of this dance. Normally she guards me far more closely.’
‘I am not a bit surprised,’ he snapped, stung by the way she’d once again pointed out that he was far too old and battered for a fresh young beauty like her to give him a second glance. ‘If I were in charge of you I would post guards on your door at night.’
‘It would not do you a bit of good if you did,’ she replied waspishly, ‘since I always go out by the window when I do not wish anyone to know where I am going.’
She could not believe he had goaded her into saying that when it was completely untrue. She had only crept out that way once since coming to London, and the outcome had been so appalling she had vowed never to do so again. She could not believe, either, the power he had to wound her when she scarcely knew him. Or that he could make her so cross that she could not stop herself from lashing out in a completely irrational manner.
His shocked gasp did, at least, give her a moment’s satisfaction. But only until she took her seat beside Lady Penrose and watched him walk stiffly away—when she realized she would have much rather heard him praise her for her resourcefulness and thank her for being so helpful.
And how likely was that?
* * *
Lady Jayne had never looked forward to a trip to the theatre so much. She couldn’t wait to see Lord Ledbury’s face when he saw she’d prevailed upon Lady Penrose to take Milly along as one of their party. Lady Penrose had not minded in the least. It was not as if she’d begged to have Milly admitted to a ton event. Why, anyone could go to the theatre.
And one morning in Milly’s company had convinced her that Lord Ledbury was being as ridiculous as her own grandfather had been. There was no sensible reason why he should not marry Milly. She was just as bright and far more pleasant than any well-born lady he was ever likely to meet.
Besides, the way he’d criticised her at the Cardingtons’ still rankled. She was determined to show him that not only could she teach Milly how to dress well, but she could turn her into the kind of woman he could take anywhere.
Lord Ledbury was waiting for them in the doorway to the box he’d acquired. He greeted Lady Penrose before turning to her.
‘This is Miss Amelia Brigstock,’ she said, the second he noticed who was standing beside her. ‘I do hope you don’t mind me bringing her along? Only she is such a very good friend of mine.’
The smile of welcome stayed on his lips, but to her surprise it died from his eyes and the muscles in his jaw twitched as though he was grinding his teeth.
She watched in mounting bewilderment at the total lack of any perceptible sign of softening from Lord Ledbury as Milly curtsied, and offered her hand, and blushed prettily, exactly as any young lady just presented to such an imposing aristocrat might have done.
Having been as short with Milly as politeness would allow, he then turned his attention back to her.
‘Permit me to introduce you to the other members of my party,’ he said.
She felt very uncomfortable as she took his arm and allowed him to lead her into the box. She couldn’t understand what she had done wrong. Why had he not seemed pleased to see how well Milly could behave in polite company after only a few lessons in etiquette? There had been a kind of suppressed excitement about her, but she did not think anyone who did not know the whole story would have been able to detect anything untoward in her demeanour. Why was he not bursting with pride at her accomplishment?
And then she wondered if she had been terribly insensitive. He looked as though he was just barely keeping the lid on a seething cauldron of various hurts and resentments at a time when he was still, to judge by the pallor of his complexion, very far from well. The poor man had no idea that she was trying to prove to him, and the world, that Milly could easily take her place at his side, given a little instruction. Having her thrust under his nose like this, when he clearly still believed he could never marry her, looked very much as though she had twisted the knife in the wound, which was the very last thing she’d wished to do.
‘You already know Beresford and his sister,’ he said as they acknowledged her.
Lucy was not behaving half so well as Milly. She was so excited to be one of such a select party that it looked as though her brother was only just preventing her from prostrating herself at Lord Ledbury’s feet.
‘And now I must introduce you to one of the few military men still fortunate enough to be stationed in London,’ he said, ignoring the adoring way Lucy was gazing at him. ‘Lieutenant Kendell.’
Then Harry, who had been hovering in the shadows cast by the pillars holding up the tiers of boxes, stepped forward, bowed smartly, and said, ‘Honoured to make your acquaintance.’
Her stomach lurched. She found herself hoping, as she curtsied and held out her own hand, that she was managing to conceal her reactions half so well as Milly had just done, when Harry took her hand, tucked it into the crook of his arm, and tugged her away from Lord Ledbury.
‘Allow me to help you to your seat,’ he said aloud. In her ear, he murmured, ‘This is intolerable. He pursued me to the barracks. Now the devil has me on such a short leash there is no way I can escape him. He will ruin me if I step out of line.’
Lord Ledbury clenched his fists as he saw Kendell bend down to whisper in Lady Jayne’s ear. The system that sent good men off to die while no-goods like this Kendell remained behind to prey on vulnerable heiresses was monstrously unfair. Not that the boy would be much good on the battlefield, he sneered. He wouldn’t want that handsome face bashed about, or his uniform sullied.
He indulged himself with a vision of striding across the box and planting Kendell a facer to stop the man taking the chair next to Lady Jayne’s. The fool! Could he not see that not only was he drawing attention to them by behaving in such an obvious manner, but he was also making her uncomfortable?
Well, he couldn’t rearrange the man’s face, but he could spare Lady Jayne’s blushes by distracting his other guests from what was going on.
Turning his back on them, he devoted himself to doing just that.
‘My darling,’ Harry murmured, ‘we cannot go on like this. It is such torment.’
‘Oh, Harry,’ she said, gazing mournfully into his ardent face.
She dreaded having to tell him it was all over. But it was wrong to keep him dangling like this, in a mix of agony and hope. The longer she put off the moment of parting, the worse it would be for him.
‘Come to me where we met before,’ he begged her. ‘This time I shall have a carriage waiting, so that we can escape from them all. Forever.’
‘No!’ Oh, this was dreadful. He was still thinking in terms of making a runaway match, while she was looking for an opportunity to sever the connection entirely.
‘You need not be afraid,’ he said cajolingly. ‘I understand how badly Lord Ledbury frightened you, coming upon us like that and uttering all those threats, but I swear I shall never let him hurt you. Once we are married I can protect you from him, and a
ll those like him. My treasure…’
‘It is not that,’ she snapped. There were so many things wrong with that statement she did not know where to start. She was not afraid of Lord Ledbury. And she did not need Harry to protect her from him or anyone. And how dare he accuse her of being too timid to run away with him? If he thought her so lacking in nerve then he did not know her at all! If she had really loved him nothing would have made her hesitate. Nothing!
She glanced round at the other occupants of the box. Lord Ledbury was standing next to Milly, including her in a conversation that also encompassed his other guests. Whilst also managing to distract Lady Penrose from the fact that she and Harry were standing far too close, and whispering…
‘Then what is it?’
She would scarcely get a better chance than this, whilst everyone else was busy exchanging greetings and deciding which chair to take. Now was the time to tell Harry it was over.
Time to stop making excuses for herself. Time to grow up and shoulder responsibility for her actions, not feebly hope somebody else would sort out the mess she’d made. She should never have taken up with Harry when he came to London searching for her, no matter how wonderful it had felt to have him persist in his pursuit of her in the face of her grandfather’s objections.
She took a deep breath, looked him straight in the eye…and pictured the aftermath. Harry would be devastated when she told him it was over. Nor would he be able to disguise his hurt, or the fact that she had caused it. He was not made of such stern stuff as Lord Ledbury. Nobody, to look at him, would ever be able to guess he was experiencing such deep emotional as well as physical pain.
In fact at that moment she did look at him, and it struck her that now she had owned up to not being even slightly in love with Harry that Lord Ledbury cast him completely in the shade. The very perfection of Harry’s features, when compared with Lord Ledbury’s battle-scarred visage, made him look…well, like a pretty youth play-acting at being a soldier. While Lord Ledbury was the real thing.
‘Oh, Harry.’ She sighed again, shaking her head. She could not do it. Not here. It would be downright cruel of her to dash all his hopes in front of these theatregoers. ‘I…I just want to talk to you, that is all. Alone.’
She needed to tell him it was over in a private place, where his grief would not expose him to any loss of dignity. And if that meant breaking her pact with Lord Ledbury, to see him only where he could watch over them, then so be it. She owed Harry that much.
‘I don’t suppose…’ She caught her lower lip between her teeth as a plan began to take shape in her mind. ‘Can you get an invitation to Lord Lambourne’s masquerade ball next week?’
‘I dare say I could. And everyone will be in costume anyway, so the hosts won’t know if I’m someone they’ve invited or not if I tag on to another party. It will be perfect. You are a clever girl…’
Lady Jayne cringed. Harry was the only man who had ever given her such unstinting praise. How she wished she could return his regard.
Seeing her pained look, he became all solicitude. ‘It will be difficult for you, though, escaping from your dragon of a chaperone, will it not?’
Actually, she did not think it would be as hard as all that. They had already discussed the event at some length. They both knew that her grandfather would never approve of her attending such an event. But Lady Penrose had admitted that she thought it was a pity, since it was just the sort of thing for a girl of her age.
‘I shall contrive something,’ she said, biting back her impulse to defend Lady Penrose from the slur on her character. ‘Don’t I always?’ To her shame. She really had to stop going behind her chaperone’s back.
And she would!
Once she had freed herself from Harry.
‘Yes!’ Harry hissed in triumph, seizing her hand and giving it a squeeze. ‘I shall count the hours until we can be together again. Truly together…’
Lord Ledbury saw the proprietorial way Lieutenant Kendell grasped Lady Jayne’s hand and wanted to knock the bounder’s teeth down his throat.
He broke off the conversation in which he’d been engaged quite rudely and strode across the box. He had no idea what the young man had been saying, but he could see he was making Lady Jayne uncomfortable. And, even though he knew she would resent his interference, he could not stand by one second longer, doing nothing.
‘Have a care,’ he growled at Harry. ‘You ought not to be standing so close. Are you trying to draw attention to yourselves? Do you want Lady Penrose to suspect you might be the very man Lady Jayne was sent to London to avoid?’
Harry flushed, and let go of her hand.
‘Miss Brigstock,’ he said, beckoning Milly over. ‘The performance is about to begin. Do take this seat next to your friend.’
Harry glared at him, but could hardly object to his host ordering the seating arrangements—particularly not when he was only just supposed to have been introduced to Lady Jayne. With bad grace, he took a seat behind the girls. And Lady Penrose herself sat beside him.
It was a good seating arrangement from Lord Ledbury’s point of view. Milly soon took Lady Jayne’s mind off her own woes by mercilessly making fun of the actors on the stage, who were very far from being the most talented he’d ever watched. Before long, Lady Jayne was giggling behind her fan.
He had never seen her looking so carefree.
That was when he understood why Lady Jayne had taken to Milly so quickly. Her parentage was irrelevant. They were both about the same age. And Milly had brought sunshine into her life.
He was just congratulating himself for being indirectly responsible for chasing away the shadows that her entanglement with Kendell had cast over her, when Milly did something that made his blood run cold.
Chapter Five
She laughed. That was all. But Milly had the most infectious laugh he’d ever heard. It was what had drawn him to her in the first place. What had drawn many of the younger officers to her father’s billet.
Anyone who’d ever heard that laugh would never forget it. They would take a second look at the shapely and assured young woman at Lady Jayne’s side and perceive beneath the Town bronze the ragged girl with the dirty face who’d been the regiment’s darling.
A shiver of foreboding went down his spine. Even though most of the men who might have recognised Milly had already been deployed, she could still pose a threat to Lady Jayne’s reputation. It would only take one of the more curious amongst the idlers loafing around the gentlemen’s clubs to investigate his background and discover that he’d been living under the same roof as Milly for over a year. That once he’d moved into Lavenham House he’d had set her up in her own dwelling and given her a generous allowance.
And assume she was his mistress.
People were already casting speculative looks towards the occupants of their box. There would be no end of conjecture about each of his guests, and why he had invited them to form such a small, select group.
What conclusions would they draw about how his ‘mistress’ had come to be on terms of intimacy with Lady Jayne?
He cursed himself roundly. He’d been annoyed with Lady Jayne when she’d criticised his strategy, since he’d proved himself a skilled tactician time and time again on the battlefields of the Peninsula. But perhaps she’d had a point. He wasn’t used to manoeuvring through the morass that was polite society, or considering the fragility of a woman’s reputation.
At that moment Lieutenant Kendell le
aned forward and said something in Lady Jayne’s ear. She forced her lips into the semblance of a smile, but it was a far cry from the natural gaiety she’d been expressing before. She was so good at masking her feelings that everyone else would probably conclude that she was freezing out an importunate young man who was trying on his charm with her, the same way she always did. But he detested the effect her lover was having on her.
If he ever found any evidence to prove the fellow did not really love Lady Jayne, he would make damn sure he never got near her again.
He glowered across the box and Kendell sat back, leaving Lady Jayne in peace for the present. It was the best he could do for now with regard to Kendell, but he could definitely deal with the potential for disaster he’d created by introducing her to Milly.
When it came to the first interval he made his way to Lady Jayne’s side and with a jerk of his head dismissed Kendell.
She was so glad he’d come to her rescue. She did not think she could take much more of Harry’s endearments. They made her squirm with guilt.
And, from the way Lord Ledbury had been glaring at them, Harry had been far too obvious in spite of the earlier warning. She lifted her chin, bracing herself for the scold she was sure he was about to give her, though for the life of her she could not think how she could have prevented Harry from making a spectacle of himself. Surely it was Harry to whom he should be addressing his concerns?
‘This association with Milly is getting out of hand,’ he said the moment Harry had moved out of earshot. ‘I never imagined, when I asked you to give her a touch of style, that you would take her up this way.’
An Escapade and an Engagement Page 7
