Marriage by Bargain: Book 3
Taming
The
Viscountess
Ruth Ann Nordin
Wedded Bliss Romances, LLC
Taming The Viscountess - Smashwords Edition
Published by Ruth Ann Nordin at Smashwords
Copyright © 2017 by Ruth Ann Nordin
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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Table of Contents
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Epilogue
Author’s Note
Coming Next: If It Takes A Scandal
Already Available in the Marriage by Bargain Series
All Books By Ruth Ann Nordin
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Dedication: Judy Lavik who has been a great source of encouragement for years. Thank you for sticking with me!
Chapter One
July 1818
It was the night of Lord Edon’s ball when Miss Celia Barlow decided it was time to secure a betrothal to Corin St. George, the Earl of Durrant. She had planned long and hard for this evening, and despite all odds, she was going to succeed.
Since her friend, Loretta Darkin, the Duchess of Lambeth, refused to help her, she was forced to go to someone else. But it had to be someone who didn’t mind stooping to deceptive measures. Depending on someone with a strong moral code would never work. After all, that was why Loretta had said no. It had gone against her conscience.
Fortunately, she was able to find someone who took delight in the task. After paying him, she explained what he needed to do. And really, it wasn’t much. All he had to do was spill a drink on Lord Durrant’s clothes and lead him to the den. Then he needed to talk Lord Durrant into taking off the soiled clothes with the promise of getting the maid to wash them. Once that was done, he would leave Lord Durrant alone in the den.
And that was when she was to make her move. She would slip into the den and remove her gown before Lord Durrant could stop her. Then the person helping her would open the door and “catch” them. The scandal would be accomplished, and she would finally be betrothed to Lord Durrant, the only gentleman in London she wanted.
The plan was guaranteed to work. Except it didn’t. Because by the time she got to the den, Lord Durrant was there with Lady Hedwrett, and they were on the floor, wrapped in each other’s arms. Since several people from the ball saw them, there was nothing she could do about it. The scandal had, indeed, taken place. There would be a marriage. But Lord Durrant wouldn’t be marrying her. He would be marrying Lady Hedwrett.
Anthony Barlow, Viscount Worsley, who was Celia’s brother, knew right away this had been Celia’s doing. To say he was upset about it was an understatement. He was furious. And as soon as he got Celia back to their townhouse, he took her to the den and told her exactly what he thought of the whole thing.
“I can’t believe you did that,” Anthony nearly shouted as he paced back and forth in front of her.
Celia was sitting in a chair, not surprised by his outburst. She’d already known he would be upset when she was planning the scandal. And she’d been fully prepared to take each and every scathing word he saw fit to lash at her.
What she hadn’t been prepared for, however, was the fact that the scandal wouldn’t be a success. At least not for her. Yes, the love of her life was going to get married. But not to her. And that being the case, she couldn’t help but think her brother’s rebuke was unfair.
Anthony spun around and paced to the other side of the room. “I don’t know what to do with you. You’re impossible.” He stopped and glared at her. “You do know you’re impossible to deal with, don’t you? I can’t think of a single more manipulative person in all of London.”
“Well, you weren’t going to help me secure a betrothal to Corin,” she snapped. Really, if she’d had his help, she wouldn’t have needed to take such drastic measures.
He resumed his pacing. “Why should I? Corin didn’t want to marry you. I told you that he had no interest in you.”
“That’s not true,” Celia said. “Corin is just shy with his feelings. It’s hard for him to tell a lady how he feels, and he was waiting until he had enough money to give me a comfortable home.”
Anthony put his fingers up to the bridge of his nose and squeezed it, a signal he was getting a headache.
“Since you’re not feeling well, I’ll go to my bedchamber,” she said.
She stood up to leave, but he held out his hand to stop her. “Sit back down.” When she didn’t move, he yelled, “Do it!”
Reluctant, she did as he ordered. “I don’t know why you’re so upset. Corin isn’t going to marry me. My entire life is ruined. I’m going to spend the rest of my life in this townhouse.”
A tear came to her eye as she thought of losing Corin forever to Lady Hedwrett. If only she’d gotten to that room sooner. Then she would have been making wedding plans in her mind while her brother yelled at her.
“You’re unbelievable,” Anthony muttered. “You do whatever you want with no thought to anyone but yourself. I don’t know what to do with you.”
“You should let me retire to my bedchamber.”
He groaned. “Why is it so difficult for you to think of others before you act? Why do you insist on having your way with no thought to how your actions might affect someone else?”
She gasped. How dare he accuse her of such a thing! “You’re the one who ran off and married a lady while engaged to Loretta. When you came back to London, you didn’t even take the time to explain the situation to her.”
“I made amends with her.”
“Not right away.”
“Well, it was better late than never. And besides, she’s happy with the Duke of Lambeth. Everything worked out.”
“Maybe Corin and Lady Hedwrett will be happy together, too.” She had to force the words out. Never in a million years would she ever want Corin to be happy with s
omeone other than her. But since this retort was all that she had, she spouted it off before she could gag on the words.
“They are not happy about having to marry each other. They had a big fight.”
Celia was secretly relieved, so she decided not to respond.
“I’ve had all I can take of you. You’re not even showing the least bit of guilt over what happened tonight.” He paused then pointed to her. “You will go to your bedchamber. And you will stay there until I’m ready to deal with you.”
She frowned at him. “Deal with me? What do you mean by that?”
“I mean exactly what I said. Until I figure out what I’m going to do with you, you will be restricted to your bedchamber.”
“You can’t do that. I’m your sister, not some animal that needs to be caged.”
“Celia, of all the people I’ve ever come across, you are the most dangerous when you’re free to roam through London.”
She gasped. How dare he?
He pulled the cord hanging along the wall. “The butler will escort you to your bedchamber.”
She jumped to her feet. “I can go there by myself.”
“I don’t trust you. You’ll run out of here and hide at Loretta’s. I need to punish you for what you did, and I can’t do that if you go running off.”
“There’s no need for that,” Celia snapped. “I’m not going to leave this townhouse.”
There was no way she could even if she wanted to. Loretta probably didn’t want to talk to her after what happened the last time they were together. Celia had been rather rude to her and her husband.
“Fine,” Anthony said. “Then the butler will watch you go to your bedchamber. Either way, I need confirmation that you got there.”
Stomping her foot, she glared at him. “I can’t believe you’re treating me this way. I’m not a child. I’m a lady.”
“When you act like a lady, I shall treat you like one.”
She couldn’t believe he said that. Never once had he insulted her so greatly.
A knock came at the door, and Anthony, looking relieved, went to answer it. The butler stood on the other side and nodded while Anthony talked to him in low tones.
Her cheeks warm with anger, she marched over to them. “Lord Worsley doesn’t trust me to go to my bedchamber. You are to play nursemaid and escort me there.”
Anthony glowered at her, but she stuck her nose up in the air and bypassed both of them. Footsteps followed after her as she headed for the staircase that would take her up to her bedchamber. In the drawing room, Damara, her sister-in-law, got up from the chair, her belly slightly round with the child she was due to give birth to in January.
Since the butler was close behind her, Celia didn’t stop to talk to her. It would only give her brother a chance to catch up to her, and she didn’t want him to further embarrass her in front of the servants. Referring to her as a child, indeed! At least she didn’t shirk her responsibilities. If she had married someone while betrothed to another person, she would have had the decency to tell the person she’d jilted right away. She wouldn’t have run off and hid like a little child. So really, it was he who was the child in this family. Not her.
She stormed up the stairs, and with each step she took, the angrier she got. When she reached her bedchamber, she turned to the butler.
“Since I am to be trapped here until my brother decides to talk to me,” she began, “I want a full course meal brought to me. I’ll have oysters, white soup, fish, roasted potatoes, lavender shortbread, baked apples, and orange cream. To drink, I can’t decide between hot chocolate or lemonade, so bring both.”
“Yes, Miss Barlow,” the butler said.
She opened her bedchamber door and glanced back at him. “You won’t forget what I ordered, will you?”
“Do I ever?”
He had a point. “Then bring it promptly. I haven’t had a thing to eat since noon.” She went into her room and shut the door.
In the morning, Anthony would realize he’d been unjustly cruel to her. At that time, she might, or might not, accept his apology. If she had succeeded in marrying Corin, then his behavior would have been justified. But she hadn’t. She’d failed miserably, and because of that, he had no reason to be so harsh with her. She had just lost Corin forever. She’d already suffered enough.
She went to her bed and fell on it. Everything had been perfect. She’d arranged the entire scheme so that it couldn’t fail. She’d spent weeks working on it. She closed her eyes and took some deep breaths. The scandal had gone through perfectly. But she wasn’t the one who’d been in the room with Corin.
Just like that, her entire future had fallen apart. If she wasn’t so angry, she might have cried. But she wasn’t one who was given to tears. As soon as a lady cried, she had to admit defeat. And she hated defeat.
She wasn’t sure what the future was going to bring, but she would never let anyone know she’d been defeated. Ever. As far as everyone else was concerned, this wasn’t the end of her world. Deep down, she’d know it, but it was important that no one else ever did. The only thing she had left was her pride, and there was no way she was going to give that up.
***
The next day, Sebastian Egan, Viscount Erandon, sat in his carriage, staring out the small window, not really paying attention to the people he passed. Even now, he remembered that fateful night he’d lost half of his right leg during the storm that had ensued while at sea. His crewmen had fought their hardest to keep the ship on course, and their efforts had paid off. The ship had survived. They had all survived.
And that did bring him some comfort in the midst of all he’d lost. They’d had to throw everything overboard, including all the whale oil, bone, and blubber they had acquired in order to stay afloat. On top of that, a wave that came up to the ship caused one of the masts to fall down right on top of him. He tried to get out from under it, but it had pinned him right up against the ship. Had one of the crewmen not cut his leg off from the knee down, he would have gotten swallowed up in the following wave that swept over the ship.
Then upon his return to London, he found out his older brother had taken ill, and Sebastian had overseen his burial two days later. And that was when everything came crashing down around him. He spent the next month holed up in the townhouse, not accepting visitors, save the doctor who had the crutch made for him.
Afterwards, the maid went to the task of adjusting his pants so that the right side was sewed up just below the knee. Even as he stared at the place where the rest of his leg had once been, he could feel an itch where his foot used to be. The doctor had assured him it was normal. It’ll take time before you don’t feel as if the rest of your leg is still there, he had said.
Sebastian might have been able to accept losing half of his leg if his brother had survived. But having so much happen at once made it impossible to focus most of the time. It all seemed like one horrible nightmare. Every time he woke up, there was that small window of time, which probably spanned a few seconds, where it felt as if the events had never happened.
In those few seconds, he was back on the ship, enjoying the way the current of the water rocked him from side to side. He was sailing back to London to give his investors the portion of their bounty, and he was going to seek out warmer seas for the long winter months.
But then the reality of all that had happened came rushing back to him, and he was stuck at his brother’s townhouse with the realization that it was all too real, and there was no way to undo any of it.
Now, as he stared at the crutch resting on the seat next to him, he couldn’t help but resent having to use it. All it did was remind him of everything he’d lost.
The carriage came to a stop, and he forced the past aside. As much as hated it, he grabbed the crutch. Taking a deep breath, he steeled his resolve. When the coachman opened the door, he accepted his help only long enough so he could slip the crutch under his right arm.
“I shouldn’t be long,” Sebastian said.
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A few people glanced his way, but he ignored them. Keeping his gaze forward, he used the crutch to walk toward the entrance of White’s. As much as he could walk. It was more like hopping forward. But at least he was getting around without help, which was something the doctor had insisted was important.
Sebastian had never been inside White’s. He wasn’t sure what to expect, but if he could risk his life and limb on the seas, he could show up to a gentlemen’s club unannounced.
When he reached the front door, he thought about knocking but then realized that would be silly. This wasn’t a private residence. He opened the door, and just as he hobbled inside, someone hurried over to him.
“May I help you, sir?” the gentleman who, given his attire, was probably there to serve the members, asked.
Sebastian shut the door behind him and then turned to face him. “Yes. I am here to settle my brother’s debts. He was a member here, and from his ledger, I realized everyone he owed money to is a member of this establishment. I thought it would save time if I came here instead of sending out notes to everyone.”
The gentleman frowned. “I’m not sure that is a wise move. This is an exclusive club. Not just anyone can come in. It might be better if you write those notes.”
“And waste all that time and parchment?”
“It wouldn’t be that much time or parchment, would it?”
“Are you aware that every day my brother’s debts go unpaid, interest is added to the loans?”
The gentleman winced but said, “Unless you’re a member, you can’t just walk in here.”
Good grief. That was the most ridiculous rule he’d ever heard of. After a moment, he quipped, “In that case, I won’t walk. I’ll hobble.”
He went around the gentleman and went further into the room, not paying any attention as the gentleman started stammering in shock. Not recognizing any of his brother’s debtors, he went into the other room and was surprised when he saw Lord Worsley asking a group of gentlemen if they would take his sister off his hands.
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