She was forced to crane her neck to hold his eyes. She pulled in a breath, and with it, came his scent. The blazing depths of his green eyes make her limbs tremble, so she locked her knees.
He opened his mouth to speak, and she cut him off.
“Out of the kindness of my heart, I will allow you this time in which to speak, but in the future…” She leaned in close and felt his breath brush her lips. “Never speak to me that way again. I am not a dog, or a child. Do we have an understanding?”
His eyes closed slightly and then moved to her mouth.
She felt the urge to lick her lips but refrained from doing so. She didn’t actually want to tempt him, just tease and make him realize all he’d pushed away. She’d decided it that morning, after taking a short trip to shop for gloves with Lucille.
Today had been her first adventure as the New Rachel, and New Rachel had ruled every room she’d gone into. She hadn’t realized how much power a dress and some curls could hold, until the shop clerk nearly tripped over himself just to get to her before another. And then there had been the gentlemen. Every man in the room had offered to hold her small purchase.
And she’d realized that while a part of her might always be drawn to Reuben, New Rachel would not beg for any man’s love.
“What did you do to your face?” he asked after a beat.
“Nothing,” she said. “Well, Lucille used something around my eyes, but made sure it was subtle. Lucille says a lady can wear enough make up to tempt her husband, but not his friend. There is a fine line.”
He drew his brows together. “You’re not married.”
“Then I suppose I can tempt whomever I wish.” She shrugged a bare shoulder and watched his glaze follow the move. The caress of his gaze nearly burned her alive.
His dominating glare cut to hers again. “You sound and look like a strumpet.”
She shrugged again. Lucille had told her Reuben would say that. In fact, her and her lady’s maid had become quite close. She’d spilled everything about her feelings, not that Lucille hadn’t already known. She may have been a quiet servant, but she was very observant.
She knew she didn’t look like a strumpet. Susanna, on more than one occasion, had worn dresses far more risqué than the one she had on. It would take time for Society to grow used to her this way, but that would come with time.
Still, Reuben’s words hurt, but she took comfort in one thing. Though his words were hard, not even Reuben could hide the warmth that was building in his eyes, or the flush that covered the tops of his cheeks.
“What are you wearing?” he growled.
“Did you call me out here to talk fashion? Surely, you have better things to do with your time.” That part of her that liked being near him was starting to take control, and she needed to be away from him as quickly as possible.
“Has your father seen you?” he asked.
She looked away. “Not yet, but that’s no concern of yours.”
He grabbed her arm. “I’m taking you home.”
She pulled herself out of his hold and stepped back, glaring at him. She was still a child in his eyes, it seemed. That hurt, but instead of letting herself feel it, she turned it to anger. “I’m not going anywhere with you. Don’t you remember? You told me to stay away from you, and I plan to do just that.” Though she had come today, not only for her concern for Alicia, but because she knew Reuben would be here. He could look at her, but he could never touch her again.
She couldn’t take it.
He moved closer. “Rachel.”
“My lady, are you all right?” Nash came into the room. She’d not even heard the door open.
Reuben turned on his brother. “Leave us.”
Nash came to stand next to Reuben, meeting him in height, but beating his lean athletic body in muscle. Nash was, by all standards, gorgeous, but he never tempted Rachel as Reuben did. “I’ll leave if the lady wishes me to.”
Reuben’s face lost all expression. “Nash, you don’t want to challenge me.”
Nash lifted a brow and grinned.
Rachel touched her lips. She’d only wanted to tease Reuben a little. She didn’t want to start a war. Reuben was acting like an overbearing protector, and hopefully, that would change with time. “Nash,” she called sweetly. When his luminous blue eyes turned in her direction, she went on, curving her lips into a smile. “Thank you for your aid, but I’m perfectly fine. Reuben and I are simply having a chat.”
Nash returned the grin, which only made him more beautiful, before giving her a small bow. “Very well, but you let me know if you need anything.”
Reuben forced the words. “She won’t need anything from you.”
Nash looked at his brother again, and then left.
Reuben turned to her the moment the door closed behind him. “Men can’t think with you looking like that.”
She batted her lashes lightly. “You’re thinking, and a man… as far as I know.” Too late, she realized her error.
Reuben grabbed her and pressed her back against the wall. His eyes turned a deadly forest shade. “Do you need reassurance of my sex, my lady?”
Her fingers curled, and everything within her heated, boiling with the need to shout ‘yes!’ She wanted his mouth on her. She was weak where he was concerned. She didn’t want to be weak anymore. “No.”
“Too bad,” he hissed, right before he seized her mouth.
REUBEN WAITED for her to push him away. To slap him. He deserved it. He’d kissed her at the party, and then had abandoned her and her aunt, to the care of his footman. If anything, she should loathe him. She had every right to have strolled in here today, and forced him to take hold of everything she fought against. He hadn’t earned the right to kiss her, would never be worthy of her soft warm mouth, that was wonderfully palatable under his own.
He’d tried to forget how sweet she was. She sighed into his mouth, and her arms went around his neck, pulling him closer and giving in to him.
She shouldn’t have. He was unworthy, and yet he had no intentions of stopping.
His hands went to her shoulders, expecting fabric, but instead they met skin that felt like silk. He trailed his fingers down her arms, exploring what was exposed.
Her hands slipped down to his chest, and then with a force he’d been unprepared for, how she pushed him.
Having been so caught up in the kiss, Reuben lost his balance, tripped over the rug, and fell onto the carpet. His hands took most of the impact, but a sharp pain struck his palm. He looked down to find glass. He looked up, to see that this was the room at the attacker had thrown the brick into. The glass still rested on the floor, as there were no servants to clean it up, and Alicia was keeping the children together.
He sat up.
“Oh, Reuben.” Rachel knelt down beside him, avoiding the glass, and took his hand. Her eyes watered. “Oh, I’m so terribly sorry.”
He grunted. “I deserved it.”
“Not this!” She looked full of panic, her eyes watered.
He frowned. “It’s not deep.” There was only a single piece protruding, and though it was large, it hadn’t bitten too deep.
Rachel stood and looked around the room. “I need water and a rag. I should get help. I’ll—”
“Rachel,” he called warily.
She looked at him, once again in control of herself. “Don’t move.” She pointed a finger at him as though he should obey, and then she fled the room.
She may have looked different, but she was the same woman he’d always known. That, he was sure of. A light breeze was blowing through the room from the gash in the window, and with it, came the thinned noise from the street. A brick may have been thrown through a window, but it took more than that to stop the businesses in Paddington.
In the quiet, he thought about kissing Rachel, and then thought about the first time he’d done so, and how he’d very much like to do it again. It didn’t matter what she wore or how she styled her hair. She was still the warmest
person he knew, and though a part of him was frightened by his feelings for her, he knew no greater peace than being with her.
He heard her footsteps minutes before she and his sisters rushed into the room.
“I’ll get a broom,” Alex said, before she fled. Being a countess hadn’t stopped her from putting off any work that needed to be done.
Rose had a bowl of water and sat at Reuben’s side, as Rachel took his hand again. His sister brushed his hair back from his forehead as though he were a young boy. “What happened?”
“I fell.”
“I pushed him,” Rachel countered. Though her movement over his hand was gentle, her expression was not. “He kissed me, and I was forced to defend myself.” The glass was set free of his hand and then a dry rag was pressed against his palm, and even the slightest sense of pain vanished.
Reuben was caught off guard by the fact that she’d uttered the truth.
Rose also looked surprised, but only for a moment. “Serves you right, then,” she said to Reuben. “You’ve compromised a lady.”
His gut tightened. Those words were the last any gentleman wished to hear.
“Yes, but compromised or not, I’ll not marry him,” Rachel said, with her eyes on the rag.
Her words should have released the tension inside of him, but instead, it only grew worse. He was such a coward. He’d take her if he was forced, but was unwilling to do so by choice?
Rachel’s gaze rose to his. “Does it hurt?”
He almost wanted to ask her what she referred to. Was it his hand she worried over, or his heart? “A little.”
Slowly, she turned her gaze back to his hand and lifted the rag. The gash was small, but ugly. He looked to see how it affected Rachel, but instead of disgust, he saw his own pain reflected.
Alex returned with the broom and swept up, before leaving to throw the remains away.
Rachel dipped the rag in water and began to clean him.
“I can do it myself,” he told her without any true feeling, yet still he leaned in closer, and the smell of soft flowers filled his lungs. He wanted her to stay, and was glad when her only response was the thinning of her lips, before she continued with her work.
Rose gained her feet and sighed. “Well, I’ll go check on Alicia, since you seem to be fine in here.” She left, sporting a mischievous smile, and once again, he and Rachel were alone.
“I hope you didn’t plan to use this hand tonight,” she told him, her head still down. This close, he could count her darkened lashes. “Once it’s bandaged, you should leave it alone for a while.”
He took a moment to think, and then said, “Well, I did have plans to go to the cotton factory tonight.”
She paused, and finally tilted her head up to look at him. An inch more and their mouths would meet again. “To look for furniture?”
He nodded slowly.
Her lashes fluttered, and then she was wringing out the blood, to wipe at his hand again. “Make sure you get the best of everything there, enough to outfit each room. I was thinking you should go with dark pieces. Walnut or elm would do well.”
“You could select which furnishings you deem best, when you come.”
* * *
18
CHAPTER
EIGHTEEN
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Rachel heard the invitation, and knew she could go, because it was clear that she couldn’t control herself where he was concerned. “I already have plans.” And she truly did. There was a dinner party she’d been invited to. Aunt Esther was coming with her, though such events were the worst for people who could hardly hear.
Reuben’s next words stunned her. “You already gave me your word that you would come.”
She removed the rag and looked at him, his hand now cold and clammy, but still between hers. “You told me to stay away from you.”
“But Lady Esther would enjoy the trip much more than a dinner party, and I’ve always liked that woman.” His calm green eyes gave nothing away, but she could hear the honesty in those words. It was likely that he was in fact, doing this for Aunt Esther.
She reached for the bandage and slowly began to bind him, as she thought. She didn’t have to think long. “I’m sorry, but I must attend the dinner.” She would take her aunt another time— a time when she was sure Reuben would not be there. With his hand bandaged, she stood. He stood as well, but she refused to meet his eyes as she moved to the door. “I’ll go say my goodbyes, and then head home. Good day, Lord Eastridge.” He didn’t stop her, and she ignored the pain as she wished her friends goodbye, and promised to keep Alicia in her prayers, before leaving.
REUBEN REMAINED in the room, deciding to tend to the window, rather than join his family in Alicia’s office, but not just so he could see that Rachel, Rose, and Alexandra made it safely into her carriage, but also, because of the man he saw approaching the door. The hired guard allowed Barney into the house. The dragoon walked swiftly to Reuben and handed him a note, speaking as he did so.
“Lord Eastridge. This is from Lord Jasper.”
Reuben took the note but frowned. “Jasper gave this to you? How did he know we knew one another?”
Barney shook his head. “I have no clue, but the man apparently knew I’d been hired to follow him.”
It was likely that the former military man had simply used the skills he’d learned as a soldier, but it was even more likely that Jasper simply knew everything that happened around his club— even outside of it.
Barney went on, as Reuben broke the seal. “After you left the club, he made some inquiries and may have found something. He gave it to me to give it to you, and to make sure you knew that it didn’t come from him.”
Reuben read the note, and a series of emotions came over him, all hitting him so quickly that he couldn’t tell one from the other. He read the note again and then looked at Barney. “Did he share how he came into this information?”
Barney shook his head. “If you want, you can ask him yourself, but it’s likely he wishes to wash his hands of the mess entirely.”
“Why do you say that?” Reuben asked as he pocketed the note.
Barney’s eyes narrowed. “He seemed anxious, my lord.”
Reuben nodded. “Thank you. Now, I have a new man I wish for you to follow.”
Barney straightened, as if it were possible.
Reuben lowered his voice before he said the name that had been written on the note. “Lord Castell.”
Barney, to his credit, didn’t show an ounce of shock at hearing the royal name. There was a blink and then a bow, before he left to do exactly as he’d been asked.
Reuben had to speak to Jasper, to make sure what he’d just read was correct. Was Lord Castell the assassin?
He remained by the window long after that, until Matthew came, the perfect distraction. Together, they found wood to block the broken glass, until a new one could be ordered and made. They were finished by the time Chris and Nash came to seek him out. They were the last men he wanted to see.
Nash was grinning, in a way Reuben knew the man knew would irritate him. Chris, on the other hand, was expressionless. His dark eyes, their usual calm.
Reuben turned to the only person he didn’t mind speaking to, but sadly, it was only to send him away. “Thank you for your help.”
Matthew grinned and then left.
Chris started speaking the moment they were alone. “We need to discuss what we’re going to do about the Blue Blood Coalition.” His eyes cut to Nash, when he saw the man was about to speak. “A civilized response.”
“Why are we the ones who need to be civil?” Nash began to pace, his fists balled at his side before he thrust them into the air. “It’s not fair.”
“Do you want to go back to prison?” Reuben asked. “Do you want to make Rose and Alexandra cry again? Never see their children grow?”
That cooled Nash, but only slig
htly. “We have a duty to the children here. We can’t allow these mad men to attack innocent souls.”
Chris’ eyes widened. “Well, then, that’s it.”
Nash’s eyes cut to him. “What’s it?”
We’ll start a campaign on that.” Chris leaned against the wall, his hands in his pockets. “We’ll run articles in the paper about the Blue Blood Coalition injuring the innocent, children who’ve already been abandoned, and have little else, but the very lives that the rich terrorize.”
Reuben hummed as he assessed the words. “That will not go over well.” Commoners, and those of the aristocracy who had a heart, would never stand for small children being hurt. “It’ll make the Blue Blood Coalition seem barbaric and very ungentlemanly.”
Nash crossed his arms and nodded. “That should stop any more attacks of this sort, and likely cool the Blue Blood Coalition down for a time, but it won’t stop them all together.”
“No, it won’t,” Chris said. “But it’s a solution for the moment. Now, all we need is to find editors who would be willing to run the story.”
Nash said, “I can ask Lord Iverstone. He knows a few editors.” The Duke of Iverstone was the Scottish lord who’d set Nash free, after Nash had saved his youngest son’s life in prison. Now, Nash worked for the Scottish lord as a boxing instructor, while doing other odd jobs on the side.
Chris nodded at him. “Get on it, then.”
Nash left ,with anger still burning in his eyes.
Once they were alone, Chris turned to Reuben. “Are you all right?”
It took everything in Reuben not to flex his hand, and prevent it from healing quickly. “I’ll be fine… if you two would leave Rachel alone.”
Chris’ expression didn’t change, but he colored. “She caught me off guard.” Just as she’d done to Reuben.
He went over to the couch and sat. He used his good hand to run it through his hair. “It’s not wise for her to dress that way. She attracts enough attention, by her face, alone.” And then there was the note. Reuben stared at Chris. “Close the door.”
Tales of a Viscount Page 13
