An Unbending Lady for the Desperate Earl: A Historical Regency Romance Novel

by Emma Linfield

  You heartless harpy. Christian had half a mind to say it out loud, but propriety held his tongue for him. Instead, he turned to Victoria, and used her presence to bolster his resolve.

  “This is my cousin, Lady Laura.”

  Victoria gave an elegant curtsy. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Your Grace.”

  You are quite the thespian, Victoria. It enthralled him to watch such a well-executed performance. There was hardly a hint of her true self to be found. She had even altered her voice to a quiet, delicate timbre, while her demeanor spelled grace and gentility, from the way she clasped her hands in front of her waist to the swan-like incline of her neck, to the perfect way in which she had dipped one leg behind the other to show respect to the Duchess.

  “Ah, your cousin!” the Duchess cried, not bothering to hide her delight. “I have not seen you in London before. Where do you hail from, Lady Laura?”

  “My family’s seat is in Ireland, but I have spent much of my life on the continent.” Victoria feigned sudden sadness, brushing her fingertip beneath her eye to pretend she had mustered tears. “My beloved Mama and Papa were recently taken into God’s gracious arms, and my dear cousin has been kind enough to welcome me into his home, to spare me from loneliness, as I have no one left in this world.”

  The Duchess clutched at her chest. “You poor darling! Oh, how thoughtful and generous you are, Lord Galbury, to offer this dear soul some sanctuary, regardless of your own suffering. Such magnanimity!”

  “It is the least I could do,” Christian replied stiffly. “In truth, I believe she came to me at the very moment I needed her, in order to spare me from my own grief and loneliness. Or at least distract me from it.”

  Victoria looked at him in barely-concealed surprise. He didn’t know why he’d said that, nor where the words had come from, but they had tumbled out, nevertheless. And, deep down, he realized he meant them. Had Victoria not entered his life in the whirlwind manner that she had, he reasoned he would have been entirely lost at sea, trying to come to terms with the loss of Helena. Victoria had given him hope. She had given him a purpose, and a means of finding Helena—his dear friend and childhood confidante—whom he would not have been without, even if he did not love her in the way he ought to.

  You have kept me sane, Victoria. You have stopped me from feeling utterly helpless in this situation. I owe you an enormous debt of gratitude. He hoped he was managing to convey some of that sentiment in his eyes, as they continued to gaze at one another.

  “Family is so very important at such times,” the Duchess nodded, oblivious to the emotions sparking between Christian and Victoria. “And what an exquisite young lady your cousin is. I imagine her card shall be full within moments of setting foot in the ballroom.”

  “I lack the spirit for dancing, at present,” Victoria replied solemnly.

  “Of course. How thoughtless of me.” The Duchess shook her head slowly. “But you will contemplate dancing, Lord Galbury, will you not?”

  Christian smiled politely. “I do not think that would be proper of me, considering Lady Helena is still unaccounted for. But I trust that Lady Jane will be in possession of a full card before the night is over.” He gave Victoria’s hand a gentle tug. “Now, if you will excuse us, we will be on our way to try and enjoy some of this fine music.”

  The Duchess looked crestfallen as Christian led Victoria away, but Lady Jane appeared relieved. He pitied that poor girl. It could not be easy to have a tyrant for a mother, who would stop at nothing to acquire a suitable husband for her. But that husband wouldn’t be him.

  “Have I mentioned how deeply I abhor the upper echelons of society?” Victoria whispered, with a glint of irreverence in her eyes. “Why, the Duchess may as well take her daughter to market and have her sold to the highest bidder. Whatever happened to love?”

  “It has little room to grow in these harsh conditions,” Christian replied quietly. “And, sometimes, when love does bloom between two people, it is torn out and given to someone else, prompting it to die before it has had chance to flourish.”

  “That sounds like a very sad state of affairs.” Victoria’s expression changed to one of sympathy.

  He nodded. “The saddest.”

  He was about to say more, when a figure crossed his path. Tall and slim, with hawkish features that made him constantly appear as if he were scrutinizing something. One of the names that graced his list of suspects. Sir John Regis.

  Chapter 11

  “That is Sir John?” Victoria whispered, as she stood on the sidelines of the ballroom with Christian. He had just pointed out the fellow.

  Christian nodded. “Yes.”

  “Are you thinking what I am thinking?” Victoria’s heart raced.

  “That he is tall and thin, as Miss Jennings described?”

  Victoria sipped her champagne for courage. “Precisely.”

  “Then yes, I am thinking what you are thinking. Which makes a pleasant change,” he teased, though she could tell he was only using humor to cover his own tangible anxiety.

  “We must watch what he does, and we must not let him out of our sight,” Victoria warned, following the path of the tall man through the gathered crowd.

  “Agreed. Though, there is something more I should tell you,” he said, his tone hushed.

  “What?”

  “None of the other individuals on this list are present, aside from Lord Mobberley.” He gestured to another fellow in the crowd—a much broader individual, with a sizeable chest that threatened to expel the buttons of his waistcoat. He had dark-blue eyes and a jowly chin, though he still had an impressive height to his stature. Shorter than Sir John, but not by much.

  At that precise moment, Sir John paused beside Lord Mobberley, the two gentlemen having a brief discussion that Victoria couldn’t hear. She attempted to read Lord Mobberley’s lips as he talked, in the hope of gaining some fragment of their conversation topic, but Sir John’s head kept getting in the way.

  Frustrated, her gaze moved down to the little fingers on Lord Mobberley’s hands. No ring flashed back from either. However, on his left hand, she noticed an indent where a ring might have been. The sort of warping of flesh, forged over time, where jewelry had been worn day-in, day-out, until the skin had finally bent to its shape.

  “Do you see anything?” Christian said.

  Her chest gripped in a vise of nerves. “There is a mark on his left hand—Lord Mobberley’s. It looks as though there should be a ring there, but he has neglected to wear it.”

  “I see it!” Christian hissed, a second later. “What do we do?”

  Victoria took a breath. “Nothing, for now. We cannot apprehend him based on the evidence of a mark on his hand. He could explain it through any number of means. No, we must proceed with caution. We watch the two of them closely, and we keep guard over Miss Longacre. If they are here, and they are our kidnappers, then she is in grave danger.”

  “This way.” Christian took her arm unexpectedly and pulled her through the masses, toward a young lady who seemed to be the center of attention. Victoria could see why. The young woman was truly the most beautiful individual Victoria had ever set eyes on, with peaches and cream skin that held a flush of pink upon the plump apples of her cheeks. Every feature could well have been crafted by the heavens themselves: her nose was petite, giving way to full lips which needed no artificial reddening, and her eyes were big and blue, like two sapphires gleaming within crystalline pools.

  My goodness… I must look an absolute toad in comparison. Ironically, I am indeed wearing green. Victoria would’ve liked to cast distaste upon this young woman, given her high birth and unbelievable beauty, but there was something about the girl’s manner that forbade any ill-thinking. Her smile was warm and genuine, and her laugh lifted the spirits without invitation. And though she was surrounded by admirers, she took pains to ensure that every single person felt seen, either by gesturing at them, calling their name, or placing a gentle touch upon an a
rm.

  “Miss Longacre,” Christian said, dissolving the mystery of whom this remarkable belle might be.

  “Lord Galbury!” Miss Longacre placed that tender touch on his arm. “I had not expected to see you this evening. Indeed, we were just discussing you, and how sorry we would be that you might be absent. No one would have blamed you for being absent, of course, considering what you are enduring at this current time.” Her expression turned sorrowful, which made her even more beautiful.

  How is that possible? Victoria couldn’t fathom it, for when she looked sad, she thought it added several layers of ugliness to her already unusual features. And, if she ever happened to cry… goodness, it was better that nobody saw her, for they would be terrified out of their wits!

  “We are so very sorry, Lord Galbury.” Miss Longacre’s lower lip trembled. “If there’s anything we may do to lessen your sorrow, then you must let us know. I am sure the authorities are doing all they can, but it is hard to feel hope with so many other ladies missing. You must not be alone in such times. For that reason, I am pleased to see you here tonight, so that I know you are not in solitude, fretting for your love.”

  That last word hit Victoria in a most bizarre spot—right in the center of her heart. Curious, as she had thought her heart to be an impenetrable fortress that nobody could surmount. But hearing Miss Longacre refer to Lady Helena as Christian’s love… it had a very startling effect on her. One that blindsided her entirely, rendering her mute when she ought to have been jumping to the defense of the authorities.

  “Thank you, Miss Longacre. It is helpful to have distractions, I suppose.” Christian bowed his head and gave Victoria’s hand a subtle squeeze.

  Am I the distraction? He had mentioned it before, with that harridan of a Duchess, saying that she had come along at the very time that he had needed her. The memory of it made her heart feel all the stranger, for it hadn’t sounded like the artifice of a performance.

  Every moment she spent in Christian’s company seemed to throw her deeper into a web of confusion. In all her three-and-twenty years upon this Earth, she had never been at war with her own mind. Nor had she ever lost hold of her self-assurance. Until now. Because of him.

  I knew it was a bad idea to involve myself in the lives of the upper echelons.

  “And who might this sublime darling be?” Miss Longacre turned her attention on Victoria, bringing her out of her private bemusement.

  “This is my cousin, Lady Laura,” Christian answered. “She’s residing with me until she is ready to return to her family seat in Ireland, after the tragic passing of her mother and father—my aunt and uncle.”

  Miss Longacre swept Victoria into an unexpected, albeit restrained embrace. “You poor, poor thing. How fortunate you are, to have such a kindhearted cousin to help you in your grief, and how fortunate he is, to have you to aid him in his time of darkness.”

  “Um… thank you, Miss Longacre,” Victoria managed to reply, though she didn’t know what to do about the embrace. She barely embraced her mother, let alone anyone she did not know. As such, her arms seemed to have no idea how to behave, so they simply stayed stiffly at her sides.

  “If it pleases you, I would like to offer an invitation to the two of you, to join me at luncheon one day this week? Whilst the authorities continue their search for Lady Helena, I shall take it upon myself, as my personal duty, to see to it that you are both perpetually distracted until there is some speck of good news.” Miss Longacre smiled so brightly that Victoria didn’t think she could decline such an offer. If she could have found her tongue, that is.

  “That would be very generous, Miss Longacre.” Christian seemed to have little issue with his tongue, which surprised Victoria. Most of the other gentlemen surrounding Miss Longacre had transformed into drooling fools who could hardly string a sentence together, unless it was to flatter Miss Longacre ceaselessly. But Christian… he spoke to her as if she were a sister, or an acquaintance, unperturbed by her beauty.

  How can he stand before such an angelic creature and not be tongue-tied? Why, I should say even I am somewhat in love with Miss Longacre, and I have known her all of a minute. Either he was in possession of some exemplary restraint, or she really did not have any effect on him whatsoever.

  “I do not imagine you will dance this evening?” Miss Longacre said.

  Christian shook his head. “Only with my cousin, but she is not in the right spirit for frivolities.”

  “I should imagine not.” Miss Longacre offered Victoria a sympathetic look. “How awful, that your households should have been afflicted with such pain, with such brief reprieve between awful events. It does not seem just. I truly am sorry for your sufferings.”

  “Perhaps a dance would improve my mood, after all,” Victoria blurted out, though she instantly wished she could shove the words back into her stupid mouth.

  What is the matter with me?

  Christian eyed her curiously. “It would?”

  She shrugged. “I… well, I don’t know.”

  “I think it would be a splendid idea,” Miss Longacre chimed in. “Lord Galbury, why not take your cousin for a turn about the floor? She has been through enough, from what I have heard this evening. I should very much like to witness her smile and, as it is my coming-out ball, I must insist on seeing you both cheered.”

  Christian covered Victoria’s hand with his. “I would be only too happy to oblige, for I also dearly wish to see her smile.”

  Oh goodness, what have I done? Victoria had not the slightest idea how to dance well. Her mother had attempted to teach her, in her youth, but she had been an unruly and unwilling student. Now, that had come back to bite her.

  But… she found that she did, very much, want to dance with Christian. Perhaps it was seeing his behavior toward Miss Longacre, and noting how unmoved he was by her, that had inspired her to be closer to him. Indeed, it made him stand out as a finer gentleman than any of these other gawping monkeys. Or perhaps she truly had taken leave of her senses. Either way, with so many people watching and waiting for a conclusion, she could not evade the suggestion that she, herself, had foolishly made.

  “Then, let us partake in one dance, so I may see how I feel afterwards.” Victoria swallowed her terror. She had faced brutes in darkened alleyways and defended vulnerable women against violent husbands with nothing but a pistol and her sharp tongue, but she would rather have faced a thousand of those than face a dance in such a public arena.

  “As you wish.” Christian urged her away from the group and over to the melee of dancers, who moved in perfect synchronization with the wonderful music of the orchestra.

  “Christian,” Victoria gasped, as they waited for the dance to end and a new one to begin, so they might slot into the mix.

  “Yes?” he replied.

  “I don’t think that I can do this,” she admitted. “I am no dancer. I did not lie about that. Truly, I have no idea why I suggested this. I suppose I wanted to observe the room from a central position, to see what Sir John and Lord Mobberley are up to, but now I think this may have been the wrong manner in which to go about it.”

  Christian chuckled. “I shall instruct you. I will not permit you to look foolish, you may be assured of that.”

  “My gown may have other ideas.” She sighed anxiously, just as the music ended and the dancers who did not want to continue left the floor.

  Christian led her into position, standing opposite her, as the orchestra struck up the next tune. True to his word, Christian instructed her through every step, discreetly mouthing what came next when he was too far to whisper it in her ear.

  “And step around me in a square, coming back to your original mark,” he said, as she duly followed his words. “Now press your palm to mine, and step back, then forward, then back. Yes, exactly so. You are a natural.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Now I know you are teasing me. You shall dine out on this for weeks, I am sure.”

  “Why would I? You desire to
improve your dancing. If I were to taunt you, that would make me a very cruel tutor indeed.” He smiled. “Now, take the arm of the lady beside you, and turn a full circle, then do the same with me.”

  She became so engrossed in the movements, and fixing on Christian’s every instruction, that she soon forgot that she was supposed to be observing Sir John and Lord Mobberley. Truthfully, she had never felt this sort of liberation before—a pure feeling of elation that took over her entire body. Leisurely pursuits that were solely intended for the purpose of enjoyment had never been part of her upbringing. So, all of this was entirely new to her.

  Is this… happiness? The music, the dancing, Christian’s inviting gaze, and the fleeting touches of his hand against hers all drifted over her in an all-consuming wave of contentment. She could have stayed there for hours, listening to his voice, guiding her through every step. She partially blamed the champagne that she had gulped down, and the snifter of brandy her mother had given her, but perhaps there didn’t need to be blame when something felt so wonderful.