by Jane Goodger
Claudia slapped her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with horror. “Oh, I’ve ruined the surprise! After our wedding, Father was going to show it to you. It’s to be completed by then. Father is hiring an army of workers to get it done on time, and it was to be the best of surprises.”
“He certainly looks surprised,” John said, with obvious controlled laughter. “Right next door, did you say?”
“Oh yes. It shall almost be like I’ve never left home. And when we have children,” she said, blushing prettily, “my mother will be right there to help. It really is the perfect solution. I’m already so dreadfully homesick.”
“I can’t be away from my estate months at a time, my dear. Surely you know that.”
Claudia waved a dismissive hand. “Oh, that’s all right. I’ll be fine in New York while you take care of your estate.”
“Sounds lovely,” Melissa said, giving Graham a searching look, which he studiously ignored.
“Wouldn’t you rather be with your husband?”
This from Katherine, uttering her first words, which were like sharp little needles pricking his skin.
Claudia gave Katherine the oddest look, almost a “please shut your mouth” look, and one that seemed to amuse Katherine. “I mean to say,” Katherine added, “if I was a new bride I would want to spend every minute of every day with my husband. Unless, of course, he was an onerous, humorless cad.” She raised one eyebrow and glanced at Graham.
Claudia giggled. “You would never marry anyone like that.”
“You’re right,” she said pleasantly. “I would not.”
John cleared his throat uncomfortably, and Lady Willington looked a bit confused.
“When is the wedding?” Melissa asked brightly.
“Next spring. May, perhaps. New York is so lovely in the spring.”
Sir Stiley clapped his hands at that very moment, calling for attention.
“After dinner this evening, I thought it might be great fun to play bridge,” Sir Stiley said. “And as we have an equal number of men and women, we’ll pair off as couples. We’ll play two rounds, and after those two rounds, the couple with the lowest score will be eliminated until there are just two left. Champions will win these vases.” With a flourish, Sir Stiley showed off two stunning, intricately painted vases. “I’ve assembled all names in a hat and teams will be formed randomly. I know some of you couples are a force to deal with and I wouldn’t want anyone to have an unfair advantage,” he said, to the laughter of several in the room. “Now, if you’ll all proceed to the dining hall . . .”
Katherine felt a cloak of dread fall over her, which quite ruined dinner. Two long tables had been set up in the dining hall, and Graham had been seated at the other table, nearly as far from her as possible. It had been a blessed relief. How could she be expected to act as if he weren’t in the room, as if his very presence wasn’t making her heart physically ache? She had to pretend all was well, pretend she wasn’t on the verge of tears, pretend she was looking forward to playing bridge, to possibly being paired up with him. If she was, she would plead an illness.
Earlier that evening, her mother had pointed out several young and not-so-young men with titles, ranging from an earl to a baron, but she had little interest. “You’d think you had a beau back home you were pining over, for all the attention you are paying to these men,” her mother had said. “Your father has invested a great deal in this trip.”
“I know. It’s just that they all seem so . . . pompous.”
“Not all of them. Lord what’s-his-name over there seemed very pleasant.” Elizabeth nodded to the young baron whose Adam’s apple protruded rather disturbingly. He had, indeed, seemed pleasant, but Katherine wasn’t certain she could get used to that thing on his throat bobbing up and down whenever he spoke.
“I will try, Mother. I know I haven’t been putting forth an effort and I do appreciate this trip,” she said, only to placate her mother.
Katherine had been seated next to a Mr. Robert Coulton, the heir presumptive to Viscount Newton. He was a pleasant enough fellow, with striking blue eyes that protruded just a tad and teeth that were slightly bucked, but he wasn’t altogether ugly. He was also brilliant and talked with her as if she were an equal. How she loathed being patronized by men, but Mr. Coulton never once made her feel inferior. She found herself hoping she would be partnered with him for bridge, for they just might win.
After supper, they all assembled in a large parlor where several velvet-covered card tables had been set up. Though Rufford Abbey was a rather homely residence, its interior rooms were, with few exceptions, large and ornate. The parlor was well lit with gaslights, and a good thing, too, for the walls were all darkly paneled and the ceiling high above them. Sir Stiley had, perhaps, made an attempt to lighten the room with cream and gold-colored furniture, but Katherine still felt it had an oppressive air. Perhaps the monk was about, frowning upon their card playing.
Sir Stiley went to the front of the room and stood before yet another grand fireplace, and began drawing small cards from two baskets, pairing the couples for bridge.
Alas, when it came time to draw, she was paired with the general, but she was slightly gratified to see Mr. Coulton give her a look of disappointment. Katherine wasn’t certain she could be civil to the general, given what he was doing with her mother.
But he was such a jovial, kind man it was difficult to maintain her anger. General Lawton had their opponents in stitches, which at first Katherine thought was a particularly astute strategy to distract the other players. Unfortunately, it soon became clear the man was dreadful at cards. Perhaps, Katherine suspected a bit later, it was his intended strategy to lose quickly. For her mother, an excellent bridge player, was out the first round after being paired with a put out–looking gentleman. She shrugged, then took the general’s proffered hand, smiling up at him. Oh, the nerve of those two, Katherine thought. They’d obviously lost on purpose.
Graham and his partner, an ancient lady who appeared to be unable to read her cards correctly, were also victims of the first round. Claudia, however, displayed surprising and remarkable skill—and she’d luckily been paired with Mr. Coulton, who looked happy enough to be winning at bridge.
As each round passed, the losers milled about, forming small groups, but Katherine, not knowing anyone other than Graham, stood alone, acutely aware of Graham doing the same. With the weakest players removed, the games became far longer. Katherine was thinking she should go to her room. She couldn’t wait there for an hour for the match to end with Graham standing not a few yards away from her. Katherine could feel him there, but she couldn’t tell where he was looking, and, despite her better judgment, decided to sneak a look—and found herself staring directly into his eyes.
She smiled weakly at him, and he gave her a small bow. Letting out a sigh of defeat, she walked over to him and stood there a few moments in silence.
“How have you been?” he asked softly.
Miserable. I’m in love with you and you don’t even know it. I want to throw myself into your arms and feel you hold me. I want you to know that I die inside every time I hear your voice. Instead, she said, “Fine and dandy.”
“Good. I was afraid you were unwell. Forgive me, but you look tired.”
“Oh, we’ve been going to parties nonstop. I’m weary from all the excitement and dancing and fun we’ve been having.”
“I see.”
Her heart felt like a ball of lead, her throat ached, and Katherine wasn’t certain how long she could stand there pretending to be happy before she burst into tears. She wanted to shout at him, to call him a stupid clout for marrying a woman who didn’t love him, even though she knew the marriage was the best thing for him. She wanted to tell him she loved him. Suddenly, a small bit of weight lifted from her heart. Yes. That was it. She would tell him. She knew it wouldn’t make a bit of difference to him, but it would make a world of difference to her. “I need to tell you something,” Katherine said, �
��but this is not the place.”
Katherine looked up at him, then walked out of the room, praying he would follow. He should know that she loved him. It wasn’t fair that he didn’t know. She wanted him to realize fully how her heart was breaking. Perhaps he wouldn’t care. And even if he did care, she knew it would not alter his course. But Katherine had the terrible urge to tell him. Maybe if she said the words out loud, they would cease to fester inside her; she would be purged of this awful feeling.
Katherine walked into the library and looked about, even though she’d been quite certain it would be empty. For such a large house, the library was relatively small, and lit only by a single gas sconce above the fireplace. The fire hadn’t been lit and the room was a bit chilly, and Katherine rubbed her hands over her arms to warm them.
“What do you want to say to me?”
Oh, thank God. She turned, drinking him in with her eyes. All other men paled in comparison. His gray eyes looked almost ethereal in the dim light. She swallowed down the growing lump in her throat, praying she could get through this without crying. “I know it’s not fair, and I know it changes nothing.” She took a shaky breath. “But I love you.” She smiled tremulously.
His brows snapped together. “What did you say? No, don’t repeat it,” he said when she started to open her mouth. He looked as if she’d just told him the most dreadful news.
“I thought you should know,” she said softly.
“Why. Why should I know? So that I should be more tortured than I already am?”
“No. Actually, it was meant to make me feel better,” she said miserably. “It didn’t work.” Her eyes filled with hated tears and she looked away from him, willing herself not to cry.
He stood there a long moment, several feet from her, looking at her as if he were angry. “I should go,” he said, and she nodded. But neither moved. “I’m not going to kiss you again.”
“I know.”
“I’m not.”
“I . . .” And then in two long strides, she was in his arms, crying out from finally, finally holding him against her. He kissed her ravenously, her face, her forehead, her lips, as if trying to make up for all those days they’d been apart and all the days to come.
“What are you doing to me?” he said, tucking her head beneath his chin and holding her tightly against him. She wrapped her arms around him, squeezing, trying to make him impossibly close to her.
“I’m sorry,” she said, hating that she was making him so unhappy. He pulled back to look gently into her face.
“What are you sorry for?”
She shrugged and kissed him, letting him know how much she loved him, how much she would miss him. He deepened the kiss with a groan, one hand moving up to caress her breast, the other pulling her closer, against his arousal and the proof that he wanted her.
“I want to make love to you,” he said, trailing kisses down her neck.
“Yes.” Oh yes, yes, yes.
The neckline of her gown was just deep enough that he could push the material aside and expose one breast. She groaned as he did, and whimpered when he laved his tongue over her nipple. When he gently sucked, she nearly cried out from the sheer pleasure that shot from her breast to between her legs. He spent long moments making love to her breast, until she was liquid.
“Touch me,” he groaned. She knew what he meant, and the thought of touching him there was both thrilling and a bit frightening. “Please.”
She moved her hand to the large bulge in his pants and watched his eyes drift closed as she did. He hardened even more beneath her hand, and she smiled at the wonder of it.
“Oh God, Katherine. If you knew what that felt like. You are unmanning me.” He took her hand and guided it slowly up and down as his breath became more ragged. In a sudden rush, he dipped his head once more, taking her nipple in his mouth and sucking.
“Oh my God.”
Graham’s head snapped up and, with a swift movement, covered a dazed Katherine’s breast.
Standing there in the door, eyes wide and mouths agape, were Katherine’s mother, the general, Lady Summerfield, Sir Stiley, and Lord and Lady Willington.
There was no slow dawning of what Graham had just lost. No, it struck him with the force of a tidal wave, swift and painful. And suddenly, those words uttered by Katherine right before she kissed him took on a new meaning. “I’m sorry,” she’d said without offering an explanation.
Now he knew what she’d meant.
Chapter 12
“Katherine, come here,” Elizabeth said, in a tone that brooked no argument.
The small group entered the room, faces grim, as Graham’s hopes for his people crumbled beneath his feet.
“What is happening?” Katherine asked. Surely she knew. Hell, from the happy gleam in her mother’s eye, she certainly knew.
“Go with your mother,” he said firmly.
“Graham, what is happening?”
“Graham,” Mrs. Von Haupt gasped, coming on the scene, and Graham nearly groaned aloud. If there had been any hope of hiding this event, it was now lost. “How dare you use his given name!”
“Katherine, now,” Elizabeth said, holding out her hand as if she were a recalcitrant child.
Graham watched her leave, his heart torn. Could she have been complicit in this? He could not believe it of her. He could not. He shut his mind away from Mr. Chase’s words of warning. She’d looked stunned when they’d been discovered. Hadn’t she?
When Katherine had been led away by her mother, most of the others followed. John and Mrs. Von Haupt, whose face had gone quite purple, remained. John moved into the room, giving his silent support by standing opposite the irate Mrs. Von Haupt.
“Tell me this isn’t what I think it is,” she said. “My daughter is not three doors away and you are in here cavorting with that little slut.”
“Do not disparage Miss Wright,” Graham bit out.
She let out a bitter laugh. “How pathetic that you defend that ambitious little whore. She has been well schooled, my lord, by a mother who knew precisely what she was doing. By a mother who nearly did the same to me twenty years ago. Did you know that? Ah, I see you did not. She was vying for my husband, and he nearly broke it off with me. But my husband was an honorable man and could not be swayed by a trollop. Don’t you see, sir? This is her revenge, and her daughter knew all along what she was about.”
Graham was stunned to silence. It could not be true.
Mrs. Von Haupt looked at him with disgust. “We’re leaving in the morning. My husband will make certain to destroy that contract you so flagrantly violated.” She went to turn, then stopped. “I do feel sorry for you. No doubt you are a proud man, and to be duped like this must be unpleasant. But you have hurt my daughter, sir. There will be reparation.”
As she was leaving, Graham saw Claudia at the door and heard her say, “Is it true, Mother?” Her mother nodded, grabbing her daughter’s arm and leading her away, and Graham distinctly heard Claudia say, “I can’t believe she did it.”
He knew he should run after them, apologize to Claudia, but he couldn’t bring himself to. Instead, he walked woodenly to the nearest chair and sat down. “This cannot be happening,” he muttered.
“She could be wrong about Miss Wright,” John said. “The old hag was angry. Understandably angry.” Graham shot his friend a look, and John smiled innocently.
Graham buried his head in his hands. “Oh my God, what have I done?” He sat, breathing heavily for a time, then stood and rushed to the window, threw it open, and vomited violently. When he’d recovered, John was there holding a glass of brandy, which he took and drained.
“You said Miss Wright is an heiress?”
Graham sat back in the same chair and nodded.
“Then she comes with money. Right?”
“Not nearly enough. I have let my people down. I have lost Avonleigh and Bryant Park. People, good hard-working people, will suffer because of what I have done this night.”
> John hunkered down next to his friend and laid a firm hand on his forearm. “Perhaps I can help a bit. Perhaps not all is lost. Avon, listen to me. Let me look at your books. I’m a bit of a genius, it turns out, at cutting costs and making money. I’ve nearly doubled our barley yield at Flintwood. My father was stunned.”
Graham nodded, but he doubted John could do much to save his home. “The thing is, the worst of it is, I love her.”
“Miss Wright?”
“Yes. And if she’s complicit in this, if she planned it . . .” Graham could not complete his thoughts. His eyes burned and he thought he just might vomit again. John put his arm on his back, and that gesture of kindness nearly was his undoing. He pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes and clenched his jaw against the pain.
“She didn’t,” John said firmly.
Graham took a deep breath. “No, she couldn’t have.”
“Mother, I can’t marry him. He has to marry Claudia,” Katherine cried. “He has such plans for his estate, to help his tenants. They are living in terrible conditions, and Graham is ashamed about the condition of their houses. He is such a proud man, and this will kill him.”
“Oh, he won’t die, I can assure you. I know it all seems terrible now, but if you do care for one another, you’ll get by. You might think I found you with a stable boy, and not a marquess. Oh my goodness, you’re to be a marchioness!”
Her mother’s happiness over this horrid event was fraying the last of her nerves.
“He has to marry Claudia.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Katherine. Mrs. Von Haupt is no doubt packing her bags as we speak. It wasn’t as if I was the only one who saw the two of you. You did have quite an audience.”
“Oh God.” She’d been sitting on the edge of her bed, but at her mother’s words, she threw herself back. She brought her hand up to touch the mermaid pendant she always wore and gasped. It was gone. She had no idea when or where she could have lost it. The pendant could be anywhere in the vast halls of Rufford Abbey and if any servant did find it, they would no doubt discard the cheap piece.
