“Or that my cousin’s lover would turn out to be so bloody good at manipulating people into doing her bidding,” Trevor added, swirling the brandy in his glass. “I don’t recall seeing her more than a few times while the dowager was still staying in Ormond House, but she never gave me a reason to suspect her of what happened to Isabella.”
“She was there all the time,” Con added, leaning forward on his elbows. “I think we tend to forget just how powerful servants can become over time. They know so much about our lives. When we have relations with our wives, when we fight, when we make up. And a servant like Simmons, who as the dowager’s ladies’ maid was of the highest rank in the house with the exception of the butler and the housekeeper, has the most power of all. She holds the same sway in the servants’ quarters as the dowager does in the family’s.”
“What gets me,” Trevor said, “is that she was able to infiltrate the family so easily. What’s to stop some other person with a grudge against us from slipping in through the back door like that?”
“Nothing,” said Archer wryly. “To some degree you have to trust that the people you hire are there because they need the work. And you must trust your own instincts.”
“Well, I can tell you this much,” Con said with conviction, “I won’t ever make the mistake of blindly trusting a servant again. From now on it’s going to be suspicion they’ll get from me until they can prove they aren’t hiding something.”
“It’s a shame, really,” Archer said, finishing his brandy. “Before all this we were so innocent. We trusted our servants. We believed that women and children were off limits when it came to dark plots. We thought only strange men we didn’t know beat their wives.”
He shook his head and continued. “Now there is an awareness of how ugly our world can be if you only scratch the surface a bit. It’s disillusioning, to be sure.”
“But it also makes me appreciate the good things more,” Trevor said with a smile. “The servants you do trust, time spent alone with your wife, really good friends.”
“Did you hear that, Archer?” Con said with a grin. “The duke just paid us a compliment.”
Trevor made a face. “Who said I was talking about you lot? As far as I can tell you’ve only made my life more difficult. You”—he pointed at Archer—“for leaving me in the lurch without a private secretary.” Then he scowled at Con. “And you for causing Isabella so much worry by engaging yourself to Perdita then changing your preference to Georgina.”
“That is annoying,” Archer agreed. “Especially because you knew I was head over ears for her!”
“Stuff,” Con said dismissively. “You didn’t tell me about your preference for her until after we broke it off.”
Turning to Trevor, he continued, “And as for you, I was engaged to Perdita for less time, I’m sure, than it took for you to kiss Isabella for the first time. And my affection for Georgina happened well before you even got to Bath, so I do not accept that our joining forces hindered you in the slightest.”
Archer sighed. “I suppose we’re going to have to agree to disagree.”
“Pax?” Con asked, looking from one man to the other.
“Pax,” Trevor agreed.
“Now,” Archer said standing, “let us go search out these troublesome brides of ours. For I have the most fearful notion that they are plotting against us.”
“Whenever the three are gathered,” Con confirmed, “there is always a higher possibility for mischief among us.”
“I rather enjoy the mischief,” Trevor said with a grin. “It definitely has its benefits.”
“It does, indeed,” Archer agreed, thinking of just how mischievous Perdita had been that morning. “I think we’d better hurry,” he continued. “I find myself very much in need of another dose.”
Laughing, they left the club in search of their respective wives.
* * *
Alone in their bed that night, having just finished what Perdita considered the sweetest lovemaking since they’d become involved, the newlyweds snuggled together. “Just think,” Archer whispered against her hair, “if you’d married Con, you would not have been gifted with my far superior lovemaking skills.”
“You must get over your obsession with Con,” she said with a sigh. “We didn’t even kiss. That is how engaged we were.
“Besides,” she continued, “I can’t think of Con that way anymore. Not while he’s married to Georgie and they’re so amazingly happy. I never thought I’d see her look as carefree as she did when they danced at our wedding.”
“It was rather a relief,” Archer said, stroking her back, “to see all three of you ladies able to enjoy yourselves without the threat of harm or some awful disturbance ruining everything.”
“It’s been a long while since any of us were able to sleep soundly or enjoy more than a half hour at a time without remembering something awful, or worse, experiencing it.”
“Which reminds me,” Archer said disentangling himself from her and climbing out of bed. While he walked, Perdita allowed herself to appreciate her husband in all his naked glory. It was a beautiful body, not least because she trusted that he’d never use it as a weapon against her.
As she watched, Archer slipped into the dressing room that adjoined their bedchambers. She heard the sound of a drawer opening and closing. Finally, a triumphant grin on his face, Archer came back clutching a jeweler’s box.
More curious than she could admit, Perdita sat up against the headboard, and waited while he slipped back into bed beside her.
“My dearest Perdita,” he said with an uncustomary serious expression, “from the moment we met I knew you were going to be important to my life. I simply didn’t know how important.” She felt her eyes well up at his words, especially since she’d felt the same way about him. “I saw this a few years ago—yes, I know, I was being extremely premature—but I had to buy it for you. Because to me, you share its strength, but also its fire. It is hard to break, but even then, it is still beautiful.”
Archer gave her the box, and carefully, as if she were handling spun glass, she opened it. And gasped. Nestled within the folds of the black velvet that lined the box she saw the most perfectly cut ruby pendant she’d ever seen. Removing it by the chain which held it, she watched in wonder as the candlelight illuminated the fiery facets of the stone which was set simply in gold. It was the most beautiful thing she’d ever laid her eyes upon.
“How did you know?” she asked her husband, not daring to look away from the gem lest it disappear from her hand. “How did you know years ago that I could be as strong as this? As fiery.”
“Call it instinct,” Archer said with a shrug. “I knew from the moment we met that you were tough. I only learned how tough later. And, unfortunately, when it was too late to help you.”
“Don’t say that,” she said, turning to look him in the eyes. “You helped me in countless ways you weren’t even aware of. Just knowing you were in the house reminded me that good men did exist.”
She let him hook the chain around her neck, and though she longed to see it in the glass, she chose instead to turn around and give him the most frantic kiss she’d ever initiated. “I love you so much, Lord Archer Lisle.”
“And I love you, Mrs. Lisle,” Archer said, kissing the tip of her nose. “Do not ever doubt it.”
And Perdita knew she never would. She knew now what love was. And she would never, ever let it go.
Also by Manda Collins
How to Dance with a Duke
How to Romance a Rake
How to Entice an Earl
Why Dukes Say I Do
Why Earls Fall in Love
Novella
The Perks of Being a Beauty
Praise for Manda Collins’s delicious Regency novels
WHY EARLS FALL IN LOVE
“With its shades of I Know What You Did Last Summer and strong gothic overtones, Collins’s latest is a chill-seeker’s delight. Along with the surprising climax, readers w
ill thoroughly enjoy the well-crafted characters, the charming setting, and the romance that adds spice to the drama.”
—RT Book Reviews
“Sparkling romance amid mystery.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Combining love, wit, warmth, suspense, intrigue, emotion, sensuality, interesting characters, romance, and plenty of danger, Ms. Collins has created another enthralling story.”
—Romance Junkies
“Award-winning author Manda Collins brings sensual historical romance to a new level with wit, heart, and beautifully written detail, finely drawn characters, and a flair for fun.”
—Examiner.com
WHY DUKES SAY I DO
“Witty and smart, Collins’s prose flows smoothly as she merges a charming, compassionate love story with gothic suspense … Add strong pacing and depth of emotion, and there’s no doubt this is a winner.”
—RT Book Reviews (Top Pick, 4½ stars)
“Collins has a deft touch with characterization, and she expertly weaves a thrilling thread of danger throughout the story. Why Dukes Say I Do is highly recommended for readers who enjoy their historical romances with a generous soupçon of suspense.”
—Reader to Reader Reviews
“Manda Collins pens a charming, romantic tale with Why Dukes Say I Do.”
—Single Titles
“Totally engrossing, witty, and suspenseful.”
—Tulsa Book Review
HOW TO ENTICE AN EARL
“The last of the wallflowers moves into the spotlight as Collins spices up a charming love story with a liberal dose of suspense … The passion sizzles and the mystery holds reader attention enough to satisfy.”
—RT Book Reviews
“Another very pleasant read by Manda Collins. She writes Regency with a light, enjoyable touch. Nicely sensual, and very steeped in the period. Good romance.”
—Affaire de Coeur
“There were enough twists and turns in the murder mystery to keep me guessing [and] the love scenes were deliciously sensual. This was an entertaining ending to the trilogy and I’m looking forward to reading more of Manda Collins’s books in the future.”
—Rakes and Rascals
HOW TO ROMANCE A RAKE
“With her trademark wit and charm, Manda Collins has penned a deeply romantic and emotionally satisfying story in How to Romance a Rake. Her heroine is plucky and tremendously appealing, and I cheered for her well-earned happily ever after.”
—Vanessa Kelly, award-winning
author of Sex and the Single Earl
“Collins’s second installment of the Ugly Duckling trilogy is both a lovely, sensitive romance and a taut thriller. Collins brings a dashing hero and a wounded wallflower together in the type of love story readers take to heart. With compassion and perception, she delves into the issues faced by those who survive physical and emotional trauma. Brava to Collins!”
—RT Book Reviews, 4 stars
“Absolutely delightful, How to Romance a Rake, the second book in talented author Manda Collins’s Ugly Duckling series, is an emotion-packed, passionate historical romance.”
—Romance Junkies, 5 stars, Blue Ribbon Review
“How to Romance a Rake is a wonderfully moving story about two damaged people coming together to form a unique bond. Manda Collins is now on my auto-buy list, and I can’t wait for the final book in this series.”
—Rakehell, Where Regency Lives
About the Author
Manda Collins spent her teen years wishing she’d been born a couple of centuries earlier, preferably in the English countryside. Time travel being what it is, she resigned herself to life with electricity and indoor plumbing, and read lots of books. When she’s not writing, she’s helping other people use books, as an academic librarian.
Visit her website at: www.mandacollins.com
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
WHY LORDS LOSE THEIR HEARTS
Copyright © 2014 by Manda Collins.
All rights reserved.
For information address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
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eISBN: 9781466815384
St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / August 2014
St. Martin’s Paperbacks are published by St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Why Lords Lose Their Hearts Page 25
