by Merry Farmer
It was hard for Henry not to laugh. “That sounds awfully clandestine for someone who searches out employment for young women.”
Ellie remained serious, shaking her head. “You know how many people refuse to hire an ex-whore? How many men think that if a girl sold her body once, he can take what he wants for free?”
Henry’s smile fell. “I hadn’t considered.”
Ellie sent him a forgiving smile. “Most people are lucky enough not to have to consider. Bonnie wipes slates clean, gives those of us willing to work hard the chance to be a virgin again, if you want to look at it that way.”
If he were honest, Henry didn’t want to look at it any way where Ellie was concerned. He hated the idea that she had been used and mistreated by so many for so long. It was painful for him to think of what her life had been like before the moment she stepped off the Kestrel, pretending to be Miss Mortimer.
“Don’t feel sorry for me,” she said, shaking him out of the pensive mood that had settled over him. “I’m lounging by a lazy river in a beautiful dress with a strong and handsome man by my side. I’d say that right now, in this moment, my life is just about perfect.”
Her smile was contagious. Warmth spread from Henry’s heart. He reached his free hand to stroke his fingers playfully along her cheek. “I wasn’t feeling sorry for you, I was feeling sorry for myself.”
“What do you possibly have to be sorry for?” she laughed.
The sparkle in her eyes and the pure joy that enveloped her stirred him. “I was wondering if your Bonnie could find a new life for me.”
“What do you need a new life for?” She giggled, and his soul continued to sing. “Your life is perfect.”
“My life couldn’t possibly be perfect without you in it,” he said, suddenly emotional. “Not just now or until the joke is played out. Forever. Without you, I’m useless.”
The way she caught her breath lifted her breasts against the fabric of her bodice. Her cheeks flushed pink, and her mouth opened enough to make her lips soft and tempting. It was more than he could resist. He leaned into her, slanting his mouth over hers and drinking in the perfection of her kiss. Deep pulsing need rose within him, like a dragon uncoiling, ready to breathe fire.
When she didn’t pull away, he took their kiss further. One hand still entwined with hers, he shifted her gently to her back in the lush grass, half covering her. She sighed, cradling his cheek with her free hand before he dipped down for another, longer kiss. The way she shifted under him, arching her back slightly and circling her arms around his back, the sheer acceptance of the embrace, was absolute heaven. His hand trembled as he brushed it along her side and up to cup her breast.
She let out a gentle hum of approval, like a cat in the sun, and it was all Henry could do to keep his wits about him. He rubbed his thumb over her nipple cursing the layers of fabric that separated them. But her dress was complicated, and he wasn’t sure where the buttons were or how he could free her. He wasn’t sure if he should. The intense pressure in his groin, its own form of bittersweet torture, was only made worse by the intensity of their kiss.
A tiny, echoing voice at the back of his head debated how much of a rogue he would be to loosen his trousers and have his way with Ellie when the enthusiasm of her response suddenly stopped. She pushed against his chest, putting several painful inches between them.
“Henry, we can’t,” she said, more strain in her voice than he wanted to hear.
Part of him wanted to scream in protest. He let out a sigh and lowered his head until their foreheads touched. “I know. This isn’t the right place or the right time.”
“No,” Ellie said slowly. She stroked the side of his face. “I’m not…we aren’t….” She sighed, her gaze dropping to his mouth. “This is all pretend.”
There was something dark, almost fearful in her frown.
“I think it’s real,” he whispered, aching for her to see it too. “I know it is.”
Her gaze lifted to meet his. Her hand slipped down to rest over his galloping heart. “This isn’t what I’m talking about.” Her fingertips pressed into him. “What we’re doing is wrong. Deception isn’t….” She bit her lip, more worry spilling into her expression. “Princess Olympia—”
“I don’t care anything about her,” Henry said. “You’re a thousand times the woman she is. I don’t care if she carries all the crown jewels of Germany with her. You’re the one my family has embraced. You’re the one they count as their own. You’re the one they—I—love.”
Something close to the same terror he’d seen in her eyes at her first sight of Albany Court was back. “I don’t want anyone to get hurt.”
“Neither do I,” he admitted, feeling as if he were tangled up in his own deception. “Maybe there’s a way out of it. Maybe we could confess our ruse—to my mother first, and she could help us find a way to tell Father. We…we could come up with another story.” His mind began to spin like a child’s toy. “We could admit that you aren’t Helena Mortimer, but we could construct another identity for you, an identity they will accept and give their blessing to.”
She didn’t seem convinced, which cut through him. “It’s more than that.” Finally, she wiggled out from under him and sat. “Things…things have gone too far. Other people are…involved.” She stood.
Henry stood with her. Something wasn’t right. Of course, everything wasn’t right, and it was his fault. He was the one who had forced her into pretending. He would have to be the one to get her out of it. Then again, there was something new and tense in the way she avoided his gaze.
“I’m just worried that if we let things go too far between us, everything might fall down, like a house of cards.”
“Then we’ll have to be careful about how we proceed,” he said. “That’s all. Just say you’ll stay with me and figure out a way forward.”
“I…I don’t know.”
The more she avoided looking directly at him, the more Henry was certain something was wrong. “Is there something you aren’t telling me?”
The fact that she didn’t answer was as good as a yes.
“I think this whole thing has gotten bigger than the two of us,” she said at last, wringing her hands in front of her.
She was right. His whole family was involved. Princess Olympia too.
He stepped toward her, taking her into his arms for a supportive hug. “We’ll figure things out,” he said. “What we did to start this was wrong, but I’m certain we can finish it the right way.”
Again, she didn’t answer. She merely rested her head against his shoulder and let out a breath. “I certainly hope so,” she said.
He rested his cheek against the side of her head. He hoped so too.
CHAPTER 7
Ellie wasn’t sure why her heart felt so heavy as she and Henry made their way back to the house later in the afternoon. By every measure she could think of, the day had been splendid. Her mind boggled at the extent of Albany Court. She’d never imagined that one family could own so much beauty. Every inch of it was a delight.
But the highlight of her afternoon by far was the sizzling kiss. Henry knew exactly how to make a woman long to do anything and everything with him. He was passionate, yet gentle, insistent, but tender. She had no doubt that if she hadn’t put a stop to things, they would have gone much further than was sane. Because as hot as the spark between the two of them was, she was still nothing more than a reformed whore, he was a titled gentleman, and their whole reason for being together was a sham.
She let out a heavy sigh as she made her way up the staircase to the room that she had no right to stay in. Henry had been called aside by his father as soon as they returned to the house, which left Ellie to her own devices. All she wanted to do was flop on the heavenly bed she’d been given in the amazing guest room she was having a hard time not thinking of as her own and pray for a solution to fall from the sky. There had to be a way she could stay with Henry, even if it wasn’t at Albany Court.
/> And there was his family to consider. Of all things, she worried what Lord Reese would think of her. He was a good man, and she didn’t want him to hate her. Even more, it would break her heart to break Lady Howsden’s heart. Henry’s mother was so lonely. Ellie knew she could be a friend to her. But once the truth came out, it was inevitable that the woman would be badly hurt. If only there were a way to bring out the truth without hurting anyone. If only she could—
Ellie turned the corner, opening the door to her room, and gasped. There, sitting at her vanity, a few unfolded letters in one hand and a photograph in the other, was Olympia.
“Well, well,” Olympia said, a wicked grin on her face, as Ellie entered the room, shutting the door behind her. “Isn’t this interesting.”
“Those are my things,” Ellie said, her voice hoarse with alarm. She knew exactly what Olympia had—the letters Bonnie and some of her other friends had sent her while she was waiting for the ship in New York, probably the ones Millie, Clara, Noelle, and Rose had sent her too, and a group photograph from The Silver Dollar of the girls with some ranch hands from Paradise Ranch. Ellie stood front and center in that photograph, lifting her skirt to show her ankles, Billy Reeder’s arm draped around her bare shoulders.
Olympia replied with a low, devious laugh. “Yes, they are. And they’re everything I need to expose you as the fraud you are.”
Ellie swallowed, taking a step forward as Olympia stood. “What do you mean?” She knew the answer, but she needed time to think.
Olympia grinned at her, chin tilted up, dripping with victory as she strode slowly toward Ellie. “You’re no heiress,” she hissed. “You’re nothing but an attention-seeking whore, out to infiltrate the aristocracy for your own gain.”
“Is that what I am?” Ellie matched Olympia’s arrogance. It burned her to the pit of her stomach to hear the woman accusing her of exactly the things she was guilty of.
“Don’t think you’ll get away with this,” Olympia went on. “Believe me, as soon as I’m done here, I’m going straight to Lady Howsden to show her this filth.” She raised the handful of letters and read, “‘Fine food and a comfy bed are one thing, but I miss sharing that bed with a man who knows how to treat a woman’.” Olympia snorted. “What do you think Lady Howsden will make of that? Do you think you’ll still be her favorite?”
Ellie’s face flushed hot, mostly with anger, but also with shame at would Lady Howsden would think. She had started that letter to Bonnie just the other day, but stopped when it became clear to her that there weren’t words to express how much she longed for Henry.
“That’s not what you think,” she said, crossing her arms and doing everything in her power to stand strong.
“No?” Olympia arched a brow. “And I suppose the grass in your hair and clinging to the back of your dress is not what I think either?”
A stab of guilt hit Ellie, but it didn’t soften her stance. “No, as it would happen, it’s not. You have a dirty mind.”
“And you are dirty inside and out,” Olympia snapped. “You’ll be tossed in the street without a second glance once Lord Henry discovers the truth.”
Ellie fought not to let the surge of triumph she felt over Olympia getting the wrong end of the stick show on her face.
“Lord Howsden will have you arrested and thrown in a stinking, rat-infested prison once he learns how you’ve sullied his good name.”
That possibility wiped the confidence from Ellie’s face. That seemed like exactly the sort of thing Lord Howsden would do.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if his lordship sold you off to his friend, Lord Shayles,” Olympia went on.
An anxious bolt of fear hit Ellie’s gut. “Sold me off?”
Olympia asked, “Don’t you know who Lord Shayles is? What kind of establishment he runs?” She tilted her nose in the air. “But I suppose you’re already used to working in a hellhole like that.”
“I won’t go back to that life,” Ellie said, mostly to convince herself. She’d changed too much, grown too much, to be that woman again. If worst came to worst, she’d appeal to Mr. Gunn to give her a full-time job as a maid at his hotel.
“Ha!” Olympia barked. “You won’t have much of a choice. No one will want you for anything more than fucking once I tell everyone who you are.”
Ellie’s eyes flared wide in offense at the crude word. “A real princess would know better than to use such disgusting language,” she said in clear, perfect German. “But you aren’t a real princess, are you? You’re as guilty of lying as I am.”
Olympia froze, her mouth already opening to make some reply. The color vanished from her face so fast that it was a wonder she didn’t faint. Her eyes went wide, confirming everything.
“I was outside your door for far longer than you guessed the other night,” she said, still in German. “I heard everything you and your maid said. I know that you’re as false as I am.”
“You…you have no proof,” Olympia stammered.
“Not as of yet, but have you been careful enough? Do you think no one will be able to discover your lies?”
The fact that Olympia looked downright ill proved that she hadn’t been as careful as she needed to be. Ellie hoped that was the case. She began to realize that, with a few inquiries, the Howsdens could discover there was no Princess Olympia von Cleves, and that there was an actress from Hamburg that fit her description. She would have given anything to know if Olympia was even the woman’s real name, but at that moment, it didn’t matter.
“I would be very careful about what accusations you throw around,” Ellie went on. “Yes, the truth would be painful for Lady Howsden, but she likes me. Can you say the same?”
“I—”
“And for your information, Lord Henry already knows everything about me. In fact, it was his idea that I pretend to be Miss Mortimer.”
Olympia’s eyes flashed with panic. But a moment later, she reined in her reaction, relaxed her expression, and stood straight. “Well then,” she said, her voice still breathless with panic. “It seems we must reach a truce.”
“A truce?” Ellie narrowed her eyes.
“Yes.” Olympia was scrambling. “Lord Henry may be responsible for you, but as you said, Lady Howsden likes you. Do you really want to disappoint her? And Lord Howsden will be furious once you are revealed.”
She was right about that. Ellie scowled. “Why should that stop me from doing just what you were about to do and going to Lady Howsden with the truth?”
Olympia swallowed and licked her lips, an almost feral light coming to her eyes. “Because if I am exposed, I’ll expose you as well.”
Ellie fought not to wince.
“But—” Olympia took a step forward, handing Ellie the letters and photograph. “—if you keep my secret, I’ll keep yours. This family is lofty enough for the both of us. We could conquer London society together, take our place as icons side by side.”
Did the woman actually think that Ellie was doing what she was doing for glory? But, of course, since power was her motivation, it was only natural that she would assume that’s what Ellie wanted as well.
“Think of it,” Olympia said. “Between the two of us, we could have whatever we wanted from these people. Our names would be in the society pages of every newspaper every day. Women throughout the country would be looking to us for what to wear, which theaters to patronize, which invitations to accept, and who to cut if we don’t like them. Why, look at us now. Even if all of them were standing in the room, we could still plot against them, since we are German and they can’t understand a thing we say.”
Ellie had forgotten she was speaking German until Olympia reminded her. The idea of tricking Henry’s family and saying things in front of them that they couldn’t understand was horrible. And she still wasn’t completely sure she trusted a word Olympia was saying, no matter what the language.
“We can both get what we want here,” Olympia went on. “Take tomorrow’s garden party, for example.
”
“What about it?” Ellie had completely forgotten the party Lady Howsden was hosting for the two of them. All of the local ladies of importance and a few of her friends from London would be there.
“We could work together to ingratiate ourselves to Lady Howsden and her friends.” Olympia glowed with scheming and desperation. “Together, we be whoever we want, and rule them all.”
Ellie hesitated. She hated the idea of doing anything to encourage Olympia. Unlike her—and as painful as it was, in a way—she had no intention of actually marrying Henry or taking anything from his family. In fact, her dreams of finding a way to stay at Albany Court seemed to be crumbling in front of her, no matter what Olympia was suggesting. It wasn’t going to work. It simply wasn’t going to work. There was no way around that.
“I need to think about it,” she said at last, turning away from Olympia and walking to the vanity. She slipped the letters and photograph into the top drawer. “This wasn’t part of my plan.”
“Yes,” Olympia said, an overly-eager lilt in her tone. “You think about it. You think about all of the things we could accomplish if we work together. You’ll see that this is the best way. We just need to keep each other’s secrets. You will keep my secret, won’t you?” The last question was more threatening than cajoling.
Ellie lifted her gaze and met the woman’s eyes. “For now, yes. I’ll keep your secret.”
“Good, good.” Olympia’s smile was as brittle as ice in spring. “I’ll leave you to think, then.”
Ellie didn’t reply. She said nothing as Olympia pulled herself back to her full height and her regal demeanor, then turned and left the room as though she were the victor. That worried Ellie. She didn’t believe for a moment that Olympia would proceed thinking they were allies. More than ever, Ellie had the sense that the end was near.
“THERE’S something I have to tell you.” Henry glanced across to Reese as the two rode back from inspecting a cottage in need of a new roof on one of the tenant farms.
