The Seduction of Scandal (Scandals and Seductions 5)

by Cathy Maxwell

  It seemed too simple.

  And what of Freddie? Will dismissed him. Cory was his and he’d let no man take her away from him. Scandal or not. If they had to leave Ferris, he would go. They could travel to the Netherlands or Italy. Perhaps even cross the ocean to the American continent.

  He could even think about going to Barbados. The idea had been forming in the back of his mind. Corinne had nurtured it with her questions about his parentage. What if his father had been as caring as Mark Broxter? What if he’d made a decision in haste and regretted it?

  What if his father was looking for him? That had been a boyhood fantasy—that his real father searched for him. Will had set it aside years ago, but there was always a “what if?”

  Setting the kettle on the fire to boil, Will planned to make tea for Corinne and carry it upstairs to her. Of course, what he wanted to do was climb back into bed with her. He could spend his life making love to her. He amended the thought—he would spend the rest of his life making love to her.

  He sensed someone behind him and turned. Cory stood in the doorway wearing nothing more than the sheet from his bed. Her eyes were lazy with sleepiness. Her smile stretched across her face. Her glorious hair fell past her shoulders in a tangled messiness that begged a man to touch it. He hardened immediately.

  “Good morning,” she said.

  “Will you marry me?” he answered.

  The words came right out of his mouth without preamble or thought—and they were exactly right. He did want to marry her.

  Her smile widened. “You still love me then?” she asked.

  “More today than I did yesterday. But you are the one who needs to consider. Cory, I have so little, but everything I have is yours. Heart and soul.”

  “You are my fortune,” she answered. “I woke up this morning, Will, and life is absolutely wonderful. You are my destiny.”

  “We will have to leave Ferris.”

  She smiled, understanding. “I know. This is hard. You belong here, don’t you? You care for the people here.”

  He shook his head. “I spent most of my life in school and rarely came to Glenhoward. But from the moment I took over this living, it has been a good home. However, my life has now changed. Wherever you are is home to me.”

  “Yes, I will marry you,” she answered. “Yes, yes, yes. Now come here so I can seal my pledge with a kiss.” She stretched her arms, opening the sheet and spreading it out like giant butterfly wings, displaying the angry scar on her shoulder from where she’d been shot and all the beauty God had given her.

  Will was in front of her in a beat. He gathered her up with the intention of kissing her senseless before carrying her back up to bed. It was his one thought, his only thought—

  But then he realized that his initial feeling that he wasn’t alone didn’t stem from Cory’s appearance.

  They weren’t alone.

  He froze, looked up—and there, staring at them through the window over the dry sink, was Amanda Gowan, her face pale with shock.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Corinne saw Amanda at the same time Will did. They broke apart like two magnets with the same pull. Corinne hurriedly covered her nakedness while Will went to the window.

  The girl took off running. Will knew he had to stop her. He didn’t know what he would say, but he couldn’t let her share what she’d just seen.

  He headed to the door. “Dress, Cory, and pack my things. We must leave. This can’t stay a secret.”

  “What are you going to say to Mandy?” Corinne asked.

  “I don’t know. But we need her silence, just for a few hours longer.”

  Corinne placed a hand on his arm. “Be careful, Will. She’s in love with you.”

  “She is infatuated,” he corrected.

  “Sometimes that is worse,” she said.

  “I’ve done nothing to encourage her feelings,” he said in his defense. “I’ve been courteous to her, but no more, Cory.”

  “I know that. However, we women are strange creatures. We form attachments in our dreams. If a man is nice to us, just in passing, that is sometimes enough for us to nurse hopes. Will, every day she comes here hoping you’ll speak to her and then she probably cherishes those words. Her heart is involved.”

  “It can’t be. She’s too young.”

  “And you are being very male. You aren’t noticing what is right in front of you.”

  “Perhaps you should talk to her?” he suggested.

  “No, it must come from you,” Corinne said with regret. “I am now her rival.”

  “I just hope I can catch up with her,” he muttered. “I’ll return as soon as I am able.” He pressed a kiss on her lips and forced himself to push away. She was too tempting. Too warm, too loving.

  He picked up his hat and let himself out the kitchen door. Amanda was nowhere to be seen around the rectory or the churchyard. He started walking into Ferris and a few moments later was knocking on Gowan’s door.

  Mrs. Gowan answered. “Good to see you, Reverend. Amanda delivered my message?”

  Now he understood why Amanda had been at the rectory. “No, I mean, she came by, but I couldn’t talk to her,” he said. “In fact, I’m looking for her. I need to know what she wanted.”

  Her mother gave a world-weary sigh. “She didn’t deliver the message? I don’t know what to do with that girl. I would have brought it to you myself but I was with Mrs. Broxter caring for the boys last night and was hoping for a bit of a lie down. Poor Mark is still not himself, although he’s in a better frame of mind, thanks to you.”

  “What is it you wanted me to know?” Will asked.

  “David Bishop’s mother has taken a turn for the worst.”

  “Not another death.” Bishop was a farmer to the south. He was a good-natured man with twelve children.

  “Bad news comes in threes,” said Mrs. Gowan with her customary practicality. “He came by the Broxters’ last night to pay his respects and was wondering if you would come sit by his mother’s side. You know she’s in her eighties, and David says she is doing poorly. She was fond of you, although we didn’t see much of her these past few months.”

  “Understandably,” he answered. Guilt was an uncomfortable feeling. He was about ready to run out on these people who had come to mean a great deal to him over the year. He’d done nothing but think of Corinne these past few days and barely knew what was going on in the parish.

  “I know it is a hike for you and poor old Roman, but David asked me to ask.”

  He could pay a visit. It would take half a day, but he could travel to Mother Bishop’s side, then he and Corinne could leave. They’d have the rest of their lives together, while she was seeing the last of hers. “I will go. Mrs. Bishop was one of my early supporters. She always told me what she thought, whether I wanted to hear it or not.”

  Mrs. Gowan gave him a commiserating smile. “She’s always told all of us what she thinks.”

  “By the way, is Amanda here?” Will asked. “I needed a moment with her.”

  “She’ll be liking that,” Mrs. Gowan said. “But what is it you wish to speak to her about?”

  Will was not about to say his true intention. “A small matter,” he said. “A misunderstanding between us.”

  “Does this have anything to do with her making calf’s eyes at you all the time?”

  “A bit,” he hedged.

  “Let it be,” her mother advised. “Joshua and I are encouraging Peter Clemson to court her. The lad’s very shy, but he’s had an eye on her for a long time. She’ll be leaving you alone once she is married, which we pray will be very soon.”

  “That would be a good match,” Will agreed, but his mind was churning over where Amanda could be. If she wasn’t here, then where?

  “I don’t know why she didn’t pass the message to you. She practically knock
ed her father out of the way in her urgency to deliver it for me.”

  “Yes,” he replied, distracted. “Please tell her I’m looking for her.”

  “Is anything the matter, Mr. Norwich?” Mrs. Gowan’s earlier ease was replaced by a mother’s sense that all was not as it should have been.

  “It’s fine,” he assured her. “I’m certain there is a good reason why she didn’t deliver the message, but now I know what you wished to say, and I thank you for it. Mother Bishop has always been most kind to me. I’d best be on my way.” He began walking toward the church.

  Amanda had not run to her home. Where could she have been?

  Old Andrew, working on pruning the winter wood off the roses in the graveyard, hadn’t seen her either.

  Will did come across two boys playing in the woods. They were both Clemson’s grandsons. One said he didn’t know Amanda Gowan, but the other did and either way, no girl had crossed their path.

  Will stood at the edge of the great oaks. Amanda’s disappearance was a mystery—yet weren’t young girls famous for running off to be alone with their problems?

  He returned to the rectory for Corinne’s advice. “I don’t know where she could be,” she said. “But probably she’s searched out friends. I’m certain your name is being blackened. I’m teasing,” she hastily added when she saw how seriously he was taking this matter. “Will, the girl needs some time alone. That’s how I would be. I know this is hard, but I sense we need to leave, with or without talking to her. I won’t feel at ease until we are away from Lord Bossley.”

  “Yes, yes,” he agreed, distracted, “but before we leave, I must pay my respects to Mother Bishop. Her approval was important to me when I first arrived in Ferris. I don’t know how poorly she is doing, but the family has requested my presence. She is a local character, full of vinegar. She’s been ill for some time.”

  “Of course,” Corinne said. She’d already packed what little they owned. They’d take his clothes, but he’d leave his books and other items behind. She reached up and placed a hand on the side of his jaw. “You take care of everyone,” she said, her voice warm with loving concern. “You act more like some clan chief than their clergy.”

  “I know I am being ridiculous. Mother Bishop probably won’t even know I’m there—”

  “You are not being ridiculous,” she answered. “This concern is part of your character. You can’t deny it, and I love you all the more for it. I wondered if I’d ever meet a man I could respect and admire. Will, I’m yours, forever. I love you and wouldn’t have you any other way than how you are.”

  No one had ever expressed such faith in him. Or had understood the responsibility he felt for the people in this parish. They had become his family.

  But Corinne was his future, his life. He was no longer alone.

  He felt torn.

  Turning his head, Will pressed a kiss in her hand. “My love for you knows no bounds.”

  There was a pause. “We don’t have to leave,” she offered. “I’ll face the scandal. Sail through it, in fact. My family will disown me, but that is a small price to pay. My aunt Catherine paid it once, and I know she has no regrets. On the positive side, Freddie won’t want me. I’ll be of no value to him.”

  “You are worth more than any fortune to me,” Will answered. “And we must leave here. We need a clean start.”

  She nodded, her lips pressed together as if she bit back doubts, worries.

  “We are going to have a wonderful life together,” he said. “I have no regrets leaving.”

  Corinne smiled, nodded again. He sensed she wasn’t convinced. There was only one way he could prove his conviction, and that was to live it. “Roman and I shall be back in three hours’ time—”

  “Roman,” she said with dismay. “What shall we do with Roman? Will, we can’t leave him.”

  “We can. I’ll talk to Gowan. He’ll take him in. After all I’ve put Roman through these past months, spending the rest of his life grazing the moors will be a blessing.”

  “I shall miss him.”

  Will would, too. “He’ll be fine. I’ll see to it.” He pressed a kiss on her forehead. He would do whatever it took to keep her safe. “I’ll return soon.” He went to the kitchen door but hesitated, turned back to her. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” She smiled her encouragement, and yet she seemed uncertain. It’s all going to be well, he told himself. I’ll see to it.

  Then he went to saddle Roman.

  Corinne walked from room to room after Will left. Up the stairs, then down.

  She should have been happier than she’d ever been before in her life. She could still taste him, smell him, feel him inside her . . . and yet she couldn’t shake the sense that things were not right.

  Leaving Ferris was going to be hard for Will. She was surprised to realize it was going to be hard for herself as well. She liked the people here and felt as if she belonged. This would be a good place to raise children.

  Her parents had not been fond of the country and she’d not spent a tremendous amount of time there, but she liked Ferris. She preferred it over all the attractions of London. Life was filled not with busyness but with purpose. Gazing out the window, she realized she’d never see the patch of garden Andrew plowed come to life or the cherries the blossoms on the cherry tree promised.

  She told herself she was so happy to be in Will’s arms that it was human nature to fear something would take him away. If anything happened to him, she would not be able to go. Not alone.

  Corinne reminded herself that a good, caring God would not have let them find each other only to be parted. Perhaps not for her sake, since she was not particularly religious, but certainly for Will’s. He believed. He acted on his conscience. He did good things for others. God could not betray a servant such as Will . . . could He?

  Religious or not, Corinne found herself crossing the graveyard to the church. There was the smell of rain in the air. A wind was tossing the cherry blossoms in the huge tree that guarded the churchyard, sending them down to the ground.

  Corinne slipped inside the peaceful quiet of the church and walked into the sanctuary. She was alone. She sat in one of the pews toward the middle of the church and pulled out its needlepoint kneeler. She looked up at the carving of the knight battling the lion.

  “Just a prayer,” she whispered. “One wish. Please keep Will safe. Don’t let anything happen to him.” There, that was her fear, the heart of her restless uneasiness.

  A footfall came from the back of the sanctuary. Corinne turned, half expecting the other person to be Will.

  She was wrong. Lord Bossley stood there.

  He’d removed his hat and wore a black caped greatcoat. Everything about him bespoke Quality.

  Lord Bossley smiled at her, as if he’d expected to find her here.

  Instead of panic, Corinne discovered a remarkable calmness. This was what she’d feared. She recognized it immediately, and now, faced with the worst, she was ready to do battle.

  He walked up the aisle and took a seat beside her. “Hello, my lady.”

  “Good afternoon, my lord.” She did not move from her place on the kneeling bench. She also did not take her eyes off of him.

  “Very clever, I must say, hiding right beneath my nose,” he observed. “And the villagers?” He sighed in disappointment. “They kept your presence a secret.”

  “I beg your pardon, do I appear as if I am hiding?”

  Temper flashed in his eye at her impertinence, but his voice, when he spoke, was patience, long-suffering. “Yes, well, we’ve struggled to keep your disappearance quiet. It’s been difficult,” he said. “There are so many who want to fete the bride-to-be before her wedding day. I believe the story we put out was that you have been terribly ill. I sent my son to London to be at your side. He assures me there is so much concern on your be
half.”

  She pretended to consider a moment, then shook her head. “I doubt if Freddie could keep a ruse up like that. You know, the one about being the lovesick swain. I’m certain he is enjoying London.”

  Lord Bossley appeared momentarily flummoxed before he tipped back his head and laughed with genuine amusement. “You are an original,” he said, wiping tears from his eyes. “Yes, it has been a challenge to keep my son looking concerned when there is so much to see and do in London.”

  “And he doesn’t care for me at all.”

  “Oh, he cares,” Lord Bossley assured her. “He knows what is at stake.”

  “What exactly is at stake, my lord? Why do you need me?”

  “For appearances, my lovely. For connections. You see, years ago I returned from Barbados not knowing anyone of importance. My predecessors had all been rustics without interest in politics. So much wasted on those who didn’t care.”

  “All doors are open to you, my lord. You have made your own fortune.”

  His gaze sharpened on those words. He was waiting, as if there was something more he expected her to say.

  Suddenly, Corinne realized she might not know what game was being played. And if she had a part, it was a very small role—but Will’s wasn’t.

  At her silence, Lord Bossley seemed to relax, a forced emotion if ever there was one. “You know the ton,” he said lightly. “There are those who accept everyone—scoundrels, brigands, insurrectionists—and those whose vaulted opinions of themselves rule out even the choicest of company. The duke of Banfield’s lineage allows him access to those who are discriminating.”

  “And you have ambition?”

  He turned modest. “I did not seek it, but I am not afraid to serve my country and my king if asked to do so. Can you imagine? Prime minister. I am honored.”

  “Of course, the Whigs must regain power, and that might not be easy,” Corinne replied.

  “I knew you were the right woman for my son,” Lord Bossley said approvingly. “Freddie doesn’t understand any of this. He’s not a deep thinker.” His smile turned grim. “Make no mistake, my lady. I have only one son and I cherish him. He’s not going to struggle in life the way I did.”