Her pert chin was still tilted upward and her lips were lightly pursed, but it was the soft, loving gleam in her eyes that did him in. “Winnie,” he said with a groan, cupping her face in his hands and lowering his lips to hers in a kiss that poured twenty-six years of hunger and longing into this one moment.
Until now, he thought he had that dull, beating organ known as his heart well under control, but this beautiful snip of a girl was proving him wrong. It took only a glance or a smile from her to ignite his desire and leave him in fiery torment.
He didn’t know what to do about it or whether anything even needed to be done.
As soon as he solved Winnie’s mystery, he would be free to leave. There was nothing to stop him from simply picking up his pouch and walking out to become the Duke of Blantyre once more. His coachman was waiting for him in Windermere, no doubt still pacing in front of the fashionable inn where he’d met Winnie’s godmothers, and fretting for his safety.
Indeed, Ardaric knew he could leave at any time, simply disappear without ever revealing his true identity to Winnie. But that was the problem. He didn’t want to leave her behind, nor did he wish to lie to her about who he was.
Winnie deserved the truth.
She deserved far more, but Ardaric didn’t yet know what he was willing to offer. He knew what he wanted, that was plain enough... he wanted Winnie. Wanting was a simple matter, but giving back was the problem. He’d never given anything of himself before, certainly never his heart.
It was impossible. She was young, only twenty. He’d only known the girl a day. Those thoughts had been repeating in his head so often, they were becoming a chant. Too young. Too soon. Not possible. Over and over they whirled in his head. There were other young ladies of higher rank and greater wealth more suitable, ones he’d been acquainted with for years. In truth, he had been on his way to Blantyre to work on narrowing his list and offering for one of them, a decision that had pleased his family.
So why did he feel that no one but Winnie would ever do for him?
* * * *
Winnie kept her eyes closed even after their second kiss ended. Yes, she was counting each kiss, and counting each smoldering glance Captain Mariner cast her (there were only five of them so far, but they were getting hotter and more frequent), and melting a little each time he swallowed her in his massive arms (also happening more frequently).
When she finally opened her eyes, she noticed that he was still staring at her. Not smiling. His gaze not smoldering. She sighed. “Didn’t you like this kiss either?”
“I just told you that I liked our first kiss.”
She nodded. “I know, but I thought you were only being polite.”
“I wasn’t. Winnie... damn, this is a mess...” He ran a hand along the back of his neck. “I’ll see you later. We’ll talk then.”
She nodded again, trying her best to maintain her composure. She turned away slightly so that he wouldn’t notice the quiver of her lips. Until now, she’d always been the calm and competent one in the household, but Captain Mariner had turned her inside out and had so completely scattered her thoughts that she couldn’t string two words together.
He made her senses reel and her heart soar. He made her ache and wonder about her future, one that would no doubt be dull and sad because he wasn’t going to be around to share it with her. She saw the cool detachment in his eyes and knew he desired to extricate himself from here... from her, as soon as possible.
She was in danger of turning into a watering pot and weeping over the loss of him for days on end. What could she do? She was in love and in torment, but he held no such feelings for her and would be horrified to know hers. No, she could never reveal how deeply she cared for him.
Indeed, she would pretend to be unaffected and show only dignified politeness. She wasn’t going to talk to her godmothers about him either. She couldn’t yet. Her tears would fall in buckets at the first mention of him.
She was going to do what she had been doing ever since she was a girl of fourteen, maintain her composure and run Kingsley Hall with quiet efficiency. “I won’t delay you. Keep safe.”
He gave her a light caress on the cheek and then he was gone.
Her tears came the moment he walked away, but she refused to wallow in pity. She straightened her spine, wiped away all evidence that she had been crying, and then made her way back to the house.
Entering through the kitchen, she spared another moment to gaze at her reflection in one of the gleaming copper pots and brushed back her hair. She smoothed her gown and was in position by the front door to welcome her godmothers as they stepped from their carriage and entered the main hall.
Winnie had intended to give them a polite but cheerful welcome. However, the events of yesterday and this morning suddenly overwhelmed her, and she threw her arms around Harmony, who’d walked in first. “I missed you so much!”
Harmony tittered. “Goodness, Winnie! We’ve been gone less than three days. You’d think we’d been away for a thousand years.”
“It felt like forever.” She turned to hug Serenity and then Prudence.
Serenity pursed her lips and studied her a bit too avidly. “Did something happen while we were away?”
Winnie blushed. “Yes, I went to the fair and on my way there I encountered a pack of wild dogs. A gentleman rescued me from them and I...” Fell in love with him. “Otherwise it was dreadfully dull and I missed you.”
Prudence arched a graying eyebrow. “A gentleman, you say?”
She hadn’t intended to mention Captain Mariner yet and even now regretted mentioning the dogs. The attacks upon her person would only overset her godmothers. She’d tell them everything after her birthday party. “Shall I have Mrs. Halloway prepare tea? She’s just made biscuits, too. How is your relative? And why were you so secretive when you left? Tell me all about your trip.”
“Oh, it was wonderful,” Harmony said with a titter. “And we have a surprise for you.”
Serenity and Prudence both gasped. “Hush, you silly thing! You’ll ruin everything.”
Winnie regarded them in confusion. Her three guardians were elderly spinsters and often charmingly scatterbrained, but this was a little much even for them. “Your trip was wonderful? Weren’t you visiting a sick cousin? As in very sick on deathbed and you left home for Windermere in tears?”
Prudence dusted a non-existent speck of dust off her sleeve. “Of course we were quite distressed when she passed away, dear.”
She? They’d distinctly told her they were visiting a male cousin. Her godmothers were the worst liars she’d ever met. But why conceal the true reason for their sudden departure from her? And they seemed awfully cheerful for three genteel women who’d just lost a dear relation.
Serenity gave her a hug. “We thought we’d make a pie today. Would you mind terribly if we sent you off to pick blueberries for us?”
“Blueberries? In May?” She eyed them warily. They’d just arrived home and she knew they’d missed her as much as she’d missed them, yet they wanted her out of the house. Why? Weren’t they curious about the wild dogs? Or the gentleman who did wild things to her insides whenever she gazed at him?
Oh, dear. Were they planning a grand affair for her birthday? Something stunning and spectacular and well outside their realm of competence? She dearly loved Serenity, Prudence, and Harmony, but for years now, she’d been the one to look after them.
“Any sort of berries will do,” Harmony said. “Take your time. Find the best ones possible.”
Winnie sighed. “Very well. I’ll go right after we have our tea and biscuits.” She didn’t mind, really. Her godmothers needed time to accomplish whatever they had planned for her party, and she would have more time to spend alone with Captain Mariner when he returned. “Why don’t you get comfortable and then join me in the dining room?”
Winnie watched the three of them lumber upstairs, whispering and tittering conspiratorially among themselves. She shook her head and smiled
before setting out the breakfast plates, silverware, and table linens, deciding for now to say nothing more about the dogs or the man who’d captured her heart.
Don’t leave Kingsley Hall.
Captain Mariner’s warning resounded in her brain. But her godmothers obviously needed her out of their way. Though she took his caution seriously, she knew that she had to leave the house. She wouldn’t go far, only to the stream. It was close enough that anyone would hear her shouts.
In any event, it wouldn’t take the captain long to accomplish his business. The Darkwells were not going to invite him in for tea as they confessed their evil deeds, nor were they going to give him permission to prowl about their property.
No, the captain would have to wait until tonight to explore their grounds or break into their home and search through Lord Darkwell’s private papers.
“I’ll be safe enough,” she muttered as she set out four cups and their matching saucers.
Prudence was the first to return downstairs after unpacking from their brief journey. She walked into the dining room while Winnie was still muttering to herself. “Did you say something, dear?”
“No, Prudence. I was deciding whether to put out the butter or the marmalade.”
“Mustn’t skimp, dear. I’ll tell Mrs. Halloway to bring both to the table.”
As Prudence disappeared into the kitchen, Winnie’s thoughts returned to the Darkwells. Surely she would be safe enough from them this morning. They were king and queen of the May Fair and would host today’s opening ceremonies just as they had done yesterday, which would keep them occupied for several hours and unable to engage in mischief.
The captain had mentioned that a third person was involved, the one he claimed had control of those wicked dogs. But he’d shot the bounder, and Winnie had seen that person run off clutching his arm. In all likelihood, said bounder would be home nursing his wounds and desperate to avoid detection. Or her wounds. The captain thought the assailant had been a woman.
Prudence bustled in with the marmalade and set it on the table. “Oh, dear me! I’ve forgotten the butter.”
She bustled out again, allowing Winnie to weigh the dangers of disobeying the captain’s warning. Logically, she wouldn’t be in danger these next few hours. The captain had scared off her attackers. They knew he would not be gentle when dealing with them. The Darkwells and their accomplice, if one existed, had to be afraid of him. They’d hide and lick their wounds until he left town.
She thought of their other victim, Miss Allenby-Falk, and hoped the captain would stop by her house as well. Winnie didn’t really believe she had been attacked, for word of it would have reached her ears by now if it were true. Village gossip spread fast when the news was bad. Still, the Darkwells had put a sliver of doubt in her mind, and she wanted to be sure no harm had befallen the woman.
Her stomach growled, reminding her of another reason Winnie hoped the captain would speak to Miss Allenby-Falk. Ah, yes. The rancid—possibly poisoned—meat pie. Had anyone been with her when she’d baked it? Or had access to it after the fact?
In truth, Winnie doubted he’d get useful information out of Miss Allenby-Falk, for she was an irritating mix of dull and fretful. She would quickly drive him out the door with her pointless chatter and feigned heart palpitations.
She thought no more of dogs, Darkwells, or distressed spinsters as Harmony and Serenity joined her and Prudence. “Mrs. Halloway mentioned that the fair was quite entertaining this year,” Serenity said, “and that you were the prettiest May princess ever.”
Winnie laughed lightly. “I was passable, at best. Thankfully, my princess duties are over now and I am once again a young woman of no consequence. Will you visit the fair today?”
Harmony spoke up at once. “No, dear. We have too much to do at home. Besides, we’ll be busy baking pies when you return with the berries.”
“I have a better idea. Why don’t you simply purchase all the pies you need at the fair? Mrs. Cummings is selling them in her stall. I hear they’re quite delicious.”
Serenity faked a yawn. “I think we’ll stay home today.”
Prudence picked another non-existent speck off her sleeve while Harmony poured herself more tea.
“Would you care for another biscuit, Harmony?” Winnie stared at her godmothers. The darlings were fidgeting and distracted and clearly wanted her out of the house in order to prepare for the birthday party she wasn’t supposed to know about. Taking pity on them, she quickly ate the last of her biscuit and gulped down the last of her tea, then rose. “I’ll be off.”
She gave each a kiss on the cheek, grabbed a basket to hold the berries that she’d never find this early in the season, and then secretly grabbed one of the fire irons. She hid it in the folds of her cloak and strolled out of the house to wait for Captain Mariner by the stream.
It was early yet, too soon for him to return. But she had been thinking about his offer to teach her how to swim and knew she had been hasty in refusing him. Every girl ought to have something wondrous and special happen in her life. Captain Mariner was that for her... and anyway, she had to overcome her fear of the water.
Why not agree to let him teach her?
She settled on a flat rock beside the bank and gazed across to the other side. It wasn’t far. How difficult could it be to swim the width with the captain by her side? He’d catch her if she faltered. There was no risk of her drowning.
She tossed a pebble into the water and heard it hit the surface with a soft plop. “I can do this.” She decided to accept his offer as soon as he returned, for there was no time to waste. Despite his assurances, despite his promise to stay until the danger had passed, she knew he would leave her soon. Perhaps as early as today. “You can’t go until I see the dragon on your back,” she would tell him.
She also wanted him to stay for her birthday. Her godmothers had invited everyone in the village to her party, which meant that the Darkwells would be in attendance as well. Even if the captain didn’t join in the merriment, he could slip out and search their home. The party would provide him the perfect opportunity.
Yes, she’d tell him that.
She wanted one more day with him.
Winnie was so lost in her thoughts that she almost missed the soft growl emanating from the nearby trees. “Oh, no!”
Her heart shot into her throat, and her hands shook as she grabbed her cloak and withdrew the ash shovel from its fold. She managed to scramble to her feet in time to face the beasts. There were only two... and their injured master.
Winnie paled.
“It’s you,” she said in an aching whisper. “I never would have guessed.”
WISH UPON A KISS
CHAPTER SEVEN
Ardaric went to the Darkwell residence as soon as he left Winnie, only to learn from their butler that his lordship and ladyship had packed up in haste and left for London not an hour before. “Most odd,” the old man muttered. “My apologies, sir. Were they expecting you?”
“Yes, I should think so. But it isn’t important. I’ll call upon them another time.” Since he had no intention of following the pair to London quite yet, he inquired about directions to Miss Allenby-Falk’s house.
The butler, although still bemused by the swift departure of his employers, readily gave him the requested instructions. “I dare say, she’s probably left for the fair by now. She has a stall there to sell her pies, although I wouldn’t recommend them. They aren’t very good.”
Ardaric thanked him and was about to turn away when he decided to ask one more question of the servant. “Did either Lord or Lady Darkwell appear ill or injured, by any chance? I do hope it wasn’t a medical scare that sent them off to town in such a hurry.”
“No, sir. In truth, I haven’t seen them move so fast in years.” He pursed his lips in thought. “Quite fit and nimble, if you ask me.”
Ardaric swallowed his disappointment. By that description, it seemed evident that neither one was the person he’d shot. “
I’m relieved to hear it. Good day.”
“Sir, about Miss Allenby-Falk... as I mentioned, she lives in the large house just over yon hill, but...”
“Yes?”
“If you intend to call upon her at home, don’t take the shortcut through the woods. She has traps set across her grounds. One of the scullery maids almost lost her foot in one of those nasty things last week.” He shook his head and sighed. “As I said, you’re best off looking for her at the fair.”
“I appreciate the warning.” He left the Darkwell residence and made his way down the road toward Miss Allenby-Falk’s home. It seemed odd that a genteel spinster would set dangerous traps on her property, but perhaps she had a reason. Those wild dogs might have been wandering in these woods for weeks and killing her chickens.
No, they weren’t wild.
They were trained to kill.
Perhaps the traps weren’t meant for those dogs, but to keep people away while she trained them. Could Miss Allenby-Falk be the person he’d shot? Why would she be mixed up in a plot to harm Winnie? For that matter, why would the Darkwells or anyone else in Grasmere be involved?
He ran a hand roughly across the back of his neck as the little hairs there prickled and stood on end. Something about Miss Allenby-Falk didn’t feel right. From the little he’d seen or heard of the woman, she had seemed harmless enough and not the sort to purposely hurt anyone or train dogs to kill.
But nothing was as it seemed in this simple village, was it? Everyone he’d encountered had lied, was lying, or intended to lie to him. Nor was he innocent in all this, for he hadn’t revealed his true identity to Winnie.
The only person who hadn’t lied or deceived anyone was Winnie. So why would anyone want her dead? He wasn’t imagining things. Those dogs had been trained to kill her. Twice they’d lunged at her and not at him even though he’d been standing in their way.
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