She melted against him, her back molding to his front.
“You must have known I wanted to be here with you,” he said.
“How?” she whispered. “You were gone so long and you sent no word. I don’t even know what you were doing in Wales.”
He pulled back, his lust cooling by degrees. He had planned to share his secret today, but her cool reception gave him pause. What if she refused his offer? He must protect Annabelle above all others. If there was any doubt in Gabby’s mind…
He urged her to face him. Perhaps if he looked into her eyes, he would see that she still loved him, that he could trust her. He studied her in silence, searching for a flicker of anything to reassure him.
Her expression began to harden again, and she crossed her arms. Her eyes became like shards of ice. “Aren’t you going to tell me anything? I want to know why you were in Wales.”
He released her, disconcerted by her coldness. “What happened to your promise to wait for me? What is this nonsense with you being on the marriage mart?”
“That isn’t an answer.”
“Neither is that.”
She flung her hands in the air. “I had no excuse to give my brother when he insisted it was time to return to London. What would you have had me tell him?”
She had a point, but that didn’t explain Thorne.
“Attending balls is one thing, but taking carriage rides with the baron was unnecessary. Your brother didn’t force you into accepting his invitations, did he?”
“Luke would never force me into accepting anyone’s suit.”
“I’m fully aware of that, thank you. Why didn’t you tell him I was coming today?”
“Why do you get to ask all the questions?”
“That was a question.”
“And you didn’t answer again. Really, Anthony. You are too frustrating by half. Do you truly want to know why I didn’t mention you? I couldn’t count on you showing up.”
He balked. “How can you say that? I realize I wasn’t back by Easter, but you were aware I intended to ask for your hand. When have I ever let you down?”
Her mouth dropped open as if she had a retort, but she snapped it shut.
“Go on. You seem to have something to say.”
She shook her head. “It’s nothing. Perhaps we should forget about that day at Ellis Hall. I showed up on your doorstep unannounced and my emotions were high. You were just trying to comfort me. I don’t blame you for—for…you know.”
“Almost making love to you?”
She blushed and backed up a step. “I understand. You did the honorable thing by asking for my hand.”
There had been nothing honorable about his offer. Once she was his wife, he wouldn’t have to stop himself from taking her on the settee, or any place they damn well pleased.
“I’m releasing you,” she said with a dismissive flick of her wrist. “Lord Thorne has made his intentions known. You needn’t worry about me anymore.”
His blood shot to boiling. “I didn’t ask you to marry me because I was worried about your future.” He’d been worried about his own. “I refuse to be released.”
“What? Why? Even before you left, you avoided me like the plague. I know you don’t really want to marry me.”
“You know nothing, you little fool.”
She cried out in outrage. “A fool? You call me a fool and I am supposed to believe you love me.”
Damn. He was mucking this up badly. “I didn’t mean to call you a fool. But not realizing I needed to keep my distance to remain a gentleman makes you seem kind of foolish.”
She cried out again. “And you seem kind of like an overbearing jackanapes who has no sense of how to woo a lady. Fool, indeed. I would have to be one to marry you.”
“What are you saying?”
“I’ve changed my mind. See yourself out.”
He caught her arm before she stormed away. “Well, change it back.”
“Change what back? My mind?” She tried to jerk free, but he wouldn’t allow her to run without talking this through fully. “Let me go!”
He released her as the door opened, and Gabby’s sister appeared in the threshold, her brow furrowed. “Is everything all right? I heard yelling.”
Gabby swung toward her sister. “Oh! I—uh… We—”
“I was just leaving, Lady Elizabeth.” Anthony bent over Gabby’s hand. “Forgive me, my lady,” he said under his breath. “I have been an unpardonable arse.”
He placed a kiss on her bare fingers, then smiled. “I shall endeavor to change your mind in a less high-handed manner when we next meet.”
But change her mind, he would. He’d learned while he was away that he didn’t want to live without her.
Anthony offered another smile to Gabby’s younger sister and bid her farewell. “Until tonight, ladies. His Grace has graciously invited me to dine at Talliah House this evening. I look forward to furthering our discussion, Lady Gabrielle.”
Lady Elizabeth batted her lashes. “Perhaps you could both raise your voices next time, my lord? It makes eavesdropping much easier.”
“Lizzie!”
Gabby’s sister smiled cheekily in response to her rebuke. “We look forward to this evening, Lord Ellis,” she said.
“As do I, Lady Elizabeth.”
Six
As soon as the conservatory door closed, Gabby collapsed on the settee. “What did you overhear?”
Lizzie performed a graceful pirouette then plopped on the settee, her deep blue eyes sparkling. “Not enough to satisfy me. Why were you arguing with Lord Ellis?”
“It’s a long, uninteresting story.”
“I doubt it’s uninteresting. Ellis is the most fascinating gentleman I know.”
Gabby couldn’t help smiling at her sister’s enthusiasm. “You don’t know many men.”
“Just because I haven’t had my coming out yet.”
When Gabby flinched, her sister’s smile faded and she took Gabby’s hand. “Katie and I will have our chance. Enjoy your Season.”
“But this should have been yours.”
“Well, next Season is soon enough.” Lizzie’s smile returned. “And then I will become acquainted with a slew of gentlemen, all of them eager to sign my dance card. I shall have so much fun choosing between them.”
Gabby chuckled and squeezed her sister’s hand. “You’re not likely to become acquainted with that many gentlemen. Our brothers have a tendency to keep them at bay.”
In truth, their brothers would have their work cut out for them. Lizzie was a beautiful young lady, as was her twin, Katie. But Katie tended toward shyness and Lizzie seemed to have none.
“Why do you find Lord Ellis fascinating?” Gabby asked, unable to deny her curiosity.
“He is mysterious, wouldn’t you agree? I never know how to read him, with his hooded eyes and reticence.” She sighed. “But how lovely it would be to unravel his secrets.”
Gabby rolled her eyes. “What you see is exactly how he is. He has no secrets.” She sounded confident in her assertion, but she felt a twinge of doubt. Why wouldn’t he tell her what he was doing in Wales, or the reason he was gone for nearly four months? “I find him as interesting as a tangled ball of yarn.”
“Like I said, he’s a mystery to unravel. What’s this?” Lizzie leaned across Gabby’s lap and snatched the edge of her sketchbook.
“Wait!” Gabby grabbed for the book, but it was too late.
Lizzie sat back against the settee and held the drawing up to examine it. “Hmm… It’s very nice.” She tipped her head to one side and then the other as she studied the unfinished sketch.
Gabby held her breath, hoping her sister didn’t recognize her subject.
“Impressive.” Lizzie dropped the drawing to her lap.
“Thank you.” Gabby retrieved the book and hugged it to her chest. “I should lie down if I’m to be rested for this evening.”
Her sister smiled, displaying an adorable set of dimples. “Yes
, that is likely wise.”
Gabby excused herself and hurried toward the exit, but before she reached the door, her sister cleared her throat.
“Sister?”
With a soft groan, she turned toward Lizzie. “Yes?”
“You’ve captured Lord Ellis perfectly, but I’ve never seen that look in his eyes before. It makes me shiver in the most delicious way.”
Lud. Gabby’s cheeks flamed as she glanced down at her sketch, mesmerized by Anthony’s smoldering gaze. She had seen that look once, and it had been branded into her memory forever. “Yes, I see what you mean. I have depicted him wrong. I will have to work on the eyes more.”
She swept from the conservatory before her sister could offer any other commentary. Embarrassment engulfed her as she reflected on her behavior. What was wrong with her that she lost all reason when he was near? There was nary a ripple in his comportment, while her emotions crashed like waves upon jagged rocks.
“Cursed man,” she grumbled as she let herself into her chambers.
“Whom are you talking to?”
Gabby jumped at the sound of her sister’s soft voice. “I didn’t see you. What are you doing in here?”
Katie was curled up in a chair by the window with a book. “The lighting is better.”
“But it’s my chamber. You should ask permission first.”
A pink flush invaded Katie’s cheeks and she closed her book. “I’m sorry.”
Gabby playfully tugged her sister’s toffee-colored curl. “You don’t have to leave, Katie Cat. Just ask next time.”
Her sister’s face blazed red at Gabby’s use of her pet name, and Gabby’s heart swelled with affection. She loved all her siblings, but she shared a special bond with the youngest family member.
Gabby walked to her desk to set aside her sketch and charcoals. She would finish the drawing later. A fresh bouquet of flowers sat on her desk, their subtle fragrance pleasant.
“What did you draw today?” Katie asked as she rose from the chair and came to look.
“Anthony again.” She sighed. Katie didn’t know what had transpired between them, but she had guessed at Gabby’s feelings long ago. Her sister was sensitive in that way and never teased her like Lizzie. “He paid a call earlier.”
“I know.” Katie picked up her sketch. “I was here when Magda brought in his flowers.”
“These are from Anthony? How thoughtful.” Light pink dahlias. She had always preferred feminine and romantic flowers to the starkness of orchids or lilies. Had she ever mentioned her preference to him?
“Your drawing is wonderful,” Katie said and placed it reverently back on the desk. “It appears Lord Ellis returns your feelings. I’m very happy for you.”
Gabby nibbled her bottom lip as she considered the validity of her sister’s assumption. “Maybe, but I don’t want to get my hopes up too high. I have been disappointed more than once by the gentleman.”
Her sister hugged her. “This time could be different. At least keep an open heart.”
Tears misted Gabby’s eyes as she hugged her sister back. Katie was as much a romantic as Gabby had been long ago. How she missed the optimistic young girl she used to be. Could she ever be that girl again?
“I promise to try.”
Seven
Anthony stood outside the nursery listening to his daughter’s chatter drifting through the cracked door. Her voice was so sweet and foreign to him that he couldn’t help eavesdropping. Once Annabelle saw him, she would clamp her lips together tightly and stare at him with large green eyes that reminded him of her mother.
Odd that his anger with Camilla never reared its head when he looked at his daughter. He only felt angry with himself.
More than once, he’d berated himself for the choice he had made to leave his daughter in her aunt’s care. He was little more than a stranger to Annabelle now, but he’d thought he was doing the right thing. After all, Miss Teague was Annabelle’s true blood and the only mother she had ever known.
“Lady Poppy likes cream in her tea, Mama.” He could picture Annabelle hugging the tiny doll. Even if she didn’t care for him, she loved his gifts. He supposed he could be proud of that at least.
“Oh, dear,” Miss Teague said with mock distress. “Why do I always forget? Allow me, Lady Poppy.”
Annabelle’s delighted squeal made him smile. “Not on her hat, Mama.” She expressed her mirth as only a child could, with deep belly laughs. His heart swelled and made his chest feel full. He’d missed out on much of her four years of life with visiting no more than a handful of times a year. But she’d obviously been well cared for by Miss Teague, and Annabelle was happy.
Just not around me.
That did seem to be his lot in life. He was the thief of happiness for every female unfortunate enough to be associated with him. At least that had been his mother’s recurring lament when her mind was fuzzy with brandy. He simply assumed his wife, Camilla, had felt the same since she hied off with her lover a few months after marrying Anthony.
He hated to interrupt his daughter’s play, but he wished to say good night before he returned to Talliah House for dinner. He knocked lightly on the door then eased it open.
Miss Teague and Annabelle were seated at the miniature table he’d bought after his return from Crickhowell, where he had found his daughter residing with her aunt. Part of him must have hoped Annabelle would live with him one day.
Miss Teague smiled. “My lord, how kind of you to visit us this evening.”
“Miss Teague. Annabelle.” He bowed toward the doll in Annabelle’s arms. “Lady Poppy. My, but you look fetching in your new bonnet, my lady.”
Annabelle inched closer to her aunt, her eyes round and fearful.
The gut-punch went all the way to his spine. Ah, well. It had been too much to hope she might like him a little more today.
Miss Teague nudged Annabelle. “Say good evening to your papa.”
She snuggled against her aunt, crushing her copper curls.
“Go on, now. Mind your manners.”
“Good evening, Papa,” Annabelle mumbled.
When Anthony looked at Annabelle and Miss Teague together, their fiery locks the same brilliant shade, he had no doubt the woman had been telling the truth about his daughter. Annabelle wasn’t really his.
Miss Teague’s brother—Camilla’s lover—had sired Annabelle. But that didn’t make him her father.
Anthony had loved his daughter before she was born, and he would love her as long as he lived. She was his child by heart if not blood. And if that lousy blackguard James Teague ever tried to take her away again, Anthony would see him swinging from the gallows. He was lucky Anthony hadn’t crossed paths with him in Wales or he would already be dead.
Thank God, Miss Teague had possessed the wherewithal to send word to Anthony and go into hiding when her brother had come around threatening to take Annabelle unless she paid off his debts.
Neither female spoke as he rocked back and forth on his heels, trying to think of something clever to say. Nothing came to him. “Well, I will leave you to your tea party then. I wanted to say good night before I left for the evening.”
Miss Teague squeezed Annabelle to her side. “How lovely of you to call, my lord. We wish you a good night as well.”
Annabelle was gawking at him as if he were a beast that might gobble her up.
He sighed and slowly turned on his heel. Perhaps someday he would cease frightening the wits out of her. But this evening he needed to turn his attentions toward charming another young lady.
He had given consideration to his conversation with Gabby that afternoon and came to an alarming realization. She truly thought he had asked for her hand because that was what an honorable gentleman would do if he compromised a young woman.
He could try discussing it with her, but invariably he would say the wrong words. That was always the case when it came to speaking his heart. In truth, a part of him still feared the rejection he’d known as a
boy, so he held on to his thoughts and feelings tightly.
No, talking might only complicate matters. Instead, he would do what he did best. He would show Gabby how much he loved her. His quest tonight was something he should have done long ago. He was going to court her in the way she deserved. And once he’d won her heart, he would set his mind on how to win over Annabelle.
***
Gabby recalled countless times Anthony had dined at her family’s table without incident, but tonight one disaster seemed to follow another. First, she had looked up as she was reaching for her lemonade only to discover him staring at her and she tipped over her glass. Next she had dribbled gravy on her newest gown.
And now…
“Oh, dear!” Mama said, her eyes wide with fright. “She’s choking.”
Gabby tried to suck in a deep breath, but coughing racked her body.
Anthony and her brother sprang from their chairs, but Anthony reached her first.
“Can you speak?”
She couldn’t stop coughing long enough to answer.
“Egads! She is choking.” He spun her around and banged his palm against her back. Hard.
“S-stop,” she tried to say, but the next blow knocked the air from her lungs, then set off another round of hacking that seemed to originate from her toes.
More bone-jarring blows followed until Gabby turned on him, having caught her breath at last. “Stop pounding me, you jackanapes! I am not a rug in need of a beating.”
Lizzie smothered a giggle with her hands.
“Gabrielle,” their mother scolded, sounding rather scandalized. “That is no way to thank Lord Ellis for coming to your rescue.”
Anthony’s face had changed to scarlet and Gabby immediately regretted her harsh words. He had only been trying to help, even though she might later bear bruises for his good intentions.
She forced a smile, hoping it didn’t translate into a grimace. “Mama is correct. That is no way to show my appreciation. I beg your pardon, my lord.”
One Rogue Too Many Page 6
