“And what do you intend to do when we catch up with them?”
“I intend to show Reeves that the man who turned him into a fighter can take him down just as easily.”
“I don’t know. You’ve let the lord of the manor life soften you up considerably.”
“Mandeville, are you with me or against me?”
“Oh, I’m with you. I’ll be with you when Reeves knocks you flat on your arse as well,” he said, grinning cheekily.
Richard groaned. He’d done this to himself. It was now or never. He had to show them all that he could still fight with the best of them. Most of all, he had to show Lydia that he was her knight without armor—thereby removing all doubt from her mind that he, and he alone could protect her from the villains in this sometimes mad world.
ydia was in a fine pickle.
She’d known that as soon as she’d set eyes on The Butcher. He’d blindfolded her, gently helped her into the carriage, and had given instructions to his driver in Spanish. From what she could hear and understand, he’d told the driver to take her back to the hotel, deliver her to his rooms and make quite certain that no harm came to her. If harm did befall her, they were all as good as dead. The driver had responded that he would guard her with his life, and that’s when the carriage had started rolling along to its final destination.
Now, she was in a hotel room and her room was being guarded by two ugly-looking blackguards. She’d paced the length of the room about fifty times, attempting to decide how next to proceed. She’d debated climbing out the window, but she wasn’t that good of a climber, and if she made one wrong step, she’d fall to her death, and if not her death, she’d definitely be crippled for life. Clasping her hands behind her back, she continued to pace. Restless energy bubbled up inside of her. There was a way out, she just had to be able to think clearly. There was no way to get past the guards, she’d tried once, only to be gently deposited back into the room. Some ladies would just wait it out. After all, she was in no imminent danger. Obviously, Richard or her brother would come looking for her, but as she didn’t know why Reeves had abducted her in the first place, staying here was very ill-advised. What if he tried to force his attentions upon her? Despite appearances, he seemed like an honorable enough fellow, but there was only one man for her, and now more than ever she wanted to fall into the arms of that man.
The sound of a scuffle at the door caught her attention and sent her heart racing. Dashing over to the washstand, she grabbed the pitcher of water, emptied the water into the bowl, and ran back to the door. Whoever was coming through that door was about to have a blinding headache. The door opened moments later, and revealed Pip’s ruddy face. He looked a little winded, but otherwise quite unharmed.
“Don’t worry, my lady, I’m here to save you.”
Relieved, she slackened her grip on the pitcher. “What did you do with the guards?”
“The one has left his post and the other one is currently having a nap.”
She laughed. “It is good to see you, Pip.” He looked surprised that she knew his name and then, gradually, recognition dawned across his face.
“I know that voice. Jamie?” he asked slowly.
“One and the same.”
“You really are a lady.”
“Yes,” she said.
“No,” he said hurriedly. “You misunderstand. I heard…I heard Mr. Arkwright tell Alex that a Lady Lydia Radcliff was here to see him. Isn’t it rather scandalous to call on gentlemen if you’re a lady of noble breeding?”
“I suppose,” she said, feeling a little defensive. That was her. Doing things before she thought them out. If anyone else knew about it…she really did like putting her reputation in jeopardy. Anyone who didn’t know her would think she was deliberately trying to start a scandal. Still, she doubted that anyone had recognized her. The hotel had been filled mainly with army officers, and Reeves had done her the service of making certain the hood on her cloak was obscuring her features.
“I know that Alex is a bit of a rebel for lowering himself to the ranks of lowly boxer. But then, he’s a gentleman, and when I first knew him, I didn’t know about his aristocratic background.”
“Let’s not tarry. You can read me the riot act after we escape.”
“I wasn’t going to do anything of the kind, my lady. That’s not my place and I have no illusions of rising above my station.”
She was taken aback by his formal reaction to her. Gone was the relaxed familiarity between them.
“What’s the plan, Pip?”
“I take you out of here the same way you were brought in, my lady.”
“Is that wise?”
“What else do you have in mind, my lady?”
She sighed. “We could go out in disguise.”
“I think not,” he said. “And besides, where would we find such disguises?”
“There’s a wardrobe full of clothing over there, and there are even some wigs that would suit me quite nicely—though I daresay I don’t know why Mr. Reeves would have such a wide assortment of colors and styles in his collection.”
“The clothing would be far too big for you, Lady Lydia. Jack Reeves is a giant amongst men. As for the wigs, I’ve never seen him wear one, so that’s a puzzling discovery.”
“You and I are about the same size.”
Her suggestion made him go a deep shade of scarlet. “I think not, my lady. That…that ain’t proper.”
“Why not? I could go behind that dressing screen while you handed me your clothing to put on, then, you could go out dressed as a…”
“A girl,” he said, pinching his nose up. “I am not too fond of that idea, my lady. It’s doomed from the start.”
“I managed to fool not just you, but Alex as well.”
“Not Alex. He always knew there was something different about you. I didn’t listen to him. What a fool I was.”
“He knew I was a woman?”
“He said you looked awfully strange for a lad. He suspected you were a lady in disguise, and I laughed it off as being a figment of his imagination.”
Lydia bit her lip. They were wasting precious time. She knew that Reeves would return for her at some point.
“Why do you think that Reeves took me? You don’t think he wanted to…”
“Ruin you?”
“Yes,” she said, feeling the color touch her cheeks as heat flowed through her.
“No. Reeves isn’t like that. He wouldn’t hurt a woman, least of all an innocent lady like you. He’s all bluff, my lady.”
“He took me to rattle Richard.”
“Come again, my lady?”
“Richard…Lord Tisbury. He’s the customer whom Reeves challenged in the newspaper. He’s Richard Castleton. I love Richard. I can’t bear to see him hurt because of me. Oh, no, what have I done? I’ve been lying to myself. I’ve been such a fool, Pip.” Pip remained silent, telling her that he was in full agreement. “My idiocy just might get the man I love killed. He might be so distracted during the fight that…”
“He won’t be fit for the fight, I understand,” Pip said. “There’s only one way to avoid that.”
“What’s that?”
“We have to make certain that you are at the fight. If he sees you, and knows that you’re safe, he’ll be fully focused on giving Reeves a good thumping.”
“You are quite right. How clever you are.”
“There’s no time to waste, my lady. The other guard might return, and the one I knocked out, might…wake up. I’d hate to have to hit him that hard twice in one day.”
She pulled her hood back up over her head. “Let’s not delay any longer,” she murmured. “Lead the way, sir.”
“I…Pip is fine, my lady. On second thought, you were right before, my lady. If we…if you don a disguise, we’ll be able to easily slip out of the hotel—unnoticed.”
“We’ll have to switch outfits.”
“I know, neither one of us can fit into Reeves’s duds.”
<
br /> “But I can use one of his dressing gowns. You stand guard outside, while I try to get out of this dress.”
With a nod, he opened the door, and checked to see if the coast was clear. Nodding back at her, he left the room.
It didn’t take them long to switch their outfits, and Lydia had decided to “borrow” one of Reeves’s wigs to complete her disguise. She looked fit for the part of Jamie now. When Pip came out from behind the dressing screen, she had to clap her hand over her mouth to stifle the laugh welling inside her.
“You make a very handsome lady, Pip,” she said.
He looked utterly silly dressed as a lady. Checking to make certain that the other guard hadn’t returned and ensuring that the man Pip had knocked out was still out for the count, they left the room and made their way to the stairwell—only to find themselves blocked by a fellow whom Lydia guessed was the other man who worked for Reeves. Calmly, Pip took his gloves off, walked up to the befuddled guard, and knocked him flat. The hood on the green cloak he wore had fallen down revealing his face in all its manly glory. He pulled the hood back up thereby concealing most of his features, and grinned at her, while casually putting his gloves back on. He didn’t quite fit the part of a lady but anyone who was extremely daft or drunk just might be fooled. “Let us depart this foul place without further delay, my lady.”
Walking down into the grand entrance hall, she froze. It was Sir Simon Blount, and he’d seen her. Jack Reeves was also in the lobby, but he hadn’t spotted them yet.
“Pip,” she hissed, “It’s Reeves, and my uncle, and…oh, no, I think my uncle just clapped eyes on me.”
“Ah, finally,” her uncle said in his booming voice. She winced. She’d only talked to him a couple of times since he’d come to London, and with bated breath she waited to see what he would do next.
“The game is up,” she muttered.
Pip gave her a perplexed look. He wasn’t catching on to what she meant.
“Finally,” her uncle said loudly again. “I’ve found my rascal of a nephew! Jamie Poole as I live and breathe.”
With those boldly spoken words, Reeves turned to look at them. Oh, no! He knew. He knew she was Jamie Poole. She expected to see him react angrily. Instead, he looked downright amused, with the faint trace of a smile touching his lips. Her uncle crossed the distance that laid between them quicker than she expected.
“Lady Lydia, I presume?” Dumbly, she nodded. “And who’s your…friend?” he asked, sizing up Pip.
“He’s uh…”
“Your mother told me that you had a penchant for finding trouble. She asked that I endeavor to watch over you.” Ignoring her protestations, he took her arm and genially hooked it through his. “Come along, young lady. I’ve summoned my carriage, and I was just about to pay a call on your dear mama, I do believe she would be delighted to see that I’ve delivered you safely home.”
She wished she could crawl into a hole. She’d never been so humiliated and ashamed of herself. She didn’t think it could possibly get any worse—that is, until Richard and Alex came striding into the hotel.
Richard’s eyes immediately found hers. It was as if some other force connected them. In that instant, she knew that he would always find her and her heart soared with joy. He was finally looking at her the way she’d always craved. He was looking at her as if she were the only woman in the world for him, as if she were the only drink to quench his thirst.
“You’re safe now, my lady. I’ll leave you in your uncle’s custody,” Pip said. “Sir,” he bowed to him, and then thought better of it, and did an awkward curtsy. Lydia laughed, and then Sir Simon followed suit.
She glanced back over at Reeves, who now looked decidedly alarmed by the sudden change of events.
“Ah, Lord Tisbury. I am quite happy to see that he found you,” Sir Simon said. “Come along, Lydia,” he said, patting her arm reassuringly.
Wordlessly, she looked at Richard as they passed him. He looked as if he wanted to take her into his arms, and for one brief moment, she considered pulling away from her uncle’s firm hold, but then thought better of it. Some in the lobby were not aware she was not a man. If she embraced Richard she’d make a scandal that would burn the ears of all the gossips in the ton.
Richard looked away from her, and settled his gaze on Reeves. Lydia felt chilled just looking at him. He looked as if he was ready to murder Reeves. She could only hope that Alex would keep him from doing just that. He quickly moved into action, and crossed the distance separating him and Reeves in a flash. Pulling his arm back, he prepared to draw Reeves’s cork. The blow that he delivered sent Reeves reeling back, blood gushing from his nose. He stumbled and fell to the ground, his legs splayed apart, a stunned look on his face. He looked quite undone. Richard had done it!
“Your lord knows how to throw his punches,” Sir Simon said, approval ringing through his voice. “He displays to advantage. He has the making of a champion in him.”
“Indeed,” she whispered. “He is my champion.”
Richard motioned to the hapless Reeves. “Get up,” he instructed firmly.
“I think he’s had enough for now,” she caught Alex saying. “You can engage him again during the fight. Let the man catch his breath and regain his rattled senses.”
“You bastard,” Richard seethed.
“And proud of it,” Reeves said jovially.
“If you ever, ever frighten Lady Lydia again, I shall make quite certain the tailor is done taking your measurements, but the undertaker won’t be.”
“Is that a promise?” Reeves asked, looking as if he found it all to be a great lark.
“You may depend upon it.”
“That’s all I wanted to know. You’ve finally found the right lady for you. I say Castleton, it’s a relief to see that you still have some pluck to your backbone and that you haven’t forgotten how to fight for someone.”
“Come along, dear,” Sir Simon said, motioning her forward. “You will see your Lord Tisbury again—shortly I’d wager. I hear wedding bells in your not so distant future. He’ll make you a fine husband.”
Turning, Richard locked eyes on her, and gave her a wink that sent her heart to the highest peaks again. Everything was restored. It was as if she had her old Richard back. The Richard who dried her tears, and sat with her for hours in the King Edward Folly Tower listening to her woes and trying to lift her spirits. He was her old friend once again, and soon—he’d be her lover.
She was done with her disguises. She no longer had any urge to sneak out dressed as Jamie. She wanted to be Lady Lydia Radcliff—more importantly, she wanted to become Richard’s wife and stay by his side for the rest of her life.
ichard had never been so relieved in all of his life.
Seeing that Lydia was unharmed and up to her old tricks again made him so bloody happy. He should want to ring a fine peal over her; instead, he only wanted to take her into his arms and never let her go. He’d gone through fighting Reeves, and had thumped him soundly in the ring. Alex had asked him if he wanted to become a prizefighter, and Richard had laughed. He only wanted to marry Lydia, settle down, have children and live the life he’d always dreamt of. His spymaster ways were left in the past, but as long as Lydia was in his life, he wagered he’d always have some delightful danger waiting just around the next corner.
He stood sweaty with his shirt hanging open, outside of Maidstone House, hoping to see Lydia somewhere waiting for him. Before the fight, he’d come here expecting to see Lydia sneaking out dressed as Jaimie, and had been heartily disappointed. The fright that Reeves had given her seemed to have scared her straight. He’d be indebted to Pip Bird for the rest of his life, and would always make quite certain the man never went without. He’d mended his friendship with Alex, and there seemed to be hope between he and Reeves as well. He couldn’t hold a grudge against the man, the war had turned all of their lives upside down, and they still had a long road ahead of them to heal—and make peace with what they had don
e and what they had become as a result of those actions. He knew that Jack would be haunted for the rest of his days. He only hoped that like him, Jack would find the woman who could bring him back from the darkness and anchor his soul in hope and light once again.
Sighing, Richard looked at his pocket watch. She wouldn’t be emerging from the house, not at this ungodly hour. Turning on his heel, he started to walk back to the carriage he had waiting for him, and stopped when he heard someone calling to him.
“Richard!” It was Lydia. He remained motionless, waiting to see what she would do. Looking quickly over his shoulder, he saw her dashing toward him, dressed in the outfit she would have worn for the evening meal. She looked glorious. Feminine, dangerous, and oh, so beautiful.
She caught up with him, and embraced him from behind, and he took one blessed moment to savor the sweetness of it all. Neither one of them spoke for fear of shattering the enchantment that had fallen over the street like a canopy of bewitching stars.
“I love you,” she whispered, “And I accept your proposal. There is nothing I want more in this world than to travel through life at your side.”
Those were all the words he needed to hear. He turned and gathered her in his arms.
“You’re all wet,” she said distastefully, wrinkling her nose in that delightful manner of hers.
“I fought Reeves…”
“And won,” she finished for him.
“Aye.”
“My champion. You didn’t…you didn’t kill him, did you?”
“I wouldn’t kill an old friend—hurt him aye, but never kill him.”
“You told him to throw the fight with Pip, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“He…takes orders from you?”
“My dearest love, I have a confession to make.”
“Confess away,” she said breathlessly.
“I am a reformed spymaster.”
She looked shocked, and then smiled. “As long as we have no secrets between us, Richard, I do not care who you once were. I love the man you’ve become.”
“And I love the woman you’ve grown into. Whether you be Jamie or Lydia, my heart belongs to you, my darling.”
Delightfully Dangerous (Knights Without Armor Book 1) Page 20
