The Dangerous Lord Darrington

by Sarah Mallory

  Beth subsided, spent and trembling, and lay quietly, cradled in Guy’s arms.

  ‘Oh,’ she breathed at last. ‘Oh, I never knew it could be like this. But, Guy, you did not share it…’

  ‘Hush.’ He kissed her. ‘There is time yet for me. After all, we haven’t even finished undressing.’ He sat up, his hands on her waist. ‘Turn over and let me get you out of this damned corset.’

  Obediently she turned on to her front, resting her chin on her hands. Guy knelt up and straddled her, his fingers working out the laces of her corset, pulling them free with slow steady strokes. Occasionally he stopped, leaning forwards to brush aside the hair from her shoulders and drop a kiss on the back of her neck. Beth closed her eyes, her body resting, but not sleeping, for as the corset loosened she felt the excitement building again. At last Guy pulled the stays away. She shifted, ready to turn and remove her chemise, but Guy stopped her. Silently he pushed the chemise up past her waist. She felt the soft linen of his shirt cool against her back. His hands caressed the soft swell of her buttocks, then slid around to her stomach, lifting her on to her knees before him, his fingers driving downwards between her thighs. A white-hot ache curled low in her belly. She could feel the heat of his body, hard and aroused behind her, and she responded again, lifting, opening, pushing herself up and backwards against him. His fingers continued to stroke and caress, even as he entered her. She was dizzy with elation, her spirit soaring, and all the while he was moving with her, in her, against her. His hands slid up beneath the loose chemise to cup her breasts and he kissed her neck as she arched back towards him. There was a cry, but Beth did not know whether it was she or Guy in the final, writhing, frenzy of excitement that overtook them. As the tension eased he was clinging to her, his body warm against her back, then with a sigh he gently pulled her down on to the bed. Beth lay with him curled protectively about her, wrapped in his arms, the soft billowing folds of his shirt keeping the cool night air from their bodies.

  Guy held her close, nuzzling her neck, breathing in the sweet perfume of her skin, burying his face in her silky hair. His senses were still bewitched, the blood singing in his veins. He ran his hands over her skin, marvelling at the smooth, rounded contours of her body. The fire had burned low. They should slip between the sheets and keep warm, but she was lying so peacefully in his arms that he was loath to break the spell. He pulled her closer and closed his eyes.

  He awoke a short time later to find her turning restlessly in his arms. The fire had died, but the room was washed with a pale moonlight. Desire stirred as she pressed against him.

  ‘I have never known the like,’ she murmured. ‘I wanted it to go on and on.’

  ‘And it will,’ he said softly. ‘I have yet to see you naked.’

  He eased himself away from her and stripped off his shirt. Following suit, Beth sat up and drew the chemise over her head. Guy caught his breath as she stretched up, arms raised and momentarily tangled in the material. He reached for her, cupping her breasts in his hands and burying his face in their softness. She trembled, leaning into him. Her fingers drove through his hair, insistently pulling him up towards her until she could capture his mouth with her own. He reeled at the passion of her embrace as they fell back on to the covers. She was exploring his body, discovering him, first with her hands and then her lips, kissing every inch of him, gently teasing his senses. When he groaned and arched beneath her touch she gave an exultant laugh. He lay back and closed his eyes.

  ‘It amuses you, does it,’ he muttered, ‘to have me at your mercy?’

  She was kneeling over him, her hair tumbling around her shoulders, tickling his chest as she leaned towards him.

  ‘Of course. It is where you belong, sir.’

  The mix of laughter and husky, wanton passion in her voice was incredibly arousing.

  ‘We’ll see about that!’ He reached up and pulled her, laughing, into his arms.

  She responded eagerly to his kiss, pressing warm and pliant against him. With the first, heady urgency of their passion spent they gave themselves up to a slow and sensual pleasuring of each other in the darkness until at last, sated, they fell asleep in each other’s arms just as the first streaks of dawn were lightening the sky.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Beth woke up slowly to the sound of the rain pattering against the window. Her first thought was that she was cocooned in a warm protective coat, her second the knowledge that it was Guy wrapped around her. Memories of the night flooded back and a delicious lightness filled her being, pooling low in her belly and causing her thighs to ache with desire.

  She had given herself to Guy and she could not regret it. She loved him. Beth hugged the thought to her. With Guy beside her she could face anything. There were problems, of course—Simon’s freedom was not yet secured, but with Madame de Beaune’s letter that was only a matter of time. And she would have to tell Miles that she could no longer marry him. That would be painful, but she hoped he would understand.

  She rang for Tilly, but when she had finished dressing and there was still no sign of her maid she went in search of her. An enquiry of Mrs Burley informed her that Tilly had not been seen all morning, so Beth made her way up to the servants’ quarters, where she found her maid still in her bed and groaning pitifully.

  ‘Ooh, miss, I feel so bad,’ she complained. ‘Me stomach’s that sore and I daren’t leave the room lest I disgrace meself.’

  Beth took a cloth over to the jug of water on the washstand and damped it.

  ‘Poor Tilly,’ she said, putting the damp cloth on her forehead. ‘Is it something you have eaten?’

  ‘I don’t know, miss, but with you and his lordship away Mrs Burley don’t do much cookin’ so me and Fitton went out to the pie shop yesterday morning, and I didn’t finish all o’ mine so I kept it to eat last night. It did taste a bit funny, though.’ She turned quickly and retched into the chamber pot.

  Beth went downstairs to find the earl dressed and waiting for her in the breakfast room. He held out her chair for her. As she sat down he put his hands on her shoulders and bent to kiss her cheek.

  ‘You left me sleeping. I missed you.’

  ‘I beg your pardon, my lord—’

  He sat down beside her. ‘So formal? Will you not call me Guy?’

  She responded with a shy smile. ‘Guy, then. I beg your pardon if I have kept you waiting. My maid is not well. I think she has eaten some bad meat and is now far too ill to be moved today.’ She sighed. ‘I do not want to delay our journey a moment longer than necessary, so I shall have to leave her enough money to buy her ticket—’

  ‘There will be no need for that,’ he interrupted her. ‘Fitton will be following with the baggage wagon, and Holt is going to take my curricle on to Wylderbeck. One of them may wait behind for your maid to recover.’ A smile glinted in his eyes. ‘Which one shall it be?’

  Her lips twitched. ‘I do believe Tilly is quite partial to Fitton’s company, my lord. If you do not object to his delaying his journey, I think that would answer very well.’

  ‘Then it shall be done. Would you like me to ask Mrs Burley to send one of her girls with you, to act as your maid?’

  ‘That will not be necessary. I can manage to dress myself.’

  ‘And I will manage to undress you,’ he murmured, sending the heat rushing through her veins again. He laughed. ‘I beg your pardon! Now, you must eat something before we set off, so what will you have?’

  Realising the good sense of the earl’s suggestion, Beth set herself to breaking her fast, refusing to join the earl in drinking ale and instead sipping at a glass of water.

  ‘How long will it take us to get to Malpass?’ she asked, pushing aside her plate.

  ‘With good weather, and as long as you do not object to travelling in the dark, we could reach the Priory by late tomorrow night.’

  She rose and walked to the window. ‘Will this incessant rain affect us, sir?’

  ‘I hope not. We shall be keeping to
the main road, which is in very good order.’ He came up behind her and put his hand on her shoulder. ‘It is only a little rain, Beth. It will not stop me getting you safely to Malpass.’

  She dropped her head to one side, rubbing her cheek against the back of his hand. ‘I am sure, sir, that if anyone can get me there it is you.’

  The rain beat down steadily as they clattered out over the cobbles, patterning the carriage windows with rivulets of water and obscuring the view.

  ‘On our way at last,’ said Guy, reaching for her hand. ‘Happy?’

  ‘I shall be happier when Simon is free. And when I have spoken to Miles.’

  ‘Ah, yes, Radworth. How will you explain to him that you set off for Richmond to buy your wedding clothes, but instead you went to London?’

  ‘Oh, pray do not joke about it,’ she begged him. ‘I shall, of course, have to lay the whole story before him.’

  ‘Everything?’

  She bit her lip. ‘I shall tell him I…I can no longer return his affection.’

  ‘And what will he do then, do you think?’

  Beth freed her hand from the comfort of his grip and twisted her fingers together. ‘I think,’ she said slowly, ‘that he will insist upon the marriage settlement being honoured. He will take the Priory.’ Her voice quivered. ‘I very much fear that I will lose Malpass for ever. I had hoped Miles would agree to make the Priory over to Simon, once he knows he is a free man, but now…’ She gave a little shrug. ‘I suppose it seemed sensible for Papa to sign everything over to me, when he thought Simon was drowned.’

  ‘It also meant that the Crown could not take the estate, should Simon be found guilty of murder and or robbery.’

  ‘True, but Papa did not know Simon had been accused. We made sure we kept that from him.’

  ‘But Radworth knew.’

  Beth blinked. ‘What has that to say to anything?’

  ‘It was entirely in Radworth’s interest to make sure the estate came to you.’

  ‘That’s nonsense! Miles had never been to Yorkshire before he brought us news of Simon.’

  ‘But perhaps, once he had seen Malpass, he decided to have it, at all costs.’

  A heavy silence filled the coach.

  ‘You think he proposed merely to gain the Priory?’ she said coldly. ‘That is not very complimentary to me, sir.’

  ‘Do you think he loves you?’

  She sat up very straight. ‘Yes, I do.’

  ‘Then why were you so loath to tell him that Simon was alive?’ he said softly. When she did not answer he sat forwards. ‘Beth—’

  ‘No!’ She flinched away from him and huddled herself in the corner. ‘That is a despicable thing to say. I know no ill of Miles Radworth.’

  ‘Praise indeed!’

  She glared at him. ‘I would stake my life that he knew nothing of the Priory or the family when he came north to tell us about Simon. For nigh on two years he has been on hand to support us, even neglecting his own estates in the south and hiring a house in Fentonby. That is not the action of a bad man.’

  ‘It is certainly the action of a patient one,’ returned the earl mildly. ‘Tell me, Beth—in all the time of your courtship, has he never tried to take you to his bed?’

  ‘He has tried to…to kiss me.’

  ‘A veritable Lothario!’

  Her cheeks flamed. ‘Not everyone is as…as impetuous as you, my lord!’

  ‘Imp—! Beth, no man who professed to love you could keep his hands off you for so long, believe me!’

  ‘No,’ she said, putting her hands over her ears. ‘You are trying to tell me that Miles is a fortune hunter and I will not believe it!’ She lifted her head, blinking away the tears. ‘Is it not enough that I am going to end our betrothal. Must you seek to vilify him, too?’

  ‘I do not seek to do anything,’ retorted Guy. ‘I want you to be on your guard, Beth.’

  ‘Thank you,’ she replied stiffly, ‘I am quite capable of making my own mind up about Miles and I am sure there is no harm in him.’

  Guy relapsed into silence. He applauded her loyalty, but his instinct was to distrust Miles Radworth. Perhaps Beth was right and he was a good man, perhaps it was jealousy that made him so uneasy, but he doubted it, and if his suspicions were correct, then their arrival back at Malpass could be fraught with danger.

  There was little time to dwell on what the future might hold, for the journey north proved to have dangers of its own. They had not been travelling long before the coach slowed and the footman came to the door to inform them that the road was flooded. It proved passable, but the rain continued to cause problems and they made slow progress to Godmanchester, where the floodwaters kept them at the inn for three days.

  Beth was anxious to get back to Malpass and show Madame de Beaune’s deposition to Simon. She was obliged to curb her impatience, for all the reports coming in spoke of floodwater all around them, carriages swept away and livestock drowned.

  ‘We are best sitting it out,’ Guy told her. ‘We are safer here than trying to find a way through the floodwaters.’

  Beth knew it was true, but the wait fretted her; the only time she forgot her troubles was at night, when Guy would take her in his arms and kiss away her cares. They grew so close, so comfortable together, that she wondered how she had ever lived without him.

  Eventually word came through that the road was passable and they set off early the next morning to join a long procession of carts, wagons and carriages crossing the medieval bridge at Huntingdon. Beth watched horrified as they travelled all day through a landscape mired by the floods. Uprooted trees littered the riverbanks, hedges and roads were filmed with mud and buildings displayed the telltale brown watermarks, sometimes as high as the upstairs windows, and the occupants had carried their furniture and belongings into the sun to dry out.

  As they moved farther north they left the floods behind them and gradually Beth’s mind turned back to her own problems.

  They had spent one more night on the road and after an other long and tiring day’s travel the earl’s carriage drove into Thirsk as the autumn sun was setting.

  ‘Would you like me to hire a gig for you?’ asked Guy as they slowed to enter the town. ‘You might want to avoid awkward questions and return to the Priory alone.’

  ‘And what would you do?’

  ‘I will put up in Fentonby.’

  She reached out her hand to him. ‘Thank you, but no. I think it is time I put an end to this pretence. Besides,’ she said, smiling, ‘I would miss you too much.’

  He kissed her fingers. ‘I am glad of that. To tell you the truth I do not want to let you out of my sight.’

  He leaned out to give instructions to Thomas. Beth clasped her hands together, another few miles and she would be home. She wondered how Sophie had coped without her, looking after Grandmama and Simon. She hoped her brother was getting better. When she had left the fever had abated and he was beginning to look and act more like his old self—his recovery would certainly be helped when he heard her news. She had sent a note by express when they stopped overnight at Retford, telling Sophie to expect her. It was the first correspondence she had dared to write, fearing that any letter might fall into the wrong hands and the truth would be discovered, but now she was aware of a growing excitement.

  She clutched her reticule to her. She could not wait to show the letter to Sophie and Simon. Tomorrow they would ask Sir John Marton to call and then… She did not know how the process of law worked, but she was sure that Sir Thomas would agree to Simon remaining at Malpass while his name was cleared. She looked out of the window, her eyes searching the darkness for familiar landmarks. They rattled through Fentonby and she looked out for the elegant town house that Miles had rented. Poor Miles, she was not looking forward to her interview with him, but it must be done, and then she would be free to marry Guy. She swallowed, clamping down the excitement and hope that bubbled within her. She must not anticipate too much yet, there were still hurdles to
be crossed and she was foolishly superstitious that if she took her happiness for granted it would all be snatched away from her.

  ‘Here we are.’

  Guy’s words brought her back to the present. The carriage slowed to turn into the Priory’s gateway and a moment later she was fumbling with the carriage door.

  ‘Here, let me.’ Guy gently moved her aside to open the door and jump out. She could hardly wait until he had put down the steps before descending.

  ‘Where is everyone? Surely they should have been looking out for us! Perhaps they did not receive my note.’

  Picking up her skirts, she ran up the steps. The door opened to her touch and she hurried inside.

  ‘Sophie! Grandmama!’ She hurried into the great hall, tossing her cloak, bonnet and reticule on to the settle and not noticing the gloves and riding crop already resting there. ‘Oh, there you are! How glad I am to see you both, I—’ She stopped. Her grandmother was sitting in her usual armchair, regal as ever, if a little paler, but Sophie was kneeling at her feet, her face buried in the black skirts. She looked up at Beth’s words, her face white and her eyes swollen with crying.

  ‘Oh, Beth,’ she cried, her voice choking on a sob. ‘It’s Simon! He has been arrested!’

  Chapter Eighteen

  ‘Is that you, Elizabeth?’ Lady Arabella peered shortsightedly across the room and held out an imperious hand. ‘Where have you been, girl? It is most irregular for you to disappear in that way!’

  Beth hurried to her grandmother, leaving Guy to follow.

  ‘She is very shocked,’ murmured Sophie. ‘I told her you had gone to London, but I do not think she understood me.’