Читать книгу Regency Pleasures and Sins Part 1 - Louise Allen, Christine Merrill - Страница 26

‘Tallie,’ Nick repeated, ‘if your headache is not too bad, I would like to speak with you.’

‘Of course,’ Tallie replied composedly. It was easy to seem calm. She felt as though she had just stepped off a cliff: it was a very long way down, time would pass until she hit the ground, nothing much mattered in the meantime.

Nick held the door for her and she stepped into the writing room again, sank gracefully into a chair and waited, her eyes unseeing on Zenna’s letter between her clasped hands.

‘I hope you managed to have a little rest since you got home,’ he began politely. ‘It was hard to have to explain everything to Aunt Kate so soon after it happened, but I think it was for the best.’

‘Thank you, yes. I feel quite restored, and I am sure you are correct.’ Tallie took a deep breath. ‘It seems to me that I have never expressed my sense of obligation to you for the way in which you have acted towards me, both before you knew who I was, and since.’

She was not watching him, so she could not tell whether the abrupt movement he made away from her chair was surprise, or simply embarrassment at her words.

‘Thank you. But I do not look for thanks for acting in a way that any gentleman would consider appropriate under the circumstances.’ His voice sounded as stilted as the words. Tallie began to pinch the letter into tiny, perfect pleats.

‘I doubt that many gentlemen would have the initiative to put in place such a careful screen of watchers and informants, nor would many men have the courage to go out onto that ledge as you did.’ She was managing, somehow, to keep her voice as calm and level as his.

‘I did what seemed necessary at the time, including the breaking and entering. Which reminds me, I really must send a note to that householder to warn him that his attic is now unsecured.’

Despite everything, a little snort of amusement escaped Tallie and she looked up. ‘I hope you do not mean to sign it?’

He smiled in return. ‘No, I think that would be taking honesty a little too far. I will include some money for repairs, but I do not intend to add my seal.’

Nick came and sat opposite her, crossed his legs, steepled his fingers and regarded her over the top of them. ‘My agent has collected your clothes from Mr Harland and has ensured that the canvases have been removed and stored securely. Hemsley will not be able to find any evidence to connect you with that studio now, however hard he tries.’

‘Well, that is a relief,’ Tallie said briskly, setting her hands on the arms of the chair and beginning to rise. ‘Thank you for setting my mind at rest. How very efficient your agent is.’

‘Please, do not go. Surely you did not think that was all I wished to speak of?’

His eyes were steady on her face and Tallie schooled her expression carefully to one of mild puzzlement. ‘Why, yes. Was it not?’

‘No. Tallie, you realise that after last night you have been completely compromised?’

‘But no one saw me,’ she protested. ‘Except Mr Harland, who does not count, and your coachman, who I am sure will be totally discreet.’

‘I am referring, not to our rooftop escapades, which by some miracle we did scrape through unseen, but to the fact that you spent last night in my bed. With me.’

‘You put me there,’ Tallie pointed out. ‘And nothing happened.’

That maddening eyebrow lifted as he lowered his hands. Tallie saw his mouth was twisted into a wry smile and found herself hopelessly distracted by the subtle changes of expression those flexible, sensual lips could evoke.

‘Your definition of “nothing” is an interesting one,’ Nick observed evenly. ‘For myself, I retain a very vivid recollection of how your body felt in my arms and how it felt to kiss you.’

Tallie flushed, but held his gaze. If he could recall how her body felt, she was certain she was branded scarlet at every point his naked frame had touched hers. ‘You have kissed me before. Jack Hemsley kissed me, come to that. No one suggested I had been compromised as the result.’

‘There is all the difference in the world between a few kisses and being in a man’s bed. Face it, Tallie, you are ruined.’

What was it she had said to him, days … weeks ago? That this struggle of wills between them felt like a war? What was happening now felt like a duel.

She took a moment to calm her breathing, then asked politely, ‘In what sense ruined? For what am I now unfit? I am physically exactly the same. I have perhaps acquired a little more knowledge of certain matters that I did not have before, but those can stay shut up in my mind. So, please define ruined, Cousin Nicholas.’

Suddenly his control snapped. Nick brought both hands down hard on the arms of his chair and was on his feet in a fluid movement, which gave her a glimpse of what a lethal swordsman he would be.

‘Damn it, Tallie. For marriage, of course.’

It took an effort of will not to press back into the illusory safety of the high-backed chair. Mentally Tallie rallied, raised her guard and riposted, ‘Why? No one else knows. I am still a virgin. And in any case, I have never had any intention of marrying, so the entire matter is academic.’ She saw him begin to open his mouth and added tartly, ‘And kindly do not swear again.’

‘Swear?’ Nick’s eyes narrowed dangerously. ‘Of course not. I apologise. What I will do next, if you persist in this ridiculous pretence that nothing of any consequence occurred last night, is to put you over my knee and—’

‘Inflict violence upon me?’ Tallie enquired sweetly. Her mind and consciousness seemed to be existing on two levels. On top there was a dangerous enjoyment in sparring with Nick, provoking him, seeing how she could strike sparks from his temper. Underneath something was shrivelling, dying. The man she loved was telling her that his actions had made her unfit for marriage to anyone else. It could only be a matter of moments before he explained that—as any gentleman must—he would therefore marry her himself.

Nick stood glaring at her. ‘No, of course I would not hurt you. It is just that you are so—’

‘Irritating? I must be, to make you lose your prized self-possession, your froideur.‘

He stilled, his eyes narrowed, regarding her. ‘Is that what you think I prize? Self-control? Coldness?’

‘Is it not? I heard it in your voice before I even saw you. Calm, controlled, slightly aloof, just a very little amused at the caperings and emotionalism of us lesser mortals. You need to know everything, be in command. No surprises for Lord Arndale. No messy emotion or ill-bred displays of temper.’ Now even the fencing was no longer amusing. All she wanted was to hold him off, perhaps hurt him a little, just a very little to counterbalance the pain inside her.

It seemed she had succeeded. The grey eyes were like black flint, the sensual, mobile mouth a hard line. Tallie expected a stinging rebuttal. What she got were hands on her shoulders pulling her hard into a crushing, furious embrace. She struggled, stamped one slippered foot futilely onto leather boots, lifted a hand to strike out and found both captured and pinioned neatly between their two bodies, ducked her face away from the angry purpose in his and found that with his free hand he had grasped her chin and was forcing it up.

‘Now this, Miss Grey, is a display of messy emotion and ill-bred temper,’ he ground out before bringing his mouth down hard on hers.

Tallie struggled furiously, her lips a tight line against the onslaught of his anger and her own desperate desire to yield to him, open to him, let him do what he would with her. She closed her eyes, felt the heat beginning to flood through her, felt her legs begin to tremble and suddenly she was no longer struggling.

She had no idea whether he had sensed her capitulation or had merely decided the demonstration of mastery was sufficient. Tallie found herself released as rapidly as he had seized her and sat down. By some miracle the chair was behind her. Furious with herself for her weakness and with him for exploiting it, she dashed the angry tears from her eyes and glared back at him.

Furious grey eyes glared back. ‘Now, Miss Grey, as we have both comprehensively insulted and offended the other, might I suggest we return to discussing what we came in here to resolve?’

‘What you, my lord, came in here to resolve. As I thought I had made clear, there is absolutely nothing I wish to speak about, other than to reiterate my gratitude for your actions yesterday. They were, if nothing else since has been, the actions of a gentleman. No, that is unfair.’ She held up a hand to silence him and continued in a manner of frigid politeness, which she could see was inciting him to even greater depths of anger. ‘I must also be grateful for the manner in which you assisted me in telling Lady Parry a story that must have been very shocking for her.’

‘I do not want you to be fair, Tallie, I do not want your gratitude, what I want is—’ He broke off, one clenched fist poised to thump the table as the door opened.

‘That horse is as sound as a bell. I cannot imagine why you thought—’ William stood in the doorway, whip in one hand, hat in the other, regarding the two of them with some confusion. ‘I beg your pardon. Have I interrupted? I could hear voices and I thought you would want your mind set at rest about the animal.’

‘Not at all, Cousin William,’ Tallie said warmly. ‘I am delighted to see you. Do, please, come in and tell Cousin Nicholas all about his horse. I must go and write a letter.’ His arrival had only put off the painful declaration she was certain Nick was going to make her sooner or later, but, although she reproved herself for being a coward, she could only be glad of the respite.

‘We were just discussing Jack Hemsley’s latest activities,’ Nick said smoothly, ignoring Tallie’s horrified expression. He moved across and placed a hand on her shoulder. Without an unseemly struggle she was effectively trapped. ‘Cousin Tallie thwarted his attempts to seduce a friend of hers and it appears that two blows to his pride by one young lady was more than he could stomach. Added to that, it seems he realised that to attack the young lady living under my aunt’s roof would be to attack me—and I have been acting in such a way recently that his dislike of me has grown inordinately. He hatched a plot to ruin Tallie, which fortunately misfired last night. I have been considering what to do about him.’

Tallie sank back into the chair and considered giving herself up to strong hysterics. Nick was blandly ignoring the furious looks she was shooting him while William was reacting with predictable indignation. ‘What to do? How can you even hesitate? Why, I will call him out, the bast—blackguard. Cousin Tallie is a guest under my roof, my mother’s companion. This is outrageous!’ He took an agitated turn around the room and swung round to face them. ‘What did he do?’

‘I really would prefer not to discuss it,’ Tallie interjected hastily. If she had not been feeling so flustered she might have been amused at the confusion into which she had thrown William, who blushed and began to stutter at the thought he had embarrassed her. ‘And, please, I could not bear it if either of you call him out. What if you were to be wounded?’

William looked hurt, Nick merely raised an eyebrow and remarked, ‘Unlikely. No, we need to avoid any hint of scandal in dealing with Hemsley—Tallie’s position in this household is too well known not to arouse suspicions if one of us openly challenges him. I have a better idea—one that I can thank you for, Tallie. Financial ruin is going to be a much more effective punishment for Jack than an uncomfortable dawn meeting on the Heath. Is Aunt Kate downstairs, William?’

‘In the front salon,’ he replied. ‘I thought it was odd; she is usually in here at this time of day.’

Tallie glared at Nicholas through narrowed eyes. So, Lady Parry had tactfully removed herself while he made a declaration, had she? It was regrettable that she had to disappoint her kind patroness, but she was not going to marry Nicholas Stangate to satisfy anyone’s ideas of what was the right and proper thing for a compromised young lady to do.

‘Then let us consult her.’ Nick opened the door for Tallie and steered them both in the direction of the front of the house. ‘If my memory serves me right, we will have the perfect opportunity for our retribution tonight.’

Lady Parry looked up with a smile that rapidly faded as she took in Tallie’s tight lips, Nick’s expressionless face and William’s pink-cheeked indignation.

‘We have just been telling William that Jack Hemsley has attempted to ruin Tallie.’

‘Oh, dear.’ Lady Parry fluttered a white hand and lay back against the sofa cushions. ‘This is all very … distressing. You will not say anything, William dear, will you?’

‘Of course not.’ Her son looked indignant. ‘Don’t know what happened anyway, so I can’t say anything. I just want to put a bullet in the man. Damn it, when I think I believed him my friend!’

‘Language, dearest! You are not going to call him out, are you, Nicholas?’

‘No. There is too much risk it would draw attention to Tallie.’ Nick pulled over a chair and sat down. ‘Am I right in thinking it is Lady Agatha Mornington’s dress ball tonight?’

‘Oh my goodness, yes, it is! I had quite forgotten, what with all the excitement of having to go down to Sussex and then poor Tallie’s adventures. Were you thinking that Mr Hemsley would be sure to be there in attendance on his aunt and it would therefore be embarrassing for Tallie to see him?’

‘Not at all. I was wondering if you felt rather too tired after your journey to go, that was all.’ Nick sat twisting his signet ring round his finger with a vaguely abstracted air. Tallie eyed him cautiously. He was plotting, she was sure of it.

His aunt was even more certain. ‘Out with it, Nicholas. What do you have in mind?’

‘A punishment for Jack Hemsley that will ensure he is hurt where it will do him most damage—in his pocket and in his reputation. And it will ensure he will not dare to return to town for a good long while. If he can afford to, that is. But I am going to need all three of you to pull it off.’

Lady Parry sat up sharply, eyes sparkling. ‘Wonderful! I have been wanting to box that young man’s ears ever since I heard of his ungentlemanly behaviour.’

Nick turned to look at Tallie, who found that her hands were clenched into fists in her lap. The thought of turning the tables on Jack Hemsley was powerfully attractive. ‘Tallie? Do you feel you can cope?’

‘With anything,’ she affirmed with emphasis. ‘What do you want us to do?’

At ten that evening Nick smiled at his troops as their carriage drew up at the steps of the Morning tons’ town house. In the light from the flickering flambeaux their faces were curiously intent and dramatic. ‘All ready? Are you sure you know what to do? We cannot know the layout of the ballroom in advance, so we will have to improvise if necessary.’

‘We will cope,’ Lady Parry declared. ‘After all, there are only so many ways one can arrange the room and Lady Mornington is not one to be endlessly seeking for variety and novelty. But poor Agatha! I do dislike being the one who reveals the depths of infamy her wretched nephew has sunk to.’

‘Think how she is being deceived now, though,’ Tallie comforted. ‘And you did say she had some very pleasant nephews and nieces on the other side of the family from whom she has been estranged because she so favours Jack. How much better it will be if she has their loyal support and not that of a money-seeking rake.’

‘I would not put anything past him,’ William added grimly. ‘If the moneylenders get impatient at having to wait too long for that post-obit to be repaid, goodness knows what he might do to get his hands on her fortune.’

Lady Parry gasped, but Nick said repressively, ‘Your Gothic imaginings are frightening the ladies, William. Now, if we are all ready, let us draw the first covert.’

With butterflies in her stomach Tallie followed her patroness up the double staircase to the wide landing outside the ballroom. They had deliberately timed their arrival for when the receiving line would have ended and their hostess would be found inside with her guests. Kate stepped into the hot, noisy throng, nodding and bowing to friends. With her hand under Tallie’s elbow, she steered her firmly past the young gentlemen who stopped to request a dance.

‘A little later, Lord Dimsdale, we are on an errand at present … Good evening, Mr Hubbert, I am sure Miss Grey will give you a dance later, but just now we really must find our hostess for a few words.’

Tallie craned to see the other side of the room. Nick’s dark head could be glimpsed in the gaps between sets of the country dance, which was boisterously under way. He was making steady progress up the room and suddenly Tallie saw his objective at the same time as Jack Hemsley saw Nick.

He turned abruptly on his heel and headed deeper into the onlookers towards the head of the room. ‘Gone away,’ she whispered to Lady Parry. ‘Nick has successfully flushed him out of cover.’

‘Good. Ah, there is poor Agatha Morning ton.’

‘And there is William, dodging into the retiring room and out of the other door to get ahead of Mr Hemsley.’

‘This is very exciting … Good evening, General! Yes, indeed, what a crush.’ Kate bowed graciously to the military man and bore down on their hostess, a formidable matron whom Tallie recognised from her portrait at Mr Harland’s studio. ‘Agatha! What a delightful dance! Have you met my dear young friend Miss Grey? Talitha, make your curtsy to Lady Morning ton.’

Tallie bobbed neatly and shook hands, finding herself under a sharp and intelligent scrutiny. How had such a lady been taken in by her scamp of a nephew? she wondered. Presumably she was not the first doting aunt to be deceived by charm and address, and doubtless not the last.

Kate, with one rapid glance across the ballroom to where her son was converging with Jack Hemsley from one direction and Nick Stangate from another, turned slightly and began to stroll towards the head of the ballroom. Just a few steps away a small sitting-out area had been contrived with chairs and divided into two by a screen of potted palms.

‘Agatha, my dear, I wonder if you can spare us a moment,’ she said earnestly. ‘Miss Grey has a favour to ask you.’

‘Oh, please, Lady Parry,’ Tallie interjected, obedient to her script. ‘I would not want to trouble Lady Mornington by asking her about dogs when she must want to be talking to her guests.’

‘Dogs? Are you interested in dogs, my dear?’

‘Oh, yes, ma’am, and I was thinking particularly of buying a pug. Lady Parry says no one knows more about them than you and perhaps you could advise me where the best place to obtain one would be?’

She had been dubious when Lady Parry had told her that a discussion about pugs would be guaranteed to divert Lady Mornington whatever the circumstances, but it seemed that she had been quite correct. Tallie found herself seated and being comprehensively lectured and questioned.

‘Well, yes, ma’am, I do enjoy walking …’ There was Nick a few yards away. He had halted and was standing with his back turned, apparently deep in conversation with another man. That escape route had been stopped then; Jack Hemsley would not care to pass so close to Nick.

‘I had no idea they would need so much exercise.’ Lady Mornington was waxing lyrical about the boundless energy of pugs and the need for long walks whatever the weather. ‘How very invigorating. I had rather imagined them to be lap dogs.’

Through the potted palms she could just glimpse William’s blond head, then she heard him. ‘Jack! I should have known I would see you here.’ He sounded wary, but not unfriendly.

Hemsley’s slightly deeper voice carried even more clearly and Lady Mornington turned her head slightly and smiled, obviously recognising her favourite nephew. ‘Parry, old chap. Er …’

‘Oh, look, I think I overreacted the other week at the ball, you know …’ William was doing an admirable imitation of a callow youth in the throes of hero worship. ‘I mean, I’m sure things weren’t what they seemed … Thing is, I don’t want to fall out with you …’

‘Don’t give it another thought. Tell you what, come to the prizefight in Bedford with me next week—we’ll make up a party, what do you say?’ There was relief and suppressed triumph in the affected voice and Tallie bit the inside of her lip in an effort to keep focused on Lady Mornington while watching Kate Parry out of the corner of her eye.

Lady Parry, who was dressed in an unusual shade of deep salmon to ensure she was visible, shifted her position and Tallie saw her nod. William must have glimpsed his mother through the palms and seen her signal, for his voice became a little louder and Tallie, hearing her cue, dropped her fan and dance card. With a murmur of apology she fell to her knees and began to hunt round under her chair, cutting off Lady Mornington in mid-sentence.

‘That’s a damn nice new curricle you’ve got, Jack,’ she heard William say enthusiastically. ‘More benefits of that post-obit loan you took out on your Aunt Mornington? Or has the old lady coughed up some more of the readies, seeing what a handsome portrait you commissioned of her?’

Tallie glanced up. Lady Mornington had frozen where she sat, her eyes riveted on the screen of palms. ‘Wish I had your knack of turning old ladies up sweet,’ William persisted loudly. ‘What’s the trick to it?’

Go on, Tallie willed Jack Hemsley. Go on, boast about how clever you are.