Читать книгу The Reluctant Guardian - Susanne Dietze - Страница 11

Chapter One

Hampshire, England, 1817

With a furtive pat, Gemma Lyfeld blotted her nerve-damp palms on her white muslin gown. It would not do to receive a marriage proposal with moist hands. Or silly apprehensions. Besides, it was just Hugh. Her neighbor.

And she’d been expecting this moment since she was a child. Today, at long last, he’d requested privacy with her in the drawing room.

She shifted closer on the sofa to the Honorable Hugh Beauchamp and placed her clammy hands in his. It had been years since she’d sat this close to him, eye level with the crescent-moon scar on his chin he’d received when they were eight.

“I do.” She bit her lip at once. Too soon.

Hugh’s pale lashes blinked over wide blue eyes. “Pardon?”

“I do...want to hear what you have to say.” She squeezed encouragement into his fingers. “No need to be shy.”

He pulled back one hand and tapped her nose with a long finger. “Never with you, Gem, not after all our adventures. And you’re about to have another one. A Season in London, at last.”

Gemma glanced at the mantel clock. Her sister-in-law, Cristobel, had allotted them ten minutes, scarcely enough time to remark on the drizzle, much less accomplish a satisfying marriage proposal. But if conversation set a nervous Hugh at ease, some trivial talk was worth the end result.

“Long last. Cristobel couldn’t deny me my come-out this year. I’m practically on the shelf.”

“Not for long.” He smiled.

A shiver of anticipation skittered up her arms like the first breeze of spring, chill but pleasant, expectant of blossoms and bees.

“Don’t say you’re scared, Gem.”

Of what? Marriage or making her debut in society at the advanced age of four-and-twenty?

“No. I am ready.” For both. Even though her insides quivered like a Christmas pudding.

“You’ll love London. So many things to see and do.”

“Will you introduce me to your favorite places?”

“It is my friends to whom I cannot wait to introduce you. They’ll adore you, and you, them. One in particular, with whom I’ve grown quite close—”

The sound of boot steps in the hall swept under the door, silencing Hugh and pulling his gaze to the closed portal behind her. Gemma swung her head to stare at the oak expanse. Ten minutes could not have yet passed, but with Gemma’s sister, Amy, and her husband, Lord Wyling, here to fetch her to London, the house was full of people—children and servants and Wyling’s vexing associate, Mr. Knox. Any one of them could interrupt.

When the door failed to open, she turned back in time to see Hugh take a painful-looking swallow.

“Speaking of friendship.” His gaze met hers. “Sometimes a gentleman has...moments in life. Do you understand my meaning?”

She nodded. I do, I do.

“You and I have been friends for an age.”

“Forever.” Her mouth was dry as vellum, but their joined hands were slick with sweat.

“There has l-long been an informal understanding between our families that you and I would w-wed. Nothing binding, but expected.” He shifted. Did one knee lower a smidgen off the edge of the sofa? Gemma’s breath hitched.

“Gem.”

“Hugh.” Her voice was just above a whisper.

“The time has come to—”

With the click of the latch and a swoosh, the drawing room door swung wide on its hinge. Hugh dropped her hands like they were used handkerchiefs and popped to his feet.

“Oh.” With a single syllable, the baritone voice of Tavin Knox conveyed surprise and, to Gemma’s frustration, amusement.

She didn’t need to turn to know their houseguest grinned. No doubt that left brow of his arched, too. He had seemed unable to contain either response whenever he’d seen her with Hugh this past week.

“May I assist you, Mr. Knox?”

“I was looking for your brother. Or Lord Wyling. But I, er, perceive they’re not in the room.”

She spun to face him. Sure enough, Mr. Knox’s eyebrow curved. So did the corners of his lips, prompting a dimple to wink in the curve of his cheek. Other ladies no doubt found the expression on his fine-looking face charming, but she was practically betrothed and had no business noticing such things, no matter how appealing.

Besides, he was no one to her. A friend of Wyling’s who’d tagged along with him to Hampshire. Something about having business, the nature of which he’d not shared with the ladies. No matter how subtly she had tried to ask.

“I cannot say where Lord Wyling might be found, but my brother is out shooting. You are welcome to borrow a horse and set out after him.” Preferably deep into the New Forest, taking his dimple with him.

He grinned. “Thank you. Pardon my interruption—”

“Nothing to interrupt.” Hugh’s serious expression from thirty seconds past vanished, replaced by his affable smile.

Gemma hopped up. “Hugh, we can walk in the garden if you—”

“Too wet for a stroll, Gem. I must be off, at any rate. I leave for London in the morning. Do stay, Mr. Knox, and keep my old neighbor company.”

Old neighbor?

Mr. Knox’s grin slipped.

“I’ll call on you after you’re settled at Amy and Wyling’s.”

Gemma licked her still-dry lips. For six years, she’d been confined by Cristobel in a cage of obligation. Hugh was the key to her escape. A sigh escaped her lips. Could she endure a fortnight more?

She forced a smile. “Until then, Hugh.”

He bowed. “Safe travels, Gem. Mr. Knox, I hope your business is tempered with pleasure while you visit Verity House.”

Mr. Knox stepped into the room so Hugh could exit. “My stay has been most productive. And entertaining, I assure you.”

Entertaining, indeed. Gemma’s lips compressed over clenched teeth as Hugh took his leave, her hopes trailing his pea-green coattails. And she had Mr. Knox to thank.

He couldn’t help his poor timing. But she could fault him his horrid manners.

She skewered him with a scowl. “I am delighted my private affairs offered you a moment of diversion.” She twirled to leave.

“Peace, Miss Lyfeld.” His fingers alit just above her elbow, searing her bare skin with heat. “My words did not come out as I wished. I am not known for making good company, I’m afraid. Forgive me?”

He stood as close as Hugh had, near enough that she could smell leather and horse clinging to his black coat—and something else. The scent provoked long-forgotten memories of freedom, sending her pulse fluttering. No cologne or soap. He smelled like the forest. Wood and water.

Words didn’t form, so she nodded and pulled from his light grasp, moving to the wide window, which afforded the best view in the house. Beyond the drive, where Hugh’s carriage toddled away, acres of heath and copses of trees led to the New Forest. Knolls of green, including their local landmark, Verity Hill, added texture to the prospect. But Gemma didn’t find the scenery picturesque today.

“Such gloom on your features. Am I truly forgiven?”

Since they had first met last week, he’d yet to look at her with such intensity, as if he truly cared what she thought. But of course he did not. What would he know—or care—of her plight, whose lone option was to go from one man’s household to another, provided her sister-in-law let her go and her intended groom worked up the courage to ask?

“I cannot hold a grudge when God forgave me, can I?”

His head tipped, sending a curl of rich brown hair onto his forehead like an upside-down question mark. “I see.”

Did he? No matter. “Pardon me, but I am needed elsewhere.”

With a nod, she left him leaning against the mantelpiece. She ascended the main stair with unladylike haste, entering Cristobel’s salon in a rush.

Two ladies, one fair-haired, the other with curls the light brown color of Gemma’s, perched on Chippendale chairs, a tea tray set on the table before them. At Gemma’s entrance, her sister, Amy, rose, curls bobbing against her cheeks. “Well?”

Their sister-in-law, Cristobel, grimaced. “Eight minutes, Gemma. And?”

“He did not propose.” The words tasted like bile.

Amy reached for Gemma’s hands. “I cannot believe it of Hugh.”

“I can.” Cristobel shrugged, making her blond hair bounce against her shoulders. “He’s too much a coward to admit he wants out after all these years.”

Gemma pulled away from her sister. “These years he’s been considerate, waiting while I was in mourning for Mama and Papa. And assisting you, Cristobel.” Through her nephews’ infancies, Gemma had nursed them in health and illness. It had taken Amy’s strong reminder of propriety—and her promise to cover all expenses—to persuade Peter and Cristobel to allow Gemma a come-out.

“Considerate? He’s left you dangling for ages. For all your talk about his decency, that dandy has had years to come up to scratch. Instead, he’s left you unavailable to other gentlemen while your youth crumbles away.”

“A betrothal was discussed.” Amy regained her seat.

“Between parents who were too foolish to do more than daydream about a match.” Cristobel twirled a strand of hair around her finger. “Now the notion is long dead, like them.”

Gemma’s fingers clenched. “Six years may have passed, but there is nothing long dead in our grief.”

“Of course not.” Cristobel’s eyes widened. “The way your mama and papa perished—well, a tragedy like that would haunt the person responsible forever, not that anyone believes it’s your fault, Gemma dear.”

“Because it wasn’t my fault, Cristobel.” Gemma prayed her words were true. She turned to the door. “I require air.”

“Take the boys with you. They need exercise,” Cristobel called after her.

Amy followed her to her chamber. “You were not the cause of the fire at the dower house, Gemma. Everyone knows it.”

Gemma yanked a bonnet and her cherry wool cloak from the wardrobe. She’d heard it countless times, but it never helped. “Thank you.”

“Do you wish me to accompany you?”

“I prefer solitude. I know Cristobel asked me to take the boys, but they nap at this time.”

“If Cristobel ever visited the nursery, she’d know that.” Amy’s hand rested on Gemma’s arm, warming the same spot Mr. Knox had touched. Her eyes held a similar intensity, too. “You’re more of a mother to Petey and Eddie than she is.”

“You mustn’t say that. But I shall miss the boys dreadfully while I’m in London.” She pushed away the sad thought. “Cristobel is wrong, you know. Hugh will propose, and when we wed, I will live next door and I shall see the boys every day.”

Amy’s brows scrunched. “But do you wish to marry Hugh? I know it’s what our fathers wanted, but do you love him?”

Gemma tied the bonnet’s pink ribbon under her chin with a fierce tug. “There is friendship between us. How many women can claim such blessing?”

“Few. But I want love for you, too.”

“Doing my duty and caring for our nephews—that is all I hope for.”

“Perhaps God has more for you. Trust Him, Gemma.”

Hot tears pricked the back of her eyes. She had set aside any such dreams long ago. Still, she nodded at her sister before she hurried outside.

She strode down the drive in seconds, at such a pace. Angry as she was with Cristobel, it was Mr. Knox whose face filled her thoughts. She swiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. Hugh’s retreat was not Mr. Knox’s fault. But, oh, how glad she was Tavin Knox and his amused, arched brow would not be in London to watch her wait for Hugh’s proposal.

She stomped through sodden grass toward the copse of trees skirting the base of Verity Hill like an emerald-ribboned hem. Above the trees, the rise loomed green and steep before her. She hadn’t stood at the top in a long time, but reaching its crest, perched higher than her surroundings, would feel defiant. Victorious, somehow.

Gemma would conquer Verity Hill, since she appeared incapable of surmounting any other obstacle in her life.

* * *

At the sound of movement behind him, Tavin lowered the spyglass and slid it under his coat. Would he never get the drawing room to himself?

Tavin spun and then let out a breath. It was only Wyling. He passed his friend the spyglass. “Aye, since the whole purpose for coming here was to stand at this window today.”

“Am I supposed to see anything?”

“Soon. They’re coming from the far side of the hill. Once they come ’round this side and enter the trees, I’ll know it’s safe for me to climb to the summit.”

“Where your informant will have left you something of an incriminating nature?” Wyling confirmed. “One would think a path called Smuggler’s Road would be better concealed. Same with those who make use of it. Are they not called Gentlemen of the Night for a reason?”

“Usually.” A grin pulled at Tavin’s cheeks. “But here in the New Forest, smuggling occurs regardless of the hour. And you can see how the Smuggler’s Road allows visibility for miles. Should a revenue agent be about on his rounds, the free traders can hide in the dense foliage of the forest.”

“But that won’t happen today. You led the revenue man on a false trail, correct?”

“For his own protection. He’s north, leaving Smuggler’s Road clear for the party hauling contraband from Christchurch.” He hoped. “It’s imperative this plan to learn more about how the smuggling ring works.”

Nothing had worked for so long. What it would feel like to get the upper hand for a change? To at last put a stop to the smuggler known as The Sovereign—a murderer who thought so highly of himself that he called himself after the king.

While Wyling used the spyglass, Tavin’s thoughts returned to Miss Lyfeld, her light brown hair framing her sad blue eyes when she spoke of being forgiven. Did she question God’s forgiveness like he did? She had no reason to. Of course she was absolved. Her sins were no doubt the sort God could easily pardon. She was no thief, no liar. No murderer.

Something he could never claim.

“I upset Miss Lyfeld. Again.” He fumbled with the cuff of his black coat.

“Did Gemma wish to know your whereabouts yesterday? I gather you didn’t tell her.”

“No, I walked in on her and Beauchamp.”

“Did he do it, then?” Wyling lowered the spyglass, his expression eager. “Are they betrothed?”

“He looked like he was being strangled by his cravat, so it’s possible he was about to ask. But they hadn’t finished their conversation when Beauchamp left.”

“You didn’t leave them to it?” Wyling’s brows lowered.

“I made an attempt.” The words sounded feeble.

“You should have tried harder. She’s waited years for Hugh to gather his courage.”

“Don’t give me that look. I thought he was just making moon eyes.”

“Cristobel would not have allotted privacy for mere moon eyes.”

“I don’t have sisters. How should I know?”

“Because you’re a gentleman. Alone means betrothal.”

Tavin shook his head. Had he known that? Perhaps. But he was no gentleman anymore. These past years, he had stuffed his upbringing away with the natural efficiency he demonstrated when tucking a trouser cuff inside a boot.

Nonetheless, the trouser cuff was still there, even though it was not visible. Why had he forgotten everything he’d been taught?

“I am incapable of interacting with decent people anymore.”

“That’s not true.” His friend clapped his shoulder. “But you have been among a different sort for too long. I hope it will not be much longer before you can stop this sort of thing.”

Tavin took the spyglass, aiming it toward the New Forest, as thick with thieves as trees. Weary as he was with his life, he had a debt to repay. Perhaps if he succeeded today, he’d be able to cease being an undercover agent for the Board of Customs. He could serve King and country in another—less dangerous—capacity.

He scanned the view. No activity on the hilltop. “I’ll apologize to her again later, but right now—”

He thrust the spyglass at Wyling. “This makes no sense.”

“What?”

Tavin pointed to a red-cloaked figure emerging from the trees, ascending the hill at a smart pace.

“It’s Gemma. Out for a walk.”

“Wearing a red cloak.” His plan unraveled like a skein of yarn at the paws of a cat. “I’ve got to stop her before—”

“What?” Wyling gripped his arm, wasting precious seconds.

“She’s signaling the smugglers, whether she knows it or not. There’s a woman in these parts. She mounts that hill to signal her brethren to turn back if a government man is nearby. By night she burns a lamp. By day, she dons a red cloak. Like the one Gemma is wearing.”

“And the smugglers will see her.” Wyling’s ruddy complexion paled.

“Aye. And if they turn ’round, they’ll smack into the revenue agent. If they stay the course, they’ll encounter Miss Lyfeld and may not treat her kindly.”

Tavin spun from Wyling’s grasp, bounding downstairs and out the front door. The spongy earth sucked at his boots as he ran across the park toward the hill.

You have no reason to answer me, God, but she’s an innocent. And this job is too essential to fail.

His breath came in stabbing gasps. His side ached as if he’d been dealt a blow to the ribs. But nothing would slow him. He’d worked months for this day—planned and prayed and waited.

This was justice for his sins, he supposed. He’d ruined Miss Lyfeld’s marriage proposal. And now she was about to ruin his chance to end this case once and for all.