Why couldn’t she stop seeing Adam in this man? He was Sirius. She liked Sirius.
She more than liked Sirius and until an hour ago, she hadn’t realized just how much.
“Save me from little girls,” he prayed aloud.
Pia smiled and was glad her face was away from the room. She was likely reddening from embarrassment. “How long will we be here?”
“Hopefully, it will all be over in a few weeks.”
“And how long will you be away?”
“Not long. A few days. I just need to visit a man.”
Pia did as well. She needed to get to Chester. She didn’t know how she’d get there now. She’d have to go by mail coach and doubted Sirius would allow it.
She reminded herself that she didn’t need his permission. She understood Cassius was in danger but doubted that was true for herself. She had a job to do and when this was all over, she’d be returning to her old life. She worked for a living. She could not afford to upset her employer even if that employer was her own aunt.
She’d go as soon as Sirius left and hoped to be back before he was.
A footman came down and informed everyone that rooms had been prepared and dinner would be served there.
Pia had forgotten about dinner. She was hardly hungry anymore.
Sirius escorted the women to their wing. Pia left him to say goodbye and goodnight to his daughters and mother and went to her own room.
∫ ∫ ∫
3 0
* * *
There was a knock on Pia’s door a short time later. She thought it would be a servant, but instead, it was Sirius.
They didn’t speak, but when his arms went around her, objection never once entered her mind. He kicked the door closed, and they tumbled onto her bed.
She released a distressed moan as his mouth lowered to her throat. His hands took account of her every curve and stroked her to a fever pitch. She cried out as his teeth sunk into her tender flesh. Her legs shook even as she used them to cup his hips.
He placed a hand over her mouth as he continued his assault on her with his other hand and his mouth. It barely muffled her moans. The ache between her legs was profound.
He returned his mouth to hers. “Your little cries are about to make me spill on myself as though it were my first time.”
She understood his words. Even though she’d never seen it done, the books her aunt loaned her explained much. “Do I truly do that to you?”
He grinned and kissed her again. “You do that and so much more. One day, I’ll tell you everything, show you everything.”
She wanted that day to be today. Now. “What are you waiting for?”
He rubbed his nose alongside hers. The touch was so sweet and went against everything she’d come to expect from this man. “I don’t know. The right moment, perhaps.”
Every moment felt right with Sirius, but Pia warned her heart to slow down. She’d just been shot at. There was so much she didn’t know about Sirius and his connection with Cassius. Sirius had left on business before. Had that been about Cassius as well? Was it Cassius’ army he fought in? And then there had been the blood on his hands in Leeds.
Who was this man? Who was the Earl of Gordie?
She cupped his cheeks. “Will you tell me everything upon your return?”
He searched her eyes. “Mostly everything, but there are… parts of me I would only share with my wife.” He grinned.
She narrowed her eyes. Those were the parts she wanted most. Whatever he was hiding, she wanted. The rest, the world could have. She wanted to be special to him.
“Thank you for kissing me goodbye,” she said.
He groaned and molded himself farther into her skirts. “Does it please you that I’m here?”
“Yes,” she whispered deliriously. How could she crave one man so much? She’d missed him when he’d left before. She would miss him again. She cupped the back of his neck and threaded her fingers in his hair. It felt coarser than she’d expected.
“Are you sure you’d not prefer another man?” he asked.
“What other man?” She stared into his eyes. Adam. No. He was not Adam. “Sirius. You are who I want.”
His eyes darkened. “Then you know what must happen for that to take place.” He kissed her again. “We’ll discuss it more upon my return.” He pulled away from her arms. She sighed longingly at the absence of his weight.
She didn’t want to wed, though that feeling was slowly being driven from her. She was no longer afraid that Sirius would hurt her the way Ginter had. She was starting to believe that he could make her happy and that she could make him happy in return.
He held out his hand and she stood. She crashed into him. He looked down at her dress. “Forgive me for ravishing you while you wear my blood.”
“Your… oh!” She stepped back and looked at her dress. “I completely forgot about that.” How strange that it barely bothered her.
He lifted her chin, and she closed her eyes, ready for his kiss.
A knock came just as their lips touched.
“Sirius?” Nick called from the other side. “Are you in there? If you are, I’ve come to inform you that we caught one of them. If you’re not in there then I shall try another room.” Nick could be heard walking away.
Pia swallowed. She didn’t wish to ask why Nick would assume Sirius would be here. “What does he mean? Who did you catch? Is it one of the attackers?”
“Don’t worry.”
“How can I not?” she asked. “We were surrounded by gunmen.”
“Hardly surrounded,” he countered. “There were only ten shots, which means there were somewhere between five and ten men. If each man carried two pistols and shot off both, then there were five shooters. If ten men only shot once then there were ten. But I’m sure it’s some number in between those figures. More likely five or six.
So see? You’ve nothing to worry over. Go to sleep. I’ll see you upon my return.” His demeanor had changed, but he kissed her one last time before he left, closing the door behind him.
Pia sat on her bed and wondered how she’d accomplish anything he’d told her to do. Worry, she would. Sleeping would be impossible, but she prayed she would see him on his return only so she could get to know him better.
The way his mind worked… she was once again reminded of Adam. Perhaps, they’d inherited their mind from their father. It was likely the reason they were so similar. Tired, Pia decided she would go to bed, if only so she could dream about Sirius.
∫ ∫ ∫
3 1
* * *
Sirius found Nick at the bottom of the stairs. “Is he still breathing?”
“Mostly,” Nick said. “Astger’s men didn’t handle him with care.”
Sirius grunted and could only imagine what the general had done when he’d found the man who’d happened to get by his defenses.
Sirius followed Nick into Cassius’ office.
Milly was gone.
A bag of flesh rested on the ground. He’d been beaten badly. Blood stained his soiled clothes. Sirius walked around and was shocked by the man’s face. It was disfigured. If Sirius could have recognized him before, he certainly didn’t now.
“Did you do this?” Sirius asked Cassius.
Cassius shook his head. He sat stiffly in his chair. “Someone will need to tell Astger not to let his men take their anger out on my traitors.”
“Can you blame them?” Nick asked. “These men shouldn’t have been able to get past the riders you have stationed outside.”
“How did you manage it?” Cassius asked the man on the ground.
What came out of his mouth was nearly unintelligible. His mouth was mangled.
Sirius cursed. “He won’t do us any good. Want me to get rid of him?”
The man protested with moans, likely aware of just how Sirius planned to get rid of him.
“No. He is to be our guest for some time.” Cassius motioned for a footman to take him away. “I’
ll have Doc patch him up. Hopefully, within a week or so, he’ll be able to give us some answers.”
Sirius rounded on Cassius. “You’re going to keep him here? Around Milly?” Around Pia and his girls?
The footman carried him away.
“I’ll keep him in my wing under lock and key,” he said. “No one will see him unless I give them access.”
“And who is to have access?” Nick asked.
“The doctor and I. No one else.”
Sirius nodded. He still wasn’t sure how he felt about having the man near his family, but if it didn’t bother Cassius… “This is for Milly, isn’t it?”
Cassius nodded. He seemed much calmer. Sirius didn’t know what his wife had done to soothe him, but it had worked. “We have yet to know his fate, but I will not be so merciful once I find the man behind this.”
“It has to be a lord,” Nick said. “This many men wouldn’t follow anyone less.”
“I agree,” Cassius said.
Nick’s words gave Sirius a thought. “Do you have the list of men who’ve yet to side with Cassius?”
Nick nodded and handed over a missive from his pocket.
Sirius looked the names over. He found the one he wanted most and then he found two more names of men near.
His planned trip had just gotten shorter. He’d be back in a matter of days. Perhaps, they’d catch the man responsible within a fortnight. He went to Cassius’ desk and wrote out the names on another sheet.
“What are you thinking?” Cassius asked.
He turned to Cassius. “I need your blackmail on these three men.”
Cassius took the page and nodded before handing it back to Sirius. “Are you ready?”
Sirius lifted a brow. “You have their sins memorized?”
“Mostly,” Cassius said. “They’re like terrible bedtime stories.”
Sirius was very glad he didn’t have just a fine memory as Cassius, even more so as Cassius told him about what the men had done.
And he’d thought the things he’d done had been dark.
When he was done, he left. He thought to see Pia again but knew if he walked into her room, he’d not leave until sometime in the morning.
He was in the foyer when his mother stopped him.
“I must speak to you,” she said.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing at all.” Georgiana smiled at him. Then she lowered her voice and stood on her toes. “Did you know that Sirius was engaged to Pia?”
Sirius straightened. “When?”
“Right after we left fifteen years ago.” Georgiana’s smile widened. “She was promised to you… or well… to Sirius.”
Sirius allowed those words to sink in. “Who told you this?”
“Pia did. She wondered why you hadn’t mentioned it. The girls adore her. They keep asking me if you’re going to make her your wife.”
Sirius ignored the comment. The girls had never hidden the fact that they wanted a mother. Sirius worked endlessly. They wanted someone who would be there more often. “Why? Did she think I’d force her to marry me?”
Was she hoping he would keep his vow now after all these years? Foolishly, Sirius had married someone else. Was the contract still good then? Even after all these years?
He remembered Lord Gordie coming to see him two months ago, but Sirius had been too busy to speak to him.
He wasn’t certain what to do about this information.
“What are you going to do about Pia?” Georgiana asked him anxiously.
“Court her, but I won’t use a fifteen-year-old contract to get it done.”
Georgiana nodded and then kissed his cheek. “I just thought you should know.” When she left, Sirius’ thoughts returned to the woman who rested upstairs.
∫ ∫ ∫
3 2
* * *
Pia decided she wouldn’t ask the duke for a carriage and instead, requested a ride to town.
“Why?” Van Dero asked after breakfast the next morning. She’d caught him in the hall before he could disappear into his study. His working habits reminded her of Sirius.
“What is it you need?” the duke asked. “I’m sure someone can get it for you.”
Pia released a calming breath. “This is not about what I need. There is something I must do.”
“What must you do?” He’d stopped and was now studying her.
She frowned. His questions were intrusive, yet he didn’t seem to understand that at all. She wondered how he’d react to knowing she worked. He only knew her to be a lady. She was used to rejection of the upper-class once they discovered how she made her living.
She didn’t want the duke to know the truth. “I must see a friend.”
He blinked empty gold eyes at her. He was handsome but very odd. “And your friend is in town?”
Pia was about ready to walk. The town wasn’t far. It would take her an hour at most to walk there. “No, she is not.” it was actually a ‘he’ she planned to see. “I will take the mail coach and return in a matter of days.” She needed to leave now if she planned to get back soon.
“Who is your friend? Where do they live?”
Pia glared even as fear began to tingle down her spine. “Never mind.” She’d bear the cold and walk. She turned away.
“You’ve not answered the question.”
She looked over her shoulder at him. “I have no intention of doing so, Your Grace. I thank you for accommodating me last evening, but I shall not need your hospitality again.”
“Wait.” Cassius sighed. “My questions offended you, didn’t they?”
She spun back around to face him and wondered how he could have possibly not known they would have.
Cassius frowned. “Forgive me. I’m used to asking many questions. No one has ever refused to give me an answer before.”
She knew he collected secrets. Her job wasn’t necessarily a secret, but she didn’t want him to know about it. Not yet. What if the duke found her lacking and persuaded Sirius to turn away from her?
She was nervous. Even being used to losing everyone who mattered in her life, the thought of losing Sirius…
Milly stepped into the hall. She wore a bright smile, but it fell when she noticed the tension between Pia and the duke. “What’s the matter?”
“Pia needs something from me. I have assailed her with questions,” he replied.
“What do you need?” Milly asked Pia.
Pia was ready to tell her that she’d changed her mind. She would find another way to town, but the duke spoke first. “She needs a ride to town. She needs to visit a friend. That friend does not live in town, however.” The duke hesitated before he asked her, “Are you planning to catch the mail coach?”
“Yes, I will be gone for a few days.”
Milly frowned. “Why must you leave now? Are you not frightened after last night?”
Now the duchess had questions. “No one is after me, I’m certain.”
“Where are you going?” Milly asked.
Before Pia could excuse herself, the duke said, “You’ll take a carriage. My driver will take you wherever you wish to go and will return you promptly.”
“Thank you, but I couldn’t—”
The duke cut her off. “I can see that you are stubborn. This is a fine trait, especially if you wed yourself to this life. I can’t stop you from leaving, however, I’ll not answer to Sirius if anything were to happen to you. You will have my protection wherever you are going.”
Pia was taken back by everything he’d said. He clearly knew Sirius’ intentions for her. She was stunned that the duke would fear answering to Sirius. It was not the sort of declaration a man of his might made easily, if at all. Clearly, there were other dynamics to Sirius’ relationship with the duke. Perhaps, they truly were friends. That the duke was able to see anyone as a friend, a near equal, said something about him.
“Thank you,” Pia said. By carriage, the journey would not take long at all. She’d be back
before Sirius, she was sure.
∫ ∫ ∫
3 3
* * *
What was Pia doing at Lord Mullon’s home?
Sirius caught up with her just as the butler opened the door. The butler, a large ox of a man, all but growled at Sirius’ sudden appearance. Butlers were usually tall, meant to intimate those who came into the house. Sirius’ own height made it hard for most, but this man was monstrous.
Sirius wondered if he could fight and what the end results would be. It had been some time since he’d had a good brawl.
Pia acted swiftly and wrapped her arm through Sirius’ before sending the large butler a smile. “He’s with me. Is Lord Mullon home?” She batted her lashes and pursed her lips. Her other hand gripped her shawl as if to shield what lay beneath. Sirius was struck by how sensual her demeanor had become. Never before had he seen Pia give anyone that kind of look. Not even him. It was meant to fog a man’s mind.
It worked.
The ox’s lips twitched. He lowered his head and pointed to a footman who led the way.
Mullon’s home was set just outside of town. It was a rather large manor and wonderfully designed with pale colors that forced people to pay attention to the paintings on the wall.
He spotted another painting that had gone missing from the storehouse.
Mullon was in great trouble.
“Sirius? What are you doing here?” she whispered once they were out of the foyer and heading upstairs.
“I could ask the same of you.” What was her business with Lord Mullon?
“I’m working.”
Sirius stopped so suddenly that Pia took a step back. “You’re working for Mullon?”
“No, my aunt. I’m delivering the turtledove.” She began to walk away.
Sirius resumed his steps but kept them slow. “You left Cassius’ care to deliver porcelain?”
“I was paid five guineas to see it here.”
Five guineas? That was quite an amount for a single delivery. Some female servants only made that for being in service for a whole year. What was so precious about this porcelain?
The Secret Pleasures of an Earl: (The Valiant Love Regency Romance) (A Historical Romance Book) Page 16