Lady Cecily and the Mysterious Mr. Gray

by Janice Preston

  Cecily spun to face the door, scarce able to believe her ears. But although it had been Leo’s voice she heard, she had eyes only for the man who followed him into the bedchamber.

  ‘Zach!’ She launched herself at him, touching him all over with frantic fingers—his face; his hair, damp and curling; his torso—reassuring herself that he was real and not some figment of her imagination. ‘It really is you. How—?’

  One dark brow rose. ‘How do you think?’ He jerked his head towards Leo and then to a scowling Vernon, who had followed them in. ‘Your brothers contrived to persuade the magistrate to release me into their custody pending trial.’ Zach’s expression, far from appearing grateful, was the picture of disgruntlement. ‘I told them I didn’t need their help.’

  ‘I’m beginning to wish we’d left you there to rot,’ Vernon muttered. ‘You haven’t stopped belly-aching since and I fear I’ll never get that God-awful smell out of my nostrils.’

  Cecily frowned. ‘Smell?’ She sniffed gingerly. ‘What smell?’ All she could detect was her beloved Zach and the fresh scent of soap.

  ‘He even had the nerve to insist on returning to his lodgings to bathe and change his clothes before coming here,’ Vernon said.

  ‘And it’s fortunate I did,’ Zach snapped. He turned again to Cecily. ‘Myrtle has disappeared.’

  ‘He’s more worried about that damned three-legged mutt than he was about his own neck.’

  ‘That’s because I know I did nothing wrong.’

  Cecily hastened to interrupt their squabble, fearing it might escalate into a full-scale row. ‘Daniel and I took Myrtle to Beauchamp House. She is safe there, happily playing with Hector.’

  Zach did not appear placated by her words and she realised how much his pride had been dented. Vernon then switched his attention to her.

  ‘And what, precisely, are you doing here, Sister?’ he growled. ‘You gave us your word you would not go out without informing us first.’

  Cecily tilted her chin, hotly conscious of both Kilburn and Thetford listening to every word.

  ‘I left you a note, informing you where I had gone. It is hardly my fault you had already left the house.’ She omitted the fact she had left her note in her bedchamber so it would not be discovered too quickly. ‘You should have had the decency to inform me of your plans.’ She included both brothers in her sweeping glare. ‘I had a right to know.’

  Vernon ignored her. ‘And as for you, Markham—what the devil were you thinking, aiding my sister in this piece of madness?’

  Daniel stalked towards Vernon, his eyes narrow as his jaw jutted out belligerently. ‘Much the same as you were thinking when you aided and abetted my sister in her recent escapade, Beauchamp—that she would have carried on with or without my help.’

  Vernon had the grace to look shamefaced at that riposte from his brother-in-law as Leo grasped Cecily’s elbow and smoothly manoeuvred her away from Zach.

  ‘You need not think that our intervention to release Graystoke from prison indicates anything other than a desire to prevent an injustice from being done,’ he said to her. ‘Nothing has changed.’

  Kilburn stirred at his words, stepping forward eagerly. ‘You are right not to trust that gipsy, Cheriton. Keep your sister away from him and his contaminated blood. I can save her reputation. I am still prepared to marry her—upon the right terms, of course. It is the only way you will prevent her disgrace from dragging the Beauchamp name through the mud.’

  A harsh growl erupted from Zach. He moved swiftly and hauled Kilburn around to face him, drawing back his fist before letting fly. His blow landed on the side of Kilburn’s jaw and he staggered back against the bed. Cecily gasped and Zach’s arms came around her, tugging her from Leo’s grip as he gathered her into his chest. Then she heard a scuffle, a sharp cry of, ‘Look out!’ and the sound, once again, of a fist hitting flesh. She wriggled around until she could see. This time Kilburn was on the floor, groaning as he held a hand to his nose, and Leo was massaging the knuckles of his right hand. Vernon stooped to retrieve a half-drawn sword stick from the floor.

  ‘Bad form, attacking a fellow from behind,’ he murmured, with a glance at Zach. ‘Seems you’re in our debt yet again, Graystoke.’

  Cecily felt Zach tense. ‘I did not ask for your help, Beauchamp,’ he growled.

  She turned within the circle of his arms and laid a placating hand on his cheek. ‘You will soon learn, my love, not to allow Vernon to provoke you with his teasing. Just ignore him.’

  Then she turned to Leo and she quailed inwardly as his silver gaze swept over her. His expression gave nothing of his feelings away, but it was time she made clear—again—where she stood.

  ‘You were wrong, Leo, when you said nothing has changed.’ she said. ‘I have changed. I have been changing since the moment I listened to Vernon and Thea exchange their vows. And now, for the first time in my life, I choose to follow my heart and not to be the perfect lady.’

  * * *

  Her words warmed his heart, soothed his soul and eased his ruffled temper. Zach wrapped his arm around Cecily, fitting her close to his side, where he could feel her. Where he knew she was safe. Both of her brothers stiffened, identical disgruntled expressions on their faces, but he could not care less. She was his.

  Mine.

  And the sooner they get used to the idea, the better.

  Thetford had been silent throughout, but his eyes were open and Zach had been aware that his brother’s attention had been on him since the moment he entered the room. He met those grey eyes now. He needed answers.

  ‘Why did you accuse me?’

  Somehow—in all the history that lay between them: all the bad blood, all the rejection, all the cruelty—the answer to this question meant more to Zach than the rest put together.

  ‘I made no such accusation. My attackers were strangers to me.’

  At Thetford’s words, Cecily wrapped her arms around Zach’s waist to hug him and the tension seeped from him, leaving him drained. Seeing Cecily’s brothers together, with their close bond and the clear trust between them, had awakened an unwelcome longing within him. His relationship with his own brother might never be close, but maybe they could look forward now instead of back.

  ‘Thank you,’ he said.

  Kilburn stirred at his feet. ‘You fool, Thetford,’ he mumbled through the hand still clasped to his nose. ‘You’ll never—’

  His words were cut short as Cheriton bent to him and hauled him upright by his lapels.

  ‘Your behaviour, sir, convinces me you are no gentleman and I suggest you remove yourself from my sight before I forget that I am a gentleman and teach you a lesson here and now.’

  He shoved Kilburn backwards, releasing his lapels. The Earl staggered in his effort to remain on his feet as the Duke straightened his coat and then brushed a hand down each of his sleeves, smoothing out any wrinkles, completely indifferent to Kilburn’s glare of loathing. Zach watched this interplay with dawning respect for Cecily’s brother. He brushed a kiss to Cecily’s temple, murmured, ‘Trust me’, and, unhesitatingly, he handed her over to Cheriton. He needed to be sure she was safe while he dealt with Kilburn.

  Cecily barely had time to squeak a protest before Zach grabbed Kilburn’s arm and shoved him to the door.

  ‘You and I need to talk,’ he growled.

  Kilburn dug his heels in. ‘I don’t answer to you, gipsy boy.’ He shot a look brimful of mockery at Cecily. ‘Did you see his brand? He’ll always be marked for the gip—’

  He ended abruptly on a screech as Cecily flew at him, fingers crooked, and raked her nails down his face, just missing his eye. ‘You—you—’

  Zach hauled her away from Kilburn.

  ‘Shhh, my love. He’s not worth it,’ he whispered.

  ‘Brand?’ said Vernon.

  ‘On his arse, like the animal he is,’ Kilburn snarled. ‘And he yelped like one, too. You should have smelt his flesh burn—’

  This time it was Vernon
who silenced Kilburn’s tirade by bunching his lapels in his fists.

  ‘Really, Kilburn,’ he said, softly, shaking his head at the Earl. ‘One might have hoped a fellow of your breeding would exhibit a dash more intelligence, or at the least a smidgen of self-preservation. Do you not know when you are beaten?

  ‘I am impressed you did not kill him the minute you met him again, Graystoke,’ he added. ‘I am sure I would not have shown such restraint.’

  ‘I remember telling a cousin of mine—not so long ago—that the mark of a gentleman is manners and the treatment of others and, in particular, the treatment of those of lower birth,’ Leo said. ‘Good birth clearly does not guarantee a gentleman—Graystoke has exhibited far more of those qualities than you, Kilburn, despite your contempt for his breeding. I know which man I would trust more.’

  ‘Beauchamp.’ It was Thetford who spoke, his voice weary. ‘Get him out of here, will you?’

  ‘With pleasure,’ Vernon replied. ‘Daniel? Care to join me?’

  They took one of Kilburn’s arms each and bundled him from the room. Leo, after ushering out the lawyer, closed the door behind them and leaned back against it, effectively blocking Zach from following the others.

  ‘You will gain nothing by challenging Kilburn further, Graystoke. I suggest that here is where you need to do your talking.’ He nodded towards Thetford, then beckoned at Cecily. ‘Come, Cecy. It is time we went home.’

  ‘No, Leo. I—’

  ‘She stays with me, Cheriton.’

  That silver-grey gaze pierced Zach as the Duke moved between the two of them. Zach’s fingers curled into a fist, but he hesitated. He owed the man a debt of gratitude.

  He remembered the flood of relief as he had been released from Newgate; the carriage, complete with ducal crest on its door and its liveried coachmen; the shock at the sight of the Duke and Vernon inside; the conviction that they would somehow contrive his disappearance, or offer him a bribe to desert Cecily; his astonishment when they did not, even after revealing that Cecily herself had provided his alibi.

  Oh, they had given him a hard time, but they had also brought him here to confront his brother over the false allegations. Yes, he owed a debt of gratitude, but that did not give the Duke the right to come between him and the woman he loved. Before he could speak, or act, however, it was Cecily who soothed the tension that sizzled in the air between them.

  ‘Thank you for getting Zach released, Leo.’

  His hard expression softened. ‘I would never let an innocent man hang, no matter how convenient that outcome might be for me.’

  ‘If only I had known you would put everything right.’

  He pinched her cheek. ‘When have you ever known me not to do whatever it takes to protect my family, Cecy?’ Then he shook his head, a smile lurking. ‘Are you telling me that if you had known I would sort this out, you would have left it to me?’ He laughed then, but it was rueful laugh. ‘The Cecily of old might very well have allowed me to take control, but I am not convinced this new version of my sister will readily allow anyone to handle the ribbons in her stead.’

  He flicked a glance at Zach and he could swear it was one of sympathy.

  ‘Cecily.’ Cheriton’s voice turned serious, all hint of teasing gone, and all his attention on his sister, who gazed up at him with troubled eyes. Zach tensed, ready to resist any attempt to take Cecily away. He would fight if necessary. ‘Are you certain this is what you want?’

  ‘I am. More certain than I have ever been about anything in my whole life.’

  He smiled. ‘Then how can I stand in your way?’ He looked Zach in the eyes. ‘I cannot give my wholehearted blessing, but you do have my understanding. I recognise love and I recognise a good man when I meet one.

  ‘Now, let us leave Graystoke and Thetford to thrash out their differences.’

  ‘Zach?’ Cecily’s moss-coloured eyes were wide, pleading.

  ‘Your brother is right, dove. Go home. I will call on you later.’

  ‘We will wait for you downstairs, Graystoke. My carriage is here, and I am sure you are eager to be reconciled with your—er—Myrtle.’

  It was a flag of truce.

  ‘Just make sure Kilburn is gone by the time I get downstairs, or I might kill him anyway.’

  ‘That,’ Cheriton murmured, as he steered Cecily from the room and beckoned to Anna, ‘would be the actions of a fool. Even I might not be able to extricate you from Newgate twice in one day.’

  The door closed quietly behind them.

  Zach approached the bed. ‘Well?’

  His brother was still as white as the bandage encircling his skull, but he was not in mortal danger and Zach was surprised to find that he was glad.

  Thetford’s lids lowered as though unable to meet Zach’s gaze.

  ‘Over the years I have had cause to regret my treatment of you and your mother,’ he said. ‘Not enough to track you down, but—’ His lips firmed. Then he opened his eyes and fixed them on Zach, sucking in a deep breath. ‘I do not expect forgiveness. What we did to you was unforgivable. But my intention was merely to frighten you that day—Kilburn always did take pranks a step too far. We were foxed, hot-headed fools.’ He heaved a sigh. ‘When you came to Town, after our first meeting I felt...diminished. You could have wreaked your revenge on me then and there, but you did not and, despite myself, I found a grudging respect for you.

  ‘And afterwards, I watched you and I watched Kilburn and I realised that the man with all the dignity and the integrity was not the man who was an earl, but the man who was a gip—no. A Romany. A half-Romany. And he was a man who made me feel shame.

  ‘It was footpads who attacked me, and that is what I told Kilburn when he found me. This whole—’ he wafted one arm ‘—mess was of his doing and I am sorry.’

  He held out his right hand and raised his brows. Zach grasped his hand and they shook.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  She hadn’t seen Zach in days, but the fact that Leo was dressed in his best swallowtail coat, over black breeches and black silk stockings, at ten o’clock on the morning of her wedding reassured Cecily that all was still well. Leo and Vernon had continued to give Zach a hard time every time they met, but Cecily had ceased to panic over her brothers’ attitudes—she detected underlying respect in their pointed comments and jests and realised that, although neither would probably ever admit that Zach was the perfect husband for her, they approved of him well enough to overlook his mother’s birth.

  Dominic and Alex were less critical, saying only that they were happy for her. She had been surprised by Dominic’s easy acceptance of her choice of husband—he was the one member of the family who set store by position and status—but when she had told Leo of her surprise, he had reminded her that Dominic’s expectations of himself, as Leo’s heir, were always the most demanding. Alex—an animal lover himself—was fascinated by Zach and as a consequence when Zach had decided he needed to travel to Edgecombe before the wedding, Alex had gone with him, as had Daniel. Cecily could only hope they would all arrive back in London in time for the ceremony.

  The female portion of the family were all truly happy for her and Rosalind, Thea, Olivia, Nell and Susie now all clustered in her bedchamber to admire her wedding dress—a gown she had commissioned especially for her wedding day. Afterwards, she would have some of the trim altered so she could wear the dress again but, today, she would show her respect and her love for Zach by wearing a gown she had never worn before, unlike many brides who must walk down the aisle in their best evening dress. It was one of the privileges of wealth and she reminded herself—as she admired her image in the pier glass on the wall—that her future would be more frugal, even though she and Zach would still be rich compared to most folk. They would have a wealth of love to sustain them, though.

  ‘You look beautiful,’ Olivia breathed, standing next to Cecily and gazing at their joint reflection. ‘I wish—’

  Cecily saw her niece bite her lip and wondered a
t the sudden sadness in her expression. She had been so caught up in her own life that Livvy’s troubles had faded to the back of her mind. She had already warned Rosalind to keep a close eye on Olivia. Although she had noticed no partiality for any particular young man from her niece, the highs and the lows of her moods suggested a heart that was, if not already broken, very close to being that way. She slipped her arm around Livvy’s waist.

  ‘Do not speak your wish aloud, Livvy, or it may never come true. Keep it in your heart and try to keep faith.You never know—it may all work out for the best.’

  She saw the effort Olivia put into her smile. ‘Oh, I want for nothing, Aunt. You need not worry about me,’ and she kissed her on the cheek before moving away, leaving Cecily to tweak once again at the blush-pink roses woven through her hair. Their scent, for her, would always transport her to Stourwell Court and the rose garden where she and Zach had met in the moonlight. Her throat ached with emotion at the memory. Who could have known where that meeting would lead?

  ‘Leave it, milady,’ Anna scolded, pulling her hand away. ‘You don’t want them falling out as you walk down the aisle, do you?’

  Cecily smiled. ‘No. No, I do not.’

  A knock at the door heralded Grantham. ‘The first coach is ready, your Grace.’

  ‘Thank you, Grantham. We shall come immediately.’

  Rosalind took Cecily’s hands. ‘We shall see you in church,’ she said and kissed her cheek.

  Thea added, her gruff voice choking a little, ‘You look radiant, Cecily. Zach is a lucky man.’ She, too, kissed Cecily and followed Rosalind out of the door.

  Olivia, Nell and Susie, pretty as a picture in palest-pink satin gowns, were to be her bridesmaids and they descended the staircase with her. Leo waited at the bottom, looking up, his eyes suspiciously shiny as he took in her appearance. The three girls went ahead, to travel to the church in the town coach, leaving Leo and Cecily to travel in the same barouche—drawn by Leo’s matched team of six gleaming chestnuts—that had conveyed Rosalind to St George’s for hers and Leo’s wedding, less than three months ago.