by Meghan Sloan
That almost made Gabriel laugh in her face. He had thought he was a good judge of character, but he had sorely misjudged Jessica. She had said she could keep everything separate. Either she had lied to him, or she had fallen foolishly and believed tenacity would bring him back. Either way, Jessica was fighting a losing battle. Even if Gabriel had to admire her persistence, albeit grudgingly.
“You will never be the heir to my family estate,” Gabriel said shortly. “Partly because my father would never allow you to become my wife, and partly because I will never marry you of my own accord.” He leaned out the window, watching as Jessica took a step back. “You won’t listen to gentle persuasion, Jessica, so I’m giving it to you straight. You were a bit of fun, and you were fun for a time. I lost interest shortly after my parents threw me out. I had no interest in anything, and all I asked was that you respected my decision to give me space. You knew that it was just a fling, so don’t try to pretend that it wasn’t. I never promised anything beyond a good time. Now I regret ever having anything to do with you.”
Jessica’s face went white, and then red. Gabriel might as well have slapped her. She pressed her lips tightly together and Gabriel thought she was about to scream. Then Jessica took a deep breath and squared her shoulders, her jaw tightening.
“My father says he’s written to my aunt and uncle in Bournemouth. That we’re going to stay with them for a while if they write back confirming it.”
“Maybe it’s a good thing you go. You need a break away from here.”
“But I hate them!” Jessica protested. Her expression became pinched. “I want to stay with you.”
“That’s not going to happen.”
Gabriel knew he had been talking too much. He should have just shut the window and walked away. That was his mistake. Sighing, he signalled for Allen to join him.
“Please escort Miss Gibson home, Allen. I’m sure she’s slipped away from her chaperone again.”
“Yes, Mr. Gabriel.”
“No!” Jessica scowled. “I want Gabe to take me.”
Gabriel barked out a laugh.
“I’m not going anywhere with you. Now, Allen is taking you home, and if you come back, I’m going to ask your father if he can just lock you up in your room.” He stepped away from the window. “Goodnight, Miss Gibson.”
He slammed the window shut and put the latch on, leaving Jessica standing out in the front garden with her mouth open. Allen looked bemused.
“I’ve heard of persistence, but this is getting a bit too much.”
“It certainly is for me.” Gabriel rubbed his hands over his face, “Take her home. Make sure she’s escorted inside by someone reliable before coming home. I don’t want her back here.”
“Very good, Mr. Gabriel.”
Allen left the room. Moments later Gabriel could hear Jessica protesting outside, along with the lower, softer tones of his valet. Jessica was still arguing even as her voice faded away. Gabriel slumped onto the window seat and buried his head in his hands.
He had made a lot of mistakes in his life, and that included Jessica Gibson. Just like his other mistakes, Jessica kept coming back to remind him of how stupid he had been. If he had known she was not quite in her right mind, Gabriel would have steered clear of her.
It was a shame they had run out of alcohol. Gabriel needed a drink.
#
“Oh!” Emily sat back in her seat with an exaggerated huff. “My Lord! How awful was that?”
“I know!” Cassandra opened her fan and wafted it in front of her face. “It was so hot in there. I thought I was going to suffocate.”
“And the people?” Emily made a face. “How can they think behaving like that can be permitted in polite society?”
Cassandra had no answer to that. People in society knew how to behave and do as they were told. Cassandra didn’t approve of some of the limitations on women, but she went along with them. She knew how to blend into a crowd and behave like everyone else when needed, even when it was grating on her nerves. But tonight, nobody seemed to be paying attention to the rules or even remembering how to act at a ball. Cassandra and Emily had had to push away far too many men who had drunk a little too much. And a couple of those men didn’t like being told no.
If it had been in Seton Hall, Cassandra would have given them a piece of her mind. Instead, after being pestered one too many times, she had made it look like she tripped and tipped her drink all down the man’s front.
He was furious and started shouting at her, and it was only when Sir Walter hurried over and took the man away that Cassandra was able to escape. Emily, by that point, had already decided that she was going to leave. That disruption was a perfect opportunity to go.
And they were expected to find prospective husbands in that crowd. Cassandra wasn’t entirely sure where Sir Walter and his wife had found these people, but they were certainly not the type of crowd she would gladly associate with beyond tiny doses, if that.
“At least the alcohol was nice,” Emily conceded with a slight giggle. “That white wine was good.”
Cassandra laughed.
“I’m surprised you didn’t pick up the bottle with the amount of glasses you picked from the tray every time the footmen went past.”
“I would have done it if you had let me,” Emily pouted. “Everyone else was behaving like pigs, and I wanted to join them.”
“Not everyone, but I understand your point.” Cassandra tugged the long pin holding her hair up out from under her curls, letting her hair fall about her shoulders. That felt better. “Drinking away our annoyance is not going to help us. We’ll just end up embarrassing ourselves if we let the alcohol go to our heads.”
“I can hold my liquor. I work in a public house!”
Cassandra rolled her eyes.
“No, you can’t, and you’re lucky your father hasn’t caught you in the past when you sneaked away some of his stash when we were young,” Cassandra giggled. “I noticed that Geoffrey Irons seemed quite taken with you.”
“Geoffrey Irons! Argh!” Emily made a face and shuddered. “He is a vile man! I don’t know what any woman sees in him. He’s a complete cad.”
Cassandra could concur with that. Geoffrey Irons’ father, the last Earl of Newmarket, had been a decent man. A regular visitor to Seton Hall, Cassandra had liked him. The same couldn’t be said for his son Geoffrey, who walked around acting like the world owed him for something.
Every time Cassandra saw him, Geoffrey was openly crass towards any woman, including Cassandra, and looked deeply offended when he was rejected each time. He seemed to believe that women would fall at his feet, but it never happened. It was almost amusing to watch.
And now he had set his sights on trying to charm Emily. Something Emily didn’t appreciate; and she had spent a lot of the evening keeping away from him. Cassandra was reluctant to leave her side in case Geoffrey did corner her, because Emily looked to be in the mood for an argument.
“He probably thinks you’ll be flattered if he gives you attention.”
Emily snorted.
“I’m not going to be flattered being followed around by that snake. I don’t want to be pursued by him at all. I just want to be left alone.”
“So do I,” Cassandra sighed. “Unfortunately, society has different ideas for us. We’re getting to the point where we’re going to get passed over for marriage.”
“I thought you didn’t want to marry.”
“Not unless it’s by my own choice. But even then, there’s going to be a lot of pressure on us to get married.” Cassandra closed her fan and laid it in her lap. “You and I are not going to be able to keep prospective husbands at bay for much longer.”
“I think we can.” Emily started taking off her gloves. “Father can’t force me to marry if I don’t want to. Unless I love my future husband and he loves me in return, there will be no marriage. And he knows that.”
“So does mine. But both of them are starting to push her towards wha
t we don’t want.” Cassandra sighed, “I think Father’s beginning to realise that he’s not immortal and he wants to make sure I’m going to be all right one he’s gone.”
“But you will be. You’ve got Seton Hall.”
“If my uncle doesn’t have anything to do with it,” Cassandra grumbled.
She told Emily what she had learned from Alice. When she was done, Emily’s eyes were wide.
“So, even if your father secures your future in his will, you may not be permitted to live as he wants?”
“Essentially.”
Emily scowled and shook her head.
“Your uncle is a...well, you know what I think about him.”
“You can say it, Emily. It’s just us in here and even if the driver heard us, he’s not going to say anything.”
“Knowing my luck, Father will hear me being very unladylike.” Emily huffed and folded her gloves into her lap. “Why is it men are allowed to behave in such erratic ways and have some freedom whereas women get scolded if we get in the wrong colours for the wrong occasion?”
Cassandra had nothing to say to that. She had no response to that, but she was just as frustrated. Men were able to go around without chaperones and behave outrageously - the majorityof them could ride out a scandal - but with women, they had to be a lot more careful. They couldn’t get rid of a scandal so quickly, if at all.
Which was why they needed to be clever and quick-witted to keep ahead. Even with that, women were still treated like pawns on a chessboard, mostly regarding marriage and who had the most contacts. Cassandra didn’t want to be seen as someone who could further a man’s standing. She wanted to be seen for herself, not for what she could bring into a marriage.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t something that would happen much. It was all about contacts and climbing the social ladder. Cassandra was happy just where she was, even if her father wasn’t.
She looked out of the window and saw how close they were to Seton Hall. It would be a little further to get to The Barrington Arms, and it was still early. Cassandra was surprised they had only been at the ball for a little under two hours when the ball was expected to last until midnight. But at least they could breathe more easily now they were away. It wasn’t as stifling or as intimidating.
“Fancy coming into Seton’s for a little bit?” she asked. “We could relax in Father’s drawing room before you go home.”
“Sounds like a good idea. Father’s not expecting me back until later.” Emily grimaced, “He says that he wants me to have at least one promise of a visit from a gentleman.”
Cassandra laughed.
“Well, you sort of have a promise. Just not the one he wants.”
“I think even Father would object to anything Geoffrey Irons, Earl of Newmarket, proposed.”
The carriage stopped with a slight jolt and then the door opened. Lewis looked inside, blinking when he saw Cassandra.
“Miss Cassie? I thought you were at another engagement tonight.”
“Change of plans, Lewis.” Cassandra took his hand and allowed him to help her out. “Miss Barrington and I are going inside to try and forget this evening. We won’t be long.”
“Very good, Miss.” Lewis helped Emily out before shutting the door. “I’ll let Ada know and she’ll come up to the drawing room.”
“All right.” Cassandra looped her arm through Emily’s. “Come on, Miss Barrington. Let’s go and have a quiet moment.”
They headed inside, stepping into the main hall. The place was very busy for Saturday evening, with all the tables full. A few people looked up and gave Cassandra a nod of greeting, but pretty much everyone was focused on the game in front of them. The atmosphere was tense, but a comfortable kind of tense. There was a bit of laughter and some muttered curses. Everything seemed as normal as it could be for a busy evening.
But Cassandra was aware of eyes on her - and not from the gambling patrons. She looked over at the bar on the far side of the room, and her heart skipped a few beats. Gabriel Tattershall was here, leaning against the bar with a glass in his hand. And he was watching her, his expression placid but his eyes firmly fixed on her. Cassandra swallowed. Was it getting warmer in here suddenly?
“Cassie?” Emily prodded her in the side. “Are you all right?”
“Gabriel Tattershall is here again.”
“What?” Emily looked around the room, her eyes widening when she saw him. “What are you going to do? Do you want to leave?”
“I’m not going to leave.” Cassandra licked her lips. Now her mouth was dry, and she felt like a hot flush was spreading across her body as Gabriel stared at her. “We won’t be able to sneak past him, and I’m not leaving because he’s here.”
“All right,” Emily giggled. “You might want a drink of water to cool yourself down. You’re looking a little flustered.”
“I’m not flustered.”
“When your face is as red as your dress, I beg to differ.” Emily tugged on her arm. “Come on. It won’t be as bad as being confronted by Geoffrey Irons.”
Cassandra silently argued against that.
Chapter 10
Gabriel was a little annoyed that Cassandra wasn’t around when he first arrived, as she was at another engagement. But he had to remind himself that Cassandra didn’t sit around waiting for people to come to her; she had her own social life to live as well. So, instead of going straight back to the cottage, Gabriel decided to wait and see if she did come in.
And he was very glad that he did wait. Because Cassandra came into the room, along with Emily Barrington. Both looked thoroughly fed up, expressions of relief passing across both their faces as they stepped into the main hall. But Gabriel was more struck by how beautiful Cassandra was.
She had been something to behold the night before, but now she was something else. Her dress was of dark red silk and fitted her frame nicely, showing the slightest hint of curves. Her hair was loose about her shoulders, curling about her face. Gabriel’s hands itched to reach out and run his fingers through her hair to see if it was as soft as it looked.
Slow down and stop thinking about it. You’re not here to seduce her.
Gabriel took a deep breath and let it out slowly, pushing down the churning of lust in his gut. This was not about charming her for himself. He had a plan and he was following through on it. No thinking about how she would look in his arms.
None of that.
Cassandra’s eyes landed on him and she froze. Even across the room Gabriel could see her cheeks flush, the flush spreading across her chest. God, he would love to see how far that flush went.
Stop!
Emily tugged Cassandra into motion and they approached the bar. Gabriel pushed himself to standing and gave them a bow.
“Miss Seton. Miss Barrington.”
“Mr. Tattershall.” Emily gave him a nod. “You’ve been making a lot of journeys into Ipswich lately.”
“I don’t like being idle. I have to be on the move.” Gabriel looked at the two ladies, his gaze staying on Cassandra a little longer. “May I say both of you look very enchanting this evening?”
Cassandra’s face went even redder. Her lips parted and Gabriel couldn’t take his eyes off her mouth. That stirring happened in his belly again, and Gabriel had to swallow hard and count to ten in his head.
Emily laughed.