The Devious Seduction 0f A Wayward Duke (Steamy Historical Romance)

by Olivia Bennet

  “Indeed. We are certainly living in an amazing time.”

  “I would like to show you the lift in action. One of my distillery supervisors has consented to showing you how it works.”

  “That would be splendid. I would love to see it in action.”

  “We can walk over there whenever you are ready.”

  “I’m ready now, Your Grace.”

  Olive and Lord Kenley began walking to the distillery, speaking jovially as they walked.

  “Do you like the wine? I know you have a sophisticated palate.”

  Lord Kenley laughed. “It is nice. You are a whisky gentleman, not a wine gentleman. I couldn’t tell one whisky from another, though I am learning, of course.”

  “Yes, I remember discussing it. Speaking of, how is your family?”

  “Oh, they are very well. Lydia is turning into such a pleasant young lady, even at only eleven years old. We recently celebrated her birthday. Has your son turned eleven yet?”

  “Not yet. He will have his birthday in a couple of months.”

  “We should have the children meet. I know my Lydia doesn’t see many children her age since we only have one child. I would imagine the same for your son.”

  “Yes, he doesn’t see a lot of children in his age range. I know that he should, it’s just difficult when I am raising him on my own. He will be in boarding school before I know it.”

  “Ah, yes, he will, I presume. It’s funny, both of us having children around the same age…a young gentleman and a young lady. Who knows? Perhaps they would be a good match for each other.”

  Oliver laughed. “Already playing match-maker and they are only children. I would prefer not to put him in that situation yet. Let him be a child for a bit longer.”

  “It’s easy for you, Your Grace. Your son will be a Duke, following in your footsteps. The rest of us have to think about the future of our children. I have to think about Lydia’s future husband and if he is suitable for her and for our family.”

  “Indeed. Ah, here we are. Please, come with me inside.”

  * * *

  Miss Ainsley was acting strangely, and she had been acting oddly all week. Jamie had noticed it after they had returned from town, and it seemed as if it was only getting worse. He had questioned her a few times about it already, but she just waved it off at first, and then kept talking about being nervous about spending time with Lady Darnerton.

  “Jamie, please pay attention. Which of these is the correct conjugated form?”

  “I’m sorry, Miss Ainsley.”

  “We have to finish this lesson. Your father has a guest for dinner tonight. Will you be joining him?”

  “Not tonight, Miss Ainsley. He said it was a business dinner, not a social call.”

  “I see. Do you know anything about Lord Kenley?”

  “Not really. I know he bought the lift in the distillery from him, but other than that, I don’t know him. I don’t think Father knows him very well.”

  “Your father should be careful doing business with Lord Kenley…from what I have heard.”

  “Why?”

  “He has a reputation that isn’t the best. Now please, back to your conjugations.”

  Jamie nodded and tried to focus on his French lesson. He was intrigued by what Miss Ainsley had said, so he was a bit distracted. She was obviously quite distracted, too, because only a minute later, she stood up and said, “I’m not feeling well. I think it’s best if we stop for the day. I can’t concentrate, and you seem to have a wandering mind, too.”

  “Is something wrong, Miss Ainsley?”

  “No, I just don’t feel well. I’m sure I will be just fine. I want to rest for a while. It’s a nice day, so why don’t you go play in the garden for a bit? It will do you good to be outside.”

  “All right, Miss Ainsley. Thank you.”

  * * *

  “Lord Kenley, did you enjoy seeing the lift working?”

  “Oh yes, Your Grace. It really is a remarkable machine.”

  Oliver and Lord Kenley were back from the distillery and sitting in the drawing room. They were served glasses of whisky, and Oliver planned to get to know his guest a bit better before dinner. Then, he would bring up the possibility of any other deals that might help the distillery.

  “This is our ten-year whisky, the typical whisky I drink during the day. After dinner, I have a five-and-twenty year bottle, which is very special. I think you will enjoy it.”

  “You know what I would really enjoy, Your Grace? If you would consider this…”

  Oliver watched as Lord Kenley pulled out a piece of paper from his vest pocket. He opened it, glanced at it quickly, and then slid it across the table.

  “What is this?” Oliver looked at the paper. It had a large figure on it.

  “It is my second offer to buy the distillery, of course.”

  Oliver looked at Lord Kenley with a furrowed brow. “I don’t understand. I told you, the distillery is not for sale.”

  “I guarantee that you will not ever get a better price than this, Your Grace. It is well above what anyone else would pay you…”

  “As I have said before, Lord Kenley, the distillery is not for sale.”

  “Please don’t take offense, Your Grace. Whisky is a new passion of mine, and I know that you are struggling a bit. Imagine how much more time you would have without it. Imagine how much more time you could spend with Lord Seton?”

  “I don’t want to imagine any of that, Lord Kenley,” Oliver said raising his voice. “The distillery is not for sale.”

  Lord Kenley nodded. “I assumed that would be the case. So, instead, I will offer you this…”

  Oliver watched as Lord Kenley pulled another piece of paper out of his vest pocket. He slid it across the table again. Oliver picked it up. It was a smaller figure, but still significant.

  “What is this?”

  “That is the amount that I am willing to pay you for your recipe.”

  “You cannot be serious, Lord Kenley.”

  “I am very serious. If I can’t have the distillery, I will take the next best thing. I assure you that I will change the formulation slightly. I just need the base of it.”

  “Lord Kenley,” Oliver said, his voice raising. “As I have said, the distillery is not for sale, nor is the recipe.”

  “Is there nothing I can do to change your mind?”

  “No. In fact, I find it quite disrespectful that you would come into my home and try to buy the distillery again when I specifically told you that I had no interest in selling it.”

  “Disrespectful? I have never been called disrespectful in my life, Your Grace, and I take great offense to that.”

  “Do you know what I take great offense to, Lord Kenley? The fact that you think you can buy something that has such great meaning to myself and my family.”

  “I assure you, Your Grace, that I meant no offense then, but I surely do now. You have essentially run your family’s business into the ground, and it didn’t start to perform better until you bought that lift…from me. I can also assure you, that when I am done informing all of my business contacts about how disrespectful you have been, that none of them will ever be interested in buying anything from you again.”

  “Is that a threat, Lord Kenley?”

  “No, Your Grace. It’s a promise.”

  Oliver stood up quickly, his hands firmly on the tabletop. He turned to the footman standing near the door. “Fetch Wright. He needs to see Lord Kenley out.”

  Lord Kenley then stood, sneering, and said, “I can see my own way out, thank you.”

  “Oh no! I will not have you wandering around my home unsupervised. People tried to warn me not to do business with you, and I didn’t listen. Instead, I tried to trust you, but now…”

  “You will regret this day, Your Grace. You can trust that, for sure.”

  At that moment, Wright came bursting through the door.

  “Your Grace?”

  “Wright, please remove this
odious gentleman from my sight and my home.”

  “Yes, Your Grace.”

  Wright turned to Lord Kenley. “Please come with me, My Lord.”

  Lord Kenley followed Wright through the door, but then turned around and looked at Oliver with daggers in his eyes before walking out.

  Chapter 26

  Jamie was playing in the garden. He was trying to toss some small stones into a large, standing pot. So far, he had gotten four in a row and was trying for a fifth when he saw Wright and another man come out of the front door. He ducked behind the pot so they couldn’t see him, and he could hear their conversation.

  “Lord Kenley, I believe it is in your best interest to not interfere with the Duke’s business any longer.”

  “I will not take advice from a steward, Wright. I believe it is in your best interest to not interfere with my business any longer.”

  “Very well, My Lord.”

  Jamie watched as Wright turned quickly and walked back inside. The gentleman, Lord Kenley, began mumbling under his breath, and Jamie could have sworn he heard him say “Priscilla,” which was Miss Ainsley’s name.

  This greatly puzzled Jamie, as he watched Lord Kenley walk to wait for his carriage. He didn’t want the gentleman to see him, so he shifted over a bit.

  Suddenly, the door opened again, and Miss Ainsley came out. She approached Lord Kenley, and it was immediately obvious to Jamie that they knew each other, and they knew each other very well.

  “Come meet me on the side of the house. No one will be over there,” she said before quickly walking away.

  Lord Kenley waited a moment, looked around, and then followed in the direction she went.

  Curiosity got the best of him, so Jamie, too, scuttled out from behind the pot and quietly followed behind Lord Kenley, hoping that he would not be caught.

  Lord Kenley disappeared around the corner, and Jamie put his body flat against the wall, trying to remain as inconspicuous as possible. He slowly snuck a peek and could see Lord Kenley approaching Miss Ainsley. He could also hear them perfectly.

  “Priscilla! Why haven’t you done what I have asked? It is a very simple task. One that you should have easily completed.”

  “I’m sorry. I am trying! It’s not as easy as you think it is.”

  Jamie was quite confused. What was she talking about?

  “I told you it was in the house and all you had to do was take it. It is a piece of paper. How difficult can it be?”

  Lord Kenley’s tone was getting harsher and harsher, and even Jamie felt a bit frightened by the intimidation.

  “This is a big house with a lot of staff. You can’t just walk around and hope no one will notice. Believe me, I have looked for the recipe. I have looked everywhere I can think of, but I could not search just anywhere. Someone is always there, and I could never be sure if someone was following me or not.”

  Hearing that, Jamie gasped. He immediately brought his hand to his mouth. He had been following her. He had been trying to learn how to do pranks better.

  “I am giving you one more chance, Priscilla. Two days. That’s all you get. If I don’t have that recipe in my hands by then, there are going to be serious problems. Both the Duke and his son could be in danger. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, but I also have something to tell you. The Duke and I will be married in a month. Don’t you think it would be better to wait until after the wedding? That way, I will have full access to the Duke’s office, and I can help you in any way you require.”

  Jamie’s mind was reeling. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Was he right in thinking that Miss Ainsley was trying to steal his father’s whisky recipe? Surely this couldn’t be the case.

  “Oh, you will still be helping me after this…blessed I. But, I need that whisky recipe, now. After this meeting, my only goal is to ruin the Duke, and you, as his wife, will help me with that. However, if I don’t get this recipe now, you will pay the consequences, and there will be no wedding.”

  “I understand. I will get it for you, on one condition…that you don’t hurt them.”

  Suddenly, Jamie heard the carriage pull up in front of the house. He immediately realized that when they started walking back to the front of the house, they would see him, so he ran before they would have the chance.

  * * *

  Oliver was fuming. Never in his life had he ever been spoken to like that, and not only was he mad at Lord Kenley, he was angry with himself for not realizing that Lord Kenley had set up all of this with the lift only to get Oliver to sell him the distillery.

  Wright returned to the office and Oliver let him in immediately.

  “Did he say anything to you on the way out?”

  “No, Your Grace. Nothing more. He is awaiting his carriage and will soon be gone.”

  “Good, I don’t ever want to see of or hear of that bastard again. Wright, you can alert the staff that we will not have a guest for dinner.”

  * * *

  Priscilla walked to her quarters quickly. She didn’t want to talk to anyone, nor did she want to see anyone. What she had told the Baron was not exactly true, but she had to hold him off until she could come up with a plan. She knew where the recipe was.

  The entire time she had been here had been excruciating, knowing that she was supposed to steal the family recipe for the Baron, and give it to him, so he could make his own whisky and put Oliver out of business.

  Priscilla loved Oliver, and she didn’t want to put him in harm. If she didn’t get the recipe to the Baron, however, she had no idea what he might do. What she did know was that he would not think twice about hurting Oliver or Jamie, and he was very skilled at keeping things quiet.

  By the time Priscilla got to her room, she was almost in tears. As soon as she shut the door, she let them fall, and she buried her head in her hands.

  How had she gotten to this point? When she had accepted this job from the Baron and heard the plan he had in mind, she didn’t think much of it. It was just another task that he had given her. She didn’t know she would grow so close to Jamie, and she certainly didn’t expect to fall in love with Oliver.

  Priscilla surely thought that she could delay the inevitable by telling the Baron about her upcoming marriage. Either he saw right through her, or he truly wanted the recipe quickly.

  She could not cross the Baron. He was a powerful gentleman and frightening when he didn’t get his way. Priscilla knew that she only had one choice if she wanted to save the lives of Oliver and Jamie. She must take the recipe. Though she loved Oliver and Jamie, she would then have to leave them. She couldn’t stay here knowing that she was the reason for their downfall, even if they never found out.

  The Baron was giving her two days, but Priscilla thought that she might as well get this unpleasantness over with. She would take it tomorrow afternoon when Oliver was at the distillery. After that, she decided, the tears falling down her cheeks, she would leave, go to town, and deliver it to the Baron before disappearing from the lives of Jamie and Oliver.

  * * *

  Jamie lay in bed staring at the ceiling. All of this time, and Miss Ainsley’s nighttime wanderings finally made sense. He had started following her months ago to try to pick up some tips on pranks, but he never knew what she was really doing. He had seen her enter the library, the drawing room, Wright’s office, and his father’s office.

  She must have been looking for the recipe, and Jamie realized that she actually had found it already. Hiding in the shadows, he had watched her open up his father’s desk with a key, pull out the recipe, and then put it back. At the time, Jamie thought that she was pulling a prank on his father, but now, it all made sense.

  On top of all of this swimming through his mind, Jamie was frightened of what Lord Kenley might do. He had said that if Miss Ainsley didn’t give him the recipe that Jamie and his father would be in danger.

  Jamie didn’t know if he should talk to Miss Ainsley about all of this tomorrow or not. He didn’t want to adm
it that he had been sneaking around and following her, but he also didn’t want her to get into trouble.

  He thought that the best idea would be to tell his father all of this, but he wanted to talk to Miss Ainsley first.

  * * *