Only a Viscount Will Do (To Marry a Rogue)

by Tamara Gill

  Soon the Surrey Bandit would be no more.

  It was not an occupation that had brought him pride or honor. The opposite, in fact. He was riddled with guilt, with remorse and anger, but people did things out of desperation, and his daughter’s safety was paramount. He’d learned a long time ago how precious life was and how easily it could be snatched away. Amelia was one jewel he would never risk.

  Callum stepped out into the bright midday sun and breathed in the warm, fresh air. For the first time since inheriting the estate and all the troubles that came with it, his spirits lifted. Marvelous.

  Chapter Three

  Alice followed her mama out and into the drawing room, frowning. What an odd luncheon they’d had. And most assuredly, Lord Arndel was the oddest of all. What was the man about? And why did he need a lawyer to draw up papers for Josh? What did that mean?

  Of course, he was as dashing as ever and way too handsome for his own good. She had not missed his interested glances nor that her body didn’t feel like her own when he threw such looks her way. Alice and the duchess walked upstairs to her mama’s private parlor and she flopped onto a settee before the unlit hearth.

  Her mama sat in her sewing chair and picked up her needlework. “What an enjoyable lunch. I do believe that Lord Arndel is smitten with you, Alice.”

  Alice scoffed, although a small part of her loved that idea. To have a suitor so close to home would be fortunate. Although, unlike Victoria, Alice did enjoy London and all its entertainments and distractions. There had been a time when she had abhorred the place. But she loved the city and the friends she’d made there the last two years, and it wouldn’t trouble her should her main home be situated there.

  Victoria picked up their small pug, Dash, trying to make the fat little puppy sit on her lap without squirming. “I agree. And I know I shouldn’t be so forthright, but golly, he’s handsome. If he’d not already taken a liking to you, Alice, I may have tried to gain his attention myself.”

  “Do you really believe so?” She was grinning like a fool. He was one of the most handsome men she’d ever met. And the fluttering in her stomach each time he looked at her had to mean something. The reaction she’d had to Lord Arndel was similar to the one she’d had with the Surrey Bandit, and it gave her hope, for she’d truly thought she was losing her mind reacting to a fiend in such a way.

  Victoria made kissing sounds to Dash and the little dog licked frantically, trying to reach her face. “I do. I had the impression that he fought the attraction, though. I’m not sure why and I demand you find out. I would so love to attend another of my sister’s weddings.”

  “Do not get ahead of yourself, my dear,” their mama said, looking for different shades of cotton. “I’ll accompany you to Kester House. I should’ve paid a visit after his lordship took on the title, and it was remiss of me that I did not.”

  Alice stared at the portrait of their father, which looked down on them from the mantel, the duke’s passing the one reason why their mother had become a bit of a recluse. God rest his beautiful soul. “We will welcome your company, Mama.” She sighed, thinking of Arndel. “I agree he’s handsome, and while in London I did enjoy teasing the man whenever we met. And for a time, I thought myself enamored of him. But he was so skittish in Society and around women in general. I could never marry a man like that. And as much as I love you all dearly, I do not wish to be settled too near to Dunsleigh during my marriage.”

  “Why?” her mama asked, her eyes going wide with shock. “What is wrong with being so close to home?”

  “Well, for one thing,” Alice continued, “since Josh became duke, he has morphed into a stickler for rules and for everything that’s boring. I know he’ll marry someone who’s just as boring, and I would have her on my doorstep at all hours, boring me to pieces. I would not be able to stand it.”

  Victoria’s laughter rang out loud in the quaint room, and her mother threw her a silencing glare. “Even for me, that is too many borings in a sentence. And how can you say such a thing about your sibling? To be so close to your family when settled would be a blessing and far from a hindrance. Just think, you could visit me daily and ride out with Victoria whenever you pleased. And I’m certain whomever Josh marries will be as lively and beautiful as all my daughters.” Her mother smiled, the delight of seeing such a situation come to fruition written clearly on her features.

  “Well, it’s settled then,” Victoria said, huffing out a breath. “From what you say, I’m going to live here forever. The spinster of Dunsleigh. The one sister who never found someone to take her on.”

  Alice reached over and patted her sister’s hand, which was being nibbled on by the pug. “Of course you’ll marry. I’m sure, unfortunately, we all will.” Alice winked at her and was glad to see a smile form on her sister’s lips. “In any case, the Season will be starting soon and off to London we shall go. Hopefully, husbands will be found. But I can assure you, if only because his home is so close to mine, it will not be Lord Arndel.” Alice held up her hand when her mama went to argue the point. “I know I’ve been particular in the past, but I’m determined. Anything outside of Surrey will be suitable.”

  Her mama put down her needlework and huffed out an annoyed sigh. “Really, my child? I thought you said, in this very room no less, the same thing about last year’s Season. And here we are again, about to partake on another jaunt to Town when we should not bother, because we all know you’ll return here with me at the end of it.”

  Heat suffused her chest and Alice hoped it didn’t spread to her face. She always became so blotchy when it did. “As I said, this year I’ll not be so particular. I promise.”

  Victoria, unable to make the puppy do as she wished, placed him on the floor. “I forgot about your mooning over Lord Arndel last season. Why did you not pursue him? I thought you liked him.”

  “I did like him. I like him still,” Alice corrected, thinking back on the previous year and her attempts to gain his interest. All of which had seemed to go unnoticed and certainly not returned. He’d been forever occupied and distant, so she’d given up.

  That he was back in the county, calling and having lunch with them, looking at her with more interest than he’d ever shown before, meant nothing at all. He was simply doing business with her brother and being a good neighbor. Although she would love to find out what that business was exactly. “Last Season, he looked at me like I had the pox, so now, I’m not interested in his courting, should he start to do so. To be seen as a disease that could take one’s life is not flattering, I assure you.”

  “Alice! You are a daughter of a duke! Do not use words such as pox and courting in the same sentence.” Her mother threw up her hands in despair.

  Victoria merely chuckled and opened a copy of Belle Assemblée, flicking through the pages distractingly.

  “Well, he did, Mama, and I cannot forgive him for it. No matter how much he is startled anew with my beauty.” Alice laughed at her own joke and stopped when her mother found no mirth in her words. “But in all seriousness, what do you think his business is about with Josh? Do you think he’s finally ready to look for a wife?”

  “I think he is. And if I’m not mistaken, which I rarely am, he’s finally seen what was before him all those months ago and wishes his choices had been different.” Her mother pursed her lips. “But you must remember, my dear, his family are not the easiest people of our acquaintance, and if you were to marry into them, they would not be as present as you may wish. From what I know, they did everything for the estate to go to another, more suitable, member of their set, before it was bestowed on Lord Arndel, who was the rightful heir all along.”

  Alice didn’t like the image of a family disregarding someone so callously, especially when none of it was his fault that he was the heir. Lord Arndel certainly didn’t ask to be born, and he’d certainly had no choice in who his family was. So for his kin to treat him with so little respect annoyed her more than she thought it should.

  Thi
nking back over the previous Season, his first as viscount, perhaps she’d been too hard on him. With a family breathing down one’s neck, waiting for him to create a scandal or monetary mistake, it was any wonder he’d not looked at her as anything other than another woman searching for a husband. An annoyance he’d had little time or interest for.

  How absurd she must have seemed to him, teasing him, following him about like their puppy, who was now sniffing at the Aubusson rug. “I think Dash needs to go outside.”

  Victoria lunged from her chair and scooped up the pup. The duchess threw the dog a cursory glance before packing up her needlework. “I’m off to look at the weekly menus with Cook. I’m sure you girls can amuse yourselves for a time. It’s a beautiful day, why not make the most of it and go for a walk?”

  “Come, Mama is right, let’s take Dash outside,” Victoria said.

  “We cannot be long. Josh is taking me into Ashford soon to meet with the carpenter to supply us with a quote on the cottages.”

  “We will not walk long.”

  Alice followed her, and making the ground floor landing, they headed toward the back of the house, through the music room, and onto the terrace. The little dog flicked about in Victoria’s arms, clearly sensing freedom, and she set him down. His bolt toward the lawn was a little uncoordinated at first, but he soon got the hang of it and they followed at a more sedate pace.

  “Would you really not look at Arndel as a possible suitor?”

  Victoria looked at her, and Alice wondered if her sister read the uncertainty in her eyes. Damn the man for bringing forth the rioting emotions within her. “There is something that I haven’t told a soul, and you must promise me if I tell you, you will not either.”

  “Of course,” her sister agreed readily.

  “Very well, it is true that last season I thought myself in love with the viscount. I’m sure you noticed that I followed him about, like your dog is now following that bee.”

  Victoria’s attention turned to Dash and she clapped her hands, startling the puppy from trying to catch the little insect, which he, no doubt, would be stung by. “I recall, but I certainly don’t remember you being obsessed.”

  “In any case, I feel like a fool for doing so, for he made it perfectly clear, and in no uncertain terms, he wasn’t attracted to me.”

  “How so?” Victoria pulled her to a stop, taking her hand. “Tell me, dearest.”

  “I came upon him one night with a group of gentlemen, and they were discussing us. All the Worthingham girls, in fact, and how Josh had his hands full trying to gain us husbands. Which is very untrue and absurd, as we’re most certainly not desperate and really, if we wished, we needn’t marry at all.”

  Victoria chuckled, nodding. “And what else did he say?”

  “My name in particular, and I listened behind a potted indoor palm like my life depended on it. It’s so embarrassing to think back on, but some of those men had courted me and I was interested to hear what they really thought.” Alice watched the puppy for a moment, as it dug madly in the lawn. “They were joking about our estates being so closely situated and that I should be easy to secure, due to, what they termed, neighborly love. And do you know how he replied to such teasing?”

  “How?”

  “He said, and I quote, ‘Lady Alice is most definitely not for me. Too much work for my taste and budget.’”

  Her sister gasped. “He never. Did the other gentleman agree with him? And pray tell me who they were, for I’ll not associate with any of those fools when we’re in Town.”

  Alice rounded off some names but the truth was, they had all agreed with Lord Arndel. Each and every one had thought she and her sister would be expensive to keep and hard work to tame. Yes, they had flattered their looks, had gushed in the faces of the daughters of a duke, but Alice hated the fact they’d used the word “tame” as a term for them. Like they were pieces of horseflesh that needed breaking in.

  How humiliating.

  She was not an animal that needed to come to heel. She would be a wife, a lover, and possibly a mother one day, and no matter how much the men of their acquaintance may wish it, none of the Worthingham girls would ever be tamed.

  “I find, and I’m sure you agree, that no matter how handsome Lord Arndel is, he is beneath my notice after such a statement. To be so rudely termed, and before other men of our set, was too much to bear. I could never marry him now, no matter how handsome his eyes are, or how succulent his lips look.”

  Victoria grinned. “‘Succulent’ is another word Mama would dislike you using, although I concur, his lips are very appealing.” Her sister frowned. “I cannot understand him saying such a thing, but I believe you. I thought better of him. Since he’s taken over the Kester House and the estate, he’s kept the most beautiful stallion. Have you seen it?”

  Alice fought not to roll her eyes at Victoria’s change of conversation. Her sister loved animals and was often jealous of others when they possessed a great horse or sought-after breeding dog.

  “I haven’t taken any notice of his cattle, now back to our discussion—”

  “I only mention it,” Victoria interrupted, “because he wasn’t riding the stallion today.” She bit her lip. “I wonder why?”

  “I don’t know, perhaps it’s lame or…something.”

  “Hmm, perhaps you’re right, but I’ll ask him about it the next time he’s here. I wonder if he’d be willing to sell. I shall ask Josh to enquire about it.”

  Dash barked and ran toward the small stream that ran the eastern side of the house. They followed the little pug and noticed the crunching sound of cantering hooves on the drive behind them.

  “Lord Arndel has left.” Alice looked toward the front of the house and caught a glimpse of his lordship’s back as he headed down the gravel drive.

  Victoria sighed. “I should’ve asked him about his stallion before he left.”

  Alice took her hand, laughing at her sister’s obsession. “I’m surprised Mama allowed us to walk the grounds. Since the Surrey Bandit has been gallivanting about, she’s been so worried he’ll escalate and kidnap a virginal miss, also known as her daughters.”

  Victoria nodded in agreement. “As to that, I know why we’re allowed out again. Apparently, there was a robbery in Kent. The local magistrate believes he has moved to another county, so we’re safe from possible theft.”

  The little stream came into view and they both sat. Alice took the opportunity to take off her slippers, mostly ruined from the outing as they were only meant for indoors. She slid her silk stockings off and paddled her feet in the shallows.

  “We should go for a swim. It’s hot enough today.”

  Victoria contemplated the water for a moment before grinning. “Josh will tell us off for not acting as ladies, if we strip off down to our undergarments and swim.”

  Determined to cool down and enjoy the last few weeks they would have here before the Season commenced, Alice started to unbutton her gown. “We’re not doing anything wicked by swimming. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind, given the unseasonably warm fall.”

  “But what about your meeting?” Victoria picked up the pug that sniffed the ground beside them, and using a ribbon she carried, tied him to a nearby tree in the shade.

  “I have time.” Alice bit her lip, wondering since they were being so honest if she should confide in Victoria. Her sister smiled and Alice decided it wouldn’t hurt. “Talking of Lord Arndel, I have another confession.”

  “What is it?” Victoria asked, stripping off her stockings.

  Alice pursed her lips. “His lordship makes me nervous. I neither like nor approve of the emotions.”

  “Maybe deep down you do, though, and that’s the problem,” Victoria said, wading into the water.

  Soon they were both stripped to their unmentionables and floating in the stream that was both cool and refreshing. “I’m so glad we learned to swim as children. Could you imagine not being able to enjoy such a pastime?”

  �
��It would be the veriest of torture,” Victoria said, looking up at the sky. “Before Lord Arndel had said what he did at the ball that evening, did you like him? Not as a friend, but as a possible husband?”

  Alice had hoped her sister, always one to seek out a truth, wouldn’t ask her that question. For she had liked him. Desperately so. Had, even for a time, thought herself in love with the man. What a foolish twit she’d been. “I like him, but no more than anyone else of our acquaintance. If I ever had more feelings than those, they have long left me.”

  The knowing chuckle from her sister irked, and Alice flicked water at her. “What are you laughing at?”

  “Anyone with eyes could see you two were throwing looks at each other with a whole raft of conflicting emotions behind them. Certainly they were not glances you would bestow on a passing acquaintance. I think you like him still. More so than even you know, for let’s face facts. He’s titled, available, and if what Mama says is true, looking for a wife.”

  Alice thought over her sister’s words, knowing she’d wondered the same thing a million times since luncheon. Were her feelings still engaged with the gentleman? She had promised herself she would hate his arrogance and easy dismissal of her after last season, but then, seeing him again, being reminded of his warm cultured voice and kind eyes…stormy blue eyes that inspired a longing that rioted within her…

  Alice stopped swimming and stood up. How odd that his lordship’s eyes were the same shade of blue as the Surrey Bandit’s…

  “I can tell, you know.”

  “What?” Alice asked, her sister’s words pulling her from thoughts of the Surrey Bandit and how handsome Lord Arndel was. In fact the handsomest gentleman she’d ever met.

  “When you lie.”

  She dove under the water to hold off the blush that fought to cover her face and give her away to her sibling. Coming back up to the surface she met her sister’s expectant gaze. She wouldn’t get out of answering her question. “I have no interest in the man. None whatsoever.”