The Rakehell's Seduction (The Seduction Series Book 2)

by Lauren Smith

  “Worthing? What the devil…”

  “My lord, we have a situation.” He hesitated, feeling Perdita behind him. “It seems Lord Darlington has abducted your daughter.”

  “What?” The earl’s face drained of color.

  “My lord.” Perdita slipped past him and took the earl’s arm. “Why don’t you sit down?”

  “Good idea,” Rockford murmured in a daze as he collapsed into a chair. “Now.” He looked up at Ambrose. “Tell me everything you know.”

  Ambrose took a deep breath and told Alex’s father everything about the betting books, except the part where he had agreed to seduce Alex. He was lying to her father about part of this, and it made his stomach roll with nausea. Blood drained from Lord Rockford’s face as he listened to Ambrose, and his hands shook so hard he fisted them on his thighs as he sat facing Ambrose. Perdita stood behind the earl, her face a mask, hiding all emotion, which confirmed Ambrose’s suspicions that she knew more about him and Alex than he’d first thought.

  “So you came to Lothbrook to protect my daughter from those damned rakehells at White’s?”

  “Yes.” It was true, even if he had to omit the part that he was seducing her as part of her protection.

  “Lord, what are we to do?” Rockford’s face suddenly seemed ancient with grief and worry.

  “I will go after them. I believe Vaughn took her back to London. You must escort Miss Darby to London and take the coach. I will ride ahead on horseback. If I find her, I’ll bring her to your townhouse, where Lady Rockford should be able to receive us until you arrive.”

  The earl stared at him, worry and hope colliding in his eyes, eyes that reminded Ambrose too much of Alex. He dared not think of how frightened she must be. If Vaughn so much as touched her, Ambrose vowed to run him through, their old friendship be damned.

  “I suppose that’s our only option, isn’t it?” Lord Rockford said.

  “I believe so, my lord.”

  “Godspeed,” the earl said and held out his hand. Ambrose clasped it firmly, making a silent vow that he would find Alex and bring her safely home.

  He left Rockford and Perdita to finish packing as he rushed down to the stables to hire out the best-looking horse he could find. It was still a sorry nag that he ended up with, but he had no choice. He kicked his heels into the horse’s flanks as he raced down the road that would take him to London. He guessed Vaughn would take Alex to his townhouse on Duke Street, but he must have some idea of how to conduct the public ruination, and that worried Ambrose more.

  I’m coming for you, Alex, I swear to you.

  *****

  Two hours later, Ambrose slid off his horse and shoved his reins at a weary groom as he raced up the stairs to Vaughn’s townhouse and pounded a balled fist on the door. He’d had a long time to think and to worry, and he’d realized something. He had to save Alex at any cost because he cared about her, cared enough that he was afraid he was falling in love with her. If he couldn’t save her reputation from public ruination, he’d never forgive himself, and she’d have to endure society’s judgment. And it would be all his fault. He was not going to let that happen to the woman he loved.

  A butler opened it a long minute later, yawning as he did so.

  “His lordship is not—”

  “Stow it!” Ambrose barked and shouldered roughly past the man to get inside the townhouse.

  “Sir!” the butler shouted, more awake now that he’d been knocked aside.

  “Vaughn? Where the devil are you?” Ambrose bellowed. The old butler tugged at his arm as he started for the stairs, but a door opened to the right and Vaughn came out.

  “Ambrose,” Vaughn greeted quietly. He was fully dressed, not a hair out of place, but his eyes were weary as though he’d expected this.

  “Where is she?” Ambrose charged at his old friend, and before Vaughn could react, he punched Vaughn in the face.

  Vaughn staggered back a step and clutched his chin. Blood glistened on his lips as he smiled ruefully at Ambrose.

  “Damn, I forgot that vicious right hook of yours.” A second later he lunged for Ambrose, his fists raised.

  He should have expected Vaughn to fight back, but he wasn’t prepared. Vaughn landed a blow to Ambrose’s eye that stung, and he clutched his face as he ducked from another swinging fist. Then he bent double and ran at the other man, catching him by the waist and slamming him back against the wall where he pounded his own fist into Vaughn’s side.

  “Fucking Christ!” Vaughn snarled and threw up a knee into Ambrose’s chest. The blow knocked the wind out of Ambrose as he faced his friend, ready to throw as many punches as it took to get to Alex.

  “Don’t make me ask again. Where is she?” He let his tone go as dark and lethal as his present mood. Ambrose could barely speak. He was raging inside and terrified of what might have happened to Alex.

  Vaughn’s gaze flickered toward the stairs, betraying Alex’s location.

  “She’s safe and unharmed. I promise that, Ambrose, on my life.” He moved slowly but deliberately to block Ambrose’s path to the stairs.

  “Get out of my way, Vaughn, or I’ll hit you hard enough that you will stay down.” Ambrose’s hands curled into fists.

  Vaughn raised a hand. “I understand that, but you have to listen to me for one bloody minute.”

  Ambrose arched her brow. “Oh? And why is that?”

  Vaughn rolled his eyes, something he’d done often enough when they’d been lads and Ambrose hadn’t been able to follow him as quickly on a scheme.

  “She is in the betting books. You know what that means. Until the wager is satisfied, she will never be safe, never be free. You know that those other men will never stop. Gerald Langley put a price on her reputation for five thousand pounds. And you and I both know those men won’t just stop when it comes to appearances. They’ll go for her maidenhead as well.”

  Ambrose’s heart sank as he realized what Vaughn was saying was true.

  “Someone has to ruin her to save her,” Ambrose said. “It was why I put my name down on the wager. And it should be me. It’s why I went to Lothbrook, but I…” He couldn’t bring himself to make Alex’s ruination public.

  “I knew you’d already claimed her, but I also saw how much you cared about her. You wouldn’t finish the job,” Vaughn said.

  “And you needed the coin, didn’t you?” Ambrose accused.

  “I do.” Vaughn paused. “Langley is on his way here. I convinced him to come and see Alex in her nightgown at my townhouse in a bedroom. It will hopefully be enough for him. He can go back to White’s and crow over her ruination.”

  Vaughn’s plan, albeit cold in regard to Alex, did make sense. As much as Ambrose was loath to admit it, it was a good idea.

  “Then let me be the one he sees. I’ll give you the money, but I won’t have her tied to your name. It should be mine.”

  “Because you love her.” Vaughn was smiling again, a hint of a wicked gleam in his eyes.

  “I do not,” Ambrose snapped.

  “You do.”

  Ambrose shook his head. “She’s a lovely woman, and her father is an old friend.”

  “And you and I both know you aren’t that good a man. You went out of curiosity, and you fell in love. There’s no shame in admitting that.” Vaughn crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes serious.

  Ambrose struggled for words, but with a heaviness he realized it was true. He was in love with Alex, had been since the night they waltzed. There was no joy, no excitement at the revelation. Rather, his heart had begun to bleed as he faced the truth of the situation.

  “She will never love me, not when she knows the truth that I was there to seduce her.”

  “Yes, unfortunately, that’s true. She knows you signed your name in the book.”

  Ambrose felt like he couldn’t breathe. The world was closing in around him, and he was choking to death on the inside. “You told her, didn’t you?”

  “I did.” Vaughn didn’t den
y it, but he also didn’t appear to be gleeful at his admission. “I didn’t know you loved her, not until you stormed in here and threw that punch.”

  “What the bloody hell are we going to do?” Ambrose raked a hand through his hair.

  “You are going upstairs to see lovely Lady Alexandra. Come clean about everything and convince her to let Langley see the two of you in bed. Once he is gone, you may take her home. I’ll lend you my coach.”

  Ambrose stared at his old friend. “I’m tempted to hit you again, you know.”

  Vaughn shrugged, his lips twitching slightly, although still swollen from the first punch. “You can later, but we need to be prepared. Langley will be here soon. She’s in the first room at the top of the stairs. The key is in the lock.”

  Ambrose, who had started for the stairs, froze and then glared at him.

  “You locked her inside?”

  “She’s a strong-willed woman. I didn’t want her running out into the street half-clothed. They might fear she’s mad. Better to be safe.”

  Chapter 14

  Alex was sitting in a chair by the unlit fire, staring at nothing. She was aware of shivering, but the sensation seemed so distant, as though her mind and her body had separated ways long ago.

  Ambrose had come to Lothbrook to seduce her. She was nothing more than a wager to him, a five-thousand-pound challenge. He’d won far too easily.

  First Marshall and now this…

  She curled her arms around her chest and lowered her head, closing her eyes as tears leaked down her cheeks. How was she going to survive this? It was as though she’d been ripped away from the safety of her heart’s inner fortress and thrown naked on a flat field, unable to protect herself from the world. There was no going back, no way to rebuild those inner walls. It was too late because she’d fallen in love with Ambrose and he’d used her heart against her.

  She stiffened her spine and tried to figure out what she was going to do. Any moment now the man who’d started the wager would arrive, and she’d be forced to confront him. What should she do? Fight off Vaughn if he tried to touch her? He’d promised he wouldn’t, but what if he changed his mind or Langley demanded he touch her? Yes, she would fight if it came to that. She’d never been a wilting flower, and she was not about to let any man change that about her. Even though her heart was shattered, her pride and righteous fury were making her strong enough to survive. Langley would regret making that bet and so would Darlington for bringing her here.

  The sound of a key turning in the lock attracted her focus, and she tensed. Was now the time for Darlington to ruin her? The door opened, her lips parted in shock, and her heart jumped in a treacherous wave of relief. Ambrose stood there, his face pale and his eyes haunted with shadows.

  “Ambrose?”

  He closed the door and rushed over to her, taking her into his arms and seating himself in the chair with her on his lap. His quick actions surprised her, and she wasn’t ready to push him away even though half of her was struggling inside with her rage and hurt. The other half of her was relieved to be safe in his arms. But she knew she wasn’t safe, would never be safe again from heartache when it came to this man.

  “You are all right, thank God,” he murmured, his arms banding tightly around her.

  It would be so easy to give in, to let her heart surrender again and seek shelter and comfort in his embrace. If only he’d never agreed to take the wager to ruin her, she could have stayed here in his arms, feeling the warmth of his breath against her cheek and breathing in his scent of leather and sandalwood. Her eyes prickled with tears as reality crashed down around her, and she shoved at his chest. He was too startled to stop her as she climbed off his lap and darted away. She shouldn’t have let him touch her or hold her. It was too painful, even so much that it eclipsed her anger at him.

  “Alex, I’m here to help.”

  She put precious distance between them, pulling her dressing gown closed like a shield.

  “Please, don’t touch me—don’t come any closer,” she whispered.

  He stared at her, his eyes worried, his brow furrowed, and she realized he didn’t know why she was angry with him.

  “I know about your involvement in the wager.” She paused, and the room grew deathly silent, like a tomb that had not been disturbed for centuries. He stared at her as he slowly stood from the chair. Lines of weariness carved paths around his mouth and eyes, which she’d once considered evidence of his love of laughter. When he didn’t speak, she continued.

  “You came to seduce me for five thousand pounds.” The words tasted bitter on her tongue. Ambrose stood but didn’t try to come closer.

  “It was never about the money, Alex.” His voice was deceptively soft, like a man attempting to soothe a spooked horse.

  “Oh?” She laughed bitterly.

  “No,” he growled, a scowl marring his features.

  “Five thousand pounds is a lot of money.”

  “It is, and I never intended to take it.”

  “Was that because you were more interested in the challenge itself?” She knew her voice sounded shrill, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself.

  “No. Damnation, woman, let me speak.” He moved toward her. “We don’t have much time. A man named George Langley is on his way here. He’s the man who wishes to see you ruined. We must oblige him.”

  “Why?” Alex demanded.

  He stared at her for a long second, then drew in a slow breath. “Because if we don’t, all those other men at White’s will come after you, Alex. You will never be safe, not until the wager is deemed satisfied. That has been my goal from the start. To protect you from those other men. Not even marrying you would have saved you. Public ruination is their goal, and that doesn’t require you to be unwed. They would not hesitate to rape you, Alex. Do you understand? They are bad men who want that money and will do anything to get it.”

  That thought stopped her cold. She hadn’t realized it could be that serious.

  “But…” She faltered as she realized Ambrose was right. “What do we have to do to stop them?”

  “Langley will need to see you compromised. I’m sorry, my love, but that means you and I in bed…” She saw him swallow thickly, and he continued. “Or you may choose Darlington in bed. Your choice.”

  Ambrose or Darlington? There was no choice. She hated and loved Ambrose at the same time, and he was the only one she could trust in that moment.

  “You. I choose you.”

  Ambrose’s breath blew out in a rush. “Get into bed. I’ll listen at the door.” He turned away and stripped out of his coat and waistcoat before he kicked off his boots.

  Alex settled on the bed, watching him open the door a crack as he listened. They both held their breath for what seemed like forever. Finally, Ambrose tensed, and then she heard masculine voices drifting up the stairs. He closed the door, strode to the bed, and climbed in beside her. She lay back, staring up at him. How different this felt from the other night. That night had been wonderful and intimate, and this…this felt like a betrayal of that night.

  He cupped her face, his eyes dark and full of concern.

  “Whatever happens, trust me one last time, my love, please.” He stroked the pad of his thumb over her lips, and her lips trembled. My love—the words were a dagger to her heart when he uttered them so casually. How many other women had been his love over the years?

  “One last time,” she echoed faintly. It felt as though her heart was splintering like fractures in glass, spun as fine as spiderwebs.

  He nodded and solemnly lowered his head to kiss her. It felt good and bad all at once. She clenched her hands in the blankets, resisting the urge to touch him. But when his lips parted and his tongue traced the seam of her mouth, she melted. She was lost in the haze of a bittersweet kiss, like tasting the last apple from an orchard in the fall, the sweet fruit carrying a hint of frost as winter crept through the gardens and the trees.

  The door to the chamber opened, and Ambrose
tensed above her, their lips breaking apart.

  Fear gripped her and she closed her eyes, her stomach roiling.

  “Hold on to me and don’t look away,” Ambrose murmured, and she opened her eyes. She could sense a group of men at the door, far more than she’d expected, but as long as she gazed into Ambrose’s eyes, she could survive this.

  There was a murmur of male chuckles, and then Darlington spoke.

  “As you can see she is quite ruined. Shall we discuss payment downstairs?” Darlington’s voice was muffled as the door started to close, leaving her and Ambrose alone.

  “They are gone,” he said, but didn’t move off her. “We will wait until Vaughn has seen them out, and then I shall take you home to your mother. Your father knows all that’s happened, and he will be waiting at your London townhouse with your mother.”

  Alex held in the sob that tried to escape. It was over…for now. All of London would know of her ruination in a day, and she would never be able to go anywhere without hearing whispers or enduring sidelong looks.

  My life, what little of one I had, is over.

  “Are you all right?” Ambrose asked, frowning.

  “No.” The word escaped her brokenly, and she mustered the last bit of her strength not to burst into tears in front of him. “I’m the farthest thing from it. I need to go home. Now.” She shoved his chest, feeling her heart break even further.

  He carefully climbed off her and put his coat and waistcoat back on. A minute later Darlington open the door.

  “Ambrose, I believe I figured out Langley’s motives.” Darlington’s gaze swept to her, and then she glanced away. She wasn’t ashamed. She’d done nothing wrong, at least nothing by choice, but the way she felt in that moment, wounded and vulnerable, she didn’t want to meet anyone’s eyes.

  “Well?” Ambrose demanded as he finished pulling on his boots.