A Ring of Midnight Orchids: Flowers of the Aristocracy (Untamed Regency Book 3)

by Jackie Williams

  He relaxed back in his seat.

  “I am very comfortable, thank you. Though if you are feeling the heat...” he motioned towards the window.

  She shook her head.

  “No, I am comfortable too. You simply looked as if you were feeling a little constrained. Quite understandable. The summer has been far warmer than usual and the showers make the air humid.”

  He nodded.

  “True, but autumn will soon be upon us. It is my favourite season. The lush reds and oranges are a delight to the eye and cheer one before the long nights ahead.” He paused briefly and wondered since when he had become a nature lover. And a poet. He cleared his throat and tried again with more practical thoughts in his mind. “I am not fond of the colder weather and hope that this warm spell continues into September. Are you intending to remain in London after your wedding?” A strange chill shivered up his spine. What had made him speak of a wedding he knew wouldn’t happen? The whole point of this trip was to get Pierce out of the ridiculous situation.

  Her shoulders moved fractionally, the blush deepening on her cheeks.

  “Lord Trenchard hasn’t mentioned where he would like to spend the winter months, though with his commitments it might be difficult to leave town. Do you stay in London during the colder weather?”

  Lucas gave his own shrug.

  “I remained in town last year, but in the future I may travel. I haven’t had the chance until recently. Of course, I also need to go where the fights take me. Not that I will be partaking of any prize bouts in the near future...” The skin on his hands had healed but the knuckles remained tender. His voice trailed off as her eyebrows dipped quickly and her face lit up with colour.

  “It is a brutal sport and I detest it, but my dislike of men beating each other up is irrelevant. I am so sorry about Harold. I know what he did to you. He bragged about it for days.” Her eyes met Lucas’ and for a moment he thought tears were about to form, but she blinked her dusky eyelashes and continued. “Though he has a title, he is sometimes no gentleman. I love him dearly, but at the moment consider him nothing but an overbearing bully!” She lifted her chin and clasped her hands in her lap as if daring Lucas to contradict her.

  He didn’t. Though he had never considered what he did as brutal, he completely agreed with the woman’s evaluation of her brother.

  “It was unsporting of him, to say the least. My mother has yet to get over the shock of seeing a less than straight Caruthers nose.” He sniffed down the still tender appendage, lamenting the slight bend in the bridge. “I would have accepted being beaten in a fair fight, but for my first knock-out to be caused by a cheat was a little galling. I was surprised to find out that your brother is a gentleman. One generally expects more from one’s own peers.” He wished he hadn’t said anything when she cringed beneath his gaze and he hurried to lessen the blow to her character. “But you have no need to apologize for your brother’s behaviour. I know that you had nothing to do with the affair.”

  A tiny smile lifted the corner of her mouth and she sighed deeply.

  “Thank you. I feared that you would take out your righteous anger upon me.”

  Lucas leaned forward, his hands pressed on his knees.

  “Never! I doubt I have ever been angry with a woman in my life, and I am not about to begin by being annoyed with you. I am only happy to be able to assist you today, though I wonder that my friend has misled you somewhat, Miss Lancer. We won’t be meeting Pierce this evening, and neither will we reach Perrydale tonight. We stop overnight at the Red Lion in Wakenham before travelling on tomorrow the morning.”

  Angelique’s eyes widened and she glanced fearfully at her clearly outraged maid before responding to him.

  “But I didn’t pack anything for an overnight stay. Pierce didn’t mention staying at any inn. I am quite unprepared for such an event, and Harold will go mad as soon as he finds out that I am not returning to London this evening. He may have cheated to beat you in a prize fight, but you have no idea of his temper. We must return to town immediately.” Tension buzzed in the air around them as her fingers tore at the lace edging the handkerchief she pulled from her pocket.

  Lucas smiled gently and placed his hand over hers, stilling her fingers, and saving the scrap of white silk.

  “Have no fear. Pierce realized that he might be delayed and arranged for your bags to be sent on earlier.”

  Mary snorted from her corner of the carriage.

  “I’d like to know how he managed that as I am the only one allowed to tend my Lady, and no one asked me to pack a thing!” She pointed a bony finger at Lucas.

  Lucas braved the maid’s indignation.

  “It was part of the surprise for his new fiancée. Pierce ordered a selection of gowns and other fripperies to be made particularly for this trip, by Miss Lancer’s own dressmaker. As you well know, Lord Trenchard is a connoisseur of all things fashionable. I am sure that you will be delighted with his choices.”

  Lucas bit down the stab of jealousy he felt. Pierce would receive all the thanks for the fabulous gowns, but the man had lost interest in fabrics and ribbons within a few minutes of entering the modiste’s salon and barely glanced at a pattern book after entering. It had fallen to Lucas to choose the styles, the colours, and materials, based on Pierce’s less than adequate description of his fiancée, and Madame Lesmaes’ knowledge of her beautiful client. Pierce’s attention was only regained when it came to choosing undergarments. Lucas hadn’t faulted the man’s choice at the time. Still didn’t. But now he knew who would be wearing them, the memory of decadently transparent organzas trimmed with fascinating strips of lace, nearly undid him. Lord, but it was as well that he still wore his jacket buttoned.

  Mary refused to be mollified.

  “A selection of clothes made? But we were not consulted. How long did Lord Trenchard think that we were staying? I should have thought a bag with some night things and a change of dress for the morrow would be plenty. Not that we will be remaining over night. The very idea is unthinkable. My Lady’s brother will have both yours and your friend’s heads if you don’t return us to London immediately.” Hands firmly on hips, the tiny woman glowered at him.

  Lucas glanced toward a clearly worried Angelique.

  “You really have nothing to be worried about. Pierce said he had sorted everything out when making arrangements for this trip with your brother last week.”

  Angelique’s eyes became as large as saucers. She blinked several times before speaking again.

  “Making arrangements? With Harold? Are we talking about the same person? Because the Harold I know would tear off your friend’s ears and serve them to him for his own dinner at the mere suggestion of spending the night out alone with a man, gentleman or not.”

  Lucas hid the sudden bout of nerves that filled him. He wasn’t scared of the Pulveriser personally, but perhaps this hadn’t been such a good idea. The thought of Pierce’s rather well formed ears being covered in gravy and served on a dinner plate with possibly peas, carrots, and roast potatoes, turned Lucas’ stomach, but he swallowed down his misgivings and spoke bracingly.

  “But you will not be alone. You have your maid travelling with you,” he stated the obvious. “And this is not for anything frivolous. This is a visit to one of the foremost libraries in the land. Surely your brother cannot object to you enjoying one of your favourite pastimes.”

  She inclined her head and her blonde curls bobbed once again.

  “You are quite right. Mary is with me, but her presence will not make an impression on my brother, though it would be a pity to miss such an opportunity due to his variable temper. I do love to read.” Her gaze flitted to the window again, her hand pressing against the glass. “But I enjoy other pursuits too.”

  Lucas followed her gaze. Her eyes took in everything, darting from one scene to the next, delight written in her gentle expression in spite of the dark clouds on the horizon.

  “Like travelling through the countryside on
a stormy evening?” He hazarded a guess.

  She turned back to him and nodded eagerly.

  “I have not done it often. Just once last year. I came to London when Harold became the Earl and haven’t forgotten the experience. The weather was just as tempestuous. Sunlight and sudden storms. It was wonderfully exciting.”

  Lucas wasn’t sure that he understood her meaning.

  “But surely you must have had plenty of opportunity to see the countryside when you lived at Landsdowne. I know the area around the estate well. There are quite outstanding views across the downs. The storms can be spectacular.”

  Angelique fidgeted for a few moments before answering.

  “Yes, that’s what I meant. I saw the force within them when we came to London. A lightning fork hit a tree just as we were passing. Do you recall, Mary? You screamed so loudly I swear I was unable to hear a thing for several minutes.” She inclined her head towards her maid. Mary nodded and shuddered in response.

  “T’was the shock, my Lord. Thought we were going to meet our maker a few years too soon.” The woman pressed her hands together as if in prayer. “But my Lady was fascinated by the spectacle. Wanted to know everything about lightning afterwards.” The woman rolled her eyes.

  “I managed to obtain several books upon the subject. Such power from the sky!”

  Angelique’s enthusiasm animated her already delightful features. Lucas tore his mind away from her rapt expression and concentrated again.

  “But that cannot have been the only time you saw a storm.”

  Angelique blinked at his obvious confusion.

  “No, of course not. But it was the nearest I have ever come to one. Being outside in ones carriage cannot be compared to experiencing it from within one’s own drawing room.”

  Lucas nodded.

  “No, but surely you have been caught in a storm when out. Perhaps when going to neighbours, or touring the countryside?”

  She shook the blonde curls.

  “No, my mother...” Her voice cracked and tears swam without falling from her lashes as she continued. “I did not know any of our neighbours. We did not go out, Lord Caruthers. My father did not allow it.”

  The old maid shuffled closer to her mistress.

  “My Lady, you should not distress yourself. His Lordship doesn’t need to know the family business.” Mary lay a surprisingly gentle hand on her mistress’s arm.

  Lucas was about to reassure that woman that he had no intention of prying, though his curiosity was unquestionably roused, when Angelique’s lips trembled as she cleared her throat.

  “No, Mary. I will hide this no longer. I am about to be married to one to the gentlemen of the ton and there are bound to be questions as to why I have never been presented, or why I am seldom out. Lord Caruthers is good friends with my fiancé. He will know the truth soon enough anyway. He might as well know from the start.” She blinked away her tears and lifted her chin, looking Lucas full in the eye. “My father was not a kind man, and my mother suffered greatly to keep my brother and myself from harm. I was rarely allowed out of the house, let alone to wander the estate and its whereabouts. I longed to walk through the gardens, to ride a horse, to feel rain falling on my face...” Her fingertips drifted to the rain spots still sitting on the outside of the carriage window. “But the threat to my mother was too great. My love of reading came from long days spent indoors. Books were my only escape.”

  Astonishment rippled through Lucas as he suddenly understood her.

  “You mean that you never left Landsdowne before coming to London? That your father beat your mother and refused to let you leave the property?” He didn’t need to see her nod. The truth of her words hung in the air between them and his anger grew into a boiling cauldron of fury. If the man had been alive, Lucas wouldn’t have been answerable for his actions.

  But the man was dead and long gone. Raging at past mistreatments would do no one any good. Though if her brother was the same type of man... He had to find out. He would turn back to London this instant and wring the man’s neck if he had laid a single finger on the beautiful flower in front of him!

  “And now? Your brother doesn’t allow you to go out either? Does he...” he couldn’t finish his question. “Who is with your mother? Where is she, now that your father has gone?” He wasn’t sure that he wanted to know the answers, or if he should be the one asking them, but he hadn’t been able to stop himself enquiring. His stomach clenched into a knot as the tears fell this time.

  “Please do not concern yourself. Harold might be a brute in the ring, and his temper is easily roused, but he would never hurt me or any other woman. Mother moved into the dower house at Carnsworth, one of the family estates, almost as soon as father was buried. Before she left Landsdowne, she told me that the place has a wonderful hot house where she can grow her prize orchids. It was the one thing father allowed her to do, though I think he agreed to her pastime more to keep her out of his way than anything else. I take great comfort knowing that she can now sit and make her perfumes and oils to her heart’s content without interruption or interference. Harold has hired a maid, a cook, and a gardener to tend her. She writes often and sends me samples of her work, but I have not been able to visit her yet. My brother was determined that I find a husband as soon as possible and brought me to town.”

  Lucas pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and passed it to the weeping woman. Though the story was frightful, he at least now understood where she obtained her enticing scent.

  “But that was last year. And you were with Brendon Spencer for much of that time. Why didn’t your brother insist on you marrying him if he was so keen on seeing you settled?”

  She turned her head back towards the window and stared outside, smiling for the first time since the conversation had become serious.

  “Dear Bren. Such a gentleman. And a voracious reader too. But he is apparently renowned for his quick temper and while Harold uses his fists on men, after seeing how our mother suffered, he would never let a man lay a hand on a lady. Besides, it was clear that Lord Spencer’s feelings were engaged elsewhere. He wasn’t considered a serious match.”

  Lucas couldn’t hide his shock.

  “But Bren would never hurt a woman. The man can be a complete idiot at times, I’ll grant you that, but to harm a woman would kill him. And with his misgivings, it’s a wonder that your brother even allowed Bren to be in your company if he thought ill of the man.”

  She blinked her amazing blue eyes innocently.

  “But I was never alone with Brendon. Harold was there every time. There was no risk. We were friends. Nothing more.”

  Confusion filled Lucas.

  “But you were Bren’s mistr...” He stopped as her eyes widened even further, and recalled Pierce telling him that Angelique had never let him touch her. “You mean that you simply sat and read while you were with Brendon Spencer? Seriously?” His mind boggled. Brendon had given more than lurid details of his escapades with the lovely but apparently frivolous Angelique. Could the man have been lying? With the tears still hanging onto her lashes, she certainly didn’t look frivolous now. As if in confirmation of his thoughts, the maid suddenly waggled her finger sternly in his face.

  “And you consider yourself a gentleman! How dare you insinuate that my mistress has loose morals! She is as pure as the driven snow, and if anyone tells you any different, they can call me out for a liar. I’ll shoot them dead!”

  Lucas didn’t doubt the elderly woman. He pressed himself back on his seat and held up his hands in surrender.

  “I wouldn’t dare.” He really wouldn’t. The woman looked positively delighted at the prospect of aiming a duelling pistol at his heart.

  Angelique pressed her fingers to her mouth to hide the sudden smile that lit her lips.

  “Mary, I am sure Lord Caruthers meant no insult. You know how prone to exaggeration men can be. Harold does it all the time. I have heard him bragging to his friends about conquests he has never made. I s
uspect Brendon was too embarrassed to tell the truth of our meetings.”

  Something shifted uncomfortably in Lucas’ chest even while his mind reeled at the thought of a thug like Harold Lancer having friends.

  “But for Bren to allow your reputation to suffer...I cannot believe had the gall to...” He stopped as she shook her head.

  “No, I won’t have anything said against him. Lord Spencer was the perfect gentleman whist in my company. What did his words matter? I don’t go anywhere or see anyone of importance. There are very few people who would have heard any such rumours. Those that matter to me know the truth. I would be more concerned that Brendon’s lovely new wife hear such lies and believes them to be true. They would hurt her more than me, I am sure.”

  Lucas thought of Sophia and nearly choked in surprise. It was the first time he had thought about the woman he loved that day. Odd. Mostly he thought of Sophia’s dark, soulful eyes and raven curls spreading across his pillow almost every other minute, but somehow their lustre had faded in the last few hours. Now all he could think about were blonde tendrils curling their way about a finger, preferably his finger, and summer blue eyes fringed with dusky lashes blinking up at him while the tiny tip of a pink tongue touched full, succulent lips.

  His blood hummed through his veins and his heart thumped hard. Lord! What he wouldn’t give to taste those lips too!

  The maid’s sudden cough cleared Lucas’ less than chaste thoughts. She peered at him with disapproving eyes. Had his feelings been so obvious? From the way she was scowling, he might as well have said them out loud. He dragged his thoughts back to the conversation.

  “Given the circumstances, I am sure that no one, least of all Brendon, would say a word to Sophia, but while we are discussing things of this nature, you should know that there are other rumours circling about you. What about Pierce’s mother? Lady Trenchard is expecting her son to marry a Russian princess. I can almost see the guest list she is compiling, especially with her friend’s daughter already married to the Duke of Portland.” Lucas began to sweat at the amount of ‘one-upping’ that might be going on between Pierce’s mother and his own. There would be tiaras thrown before breakfast!