by Angel
They made up, as it were, though they hadn’t actually had a fight. And making love with him that night was a little more heated than normal, was quite explosive actually, and so prolonged that they both overslept the next morning.
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Kelsey arose first. Dressing quickly, she went down to see ,Vhat Alicia had prepared for breakfast, with the thought of ,ringing a tray up to Derek. She didn’t have a butler as that was one servant she didn’t ael she needed in her small household, especially since she [idn’t receive any callers. And her footman usually saw to ihose duties. But when he wasn’t around, whoever was downstairs and nearest the door answered it if someone knocked on it.
This morning that was Kelsey, since someone was knocking on the door just as she came downstairs. The surprise she received upon opening it, though, was quite unpleasant for that early in the morning. “I make quite a good detective, don’t IT’ Regina Eden said, beaming at her.
Kelsey drew a total blank as far as any responses were
concerned. Situations like this were not supposed to occur.
Hadn’t Derek promised her she wouldn’t have to deal with his family anymore? And Reggie walked right in, as if she didn’t doubt for a moment that she would be welcome. And she wouldn’t doubt it. They were fast friends, after all-at least as far as Reggie was concerned.
Kelsey groaned inwardly. And all she could think to finally say was, “How did you find me?” “Well, I went by Percy’s house first, of course. Not this morning. This was last week.” “Why?” “To see if you were still in town, since I was. Nicholas had some business that came up, so we’ve ended up staying longer than I thought we would. Anyway, I went by Percy’s and the dear wasn’t in, but his butler said he had no cousin staying there with him, nor had he had one any time recently. I left a message for him to come by and see me, but he never did. And I’m not known for my patience. So then I checked
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the hotels nearby, and I don’t mind telling you, I made a complete ass of myself, showing up at one hotel that had a Langton registered. It wasn’t you, of course, but some lady and her niece. And she even had another niece named Kelsey, too.” “Imagine that,” Kelsey croaked out. “My sentiments exactly. But they’d never even heard of Percy, so, of course, her Kelsey couldn’t have been you. And after I exhausted the hotels, I checked with the better rental agencies, and they had no record of dealing with you or
Percy. But then-and I don’t know why I thought of it, except that Derek has frequently attended to business matters for Percy in the past-I mentioned his name, and sure
enough, he had just leased this house recently. So here I am.”
Yes, here she was, and Kelsey didn’t know what the devil to do. She couldn’t very well ask Reggie to stay for tea when Derek might come downstairs at any moment. She had left him sleeping, but he tended to wake up pretty quickly once
she was gone, as if he could sense her absence even in sleep.
And damned if a door didn’t open upstairs and Derek’s voice could be heard calling out, “Where did you go, luv? You could have at least wakened me. Kelsey?”
He must have assumed she was in the back of the house and couldn’t hear him, because the door closed again. Kelsey was about ready to expire on the spot.
Reggie had looked up, of course, at the sound of his voice, had no trouble recognizing it, and said now, “What’s he doing here-and up there?”
Kelsey was blushing furiously by then, and when Reggi@.. glanced at her and saw it, she said “Oh” and started blushingl herself. But then the whole picture must have formed in her, i,
mind, at least a picture resulting from her own conclusions” because she added indignantly, “Why, that bounder! How dare he take advantage of you like this?”
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Kelsey groaned again, quite loudly this time. “It’s not what you think-I mean, it is-but the circumstances aren’t … please, Reggie, just 90, before he comes down. I’ll explain later. // “When later? This isn’t something that I can just ignore, Vou know.”
Kelsey didn’t know why it wasn’t, but she could see she wasn’t going to get out of explaining. “I’ll come by your house this afternoon.” “You promise?” “Yes.” “Very well,” Reggie allowed, though she was still bristling somewhat. “But I certainly hope there is a good explanation for this, because it would be my duty to inform my Uncle Jason about it otherwise. Derek knows better than to go around seducing innocent girls of good breeding. Even our ra e ell uncles drew the line at that.”
(R
DILEMMA-NO, ANOTHER DILEMMA-THAT KELSEY was not looking forward to facing. Horrid lies. Once started they escalated, one leading to another, and she was so tangled in them she could barely keep track of them. And this particular dilemma she couldn’t forestall. She’d promised Regina an explanation.
But which explanation to give her? The real truth? Or the truth as Derek knew it, which was just another set of lies? And she was so sick of the lies …
She arrived at the house on Park Lane at around three o’clock that afternoon. She was expected, and was shown directly to a sitting room upstairs. A maid brought in tea. Reggie showed up right behind her. “I want to apologize for how snippy I sounded earlier,” Reggie said right off, as soon as the maid left. “It was just such a surprise and-well, I’m sure you understand. And I’m sure there is a perfectly good explanation. Why, I wouldn’t even be surprised if Derek’s asked you to marry him. That would put a whole different face on it, now,,’ wouldn’t it? I mean, Nicholas and I-well, goodness, listen
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to me go on, not giving you a chance to say anything. By the by, we won’t be disturbed here-or overheard.”
Kelsey smiled at that last. She did have to worry about being overheard-that is, if she made a clean breast of it. And that is what she wanted to do, more than anything, at least with this particular Malory. But she wouldn’t do that, not without assurances.
Reggie sat down across from Kelsey, now that she’d fallen silent, and poured them each tea. She was waiting for Kelsey to begin, patiently, too. Kelsey was still searching for the right words. But there were none-at least, none to make this any easier. “Actually,” Kelsey finally began, “Derek has asked me to
marry him.”
Reggie beamed happily. “I knew-” “But I won’t, and I told him so.” Reggie blinked. “Why not?”’ “Because of how he acquired me. You see, what you were
told about me, it was all a lie. But he didn’t know what else to tell you at the time. He didn’t know you and I had already met previously.” “What was a lie?” “I’m not Percy’s cousin,” Kelsey admitted. “I’m Derek’s mistress.”
Reggie rolled her eyes and said dryly, “I’ve already gathered that.” “No, what I mean is, I was already his mistress when I first met you. He bought me at an auction in a house of ill repute, one frequented by many lords of his acquaintance. That’s why I won’t marry him. The scandal of such a marriage would be horrendous.”
Reggie took a moment to absorb that, but then said, “‘Scandal is nothing new to my family-but what the devil were
You doing in a place like that? And if you try to tell me you
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aren’t a lady, that you belonged there, I’ll toss you out of my house on your ear.”
Kelsey’s eye’s widened, but then she burst out laughing. It felt very good indeed, certainly wasn’t what she had gone there expecting to do.
She was still smiling when she said, “No, I wouldn’t try to tell you that. Actually, I would like to tell you the truth, but I can’t-that is, not unless you promise it won’t go any further. Not even your husband can know ‘Reggie. And certainly not Derek. If he does, he would insist on marrying me, and I care too mu
ch for him to bring that kind of scandal down on him.” “But you and Derek are-what I mean is, well, why doesn’t he at least know?” “Because I haven’t told him, nor will 1. He doesn’t know anything about me, really, other than the few lies I’ve told him. When I made the decision to do what I did, I had to come up with a new background for myself to protect my own family from the scandal that would evolve if it was ever
discovered who I really am. Derek thinks my mother was a
governess, that I benefited from the fine tutors that her charges had, and that’s why my speech is refined.” “The gullible lout.” Reggie snorted. “He actually believed that?” “Why wouldn’t he, considering where he found me?” Kelsey said in Derek’s defense. “Hmmm, I suppose,” Reggie allowed. “But what is the truth, then?” “Your promise?” “I can’t even tell my husband?” Reggie wheedled. “I could get him to swear-” “Not even him.”
Reggie sighed. “Yes, I promise.”
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Kelsey nodded, but took a sip of her tea, wondering where to begin. Perhaps with her parents … “My father was David Phillip Langton, the fourth Earl of Lanscastle from Kettering.” “Good God, wasn’t he the earl who was shot earlier this year by-er Reggie fell silent with a cough, blushing profusely.
Kelsey leaned forward to pat her hand. “It’s all right, and quite common knowledge, apparently. Yes, my mother shot him. She didn’t mean to kill him, though. She was just so furious with him because of his gambling. He had just lost the rest of his inheritance, you see, even our home, over a stupid game of cards.” “So that’s why?” “Yes. And my mother was so shocked that she’d killed him, rather than just wounding him to punish him as she’d intended, that she backed away from him in horror and backed right out the window that was behind her. I still think I could have prevented their deaths if I’d just got upstairs sooner when the shouting began.”
Reggie did some patting now. “It’s almost impossible to interrupt a volatile argument. The participants tend to ignore anything around them.” “I know.” Kelsey sighed. “My parents never argued in front of the servants, yet there were at least seven of ours standing right outside their open door, avidly listening to everything and blocking me from getting inside, one even holding me back, warning me that that was no time to disturb them. And then the shot was fired…” “That is so tragic-oh, dear, it was called The Tragedy, wasn’t it?” “Yes,” Kelsey said, wincing at that word. “And everything really had been lost of my parents’ wealth. That bastard who won that card game even came to evict my sister and me
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from our home only a few days after the funerals.” “Bastard is right,” Reggie said, angry on her friend’s behalf. “Who was he? I’d like to introduce him to my Uncle James.”
Kelsey smiled weakly. “I wish I knew. But I was too
shocked at that time to remember his name.” “You poor dear,” Reggie sympathized. “It’s no wonder
you did what you did.” “It wasn’t because of that, Reggie,” Kelsey corrected. “We still had one relative to turn to, my mother’s sister, Elizabeth. She’s a dear, sweet woman-whom you’ve met.” “Oh, good Lord,” Reggie said as it dawned on her. “That was your aunt in that hotel?” “Yes, she and my sister are in town for some holiday shopping-and they don’t know what I’ve done. I’ve had to lie
to them, too. They think I’m staying with a sick friend here
in London.”
Reggie sat back, frowning. “Now you have completely confused me.” “Sorry, I shouldn’t have digressed. After my parents’ deaths, my sister, jean, and I went to live with our aunt, and she was very glad to have us. Everything would have been fine, should have been, if my aunt’s husband, Elliott, had had a bit more fortitude.” “A scoundrel?” “Not really, just weak of character, apparently. You should know that he comes from good family, but not from wealth. Even the house they lived in had belonged to my family. My mother never understood why Elizabeth married him, but she did, and I might add that she has lived very happily wit him all these years-and she doesn’t know what happened. We were able to keep that from her.” “Another gambler?” “That’s what I thought at first when I found Elliott sitting
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over a bottle of strong spirits, contemplating killing himself. He’s always worked to support them, you see, and he had a
very good job for many years. But he lost it. And he’d been so distraught over losing it that he hadn’t been able to keep another job since. If he had just put that failure behind him and gone on-but I suppose he had lost confidence in himself.” “No fortitude, as you said.” Reggie snorted. “Apparently. Yet they continued to live as if nothing had changed. They even took in my sister and me when they couldn’t afford it. The debts kept mounting. There was no
money coming in, no money saved up to fall back on, and no one else to borrow from. All that had been done already. And it had reached a point where the creditors were going to take my aunt’s house away in just three days if Elliott didn’t settle his accounts immediately.”
Reggie sighed. “I suppose you talked him out of killing himself? Don’t know if I would have.” “When it would only have made matters worse-for my aunt, anyway? She didn’t know how bad it was and that she was about to lose her house. We were all going to end up on the streets, with nowhere to go and no one to turn to-and in just three days. If only Elliott had said something sooner, there might have been time for me to find a rich husband. But three days wasn’t enough time.” “No, a bit more time than that is needed,” Reggie agreed. “Unless you’re in the process of being courted. I suppose you weren’t?” “No,” Kelsey replied. “I was still in mourning, and in a
new town. I hadn’t met any eligible men there yet. And Elliott didn’t hobnob with the gentry. He didn’t know anyone to approach either. There wasn’t even enough time for me to
find a job, if I could have found one that would have paid
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well enough to support us. And I had my sister to consider. She’s only twelve, and my responsibility.” “So you came up with the idea of auctioning yourself?” Reggie concluded.
Kelsey chuckled at that point. “Me? I had no idea such things could be done.”
Reggie grinned. “No, I suppose you wouldn’t. Then it was
actually your uncle’s suggestion?”
Reggie shook her head. “Not really. He was so foxed that night that he was rambling a bit. He mentioned a friend of his who’d faced the same situation, but whose daughter had saved the family by selling herself to an old lecher who prized virgins. Then he mentioned that some men would pay for a new mistress if she was ‘fresh/ as in not having been discovered by his friends yet.” “I cannot believe he would speak of such things to his innocent niece,” Reggie said, appalled. “I’m sure he wouldn’t have if he’d been sober, but he certainly wasn’t. And it was a solution, when I hadn’t thought there was any. But then, I was so shocked over the entire situation that I don’t think I was thinking any clearer than he was. At any rate, I asked him if he knew of anyone who would pay to acquire a new mistress. He didn’t, but he said he knew of a place that rich lords frequented where I could be presented to receive an offer.”
Reggie frowned. “That doesn’t sound like an auction to me.// “It didn’t to me either,” Kelsey admitted. “I had no idea that’s what it would be, or that the ‘place’ was a house of ill repute. But I had already agreed, had already been left at that house. And it did still seem to be the only way to get Elliott’s debts paid off in the short time allowed. “Elliott certainly had no way to come up with that large a
sum. He’d already exhausted all his options. His solution had
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been to kill himself so
he wouldn’t have to face telling my aunt that they were about to lose everything. And I still had my sister to consider. I didn’t want her to lose her chance for a decent marriage someday. None of this was her fault.” “It wasn’t your fault either.” “No, but I was the only one who could do something about it. And so I did what I had to do. But it hasn’t worked out so badly, Reggie. I’m very happy with Derek.”
i1you love him, don’t you?” “Yes.” “Then marry him.” “No. I gave up my chance for ever marrying when I was
put up on a table in a room full of lords and auctioned to the highest bidder.” “Derek must not think so if he asked you to marry him,” Reggie pointed out. “Derek was conveniently forgetting how he met me. But I’ll never forget it. And he’s had more time to consider and come to his senses. He hasn’t asked me again.” “Stupid society rules,” Reggie almost growled. “They’ve got no business governing our lives the way they do.”
Kelsey grinned. “Are you forgetting that you wouldn’t be married to your Nicholas right now if those rules hadn’t governed you at the time?”
Reggie coughed. “Quite right.”
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WAS TRADITIONAL FOR THE MALORY CLAN TO GATHER AT Haverston for the Christmas holidays. Derek usually stayed a week or two, as did most of the family. He had no plans to do otherwise that year. But because he was going to be gone that long, he took Kelsey with him. Not to Haverston, of course, though he bloody well wished he could.
He would have liked to show her the ancestral estate where he grew up, to introduce her to the rest of the family, to kiss her under the mistletoe that was hung over the entrance of the parlor each yuletide. None of that was possible, though-at least it wasn’t until she agreed to marry him, and he certainly hadn’t given up on that notion. He was simply biding his time, waiting for an ideal opportunity to broach the subject again. One where, he hoped, she wouldn’t fly off the handle.