“Yes.” She stared up at him and swallowed hard. “That was quite, quite nice.”
He studied her for a moment, then laughed and released her. “You do not trust me, do you, Princess?”
She folded her hands in her lap and smiled. “Nor do you trust me, my lord.”
“Yet another instance in which we are well matched.”
“I agree.” She reached beneath the seat. “And we should seal our agreement.”
“Ah, the traditional Avalonian traveler’s toast.” He chuckled. “Very well, today I will join you.”
She pulled out the flask, poured two cups and handed him one.
“To a safe and successful journey,” he said, lifting his mug.
“Excellent, Matthew.” She smiled. “Now you are in the spirit of the adventure.”
He took a deep swallow and gasped.
“Do you not like it?” She studied him closely. His face was an interesting shade of scarlet.
“It’s… it’s”—his eyes watered and his voice was strangled—“rather, well, thick, isn’t it? And oddly flavored.”
“Do you think so?” She stared down into her cup. “I have heard it is an acquired taste.”
“Acquired under force, no doubt.” He studied the contents of his own cup with what could only be called morbid curiosity. “Your people actually drink this voluntarily?”
“Then you do not like it.” Odd that she should feel so disappointed, as she had never been overly fond of the drink herself.
“I didn’t say that. But you’re right, it’s an acquired taste. It just takes some getting used to, that’s all.”
Chapter 9
The sun had just dipped below the horizon when at last Matthew and Tatiana arrived at her London residence.
The butler and who knew how many servants had, no doubt, observed their arrival but were well enough trained not to raise so much as a single brow. Nonetheless, Tatiana was certain belowstairs would buzz with gossip over the princess’s absence and subsequent return with a handsome man by her side and not even a maid in sight as chaperone. Scandalous behavior, they would whisper, but what can one expect from a foreigner? Tatiana bit back a grin at how scandalized they would be if they suspected even a morsel of the truth.
A handful of assorted servants stood at a discreet distance in the shadows of the foyer, probably with hopes of overhearing every word she and Matthew exchanged.
“I do not understand why you have brought me here rather than your cottage,” she said in a low voice and tried not to yawn. The journey to London was uneventful as far as she knew. At least nothing, save brandy at midday, had awakened her.
“I have a few things to take care of in the city this evening, therefore this is much more convenient.” Matthew’s circumspect tone matched her own. “And I think it would be best if you arranged for a proper coach and driver for the continuation of our travels.”
“Really?” She raised a brow. “And what of your conditions? Living on your finances and all that?”
“Silly, wasn’t it? You were right, my conditions were simply to put you in your place. It will be much more comfortable to travel with a coach and driver, especially as the next lady on your list resides at Effington Hall, another full day’s drive from here. Besides, if we were truly married, what is yours would be mine as well. You may consider it a portion of the dowry I never received.”
“I see,” she said, brushing aside an odd touch of displeasure at his change of heart. “I suppose I may bring a maid as well?”
“I think not.” He shook his head and leaned closer. “I have not abandoned all my conditions and I rather like the idea of sharing the privacy of a coach with you and you alone.”
Delight shivered through her at the wicked note in his voice. “Do you, my lord?”
“I do indeed. If, of course, you can stay awake.” He grinned. “I shall see you next week, then.” He turned to go.
“Next week? What do you mean?” She grabbed his arm. “We are not leaving tomorrow? You are not staying here?”
“I daresay that would not be at all proper.”
“Nonsense. This is a huge house, fully capable of accommodating another guest. There is a veritable army of servants, and I do—”
“And I have business to attend to that may last well into the night. And tomorrow, there is work I must get back to," he said firmly. “Unless, there is some reason why the delay of a few days would create difficulty with your history writing.”
“Not at all, my lord.” She met his gaze directly. “Princess Sophia's story has waited half a century thus far; a few more days scarcely matter. Take all the time you require.”
“Excellent. Then the Princess Tatiana shall reside here with her retinue of retainers and shall attend to whatever royal details need attending to. Next week"—promise flashed in his eyes—“Lord and Lady Matthew shall be on their way.”
“It is not precisely what I had in mind.”
He laughed, then took her hand and drew it to his lips. “My dear princess, I imagine, or hope, that you are not used to being the pursuer, and I have rarely been the object of pursuit.” He brushed his mouth across the back of her glove. “However, it is my experience that the chase is not nearly as satisfying when it is too brief, the prize won too quickly or too easily. I should hate for your satisfaction to be either quick or brief.”
“Matthew!” Her eyes widened and her face burned.
“You are even more lovely than usual when a blush is on your cheeks.” He grinned. “And your mouth is shut. You make it tempting to give the servants something more to talk about.”
He turned over her hand and placed a kiss in the center of her gloved palm. A wave of pure desire spread from his touch and she wanted nothing more than to drag him up the stairs and into her bed.
“Sleep well, my princess.” Matthew released her and headed for the door.
“In a week’s time I could change my mind, you know,” she called after him. “I could decide the prize is not worth the effort of the chase.”
His all-too-smug voice drifted back to her. “You won’t.”
He chuckled, and was gone before she could so much as utter an appropriate retort.
She laughed to herself. She could wait another week, and it might well be a good idea to give him time to dwell on what had passed between them and what had not. And what lay ahead.
“Your Highness?” Katerina’s amused voice sounded from the shadows.
“Yes?” Tatiana absently pulled off her gloves.
The change in Matthew since she had admitted wanting him was at once wonderful and frightening. She was not quite sure how, but he had used her admission to wrest the upper hand in their relationship. Even if he did not know all her secrets, he now knew the most important. Still, for the first time since their reunion she felt that glorious thrill of anticipation that came from knowing that the man you wanted, wanted you.
“Given the expression on your face, I gather all is going well with your Lord Matthew.” Katerina stepped into the foyer.
“He is not my Lord Matthew.” Tatiana handed her gloves to Katerina, then pulled off her hat and pelisse, passing them both to the other woman, who handed them to a maid. “But he soon will be.”
Katerina laughed. “I did not doubt it for a moment, Your Highness.”
“And you, dear friend”—Tatiana hooked her arm through Katerina’s and they strolled into the grand salon—“how have you fared since yesterday? I cannot imagine it has been easy putting up with your cousin for any length of time, given the temper he was in when I left.”
“In truth, Dimitri has not been at all difficult.”
“Really?” Tatiana sank down onto a soft sofa, all the more delightful given the long carriage ride. Of course, they would continue their travels in a far more comfortable coach. A very private, closed coach. Pity she would have to sleep through most of it. “Is he still sulking, then?”
“I wouldn’t be at all surprised; howeve
r, I cannot say. He is not here at the moment.” Katerina perched on the sofa beside her, a vague expression of unease flitting across her face.
Tatiana ignored it. It was not unusual for talk of Dimitri to prompt such looks, particularly when the captain’s views clashed with his princess’s. “I would ask him to join us for dinner, but I thought we could eat privately in my rooms. I am famished, of course; I do wish I could eat when I travel.”
“The brandy still puts you to sleep, then?”
“Thank goodness. However, I have been wondering…” Tatiana drew her brows together. “Katerina, do you think… is it possible that Avalonian brandy is, well, not very good?”
“I cannot imagine such a thing.” Indignation rang in Katerina’s voice. “I have never cared for it, but I am not a connoisseur of brandy. I understand it is an acquired taste.”
“It scarcely matters, I suppose.” Tatiana leaned toward her friend. “I have all sorts of interesting things to tell you. Most of which I prefer not be over—”
“Forgive me for interrupting, Your Highness”— reluctance showed in Katerina’s eyes—“but you should know, Dimitri is no longer in London.”
“Where is he?” Tatiana asked, ignoring an immediate sense of unease. “He did not follow me, did he?”
“No.” Katerina drew the word out slowly.
“Please tell me he has a rendezvous with a woman in Paris or an assignation with a lady in Vienna.”
“I would like nothing better than to tell you just that, but”—Katerina winced—“he has returned to Avalonia.”
“What?” Tatiana sprang to her feet, Katerina a split second behind. “How could he?”
“He thought—”
“I know exactly what he thought.” Tatiana clenched her fists and paced the room. Katerina followed at her heels. “He thought he would scurry home to tell my father I am looking for the Heavens with a man of questionable reputation—”
“I understood Dimitri had determined your Lord Matthew was of admirable character.”
Tatiana waved away the protest. “Of course he did, but they do not like one another. You should have seen the two of them. Like dogs growling over a bone. Who knows what Dimitri will tell my family about him?
“Furthermore, Dimitri thinks my quest is both ridiculous and dangerous, although frankly what I have seen of England thus far does not seem especially hazardous. He refuses to allow me to live my own life if it conflicts with what he thinks is a proper life for a princess. And I refuse to allow him to dissuade me from what I want.” Tatiana swiveled and nearly ran into Katerina. “Swear to me you will not tell him or anyone what I am about to say.”
“I promise.” Katerina’s eyes widened.
“I do not want to be a princess. I want to be a wife.”
For a long moment Katerina stared silently. “I wondered when you would admit it aloud.” A weak smile curved her lips. “I have suspected as much since Paris.”
“You have? I thought I hid it rather well.”
“You forget, Your Highness, I have known you all my life.” Katerina studied her carefully. “Then your search for the Heavens really is nothing more than a ploy to be with your Lord Matthew.”
“Not at all. My purpose has always been twofold.” Tatiana thought for a moment. “If I can return this treasure, this symbol of the monarchy, I will have done something truly worthy for my country. I will have no qualms, no self-reproach, about abdicating my position.”
“You would do that?”
“I would. Or rather, I will.” It was a relief to at last say it out loud.
“You have considered all the ramifications of such an act?” Katerina’s gaze met hers. “Succession and other matters?”
“I have thought of little else. But in truth, in the scheme of royal succession, I am”—she shrugged—“superfluous.”
“Princess! How can you—”
“Come, now, Katerina, even you can see the reality of my position. Unless, God forbid, there was a tragedy of untold proportions and the lives of my father and bothers were lost, I would never succeed to the crown. And that is as it should be.
“I am good for nothing more than forging a strategic alliance for Avalonia through marriage, and that is out of the question.” Her voice was firm. “I married once for my country, and once was quite enough.
“But I will not be able to find the Heavens if Dimitri comes back with an edict from my father demanding my return. I will have no choice.” She turned and resumed her pacing. “Blast Dimitri anyway. He could not trust that I—”
“It’s not quite as simple as trust, Your Highness. Matters have changed, and your safety—”
“I am perfectly safe.”
“—is very much in question now.” Katerina drew a deep breath. “We have learned that your cousin is in England.”
“Valentina?” A heavy weight settled in the pit of Tatiana’s stomach. “That does complicate matters.”
The Princess Valentina was beautiful and brilliant, and as cold as she was lovely. The daughter of the present king’s younger brother, Valentina had always believed she would be a better ruler than any of her cousins, all of whom would have to die without issue for Valentina to legitimately succeed to the throne.
The princess was older than Tatiana and had recently been exiled from Avalonia for her nefarious activities aimed at overthrowing the rightful ruling branch of the House of Pruzinsky. The woman was a widow twice over and Tatiana was not alone in suspecting Valentina was behind the untimely end of inconvenient spouses. Yet, while Valentina took great delight in fomenting unrest among the people of Avalonia to further her own cause, she had not stooped so low as to have her uncle or cousins removed from this life. Not yet anyway.
There was a time when Valentina’s name alone would have triggered unease and man for doing his duty.
“I can,” she sighed in resignation. “But I will not. However, Dimitri’s absence and Valentina’s presence does change everything.” Tatiana sank into a chair, propped her elbows on the armrests and laced her fingers together. “There are several reasons why Valentina might be in England.”
“She has nowhere else to go?” Katerina said wryly and sat on the sofa.
“Nonsense. She has a great deal of money, she can go anywhere. Her presence could indeed be coincidence.”
Katerina snorted her disbelief.
“Granted, none of us believe that.”
“She could be hunting for a new husband and considers England fertile ground as yet unplowed. Or she could…” Katerina shook her head helplessly.
Tatiana’s gaze met her friend’s. “Or she could know the Heavens of Avalonia are lost and possibly somewhere in England.”
“And she could further know that is exactly why you are now here,” Katerina said softly.
Tatiana groaned and slumped back in the chair. “How could she have found out? Only a handful of my family’s closest advisors know about the jewels.”
“Yes, but was not a trusted councilor of your brother’s found to be in league with the princess? Is it not possible he knew about the jewels?”
“Possible and probable.” Tatiana rubbed her forehead. “Damnation.”
Katerina gasped. “Your Highness.”
“Forgive me. Desperate times call for desperate words, and that was the best I could think of at the moment.”
“If that was the best…” Katerina murmured.
“It does not bode well, does it?” Tatiana cast her a weak smile. She straightened in the chair and drew a deep breath. “There is little I can do about Valentina until I know exactly where she is and what she is planning.
“As for Dimitri, even at top speed, he cannot possibly travel from London to Avalonia in substantially less than a fortnight. I have at least a month to find the jewels and—”
“Win back your lord?” Katerina teased.
“Exactly.”
“I suggest, Your Highness, at this point it might well be wise to tell him the tr
uth.”
“I should, I suppose.” Tatiana drummed her fingers on the armrest. “It will come as no surprise. He has not believed my story from the beginning. He does not trust me.”
“And do you trust him?”
“I do not know. I want to. I will confess, I agreed wholeheartedly with Dimitri’s insistence on keeping my quest for the jewels from Lord Matthew. I thought it was wise at the time and it may still be.” Her gaze met the other woman’s. “You see, at first he appeared somewhat reluctant to accept my money. You recall those ridiculous conditions of his about living on his finances?”
Katerina nodded.
“I thought it was a result of both his own pride and his desire to make my life miserable. Now he seems more than willing to make use of my fortune.”
“Perhaps he no longer wishes to make your life miserable?”
“One can only hope,” Tatiana said under her breath. “I want to trust him, and indeed my heart longs to believe in him. But my head refuses to ignore the fact that I have truly known the man for barely more than a week. While I am confident he is a man of honor and principle”—she grimaced—“we both know my heart has not always been as discriminating as my head.”
“But you are both older and wiser now.”
“Is one ever wiser when it comes to matters of the heart? I cannot allow my emotions to dictate my actions.” She shook her head. “Lord Matthew is a clever he is a good and honorable man. I would trust him with my life without a second thought, but the future of my country lies with the Heavens, and that I cannot place in jeopardy.”
“So you will continue to play this game of secrets?”
“I do not see another choice, and I dearly wish there was one. He is not exactly as I remember him; he is far more serious, but he is exactly what I want.” She took her friend’s hand. “I feared, in this past year, that I might have made a grave error. That it was a mistake to care for him once and to continue to care for him. He is annoying and arrogant and he has the most irritating habit of bringing up my past crimes.
“But I know I have never felt so… so right as I do with him. As if I were only half alive before him. And now I feel as if I can do anything if I am by his side. Reach out and grasp the stars in my hand, if I so wish. It is quite remarkable. Time and separation have only strengthened my feelings for him. Even without his balloons”—she grinned—“he makes me feel as though I could fly.”
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