‘Oh, no! Now you do go too far, Sibella!’
‘Not so!’ Sibella was twisting her fingers together in distress. She took a turn towards the fireplace, and then strode back towards the window again. ‘It is the only solution. Lord Ashwick has compromised you. I believe that he must do the right thing.’
‘Oh, pish and tish, Sibella!’ Annis took a deep breath to hold her temper. ‘If you take that line, then I compromised him! I was the one who walked into his bedchamber when he was in a state of undress! However, I will not press him to marry me as a result. Indeed, if such a suggestion were mooted seriously, I would have to decline the match. Now, will you sit down, if you please, so that we may talk about this sensibly? Your pacing is making me quite dizzy.’
They stared at one another. Annis was determined, but Sibella could be obstinate when her temper was roused. She subsided on to the window seat, but did not abandon her point.
‘I am persuaded that Lord Ashwick is a gentleman and as such the thought must have occurred to him as well…’ Her gaze sharpened on Annis’s face. ‘Annis? Did he mention any such thing?’
Annis hesitated, torn. ‘He said something to the effect that I…that we were compromised and that he would square the matter with the Thackwray and come and see me, but—’
‘You see!’ Sibella said triumphantly. ‘Ashwick has a proper feeling even if you do not, Annis! He will call to pay his addresses, you mark my words.’
‘Then I shall not receive him,’ Annis snapped, losing her temper. ‘This whole matter is so unnecessary, Sib. If people are foolish enough to talk, then let them! I shall not regard it. I certainly shall not accept a proposal of marriage on the basis of a misunderstanding!’
‘Have you considered, then, the effect this will have on your business?’ Sibella viewed her cousin with weary patience. ‘What will happen, Annis, if rumour of this afternoon’s débâcle gets abroad? You will never gain any further employment. Your future will be ruined!’
This time Annis was silent. In the embarrassment of her encounter with Adam she had all but forgotten her earlier worries about Samuel Ingram and his odious threats. Yet now she could see that Sibella was quite right; this was a gift for Ingram and if he chose to encourage the gossip it could be devastating. She would be branded an unfit chaperon and would never gain any employment again.
She stared at Sibella, torn between a wish to deny the possibility and an impotent anger that such a thing might happen to her. Yet a cold fear was stealing about her heart, a belief that Sibella might be right and that everything she had worked for might be about to be lost.
‘I cannot believe that any of this will happen—’ she started to say, but even she could hear the note of desperation in her voice.
There was a knock at the door. Sibella jumped up and peered through the window. ‘I do believe that Lord Ashwick is here. You may argue the toss with him instead of with me, coz, for, unless I miss my guess, you are about to receive an offer of marriage!’
Chapter Nine
‘L ord Ashwick, ma’am.’ The little housemaid, thoroughly overawed, opened the drawing-room door and dropped a flustered curtsy.
Annis watched as Adam came forward to greet Sibella. Now clad somewhat more formally than before, in pale fawn buckskins, a coat of green superfine and highly polished Hessians, he looked formidable. Her heart missed a beat.
‘Mrs Granger…’ The charm was very much to the fore as Adam bowed over Sibella’s hand, ‘I hope that I find you well. Pray do not concern yourself over the scene you witnessed just now. I am persuaded that your cousin and I may put all to rights.’
Sibella blushed and smiled. Annis watched cynically. Having been on the receiving end of Adam’s charm, she knew it took a stern heart to resist him. Nor was his charm superficial, like that of most gentlemen she had met. There was real warmth there to which people responded naturally, in the way that Sibella was responding now. Annis felt cold and unhappy. She was going to need to be very strong to resist Adam’s proposals, plus the entreaties of Sibella and the promptings of her own common sense. Although a concern for her future was uppermost in her mind, she was determined not to accept Adam simply to escape from a difficult situation.
His gaze fell on her and Annis saw his expression harden slightly. She raised her chin and met his eyes with a level stare of her own.
‘Lady Wycherley.’ Adam bowed punctiliously. ‘How do you do, ma’am.’
‘Well!’ Sibella said, with arch brightness. ‘I shall leave the two of you alone! Just ring the bell if you require tea…or anything…’ She hesitated for a moment, cast Annis a look and made a fluttering gesture with her hands. ‘Very well, then…’
She went out and there was a long and slightly awkward silence. Annis was determined not to break it. Adam crossed to the fireplace and stood leaning one arm along the mantelpiece. He turned towards her.
‘It seems that we find ourselves in a very awkward situation, Lady Wycherley.’ He looked at her thoughtfully. ‘The question is, what is to be done about it?’
Annis took a quick breath. ‘I am sorry that my actions in not checking the room should have placed us in this position, my lord—’
Adam made a slight gesture. ‘Do not apologise, ma’am. It was nobody’s fault but that old fool, Thackwray, directing me to the wrong chamber. A mistake easily made in a busy hotel, but one I cannot help wishing had not happened.’
Annis felt a little relieved. ‘I am glad that at least you do not think I had contrived the situation to entrap you,’ she said. ‘It would be the very last thing that I would do.’
Adam’s lips quirked into a rueful smile. ‘Having shown such a disinclination for my company, Lady Wycherley, I can well believe that!’
Annis blushed. ‘Then there need be no difficulty,’ she said swiftly. ‘It is nothing more than a misunderstanding, my lord, and one that will be quickly forgotten. When you arrived I was telling my cousin that we need not regard it. Whilst the matter is unfortunate, I doubt that it will give rise to much gossip.’
Adam raised one black brow. ‘You are misguided, ma’am—or an eternal optimist. I can assure you that when I left the Crown the speculation was already widespread.’
Annis’s heart sank. ‘Oh, but surely…How foolish!’
‘Foolish or not, there is much conjecture about our relationship.’ He looked at her. ‘Think about it! I was wearing nothing but a blanket, and you…’ he appraised her thoughtfully ‘…you had your hair down and your gown partly undone, you looked slightly flustered—and very pretty. Besides, there is some truth in the gossip, is there not? I had just kissed you, and…’ Adam grinned. ‘Well…I cannot pretend to forget what happened between us, and everyone saw ample proof that it had happened…’
Annis felt more than slightly flustered now. The memory of his hard, lithe body barely concealed by the blanket was disturbing, as was the reminder of his kisses and caresses.
‘I suppose…put like that it does seem a great deal worse.’
Adam gestured her to a chair. ‘Will you take a seat and hear me out, ma’am?’
Annis sat down reluctantly.
‘In such cases as these I believe it is always the lady whose reputation suffers most,’ Adam said slowly. ‘As a chaperon to young ladies, Lady Wycherley, I am sure that you see the truth of what I am saying. Rumours about your virtue, even unfounded rumours, can be most destructive.’
Annis pressed her hands together in her lap. She was a little surprised to find that she felt very nervous beneath that cool grey gaze.
‘I concede the truth of what you are saying in general terms,’ she said, ‘but I cannot accept that it applies to my case. I am older and…’ her voice faltered and she forced it on ‘…I have been married. The rules that apply to widows are far different from those that relate to young, unmarried girls.’
Adam inclined his head. Annis did not think that he seemed particularly impressed by her point of view.
‘I admit that the
rules are different,’ he said, ‘but the gossip seldom is.’ His eyes narrowed. ‘I assume that you have a care for your good name, ma’am?’
‘Of course.’ Annis found she could not meet his gaze. ‘Of course I care for my good reputation, but—’
‘There is no but.’ The incisive tone in Adam’s voice silenced her. ‘You have taken that good name for granted until now, I dare say, Lady Wycherley, as is your right as a virtuous widow. Now, through no fault of your own, your reputation is questioned. You are considered of shady virtue, perhaps…A widow prepared to indulge in a love affair. People will view you differently because of what happened today. It is inevitable.’
‘It is unfair!’ Annis could not help herself. ‘Why should I suffer censure for something that I have not done?’
A shadow of a smile touched Adam’s mouth. ‘Dear me, ma’am, do you expect life to be fair? I had not have thought to find that a lady of your mature years would still have any illusions!’
The comment stung Annis. Her hazel eyes flashed.
‘I do expect people to think well of me, unless they have a genuine reason to think the opposite!’
‘Yes indeed.’ Adam bowed slightly. ‘I am sure that anyone who does know you, ma’am, could not believe anything bad of you. It is of the others that we speak—the people who do not know you, yet are still prepared to rip your reputation to shreds. Besides…’ he sighed ‘…there is some basis for the gossip. I cannot forget that I had been kissing you and it was my fault that your gown was in disarray—’
Annis held up her hand. ‘Please! Can we not consider that as an aberration and simply forget it?’
Adam laughed. ‘No, I do not think so. It was a mistake that occurs quite frequently, is it not? That should tell you something, Lady Wycherley, although it may be a message that you do not wish to hear.’
Annis sighed. She knew that he was correct. Correct about her reactions to him, correct about the gossips and correct in saying that her reputation was tarnished.
A picture of Samuel Ingram came, unbidden, into Annis’s mind. He knew her and he would take every opportunity to blacken her name. This piece of bad luck was a gift for him. Even so…She strengthened her resolve. She would not accept Adam just for the protection of his name and could not compromise her independence over a foolish mistake.
Adam straightened up. ‘Annis…’ His use of her name, the tone of tender reproach, brought a lump to her throat. ‘We have spoken of your honour, Annis, but you must give some consideration to mine. What sort of ramshackle fellow would I appear if I left you to deal with this scandal alone? Come, let us cease this fencing. I would deem it an honour if you were to accept my hand in marriage.’
Annis stood up and moved over to the window. Somehow the conversation had moved to a new level of intimacy with his proposal—and his use of her name.
‘I had not thought that you wished to marry again, my lord,’ she said. ‘You told me yourself that you were sincerely in love with your wife, and I understood that you had no wish to remarry after her death.’
‘I was, and I did not. Circumstances alter cases and I would like to marry you.’
‘It is most chivalrous of you.’
‘Thank you. Your answer?’
Annis turned and met his eyes very straight. ‘I am grateful for your generosity, my lord—’
‘But you are going to refuse me.’ Adam came across to stand before her. ‘I do wish that you would reconsider, Annis.’
Annis did not meet his eyes. ‘I cannot marry a stranger, sir.’
‘We need not be strangers.’ Adam took her hands. ‘You know that I already I have a feeling for you that is much stronger than mere liking, Annis. And you have confessed—an attraction to me…?’ There was a question in his tone.
Annis looked up and met his eyes. And blushed. She could hardly deny it after the wanton way she had responded to him in the past.
‘I admit to a certain partiality…’
Adam laughed. ‘Thank you for that. We have time to get to know one another better before the wedding—and after.’
Annis risked a fleeting look at his face. ‘You are very kind, but I cannot.’ She freed herself.
Adam’s expression hardened slightly. ‘You must not think of it as a betrayal of your first marriage. It may not be the same, but it need not be bad.’
‘My first marriage…’ For a moment the images flooded Annis’s mind: losing her freedom, the stifling propriety, the dreadful sense of being trapped, day after day, without end. She shuddered.
‘You are most generous, sir.’ She took a deep breath. ‘There are reasons why I cannot accept your proposal—matters that you do not understand…’
‘Then explain them to me.’ Adam walked over to the window. ‘You have been open with me up until now, Annis.’ His smile did strange things to Annis’s already shaky composure. ‘Indeed, you have said more than I could have expected. If we already have a regard for one another, where is the difficulty?’
Annis looked away from that compelling gaze. ‘Please do not press me, my lord. All I can tell you is that there are reasons why I simply cannot contemplate remarriage.’
Adam sighed. ‘I am not a patient man, but I am content to let it wait until we know each other a little better, if that will help you.’
‘There is no time.’ Annis felt a little panicky. ‘If we were to marry on account of this scandal, it would have to be soon. No! It is impossible!’ She wrapped her arms close about her. ‘I cannot even consider it.’
There was an unhappy silence. ‘I presume that you have thought about the effect that this will have on your work, Annis,’ Adam said, with what seemed to Annis to be unbearable gentleness. ‘It cannot have escaped you that not all guardians will be prepared to entrust their charges to a woman about whose name some unsavoury scandal clings…You might find that your livelihood has been utterly destroyed.’
Annis turned with an angry swish of skirts. ‘I know that! I have thought of little else! But even so, the enormity of contracting a marriage, and under such circumstances, is not to be borne!’
An image of Starbeck flashed across her mind, and with it the thought of Ingram. Was everything to be set against her? She closed her eyes for an anguished moment.
‘I will leave you to consider my offer,’ Adam said, ‘and will call on you in a couple of days’ time to ask for your answer.’
For a moment Annis considered the cowardly way out—to run to Starbeck and not tell him. However, she suspected that Adam Ashwick was the sort of man who would find out where she had gone—and come straight after her.
‘I am leaving Harrogate soon.’ The words came out reluctantly.
‘For Starbeck. I remember you telling me.’
Annis laughed a little shakily. ‘How ironic that you would gain control of Starbeck if you marry me, my lord, and so spite Mr Ingram. Would you go as far as marriage to gain Starbeck?’
Adam gave her a look. It brought the hot colour up into her face. ‘My dear Lady Wycherley,’ he drawled, ‘I would quite like to possess Starbeck but…’ he paused ‘…I ache to possess you.’
Annis drew in a short breath. Her mouth was suddenly dry. ‘My lord—’
Adam picked up her hand. ‘Let me help you fight your battles, Annis,’ he said softly. ‘Why must you do everything alone?’
Something caught in Annis’s throat. ‘I confess it is a habit with me. I have always done so.’
‘Then this time allow me to help you. You might find that you like it.’
There was something very persuasive in his tone. They were standing very close to one another. When he drew her closer still she fitted perfectly into his arms; fitted against the entire length of him. Annis’s heart began to race.
‘After all,’ Adam continued, ‘you like it when I kiss you…’
Annis quivered. ‘My lord—’
Adam bent his head and proved his point. He was very gentle, the kiss light, undemanding and exerting onl
y the slightest of pressure on her lips. Yet when he let her go she could see the conflict in his eyes, the urgent need that he was holding under absolute control. He stepped back very deliberately.
‘I will call on you soon, Annis.’ He paused. ‘By the way, how long were you in the bedchamber before I awoke?’
Annis blushed. ‘Only a few moments, my lord.’
‘I see. I hope that you enjoyed the view.’ Adam gave her a grin and sauntered towards the door.
A sudden, shaming thought struck Annis as she remembered that she had dressed in the same room. ‘My lord—’ she gave him a look of entreaty ‘—you were genuinely asleep, were you not? All the time?’
Adam raised his brows. His grin became positively wicked. ‘My dear Annis, I would spare you embarrassment and not answer that question! All I can say is that you could not be more thoroughly compromised!’
Sibella’s curiosity was such that she left it a very short time indeed before poking her head around the door. Indeed, she might almost have passed Adam in the doorway.
‘Well?’
Annis sat down a little heavily.
‘He did ask me to marry him.’
‘And?’
‘I refused. But…’ she saw Sibella’s moue of disappointment ‘…I believe Lord Ashwick is not a man who will accept rejection lightly. He suggested that I give the matter thought and told me that he would call on me in a day or two to hear my answer then.’ She jumped up. ‘Indeed, Sibella, I am not at all sure what to do. He is…very sure of himself.’
‘He is entirely charming.’ Sibella gave her a little satisfied smile. ‘Confess it, cousin, you like him more than a little, do you not?’
‘I do.’ Annis gave her a troubled look. ‘But, Sib, you know that I could not bear to be married again—’
‘Oh, stuff!’ Sibella dismissed Annis’s scruples with a wave of her hand. ‘I know you did not have a happy experience of marriage, but that need not be a barrier.’
‘I dislike the restrictive nature of married life.’
The Chaperon Bride Page 18