by Lydia Dare
“As luck would have it, Lady Sophia finds herself in need of employment.” Cait linked her arm with the lady in question, and the two of them brushed past Dash into the parlor. “In fact, we are quite fortunate ta hire her before anyone else can get the chance. She is well traveled and well educated. Best of all, she assures me that Lord Radbourne does no’ intimidate her.”
Archer intimidated everyone. He’d just chased an old harpy from the room, for God’s sake. “That’s probably not a good idea, Cait,” Wes said quietly.
Dash frowned almost as deeply as Archer and Gray.
“Lass, I—” Dash began, but Cait shook her head, successfully silencing him with just one look.
“I can see that this will work, Dashiel,” Cait insisted.
Clearly, she’d lost her mind.
Their oldest brother’s frown deepened as he searched his wife’s face. “You can see it?”
“Aye,” she agreed. “It’s the perfect arrangement. Ye’ve got ta trust me on this.”
It would be a complete disaster. Lady Sophia was their contemporary. Wes wanted to crawl under the nearest rock. The very last thing he needed was for Lady Madeline’s friend to know he was being sent back to the schoolroom, for lack of a better term. He’d die of embarrassment.
“I’ve already asked Price ta send someone ta the castle to retrieve the lady’s belongings. I’m sure he’ll see ta Miss Wigglesby’s safe return as well.”
Dash looked at Lady Sophia. Glared at her was more like it. The lady simply straightened her spine and glared back at him. “Are you quite certain you know what you’re in for, Lady Sophia?” Dash asked her.
Her voice didn’t quaver a bit when she replied. “I believe I have a firm grasp of the challenges these young men face. And I also believe I can fulfill my duties.”
Cait crossed the room and laid a hand on her husband’s arm, then murmured to him, “It’ll work out well, Dash. Trust me on this.” Then very quietly she added, “I can see that this is the right position for her. For all of them. And she is in need of employment.”
“She can do better than employment with these scapegraces,” he grumbled back. But then he rubbed his forehead, took a deep breath, and turned to Lady Sophia. “You’re certain you want to take this on?”
“I’m positive,” she replied.
Archer cursed beneath his breath from across the room.
“That will be enough of that, my lord,” Lady Sophia warned. “While such language might be appropriate for you, it’s not appropriate for the ladies present.” She raised an eyebrow at Archer when he glared at her. He looked away with another curse when she didn’t surrender.
Dash tossed his head back and laughed. He bent and kissed Cait swiftly, then addressed the group of them. “It appears as though it’s all settled.” Dash bowed to Lady Sophia. “Welcome to Eynsford Park, my lady.”
Wes had to get out of the parlor. He had to leave The Park while he could still think, before the dire truth of his situation fully sunk in. “I, um, forgot I promised to go riding with Lord Robert this morning. Do excuse me.” Then he bolted before anyone could order him to wait.
Six
My dearest Maddie,
As much as I am surprised to admit it, you were right. Lady Eynsford does have a solution to my problem. You were also correct in that she is quite cunning. I find myself a bit in awe of the lady and think I can learn much from her. I cannot, however, go into the details at the moment. For the foreseeable future, I will be staying here at Eynsford Park as the marchioness’ special guest. Please wish me luck in my latest endeavor.
Always your friend,
Sophie
Maddie read the note at least half a dozen times, trying to make sense of it. Sophie’s things had already been packed by a maid and sent to Eynsford Park, so Maddie now found herself completely alone at Castle Hythe. Well, not completely alone. Her feckless suitors were all still ensconced safely within the castle walls. Perhaps it was time to reconsider stowing away to India to work with all of the elephants that were in need of training.
She let Sophie’s letter flitter to her desk as she walked across her room to peer into the courtyard below. A number of gentlemen laughed as they tried to best each other at lawn bowling.
But then one of them caught her attention. Weston Hadley’s hair shone in the sunlight. She couldn’t help but smile. Perhaps he could give her a clue as to what Sophie was up doing at Eynsford Park. And she wouldn’t have to fear being accosted by her father’s guests. Not with Mr. Hadley among their numbers. One scowl from him would send the others scurrying away like the rats they were.
Maddie grabbed her shawl and ran down to the lower level of the castle. She tugged the muslin about her shoulders as she stepped outdoors. Within seconds, she was thronged by men. But the one she wanted leaned casually against a tree and paid her no mind. And she couldn’t get close to him with the others in her way.
“Lady Madeline,” Lord Dewsbury called. “Even the sun pales in comparison to your beauty,” he pontificated. He pointed upward. “See, it refuses to compete with your radiance and has now ducked behind the clouds.”
“Perhaps the sun is hiding from the smell of the onions you had at brunch,” Maddie said beneath her breath. Then she looked at Lord Dewsbury and smiled her brightest smile.
“Beg your pardon, my lady?” Dewsbury asked. “I didn’t quite hear you.”
He’d heard her correctly if the look of devastation on his face and the way he breathed into his closed palm were any indication. But she was much too well trained in decorum to allow him to think he’d done so, even if his own breath did make him cringe. “I said the sun must be hiding from all the masculinity in the garden following brunch.”
Mr. Hadley laughed loudly and shook his head. He looked as though he knew a secret no one else knew. She’d love to ask him what it was. If only she could get close enough to him. But he lounged there against the tree and paid her not even the smallest bit of attention. Blast him. She was surrounded by men that didn’t matter, while her friend’s life and future remained a mystery.
Lord Chilcombe held out a ball to her. “We’ll begin a brand-new game for the lady,” he informed the rest of the gentlemen.
She’d never get to talk to Mr. Hadley if her suitors didn’t amuse themselves without her. She smiled brightly at the assembled men and said, “I would like to offer a boon to the winner. Perhaps a walk in the garden for the one who takes the prize?” She’d regret it later, but it was the only way to occupy them all. It was the only way to find out the truth about Sophie’s circumstances.
The men scrambled to set the playing order for a series of new games. Luckily, so many men were assembled that it would take several rounds of play to find a winner. That might give her time to talk with Mr. Hadley. But then he moved to line up with the others. “Might I have a word with you, Mr. Hadley?” she asked. He stepped closer to her and she couldn’t refrain from adding, “Certainly, you weren’t you planning to line up with the others to compete.”
He looked surprised and then uncomfortably resigned. “Certainly not,” he said, his voice low and gravely, so quiet that only she could hear it. “With so many vying for your hand, I find myself in an impossible situation,” he informed her with a quirk of his brow and a slow grin. “It would be a waste of time for me to line up with the others.”
“You’re not very good at lawn bowling?” she asked. She felt certain there was some underlying meaning behind his words. But she had no idea what it was.
“I’m an excellent shot,” he boasted. “But you’d be wasting your time if you walked with me in the garden. And you don’t seem to be the sort who likes to waste her time.”
What he said was true, even if it did make her sound like the worst sort of snob. “I’m expected to make a brilliant match,” she said.
“Don’t sound so happy about it,” he teased.
“Is it that obvious?” She tried not to let her distress show but was afraid she failed miserably.<
br />
“Almost as obvious as the onions Dewsbury had at brunch,” he laughed.
She raised a hand to her mouth to cover her gasp. “You heard me?”
He tapped the shell of his ear. “It’s one of my many faults. Excellent hearing.” Then he smiled at her.
The man had the most amazing smile, and it made her belly flutter unexpectedly. “I don’t believe excellent hearing is a fault,” she informed him. “Not unless the one being heard was saying something unkind and assumed no one would be the wiser.”
“Don’t worry,” he soothed. “Your secret is safe with me.”
“You promise not to use it against me later?” She threw him her most winning smile.
His gaze moved across her face slowly, as though he could see much more than she wanted him to see. There was heat behind his stare. A heat she didn’t fully understand but rather enjoyed. “I promise nothing of the sort.”
After she caught her breath, she stammered, “Y-you do plan to use it against me?”
“Only in the most painless manner.” He reached up to brush a lock of hair from her face. But instead, he wrapped it around his finger and tugged on the curl gently. “You’re not used to being teased, are you?” His voice was silky soft, and he might as well have run his fingertips up her arm with the way the hair on her forearm stood on end at just the sound of his voice.
“Only by my brothers,” she confessed. Being the daughter of a duke left her in a position where most were afraid to tease her. But that was obviously not the case with Weston Hadley. She glanced around the lawn, noted that most of the men were occupied with the game, and tugged her hair from his grasp. “I’ll take that back now,” she said with a grin.
“Pity,” he said, his face taking on a wounded expression.
“Are you certain you don’t want to play?” She was starting to think she might enjoy taking a walk with him, should he happen to be the winner. She’d enjoy it very much.
“I’m having much more fun talking to you now,” he said.
Her heart skipped a beat.
***
Wes was a fool to have come to Castle Hythe on the afternoon before a full moon. He’d assumed he’d find Rob and entice him into some folly or another. Not that he’d find Lady Madeline in all her glory. Nor that he’d touch her. He’d touched her hair, for God’s sake. It felt like silk and he could imagine nothing more pleasurable than letting it trail between his fingers. Aside from having it trail across his naked body.
Her next question ripped him from his thoughts, however. “You wouldn’t happen to know the fate of Lady Sophia, would you?”
Aside from the fact that she was his new nursemaid? “I’m not certain to what you’re referring,” he hedged.
Lady Madeline shook her head and stared off into the distance. “She left this morning to visit with Lady Eynsford, and now she has moved in at The Park. I got one cryptic note from her, but it didn’t explain anything. Do you know what’s happened?”
How much did they want Lady Madeline to know? He’d prefer that she not know any of it. “I believe she’s in residence, yes,” he said as enigmatically as possible.
“But why? I was perfectly happy having her here. She could have stayed at the castle forever and a day, and no one would have made her leave. Even with all the indecent proposals…” She let her voice trail off.
“She received a number of indecent proposals? From whom?” For some reason, the thought of anyone disrespecting Lady Sophia raised his hackles.
“My brothers. And probably the majority of those men over there.” She glanced up at him from beneath lowered lashes.
Robert Hayburn was an arse, even if he was Wes’ friend. And a fool. He had to know that suggesting such a thing to Lady Sophia would get back to his own sister.
Lady Madeline quietly cleared her throat. “You didn’t happen to offer for her as well, did you?” Why did his response appear to be important to her?
Wes coughed into his fist to clear the discomfort from his throat. He had nothing to offer anyone of quality, not even the penniless Lady Sophia. “I believe I told you last night I had no intention of making her any sort of offer. I’d never dishonor her or you that way.” Not to mention that with Lady Madeline constantly on his mind, there was little room for thoughts of anyone else. “I believe Cait found some sort of employment for her.”
A pained expression crossed Lady Madeline’s face. “It came to that, did it?” She sighed. “Employment, I mean. I had hoped Lady Eynsford had found a solution that wouldn’t ruin Sophia’s future.”
The lady’s future was definitely in peril if anyone learned she would be tutoring three grown men on decorum. Whether she received payment for her work would be inconsequential at that point. All of that was better left unsaid, however, as Lady Madeline looked on the verge of tears.
Wes wished he could make her smile once more, to erase the concern that creased her brow. How sweet she was to worry so about her friend. He wondered if Lady Sophia knew how fortunate she was to have garnered such loyalty and devotion from Lady Madeline. What he wouldn’t give to have the lady care for him half as much. A quarter as much, even.
The idea was ludicrous. But it was true. He’d give everything he had, which wasn’t all that much, just to experience her gentle touch. Even now, in the safety of her courtyard, with a throng of her suitors within sight, he had the urge to pick her up, toss her over his shoulder, and abscond with her into the forest. But within a few hours, he’d turn into the beast that resided in his soul. And Lady Madeline had no idea of what he was at heart. Nor would she be pleased to find out.
“What are you thinking about?” she asked.
“You,” he blurted without thinking.
Her heartbeat sped up at his admission. He could hear it in his head. Then she licked her lips. Good God, he could think of such wonderful things to do with those lips.
“You were thinking of me?” She laid a dainty little hand upon her chest.
Only since the night he’d first met her. Wes shook his head. “I, um, I was wondering which of those fellows would win your boon.”
Lady Madeline looked over her shoulder toward the competitors just in time to see Lord Gelligaer’s run shot knock all of the other bowls away from the jack, finally stopping in a prime spot. She shivered slightly. “I just hope it’s not him.”
Wes started to reach his hand out to soothe her but realized at the last moment how inappropriate such an action would be and clasped his hands behind his back. God, he was hopeless. Lady Sophia would certainly have her hands full trying to make a proper gentleman out of him, if such a thing was even possible. He glanced back across the courtyard lawn at the Welsh earl. “I hope not, either,” he admitted. “Be careful of the man either way, my lady.”
Her green eyes settled on Wes, so sincere, so trusting that she nearly took his breath away. “Do you know something about his lordship, Mr. Hadley?”
Wes was enough of a gentleman to know that repeating tales to the lady of Gelligaer’s opium dependency was far from proper. Besides, the Welshman had returned from the Peninsular Wars a different man, and though Wes had been too young to serve in the army he understood that certain horrors could change a person. Perhaps Gelligaer’s habit stemmed from his years on the battlefield. Or perhaps he was simply a weak-willed man. Either way, Gelligaer wasn’t for Lady Madeline. “I just don’t believe he is the sort you would be happy with.”
“I’m certain you’re correct.”
“Ah!” the Marquess of Lavendon exclaimed across the courtyard. “You are still here, Hadley. Brilliant.”
Of course he was still at the castle. Wes certainly wasn’t about to return to Eynsford Park, not now at any rate. This was his last day of freedom, after all. He nodded at Lady Madeline’s oldest brother. “I thought I could take you for another hundred quid, Lavendon.”
As it was, his wager with the marquess this morning had put a nice bundle in Wes’ pocket.
“Wagering so
early in the day, Nathaniel?” his sister asked, her brow furrowed in disapproval.
The marquess chuckled. “How is one to pass the time, Maddie, if one doesn’t wager? Especially as Lady Sophia has abandoned us for Eynsford Park.” He pretended to pout.
“I’m certain any number of things should have your attention,” Lady Madeline replied primly.
Lavendon ignored her jibe and focused his attention on Wes. “You must stay and give me the opportunity to win back my blunt.”
“My blunt now.” He couldn’t help but grin.
“You are just like Radbourne,” the marquess complained without heat.
Wes snorted. “Please tell me I’m not as bad as all that.”
“You may be worse.” Lavendon laughed again. “Very well, if you won’t allow me to win back my own money, help me fleece the others, will you?”
Lady Madeline sucked in a breath.
Wes glanced at her briefly. He’d rather not have her think badly of him, but refusing Lavendon wasn’t wise. He couldn’t hope to hide out at the castle on this, his last day of freedom, if the marquess was put out with him. “What do you have in mind?”
Lavendon smirked. “Just a little game of whist this evening after dinner. I’d prefer a ruthless partner I can trust over one of those sycophants angling for Maddie’s hand.”
And Wes would like to fatten his pockets even more, taking what he could from the gentlemen who were deemed worthy by the Duke of Hythe to seek his daughter’s hand. There was something very satisfying about the idea of taking the lot for all they were worth. “I look forward to it.”
“Honestly, Nathaniel, have you no shame?” Lady Madeline hissed.
The marquess sighed as though he was the most put-upon fellow in all of Kent. “If I wanted a woman to flay me whenever she opened her mouth, I’d get myself a wife. Now run along, love. You’ve got a horde of lords on the green about to climb over each other for your favor.”
Without another word, the lady spun on her heel in a huff and stomped off toward the throng of gentlemen waiting their turns with their bowls. Wes almost winced at the loss of her company, but there was nothing to be done for it. Wishing he was part of her circle would never make it so.