Enticing the Earl

by Christie Kelley

  “Really?”

  “Yes.”

  Thomas ran out of the house and approached him. “My lord, a Mr. Tanner is here to see you. He said it was of the utmost importance.”

  “Mr. Tanner?” Mia asked.

  “The Bow Street runner. I need to see him.” He bowed quickly and then left her standing in the drive. He strode into the house. “Harris, where is he?”

  “I made him comfortable in your study, sir. Tea will be arriving soon and the brandy is out.”

  “Thank you, Harris.” Simon continued down the corridor and then entered his small study. “Mr. Tanner, I heard you needed to speak with me.”

  Mr. Tanner stood quickly and bowed to him. “Thank you for seeing me with no notice, my lord. Unfortunately, I don’t have good news for you.”

  “Would you prefer brandy or tea?”

  “I would prefer brandy, but I am working so I will drink tea.”

  “It will be here presently. In the meantime, please tell me what you have found.” Simon sat in the leather chair behind his desk, closed his book of accounts and placed it to the left. “You said it wasn’t good news.”

  “No, sir,” Mr. Tanner returned to his seat and then brushed his blond locks off his forehead. “I have scoured this county and found no one who knows an Allan Davies. The description you gave is too vague. I still have a few people searching London in case this is larger than you want to believe.”

  Simon looked up at the ceiling for a moment. “Then how do we proceed?”

  “I need to speak with Miss Featherstone privately. There may be some piece of information she has forgotten to give you or was too embarrassed to tell you.”

  “Such as?” he demanded. There was nothing Mia couldn’t tell him.

  “An intimate detail she may have left out. A scar somewhere on his body that she was too embarrassed to tell you about. Something about the way he spoke or perhaps a limp. It is far better if I speak with her.”

  Robert entered with the tray of tea. After placing it on a rosewood table near the desk, he started to leave.

  “Robert, please ask Miss Featherstone to join us and bring more tea and biscuits.”

  “Yes, my lord.”

  Simon turned his attention to pouring the tea. “I will stay in the room while you speak with her.”

  “My lord, I really must object.”

  “Object all you like, Mr. Tanner. I will protect Miss Featherstone at all costs. She was recently beaten by a man she thought she loved; why would I leave her alone with a stranger?”

  Mr. Tanner’s lips rose slowly. “So that’s how it is. I concede, my lord. You may stay in the room.”

  Simon handed the tea to the runner and poured a cup for Mia. He then moved to the corner cabinet and poured a glass of brandy. By the time he reached his chair, Mia entered the room. “Miss Featherstone, please join us. This is Mr. Tanner from Bow Street.”

  Mr. Tanner bowed over her hand. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Featherstone.”

  “And you, Mr. Tanner. Please tell me you have some good news to share?” Mia took the seat next to him. Simon handed her the cup of tea and sat back down.

  “Unfortunately, I do not have good news. That is why I wished to speak with you.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Do you remember anything unusual about Davies, Miss Featherstone? A scar, perhaps? An accent? Something that might stand out, which you may have missed when you told the earl about him?”

  Mia sipped her tea in thought for a moment. She shook her head slightly and then tilted her head. “I don’t know if I mentioned this before or not but he spoke like a gentleman.”

  “Educated?” Simon asked.

  “Much like you speak, my lord. Only his accent was a little different.” She tapped her fingers on the rim of her teacup. “Much more like the duke.”

  “The duke?” Tanner said, waiting to write the name down in his notebook.

  “The Duke of Northrop,” Simon replied. “He lives nearby but spent much of his time in London. We both went to Eton for a few years but would be here in the summer and over the Christmas holidays. He speaks more like he was born and bred in London.”

  “Ahh, so we might have the right idea by searching London.” Tanner glanced over at Mia again. “Is there anything you have forgotten?”

  “I did cut him with a knife that day. He was bleeding, so he might have stopped to get assistance from a surgeon. There is one in town but I wouldn’t recommend him to anyone.” She leaned closer to Tanner and whispered, “He’s a drunken sod.”

  Tanner’s lips twitched. “I see. I will definitely investigate.”

  Mia looked down at her hands. Simon noticed they trembled slightly.

  “Is there anything else?” Mr. Tanner asked in a gentle tone.

  “He did have another scar,” she whispered, as her cheeks grew red.

  Tanner leveled him a glare. “Would you mind sharing where on his body the scar was?”

  She closed her eyes and nodded. “His left rib cage. It looked like a sword wound. I asked him about it but he wouldn’t tell me how he received it.”

  Left rib cage? A sword wound? Memories flooded his mind. It couldn’t be him. His hair was blond, not a dark brown. Besides, that was ten years ago and it was a misunderstanding, not something that should lead to vengeance this long after the affair. He couldn’t mention what had happened in front of Mia. She would know he lied about the number of fights he had been involved in over the years.

  She would think he was no better than Davies.

  And she might be right.

  “Miss Featherstone, would you excuse us. I still have a few things I need to speak to Mr. Tanner about,” Simon said.

  “Of course,” Mia replied with a quick nod to both men and then departed.

  “What is wrong?” Mr. Tanner asked as soon as the door shut.

  “There was a man I dueled with when I was twenty. Except for the hair, he matches Miss Featherstone’s description. I sliced him quite badly in the left rib cage. For a while, there was talk that he wouldn’t live.”

  “Who, my lord?”

  “Andrew Lambert, the second son of Viscount Ridgley.”

  “I will look into that personally. I still believe Miss Featherstone was used by this Davies fellow to hurt you. But we don’t know if he is holding something over her head, so be careful, my lord. She might be the one to cause you injury, not Davies.”

  Simon fisted his hands and breathed in deeply before replying. “Miss Featherstone is not involved in this. Davies may have used her to get to me, but that is the only way she is involved.”

  Mr. Tanner nodded. “Of course, my lord. Just have a care.” He cleared his throat before continuing, “Just one more thing, my lord. Are there any other duels or... fights that might have caused you enemies?”

  “We are done,” Simon said roughly. “Let me know if you discover anything.”

  As soon as Tanner left, Simon walked to the lowest level of the house where he could relieve this stress without hurting anyone. After stripping off his jacket and shirt, he put on his padded gloves and walked to the canvas bag hanging from the upstairs floor beam. As he punched the sand-filled bag, he wished Middleton was at home. The viscount loved a good pugilist fight and Simon desperately wanted one. Instead, he continued to punch the bag and think about Tanner’s words.

  Mia was not involved in this affair. He was certain. He had found her out in the least occupied area of the estate. He had only gone there because he’d needed a long walk that day. She could never have known he was heading in that direction; the only person he’d told was Harris.

  The servants always talk. Mia’s words haunted him. Could Harris have told someone where he was going that day? He gave the bag one more hard punch.

  Mia could not possibly be involved.

  Chapter 8

  Mia walked the perimeter of her bedchamber feeling like a prisoner. How had Selina managed to stay hidden in the duke’s hous
e for weeks without going mad? It had been just over a week and yet, Mia felt as if the room was closing in on her. She had to get out of the house.

  And she would.

  There was only one problem. She still couldn’t completely bend over to put on her short boots. If one of the servants helped her, they would tell Simon that she had left the house. God, she hated feeling helpless. There was only one option left, to ask Simon to walk with her.

  She walked the long length of the hall and down the stairs with no sign of him. “Mr. Harris, have you seen the earl? I had hoped to go for a stroll and thought he might like to join me.”

  Harris shifted uncomfortably. “No, miss. I believe he might be busy with some items around the estate.” He checked his pocket watch. “I would wager he’ll be back up—available in an hour or two.”

  “Very well, I shall wait for him in his study.”

  “Yes, miss. If you would like to read while you wait, the library connects to the study.”

  “Excellent thought, Mr. Harris.”

  She strolled down to the study, hoping Harris was wrong and she would find him there but the room was empty. Seeing his account book, she sat to wait for him and check his figures. She opened the book and sighed.

  “What a mess,” she said aloud.

  There were figures marked in lead, crossed out, written over and just wrong. She started a new page in his ledger and attempted to make sense of the disaster before her. After two hours, she gasped at the figure in front of her.

  “The man is almost destitute,” she whispered and then covered her mouth with her hand. The last thing she wanted was for the servants to get word of his finances. They might all leave if they thought he could possibly reduce their wages or worse, not pay them at all.

  She flipped through a few pages and slowly realized what had happened. It wasn’t the earl’s miscalculations that had caused all the issues.

  “What the bloody hell are you doing with my books?”

  Mia looked up and gasped at the sight of Simon standing in the threshold with an irate look on his handsome face. “I—I’m sorry, my lord,” she said instinctively. “I was waiting for you to ask if you would go for a stroll with me. The book was here and I know you don’t enjoy doing the finances, so—so I thought I would assist you.”

  “I do not need your assistance with my finances, Miss Featherstone.”

  She shrugged and tilted her head slightly. “Actually, you do need someone’s help with your finances, my lord.” Why was she continuing to call him my lord? Weren’t they past that?

  “I do not want you prying into my finances, is that understood?”

  “Yes, but why?”

  Simon closed his eyes and blew out a breath. He crossed his arms over his chest defiantly. “I am the earl. I will make sure the books are done correctly and accurately.”

  She knew she should have let the topic rest but she also realized he was wrong. “Simon, I just looked at your math and a good portion of it was wrong. I can help you.”

  He slammed the door. “I don’t need your help. I can manage my estate on my own.”

  Mia fought the terror trying to take over her mind with the fury she saw on his face. Simon would never hurt her. He had promised that only a few days ago. Slowly she approached him until she could feel his heated breath on her cheek. Ignoring the biting pain in her side, she lifted her arms and wrapped them around his neck. “Simon,” she whispered and then kissed him gently to calm him down.

  Instead of soothing him, the kiss ignited his passion. He pulled her against his chest and ravaged her mouth until she opened for him. His kisses punished her and flamed her desire for the man and she soon realized Simon had wounds of his own. Her fingers touched his slightly damp hair.

  He broke away from her lips and stared down at her with steely gray eyes. “Tell me you’re not involved,” he demanded before kissing her again.

  Involved? With what? This time she tore her mouth from his. “What are you talking about?”

  “Davies,” he said harshly. “Tell me you are not trying to extort money from me.”

  “Simon,” she said in a soft tone. “I just reviewed your books. There is no money to extort and yet, I am still here and in your arms.”

  Slowly, his muscles relaxed and his lips lifted upward. “So you are.”

  This time when he leaned in to kiss her, punishment was not on his mind. As his tongue swept over hers, seduction was the objective of his kiss. And she let herself respond in kind, answering his passion with her own. She wanted to lose herself in his kisses, forget everything save this man who wanted to make love to her. Only she couldn’t let him do that.

  When he moved his lips to her jaw, she moaned. “Simon, we must stop.”

  “I know,” he whispered against her ear. “I’m sorry I shouted at you. I never meant to frighten you.”

  “You didn’t,” she lied, letting her face rest against his for a long moment. “You promised you wouldn’t hurt me and I believe you.”

  “Tanner put it in my head that you might have been involved in whatever scheme Davies has in mind. I’m sorry. I knew better, but seeing you near the estate books made me think for a minute that he could be right.”

  “I’m sorry. I feel like this is all my fault, that I brought this down on you and your family.” And thinking about the fortune in gold that she had found on his land only made her guilt worse. He could have used that money to help the estate, pay his bills, cover the wages of the servants. She had to find more. For him.

  “I think Davies planned on using you to get to me, Mia. I don’t know what he wants but it concerns me.”

  Still in the warmth of his arms, she let her head rest on his shoulder. “What could he want from you?”

  “I wish I knew.” He kissed the top of her head.

  “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  He shook his head against her. “I don’t believe so. Just let me know if you see Davies around Hartsfield Park.”

  “I told you before that he seemed to fear stepping foot on your lands.”

  “But why?”

  Mia shrugged. “He never told me. That is why I ran to your lands and not the village. I knew I would be safe here and if I didn’t make it back to my mother’s cottage at least someone who knew me would find me.”

  A knock on the door forced them to separate quickly. Mia missed the heat of his body against her and the comfort she’d felt there. She sat down in the nearest chair while Simon took his seat behind the desk.

  “Come in,” he said, once seated.

  Harris entered the room and bowed. “Mrs. Featherstone is here to see Miss Featherstone, my lord.”

  “Of course, send her in.”

  Simon smiled when he noticed the frown on Mia’s face. Mrs. Featherstone burst into the room like a gust of cold air, diminishing any remnants of the passion between Mia and Simon.

  “Good day, my lord,” she said as she spied the room with a critical eye. “Am I interrupting anything?”

  “Of course not. Miss Featherstone had come down to request my company on a stroll.”

  “Well, she certainly can’t walk the lands in those shoes.”

  Mia sighed. “I had planned on changing my shoes before leaving. I need a maid to assist me with—” She stopped abruptly as if realizing that stating she needed help from a servant in front of her mother would not be a good idea.

  “You still can’t bend down?” Mrs. Featherstone inquired as she approached her daughter.

  “It still hurts, that is all.”

  Simon watched the interplay and wondered why Mia seemed so tense around her mother. Mrs. Featherstone appeared to be only concerned about the welfare of her daughter.

  “Let’s go upstairs where I can examine you,” Mrs. Featherstone demanded.

  “Mrs. Featherstone, when you are finished, I would like a word,” Simon said as the women started for the door.

  “Of course, my lord.”

  Once th
e women left, Simon sat back down at his desk and looked at the ledger pages Mia had written. They were extremely neat and as he calculated the figures, he realized her numbers were correct. Far more correct than his were. Not that there was anything she could do about the state of his finances.

  Hiring Burton as his steward has been the biggest mistake of his life. Simon had accepted the man’s references without verifying them with his previous employers. He found out later that all the documents had been forged. Burton hadn’t worked for any of the men he’d stated. Simon had never felt like such an inept fool. The man had embezzled thousands of pounds from him and then disappeared. Mr. Tanner had told him Burton had most likely left the country for America.

  Now, Simon was close to bankrupt with only himself to blame.

  He glanced back down on the figures in the ledger. Mia’s calculation left him in a little better position than he had determined. Perhaps if the crops came in well this year, he could raise the tenants’ rents just enough that they wouldn’t be angry but enough that it would help him out of this hole he’d dug himself.

  His mother had told him to go back into Society and find a wealthy bride. Only he didn’t want a wealthy bride, he wanted Mia.

  A knock on the open door made Simon look up from the books. “Yes, Mrs. Featherstone, do come in.”

  Mrs. Featherstone sat down in the chair across the desk from him with a sigh. “She can be an exasperating child sometimes.”

  “Mia?”

  “Of course, Mia. That fool girl has it in her head that you will teach her how to protect herself.”

  Simon smiled at her. “She is correct. I promised I would teach her some things to help her if something similar should happen again.”

  “She is not ready for that,” Mrs. Featherstone said sharply. “Her ribs are still bothering her though I’m sure she won’t admit it. The bones haven’t had time to heal properly yet. If she does something too strenuous she could reinjure her ribs.”

  “I told her I would not begin to teach her until you gave your approval on her health. From what you are telling me we need to wait a few more weeks.”