“I invited him.” Ben spun on his heel to find Viscount Margrave sauntering their way. “He offered to make inquiries into Lord Wellham’s whereabouts at the House of Lords today. It appears as if the earl vanished, but someone must know where he is.”
“Is the blackguard still dodging you?” Norwick asked as he extracted a handkerchief from his jacket and wiped his sweaty forehead. “I told Bianca it would be too warm for the gardens tonight.”
Ben frowned at the earl. “How do you know about Wellham?”
“I played hazard with him at the Den a few weeks ago. He said you were just back from Delhi and looking for him. He was three sheets to the wind and as chatty as an old crow. Said you were probably trying to call in his vowels. I haven’t seen him since.”
“He is avoiding me because of an old gambling debt?” Ben couldn’t be certain he could even find any of the IOUs he’d collected when he used to frequent the gaming hells. He hadn’t played for the money so much as the challenge. “I should thrash the unscrupulous bugger just for the principle of it when I find him.”
Norwick shrugged. “You might have to wait your turn. It seems Wellham has fallen on hard times. I heard the duns have been sniffing around his town house, and he auctioned his best horse at Tattersall’s last month. Bianca heard he left Town in the middle of the night to avoid everyone he owes money, but his sisters have no idea where he has gone. Apparently, he isn’t staying at any of his properties.”
Jake clapped Norwick on the shoulder. “Nice work.”
“I still don’t know where to find Wellham,” Ben said.
“True, but you know why he has been hiding from you.”
Margrave joined the group and without preamble addressed Ben. “Take a walk with me? I’d like a word alone.”
His friend had always been a private sort, but Ben had no objections to speaking in front of his brother and Lord Norwick. Nevertheless, he humored Margrave and fell into step with him on the path he and Eve had traveled earlier. The walkway was nearly deserted this time, and the sky had transformed into a series of orange brushstrokes on a faded gray canvas. A few bright stars pierced the sky.
“We shouldn’t take long,” Ben said. “Supper will be served soon.” He had already spent enough time away from Eve that day. “Norwick just revealed Wellham has gone into hiding. Apparently he is avoiding collectors and thinks I am trying to speak with him about an old gambling debt he owes me that I couldn’t care less about.”
His friend nodded. “I see. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to attend the Lords today, so I have no leads on where he might be hiding. However, I wish to speak with you about Mrs. Hillary.”
“What does my mother have to do with Wellham?”
Margrave ground to a stop and nailed him with an incredulous stare. “Mrs. Hillary, your wife of one day. Remember her? The pretty one with silky hair, sultry eyes, and curves that make a man—”
“Of course I remember my wife,” he snapped. And he didn’t like his friend noticing her finer qualities. “I’d suggest you forget about her eyes, and any other body parts you find appealing, unless you want to go a few rounds at Gentleman Jack’s.”
Margrave snorted. “We have been friends since Eton. I have no designs on your wife, you fool. That doesn’t mean I am blind, however, and neither are all the other men in Town, which is the reason you need to take her in hand.”
“Take her in hand?” Fists formed at Ben’s sides. He had never come to blows with his friend except in good fun, but Margrave was crossing a line. “You are the last person I would expect to dole out marriage advice. You’ve never had an affair lasting more than a night.”
Margrave’s chest puffed up like an officious toad, and he ignored Ben’s jibe. “Do you have any idea where she was today?”
“She called on Sir Jonathan Hackberry and learned he has left England. What concern is it of yours?”
“Oh.” The viscount blinked, his indignation leaving him in a rush of breath. “She told you.”
“Of course she told me. I don’t know what type of ladies you keep company with, but Eve does not hide things from me. She is aboveboard and always has been. How do you know she was there?”
“I saw your carriage on the street and stopped to chat with you, but your wife was alone. It isn’t safe for her to move about Town without an escort, Ben.”
The last thing Ben needed was Margrave’s disapproving glower and lecture. He felt rotten enough about leaving his wife to her own devices when he should have been by her side today.
“I hope you will discourage her from venturing out on her own again,” Margrave said.
“I already have. Now, if you are finished telling me how to be a good husband, I would like to return to the supper boxes and be one.” Ben didn’t wait to see if his friend agreed. He’d taken several steps down the path when Margrave called to him.
“I am only trying to help you see there are dangers lurking about.”
Ben’s heart stalled. He didn’t need a reminder of all the horrible things that could befall her. Forgetting them so he could enjoy a moment of sanity was the challenge.
* * *
Eve had been rather relieved when Lord Margrave didn’t stay for supper. There was something unnerving about the man, and she could see the tension in Ben’s face when he had returned from walking with the viscount. She assumed they had exchanged words. Probably about her.
Eve glanced at her husband’s reflection in the looking glass of her dressing table. He was perched on the side of her bed, hands resting on his knees, distracted.
Opening a jar of lotion, she extracted a dollop and rubbed her hands together. “Did Lord Margrave tell you we ran into each other today?”
“Pardon?” Ben looked up, his blue gaze cloudy for a moment. “Oh. Yes, he mentioned seeing you.”
When he said no more about it, she abandoned the topic. No need to stir up trouble where none existed. Something was preoccupying him, though. She rose from the dressing table and joined him on the side of the bed. “Is everything all right?”
He slanted a smile at her, but it didn’t light his eyes like usual. “I have a few things on my mind. Business matters.”
“I see. Is there any way I can help?”
He slipped his arm around her waist and shifted toward her. “You already are. I’ve quite lost my interest in business with you near.” The wicked twinkle in his eyes caused a fluttering in her lower belly.
“Is…is that truly helpful? I thought it would be a hindrance.”
He buried his fingers in her hair, cradling her nape. “You are never a hindrance, Evie. Sometimes I need to get away from my thoughts.”
She closed her eyes as he kneaded her neck and reveled in the warmth spreading through her. “I know your thoughts trouble you sometimes. What is it that bothers you so?”
When he began to withdraw his hands, she opened her eyes. His puckered brow caused her heart to skip.
“Did I say something wrong?”
He shook his head, but leaned slightly away so there was space between their bodies. “I never said I was troubled by my thoughts.”
“You didn’t need to say it. I can see it in the lines of your face and the way you grind your teeth sometimes.”
He drew back. “I do not grind my teeth.”
The affronted pucker of his mouth made her chuckle. “Yes, you do. You’ve done it as long as I have known you.”
“No one has ever said a word about it to me, and I’ve certainly never noticed.”
“I notice most things about you. I find I cannot keep my eyes off you.” She reached out to caress the muscles shifting along his jaw even now, and he leaned into her touch. “I’m afraid you are too handsome by half. It is a curse, really.”
A laugh rumbled in his chest. He covered her hand with his. “A curse? How so?”
&nbs
p; “Well,” she said with a teasing smile, “it must be incredibly difficult to accomplish anything with ladies clamoring for your attention all the time and finding excuses to touch you.”
Slipping her hand inside his satin robe, she demonstrated just how distracting it could be. She explored the hard contours of his muscles, her fingers playing with the light sprinkle of brown hair across his chest.
He captured her hand and brought it to his lips to place a kiss in her palm. His eyes had turned to that lovely smoky blue color they had been last night. “You are the only lady I want touching me.”
She eased her hand free and slid it along his trim stomach. “Well, if I’m allowed to touch you, I want to touch you now.”
“Oh, bother!” He rolled his eyes. “It’s the bloody curse again.” Grabbing her around the waist, he fell backward and dragged her on top of him.
She sat astride him and pushed the robe off his shoulders to marvel at his perfection. It wasn’t that he was without blemish—he had two moles above his collarbone and a thick crimson scar on his bicep where a rope had burned the skin once onboard ship—but he was wonderfully formed, unlike other gentlemen who found work vulgar.
He propped his hands behind his head, his position submissive. His lazy grin invited her to explore at her leisure. It was hard to believe this amazing man was hers to love, to care for and cherish forever. She had seen the shadow of hurt in his eyes a moment ago, and she wanted to ease his suffering.
Last night he had called out for Charlotte. Losing her had to be one of the most painful moments in his life, and yet he had only spoken of her once in Eve’s presence. He had recited the facts of her accident as if reading an account in the newssheet. Then he had thanked Eve for her expression of sympathy before shrugging off the effect his first love’s death must have had on him.
If his memories of Charlotte were haunting him, she wished he would confide in her. But she didn’t know how to broach the subject without causing him more distress if that wasn’t the source of his pain.
Cupping his face, she leaned close to kiss him softly. She poured tenderness into the kiss, communicating with him in a way words never could. She offered him compassion, healing, or peaceful oblivion if only for a moment. Anything he needed was his.
He moaned against her mouth. “Evie.”
Rolling her beneath him, he took his time undressing her. Their lovemaking was slow and beautiful, made up of lingering caresses and whispered oaths to love one another forever.
Twenty-five
Ben was shrugging into his jacket when the doors between his and Eve’s chambers flew open. His wife’s glower didn’t surprise him, but her grumpiness struck him as rather adorable when paired with her mussed hair and drowsy eyes.
“You left my bed again.”
The accusation in her tone didn’t catch him off guard either. In spite of her sweet nature, he had expected her to kick up a fuss.
She yawned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes with her fist while clutching her dressing gown closed. “Why did you sneak off?”
“I couldn’t sleep.” He turned his back to retrieve his watch from a side table so she wouldn’t see the evidence of the blush rushing into his face. Last night, he couldn’t stop Margrave’s words from echoing in his head: There are dangers lurking about.
Catastrophic possibilities had plagued him the moment he’d snuffed the candles and her fragile body snuggled against his. Dangers were everywhere: the stairway, a kitchen fire, a fall from her horse, ne’er-do-wells on the streets. When he thought of her leaving the protection of his arms, nausea welled up inside him, leaving a sour taste at the back of his tongue. It was insanity. He knew it, but he had been powerless to stop the thoughts that bombarded him in the dark. It was humiliating to admit he’d needed to light a lamp before he could corral his worries.
Tucking his watch into a waistcoat pocket, he faced her again. “I didn’t want to wake you, so I retired to my room.”
“You should have woken me.” She came forward to wrap her arms around his waist, laying her head on his shoulder. “I would have sat up with you.”
Ben hugged her close. “But you shouldn’t have to. If you sat up with me every time I can’t sleep, you would never feel rested.”
She pulled back enough to see his face. “Is that how you feel? Never rested?”
“I have learned to adjust.”
“Hmm… I suspect I will adjust too.” Her smile warmed his heart. She would likely be a welcome source of comfort, but he wouldn’t wake her. “What keeps you from being able to sleep?”
He shrugged. This morning his worries seemed silly. “Different things.”
“Very well. What kept you awake last night?”
“I don’t know. I’m sure it was nothing.” He smiled gamely, hoping she would not pursue it any further.
“Good Lord!” Her eyes widened in horror. “Do I snore?” This last was whispered as if it would bring shame on her entire family line if it were true.
He chuckled. “No, but you kick.” That was not a lie. Even when asleep, she had boundless energy.
She wrinkled her nose. “Oh, that is not well done of me, is it?”
“You don’t kick hard. Just enough to get my attention.” Smoothing back her riotous hair, he kissed her forehead.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “In the future, I will try to be more aware.”
He eased her from his embrace. “Maybe it would be best if we stayed in separate bedchambers until I am sleeping better. Then I won’t disturb you.”
“I see.” Her tone did not imply consent, but they could talk about it later. She stepped back, looked him over from head to toe, and pursed her lips. “You are already dressed for the day. Am I to assume you have a morning appointment?”
“Perhaps,” he said with a teasing smile. “If you agree to join me for breakfast and a ride through the park.”
Eve’s forehead smoothed out and her mouth turned up at the corners. “That sounds lovely. I will ring for Alice.”
“Very good. Come find me in my study when you are ready to go to the breakfast room.”
When Eve joined him below stairs, she wore a smart yellow walking gown that was overshadowed by her sunny smile. Warmth expanded in his chest when she linked arms with him and chattered all the way to the breakfast room.
As instructed, the footman had placed her close to his end of the table, and the newssheet was waiting beside his plate. Eve snatched it before moving to her seat.
Ben pushed in her chair and leaned over her shoulder. “You stole my paper, dearest.”
She slanted a glance in his direction, her brown eyes big and guileless. “Oh, I did not see your name on it. Would you like to share it?”
“Don’t play innocent with me, Kitten.” He tweaked her nose, then retrieved the newssheet before sitting in his chair. “What part would you like to read first?”
“The gossip, of course,” she said.
“I thought you abhorred gossipmongers.”
“I do, but I would like to know when they are talking about me so I’m not caught unaware.”
Ben frowned as he opened the newssheet and turned to the gossip pages. He didn’t like the reminder that he had dragged her name through the muck in the past. Other than a tidbit about his and Eve’s marriage the day after their wedding, there had been nothing else printed about them in the gossip rags. He scanned the pages. “Not one mention of you today. I hate to admit it, but I expected more attention for our sudden marriage. I am a little disappointed we are not considered important enough.” He closed the newssheet and returned it to the table with a wink for her.
Eve smiled and unfolded her napkin. “Sebastian said he has a new contact that will keep our names out of the papers. I thought he was trying to make me feel better, but it seems he was telling the truth.”
“Bravo,
Lord Thorne.” He nodded to the footman to begin serving them.
“What parts do you like to read?” she asked.
“I follow the arrival and departure of ships. What cargo they are carrying. The captain responsible for seeing it safely into port. The list of passengers.”
She lifted her fork and gingerly poked at the soft-boiled egg in the eggcup. “I was thinking about what you said regarding needing to know our destinations to file the appropriate papers. Does that mean you know Sir Jonathan’s destination?”
Her question slammed into his gut. Her insistent inquiries about the man rubbed him the wrong way. “The ship will deliver her cargo to Morocco, then it is Sir Jonathan’s decision where he travels next.” He shot a glance toward the footman. “You are dismissed, Parker.”
“Yes, sir.” The young man made a hasty exit, perhaps sensing Ben’s mounting aggravation.
Eve, however, seemed oblivious. “But how can he travel without the proper documents?”
“The captain will see to everything.” Tightness spread along his jawline, but it didn’t keep him from voicing his frustrations. “Must you bring up your former betrothed at every opportunity? How would you like me speaking of a past love to you?”
She set her fork on her plate and folded her hands in her lap. “Sir Jonathan was never my love. He was a kind man who wished to marry me, and I agreed because he was pleasant and I want a family someday. But most significantly, I had given up hope of you coming back. You were my first choice, and if I’d had any clue you were on a ship headed for England, I wouldn’t have encouraged his attentions. Furthermore, if you want to talk about Charlotte, I will listen with the utmost patience. Your feelings for her have never threatened me.”
He flinched at hearing Charlotte’s name. No one spoke of her to him anymore. Not his family. Not even his closest friend acknowledged her. It was as if everyone thought Ben might crumple into a pathetic heap on the ground if they did, or else they had forgotten she ever lived. It seemed Eve was the only one to believe he had the strength to remember her.
His wife stared back at him, waiting. Her eyes overflowed with compassion.
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