As she turned her back and headed back to where her men were rolling the machine, Annie could not suppress the smile on her face. His brightness had infected her. Although she’d been in despair that they could accomplish this task in time, now she knew they would.
He injected that kind of confidence into her, made her believe anything was possible.
It took an hour to get the machine around to Bunhill Row, by which time Annie had given Gerald the details. “If it was not for this machine, we’d still be hammering the silver. The evenness of the sheets it produces makes for far better control of the stock, and a more uniform end product.”
“I see,” he said thoughtfully. “That may explain one or two matters. Are these machines common among makers of silver wire?”
“Not at all,” she answered readily. “We bought ours from abroad. They are still rare in London. My late husband saw one in action and moved heaven and earth to get hold of one. That was before our marriage, because, he told me later, he had nothing to leave a child, so why marry before then? He and Jem made all the wire themselves before this. Now, as you can see, I employ six men regularly and more on a casual basis when business perks up.”
“Ah.” He drew her closer and lowered his voice. “I have other news. I set about making inquiries to discover exactly why Mr. Joseph Stephenson was so keen on marrying you. My curiosity was aroused, madam, as well as my sense of injustice.”
He paused, as if to say something else, but he took a sharp breath and continued on his course. “The other reason I will speak of in due course, but not here. Suffice it to say that Mr. Stephenson wanted your business as much as he wanted your lovely self.”
A sense of rightness came over her. That made sense. “Joseph could have had a mercer’s daughter, or one of the big goldsmiths in town. Instead he chose me. My business is very small compared to his. I thought he wanted—me, but he did not. I don’t think he did, though he tried to demonstrate...” She moved away, not her body prickling with uncomfortable heat.
“He owns all the other silver wire businesses in the City,” he said softly. “Either that, or he has a controlling interest in them. Yours was the sole independent concern. The matter has concerned him only recently, as if he realized the industry was easy to control.”
The news shocked her, when it really should not have done. Mutely, she nodded, slotting the information into place in her mind. Now she could see the whole picture. That was why Joseph had approached her, and why he selected her above all the women he could have had. At first she’d thought him in love with her, but then, understanding the way love worked, she knew that was not true.
Because she loved Gerald. God help her, she adored him. She’d fought the inexplicable feelings, but there was no getting past it. When their one night together kept repeating itself day after day without surcease, she knew it. When she found herself wondering what he was doing, she knew it. Most of all, when she missed his touch with an agony she could not surmount, she knew it.
That left the mystery of Joseph, which Gerald had solved with a few words. “He wanted complete control. If he’d taken them directly, the Guild would likely have taken that amiss. It advocates free trade, not monopolies. At the very least he’d have found himself answering questions. But in the marriage settlement he was careful to ensure the business was kept separately in trust for the boys. I thought it was because I insisted upon it. But as his wife, I would naturally do as he wished. I would not set up in opposition to him.”
“Have you signed that agreement?” Gerald asked sharply. “Will I find myself in the middle of a lawsuit?”
“Why should you?” He was giving her the house, for which she would pay the appropriate rent. She would make that clear later, and if he would not take it, she would pay it into an account for him.
“Because I don’t intend to be merely your landlord. I gave you the house, if you recall.”
“I have the deeds. You can have them back.”
“I don’t want them. I want something else.”
The look he gave her made her blush. What was she, a young miss, to be disconcerted at the mention of flirtation? “I will not cheapen my bedchamber by paying in kind.” She couldn’t look at him.
“I don’t intend for that to happen. We will come to an agreement, I’m sure, but not one that involves the bedroom.” He spoke with such lightness she couldn’t help but look up at him.
He was smiling at her. In an instant the world stopped. The sunny day faded, the shouts of the men further up the street receded, and they stood there, gazing at one another.
Gerald touched her hand. “We can talk about that later. Be assured I won’t ask you for anything you’re unwilling to give.”
“Yes,” she said, as if unsure what she was saying yes to. He hadn’t asked a question.
A particularly colorful curse brought her back to the present. After casting Gerald a laughing glance, she raced up the street to supervise the careful rolling of her precious machine.
It took an hour to get to the house, and another half hour to install the roller. Jem went downstairs to the cellar and they found a place on the stone-flagged floor near the stairs. “That was the wine cellar,” Gerald informed them.
“It’s too heavy to go upstairs. We’ll have to reinforce the floor if we want to do that,” Jem said. “But there’s plenty of light here. It should do very well, at least for now.”
The room was compact, but not too small to operate the machine. A man stood next to it, turning the handle that operated the rollers. One man could do it, due to the clever arrangement of cogs and wheels. The contraption was a marvel.
Annie stood, arms akimbo, admiring her beautiful machine. “You can buy large ones that are water or horse driven, but this one serves us well. I might add another in time.”
“You might.” Gerald sounded amused. “But don’t you think we should see to the other equipment?”
With a start she recalled the urgency of the situation. “Goodness!” Whirling around, she scampered up the stairs, and set off for her old house. Jem would stay with the roller, to guard it and to supervise the unpacking of the equipment when it arrived. He promised Annie he would dispose it so they could get back to work as soon as possible.
“Pies,” Gerald said firmly as they emerged into the street once more.
She blinked and stared up at him. “Pies?”
“I shall send to a pie shop and buy food for everyone,” he said firmly.
“Put it on account.”
“I will do no such thing! This is my treat. You can treat them later.”
So it was that three hours later they all sat down in the elegant drawing room to enjoy pie and potatoes, generously provided by Lord Carbrooke. Annie sent the boy for a barrel of small beer and they ate off what plates and dishes they could find, and drank from whatever seemed suitable.
It was a jolly repast. They had moved most of the contents of the workshops in record time. To Annie’s surprise, they had room for living accommodation on the top two floors. They’d have to commandeer some of the attic space where the servants generally slept, but they would still have more space than at the old house.
The cook bustled through and took control. She reclaimed the main kitchen and one store-room, then got busy, lighting a fire and setting water to heat. “You could keep both,” she informed Annie when she walked in. “Live there, work here.”
Regretfully, Annie shook her head. “Mr. Stephenson is tossing us out.”
The cook gave Annie a shrewd look. “You’re well shut of that one,” she said. “I kept quiet when you agreed to marry him, but I can’t say I ever liked him. And his servants don’t talk well of him.”
“Maybe I should have asked them.”
Gerald’s voice came from behind her. “Maybe you should. They always know more than us.” He grabbed her hand. “Come on. Jem says he’s ready for the stock.”
By which he meant their stock of silver. They had left Jem to con
trol the security, since he handled it day to day.
“There’ll be tea when you’ve done,” the cook said, her gaze going meaningfully to Annie and Gerald’s linked hands.
Annie refused to explain herself to the cook, and she would not be ashamed by her automatic action to reach for him whenever he was near. He made her happy without doing anything at all. If she only had today, she would take it.
They had to unlink their hands while they scaled the narrow stone staircase leading to the ground floor. Once through the door lined in green baize they each reached for the other once more. He anchored her, and at the same time promised to take her to new heights, all with the touch of his hand. He smiled down at her as if understanding what she couldn’t articulate. Not here, at any rate.
Leaning down, he murmured in her ear, “I’m mad for you, Annie Cathcart.”
She caught her breath, her body instantly aroused. “Me too. For you,” she said quietly on the out breath.
A male voice broke into their reverie. “Would you mind telling me what is going on here?”
Joseph Stephenson stood in the doorway, his dark figure blocking out the light. His gaze went to their joined hands.
“Why do you want to know?” Annie put up her chin.
“Because I am your landlord, and I have a vested interest in your business.”
She forced a smile. She would be a fool if she deliberately antagonized a member of the guild, but it hurt to smile, now she knew his reasons for marrying her. “You gave me notice to quit, sir. I have found somewhere else for the business.”
Joseph glanced from her to Gerald and back again. “I see. I will make you a fair offer for your little enterprise. I would have brought much your way if our contract had gone ahead.”
At least he did business honestly. He could have forged her signature on those documents, and landed her in a hellish mess. “I look forward to your offer, sir.”
Gerald cleared his throat. “Do you intend to make matters difficult for Mrs. Cathcart?”
Joseph spared him a glance. “Why should I? She has a tidy little company, but I own much larger.”
He was fishing for information. How much did they know? Quickly, before Gerald could take up the challenge, she said, “Just so. I do not intend to oppose you in any way, Joseph. I’m sorry our contract did not work out”
He gave a tight-lipped smile. “Be warned, madam; do not oppose me. I will not appreciate opposition.”
Her guileless expression was hurting. “I understand.”
Gerald stepped forward, his fists clenched, but Annie touched his wrist. He froze.
“I appreciate your concern, sir,” she said.
With a slight nod that could, if they wished, indicate agreement, he turned on one heel and left, his footsteps echoing on the floorboards.
“Damnation,” she said, and let out a long breath. “That was a declaration of war.”
“It was?” Gerald faced her and took both her hands in his, smoothing her tight knuckles until she uncurled them. “I thought you were meek and mild. Is he so fearful, then?”
“Yes. What Joseph Stephenson wants, he gets. I’m too small to stand against him.”
He drew her close, so the heat of his body warmed her. “But I am not. I have powerful friends, Annie, and I won’t hesitate to use them, if I have to.”
“Oh!” She had not thought of that, or that he would exert himself that way.
Laughing, he dropped a kiss on her lips. “Oh, yes indeed. It would be my pleasure. I hate bullies. Even if I were not—”
“Where do you want the silver, missus? Do I guard it all night?” They would have no privacy today, perhaps tonight as well.
Gerald turned to face Jem. “There’s no need. I have a safe.” He glanced at Annie and kept her gaze, his own far too warm for her comfort. “You stay here, and I’ll help them move the stock.” He lowered his voice, so his tones hardly carried. “If you go upstairs, to the bedroom, the safe is set into the floor.” Dipping a hand into his pocket, he dropped a small key into her open palm. “Here are the keys. The safe is on the right side of the bed. Lift the rug and you should see where the floorboards have been cut through.”
“Oh you darling man!” Picking up her skirts, she raced up the stairs, and then again, to the second floor.
She didn’t need him to tell her which bedroom.
Entering the room, she breathed deep. Someone had tidied and cleaned the room, but she could hear the ghost of their laughter in the air, and their sighs and moans as they made love.
Shaking herself, she went to the place he’d indicated and found the safe. It was large enough to take some ingots, but not the wire they had ready for patterning. She would take the risk with that. They had deliberately run the stock down, as until this morning she wasn’t sure if she’d have a business to handle. Now she did.
They returned in ten minutes, a soft bag held between them. Gerald was the taller; Jem was as wide as he was tall. Silver ingots were heavy. Annie could hardly lift one on her own. Currently she owned two and a quarter. She had been meaning to visit the bank and put her ingots into their vaults, but she had been too busy and distracted of late.
“My son’s inheritance,” she murmured as they carefully stowed the ingots in the safe. Gerald showed no indication of having heard her, but after he’d taken the keys from her and fastened each lock, he dropped one into her hand and pocketed the other. “Now it will take both of us to provide the unlocking devices.”
Jem nodded. “Good idea, sir.”
Because whoever wanted the keys would have to get through Gerald. He provided a more formidable target than she did. Not that Joseph could know about this safe, but he must know they would have one. It was common practice.
“There’s a strong-room downstairs,” Gerald said. “You can put the other items of value there. It’s not as secure as this, but it will serve.”
She hadn’t noticed it, but that was because the fortified door was open, she discovered when she ran down to the cellar to investigate. “So Jem can see his family tonight.”
***
Another three hours later, they were done. True, much of the contents of the old house were dumped in the rooms, but they had the nursery sorted out, and the kitchen. They could exist until the morning.
Annie couldn’t take another step. She’d given every man a guinea each, all she could afford, and she suspected Gerald had given them more. She would repay him for that, though she it wouldn’t go anywhere toward thanking him for his help today.
Sitting at the dining table, which was in the middle of the salon, she put her spoon down with a happy sigh. “I couldn’t eat another morsel.”
They’d had another cheerful, makeshift meal, or rather supper. Matilda had opted to take hers upstairs so she could keep an eye on the boys, and the men had gone home, so only two sat at the table. When she’d tried to express her thanks, Gerald had stopped her with a raised finger. “Eat,” he’d said. “Then we’ll talk.”
They hadn’t left much, so there wasn’t a lot to clear away. Annie stood, and reached for his plate, but he put a hand over hers. “Let me,” he said. “Do you think I can’t see how tired you are?”
Slumping back down in her chair, Annie watched him gather the plates and dishes. He put them on the old tray they’d used to bring the food upstairs, and left the room. He’d long since discarded his heavy coat and was now in shirtsleeves, his muscles clearly visible.
She hadn’t been aware she’d closed her eyes, until she felt the touch of his hands on hers. He was kneeling before her chair. “Poor honey! I should leave you in peace, should I not?”
The candles guttered in their holders, the light flickering over his face. He looked like some giant come down to earth, an otherworldly being. Smiling, Annie shook her head. “I don’t want you to.”
“I’m glad you said that.” He lifted her hand to his lips, touching the palm with his tongue, making her shiver. “Can you stay awake another ho
ur?”
She nodded, swallowing away her nervousness. “My head is still buzzing. What happened today?”
“I came to my senses.” His voice was soft and intimate. “I tried to be honorable, tried to do things right, but nobody wanted me to do that. So now I’m pleasing myself. And, I hope, you.”
Her small nod was all he needed. Getting to his feet, he bent and lifted her, ignoring her startled squeak. He took the stairs two at a time, and shouldered his way into the bedroom. Lowering her to the bed, he claimed a kiss before straightening, and unbuttoning his waistcoat, tossing it to join his coat on the chair. When she tugged at her fichu, still firmly tucked into her bodice, he tsked at her and did it himself. “I don’t want you to exert yourself. Save your strength.”
“For what?”
“For us.”
Carefully he stripped her. He took off her clothes piece by piece, pausing to kiss the skin he exposed. First the tops of her breasts, then her hands and her arms. He slipped off her shoes, and then undid her garters and rolled her stockings down, kissing the red marks her garters had left. Standing, he held out his hands to help her to her feet, then dealt with her petticoats, pocket and stays in the same efficient manner.
He undressed to his shirt, which reached to the middle of his thighs. She studied his hairy legs, spread her hands over his broad chest and gazed up at him. “So here we are, my lady,” he murmured. “We can sleep like babes, or we can go further.”
She licked her lips. “We have to make the most of the time we have. I will not be your mistress once you marry.”
Lifting his hands in a sudden motion, he covered hers where they lay on his chest. “You will not, believe me. I swear it.”
His slight smile annoyed her, but he prevented her pulling away. “You find it amusing that we have but a week before we must part?”
His smile turned to a frown. “Why, what is this? A week? Tell me you have not changed your mind. Tell me you will never marry Joseph Stephenson!”
“Willingly. But you are married. Did you come to an agreement with your wife?”
Seven Nights of Sin: Seven Sensuous Stories by Bestselling Historical Romance Authors Page 27