It took Beth only a few minutes to put on her bonnet and best shawl while Peggy dressed the boy for outdoors. Soon, the two of them were ready and going through the front door. ‘Begging yer pardon, Ma’am,’ Peggy whispered hesitantly, ‘you won’t go climbing no steep hills in Corporation Park, will yer? Not seeing as yer… I wouldn’t want anything to go amiss,’ she finished, blushing bright pink.
‘Bless you, Peggy. Of course I won’t go climbing hills,’ Beth assured her with a light peck on the cheek to show that she was not annoyed at the girl’s being so forward. With that, Beth and her son went hand in hand out of the house and down the street, the boy’s constant chatter filtering back to the watching maid and causing her to smile. ‘Have a good time!’ she called out, over the hustle and bustle of passing carriages. Beth’s smile in return gladdened the girl. She had been so worried about the mistress, and it wasn’t just because of the way she had torn into the work this morning, nor because of the bairn growing heavy inside her and making life uncomfortable. No, the girl’s instincts told her there was something else that deeply disturbed the mistress, something secret that maybe even her own husband didn’t know about.
Craning her neck, she caught a last glimpse of Beth and the child. She looked so slim and young in that cream shawl above her blue taffeta gown, with the pretty frilled bonnet over her gleaming hair; she had a way of walking, thought the watching girl, with just a little envy… so easy and graceful, even though she was with child. Now and again the small boy at her side would look up, and Beth would lean towards him, no doubt answering his lively questions. All the way down the street he jumped and fidgeted and laughed and chatted, and Beth held his hand, keeping him close, keeping him safe. After all, Tyler’s son was the most precious gift of all.
* * *
The woman loved the feel of his nakedness, the muscles in his chest hard against her back and his arms wound round her thighs. Softly, so as not to wake him, she turned her long slim form until she was face to face with his sleeping figure. For what seemed an age, she studied his features, strong lean features which she had come to know so well. She had never loved any man, never really wanted to. She had not wanted to love this man, especially when she knew he could never love her back. And yet, she wanted him like she had wanted no other. Not for the first time she wondered cynically whether she craved Tyler Blacklock because he was tall, darkly handsome and unattainable, or because he was fast becoming a very rich and influential man. Certainly, it was these qualities that drew her to him in the first place, but now… these were not the true reasons why she stayed with him. She had tried hard not to fall in love with him, preferring to play the field and maybe trap a man whose heart was fancy free.
She laughed softly. Things never turned out the way you wanted them to. This man was different from any other she had known. He was thoughtful and caring, but strong-willed and quick-minded. From a lonely boyhood to being left for dead in some alley, he had never looked to others for strength. Instead, like the powerful and determined man he was, Tyler Blacklock had risen above it all to become a formidable but respected businessman. Tenderly, she stroked his face, running her slender fingers over the newly grown stubble on his chin, tracing the classical lines of his nose with the tip of her finger, and all the while gently thrusting herself against him, arousing him, wanting him. Placing her mouth over his, she murmured teasingly, running her fingers along the nape of his neck, watching his face so she could smile into those magnificent green eyes when they opened to gaze on her. Soon he was responding to her love-play, softly moaning, his arms tightening about her and his nakedness fusing harder with hers. Suddenly his moan became a soft, broken cry. ‘Beth… oh, Beth.’ He felt her stiffen in his arms. His eyes flickered open to see the horror on her face. At once he pulled away, confused and angry with himself.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, he bowed his head, clasping his hands over his face. ‘I’m sorry,’ he told her simply. She made no reply but climbed out of bed. He watched as she poured water from the jug into the bowl and quickly washed and then dressed; not once did she look at him or speak one word. He knew how she must be feeling, and he hated her. But he hated himself more. She had been a good companion; she did not deserve this from him. ‘Are you leaving?’ he asked quietly, his loneliness intensifying.
‘What the hell do you think?’ she demanded, swinging round to face him, her eyes blazing. When he looked away, she realised she would lose him forever. She didn’t know if she could bear that. In the wake of his softly spoken words her anger subsided and she went to him. ‘Don’t let me leave,’ she said. ‘You can stop me if you’ve a mind to.’
He looked at her now, dark eyes green as the ocean depths, unfathomable, like the man himself. ‘You must do what you think fit,’ he said, rising from the bed and brushing past her; her gaze followed him, sweeping his nakedness. There was no anger in her now, only fear. ‘You won’t go away penniless,’ he promised her. ‘You know that, don’t you?’ The emotion in his voice was not unkind. But it was not love, she realised that. Cupping his hands in the large jug, he splashed cold water over his face and chest, rubbing it up and down his arms before towelling himself down. Taking his trousers from the chair-back, he slid his legs into them and buckled the belt round his waist. ‘Do you really want to leave?’ he asked.
‘You know I don’t.’ Her relief was evident in the small cry she made. ‘Oh, Tyler… must it always be like this? Must she always come between us?’ He gave no reply, but went to the window and drew back the curtains, letting the morning light spill into the room; a room which, without being pretentious, bespoke his new standing in life, a large, well-furnished room, with a grand bed and expensive decor, and velvet curtains with fancy frills. When he turned to look at her with some compassion, she walked the few steps that kept them apart and, staring at him with desperate eyes, insisted, ‘That woman in the docks… it was her, wasn’t it? She’s the one you can’t forget.’ He shaved his face clean and combed his thick unruly hair, then continued to dress, hurriedly now, for she was touching on memories that were precious to him. ‘For God’s sake, Tyler, why can’t you put the past behind you?’ In her desperation she was relentless.
He fastened his boots and shrugged his broad shoulders into the dark jacket. He was ready. ‘I’ll see you to the station,’ he said, ‘if that’s what you really want.’ He went from her now, with that familiar slight limping stride that only made him more attractive. ‘When I’ve seen you safely on the train, I should still have time enough to get to the auction.’
‘Is it all you can think about… buying land… building your fortune?’ She almost spat the words out. ‘Is it for her? Is that why you drive yourself, Tyler? For her? Do you live in hope that your fortune might tempt her away from her rightful husband?’ Even before she’d finished speaking, she knew she had gone too far. In one stride he had her in his grip. For one awful moment she feared he would strike her; instead he looked down at her, his contempt far more painful than a blow. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that,’ she whispered. Her voice was sincere, but in her heart she meant every word she said. Everything he had ever done was for the woman he could not forget. ‘I should not have said that,’ she reluctantly admitted. When he released her it was with such force that she almost fell to the floor. She had never seen him so agitated.
‘We’d best get started,’ he said. The rage had gone from him and she was afraid that it was all too final. She could see her easy life becoming harder. The years passed quickly and too soon beauty was a fading thing. She hesitated and he understood. ‘You don’t have to leave now,’ he reminded her, his voice softer, a smile playing about his handsome mouth. ‘But our relationship can never be a permanent one. I’ve never led you to believe otherwise.’
Suddenly she wanted permanence more than anything. She had tasted the fear of being cast out, and it left a bitter taste in her mouth. Why couldn’t he love her? Why was it so impossible for him to make their relationship more
secure? The anger was rising in her again. ‘This woman… wasn’t it long ago? She’s probably forgotten you. Can’t you put her firmly in the past?’ she wanted to know.
He had been standing by the door which was now partly open. He was preparing to leave. He quietly closed the door and, leaning his back to it, he dropped his gaze to her upturned face, before tilting his head upwards and staring at the ceiling, his anguished thoughts in turmoil. She had asked why he could not put Beth firmly in the past. How could he give her an answer when he did not know the answer himself? Looking into her face he repeated her words on a long drawn-out breath. ‘Put her in the past.’ He shook his head. ‘If only I could. But, don’t you realise, the past is the present, and the present is the future?’ He laughed cynically. ‘We can never dismiss yesterday as though it never happened, because we carry it with us from moment to moment until the end of our days.’
‘Surely you must know you can’t have her? She’s content with her family around her. You must accept that she wants no part of you. Not now, not after all this time.’ Reaching out, she touched him, a compassionate look in her eyes. ‘She has no love for you, Tyler… no need of you, can’t you see that? Don’t you know that whatever was between you is over for good?’
‘I know it.’
‘Then forget her!’ She edged closer to him, her voice soft and pleading. ‘Make a life with me, Tyler. You said yourself that I’m good for you.’
‘I know that too.’
‘Then…?’
He reached out to touch her, but his arms fell loosely by his sides. His eyes appraised her face, a lovely face, a sad face – because of him. He regretted that, but the awful truth was only a murmur away. ‘I love her.’ His voice was a mere whisper, but such was the effect of his words on the woman that he might have shouted them from the rooftops.
She knew she had lost him. The slender hold she’d had on him was broken because of her impatience. Silently she cursed herself for being such a damned fool. Yet she had known from the start that he would not be easy to keep; he was a man deeply in love, relentlessly loyal to that one love, with no room for any other woman. Her frantic mind recalled the young woman at the docks, and she was not surprised that he adored her. Even with child the woman was incredibly lovely, a graceful creature with an aura of that unique beauty few women possessed. But more compelling were her dark expressive eyes, eyes that had widened with shock on seeing Tyler there, eyes that might have spoken to him of anger but instead had betrayed something much deeper, and far more dangerous.
Until now, the woman had been careful not to reveal how she had witnessed what passed between him and that lovely creature at the docks. She had seen something in those dark tragic eyes, something akin to the anguish betrayed now in Tyler’s. She did not pretend to understand such depth of feeling. It made her both uncomfortable and afraid, and now she could see the delicate security she had achieved slipping through her fingers. She would try anything… anything to hold on to it.
When she spoke now, there was a cruel plan forming in the back of her mind. ‘I can’t bear to see what’s happening to you,’ she told him. ‘How you drive yourself… punish yourself. Don’t you realise how ruthless you’re becoming? Can’t you see how your bitterness is changing you? Oh, Tyler… Tyler! You’re so very different from the man you once were… warm and giving, enjoying the rewards which your hard work brought you. Now it’s only the work! You don’t laugh any more, Tyler. You’ve closed your heart and locked her inside it. All this time you’ve been living a dream, and now you’ve seen that dream in the flesh you torment yourself even more.’ She looked at him and felt his pain, but he had shut her out again. There was nothing more to be said. Unless… unless… Careful, though, she must bide her time, think it through. He did care for her, she knew that, but was it enough? Was it enough? She had to take the chance before it was too late. ‘I’m with child,’ she lied, her voice trembling slightly, the words echoing through the silence that had descended between them. When he remained silent but stared at her, visibly shaken, his dark green eyes seeming to see right through her, she began crying. ‘I’m afraid,’ she murmured. ‘What will I do? Where will I go? Are you angry?’
His answer was to take her in his arms and press her close to him. ‘Maybe it really is time I settled down,’ he said, holding her at arm’s length and smudging her tears away with his thumb. She raised her head, astonished and relieved that he had not seen through her. But, then, men were always blind to a woman’s wiles. There was a moment’s silence before he smiled. ‘If you want to be wed in London… you’d best get packed.’
‘You mean it!’ Her little plan had worked. He would never know the truth, because there were many ways a woman could fool a man. ‘You really mean it?’ she asked breathlessly. ‘We’re going to be wed?’ Her eyes were big and shining. In that moment she had no conscience. She only knew her good fortune lay in that Tyler Blacklock was an honourable man.
He laughed, a sad bitter sound. ‘We wouldn’t want my son to come into the world without his father’s name now, would we, eh?’
Exultant, she went to the bed and withdrew the portmanteau from beneath. It took only a few minutes to pack their belongings. Another few minutes and she was ready to leave with him. During this time he had remained by the door, his expressionless gaze following her every move. She stood a while, intently regarding him, her hand steadying the portmanteau on the bed, and only the merest glimmer of guilt colouring her face. Afraid that he might guess at her deceit, she began talking, laughing, making plans, distracting his attention from what she had wickedly led him to believe. Buttoning the long fitted jacket over her expensive cream gown, she went to him on determined footsteps. Her heart leaped. He was so handsome. And now, he was hers. ‘I’ll make you a good wife, Tyler.’ She was gabbling now. ‘You won’t regret it. Oh! It’ll be wonderful, you’ll see.’ She threw herself into his arms, sighing deeply when he half-heartedly returned her embrace.
Her triumph would have been short-lived if she had seen the smile slip from his face and a look of regret shape his expression; his quiet eyes were drawn to the window, to the skyline beyond. And his heart soared to wherever his Beth was in that moment.
Chapter Nine
‘Damn and blast!’ Luther Reynolds clambered from the carriage with considerable difficulty, his crooked frame making it awkward for him to pass easily through the narrow doorway and on to the small step which the driver had lowered. ‘Get your paws off me!’ he yelled when David went to assist. ‘You’re no sodding help at all.’ He thrashed out with his cane. ‘Piss off out of it. Useless! That’s what you are. Bloody useless!’
The edge of his stick caught David a glancing blow to the side of the head as he stooped to guide the old man’s unsteady legs on to the step. Undeterred, he gripped the open door with one hand, stretching his other arm to the side of the carriage and forming a barrier to stop the old man missing his footing. With abuse being hurled at him all the while, he remained so until Luther Reynolds was safely to the ground. His reward was a surly look and the instruction to, ‘Get out of my way, bugger you… fussing and bothering as though I were a sodding infant.’ Now, it was the driver’s turn. ‘What the hell are you staring at?’ the old man snarled, thrashing out with his cane and causing the fellow hastily to retreat into his driving seat up top, out of harm’s way. Once there, he could be heard to mutter, ‘Fornicating old sod, you want that bloody stick wrapped round yer bleedin’ ear’ole!’ Having paid the driver and quietly apologised for ‘my father’s temper’, David pointed out the entrance to the auction rooms just a few feet away, and together the two of them made their way there, the old man shuffling and leaning heavily on his stick, and the younger man walking protectively alongside, positioning himself between his father and the many horse-drawn vehicles which sped up and down the road, a great number of them stopping to discharge their passengers right outside the sale room; one in particular drew to a halt behind the two men, who kept their
backs to the traffic and concentrated on reaching the large arched entrance without being trampled underfoot.
Climbing from the carriage, Tyler instructed the woman, ‘Wait here. I shan’t be long.’
‘Take as long as you like,’ she said, smiling sweetly. ‘I won’t be going anywhere without you.’
‘A moment only,’ he explained. ‘I don’t intend to wait for the sale to begin, but it would be a pity to come all this way and not to leave a bid.’ He had been greatly excited by the prospect of bidding in person, but now somehow his enthusiasm had been dampened by another less satisfying prospect, that of exchanging wedding vows with a woman he did not love in the way a man should love the mother of his child. Without waiting for her reply, he closed the carriage door and called to the driver, ‘Wait here.’
The driver nodded, touched his flat cap and replied, ‘As you say, Guv… as you say.’ His bleary pink eyes followed Tyler’s tall hurrying figure which, in spite of the noticeable limp, was athletic and commanding. ‘As you say Guv,’ he mumbled. ‘I ain’t in no hurry neither.’ There had been a ‘going away’ in the family, and what could be more of an excuse to have a merry binge than a son emigrating to far-off America in search of his fortune? The entire family had seen the young man off on Saturday, but the celebrations were still going on. It had been a hard night, and he felt like death warmed up.
Coming into the foyer, Tyler pressed on through the crush of bodies all surging in the same direction. From the information he had received on the sale, he was aware that Tobias Drew had left a considerable quantity of land, located at the two extremes of the country. Judging by the crush here, Tyler realised he had underestimated the interest it would attract. He said as much to the clerk who now took details of his bid, a sum which he had increased from the original figure in view of the crowd that was already gathering, even though the sale was not scheduled to take place for at least another two hours.
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