The Temptation of a Gentleman

by Jenna Petersen

  “Did I tell you I have a man watching the house?”

  Her eyes lit up with surprise. “You do?”

  “Yes. One of my footmen has connections to Lucas’s footman. They’re… brothers I believe. So I’m always aware of what is happening at Toppleton Square.” Her quiet smile relieved him.

  Marion nodded. “I’m glad of that. It makes me feel better to know you’re tracking what’s going on.”

  “I am, so you needn’t be afraid,” he said. “This won’t go on for much longer.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “How much longer do you think?”

  He shrugged one shoulder, though the catch in her voice caught his attention. Why was she worried? “Perhaps a few weeks.”

  Marion swallowed hard. Lucas had only given her father until the month’s end to convince her to come to his bed willingly. A few more weeks would be far past that deadline. August was fast waning and September would soon be upon them.

  “Noah.”

  She was determined to tell him the whole truth about what Lucas truly planned to buy from her father. Even if Noah was angry she’d kept the truth from him, he would understand why she needed his timetable advanced.

  “Yes?”

  She ducked back out of the playhouse to take his hand. “Noah, I can’t wait for…”

  “Marion, Lord Woodbury?”

  Marion jumped at her father’s voice. She dropped Noah’s hand as if it burned her and called out, “We’re here.”

  “Well, come back. We’re ready to have our luncheon and Mr. Lucas is tired of waiting for you,” he snapped.

  Marion rubbed her eyes in frustration. Once again, she couldn’t tell Noah about Lucas’s planned seduction. At least for the time being. And there was little time left. She had no doubt Lucas was tired of waiting, not just for his lunch, but for her. And whatever it took, she wouldn’t allow that.

  Chapter Twelve

  Noah watched through narrowed eyes as Josiah Lucas strolled around the lake’s edge with Marion on his arm. If only he wasn’t on a case he would…

  Well, there were a good many things he would do. None of which he could even consider since he was working for the War Department. His one consolation was that with him sitting just feet away, Lucas wouldn’t dare touch Marion again.

  But what about when he wasn’t around? Marion shared a home with Lucas, even if it was temporary. Noah had thought her father would protect her from the man’s advances until she was legally wed. Obviously, he’d underestimated Hawthorne once again. After all, the man hadn’t been ten feet away and allowed Lucas manhandle Marion like she was already his.

  He shifted his gaze to Walter Hawthorne. The other man was stuffing his great, red mouth with chunks of venison Mrs. York had put in Noah’s lunch. He had to wonder how the man didn’t choke. But fate was never so kind.

  “What kind of business interests do you and Mr. Lucas share, Mr. Hawthorne?” Noah watched the other man’s face carefully even as he maintained a bored expression.

  Hawthorne coughed and his piggy hazel eyes widened at the question. When the man was quite purple, Noah leaned over and pounded him on the back a few times, sending a chunk of meat flying across the lawn to plop into the water.

  “Thank you, Woodbury,” Hawthorne wheezed as he took a long draught of ale from the flask by his side. “Now what was that?”

  Hawthorne remembered the question perfectly well, but Noah gave him a bemused smile and repeated, “I simply wondered what business interests you share with Lucas. It seems odd to me that a textile man and a coal baron have something in common.”

  Hawthorne opened his mouth, but Noah continued, “Some kind of business so pressing that it required you to travel all the way from your home with your daughter and stay with Lucas for… how long has it been now? A fortnight, at least.”

  Walter nodded. “Er, Mr. Lucas and I have… that is we’re both invested… that is we have some mutual interests.”

  “Which are?” Noah picked up a ripe, red apple and tossed it in the air only to catch it just before it hit the dirt. He repeated the action over and over while he waited for the other man’s response.

  “I say,” Hawthorne said after a moment of being mesmerized by Noah’s action. “There are some things, even in business, that are too delicate to be discussed in the open.”

  Noah barely held back a growl. Obviously selling his daughter was one of those subjects too delicate to speak about, but not too delicate to do. It made Noah sick.

  “Is that so?” His voice never wavered or betrayed his anger. “Perhaps I might be interested in your investments, as well.”

  He stopped tossing the apple and met Hawthorne’s eyes evenly. The time had come to test this man.

  “But you don’t know what they are,” Hawthorne stammered.

  Noah smiled. “I know you have some things I wouldn’t mind owning,” he said with a glance toward Marion.

  She and Lucas were nearly all the way around the lake now, heading back toward them on the opposite side from where they’d started. Hawthorne followed his line of vision and started when he saw Noah look at his daughter. His gaze immediately narrowed in thought. Noah was sickened that Hawthorne was now trying to find a way to use Noah’s relationship with Marion to his own advantage.

  “I-I might be willing to negotiate with other parties if they made it worth my while,” Hawthorne said after a long pause.

  Noah swallowed back his rage. “Perhaps. First I’d need to know the amount being asked.”

  “Understood,” Hawthorne said with a grin. “What I’m offering is a rare commodity. I couldn’t settle for anything less than its worth. We could talk about specifics later, if you’d like.” His eyes shifted to Lucas. “I wouldn’t want the other party to catch me bargaining with you.”

  Noah bit back a retort. “I need time to think about whether the investment was worth the price.”

  Hawthorne nodded. “But don’t wait too long. You never know when what you seek may be lost to you. Especially if other investors make their decision first.”

  The muscles in Noah’s shoulders twitched with the anger that boiled within him. Though he’d learned Hawthorne had a price for Marion’s freedom and her body, somehow that didn’t make him feel better. The man had no scruples. But why did he have so little feeling for his own flesh and blood?

  “I wonder if you might be able to put your other interested parties off for a while.” He hoped to buy both Marion and himself some more time. He was sure they could uncover the evidence he was looking for if they just had a few extra days. “Until I make my decision.”

  Hawthorne shook his head. “Oh no, my lord. Mr. Lucas has made it clear that he wants M-, that is to say, he wants what he’s earned by month’s end. I was pushing my luck by asking for that long. If you want what I have to offer, you’ll have to make your decision quickly.”

  Noah pursed his lips in displeasure. This was like talking to a farmer about a cattle auction, not a father about his only child.

  “You’re a mercenary, sir.” He hoped he sounded amused rather than disgusted. “We aren’t talking about cotton here, are we?”

  Hawthorne didn’t even the decency to look ashamed. “A commodity is a commodity.”

  Before Noah could utter the curse about to escape from his lips, Marion and Lucas reached the picnic blanket. Immediately, she released the older man’s arm and edged toward Noah.

  “Thank you, Mr. Lucas. I enjoyed our little walk. You know so much about the history of Woodbury.”

  She met Noah’s eyes. He could see by her pained expression that she’d heard an earful of nonsense, but nothing that could help them on their mission. Poor girl, he’d have to school her in the fact that most of the time spy work was frightfully boring.

  “What were you two talking about?” She looked from her father to Noah, then back again. “You looked awfully serious as Mr. Lucas and I approached.”

  Noah frowned. It was bad enough Marion knew her father was will
ing to sell her to pay his debts. She didn’t need to hear he was now auctioning her to the highest bidder.

  “Mind your business, girly,” her father growled as his eyes shifted to Lucas with an uneasy smile. “What Lord Woodbury and I were discussing is none of your affair.”

  “Yes.” Noah rose to his feet. “It wasn’t important, Miss Marion. But the afternoon is growing late and I’m sure we should all be returning to our respective homes. May I escort you all to Linton Green at least?”

  Lucas frowned, but propriety gave him no choice but to agree. “Of course, my lord. We welcome your company.”

  Noah acknowledged the man with a nod, but his attention was still focused on Marion. How the young woman had come through life with her father and still maintained her sanity and sense of humor was more than he could comprehend. But it made him all the more determined to help her in whatever way he could.

  ***

  Noah strode into the foyer and started down the hall. He needed to write a letter to Lord Golding explaining his situation with Marion and ask for his former superior’s advice. Seemed Noah could no longer trust his own judgment.

  He grasped his door handle when he heard his mother’s voice from the parlor behind him.

  “There you are!” He turned to find her in the door with a wide smile on her face. “Come in and tell me about your day.”

  She was watching him with expectant blue eyes and he knew he couldn’t deny her. Golding would have to wait.

  “Of course.” He placed a kiss on her cheek and motioned her back to the parlor. Sitting down, he smiled at her. “I’m sorry I couldn’t share luncheon with you.”

  She waved his apology away with a smile. “Nonsense. I’m perfectly capable of eating on my own. But I wonder if you ate alone?”

  He smiled at her arched eyebrow and the knowing twinkle in her eye. “I did not, but I can tell you’d already guessed that. I was lucky enough to bump into Mr. Lucas, Mr. Hawthorne and Miss Marion while I was on my ride. We ended up picnicking together at Lake Perchta.”

  Tabitha smiled again. “Bumped into them, eh?”

  He gave one shoulder a noncommittal shrug. He knew better than to lie to his mother.

  “I like Marion,” his mother said with a sigh. “She’s a lovely girl with a bright and quick wit. She reminds me of Audrey in some ways.”

  Noah nodded. “I never noticed it before, but you’re right. Audrey would like Marion.”

  “She would, indeed,” she answered. “It’s unfortunate they’ll never meet.”

  His smile faded at that thought. “Why wouldn’t they?”

  “I would assume after her father’s business is done, the two of them will return to Northumberland. Unless…” she trailed off with an arched eyebrow.

  Noah blinked. “Unless what?”

  “Unless you have other plans for her,” his mother finished with an even stare. He squirmed under the direct look and question. “Do you?”

  What was the correct answer? Especially since he didn’t yet know his plans for Marion himself. She wanted him to take her to her aunts, but that thought was no longer as comforting as it had once been. With her so far away, he’d likely never see her again.

  “I-”

  “And if you do have plans for Marion, where does that leave Charlotte?” his mother interrupted. Her tone was very gentle for such direct questions.

  Noah shifted in his chair. These were the very questions he’d been asking himself. The thought of losing Marion forever was an unpleasant one, but promises had been made to Charlotte in London. Though they weren’t binding, they were honorable.

  “You don’t fully understand the relationship Marion and I have, Mother.”

  Hell, he didn’t fully understand the relationship he and Marion shared, either.

  “I’m well aware of that,” she said with a laugh. “I was hoping you might explain it.” She folded her arms as if she were ready to wait.

  “I can’t,” he said as he rose to his feet to pace to the fireplace. “But trust I’m not doing anything to jeopardize my plans with Charlotte. Just because I happen to like Marion doesn’t mean my intentions have changed.”

  Tabitha stood up with a shake of her head. “Like her? I know I’m speaking out of turn, but it’s obvious that it’s more than that. For both of you.”

  “Mother!” he said, eyes widening. He’d never known her to be so frank. “Propriety…”

  “Bah!” she scoffed with a shake of her head. “Propriety has its place, but so does love. Look at the life your father and I shared.”

  “And how unhappy you are now that he’s dead. Is that what love brought you?” he snapped before he considered his words.

  His mother’s face twisted with pain, and Noah immediately wished he could take back his harsh words. Until he’d said them, he hadn’t realized how much he equated love with loss.

  “Do you think my sorrow now makes me want to change even one day I shared with your father?” A tremor broke her voice.

  Noah turned away from her pain with a wordless shrug of one shoulder. She grasped his elbow and forced him to face her again.

  “I wouldn’t! My grief now is a testament to the love we shared. In time my pain will ease and I’ll be left with the very happy memories. I wish you even half the joy we shared.”

  Noah felt a tightness in his throat and could find nothing to say to his mother. Behind the grief in her eyes, he could see her strength and her love. They were things he hadn’t noticed since his father’s death, but they’d been there all along.

  “Promise me you won’t throw away a chance you have for happiness just because you think propriety risks less,” she said with a sigh. “There’s been enough of that in this family.”

  “I can only promise you I’ll consider what you’ve said.” Noah slipped his arm from her grip. “I know you mean well, but you don’t understand the totality of the situation. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a bit of work to do and I’d like to finish it before supper.”

  His mother opened her mouth to say something, but after a moment, closed it again with a nod.

  He looked away and walked out into the hall, knowing her sad eyes followed his every step, willing him to make a choice he couldn’t make.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Noah scribbled his initials across the bottom of the note he’d just written. He stared at it for a long moment before folding it in quarters and handing it to Rothschild.

  “Do you know what to do with it?” Though the correspondence was a routine one, anxiety overwhelmed him.

  “Of course,” the young man said with a jaunty grin. “I’m to give it to my brother at Lucas’s, and I’m to tell him not to give the note to anyone but Sally Howard for Miss Marion.”

  “Very good. Be careful. The last thing I need is for this message to fall into the wrong hands. It could endanger Miss Marion’s life if that happened.” He stared at the man with a menacing glare. “Do you understand?”

  The cocky sureness in the boy’s grin faded. “Absolutely, sir. I’m very clear on how important this is. And I’ll tell my brother to keep an even closer eye on Miss Marion to be certain she’s not in any danger.”

  “Very good. Now be off.” Noah waved the other man away to deliver his missive, then sank down into his office chair with a groan.

  Since his troubling conversation with his mother the day before, all he’d been able to think about was Marion and the feelings she inspired in him. The friendship he could understand. The desire he understood, too. But this new sensation of needing her, he had no idea what to do with. It was completely foreign.

  He’d run over and over in his mind what to do about it. His only answer was to solve his case as quickly as possible, buy Marion’s freedom and send her to her aunts. There, at least, she would be happy and he wouldn’t have to face the way she made him feel. He would return to London and marry Charlotte as he had planned. Eventually he would forget about Marion Hawthorne.

  With a
shake of his head, he rose to his feet and mixed himself a drink. Tonight he planned to sneak into Toppleton Square through Marion’s window and do a thorough search of Lucas’s study. Going there was about finding evidence. It had nothing to do with her.

  “Damn and blast.”

  He downed his drink in one fiery swig. When had things become so complicated? He’d come out to the country to have one last taste of adventure. Instead he’d found a woman who captivated him and created more problems than he wanted to fathom. But the idea of being with her was a powerful draw, and in the recesses of his heart, he had to admit it drove him to Toppleton Square more than any case could have.

  ***

  Marion sat on the narrow window seat looking out across the misty night toward Linton Green. In just a few hours Noah would ride through those trees and climb into her room. She thrilled at just the thought of being alone with him again.

  “May I help you get undressed?” Sally asked from behind her.

  Marion turned to face the servant with a giddy smile. She’d almost forgotten the young woman was there in her excitement to receive and read Noah’s note. She continued to clutch it against her breast, unwilling to let it burn in the fire as she knew she must.

  “No, I’ll stay as I am for a while.” She attempted to regain a firm hand on her composure. “I’ll read for a bit. I can undress myself.”

  The last thing she wanted was for Noah to see her in her boring, high-necked night shift. She wouldn’t even be able to look at him after that.

  “I don’t know, miss,” Sally began. Her lower lip twisted in question. “It may not be proper.”

  Marion wrinkled her brow. “What might not be proper? Undressing myself? I assure you I do it all the time back at home. I don’t have a maid of my own there, and-”