Table of Contents
REDEEMING THE EARL
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Epilogue
REDEEMING THE EARL
JENN LANGSTON
SOUL MATE PUBLISHING
New York
REDEEMING THE EARL
Copyright©2015
JENN LANGSTON
Cover Design by Rae Monet, Inc.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, business establishments, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
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Published in the United States of America by
Soul Mate Publishing
P.O. Box 24
Macedon, New York, 14502
ISBN: 978-1-61935-988-8
www.SoulMatePublishing.com
The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
BY JENN LANGSTON
THE PERFECT SERIES
His Perfect Bride
His Perfect Game
His Perfect Lady
***
Catching The Baron
Winning The Duke
Redeeming The Earl
To my awesome sister, Linda.
Thank you for scanning through all my books
to get them ready to be published.
Your unwavering honesty has greatly
helped me fix my story in advance,
and handle harsh reviews.
I couldn’t do this without you.
Chapter 1
Rebecca Doutree’s borrowed breeches were falling down again. She let out a very unladylike curse. Tugging on them too much would only prove they did not belong to her. As daughter of Viscount Burford and a respected member of Society, she shouldn’t be on this dingy street across from a tavern. However, the knowledge didn’t stop her.
Wiping her hand against her dry nose, she sniffed loudly, trying to properly play her part as a grubby boy. After a glance down at her hand, she wiped it on her trousers in an attempt to make it look like she was cleaning off her hand, while actually righting her clothing. Honestly, she didn’t understand how men wore these things all day. Not only were they itchy, but they rubbed her in the wrong places. The thought alone brought heat to her cheeks. Her mother would be scandalized.
When she arrived at the agreed-upon location, Rebecca leaned against the wall and waited for the man who’d summoned her. The sound of male laughter emerging from the tavern made each minute agonizing. Would they realize she was a lady? Nerves high, she swallowed as she lowered her hat to cover her face better. She hated having to do this.
She cursed her brother, not for the first time that night. Alexander should be the one out here, not her. When he came up with this idea, he’d agreed to be the one to take care of all the face-to-face meetings. However, today he decided getting under some girl’s skirts was more important.
“You can’t possibly be the one I’m to meet.” The deep male voice startled her and forced her attention to him. “Move on, boy.”
Rebecca could only stand and stare. Although she knew exactly who he was, she’d never seen him this close. Dark blond hair framed a perfect face that was as handsome as it was pretty. His height measured more than hers, though she towered over many men of her acquaintance.
“Boy?”
Swallowing, she calmed herself as she dropped her gaze from his soft brown eyes to his chest. Her heart thundered against her ribs. Secretly she’d hoped the Earl of Dunmore would seek her out for help, but she hadn’t honestly believed him to be so concerned over his reputation. The reality excited and scared her.
“My lord.” She dropped her voice as low as she could and tried to remind herself to speak like a young boy. “Did you make the ad in the paper?”
“Yes.” He rocked back on his heels. “You are not exactly what I expected to find. I assume you represent someone.”
She nodded. For years she’d trained herself to hold her tongue around people she wasn’t acquainted with. Breaking the habit wasn’t easy. Alex owed her for this.
“Do you intend to tell me what I need to do to hire your employer, or am I to guess?” Impatience showed through his words.
Clearing her throat, she tried to recall what she should ask. “What are the names and the scandal?” She wished she had a pen and paper, but Alex had made it clear to her how she should act.
The earl crossed his arms. “How can I be sure your employer publishes the Unscandal Sheet and not the gossip column?”
What did Alex do to handle these people? She’d been revealing the truth about notorious scandals in her publication for almost two years, but she’d never been on this side before.
She shrugged, trying to appear as if she didn’t care. “I can leave.”
Turning to go, she froze when he gripped her upper arm. A moment of fear touched her. Was she in danger? Would he kill her now? The menacing warmth of his hand didn’t leave as he spun her back around.
“I didn’t say I wasn’t interested.” He released her and clasped his hands behind his back. “This scandal revolves around me. I’m Charles Edwards, Earl of Dunmore. I’ve been married four times and have buried all four wives in the span of five years.”
Considering she, and most of London, already knew this, she didn’t react. When she’d heard he had returned to town, she’d done as much research as she could. Unfortunately, her search didn’t turn up anything beyond that he sought a fifth wife.
“They say you killed them. Did you?”
His eyes narrowed as he seemed to grow before her eyes. “Do not question me, boy.”
She shrank back.
Seemingly unconcerned, he continued. “I’ve come to have your little newssheet to proclaim my innocence, not to be questioned like a convict.”
Biting down on her fear, she squared her shoulders. She couldn’t let him intimidate her. “My employer needs the whole story. Tell me, or this conversation is over.”
“People die. Some sooner than others,” he responded in an emotionless tone.
“I’ll take that as ‘No. I didn’t kill them.’ Now, do you have anything more to say?”
“As the Season is about to begin, I’m in a hurry t
o have this matter put behind me. When can I expect the story to be printed?”
“It doesn’t work like that. My employer will need to do his research. Once done, you will have your story out in the paper.”
The earl let out a long breath. “I don’t have time for that. Just tell me how much money it will take to get this matter settled soon.”
She jerked her head back. Money? Did he honestly believe she printed falsehoods for money? The Unscandal Sheet was the truth. She’d gone to great lengths in order to make sure of that.
“I’m sorry, my lord. No money is exchanged for lies. My employer is only interested in the truth.”
“Then why this charade of arranging these meetings? Can’t your employer unearth scandals on his own? Again, I’m questioning his purpose.”
Irritated that he continually doubted her word, and tired of his attitude, she stretched to her full height and looked at him directly.
“You can continue to question. Without me standing here.” With that, she turned and walked away from him.
He didn’t stop her or make any indication he wanted to reconsider his decision. As she took the roundabout way to her father’s townhouse, she couldn’t stop shaking. Nor could she stop thinking about the earl.
The fact he sought out her services could be an indication of his innocence regarding the rumors. However, he hadn’t stopped her. Could his intention simply have been for the paper to publish false information to clear his name? She wanted to know.
As she sat in the drawing room the following day, she decided she would seek out the truth of the scandal regardless if the earl wanted her to or not. After all, that was how she’d started the sheet. Unfortunately, she found quite a few of the whispers and scandals were in fact true.
“Good afternoon, dear sister,” Alex said cheerily as he swept in the room and lounged upon a chair.
Ignoring his greeting, Rebecca stuck her nose in the air. She wasn’t pleased with him right now. “How was your night? Was it worth it?”
“Not in the least,” he lamented, seemingly oblivious to her anger. “I’d heard the girl had a lot of potential, but she just laid there like a dead fish.”
Rebecca wasn’t surprised by her brother’s comment. At twenty, he and his twin, Andrew, never knew when to keep their conquests a secret. And she, being at the spinsterly age of twenty-three, knew exactly what happened between a man and a woman, although she hadn’t experienced it.
“What did you expect her to do? Chase you about the room?”
He winked. “That would have been more exciting, but I don’t need all that. Simply some indication she was still alive.”
“Perhaps your lack of skill had, in fact, killed her.”
Without taking the bait, he put his hands behind his head. “Why don’t you tell me about your night? Did the meeting go well?”
Turning her face away from him, she trained her eyes on the door. “I would tell you, but I have just decided I am no longer speaking to you.”
“Why not?” he demanded.
“I needed you last night, but you chose a fish over me. Honestly, I’m glad she didn’t move. It serves you right.”
“That’s unfair. How can you expect me to change my plans every time someone leaves a letter requesting a meeting?”
“Because it was your idea to advertise, and people rarely contact us.” As her anger increased, so did her voice. For any ordinary person, that wouldn’t be a problem, but the normal level of her voice emerged shrill. It had taken her years to teach herself to speak in a lower tone. However, a little irritation cast all training aside.
“There’s no reason to scream at me. I’ll make it up to you. Just tell me what you learned.”
She took a deep breath and tried to calm her anger. Truthfully, Alex had been invaluable, and she had no desire to go back to taking all the tasks on herself.
“The Earl of Dunmore met with me last night.”
The color draining from her brother’s face gave her some satisfaction. Perhaps next time he wouldn’t put her second to his own pleasure.
“Did he hurt you? Or try anything? I’m so sorry. It should have been me.” His eyes roamed over her as if he expected an outward sign of injury to present itself.
Rebecca rolled her eyes. “Don’t be so dramatic. As you see, I’m perfectly fine. I just . . . didn’t handle it well.”
“How so?”
“I believe he’s changed his mind about the Unscandal Sheet.”
Alex dropped back in his chair. “Thank God. Let’s put this behind us and forget about the earl. We don’t want him as a client anyway.”
Biting her lip, Rebecca didn’t respond. She would not forget the earl. If he was innocent, people like him were the reason why she began the sheet in the first place. Seeing fellow members of society falling simply because of a whisper never sat well with her. Someone needed to provide a voice for them, and she was the only person willing to do so. Besides, she loved a challenge and held a soft spot for the truth.
“No, Rebecca. I can see what you’re thinking. This isn’t an impoverished lord looking to trick some lady into marriage like the last scandal. This is murder.”
Her brother’s narrowed eyes couldn’t stop her. She would seek out the earl, ferret out his secrets, and publish her findings. She just hoped she would survive the endeavor.
Charles Edwards, Earl of Dunmore forced a smile as the Prince Regent laughed. Although he couldn’t understand what caused His Majesty’s amusement, Charles was grateful for Prinny’s approval. Otherwise, he would have faced murder charges years ago.
“Have you seen Lady Isham tonight?” Prinny asked, eyeing Charles closely.
Scanning the crowd, Charles easily located her among a crowd of several young admirers. Lord Isham stood off to the side, practically salivating at all the attention his wife received. Charles mentally shook his head. People claimed Charles was strange, but looking upon the couple, he couldn’t understand how the unorthodox pair could rate higher than him.
“I see her,” Charles answered.
“She looks rather fetching tonight. Don’t you agree?” The Prince Regent rubbed his ample chin.
At that moment the lady in question bent forward and batted at something along the front of her gown, effectively displaying exactly what she had to offer.
“Yes, but she should take better care dressing. From this vantage, I can see she’s missed the second grommet when lacing her undergarments.”
Prinny burst into another round of laughter while his crowd joined in. “Stick around. I may need a good laugh later this evening.”
Charles bowed as His Majesty and his entourage moved on. Letting out a sigh of relief, Charles moved further away. He imagined his frankness and honesty attracted the monarch to him. Regardless of his reasons, Charles would remain here as long as Prinny desired.
Sensing eyes upon him, he scanned the room. Although the feeling of being viewed like he was a pariah wasn’t new, this was different. As his gaze fell upon the clearest blue eyes he’d ever seen, he jerked back. The tall lady examined him with an intensity that made him uncomfortable. Luckily, it wasn’t long before her attention faltered.
His eyes trailed her as she glided among the crowd. Curiosity burned him, making him wonder who she was. Her age clearly exceeded the young debutantes, but she wasn’t very advanced in years either. Younger than his twenty-seven, he’d wager. He watched as her almost white blond haired glittered in the candlelight. Why had this girl been surveying him?
Shaking away thoughts of her interest, he headed to the card room. Even with the approval of the Prince Regent, the marriageable ladies and their mothers scurried away from him. Being here tonight proved pointless. But how else was he to find another wife? He required an heir, and he would do anything to ob
tain one. After all, it had been the only thing his father had asked of him. He’d be damned if he failed the one request of the man who sired him.
Charles selected a chair at an unoccupied table, preferring to sit back and watch rather than participate. No one looked his way or acknowledged his presence. That didn’t bode well. If he couldn’t obtain favor with the mothers or fathers, he would have no hope with the daughters.
“Sitting alone?” a young man asked. “May I join you?”
The urge to deny him sat on the tip of Charles’ tongue, but he bit down the response. Instead he shrugged. He recalled seeing the man in Prinny’s crowd. Although they’d been introduced, Charles couldn’t remember his name.
The man sat and let out a long sigh, as if his troubles were weighing him down. “So, you are the Earl of Dunmore that everyone is speaking about. I’m sure your ears are burning with all the whispers.”
“I don’t see why they would be. I have no interest in gossip.”
“Well, apparently they have an interest in you.” The man gave him a smile as if he’d made the wittiest remark ever uttered.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t recall your name.”
“Of course, how silly of me. You’ve probably met a great number of people today, considering you are one of His Majesty’s favorites. I’m Alexander Doutree.”
Charles inclined his head in acknowledgement. “The Prince Regent has been very kind to me.”
“Is he what brings you to London? The Season is my favorite time of year. Not only does it attract interesting characters, but the women are most abundant.”
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