“Do you promise?”
“Absolutely. I shall not leave your side from this moment forward…unless you ask me to. We are in this together, dear sister.”
“What if Mother has her way?”
“Our mother must be very careful, else she will find herself with no children at all.” Marilyn dropped her gaze between them, a tight smile on her lips. “We could survive in this world without her, Kate. Lord knows she has lived her life without us.”
“I know you are right. It is just difficult when all our lives we have been brought up to obey our parents, to respect them and not question their authority.”
“Yes, but there comes a time when we must do what is best for us.” Marilyn lifted her chin, released a deep breath, and forced a smile. “I no longer wish to talk about Mother. It only upsets me and ruins my good humor. Come, let us return to the manor and take full advantage of the incredible food the cook will have made up.”
“Race you,” Katelyn said, digging her knees into her mount’s sides.
Marilyn’s laughter followed close behind.
The stable master was waiting to take the horses from them the second Katelyn and Marilyn approached the stables.
Inside the manor was quiet, and many of the guests had already retired to their rooms, no doubt for a respite before tonight’s dinner and entertainment.
Katelyn wondered if she could find a way to be with Sinjin again tonight.
Unfortunately, the cabin was too far away from the manor, and their absence would surely not go unnoticed. She could ask Marilyn to cover for her, but even her loyal sister could only improvise so much.
Marilyn closed the chamber door behind them. “I have suffered in silence long enough. Since you have not been forthcoming in the least, I shall ask you—what was it like?” Marilyn inquired.
“Oh, Marilyn, I cannot possibly explain it.”
“Too beautiful for words?”
Kate could not help but grin. Never had she known such happiness. “I understand now why men enjoy it so.”
“You think women do not?”
Katelyn shrugged. “Mother always said it was a chore.”
Marilyn looked skeptical. “It seems like every book I have read, or what whisperings I have heard, always explains making love in a way that hardly describes the act as romantic.”
Katelyn laughed under her breath.
A knock sounded at the door, silencing them. “Perhaps that is a servant with tea,” Marilyn said, crossing the room.
“That would be lovely.”
Marilyn opened the door. “Aunt Lillith, what are you doing here?”
Aunt Lillith’s brows furrowed. “You knew I was coming.”
Katelyn swallowed her intense disappointment that her time alone with Marilyn, without a chaperone, had come to an abrupt halt. “We thought you would be arriving this weekend.”
Lillith’s gaze shifted back and forth between Marilyn and Katelyn. “I was able to come earlier, but I can see neither of you is pleased to see me.” She looked wounded.
Katelyn forced a smile she didn’t feel. “We are glad to see you, Aunt Lillith. You just surprised us, that is all.”
“Do not lie, child. It does not become you.”
Aunt Lillith was stunning and looked a good decade younger than her thirty-eight years. Her complexion was fair and flawless, her golden blonde hair was silky soft, and her hazel eyes sparkled brilliantly.
Lillith had never had children of her own, and her body was as lithe and slim as it had always been. To Katelyn, she had always been one of the most beautiful women she had ever known, and not simply by her outward appearance, but by the woman she was and how she carried herself. She had a sterling reputation, a fun-loving sense of humor, and was widely regarded as a role model to young ladies of her acquaintance.
Their relationship had always been relaxed…more like sisters in many respects. However, she feared at the capacity she would play now that Katelyn had started a sexual relationship with Sinjin.
“We are always happy to see our favorite aunt,” Marilyn said, finally snapping out of her shock.
The compliment seemed to appease some of the hurt caused by their less-than-cordial welcome, because Lillith smiled radiantly. “Tell me all about this party and what you have been up to.”
Katelyn wondered what her aunt would think if she was truthful about her wish to call off her engagement. Would she have an ally in Lillith, or would she run straight to her mother?
“All the Rayborne brothers are positively gorgeous,” Marilyn began.
“If the older two are as handsome as Rory, then I imagine women are fighting amongst themselves in order to win their attention.”
“You met Rory?” Katelyn asked.
“Yes, I passed by him on my way in.” Lillith’s eyes widened and she grinned, exposing deep dimples. “I do not think I have ever seen such a striking man.”
“Rory is confident and a bit arrogant, but very likeable,” Marilyn said with a smile. “And Victor is very funny.”
Lillith’s brows lifted nearly to her hairline. “You seem taken with him, Marilyn.”
“He is my friend,” she said matter-of-factly, and Lillith nodded.
“And what of Sinjin?” Lillith asked.
To Katelyn’s horror, she felt a blush rush up her neck to her cheeks.
Marilyn cleared her throat. “Approachable. He is kind and thoughtful, and looks after his brothers quite dotingly.”
“And what do you think of him, Katelyn?” Lillith asked.
“It is obvious he loves his brothers very much,” Katelyn said. “As Marilyn says, he is very kind.”
“He sounds delightful. Indeed, they all do. I am anxious to meet all of them this evening.”
Marilyn met Katelyn’s gaze but quickly looked away.
“Will you be sharing a room with us?”
Lillith shook her head. “Lady Rochester has been good enough to find me a room of my own, but it will not be ready until late this afternoon, after another guest leaves.”
Thank God for that.
“Do not fret, girls. We shall have a lovely time,” Lillith said, sliding an elegant hand over the polished wood of a side table. “You will not even know that I am here.”
* * *
Lillith watched as hot wax dripped from a candle onto the lace tablecloth that covered the opulent table.
Lady Rochester certainly knew how to throw a party. The room was full of England’s most sought-after debutantes and wealthy young men of privilege.
It reminded her of her coming-out party, which felt like a lifetime ago.
If only she’d had the opportunity to throw her nieces a proper coming-out ball. Perhaps she could have saved dear, sweet Katelyn from a horrific marriage. Poor, poor girl. She would be absolutely miserable married to the pompous, boring Lord Balliford.
Lillith had tried in vain to talk her sister into another match, but Loraine never would listen to reason. No, she didn’t want to interrupt her life by finding a good match for her eldest daughter. She had just leapt at the first man who came along, a friend of her late husband’s.
Indeed, Lillith had even dropped by Loraine’s rented London hotel suite on her way to Claymoore Hall. Her sister had barely let her in, and when she did, she tried to pass her young lover off as one of the help. Lillith knew better. She had heard the rumors circulating.
Her sister would never learn. She had married William when she was only twenty, and after the birth of Katelyn, took up with lover after lover. Poor William had tried everything to make his young wife happy, but the only thing that made Loraine happy was variety.
It had almost been a relief to Loraine when William died eighteen months ago. However, William had his own vice and left the family with a substantial gambling debt. A debt that Lord Balliford had apparently paid off.
And Loraine was blowing through the money, spoiling her young lover with expensive gifts, not caring that she had a thirteen-year-old
son in boarding school, who had taken on the title of his father and desperately needed his mother.
Yes, Loraine had all but thrown Katelyn into Balliford’s lap, and would soon do the same to Marilyn. That was why Lillith hoped that perhaps one of the Rayborne brothers would be a good match.
A handsome young man took a seat opposite her. She sat up a little straighter. “You must be one of the brothers.”
He grinned, and her heart missed a beat.
“Yes, I am Sinjin.”
“Ah, the oldest.”
“Indeed. You must be a new arrival.”
“I am. My name is Lady Nordland. My nieces are here.”
His eyes widened. “Do you mean Lady Marilyn and Lady Katelyn?”
“Yes.”
If possible, his smile brightened even more. “They are delightful young ladies. I am so glad you decided to join them.”
“I fear they do not share your sentiment.”
“I doubt that.”
“I did not plan on arriving until this weekend. I assure you, they were quite taken aback when they opened their chamber door to find me standing there.”
He laughed under his breath. “Well, I can certainly understand to a point. They are young women after all.”
“Indeed,” she replied with a smile, already liking the gorgeous viscount.
She glanced farther down the table at Katelyn. Her niece was talking to a tall blonde. “Lord Mawbry, do you know the man speaking with Lady Katelyn?”
Sinjin leaned forward. “Yes, that is Thomas Lehman.”
“I do not know the name.”
“He is Irish.”
“Ah. He must not realize my niece is engaged.”
“I think he knows. The question is…does he care?”
She nodded, making a mental note to keep an eye on the Irishman’s advances.
“Did you grow up near your nieces?”
How very charming he was. “Yes, I did. That is, until I married and moved to Bath. Unfortunately, I was only able to see my nieces when I visited.” She made sure to leave out that the latter part of her marriage she had spent as much time at her sister’s house as she could tolerate. She loved her sister, but sometimes she could be quite controlling. And having a controlling husband had made Lillith less tolerant of such a trait.
“You must have been a child yourself.”
She smiled sincerely, enjoying his easy manner. “Not quite a child.”
“What can you tell me about your nieces?”
She was delighted by his interest. “Well, although they are sisters, they are very different in personality and temperament. If you have talked with them, you might have noticed this already.”
He nodded. “Marilyn seems to talk a bit more than her sister.”
“Yes, but Katie watches. She might not say much, but she observes. She sees everything.”
Sinjin brought the glass of wine to his lips and took a drink.
“Katie has always loved all things feminine. For as long as I can remember, she played with dolls, dressed up like a princess, and rarely got into trouble. She is proficient at playing the piano, singing, and as you could probably tell by this afternoon, she is quite comfortable in the saddle, but so is her sister.”
“And Marilyn, is she equally schooled in the arts?”
“Yes, but Mary preferred being outside to her studies. She was forever getting her hands dirty, and she seemed to be fond of climbing trees. Indeed, I swear the maid must have changed her clothes half a dozen times a day, much to my sister’s distress.”
“I am not at all surprised,” a young woman murmured. She sat to Sinjin’s right and had been avoiding Lillith all evening.
“Do you know my nieces?” Lillith tried to keep her tone cordial.
The young lady looked at her, all innocence. Lillith had noted the excellent quality of her dress, the expensive jewels, the confident air, like she was better than everyone else at the table. She sniffed. “I do not pretend to know them well.”
How Lillith hated arrogance.
“A pity, for they are lovely creatures,” Lillith said, flashing the young woman her most winning smile.
Across the table, Sinjin Rayborne did his best to hide a grin by wiping his mouth with his napkin, but Lillith had seen that smirk and had a feeling she had a friend in the handsome lord.
11
Sinjin stood outside on the verandah with his brothers while their guests mingled inside, many listening to Lady Anna sing and play the pianoforte, while another group of young ladies and men played cards or charades.
Katelyn and Marilyn had both seemed equally disappointed that their aunt had arrived, and he, too, was disappointed. Her presence would make getting together with Katelyn most difficult—but not impossible.
Dinner had been excruciating, with Katelyn sitting beside Thomas. His mother must have done so deliberately, and the man had taken the opportunity to enforce his interest. Sinjin was desperate to get time alone with her—quite a task since her aunt had yet to leave her side.
“Did you see the maid with the huge tits?” Rory asked, a pleased smile on his lips.
“Yes,” Victor said, taking a draw on a cigar. “Incredible breasts. I’ve never see the like. Positively enormous.”
Sinjin had not even noticed.
“I fucked her in the closet during dinner,” Rory said nonchalantly.
Victor choked on the smoke he had just inhaled.
Sinjin shook his head. He had noticed his youngest sibling leave the festivities and return minutes later with a devilish grin on his face. He should have guessed.
“The closet?” Victor’s eyes narrowed. “Bloody hell, man, you really know how to treat a lady.”
Rory shrugged. “It was her idea. She grabbed my arm and pulled me in. I had no choice in the matter.”
Victor’s head fell back on his shoulders and he chuckled. “So how was it?”
“Lovely, though I wish it would have lasted a bit longer.”
“I bet she’s saying the same thing right about now,” Victor said with a nod, resting a hip against the stone balustrade. He turned to Sinjin. “Since we’re talking about interludes, I noticed you took a while returning from the hunt today, and when you surfaced, you were alone.”
Sinjin glanced at him. “I took a wrong path.”
Rory lifted a dark brow. “Since when do you get lost—”
“Especially when you know this land like the back of your hand.” Victor crushed the cigar under his boot and crossed his arms over his chest. “I think there’s something you’re keeping from us.”
Sinjin didn’t want to keep anything from his brothers, and it wasn’t like him to lie, but he could not bring himself to tell them the truth. He felt protective of Katelyn, and what they had shared had been so intensely gratifying and special, he had no desire to share the details with anyone else.
“You are being awfully quiet, Sin,” Victor murmured, watching him closely.
Irritated, Sinjin shook his head. “You know I have no reason to withhold information from either of you. Truth be told, I enjoyed the time away from the hunt. I am growing weary of the constant entertaining, and much like yourselves, I yearn for a bit of free time, and that is what I got.”
“All right, then,” Victor said with a grin. “I believe you.”
It was obvious he didn’t, but he was not about to push the point either.
Victor cleared his throat. “By the way, I meant to ask you who the new arrival is—the blonde you talked with during dinner.”
“That would be Lady Nordland, aunt of Lady Marilyn and Lady Katelyn.”
“Ah, the apple does not fall far from the tree,” Rory said, wiggling his brows.
“Do not get any ideas, Rory,” Sinjin snapped. “Lady Nordland is a chaperone.”
Rory held his hands up. “And chaperones are off-limits. Well, save for the lovely Lady Katelyn.”
“Lady Katelyn is spoken for.” Sinjin realized too late his voice
had come out clipped.
Rory smiled, and Sinjin realized he was messing with him.
“Stick to your big-breasted maids,” Victor said with a wink.
“Indeed, I shall.”
Victor chewed on a nail. “Isn’t Lady Nordland the widow who has been alone for years now?”
“I don’t know,” Sinjin said.
“She’s quite virtuous, I hear,” Victor said, a smile teasing his lips.
“I wonder what it would be like to have a woman who is virtuous,” Rory said absently, staring out into the dark lawns.
Growing uncomfortable with the conversation, Sinjin looked toward the long parlor windows. He scanned the crowd and found Katelyn, Marilyn, and their aunt sitting in the back of the room, talking amongst themselves.
Sinjin straightened his jacket. “Well, gentleman, I suppose we have dallied long enough.”
“Indeed,” Victor said with a sigh. “Back to the proverbial lion’s den.”
Walking into the parlor, Sinjin kept his eye on Katelyn. She was aware of him, he could tell by the way she kept throwing him glances here and there.
He had to get her alone.
Thomas approached the trio and Sinjin took a deep breath. The man was absolutely incorrigible. Lillith engaged the Irishman in conversation, and when Katelyn glanced his way, Sinjin looked at her, then walked toward the nearest exit.
He could only hope she followed.
* * *
Growing weary, Katelyn cleared her throat. “Aunt Lillith, is it all right if I go to the room for a little bit? I have a slight headache.”
Lillith, who had been speaking to Thomas, turned to her, her brows furrowed. “A headache. Do you have any other symptoms?”
“No, I am sure it is just all the activity.”
She patted Katelyn’s knee. “Of course, my dear. Marilyn, perhaps you could see her to the room.”
Marilyn, looking relieved to get away from Thomas, nodded. “Of course.”
Katelyn headed for a different exit than Sinjin had.
“I bet he is in the study.”
“You saw him enter?”
“No, but I am assuming. From his expression I’m guessing he wants you to follow him, and the most obvious place for him to go to is the room where it all began.”
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