In her peripheral vision she saw a dragonfly land on the black wool covering her knee. At least it was silent, unlike those chattering birds above her. At the sound of crunching gravel on the path behind her, the little creature and the birds flew away. She tipped her head down, praying whoever it was didn’t pay much attention to her as they walked by. She had never dressed in men’s attire during daylight hours and was worried if anyone looked close enough it would be obvious she was a woman. No one she had passed on her way had given her a second look. Hopefully it would stay that way.
Only this person did not pass her bench. They sat down next to her. She kept her eyes on the pavilion, hiding her entire profile. It was difficult to remain calm on the outside, when your instincts were screaming at you to run.
‘Cross your ankle over your knee. You’ll look more like a man.’
She knew that low, deep-throated whisper without even having to look.
‘Go away, Hartwick.’
‘No.’
‘I’m busy.’
‘So am I. I’m busy making sure you look like a man. Now, adjust your legs.’
She wanted to glare at him, but refused to alter her gaze.
‘Do it.’
With a crisp movement she adjusted her leg the way he directed. It felt odd and she felt completely exposed in this position. Lud, he was annoying.
‘I see you’re raising some kind of breeze,’ he said matter-of-factly.
‘What makes you think I’m up to mischief?’
‘You mean to tell me you’ve decided you prefer trews to gowns? I commend your bold fashion choice. Let me know if it becomes fashionable.’
‘Please go away.’
‘I know why you’re here. Facing your blackmailer alone isn’t wise. I’ve come to offer my services should you need assistance.’
She glanced over at him in surprise before she caught herself and turned back to the pavilion. ‘How did you...?’
‘Katrina told me.’
She uttered a very male-sounding growl. Was there no one she could trust?
‘Don’t be angry with her. She is concerned for your safety. She didn’t reveal it all. I still don’t know what you are being threatened with.’
She wished she could see if he was lying. ‘I appreciate you coming here because of her concern. But you really don’t need to trouble yourself. You can go back to her house and inform her I am quite well.’
‘I’m not here because of her. I’m here because of you. I knew you’d need some assistance in pretending to be a man. You forget, I’ve seen you in those clothes before and, darling, you need the assistance.’
She hit her crossed foot into his knee. ‘I’ve done fine so far.’
‘Have you ever gone out like this in daylight? You look too enticing in trews and you’re in need of a good valet. Those clothes are in a shambles. At least you had the wherewithal to wear a long coat this time.’ He plucked at her sleeve. ‘Wait a moment. Is that Julian’s coat?’
‘Maybe.’ She tugged her arm away from his, trying to focus her attention on the pavilion, but being this close to him with his familiar teasing nature was breaking her heart. She hit him again with her foot. ‘Leave.’
‘No. Come now, what harm is there in two chaps sitting side by side, enjoying a day in the square admiring the ladies?’
‘What ladies?’
‘How long have you been staring at that building?’
‘Since I arrived here.’
He made a tsk sound. ‘Look at me.’
Was he joking? She might miss the blackmailer.
He leaned closer. His warm breath fanned her ear. ‘Sarah, look at me.’
She shifted her gaze, intending to do so for a second. But once she looked at him, she couldn’t turn away. She had missed his expressive eyes—eyes that were now focused on the pavilion.
‘If you are going to operate covertly, you can’t make what you are doing obvious. It’s better if the two of us sit here. It will appear as if I am looking at you, when in fact I am looking for anyone entering that building. You were being too obvious. Your blackmailer may have noticed.’
‘I was being discreet.’
He rolled his eyes and continued to look past her. ‘He may decide to arrive tonight,’ he offered. ‘It would be ideal to remove the diamond in the cover of darkness.’
‘The gate to the square is locked at sunset. And I would think he would not want to risk anyone else discovering it. The instructions were to leave the diamond under the bench in the morning. I’m assuming he doesn’t want to wait much past noon to retrieve it.’
They sat in silence for a bit longer. Hart stared past her and Sarah tried her hardest not to stare at him. But she couldn’t help taking in how his dark brows and thick lashes sharply contrasted to his bright blue eyes. And how she knew what his smooth, firm lips felt like against her skin. And how under his clothes the contours of his bare chest did strange things to her when they were in her room by the fireside. Did he have any idea how difficult it was to sit next to him and not touch him, even in the slightest way? What had he been doing since she last saw him? Had he gone to see Lady Helmford, or had he found another lady to occupy his nights?
‘He’s here.’
His deep voice broke into her depressing musings and she jerked her head towards the pavilion. A thin, tall man wearing a hat and long brown coat with dull boots bent down and took out the empty box wrapped in black cloth. Sarah jumped up to follow him and Hart was immediately at her side.
‘I just want to see where he goes,’ she whispered. ‘That is all.’
They followed his unhurried gait as he turned and walked back down the path he came from.
‘What is he threatening you with? What will he do when he discovers he doesn’t have the diamond?’
‘There’s a letter that he will make public when he realises he doesn’t have the diamond. I can’t let that happen.’
‘Then we will find a way to stop him.’
He didn’t ask her what was damaging in the letter. He simply said they would stop him. His confident manner boosted her belief that she still had a way to protect her family.
They walked a few more feet when something about the man struck a familiar cord with her. She watched him carefully. The way he swung one arm. The way his shoulders moved forward and back when he walked.
It wasn’t possible!
She ran ahead, dodging around an elderly couple to reach the man, leaving Hart behind. When she was less than a foot behind him, she jerked his right shoulder back and spun him around.
Large brown eyes that resembled the pair she saw in the mirror every day grew wider as he looked back at her.
‘Sarah?’ Her name was barely audible over the soft sound of the birds.
How was it possible she was staring into the eyes of her brother?
‘This can’t be! You’re dead! We received word that you died when your ship was attacked in the harbour.’
Hart ran up to her side and looked between the two.
Alexander didn’t speak, but he raised his hand as if to stop her from stepping closer to him.
‘Why did you not contact us, Alex? Do you have any idea what we’ve been through?’
‘Do you have any idea what I’ve been going through?’
She slapped him. Her hand stung through her glove and she reddened his cheek. The elderly couple that had been behind them hurried by.
‘Why did you not tell us you were alive? Why didn’t you contact us? We waited to hear word your body had washed ashore, but we never did. Now I know why.’
The brother she adored was alive. Her heart wanted to embrace him and not let him go. But her head was screaming that he had let them believe he died.
Then her eyes dropped
to the box in his hands, and her gloved hand flew to her mouth as she recalled why he was in the square. ‘It was you? You were blackmailing our father?’
She went to slap him again, but this time he grabbed her wrist and squeezed it tightly.
‘And this is why I said you could never pass for a man. A man would do this.’ She had completely forgotten Hart was at her side until he raised his fist and punched her brother in the gut hard enough that Alexander’s body rose with the motion and he let go of her hand.
‘Ruffians,’ a man shouted from near the fountain. ‘Off with you! Take your quarrel somewhere else!’
Alexander began to straighten up as Hart stood in front of him so they were toe to toe. ‘I believe you and your sister have much to discuss. We are going to walk to my residence from here. I will walk behind you and she will guide you. Know that I have a knife in my pocket that I will use in your back with no question should you decide to deviate from my plan. Do you understand?’
In all the time she had known Hart, she had never heard him speak with such a deadly calm.
* * *
It didn’t take long to get to Hart’s residence and thankfully they had no problem being admitted by the porter. His set was vacant when they entered. She assumed he had staff. Perhaps they were in another part of the building.
Under normal circumstances she would have wanted to explore the drawing room they were standing in. She had tried to picture his home many times. But this wasn’t a normal circumstance.
Today she stood in Hart’s drawing room, staring into her brother’s eyes.
‘I will leave the interrogating to you,’ Hart said to Sarah before turning to her brother. ‘Know that I will be across the room. Should you do anything to physically harm her, I have deadly aim with this knife.’
Alexander wiped sweat from his brow before giving a quick nod.
She watched Hart stroll to the window, picking up a book on the way. When he sat down in a wingback chair, she turned back to Alex.
‘Is he your husband?’
The notion that Alex would think her husband would allow her to traipse about London dressed in men’s attire to capture a blackmailer was ludicrous. The idea almost made her laugh.
‘Heavens, no. Now, tell me how it is you are alive.’
He was sweating and would not look at her.
‘It is over, Alex. Tell me. We thought you were on your ship in the harbour during the battle. Were you?’
‘It is not as easy as that. I was on my ship. But when we got word the British Navy was heading towards Baltimore harbour, I began to panic. I wanted it over. The war. All of it. They had burned Washington. We were losing to them. I was tired of fighting. I just wanted it over. So in the middle of the night, I climbed down into the water and swam to shore. I wanted to run. I didn’t think of you or our parents. I thought of me and I ran and I didn’t look back. I knew Papa would never understand my desertion. He is too much a patriot. I worked my way up to New York and managed to get work on a merchant vessel that travelled back and forth between Liverpool and New York. Eventually I decided to remain in England. It was easier that way.’
‘Easier for you maybe! None of this was easy for us. You could have sent word. You could have told us.’
‘No, Sarah, I couldn’t. I thought there would be no chance of me seeing you here. Imagine my shock when I read in the papers that our father was the newly appointed American Minster.’ He licked his lips nervously. ‘I started to make friends. Some of them were the wrong sort of friends. And I started to gamble.’
Sarah pushed against his chest. ‘Your note said there was a letter proving you had supplied American intelligence to the British. But that was a lie, wasn’t it, and now you’re telling me you did all this because you have gambling debts? You blackmailed our own father over gambling debts?’
‘They are rather large. I overheard two gentlemen whispering one night in a tavern. They were saying this yellow diamond from France was hidden somewhere in London and it was worth a fortune. That the key to finding it was in some English aristocrat’s bracelet. I listened carefully to the details and wrote them down. Papa was the only one I knew who would be able to get to the bracelet. I couldn’t do it myself. I didn’t know how to find her.’
‘So you thought he could steal it for you?’ She pushed him harder.
‘I’m not proud of what I did. I’m desperate. I thought it would be easy for him. He was always smart. He could always work out problems. Why are you here with the diamond and not him? Why would he send you to deliver it dressed like a man?’
‘Because he doesn’t know, you fool. He doesn’t know about the letter you sent. I saw it first and thought to save him the pain of finding out that you were a traitor. How is it I did not recognise your handwriting?’
‘I wrote it with my left hand.’
‘So you were smart enough to do that, but not to find the diamond on your own.’ She pounded his chest with her fist, trying to hurt him as much as he hurt her. Hart charged across the room and pulled her off Alex.
‘Easy, darling,’ he said, stepping between them.
Alex looked down at the box. ‘But don’t you see? You got it. There is no harm done.’
‘I didn’t get it,’ she said through her teeth. ‘There is no diamond in that box.’
Confusion crossed Alex’s brow before he opened the box and saw it was empty. Then panic set in. ‘But...but...’
‘Someone had reached it before I did. There is no diamond to settle your debts. Just like there is no letter proving your traitorous act, is there?’
‘How large is this debt of yours?’ Hart asked from beside her.
‘Eleven thousand pounds.’
It was an exorbitant sum.
‘I can settle it.’
She looked at Hart aghast. She could never ask that of him and furthermore she didn’t want to. ‘No. I won’t let you help him. Not after what he did. Leave, Alex. Go back to whatever hole you crawled out of in Liverpool or wherever you live.’
‘Are you going to tell them?’
She shook her head. ‘I haven’t decided.’
Her brother stood there staring at her for a few moments more before he nodded and trudged out of Hart’s set. The sound of the door closing did nothing to move her thoughts from memories of spending time with her brother when they were young.
‘What will you do now?’
It was Hart’s warm voice that called her back to the present. She looked up into those blue eyes and took a steadying breath.
She took a step back, even though she didn’t want to. ‘I wish I could just pretend that he was still dead. I know that is a horrible thing to say, but then I wouldn’t have to decide if I should tell my parents any of this. They were devastated by his death. To think he would allow them to suffer like that because he was afraid to have a conversation with my father...’ She rubbed her brow and shook her head.
He stood very still, watching her, giving her the time she needed to finish thinking out loud.
‘What do you think of him?’ she asked.
He gave a slight shrug. ‘There is no honour in what he did. However, I cannot pretend to know what battle is like. Therefore I don’t feel it is right for me to judge his desertion. Fear is a strong emotion and can make a man do things he is not proud of. In any case, I find his actions to blackmail your father deplorable.’ He took a step closer to her, then stopped and placed his hands behind his back.
Her blood was running cold and she rubbed her arms. ‘I think they need to know. He sent the letter to my father, but I saw it first. I did all of this to save them the pain of hearing he was a traitor and removing the only thing that helped them accept his death. If they had learned his death had served no noble purpose, it would have destroyed them. I was afraid my father’s hear
t would not be strong enough and my mother would hide herself away from the world. But he is alive. They need to know that. My father can decide what he wants to do about Alexander’s debts. I’ll tell them tonight.’
She picked up her hat from the chair by the door. He followed her, but kept his distance. She wanted to run into his arms and feel his strong embrace. In his arms she knew she would have found comfort from the hurt and feelings of betrayal brought on by Alexander’s actions. For a few moments at least, all would have been right in the world.
But she couldn’t. Hart didn’t want marriage, which meant he didn’t want her. And she needed to be with her family when her father’s diplomatic mission here was over—and she didn’t know how they would react when they found out the truth about Alex. She and Hart had no future together. If she turned to him for comfort now, his absence would only be more painful later. She needed to be strong without him.
The room she was standing in was lovely, with soft, comfortable furnishings, paintings of horses and the smell of almond oil, presumably from freshly polished tables and doors. ‘I like this room,’ she managed to say through a lump in her throat.
He went to take a step closer, but hesitated. Instead he just nodded. ‘I like it, too.’ His conscious distance between them said it all.
This was goodbye.
Placing her hand on the door handle, she prayed she would make it out of the room without breaking down in sobs.
‘Sarah?’
This was probably the last time he would call her by her Christian name. His voice was low and deep, and she would remember the sound of it for as long as she lived.
She couldn’t turn around. If she did, he would see the tears rimming her eyes. ‘Yes?’
‘Do try not to sway your hips so much when you walk. Men generally clomp about the street.’
An Unexpected Countess Page 22