by Iris Gower
‘If what?’ She felt her legs tremble and she bit her lip waiting for his answer.
‘If you will come to my bed.’ He watched her reactions carefully, and when she didn’t answer he spoke again.
‘I know you don’t love me but love can grow, given a chance,’ he said persuasively. ‘I would be good to you, I would treat you with respect always, you know that.’
‘But why should I give up my freedom for Calvin Temple?’ Arian asked but her voice lacked conviction.
‘I think we both know the answer to that, Airs Simples,’ he said. ‘You fancy yourself in love with him. You wish to protect him but you and he are worlds apart. It could never be but at least you can preserve his good name.’
‘I don’t know,’ Arian said. ‘How can I be sure you are telling me the truth?’
‘I’ll be taking you to see the authorities involved, people who are already conducting an investigation. Then I will ask the police to talk to you. Perhaps then you’ll be convinced I’m telling you the truth.’
Arian closed her eyes. She was so confused. Could she allow Simples to take the blame for what must have been nothing but carelessness on Calvin’s part? She couldn’t believe him guilty of anything underhand whatever Simples said. But what if he was? Could she bear to be Simples’s wife just to save Calvin from disgrace and possibly imprisonment? She tried to imagine Calvin in the dank smelly hole of a cell where she’d been put, imagined him enduring the indignities that she’d endured and she shuddered.
‘All right.’ She straightened her shoulders. ‘We’ll go to see these people and when I know you are speaking the truth, I will make my decision.’
They again spent the night in the same bed, back to back, with Arian scarcely sleeping at all. Her mind raced around like a rat in a trap. She didn’t want to be Simples’s wife, she didn’t even like him. And yet what was the giving of her body? What did it really matter? She had not ever seen virtue as something to be prized.
When she was a young girl she had given herself freely to Eddie, her first lover, and had enjoyed him shamelessly. She had even survived the attentions of Price Davies, so would giving in to Gerald Simples be so bad? At least he said he loved her and would respect her.
She knew, in her heart, there was no question to be answered. She would do anything if it meant saving Calvin from imprisonment. She didn’t for one moment believe him guilty of anything underhand. If he was in trouble over the leather company then it was all a mistake on his part – he was nothing if not honest. She curled up in the bed, her knees drawn to her chin. This could be her last night of being her own woman. Tomorrow she might have to agree to receiving Gerald Simples as a husband. She wanted to cry but tears would not come. In any case, hadn’t she learned a long time ago that tears solved nothing?
In the morning she was heavy eyed and headachy and she dressed without caring that Gerald Simples was in the room with her. What use was modesty now? She was his wife, would be his wife in fact as well as in name once their inquiries were completed, for she knew instinctively that he would prove to her all that he’d said was true.
He took her into the nearby town with a name she could not pronounce and led her to the same police building where she had been imprisoned. She shuddered as she entered the doorway and saw again the uniforms of the French police.
Gerald led her along a corridor and then they were entering an office occupied by four men. One of them looked up from behind his desk and nodded in recognition.
‘Mr Clerice, would you explain the situation regarding the French calf company to Mrs Simples?’ Gerald spoke quietly in English when they were both seated opposite the Frenchman. He inclined his head.
‘The people behind this company are in deep trouble, madame,’ the man said in a heavy accented voice. ‘They have broken many people, robbed them of their money. Some victims were so desperate they have taken their own lives. It is a dreadful business.’
‘Lord Temple, he is implicated?’ Arian asked, her mouth dry. The man toyed with the bowl of his pipe, and his eyes met hers with a gleam of something she could not quite understand.
‘It would seem that way, madame, unless there is someone else to blame for the problems.’
‘Like who?’ Arian asked, her heart pounding in her breast. The man raised his eyebrows.
‘Like whom? Well, that it is my job to learn.’ He shrugged. ‘It is early days yet. You will appreciate there is a lot of investigating still to do before final conclusions are made.’ He rose and looked down at her. ‘It might even be you are the cause of the trouble, madame. I keep an open mind until there is proof but in the meantime, do not leave France.’ His tone was sinister and Arian shivered.
Gerald rose and took her arm, drawing Arian to her feet. He opened the door and she moved into the passageway before him, panic beating at her like dark wings.
Once outside the station, she looked up at Gerald fearfully. ‘Can we be arrested for this?’
Gerald shook his head. ‘No, there’s not enough evidence against us, not unless I confess, but we can be kept here indefinitely. Do you really wish to go to the offices of the calf company now?’ he said. ‘I warn you that there we will find confusion, books being taken away, offices emptied – it’s a sorry sight, believe me.’
‘I must find out all I can.’ Arian didn’t want to believe any of this. She could not understand how Calvin had become mixed up in anything so shady. And yet he’d said he was making mistakes in business, perhaps this was one of them.
The cab ride across town was an uncomfortable one with Simples sitting thigh to thigh with her on the creaking seat, his shoulder against hers, his hand resting lightly on her knee in what she could only describe as a proprietary gesture.
When they reached the mean offices in a narrow street, she saw the name above the door in small, insignificant letters and sighed. The whole place smacked of an illicit business.
Inside, it was as Gerald had described; the rooms were a hive of activity with people scurrying to and fro like ants, carrying books and equipment out of the office and loading furniture into vans.
Simples spoke to one young man in French and the man stopped in his tracks. ‘It is bad,’ he said in English. ‘The company has ruined, it has all gone wrong. People feel, what you say? Cheated, by what has happened.’
‘What has happened?’ Arian asked and the young man looked puzzled.
‘She do not know?’ He appealed to Gerald who spoke to him in French.
The young man held out a sheaf of papers and Calvin’s signature sprang out at Arian. ‘There is been bad dealings, wrong doing by some people and now we innocent ones have lost our jobs.’
Gerald looked at her closely as they moved away from the building. ‘Do you believe what I’ve been trying to tell you?’
‘I believe you,’ Arian said softly. ‘But I can’t believe Calvin would knowingly cheat anyone. Why should he?’ She turned on Simples. ‘And why on earth should you take the blame for Calvin or any other person’s mistakes?’
‘You know why. For the same reason you’ll come to my bed as a proper wife.’
‘If you are saying that you love me then I don’t believe that either.’ Her voice was flat. ‘You just want to best me, to make me do what you want, to get me into your bed.’
‘Come,’ Gerald said and she realized he was in the habit of ignoring anything he didn’t wish to answer, ‘we’ll return to the boarding house. I’ve got a feeling we are being watched.’
The night was drawing in by the time they returned to the little cottage near the docklands. Arian ate little of the supper madame had prepared. Her thoughts were a tangled confusion of impressions and questions, the only thought that was clear in her mind was that tonight she would do what she had sworn never to – she would go to Gerald’s bed if not willingly then at least without being physically forced.
‘Your dilemma is simply solved.’ Gerald leaned towards her across the table and it was as though he could rea
d her thoughts. ‘Tonight you become my wife and tomorrow I will give myself up to the police, tell them I was responsible for what I shall describe as a “mistake”.’ There was irony in his voice. ‘You can return home and I will remain here and try to sort all this out.’
He paused and watched as she inclined her head in mute agreement. ‘It must be understood that when I eventually return home it will be to a proper marriage. Is it agreed?’
Arian nodded, watching dry mouthed as Simples rose and bowed to the old lady. ‘Good night, madame,’ he said politely and then he left the room.
Madame looked questioningly at Arian. It seemed strange to her that Mrs Simples’s husband should retire to the bedchamber without her.
Arian sat for as long as she could, watching as madame lit the lamps and drew the curtains over the darkened windows and then, at last, knowing she could prevaricate no longer, she rose to her feet.
‘Good night,’ she said and the old lady inclined her head. Arian mounted the stairs slowly, every one creaking beneath her feet, warning Gerald Simples of her approach. Arian knew that her mind was made up. She would do what Gerald wished and then, tomorrow, she could go home to Stormhill, leaving Gerald behind, and try to set herself free from this ridiculous situation.
She paused outside the bedroom door. Tonight she would have to grit her teeth and allow Gerald Simples to make her his wife. Well, he might possess her body but he would never have her love.
And yet, even though she hated him for forcing her to do his will, she knew that she should be grateful to him for the sacrifice he would have to make. He could spend a long time in prison and she couldn’t deny that she admired his bravery. Perhaps he was telling the truth when he claimed to love her. The thought brought her a certain comfort.
She took a deep breath, opened the door and went into the bedroom. Gerald had arranged several candles around the room. The diffused light softened the contours of the huge bed and there he was waiting for her, his eyes grave as they regarded her.
‘Well, Mrs Simples, you have come to me at last.’
Instead of answering, she began to undress, facing him, allowing him to see her nakedness. He watched her all the while but waited patiently until she came to him and climbed beneath the sheets. He drew her to him almost as though he was testing her and then he kissed her eyelids, her throat and, when she didn’t protest, his mouth moved to her breasts. She lay still as his hands slid over her body, exploring her, taking his time. After a moment, he leaned on one elbow, looking down at her. ‘You do not feel anything?’ His dark eyes seemed to shine and she stared up at him almost wistfully.
‘Last time I had a man it was violent and awful. Can you blame me for being afraid?’ She closed her eyes, wishing he would get on with it, get it all over so that she could turn away from him and drown herself in misery but he was determined to try to please her.
‘Look at me,’ he said, and her eyes flew open. ‘I don’t want a rag doll, I want a live, red-blooded woman. Give me a chance to prove myself. Don’t shut me out like this.’
Obediently, she put her arms around him and then he was above her, poised, waiting for her to accommodate him. He would spare her nothing, that was clear. She must act like a wife, he was determined on it.
She guided him to her, practised in the ways of pleasing a man, knowing that if she was to get the experience over quickly, she must accommodate him. He joined with her smoothly and, with surprise she realized that her body was receptive to him. He did not have to force or hurt her; her body was betraying her.
She sighed as he cupped her breasts gently and when she closed her eyes, it was not in despair but in acceptance. Simples might be all she hated in a man but he was vigorous and his body was smooth and hard beneath her hands. He might be using her but that was all right, she would use him too. Their marriage was a pact, not a love match. She breathed heavily as his passion increased. Tonight, she decided, was not going to be the ordeal she’d expected it to be.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Arian woke to find Simples leaning on one elbow, staring down at her with a strange expression on his face. She stirred uneasily and turned her head away from him but he cupped her chin with his hand and made her look at him.
‘It wasn’t so bad, was it, Mrs Simples?’ he asked quietly. ‘I think you might even enjoy being my wife.’
She edged away from him. In the cold light of morning, the whole thing seemed impossible – her marriage to Gerald Simples, a man she did not even like. She felt the colour rise to her face. She had given herself to him, just as he said she would.
‘I don’t love you,’ she said flatly. ‘I’ll never love you. Is that what you want, a loveless marriage?’
‘I had what I wanted last night when I possessed you,’ he said. ‘To me it was the most perfect night of my life.’ His hand slipped down over her throat, lingered there and then moved to her naked breast and his breathing quickened. ‘I’ll never be tired of proving that you are mine.’
His other arm encircled her waist, drawing her close to him. ‘Come, Mrs Simples,’ he spoke in her ear, ‘it is time to show me what an accommodating wife you are just once again before I give myself up to the police.’
She turned her face away from him, not wanting him, wishing she was anywhere but here, in a strange country in bed with a man whose very scent was unfamiliar to her.
‘You liked it well enough last night didn’t you?’ he asked, his hands caressing her. ‘You were ready to welcome me, I could tell that much. Your lips might say no but your body told me differently.’ Even as he spoke, he was drawing her beneath him. ‘I want to make sure you are really mine before we are separated. Surely you can understand that?’
She yielded to him, it seemed easier than arguing, and let him have his way. She would simply close her eyes and endure his attentions until he was tired of trying to please her.
He was vigorous, he was determined and yet Arian felt unmoved now by his obvious passion. Daylight pouring through the window made a reality of their union and highlighted the absurdity of the way she was allowing him to blackmail her into submission.
She grew tense as his vigour increased, but he was aware of it and kissed her mouth, his tongue probing. She lay unresponsive, which only served to excite him. It seemed he wanted to subjugate her, to force her to do his bidding, whatever she felt. He put his hands beneath her, holding her close to him while he poured his passion into her and then, at last, he released her and fell from her, smiling in his fulfilment.
He lay still beside her in the bed for a long time and then his hand touched her hair briefly. ‘I am in love with you, you know that don’t you? You will love me, too, given time.’
She didn’t answer but tears trembled on her lashes. It was so awful to lie with one man when her whole being cried out for another.
He sighed heavily. ‘You will be all right, now. I’ve made arrangements with Paul Marchant for your passage home on the Marie Clare.’ He turned and kissed her neck. ‘You’ll sail with the afternoon tide and tomorrow you will be back at Stormhill. You must tell Calvin Temple nothing about what has happened, otherwise he might feel obliged to come out here and give himself up to the authorities.’ He smiled ruefully. ‘That would make your little sacrifice all for nothing, wouldn’t it?’
His hand touched her face, his finger tracing the line of her mouth. ‘What you must tell him is that you are now my wife. Truly my wife.’
If he had forced her, she would have fought him, hated him but he used guile and persuasion and though Arian knew she would never like him, let alone love him, Simples had the ability to make her feel obligated to him. She sighed as he drew her close once again. Gerald Simples, as she was learning, was a demanding husband.
Later she stood in the window of the cottage bedroom and watched as Simples strode along the roadway on his way to give himself up to face the possibility of imprisonment in a foreign country. She felt somehow released – she was going home. She knew she sh
ould feel guilty about leaving Simples behind and yet she could only be glad that she was free of him, if only for the moment.
It was with a sense of relief that Arian picked up her bag and descended the creaking stairs. Soon she would lie in her own bed, sleep alone beneath the sheets, with the huge chimneys of Stormhill rising high above her. And in a room not too far away from her, Calvin Temple too would be asleep, the man she loved, the man for whom she would give anything to save from shame and disgrace. She sighed as she paused in the small narrow passageway. It had been worth it, this marriage, her yielding to Gerald Simples. It had all been worth it, hadn’t it?
Calvin Temple stared down at the books on the desk before him and frowned.
‘So, Brighton, these books have been doctored, is that what you are saying?’
The old man standing behind his shoulder pulled at his grey moustache nervously. ‘I would say more, Lord Temple. I would say that you have been embezzled out of a great deal of money.’
‘I see.’ Calvin pushed back his chair and rose to his feet. ‘The investments Simples made in this French calf company in my name are worthless then?’ He thrust his hands into his pockets.
‘Absolutely.’ Brighton removed his glasses and polished them with his spotless handkerchief. ‘This company, if it exists at all, must be on the point of collapse. It’s all very doubtful. You would be well to keep right out of it all. I am rather surprised that you invested in something that was not entirely reliable in the first place, sir, if you’ll pardon me saying so.’
‘I was told a check on the company was not necessary,’ Calvin said. ‘My fault entirely for not keeping a closer eye on Simples. Will I face legal problems?’
The old man shook his head. ‘No, I think not. You personally have not received any moneys from this company, it has been all outgoings and no income. You, as well as many other investors, I fear, have been duped.’