Kate, Susan and Nathan all waved and he returned a casual salute and a smile as he drifted under the bridge where he would then return to the bank to pull his boat ashore as he had the previous day.
Nathan climbed down from the rig and prepared to run off before Susan caught his hand and reined her son in to walk by her side. Duties relieved, Kate followed slowly behind the pair, watching at a distance as they congratulated Brand who, as the victor, received the same from his competitors and all the other spectators gathered to deliver more of the same.
A barker called attention and announced that the Earl of Harrowby had marked a new course record at nine minutes and sixteen seconds and announced him the winner of the Diamond Challenge Trophy for single sculls.
Congratulations renewed and Brand was momentarily lost in a sea of well-wishers pounding at his back and reaching for his hand. Brand good-naturedly accepted their accolades though his eyes scanned the crowd from the vantage point his height allowed him until he found Kate lingering near the bridge.
Eyes sparkling, Brand beamed at her. Kate smiled back bursting with pride and, unable to help herself, threw a kiss back to him prompting his grin to widen even more.
“Miss Kallastad,” a piercing voice sounded behind her a few minutes later and Kate jumped. Turning, she found Simmons, Mrs. Ryder’s personal companion, just behind her. “Mrs. Ryder would like to see you for a moment, if you please.”
“Right now?” Kate cast a glance back to Brand who was now on his haunches next to Nathan showing the boy his trophy. “But Nathan…”
“Is well in hand. One of the footmen will let them know where you are,” the maid finished and turned away with the assumption Kate would follow. With a momentary flash of rebellion, Kate felt the urge to resist but curiosity won out and she followed the maid into the Red Lion Inn, which backed the Stewards’ Enclosure, and from there into a small parlor. Simmons waved her in briskly and shut the door behind her.
Kate found Mrs. Ryder alone in the room looking out the window over the crowds gathered outside. Given the angle of the window, Kate realized that Belinda Ryder had been able to see everything that had just happened. The silence stretched out leaving only the muffled voices from outside to soften it. Just when Kate was certain Mrs. Ryder had only brought her in there to toy with her, the older woman spoke in her icy tones, though her gaze remained focused outside. “I’ve been watching you, Miss Kallastad.”
“Really?” Kate responded lightly though the tone of Mrs. Ryder’s voice spoke of more than what she saw through the window. What did she know? Or was it simply suspicion? “See anything interesting?”
“I have seen enough to know that you are to blame for my recent difficulties with Harrowby,” the woman volleyed back.
Refusing to acknowledge any accusation until it was directly leveled, Kate bit her tongue against voicing any excuses. However faced with the woman’s impersonal labeling of her offspring, Kate couldn’t help but innocently return, “Harrowby? Oh, you mean your son, Brandon.”
The woman finally turned to face her, piercing Kate with a frigid glare. “Don’t be smart with me, Miss Kallastad.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it, ma’am.”
“Look at yourself,” Mrs. Ryder sneered. “You want only what Harrowby can give you. You’re nothing but a hanger-on and social climber.”
Kate couldn’t bite back an amused huff of disbelief. And you’re not? she wanted to ask in return. Sarcasm wouldn’t get her far in this fight where Kate held no position to defend herself from Belinda Ryder’s venom. Refusing to be lured into a fight, Kate pressed her lips together.
The woman’s eyes narrowed as if displeased by Kate’s self-control, her spiny fingers curled into fists. “Have you no self-respect? Or do you simply not care that my son has made a whore out of you?”
“Excuse me?” Kate replied with wide eyes.
But the woman seemed to have a laundry list of complaints and no interest in lingering on just one. “A woman like you has no place in Harrowby’s life or in my grandson’s.”
“A woman like me just saved your grandson’s life!” Kate shot back feeling anger begin to tighten her throat. “Or have you forgotten about that?”
“You did nothing that another couldn’t have managed,” the woman whisked the argument away with a flick of her wrist. “Now, I want you to leave Harrowby and my grandson alone.”
“You just can’t accept that he’s finally taking control of his own life, can you?” Kate asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Any semblance of subservient behavior slipped away in the face of Mrs. Ryder’s sore lack of maternal love. “I hate to tell you, Mrs. Ryder, but it has very little to do with me. Brand is his own man, he knows what he wants and he’s managed to avoid you for two years so that he could do things his own way without unnecessary input by you. I think the only reason you are finally seeing it is because you’re actually here where you can see it for yourself.”
“Why, you impertinent harlot! What I see is that Harrowby refuses to marry so that he can carry on an illicit affair with you right in his very home under the auspices of retaining you as my grandson’s tutor,” came her venomous accusation. “A female tutor! I should have known right from the beginning that there was more to it!”
Kate’s feet propelled her forward then to stand nose to nose with the woman. “First off, if you call me harlot one more time, you and I are going to have a serious problem. Second, I’ll have you know that I easily have a hundred times the brain and education you could ever dream of having and, third, I am not having an illicit affair with Brand! I love him!”
“You think I care how you feel?” Belinda Ryder sneered. “You think he cares? He is Harrowby and you’re nothing but a convenient release for him. He would never marry a woman as low as you. With his wealth and connections, Harrowby could have any woman he wanted. Someone with status and grace.”
“An ice princess with a cold heart and even colder bed?” Kate shot back though the woman’s words did what evil did best, taking root in her mind. True enough, other than desire and perhaps an inkling of friendship, she wasn’t certain what Brand felt for her. Was it just lust or was it more? Did it even matter? Hurtful words aside, Kate knew that what she wanted was Brand’s happiness and what his mother wanted was a far cry from that. It might not be Kate. Deep inside, she knew that. Either way, she would defend him with her last breath. “Don’t you see that Brand wants someone to love? He wants a warm, happy family. The last thing he wants to do is marry a woman who’s just like you.”
Mrs. Ryder’s hand shot out and caught Kate across the cheek sending Kate staggering to the side with the force of her blow. Cupping her face in her palm, Kate stared at the woman in shock. Mrs. Ryder’s face was flushed red with anger as she waved a finger at Kate. “That’s quite enough from you, Miss Kallastad. I’m finished with this discussion and with you. You have done enough damage and are dismissed and I don’t mean simply dismissed from my presence, you are dismissed from your position at Ramble House. I want you to pack your bags and leave immediately.”
“You can’t do that.”
“Yes, I can.”
Stunned, Kate’s mind wouldn’t function any further than to give in to her desire to leave the woman’s hateful presence. She strode from the room still holding her cheek tenderly, her mind swept blank by the shock of the woman’s actions. Kate knew she shouldn’t have phrased her words in such a fashion but surely such a rebuttal was a disproportionate response! She’d never been struck before. At least nowhere other than her rear end when she was a child. Despite seeing it time and again on Jerry Springer or Desperate Housewives, Kate had never before realized how much it hurt or how utterly humiliating it was. She burned with anger and mortification.
Though Kate knew she shouldn’t have gotten into a verbal confrontation with Brand’s mother, she wondered how they had been reduced to such a level that it had turned physical. In her life, Kate had never hated anyone with the passionate a
bhorrence she held for Belinda Ryder. More than how greatly she loathed the vicious name-calling of moments ago, Kate hated how Mrs. Ryder treated her son, how she couldn’t care about his wants or desires. It was wrong. She would revile the woman for that alone.
Because Kate loved Brand just as she’d admitted so rashly moments ago. Shit, she thought as she made her way out of the inn and back outside. When had that happened? How had that happened? Falling in love wasn’t a part of her master plan for at least another decade. It wasn’t time yet. There were things she wanted to do.
But she could do them with Brand, her inner self argued. All the things you ever wanted, wouldn’t sharing them with Brand make them all better?
Yeah, right, she argued back. If he loved her back, but he didn’t. Besides, he was still an earl and she was nothing. Nobody. Even if he did…
Her other half couldn’t argue with that.
Kate would wager that a marriage between a commoner and an earl in this time and place would be an even bigger deal than Prince William marrying his own Kate in hers. High society in the twenty-first century could hardly be called loose and from what she had seen of the guests present for the house party and those at the regatta, up-tight took on a whole new meaning here.
Even if Brand wanted to, he probably wouldn’t or couldn’t and, when it boiled right down to it, Kate knew she would say ‘no’ to spare him from the scandal that would go along with such a shocking move. But where did that leave her? As a lover? A mistress? Would Brand rethink their previous conversation and offer to set her up in a nice little house somewhere and keep her for weekends and holidays?
Could Kate even accept such an arrangement?
Kate Kallastad: Kept Woman.
She shuddered with revulsion. She had not spent countless hours buried in her studies to sweep it all aside and be some man’s plaything! Even if that man was Brandon Ryder.
A melting feeling ran through Kate and the tension released. God, she was full of crap! Kate laughed at herself with a shake of her head. Who was she kidding? For a man like Brandon Ryder, there was probably an exception to everything she thought she would never sacrifice for a mere male. Being his lover, sharing his life didn’t necessarily exclude any personal achievement on her part. It wouldn’t mean a life of waiting at a window watching for his return. She could begin her own research here, help cure the ills found in this time and share her triumphs and downfall with a man who she loved and respected.
There was an achy pressure in her chest Kate had never felt before. It radiated outward down her limbs and tightened her throat. Love, she realized. She really did love him, loved him enough to change her entire life plan to rebuild it around him.
How wonderful!
How terrifying!
There were few things Kate had ever attempted that ended in failure. Hard work and determination had won her nearly every prize she’d tried for. Helped her achieve every goal. However, this was different. Never had she wanted something so out of her reach before. Never had she sought to achieve something where the odds were stacked so heavily against her.
What would she do if she failed?
What would she do if Brand didn’t feel the same about her?
“Kate!” She looked up to find Nan hurrying toward her. The woman’s face was flushed with excitement and wreathed with smiles.
“Hey, Nan, what’s up?” she asked curiously.
“Since most of the guests are leaving after the final races, Mrs. Hendricks has given the upstairs staff the rest of the day off to attend the fair in Henley!”
“Wow!” Kate said in surprise. “Who spiked her tea?”
“It is just too unbelievable, isn’t it?” Nan gushed. “It’s probably only because she knows that we will have to work hard tomorrow to put the house back to rights. We’ve all been looking for you. Some of the footmen have offered to escort us to The Row Barge and treat us to a pint. Would you like to come along? It should be great fun!”
Kate looked around for Brand, for Susan or for Nathan and saw them walking arm in arm across the bridge toward the Leander Club. Surely, she shouldn’t be shirking her duties to run off and play, but wait! Did she even have duties any longer? Brand had said she would be answerable to him, Susan or their mother, after all. If Mrs. Ryder fired her, would it stick or would Brand countermand it?
In that moment, given the haranguing she’d just received combined with the epiphany she’d had regarding her feelings, Kate knew that she wasn’t ready to face Brand and find out. Fear and trepidation were jangling her nerves. She was confused and uncertain what to do. Finally, she understood what emotion might drive one to drink. She couldn’t think of anything more wonderful in that moment than a pint to settle her nerves. “I’d love to come along! After the day I’ve had, I could use a drink or two.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
The Row Barge Inn
Later that night
“Hey, Brand!” Kate slurred, waving her tankard in a high arc as Harrowby approached the table. “What up?”
Harrowby hid his shock at the state in which he’d found Kate. After one of the footmen delivered a message to explain Kate’s disappearance from the regatta, it hadn’t been until he returned home late that afternoon that he had heard from his sister of Kate’s impromptu evening off. Initially, he’d been surprised that she would go off at all, what with the last of the guests leaving and allowing them more time alone together. He had anticipated a repeat of the previous evening all day. Finding her now in such a situation nearly left him at a loss for words. “Whatever are you about, Miss Kallastad?” he asked sternly.
“Relax, baby. I’m just hanging with my girls!” she answered, lifting the drink to take another deep swallow as she slung an arm around Marta’s shoulder and hugged the maid to her. “These are my girls. Have you met? Marta, Nan and Mary. And that’s…” Kate snapped her fingers a couple of times, seemingly trying to recall the names of the others at the table. “Oh, Jessica and Andrew and Jacob and… and… dude, I totally forgot your name.”
Dude? “Miss Kallastad!” Harrowby broke into Kate’s drunken rambling before spreading his cold glare to those around the table. “What is the meaning of this?”
“I’m so sorry, my lord.” A nervous Marta finally spoke up as she stood. “I don’t know what to make of it at all. She hasn’t had much to drink, just two or three pints, but I gather she isn’t used to the strength of the ale. She called herself a ‘light weight’ though I’m not entirely certain what that means.”
“It means she’s drunk.”
“Very much so, my lord,” Marta confirmed before adding, “She hadn’t been unruly at all, my lord, in fact she was ever so much fun until…”
Until Harrowby had walked in. The earl read the implication very clearly. What was going on here? Kate had been all affection and teasing that morning before disappearing after his race. He had wondered what duties might call her away but hadn’t worried overmuch. However, he had expected her back at Ramble House to spend the evening with him. The longer he waited the more worried he became. Something was wrong. What, he had no idea.
Fearing some tragedy, he spent anxious hours searching for her in nearly every pub Henley had to offer. When he finally tracked her down, he certainly hadn’t expected to find her so deep in her cups.
What was going on? Kate didn’t seem to be the type to imbibe heavily… at least, not without cause. Had something happened? Did she regret the previous night and was drowning her lamentations in drink? With the events of the day and constant company they’d been in, Harrowby had had no chance to speak privately with her at all. He wanted to ask the members of his staff gathered around the table all those things, wanted to wring answers from their necks or Kate’s.
However, he could not make a display of his concern. His only true option was to portray the aggrieved employer, to show dismay at the state in which he had found his nephew’s tutor. Harrowby ground his teeth in frustration. This wasn’t how it shou
ld be. He couldn’t even take Kate by the shoulders and shake some sense back into her much less take her up in his arms to express the relief he felt merely at finding her in one piece.
Less than a day as would-be lovers and he was already dissatisfied with their arrangement.
A sane man would accept that even attempting an affair with a member of his staff in the first place had smacked of madness. A reasonable man would wash his hands of the entire situation, but that man had disappeared in the past week and was replaced by one who wanted to shout his growing affection for this unusual woman to the world. This man wanted to sweep his tipsy lass into his arms and carry her away from here… carry her away from the world around them.
“We can take her back home if you like, my lord,” Nan spoke up, breaking the tense silence that had descended over the amicable crowd at the tavern since his arrival.
Harrowby sighed, pushing away the irrational urges within and squared his shoulders nobly. “No need to interrupt your evening off. I will see my nephew’s tutor safely home. Come along, Miss Kallastad, Nathan is awaiting you.”
Kate rotated her head up to look at him as he gripped her elbow to lift her from the chair. “Did you know he…” Kate pointed to one of the men at the table then to another, “No, he called me a spinster? A spinster! I mean W… T… F! I’m only twenty-four years old for Pete’s sake! Spinster!” Kate nearly choked on the archaic word.
“I’m sure they’ll call you any number of things after your behavior this evening,” he ground out, leading her through the crowd.
“Why? ‘Cause a girl can’t have a little fun anymore?”
“Please Kate, where is your maturity? Your prideful academia?” he asked. “This is not the behavior of a responsible person.”
“I’ll have you know I’m a very responsible person,” she insisted drunkenly. “Always have been. Work hard, but work hard don’t mean you can’t play hard, you know? Everybody always thinks ‘cause I’m a biochemist that I can’t have fun anymore. ‘Oh, she’s a geek with a geek job! She’s supposed to be so serious all the time!’ That just ain’t right, you know?”
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