Tempting Danger: Sinclair and Raven series

by Vella, Wendy

  His smile was for her alone. Dressed in black, with a crisp white shirt and necktie, he looked vital, handsome, and he was hers.

  “Was that your father’s, and father’s father’s?” She pointed to the emerald on his finger, needing to say something, as she felt ridiculously shy suddenly.

  This man knew her better than anyone else. He’d touched and kissed her. He’d made love to her.

  “You’re blushing.”

  “It’s hot in here.”

  “No, it’s not.” He laughed. “Yes, this ring has been handed down to every Lord Braithwaite for many years,” he said, taking pity on her.

  “It’s lovely.”

  “It will go to my son if I am blessed to have one... with you.”

  Alice placed the program she’d been given upon entering evenly in her lap. A large hand reached over and tweaked it slightly.

  “I’ve missed you so much, Nicholas. More than I thought it possible.”

  “As I have missed you. I want to hold you, Alice, but fear that would create a scandal here. Not that I care overly, but your brother would likely thump me.”

  “But surely for a few bruises...,” she teased him

  “Heartless woman.”

  “I need to tell you something, Nicholas,” Alice whispered as the music started once more.

  “What?”

  “Wolf and I encountered Lord Beecham entering the musicale.”

  “Can’t have been very pleasant. You have my sympathies.”

  “Yes. He is a loathsome creature, however what he said was disturbing.”

  “Did he insult you?”

  She saw the anger flash in his eyes.

  “No, nothing like that. Wolf congratulated him on his wife’s confinement. And he said something that chilled both of us.”

  “What did he say?”

  “That he would do what it takes to ensure that his next child was a boy. That he would not have his nephew inheriting his title.”

  She shot him a look, but as he was now facing forward, she only saw the clenching of his jaw.

  “Nicholas?”

  “I don’t want you involved in this, Alice.”

  “I am involved. But that is not the point. Do you think Lord Beecham would pay for a child... an heir?”

  “I do. Come, we need some air.” He leaned across her to speak to Wolf. “Your sister needs air, we shall return shortly.”

  Before Wolf could speak, Nicholas had her out of the chair and was walking away with her hand on his arm. He walked through a door, then out onto the terrace.

  “I’m not sure this is very proper behavior,” Alice felt she needed to say, even if she loved that he wanted to get her alone. “Surely tongues are wagging?”

  “Let them. I want to be alone with you.”

  He towed her around the deck until they were assured of privacy.

  “I woke with the taste of you on my lips and the memory of what it felt like to be inside you, and that has stayed with me since.” He backed her into the balustrade railing and kissed her. It was fierce, desperate, and she loved it.

  “I can’t stop thinking about you.” He held her against him.

  “And I you.”

  “Not long, Alice, I promise. Mr. Spriggot has a lead and believes he is closing in on the men responsible for burning my house. Mr. Brown also has news on the men who are taking the babies.”

  “Really? But that is wonderful.”

  His eyes ran over her.

  “You look beautiful.” He ran a finger along the neckline of her dress, dipping briefly beneath. Then he released her and stepped back.

  “Good evening, Lord Braithwaite.”

  “Lord and Lady Krimpton.”

  “What has you out here alone with Miss Sinclair?” The woman did not look happy. Alice knew that Nicholas was on the top of her daughter’s list of prospective husbands.

  “Miss Sinclair felt faint. As I was seated next to her, I quickly helped her outside to get some air.”

  “But her brother—”

  Alice watched Nicholas change before her eyes into a marquis. A man of consequence and power who had a lineage longer than most nobles in the United Kingdom.

  “Are you questioning my motives, my lady?”

  “Of course she’s not,” Lord Krimpton said quickly. “Come.” He dragged his wife away.

  “You were terrifying,” Alice said, awed.

  “I have walked in this world for a while, my sweet. It is, or should I say, was my hunting ground for many years.”

  “But not now.”

  “No.” He touched her cheek.

  “Have you had any more visions, Nicholas?”

  “I have, last night in fact.”

  “Did I visit you again?”

  “Holding yet another child. Yes.”

  “What did I say this time?”

  “That soon I will have the answers I seek. That I will soon be asked to do something that goes against the man I have become. I must do this to free a child.”

  “I am worried for you, Nicholas.” Alice felt a sudden urge to grab Nicholas and not let him go.

  “There is no need, I am not alone.” He took the hand she held out to him. “It will be all right. I started this; I will see it through. But now I have you and our families at my back.”

  “But what of the midwife, surely—”

  “They are no longer in that residence, Mr. Brown told me. In fact, Mrs. Adley has disappeared.”

  “I don’t like this, Nicholas. I feel as if something is about to happen. Promise you will do nothing without first notifying someone of your actions.”

  “I promise.” He leaned in and kissed her.

  She had to be happy with his words, and yet unease had started to gather inside her.

  “Be careful, Nicholas.”

  “I have promised you I will, my sweet. Have faith in me.”

  She did, of course, but she felt like they were about to face something. She just had no idea what it was.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Nicholas did not usually enjoy musicales. In fact, they bored him silly. He knew that music had run through the blood of his forefathers; his mother had told him that as she forced him to take piano lessons. Yet he had never been overly enamored with it.

  However, he had to admit to enjoying this musical because Alice sat at his side.

  “Stop hissing out your breath,” he whispered to her.

  “I can’t help it, she is terrible and keeps hitting the wrong notes.”

  “Push your earplugs in deeper.”

  “If I do, I shall need a pin to get them out.”

  His Alice. The woman who made his chest hurt when he looked at her. A mix of sweet and willful, she would certainly keep him on his toes.

  She was dressed in apricot silk, and in her hair was woven a matching satin ribbon. He’d been aware of her before, but now... now she was in his blood. He wanted a life with her.

  “If Wolf sees the way you are eyeing his sister in public, he will gut you,” Cam whispered.

  “I have no idea what you speak of.”

  Cam snorted.

  “I like the match, by the way. You are well suited.”

  “Of course. I live to make you happy.”

  “Ssh,” someone behind him hissed.

  “I beg your pardon, Lady Duke, but I wonder if you could enlighten Mr. Sinclair as to which symphony the music is from. He has no knowledge of such things, you understand, and everyone is aware there is no one more educated in music than yourself.”

  The woman nodded. “It’s true I am extremely knowledgeable. Now pay attention, Mr. Sinclair.”

  Cam muttered something uncomplimentary, and Alice giggled. He loved that sound.

  Loved?

  Did he love her?

  Dear lord, he believed he did. The thought shocked him enough to have him coughing. Cam reached over and slapped him hard on the back, turning the cough into a choking sound.

  Eyes watering, bu
t back under control, he glared at his friend, who could not reply as he was now attentively listening to Lady Duke.

  Nicholas shot Alice a look and felt that pain in his chest.

  It had to be love.

  The night was over much too quickly as far as Nicholas was concerned. He’d laughed with his family and sat with Alice, their fingers occasionally touching, and he felt like a boy in the throes of his first love affair.

  “You took over the house yesterday, I understand?” Alice asked as they waited for their carriages.

  “I did. My staff are happy to be settled once more, as am I.”

  “We are now neighbors,” Wolf drawled. “But I will be locking the doors at night.”

  “I beg your pardon?” Alice turned on her brother. “I cannot believe you would say something like that in my hearing.”

  “It was for your benefit,” her brother stated calmly. “Excellent, here is our carriage. In you get, sister.”

  “Good night, Alice.” He took her hand and helped her inside. “Take out your earplugs.”

  He closed the door and then walked to his carriage. As they were rolling away, the words were simply there, inside his head and needing to be spoken.

  “I love you, Alice Sinclair.”

  Would she have heard? He hoped so. For some reason, he needed her to know his feelings right then.

  Walking into his new home, he felt the place wrap around him in welcome. He’d never felt that way in his father’s house. This would be his and Alice’s if he decided to stay here, or even purchase the property.

  “My lord, two missives were delivered late this evening. I have put them in the library on your desk.”

  “Thank you, Hosking.”

  He kicked off his shoes and took off his jacket, then picked up the first note before falling into his chair.

  My lord I have received information regarding the case I am investigating for you. It is of the utmost importance I speak with you at your earliest convenience. Please advise when is a suitable time for me to call upon you tomorrow. It was signed Mr. Spriggot.

  Had there finally been a breakthrough? Nicholas hoped so.

  Breaking the plain red wax seal on the second note, he did not recognize the writing on the front.

  Your interference has cost me a great deal, Braithwaite. I am now forced to leave England, but before I do, I will give you a chance to return one child to its mother. The babe is two days old. Come to Bastil’s, and the stakes will be if you win, I give you the child. If not, he will go to his new home.

  Surely he had not read the words correctly. Nicholas looked at the note again, but the words had not changed.

  Come at 2:00 a.m.

  Looking at the clock, Nicholas watched it strike midnight.

  Tell no one, and alert no one. If you do, then the deal is off.

  Getting to his feet, he poured himself a brandy, then picked up his cards and sat at his desk. One hour and thirty minutes later, he dressed and left the house.

  “My lord, shall I wait up?”

  “No, I am going to a hell, I will not be returning for some time. Go to your bed, Hopkins.”

  “My lord, if I may—”

  “You may not.”

  The butler covered his shock, and yes, disappointment. After all, he had been with him during the days he gambled every night, staggering home drunk as the sun rose.

  Letting himself outside, he hailed a hackney. All too soon, it stopped.

  Bastil’s always looked better at night, Nicholas thought as he stood outside the facade. None of the stains of debauchery were evident in this light. He knew they’d be there though, especially when he walked inside those doors.

  He inhaled deeply, then exhaled slowly. He had to do this for the babe. For Alice. She believed in him to do the right thing, and surely this was that.

  Thinking of her gave him strength. He started up the steps and in through the front door. Whoever waited for him in there would likely have been playing consistently over the months if this was his chosen location. Nicholas had not. It would take all his skill to ensure he won. But he had two things in his favor: his skill with numbers, and the ability to think clearly when others could not. He’d even been able to do this when he was drinking.

  “You are expected, Lord Braithwaite.” One of the staff appeared before him. “Please follow me.”

  Nicholas said nothing, simply nodded and followed the man. They turned right, away from the usual tables, and he knew they were to play a private game in one of the rooms ahead.

  He entered, and there sat Braeburn, a smug look on his face. He’d known someone who walked among the elevated circles of society was involved, but for some reason he hadn’t considered this man.

  Nicholas realized something else in that moment, he’d been a fool to walk in here without at least leaving a note for his family. He’d thought with his heart and not his head and doubted a simple game of cards was all Braeburn had in stall for him this night.

  “Excellent. Not only will I beat you tonight, but both your family and society will be spared your vile company in the future,” Nicholas said, taking the seat across from him. “Stealing infants, that is low even for scum like you.”

  “My father does not give me enough of an allowance. I had to supplement it somehow!”

  “You will never have enough. That is how this works, Braeburn. It’s an addiction.”

  “I am a gentleman, we do not have addictions!”

  He would not win this argument.

  “Why are you showing your hand now?”

  “Word has reached us that your investigators have unearthed the truth about the entire operation. All was lost anyway. I will have a good life somewhere else and be away from my father’s influence. I will return when the time is right, when finally he is dead.”

  And this Nicholas now knew, was what Spriggot had discovered and wanted to discuss with him.

  “Have you no remorse for the turmoil you have caused the families of the children you stole?”

  Braeburn laughed. “They are beneath me, I feel nothing for such people.”

  Nicholas battled the rage that had him wanting to pummel the man. No good would come of letting his emotions rule his actions. He needed to remain clear headed if he was to get out of this with the child and his life.

  “I have men stationed around the room. They will watch you, and if you win, take you to the babe.”

  “And if I don’t?”

  Braeburn didn’t meet his eyes.

  “You will be free to go.”

  Nicholas doubted that.

  “Why here, like this, Braeburn? It makes no sense when you could have simply left England undetected.”

  The man’s calm veneer slipped.

  “I will beat you once before I leave!”

  “Ah, so I have been yet another unhealthy obsession for you? But surely you know that you will never beat me. I am far too good for the likes of you.”

  “I will beat you,” the man’s eyes were crazed. “I have practiced, you have not.”

  Nicholas watched as the cards were dealt and hoped he could play with the skill he’d once had. Then he’d usually been drinking and was reckless; now he was not.

  Pushing Alice out of his head, he focused. A family’s happiness depended on it. He began to play.

  Chapter Thirty

  Alice tapped on the door and waited. Seconds later, there stood her brother. Rumpled, he was hastily pulling on his dressing gown.

  “What has happened?”

  “It’s Nicholas. I fear something is very wrong, Wolf.”

  “Alice—”

  “You once told me to be guided by what I felt. Well I feel something is wrong!”

  “Sssh,” he hissed. “Rose is sleeping.”

  “What has happened?” Rose ducked under Wolf’s arm and stood before him, also looking rumpled.

  “Go back to bed, love.” Wolf tried to move her. “You need your sleep.”

  “I am
carrying a babe, Wolf, not a plague. What has happened, Alice?”

  “Something is wrong, Rose. And I believe it concerns Nicholas.”

  “We shall dress and see you downstairs shortly.”

  “Rose—”

  “Wolf, your sister needs us, make haste,” she heard Rose scold him as she hurried to her room.

  “Alice?”

  “It’s all right, Kate.”

  Something in Alice’s face had her saying, “I will dress and see you soon.”

  Alice pulled off her nightdress and threw on a chemise and the first dress she grabbed. She then pulled on a jacket that came to her ankles, and laced her feet into her walking boots.

  She’d woken filled with terror. Fear had gripped her, chills wracked her body, and she’d known, Nicholas was in danger.

  Rose and Wolf awaited her when she arrived downstairs.

  “Do you love Nicholas, Alice?”

  “I do.” She did not hesitate, now was not the time for that.

  “Can you hear him?”

  She shook her head.

  “I will go to Nicholas’s house,” Wolf added.

  “I am coming,” Alice said.

  “No, you are not!” he thundered as Kate came in the room.

  “Me too.”

  “No!”

  She ignored him and slipped her arm through Alice’s, who felt better for the support.

  “We are wasting time.”

  Wolf glared at his sisters; they did not waver. He then stomped from the room with three women trailing behind him like geese behind their gander.

  They held hands, with Wolf in the lead, as the night was dark and the moon obscured behind clouds. He rapped the large brass knocker when they arrived at the front door. It was a few minutes before it was answered.

  “We shall look like fools if your beloved is warm in his bed.”

  “But he is not, as you very well know. Were Rose in danger you would not stop until you reached her,” Alice replied.

  He sighed, then wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

  “You’ll pardon the intrusion, Hopkins,” Wolf said when the butler opened the door. “Is your master at home?”

  The butler looked at Alice.

  “No, he left the house two hours ago, my lord.”

  “Do you know where he has gone?”