by Amelia Grey
“No, I feel like I will float away if I drink any more before I find a chamber pot!” Auntie Bethie laughed at her remark and huddled down into the folds of the blanket.
Gabrielle joined her aunt’s laughter as they rounded a bend on the west side of the park. When Gabrielle looked up, she saw Staunton sitting on his horse not far away. His back was ramrod straight and his chin lifted in an arrogant tilt.
“It’s about time,” she spoke softly under her breath, feeling relief he’d arrived.
She leaned up to Muggs and said, “That’s Mr. Alfred Staunton ahead of us. Please stop when we get near him and help me down.”
As she settled back in her seat, her aunt said, “So I now see who you wanted to meet, but I have no idea why. You don’t intend to apologize to him after the way he attacked Lord Brentwood at Lady Windham’s party, do you?”
Gabrielle kept her eyes on Staunton’s proud figure. “Absolutely not, Auntie. I will not be apologizing to him for anything, I assure you. No, it’s quite a different matter I need to discuss with the earl’s son.” Gabrielle looked over at her aunt and patted her fur muff. “Thank you for being patient with me and for being so willing to put up with my strange habits. I don’t know what I would have done if you had not come and Papa had not gone away.”
Her aunt reached over and gave her a rare kiss on the cheek, and Gabrielle gasped with delight. “What was that for?”
Auntie Bethie’s eyes softened. “For all the times I’ve wanted to be there for you and couldn’t. Now go, talk to this man and say whatever you must. I will shiver right here until you return.”
Gabrielle’s heart swelled in her chest, and she gave her aunt a heartfelt smile. “Thank you, Auntie.”
Muggs helped Gabrielle down from the carriage as Staunton dismounted and, holding his riding crop, sauntered up to the carriage.
“Lady Gabrielle.” Staunton stopped in front of her, took off his hat, and bowed rather stiffly. He then placed his hat under his arm. “It’s nice to see you. I must say your loveliness brightens an otherwise gloomy day.”
“Thank you, Staunton. You remember my aunt, Mrs. Potter, don’t you?”
“Of course I do. How could I forget such a lovely lady? You are looking as beautiful as ever, Mrs. Potter. I trust you are well.”
“Quite well, Mr. Staunton. Thank you.”
Gabrielle looked at Staunton and said, “Perhaps you’ll take a short walk with me. You don’t mind, do you, Auntie?”
“Not as long as you don’t get out of my sight and you don’t take too long.”
“I promise not to do either, Auntie.”
Gabrielle and Staunton walked away from the carriage. It was the first time Gabrielle had ever noticed that although Staunton was broad in the shoulders, he wasn’t much taller than she was. With his light blue eyes and sandy brown hair, she’d always thought him attractive. She had easily agreed with her father when he’d said there was much to recommend him. And it was true that his station in life and handsome face made him a sought-after match for many young ladies.
But looking at him now, Gabrielle knew she’d never felt any womanly desire for him. She had never felt that all-consuming, breathless excitement of wanting. She had that feeling the first time she caught sight of Brent. And it hadn’t gone away. If anything, her feelings for him had only grown stronger.
It pained her to have to continue to find ways to make herself unattractive to Brent, when all she really wanted was to make herself so appealing to him he would forget about the way they had met. She wanted him to forget her father threatened to ruin his brothers’ business. She wanted him to feel for her all the things she felt for him.
But she knew from experience life was seldom so accommodating.
“How are you, Staunton?” she said after they were well out of her aunt’s hearing.
“I suppose I’m as well as can be expected, considering all I’ve been through.”
“Well, you are looking quite fit.”
He smiled. “Thank you,” he said and then added, “It’s truly been quite hellish the past couple of weeks, but I’ve withstood the jokes and damning wagers that are cropping up all over London. I do believe the gossip is easing now.”
She wanted to say she was sorry for what he’d been through but couldn’t find it within herself to do it. “Thank you for coming to meet me, Staunton.”
“I rather expected I would hear from you sooner or later.”
Obviously Rosa had told him she knew about the two of them. “Good. That should make what I have to say easier.”
“Easier?” He laughed. “No, Gabby, I’m pleased you came to your senses and wanted to meet with me to discuss what happened and what will happen now, but you need to know I am not of a mind to make it easy for you. Why should I, after the stunt you pulled in the park with the viscount and the extreme embarrassment you caused me?”
Her brows drew together quizzically. That sounded odd. Did that mean he was going to fight her father about having their engagement annulled?
“But this isn’t about me, Staunton.”
“Isn’t it? Your behavior was shameful. An apology about now would be appropriate.”
Gabrielle pursed her lips and hesitated as she stared at his smug expression. Apparently he wanted an apology to soothe his bruised self-esteem before he would talk about Rosa. She really didn’t want to say she was sorry, because she wasn’t. She was happy they were no longer engaged, and he should be too.
However, she remembered Auntie Bethie telling her that her mother had said an apology is never out of line. Obviously, Gabrielle wasn’t as good as her mother because she didn’t feel one was necessary, considering the fact Staunton was in love with Rosa and seeing her behind Gabrielle’s back.
But for Rosa’s sake, Gabrielle was willing to forgive, forget, and apologize.
She cleared her throat and forced herself to say, “I’m sorry for any anguish my mistake caused you.”
He sneered. “That’s all?”
Exasperated, she said, “I apologized. There’s nothing more that need be said, so could we please get on with the matter at hand?”
Staunton huffed and moved his hat from under one arm to the other. “Very well, I suppose it will do. And yes, I’m willing to accept you back and carry on with our wedding plans at a later date.”
Gabrielle stopped walking and looked at him with uncomprehending eyes. Did he say what she thought he had?
Surely not.
He moved closer, and she instinctively stepped back. “But you have been very naughty.” Suddenly he smiled. “You must first show me how contrite you are about the way you misbehaved.”
A shiver of dread skimmed her spine and gooseflesh pebbled her skin, even though she was wrapped in her heavy woolen cape. Something wasn’t right.
She moistened her lips. “I’m afraid I don’t understand.”
“Then let me explain it to you. With our first engagement, you held all the cards, and why shouldn’t you? Being the eldest child of a duke, you had been taught you had certain rights and expectations. But that won’t be so, this time.”
This time?
Was he really talking about salvaging their engagement? Why? When he was supposed to love Rosa?
Apparently unaware Gabrielle was confused, Staunton kept talking.
“I’ve decided to take you back as my betrothed. And, Gabby, when I want to kiss you, my dear, I will kiss you. You will not pull away from me and plead innocent as you have in the past. You will not tell me you will not join me in the garden for a late evening good-night kiss. You will be at my beck and call, and I will call you often.”
He stood so proud and confident before her that Gabrielle could only stare at him in silence. He was not saying what she had expected him to say.
“What on earth are you talking about, Staunton? I didn’t come here to ask you to renew our engagement.”
His brow wrinkled. “What?”
“I came to talk to you about
Rosa.”
He shifted his hat again, and the corners of his eyes twitched guiltily. “What did she tell you about us?”
“That you love each other.”
“She’s a foolish young girl who obviously has fantasies I don’t begin to understand.”
Gabrielle gasped. “I know you have been slipping around to see each other. I came here to tell you that must stop. If anyone finds out, her reputation will be in shreds.”
Red splotches broke out on his face. “Something like your reputation, I suppose. You seem to be doing all right after your little affair in the park.”
Gabrielle’s jaw went slack and then tightened. She was so caught off guard by what he was saying she hardly knew how to respond.
“I am handling the gossip in the newsprint and the whispers at parties, but Rosa would find it very difficult to do. If you want to marry her, you must do the right thing by her and tell your father and hers to post the banns and marry immediately.”
Staunton chuckled. His earlier nervous twitch was gone; his confidence had returned. “Marry her? Where did you get—did she tell you that?”
Gabrielle was beginning to understand Staunton, and she didn’t like what she was discovering. Her gloved hands made fists inside her muff, and her throat felt tight and restricted.
“Yes, of course. She told me you loved each other and you want to be married. I know this to be true, because I saw you two kissing. I saw the passion between you. I saw—”
He stepped in closer to her and snarled. “You saw what you obviously wanted to see, you little spy.”
She gasped. “Spy?”
“Yes, that’s what you are. And yes, there was passion between us, because she is not afraid to be kissed and touched like you are.”
“Are you telling me you don’t love Rosa?”
“Love her?” He shrugged in a nonchalant manner. “I love that she is passionate. That she enjoys being in a man’s arms. She likes to be caressed and told how beautiful she is. Things you never wanted me to do or say. So what else was I to do when she sought me out and offered herself to me?”
“No,” Gabrielle whispered, not wanting to hear any more from him.
“Yes! Why shouldn’t I accept her kisses and caresses when I couldn’t get my fiancée to allow me one little kiss?”
“That’s not true. Staunton, you know I allowed you to kiss me.”
“You gave me chaste little kisses that meant nothing and didn’t have enough fire in them to stir passion in either of us. And I had to ask myself, how could Rosa be so hot-blooded when you were always so timid and cold? Every time I tried to kiss you, you rebuffed me as if you were too special for me to touch.”
Gabrielle felt breathless and light-headed. “No, that’s not true,” she said but knew her words rang false.
She stared into his confident blue eyes and realized he had gone after Rosa when he didn’t get what he wanted from her.
She had never wanted to marry Staunton. She wanted only to obey her father, because that was expected of her. She had never felt passion when she was with Staunton but had expected it would come after they married. But now that she had tasted desire from the lips and touch of Lord Brentwood, she knew the passion Staunton wanted from her would have never come.
“Of course it is, and now I know why you didn’t want to marry me. You wanted a title. The youngest son of a wealthy earl was not good enough for you, so you went out and snared a viscount for yourself.”
Is that really what he thought about her? Gabrielle inhaled, breathing the cold air deep into her lungs, clearing her head and her throat.
“Staunton, hear me well,” she said calmly but firmly. “As you said, I am the daughter of a duke, a powerful duke, and I’m not afraid to use his power or his influence. Stay away from my sister, or I will see to it you will not find a mama in London who will let you come near her daughter.”
His eyes narrowed and twitched. “Are you threatening me, Gabby?”
She smiled. “Yes, I am. And, Staunton, it’s Lady Gabrielle when you are speaking to me.”
Gabrielle turned and started walking back toward her aunt. Her legs were shaky, but inside she felt strong knowing Staunton was wrong. She was filled to overflowing with passion. Brent had proved that to her.
And Gabrielle knew just whom to speak to about Staunton if he dared try to see Rosa in secret again. She’d heard Lady Windham took to her sick bed after her last party because Staunton had dared cause a scene in her home. Lady Windham was already predisposed to be wary of him, and if Gabrielle told her he was enticing young ladies into ruination, no doubt she’d be happy to spread the word to the pushy mamas in London.
But how would Rosa take his absence? Would she write him another note and try to see him in secret even though she had promised not to?
There was no way Gabrielle could watch Rosa every minute. Gabrielle would ask her maid, Petra, to help her keep an eye on Rosa’s whereabouts.
Fourteen
Jealousy is the only vice that gives no pleasure.
—Anonymous
The Cuddlebury’s house was filled to overflowing with elegantly dressed ladies and dapper-looking gentlemen chatting, laughing, and dancing under a brightly lit chandelier. Perhaps the lively mood of the gathering was because December was only a few days away and everyone was feeling the need to celebrate the festive season early. The music hadn’t stopped all evening, and from her aunt’s side at the far end of the dance floor, Gabrielle hadn’t stopped watching Rosabelle. Her sister seemed to be having a delightful time. She had already danced with three different gentlemen. But every once in a while, Gabrielle would catch Rosa watching the entrance to the room.
Her sister had been eager to come to the party and had spent the entire afternoon getting ready for the affair, Gabrielle knew, in hopes of seeing Staunton. If he arrived, she was determined to see he didn’t sneak into the garden with Rosabelle.
Gabrielle had worried over what to do since her egregious meeting with Staunton yesterday afternoon. She had vacillated too many times to count on whether she should tell Rosa that Staunton didn’t love her or remain quiet but watchful. She had wondered how Rosa would react if she did. Would she fly into a rage, slip into a depression, or do something crazy like go see him? But in the end, she didn’t tell Rosa because she feared Rosa wouldn’t believe her. Gabrielle came to the conclusion there was no use in expecting Rosa to give up her dreams of marrying Staunton; Staunton would have to give up Rosa. And if he didn’t do that soon, Gabrielle knew what she had to do.
“Gabby,” her aunt said, “I don’t think you’ve moved from my side since you got here. You are not a wallflower, a spinster, or an old woman like me. Now go out in the midst of that crowd and enjoy yourself.”
Gabrielle looked down at her aunt. “I am having a good time watching everyone else dance.”
“Not good enough. Tell me, are you waiting for that handsome viscount to arrive?”
“He told me he’s not coming, Auntie.”
“Why not?” Auntie Bethie rose from the chair to stand beside Gabrielle. “I’ve seen both his brothers here.”
“After what Staunton did at Lady’s Windham’s, Brent thought it best he not attend any parties for a while. He didn’t want to be the cause of any more trouble.”
“Hmm, that means if Staunton wanted a fight, next time he’d oblige him.”
Gabrielle nodded.
“That’s admirable of him.”
“I thought so too,” she answered, but knowing his reasons didn’t keep her from feeling empty inside.
“Look, I see your friend Miss Whitehouse heading this way. Go spend some time with her. How will I ever get a wealthy young bachelor to notice me if you are always around?”
“Auntie!”
Her aunt laughed and turned away as Babs walked up.
“Gabby,” her friend said, giving her a quick hug. “I saw you standing over here when I was on the dance floor.”
“And I
saw you, too, dancing with Mr. Iverson Brentwood.”
Delight lit Babs’s eyes, and she smiled. “I did. How did you know which one I was dancing with? I can’t tell the twins apart.”
“I’ll give you a clue about their differences. The one named Iverson has longer hair than his brother.”
“Really? I didn’t notice it was.”
“It’s not obvious. There’s only a slight difference, and it requires a keen eye.”
“I will pay close attention the next time I see the two of them together.”
“All right, come with me to get a drink,” Gabrielle said. “I want to ask you something.”
“I hope you want to know something deliciously scandalous so I can tell you something sinfully naughty,” Babs said as they made their way over to the punch table.
Gabrielle laughed as they threaded a path through the crowd. “No more scandals. I’m through with them, but I do need your help. I’ve done everything I can think of to appear unacceptable as a wife to Lord Brentwood, but he seems completely unaware of all my efforts.”
Babs gave her a quizzical look. “First, I must ask, why do you want to be unacceptable to him? He’s titled, handsome, and dashing.”
“All that and more.”
“That’s what I mean. I’ve heard of making a gentleman want to chase you, but why would you want to chase one away? Why do you want to appear unacceptable to such a worthy catch?”
Gabrielle pulled her bottom lip into her mouth for a moment and then released it. “I’d rather not go into details right now, Babs.”
“All right. I can see this is serious for you, so tell me what you’ve done.”
“I’ve tried the things I knew my father would absolutely hate. I’ve pretended not to know how to dance, insisted he go to church with me, told him I believe in ghosts, and forced him to help me with Brutus.” She stopped and sighed. “There have been other things, too, but nothing has worked.”