An Unlikely Debutante

by Laura Martin

  Looking straight at the man in front of him, Alex shrugged, as if to indicate he was ready to take his chances. He saw the minute movement as the man’s finger squeezed the trigger, heard the bang as the powder propelled the bullet forward. The bullet went wide, very wide—thanks in no small part to Lina leaning out of the ditch and poking the horse the highwayman was seated on with a fallen branch just a moment before the shot was fired. The horse reared, danced forward and backwards a few steps, then shot off down the road so quickly the highwayman nearly lost his seat.

  In an instant Alex was kneeling down, pulling Lina out of the ditch. She was shivering violently, covered in mud, and her dress was sticking to her body in a way that looked very uncomfortable.

  ‘You’re bleeding,’ she said through chattering teeth.

  Alex glanced down at his arm. His jacket was torn and the shirt underneath was soaked with blood. He recalled the stinging sensation as he flung himself and Lina into the ditch and realised he must have been shot.

  Despite her obvious discomfort, Lina did not hesitate in pulling his jacket from his shoulders and tearing the ripped material of his shirt to get a better look at the wound. In the darkness it was difficult to see, but he felt her fingers probing softly.

  ‘I need to bind it, try to stop the bleeding.’

  It felt rather nice to have Lina’s fingers dancing across his skin, even if the wound did not burn and sting now, he’d become aware of it. Deftly, as if she dealt with bullet wounds all the time, Lina tore strips of his ripped shirtsleeve and fashioned them into a makeshift bandage, which she wound tightly around his biceps.

  ‘That’ll do for now.’

  ‘How about you?’ Alex asked, catching her hand as she was about to step away. ‘Are you hurt?’

  ‘Just a little bruised,’ Lina said with a shrug.

  Many women of his acquaintance would be in hysterics by now. Many men, too. Lina was cold, uncomfortable and a little shaken by the evening’s events, but her demeanour was calm and he knew she would not be swooning or collapsing or engaging in any other form of unhelpful behaviour.

  ‘Where’s the carriage?’ Lina was peering into the darkness, scrunching up her eyes as if in the hope of being able to see in the dark.

  ‘It won’t be far. McManus is an experienced coachman. He’ll have brought the horses under control without too much trouble.’

  ‘Shall we start walking?’

  They’d just been robbed, fired upon, forced into freezing water and battered by the storm raging overhead and Lina was calmly suggesting they set off to find the carriage.

  ‘You’re very practical in a crisis,’ Alex said, draping his jacket over her shoulders. It was wet, torn and probably provided only minimal protection from the elements, but any small advantage could be vital on a night like this.

  ‘Would you prefer me to collapse to the floor, crying and screaming?’

  ‘Most certainly not.’

  He held her by the shoulders for a moment, raising one hand to brush the damp tendrils of hair stuck to her face away.

  ‘Thank you for saving my life,’ Alex said softly, looking into her dark eyes and seeing a flash of warmth.

  ‘It seemed the right thing to do.’

  Before he could stop himself, he dipped his head and kissed her. Later he might blame the excitement of the evening, the residual sensation of danger, of throwing caution to the wind, but right now he knew he kissed her because he wasn’t able to not kiss her.

  Despite the chill of the rest of her body Lina’s lips were wonderfully warm. She still tasted of the strawberries and wine they’d indulged in a few hours before at the racetrack and as her tongue flicked out to meet his, Alex felt his desire swell and grow.

  ‘Are you hurt, my lord?’ The voice was carried on the wind and Alex recognised it as belonging to the groom, Kitsworth.

  Lina hurriedly stepped away from him, taking her warmth with her, but Alex caught her hand to stop her from going too far.

  ‘Kitsworth, what happened?’ Alex called as the groom rounded the bend in the road.

  ‘The carriage is damaged, my lord.’

  ‘Are you injured? Or McManus?’

  ‘No, my lord. McManus is checking the horses over now.’

  Quickly Alex and Lina followed the groom back down the lane, their heads bent against the driving rain. The wind had picked up again and the trees were creaking ominously on either side of the road.

  The carriage had come to a halt about half a mile from the site of the ambush. Despite the coachman’s best efforts, it had careened out of control and was now lying at an angle, half in the ditch to the side of the road. Alex was reminded of the horrible accident Aunt Lucy had been involved in and realised they had been lucky neither he nor Lina had been inside.

  ‘Horses seem fine, my lord,’ McManus shouted over the sound of the wind and rain.

  Alex surveyed the scene. There was no way they would get the carriage back on the road tonight without extra help. All four of them were soaked to the bone and Lina especially looked pale and as if her body had nearly reached the limit of its endurance.

  ‘Did we pass any houses on the road before the ambush?’ Alex asked.

  ‘There was a cluster of houses a few miles back,’ McManus said.

  Alex grimaced. Despite the blood still seeping from his arm he was confident he would still be able to ride a horse a few miles, but he doubted Lina would be able to manage it. If he didn’t get her somewhere dry soon, she would certainly catch a chill or even something worse. ‘Take the horses,’ Alex instructed his coachman and groom. ‘Ride to the nearest village or house, wait for the worst of the storm to settle and then see if you can borrow a carriage to transport us home.’

  ‘Where will you go, my lord?’ McManus asked.

  ‘There looks to be a barn on the other side of that field.’ Alex motioned off into the darkness. He was taking a risk—the barn might be locked or have fallen into disrepair, but he would just have to hope for the best. Lina needed to be somewhere dry and sheltered, and there weren’t many other possibilities.

  As the two men readied the horses, Alex stepped closer to Lina. She was shivering violently now, unable to conceal just how cold she was.

  ‘Do you think you can make it across that field?’ Alex asked.

  ‘Race you,’ Lina replied, managing to summon a faint smile through chattering teeth.

  Chapter Twenty

  The barn loomed over the muddy field, large and dark and silent. Lina felt her leg muscles burning as she struggled the last few steps and watched as Alex gripped one of the doors and swung it outwards. Almost crying with relief, Lina allowed Alex to pull her into the barn, collapsing to the ground as he slammed the door closed behind them.

  The silence that followed was eerie and unexpected after what felt like hours of howling winds and groaning trees. Even better than the silence was the lack of driving rain beating down on their bodies, adding weight to their already soaked clothes.

  ‘We need to get warm and dry,’ Alex said.

  Lina knew what he said made sense. If they stayed in their wet clothes, they would at the very least catch a chill, maybe something even worse, but right now she wasn’t sure if she could summon the energy to stand, let alone undress.

  ‘We have nothing to change into, nothing to dry ourselves with.’

  ‘Stay here,’ Alex instructed, disappearing into the darkness before Lina could protest.

  Rustling and creaking sounds followed as Alex moved around the barn, and Lina wondered what he was looking for. The wooden building was sizeable, with a hayloft above them, and as Lina’s eyes adjusted to the gloom she could just make out the silhouettes of pieces of farm equipment down here on the ground floor.

  Triumphantly Alex returned, brandishing two pieces of material.

  ‘What have you found?’

  ‘Two blankets. They smell of a farm—I think they’re horse blankets for the winter, but it’s better than nothing. We c
an bathe tomorrow when we get home.’

  Right then a dry, soft horse blanket sounded like heaven.

  ‘Can you make it up into the hayloft?’ Alex asked.

  Lina knew she was the one who should be looking after him, he’d been shot after all, but she was so cold and exhausted she felt as though her body had shut down. Nodding, she gathered her soaking-wet skirts and let Alex direct her to the ladder. She stumbled as she reached for the first rung and immediately Alex’s hands were around her waist, steadying her.

  ‘Just climb slowly,’ he instructed. ‘I’ll be right behind you.’

  The air felt a little warmer as they entered the hayloft, and Lina was surprised to see there was a substantial amount of hay on the small, elevated platform despite there not being any animals kept below. The farmer must have moved his livestock elsewhere for shelter during this storm, or at least Lina hoped so—she didn’t wish anyone, man or beast, to be out unprotected in this weather.

  A small amount of light filtered in through a tiny window in the roof of the barn and through it Lina could see the thick clouds still covering the sky. For a moment she wondered about McManus and Kitsworth, the coachman and groom. They had a long ride ahead of them in this foul weather, with no guarantee of shelter at the end. She just hoped some villager or farmer took pity on them and provided them with a fire to warm themselves by.

  ‘Take your clothes off,’ Alex instructed.

  He’d climbed up silently behind her and was now busy moving around some of the hay to make room for them.

  ‘I’ve got nothing to change into,’ Lina protested weakly. She knew Alex was right—even standing naked was more sensible than remaining in the sodden dress and petticoats she had been wearing. The cold, wet clothes would prevent her skin from warming naturally from within as her core temperature rose now they were under shelter.

  ‘I promise not to look.’

  ‘All night?’

  Even in the darkness she saw him grin.

  ‘Well, maybe one peek.’

  ‘Hand me one of those blankets,’ Lina said, and slowly Alex did.

  She wasn’t naturally shy, had never had a problem about stripping down to her underclothes in front of friends and family, but as she tugged at the first of the ties on her dress, a warm and prickly sensation spread right from her toes to the top of her head.

  ‘You should be undressing, too,’ Lina said.

  ‘I’ll need help with my shirt, it’s a little difficult to move my arm.’

  Lina paused, her dress half-undone, but in no danger of going anywhere; the water had done a good job of ensuring it was firmly stuck to her body. In two steps she was by Alex’s side, lifting up the bottom of his shirt, peeling it off the taut muscles of his abdomen and chest. Slowly she manoeuvred his arm through the ripped sleeve and then allowed her fingers to dart across his skin as she lifted the sodden, bloodstained shirt over his head.

  ‘Thank you,’ he said and Lina had to force herself to step away.

  She continued with the ties of her dress, eventually loosening it enough to be able to push it down over her hips and step out of the heavy material. The chemise and petticoats she wore, normally a brilliant white, were now almost transparent and stuck to her skin scandalously.

  Quickly Lina glanced up. Alex was in the process of unfastening his trousers, something that made her pause herself. He looked at her, unable to stop his eyes falling to her body, and even in the darkness Lina knew it was as if he were looking at her naked.

  Five seconds passed, and then ten, before eventually, with what must have taken iron-strong self-control, Alex turned around, leaving her to take off her underclothes in private. At the same time he took off his trousers and Lina had to resist the very primal urge to go and wrap her body around his.

  Trying to remember all the reasons why dallying with Alex was a bad idea, Lina quickly peeled off her chemise and petticoats and wrapped herself in the blanket Alex had given her.

  You’re from different worlds, she told herself. Once he gets bored of you, he’ll move on and you’ll be heartbroken. Mistresses are disposable. It’s not an equal relationship. You’ll be ruined and all for a few weeks of pleasure.

  Right now a few weeks of pleasure sounded like heaven, but Lina had to acknowledge that she was developing deeper feelings for Alex and so the pain when he moved on to another women would be too much to bear.

  ‘Let me look at your arm,’ Lina said. Stepping closer to Alex was probably not the best idea, but she couldn’t let him bleed to death just because she didn’t trust herself to keep her hands off him.

  He held out the injured arm and carefully Lina peeled the makeshift bandage off, noticing how Alex gritted his teeth to stop from wincing. The wound had stopped bleeding, but still looked red and raw, a half-inch-deep gash across his biceps.

  ‘Can you move it?’

  Slowly Alex flexed the biceps, his face contorting with pain, but he managed to complete the movement.

  ‘I think you’ll heal just fine. We can get the doctor to look at it when we get home.’

  Within a few minutes Lina had bound the wound again, knowing it was important to keep it fully covered to try to prevent infection.

  ‘You’re icy cold,’ Alex said, his fingers gripping her own.

  It was an effort to keep her teeth from chattering and her feet felt like blocks of ice, but it was hardly surprising seeing as they’d spent the past hour drenched to the bone with dirty ditchwater and rain.

  ‘We need to get you warm.’

  Lina had visions of thick, luxurious blankets and a crackling fire to warm her toes by.

  Instead she watched as Alex rearranged the hay in the loft.

  ‘We need to share body heat.’

  ‘How?’

  ‘I’ll lay the blanket I’m wrapped in on top of the hay and we will both lie on top of it, covering ourselves with your blanket. We can pull some of the loose hay on the blanket as well to give us extra insulation.’

  ‘We’re both naked.’

  ‘I think we can both be adults about this. It’s for survival, not any amorous purpose.’

  Lina nodded, her eyes widening as Alex dropped his blanket from around his waist and laid it on the hay. It was dark in the barn and she couldn’t make out much, but her eyes sought out the contours of his body all the same.

  ‘Lie down,’ he instructed.

  Loosening the blanket wrapped around her body, Lina lay down, feeling Alex’s fingers pulling at the material as she did so. By the time she was comfortable and supine, the blanket had been spread to cover her with a space left directly next to her for Alex.

  Lina realised she was holding her breath as he slipped under the blanket. For a moment he busied himself pulling clumps of hay on top of them to add another layer of insulation, but after a short while he stilled, and there was just the sound of their breathing and the hammering of the rain on the roof of the barn.

  ‘Your teeth are chattering,’ Alex observed.

  ‘I’m still cold.’

  ‘Come here.’

  Gently he turned her so she was facing away from him, looped an arm around her waist and pressed his body against hers. Lina stiffened. She could feel all of him and she wanted nothing more than to roll over and welcome him into her body.

  ‘Just relax,’ Alex said, his voice a little hoarser than usual. Lina felt anything but relaxed. A strange heat was building just below her abdomen and spreading through her body. She had to physically suppress the urge to wriggle and writhe against Alex, subconsciously wanting more skin-to-skin contact, more sublime sensations as Alex’s fingers grazed her arm.

  She could feel his manhood, hard and solid against her buttocks, and knew this was just as difficult for him as it was her.

  Desperately she searched for some distraction, anything to quell this building sensation of inevitability between them.

  ‘You thought Victoria was the woman you were destined to spend your life with,’ Lina blurted—and
regretted it immediately.

  * * *

  Alex stiffened. With Lina’s body pressed up against his, every curve, every inch of exposed skin teasing and tantalising, he was finding it difficult to concentrate on anything except maintaining control of himself, but Lina’s words registered after a few seconds.

  ‘Victoria?’ he asked, unsure where the topic had come from.

  ‘Earlier this afternoon when you were arguing with your sister, you said Victoria was the woman you’d been destined to spend your life with, or something along those lines.’

  The argument was still fresh in his mind. Georgina couldn’t help but meddle in affairs that didn’t concern her, but this time he had to admit she had been right. It had been careless and wrong to kiss Lina in public, even just a little peck on the cheek. Throughout his life he’d been taught to adhere to the rules of society. Some men didn’t see a problem with parading their mistresses in public, snatching a kiss in the shadows of the opera house or letting a hand stray somewhere it shouldn’t whilst dancing a waltz. Alex wasn’t that kind of man—or at least he hadn’t thought he was. Kissing Lina on the cheek hadn’t been a conscious decision, it had just happened, and Alex knew he’d been as powerless to stop it as he had the storm raging overhead.

  ‘I’m not sure—’ he began.

  ‘Don’t try to deny you said the words.’

  Alex sighed, Lina seemed to have rallied a little, recovered some of her normal tenacious nature.

  ‘You might tell the world you’re over Victoria, but you’re not.’

  He started to speak, but Lina rushed on.

  ‘It is perfectly natural to still care about someone even if they hurt you. I think it is just a shame you won’t admit to yourself that your affection for Victoria and the heartbreak you suffered is holding you back from moving on in matters of the heart.’

  ‘I don’t love Victoria,’ Alex said firmly. Lina remained silent and he considered the words he’d just uttered. Even when being completely honest with himself he believed he was speaking the truth. ‘I think it is hard to move on, to stop caring about someone when they’ve spent a long time in your heart. No matter how much someone hurts you it is difficult to forget all the good times, all the happiness.’