~ Edith Wharton from The Age of Innocence
“Good morning, Evelyn.” A deep voice interrupted her solitude.
Kitty turned to see Jack Merrill standing, hat in hand, near the door of the parlor where she was reading a book, two mornings later. So far, their plan was working well. Eve had taken her habitual morning rides early so Kitty might ride out later, avoiding the more populated paths, with a groom to guide her. Eve had gone out to tea a couple of times for appearance’s sake but had cancelled her at-homes and other engagements for the time being. Their meals thus far had been taken in private, since Eve’s husband Francis was still away at Glen Cairn.
She hadn’t seen Haddington since the morning in the park. Curiously, she had found herself dwelling on their meeting since then and had hoped she might meet him again in the park when she rode in the mornings. To her disappointment, she had not, but now he was here of his own accord. Well, he had certainly turned himself out nicely for the visit! He was wearing a charcoal gray pinstripe morning suit with a silver silk waistcoat and narrow black cravat. His black shoes were shined to a high polish, his tall, gray felt hat was tucked under one arm and he held a bouquet of yellow hothouse roses in the other. With his dark hair slicked back, and warm golden eyes, he was simply stunning to behold. Her heart raced as any woman’s might at the sight of him.
“Don’t you look nice,” she offered cheerfully. Jack watched as the woman’s lips twitched in amusement, before her hand came up to cover them. Bloody hell, it was the sister! She looked so much like Evelyn it was hard to tell them apart until he saw her eyes. The green arctic glass of Evelyn’s gaze was so different from the sparkle dancing so warmly in Kitty Hayes’ eyes. She thought this funny, did she? Well, he refused to be laughed at!
With a frown, he entered the room. “That’s enough of that now, lass. American or not, there’s no reason for making light of my appearance here. I said I would call on you and I am.” A pair of days had not lessened the impact this woman had on him. In fact, he’d had the oddest compulsion through most of the previous day to come over just to visit her, to see if she was truly so engaging as their moments in the park had led him to believe.
She was lovely now, dressed in an aqua blue morning dress that brought a hint of the sea to her green eyes and set off the honeyed gold of her hair. Her looks and coloring were indistinguishable from the countess, but she radiated warmth and vitality he felt the countess was missing. It was beguiling and distracting. “These are for you.” He thrust the bouquet at her. “A gesture of blooming friendship.”
In truth, it was more a gesture of seduction, though he dared not let on. Though the heiress might be unavailable for marriage, his attraction to her—once he had correctly identified her—was undeniable, and he determined after some brief consideration that an affair with the spunky lady might be just the thing to take his mind off his problems.
He intended a slow, satisfying affair, to take his mind off his troubles and deliver them both a great deal of pleasure in the process. Naturally, she would need to be carefully seduced into submission. Most married women required a fair share of delicate handling before they succumbed to the inevitable. Of course, it might help his purpose if she took his gestures in the spirit they were delivered, rather than with humor.
“I’d probably refrain from tossing about more insults against the American people if you’d like a better reception.” Kitty ignored his harsh tone, knowing he was only miffed by her response to him. It was amusing to be mistaken for Evie by him though! Inhaling the scent of the roses, she located an empty vase on the mantle and began to sort the flowers out on a nearby table so she might arrange them herself, before having one of the servants add water. “So, what can I help you with, my lord?”
Recalling the reason for his visit, Jack cleared his throat and stepped farther into the room. “I am here to call on you as promised.”
“You look like you’ve come courting,” she told him in that alarmingly direct fashion she had. “I thought I made it clear I was unavailable to fill such a role for you.”
Throwing him an assessing look that absorbed him from head to toe, Kitty adjusted the vase and visually sorted the roses before taking up a few and putting them in the vase. “Or,” her lips twitched again as if she had divined his latest objective, “was there something else you wanted?”
Jack could think of a dozen things he wanted from this lady and wondered if such intentions were evident to her. If his desire showed on his face as readily as it pulsed through his veins. The magnetism between them was undeniable. Surely, she felt it? He wanted to rip her clothes from her body, shred her defenses and mount a triumphant assault upon her person. Naturally, he didn’t say so. Any of those thoughts vocalized were unlikely to earn him an invitation to visit again. Even at that moment, he wanted nothing more than to slide his arm around her and…
Kitty squealed then and popped her finger into her mouth. “Oh, that hurt!”
“Prick yourself?” Haddington strode toward her and reached out to take her hand from her mouth. As his hand came toward her face, however, she cringed to the side and stepped back. Frowning with bemusement, Jack persevered and stepped in, removing her hand from her lips and examining her finger. “There is still a piece of the thorn in there. We’d best make sure you get it out. Why are you arranging these yourself anyway? Have a servant do it.”
“Ladies arrange flowers,” Kitty explained, wincing as he pinched at the thorn, trying to remove it. “Besides, Eve is not keeping a large staff right now.” With Glenrothes out of town, Eve had allowed the bulk of her staff a holiday, a gesture Kitty found generous.
“Is she worried about the cost?” he asked absently, as he pinched again at the sliver of thorn. “MacKintosh is wealthy enough to support her even without her own fortune.”
“That has nothing–” Kitty gasped when Jack brought her hand to his mouth and took the top of her finger between his lips, suckling deeply. Though she realized after her initial shock he was merely trying to remove the thorny sliver, the suggestive heat of his molten eyes and questioning brow told other tales. She stared at him, entranced, as his rough tongue slipped erotically over the tip, sending a quiver of warmth up her arm only to set her chest atremble as she drew in a shaky breath.
She swallowed deeply, trying to deny the lustful rush flaring between them. A shocking heat pooled between her thighs. “Wh-what do you think you are doing?”
Jack watched the light in her eyes change with an inward, knowing smile of satisfaction. She wasn’t immune to the attraction between them at all. He could see how this one small gesture affected her, how she was now fully aware of him as a man. From the blush that came to her cheeks and the increase in her breathing, she was feeling the same desire as he. The earl imagined that ardor blossoming, imagined her beneath him and panting with lust. It would happen, he resolved, as his body stirred to life. He would seduce her, win her. The rewards would be incredible for them both.
Locking her gaze with his, he sucked on her digit a moment longer before removing it. “There you are. Good as new.”
Kitty stared down at her finger as if she had never seen one before. Just that tiny bit of her body had come into contact with his mouth! This innocuous bit of flesh and she was flooded with thoughts and feelings such as she had never known. Why should she feel such raging desire for this man? Why now? Certainly, the earl was a handsome and appealing man, but she had met many men like him before. But this was different. Unfamiliar, yet strangely undeniable.
“What were you saying?” he prompted when Kitty remained silently fascinated.
“What?” She shook her head to clear the lingering fog.
“You were saying that Evelyn is a penny-pincher.”
“I was not,” Kitty defended quickly, only to find Jack grinning at her merrily. “Evelyn is very economically minded, of course.” So am I, Kitty thought. There had been a time before Da had become so successful that life in the Preston household had
been very frugal. A dollar was a dollar, Da had taught them. Just because you had them did not mean you had to spend them.
“Economically minded?” he questioned, reaching out to brush a loose strand of hair that had been teasing her neck behind her ear, but again she twitched away. It seemed to Jack that reaching out to her was like trying to feed a wild animal. Skittish and wary of man.
“Prudent,” she countered firmly, to distract him from her curious behavior.
“Parsimonious.”
“That’s very rude. She actually let most of the staff off for a holiday and it’s horrible of you to think the worst, but still, Da always said that frugality was a part of responsibility.” She raised an eyebrow to him as she took a step back, putting enough space between them to stay out of arm’s length and for her to regain her equilibrium. “Of course, Da also said never to talk to strange men.”
“And who is your Da?” he asked absently, while his thoughts were focused on getting closer to his prey.
Kitty smiled fully, drawing his attention again to her full pink lips and pearly white teeth. “My father is the Lelan Preston,” she said proudly, and let that sink in for a moment.
“Ah, that’s right!” He had only recalled the revelation of wealth, not the name of the man who possessed it. Lelan Preston. “Owner of Preston Shipping!” He exhaled the name with a sigh of reverence. How had he ever let Evelyn slip away? His pursuit should have been relentless! Oh, the sacrifices he had made in the name of friendship! Bowing out so Glenrothes might marry his long-time love was the grandest gesture he had ever made. He groaned aloud in frustration from being denied such wealth. “Are you sure you’re married?”
“I am sorry to say so,” she said hollowly, seeing that his focus was again on his conundrum and less upon herself. “And since you brought it up, there is a favor I would like to ask you.”
“It might cost you.” A hint of playfulness tinted his voice.
“I’m sure everything has a price with you, Jack Merrill,” was her wry response. “But I would like to keep my presence here in Edinburgh a secret. To be frank, I have run away from my husband, you see, and don’t want him to find me.”
“Why did you run away?”
“It is not important,” she insisted, looking away. “I simply ask that you do not mention to anyone that the countess’ sister is here for the time being.”
“Why?”
“Honestly,” she admitted, figuring honesty was best, no matter Eve’s reservations about Haddington’s ability to keep his lips buttoned, “I want to petition for a divorce from him and need some time to see it started.”
“A bold move,” Jack commented with a low whistle. Glenrothes had divorced his first wife after a dozen years of infidelity on her part. The process had taken years to work through the courts and had finally taken a Parliamentary decree to see it done. It might not be so bad a process in America, but the scandal that followed was typically the worst part. Society vilified a divorcée. “Is your marriage so bad?”
“Bad enough.”
“Did he betray you with another woman?”
“Let’s just leave it as ‘he betrayed me’, shall we?”
Sensing she wouldn’t reveal more, Jack instead took inventory of the lass before him, the wheels of his mind spinning. She was a true beauty, yet very different from the graceful, cool loveliness of the countess. He, for the first time, could not imagine how any man could forsake a woman such as this. Why, if she were his…Jack shook his head at such an insane thought. Women were all the same at heart, some were just easier to talk to. Intelligence made all the difference. But still, he could not imagine being the man who had driven Kitty away. What fool would treat her so? Plus, to risk losing her fortune! The man must truly be a buffoon.
“A divorce could take years.”
“It could for someone who wasn’t the daughter of Lelan Preston,” she told him cockily. “I suspect it will take little time at all, and Evie agrees with me.”
The daughter of Lelan Preston stood before him! Haddington knew his time was running out. He had been forced recently to take a loan. Not from MacKintosh, though he had offered many times, but rather from Abby’s grandmother, Lady Boughton. Family enough to ask, but not close enough to make the situation uncomfortable. He rarely saw the old girl. Nevertheless, he couldn’t hold out forever. Time was of the essence. It was one thing to know that creditors were pursuing oneself, but it was quite another to have them meet you on the front steps as you left your home. Embarrassing, really. Time was getting short. He had put off the man with the promise he would be wedding a large fortune soon. This must be done, or he would surely land in prison. Bloody hell, prison for what his father and brother had done. He wouldn’t have it. He simply would not!
However, there was an opportunity to be had here if he were bold enough to snatch it up. Perhaps if he helped Katherine Hayes while she got her divorce, befriended her and offered his steadfast support, he could snap her up himself when it was through. Assuming it would happen as quickly as she thought, he could take this time to woo her with friendship and seduction, become a champion for her cause. In turn, she would become his lover. From there it wasn’t hard to imagine that she might like for him to make an honest woman of her and offer her his name. His title. Then, when all was said and done, she and her fortune could be his!
It was an ideal solution to surmount his financial woes, as well as the lust that pounded through his veins when he was near her.
Plotting this new course in his mind, Jack knew he had to find more ways to see Kitty than those a normal day might offer. He needed to spend time with her, to seduce her so thoroughly that even when they were apart, he would linger in her mind. He considered the events of the days to come, searching for opportunity. “My sister sent me a note inviting me to her dinner party two evenings hence,” he informed her at length.
“That was lovely of her.”
“Were you planning on attending?”
“I hadn’t thought about it.”
“I’d like it if you would,” he compelled with the intensity of his eyes. “Say you will come.”
“Very well.” The words popped from her mouth before she might stop them and she had to wonder at her quick acquiescence.
“And will you ride with me in the morning?”
Kitty looked up into his hot golden eyes and felt the attraction between them tug at her like an irresistible lure. It was madness, these thoughts chasing through her mind. Not only was she a married woman but he was an inveterate womanizer and seducer. Eve and Abby had told her all about Jack and his reputation with women. He would never do naught but tease, flirt, seduce…“Yes,” she whispered softly, surprising herself.
“I look forward to seeing you in the morning then.” Taking her hand, he pressed a warm kiss to her palm.
“All right,” the words slid out slowly as she wondered at his behavior. Wondered at her own.
With an elaborate bow, he left her to her day.
Chapter 10
“Missy, your sister would like you to join her and the Lady MacKintosh and Lady Moira for luncheon,” Sung Li informed Kitty with a tap to her door not long after Jack had left.
“Abby and Moira are here? Oh, how wonderful!”
It had been ages since she had seen either of her old school chums—since her wedding, in fact. The four of them had attended the Folkestone Ladies Academy together for almost five years, where they’d become the closest of friends. Their quartet had managed to get into more scrapes than any other group of girls, but they had loved each other so much, even spending many a holiday together at Abby’s grandparents’ estate in southern England. It was much like having more sisters.
Now, Abby MacKintosh was officially Eve’s sister-in-law since Eve had wed the Earl of Glenrothes, the eldest brother of Abby’s husband Richard. Moira MacKenzie was yet unmarried at twenty-six years and was the sole heir of her father Jamie MacKenzie, Earl of Seaforth, and her maternal grandfath
er Neill Mercea, the Marquis of Landsdowne. Eve was to sponsor her for her very first Season soon, starting with the little Season in the fall. Given Moira had been in love with Vincent MacKintosh, the MacKintosh brother between the earl and Richard, for as long as she had known her, Kitty had been surprised to hear that Moira was on the hunt for a husband at last. She would be a great catch for some man one day.
Finding the women in the small family dining room, Kitty greeted Abby and Moira with a hug and kiss. “I can’t believe Eve took so long to tell us you were here,” Abby exclaimed exuberantly. “We would have been over two days ago if we had known.”
“We certainly would have,” Moira agreed, taking her turn in Kitty’s exuberant embrace.
“Oh, my dears, I have missed you so,” she exclaimed to them both. “Moira, don’t you look lovely.” Moira was a true Scottish beauty with her flaming red hair, brown eyes and the temper to match. Then she turned to Abby. “And look at you. No one would ever guess that you bore twins just a few months ago.”
Indeed, Abby looked fabulous, considering how Eve had described her as looking just a month before. “Where are the babies? Are they here?”
“Where else would they be?” Abby laughed. “Richard just took them up to the nursery for a change before they come to meet you. Kitty, I must say you look wonderful as well. I can’t believe it’s been so long!”
“I was thinking that very thing as I was coming down.”
The door of the parlor burst open then and Hannah ran into the room followed by Laurie, Abby’s four-year-old son Tristram, and Richard MacKintosh carrying an infant in each arm. Hannah crossed the room and flung herself at her mother. It was hard to believe her daughter was four years old now as well. She was the terror of the household staff and the stable grooms, so full of talk and tales of her adventures. There was nothing better in the world than to be the mother of such a child, Kitty was sure. She looked over at Abby and her sister and knew they felt the same. Richard passed a baby to Eve and Kitty, who were soon cooing at the beautiful baby girls, and tossed his son in the air, to the toddler’s squeals of delight. His laugh was genuine as well.
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