“You’ve done your best, my lord,” Mrs. Wellsbottom offered. “More than most men would have.”
He shrugged. “Yes, but is it enough? I have no proof either way.”
“But you don’t need it. In your heart, you know the truth. Maggie’s mother is dead. If she weren’t, Lord Alfred would have brought her back with him. After all, he caught the pox somewhere, didn’t he?” The older woman looked away.
“He did.” Until then, Jeremy hadn’t wanted to admit that Maggie’s mother had probably been a whore and not an actress. Alfred had simply been one of her clients. Though there was no doubt in his mind that Maggie was Alfred’s child. They looked and acted far too much alike for it to be otherwise.
For a moment, Jeremy did nothing more than watch Maggie play in utter contentment with her new doll. She was not his child, but in many ways, it felt as if she was. She also deserved better than the life she had been handed. Oh, she would grow up in wealth and privilege. He would make certain of that. Maggie was also all the more reason to stop his mother’s frivolous spending and make certain that the dukedom was well-financed so that she would be taken care of, no matter what path she chose in life.
However, unless something quite radical changed, Maggie would likely never be fully accepted into London society. While she was both a Dunn and the granddaughter of a duke, which might open some doors, she was not Wilson’s child. She was Alfred’s and if there was one Dunn sibling who had a worse reputation than Jeremy? It had been Alfred. And he had reveled in it.
If it was revealed that her mother was a French actress, or worse, a whore? Maggie would never make a good match if she even wed at all. She would probably be forgotten amongst the other debutantes with perfect pedigrees and an unblemished family name.
Or would she? At this point, Jeremy wasn’t certain he could predict such a thing.
And if she was forgotten? Well, there were worse things to be, he supposed.
Unbidden, a vision of Dory as she had been last night rose in Jeremy’s mind. The Tillsbury name, while respected, was hardly spotless. Her father had been a gambler, abuser, and general reprobate. Her brother Frost had been a rake who had wed a woman who once worked in a brothel. And yet, there had been men tripping over themselves to wed both Sarah and Aurelia.
But not Dory.
Dory the overlooked and under-appreciated. Dory the invisible.
But she wasn’t invisible. At least not to him.
Just as Jeremy saw Maggie for what she was and what she could be, he saw Dory as well.
And just then, he burned to see her again. Not just to kiss her – which had been as delicious as he had imagined, but to do…something. He couldn’t say what. Perhaps only to be with her? Well, wasn’t that what a mistress was? A lady for companionship as well as bedsport? Wasn’t that what she had agreed to?
“My lord? You look a bit flushed all of the sudden. Are you well?”
Jeremy had been so busy thinking about Dory that he had forgotten that Mrs. Wellsbottom was standing right there.
“I have been keeping late nights at the club.” He couldn’t tell her that he had been thinking about ravishing a proper young lady. Even though he was a lord, she would likely box his ears and be right to do so. “I need to make certain Dionysus continues to thrive. The Dunn family coffers are still not quite as full as I would like them to be and the estates have not recovered from Wilson’s care. I am afraid that I might be wearing myself thin.”
The older woman nodded in understanding. “Say no more, my lord. I understand perfectly.” She turned back towards Maggie before pausing again. “But if you do need anything, please let me know. I should only be too happy to help.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Wellsbottom. I do appreciate that.”
Except that Jeremy didn’t think the nanny could help him just then.
No, the only person who could help him – the only person he needed – was Dory.
He knew her about as well as he knew some of his friends at White’s, but that didn’t matter. He still needed her.
His temporary mistress and a woman whose face he had never fully seen. Whose name he had never spoken aloud. A woman he had only spent four, far-too-short evenings with. A woman that, in this world, he couldn’t have.
Still, he needed her.
And if that didn’t make him a fool, he didn’t know what did.
Chapter Six
“Dory, I really don’t think this is a good idea. In fact, I’m sure it isn’t. Believe me, I know a bad idea when I hear one, for I have had plenty, especially as of late.”
Actually, Dory had come to the same conclusion earlier that afternoon. However, that didn’t mean she was going to change her mind. She wasn’t. Sneaking away from Society one night a week was risky enough but twice? Well, that was madness.
On the other hand, she was so anxious to see Jeremy again, that she would likely do just about anything to make it happen. Including driving one of her few close friends, Miss Cecilia “Cecy” Worth, into a near frenzy with worry in a far corner of Lady Everly’s retiring room.
“Cecy, I simply must go. I wish I could explain, especially to you, but I can’t. Maybe in time, but not now.” Dory shook her head. “Besides, at present, it is better off for you if you don’t know. Not any of it.”
The other week, Cecy had accidentally lost control of her pall mall mallet at Lord Fullbridge’s spring house party and sent it crashing directly into the head of Lord Noah Acton, the Earl of Snowly. While the earl hadn’t suffered any permanent injuries, Cecy’s reputation, unfortunately, had. An already extremely sheltered young lady who had been raised in India and was now under the close scrutiny of Lord Trenton Pike, her guardian’s nephew, Cecy’s reputation hadn’t been all that pristine anyway. Now? It was even worse.
And Dory wasn’t about to stain it even further by dragging her friend into this plan of hers to steal away and meet with Jeremy in private once again.
“Will you at least promise me you will be careful?” Cecy chewed on her lower lip which was already split from an incident with a battledore racket the previous day at Lady Fowler’s luncheon and garden party. “I have so very few friends as it is. I can hardly afford to lose one.”
That made Dory laugh. Though perhaps not a raving beauty, Cecy had an extremely dry and clever wit – something that gentlemen would discover if they were ever allowed to speak with her without Trent Pike glowering at them from the corner and looking as if he would eat them for lunch if they dared to approach Cecy.
However, that was a matter for another time and, as it was, Dory was already running late. Even if she left now, she would barely have time to change her clothes and don her mask in St. James before she was to meet Jeremy at Dionysus.
Laying a hand on her friend’s arm, Dory tried her best to reassure her friend, even though her own stomach was full of butterflies. “I promise. I will be careful. Though I swear to you that I know what I’m doing, Ce. I have to do this. I just…I just need to. Please. Try to understand.”
Cecy twisted her lips into a frown. “That is often what Trent says when he is about to do something he knows I will not like. I don’t like hearing that phrase from you any better than I do from him.”
“I need to do this,” Dory replied and closed her eyes for a moment. “So, please, Cecy? Will you cover for me?”
Rolling her eyes, Cecy offered Dory a look of exasperation. “Of course. You know I will.” She shook her head. “Had a megrim. Went home. Don’t know if you’ll be about for the theater tomorrow. Does that sound about right?”
“Ce, you’re the best!” Dory pressed a quick kiss to her friend’s cheek. “I will repay this favor tenfold. I promise. If you can get Trent to allow me a dance with a gentleman he does not approve of, all will be forgiven.”
Dory snorted. “Even I am not that good at persuasion.”
Once more, her friend shook her head. “Just go.”
“You won’t regret this,” Dory promised as she gat
hered up her skirts and prepared to make a mad dash from the Eversly’s townhome.
Cecy waved her hand in the general direction of the back door to the Eversly’s library. On the other side was an empty room that just happened to have a set of lovely French doors that led to a terrace. And that terrace led to the gardens and then to the mews beyond where Dory could secure a hack to take her on her journey across London.
“I will even swoon into Trent’s abysmally strong arms in order to create a distraction if necessary, just to make certain no one notices you are gone,” Cecy promised, though she looked as if she found the thought of swimming in the Thames more appealing than being that close to the man in question.
However, for some reason, Dory didn’t think Trent would mind all that much if Cecy did swoon into his arms, but she said nothing. It wasn’t her place. Nor was it the time. She could assist her friend with her love life later. Once her time with Jeremy was over. For now, though? Their time together was too precious to waste.
Even though Dory had worried that she would be late to meet Jeremy, she shouldn’t have been. The London streets were nearly empty at this hour, most members of the ton already at the events they planned to attend that evening, so the hack was able to move swiftly across town to St. James. There, Dory had been able to change more quickly than usual since she had worn some parts of her peacock costume, particularly her black stockings and garters, as well as her slippers beneath her regular ballgown.
Though Helen had assisted in dressing her that evening, Dory’s maid had been called away when additional staff was needed to attend to Dory’s mother, Clara. As she had busied herself changing her clothes, Dory had felt a small twinge of guilt about what she was doing. After all, it had only been a few days ago when her mother had hovered near death and in a state of pure madness.
The immediate danger had passed for now, however, and really, Dr. Hastings was with her mother almost day and night. During the few moments each day that her mother was awake and of sound mind, she had insisted that Dory carry on with her social schedule as normal. That wasn’t like her mother, at all, since Clara Tillsbury usually insisted that her daughters not set a foot outside the house without her.
That had been before the poisoning, however, and even when she did recover, Dr. Hastings had warned everyone that the dowager viscountess might not be exactly as she was before the tea incident. The powerful poison had affected her mind, and there was no way to tell just yet if the damage was permanent.
So, Dory had gone on with her preparations for the evening as planned, pushing the guilt back down as best she could. In truth, there was nothing she could do for her mother just then. Other than go out and meet eligible young men, of course.
Jeremy did not exactly fit those requirements, but Dory didn’t care. He was the man she desired. He was her fantasy. And if, in the end, she was forced to wed Harry or another man who did not truly understand her and never could? Then she could have these memories of Jeremy to keep her company in the empty years that would follow. She should be allowed to have that much pleasure, at least.
Harry was no ogre and he was a friend – a very dear one, in fact. At least when he was not being a cold and stand-offish idiot. But he was not Dory’s lover and he didn’t view her as a man should view the woman he wished to marry.
Jeremy, on the other hand?
Well, he might not be able to wed her, but he looked at her with desire. For Dory? That was enough. And there was enough of her rebellious nature still left inside of her to crave what she knew she should not desire.
Now, Dory stood in front of the same peacock-hued door that she had the night before. Only now, the lamps at either end of the building did not flicker with muted candlelight, though the alley was just as silent, meaning Jeremy’s men still stood guard. Eyes were still watching. But only for her and not the crush of people who had crowded into Dionysus’ masquerade the previous evening.
Straightening her spine, Dory raised her chin and prepared to knock. However, the door swung open before her knuckles hit the wood and there, before her with his diamond-studded mask glittering in the light, was her Lord Raven. Jeremy.
She almost spoke his name then, but something held her back. Instead, she offered him her hand in silence and he drew her inside quickly.
The ballroom looked different now with its candles extinguished and the shadowed corners devoid of people. And yet, she still felt the same thrill race up her spine as it had last night when he had taken her in his arms and pulled her close for that scandalous waltz.
It was then that she knew that it wasn’t this place that wove its magic around her. Nor was it the masquerade. It was Jeremy himself that made her knees weak and her insides tremble.
“Peacock.” His voice was just as husky as she remembered it.
“Raven.” Unable to stop herself, she reached for him and drew her fingertips along the sensual line of his mouth, relishing the feel of lips. “I’ve missed you.”
He smiled. “It has only been a day. Though would I be too forward if I said that I missed you, as well?”
“Not at all.” Dory allowed Jeremy to draw her deeper into the room and once more, she wanted to call him by his Christian name. However, the masks were still in place and as long as they were? She wouldn’t take the risk. Not when there was so much to lose. “In fact, I find it rather thrilling.”
At that, his lips quirked into a curious smile. “You do?”
Dory nodded, allowing him to draw her deeper into the empty ballroom. “As I said last evening, without my mask? I am not at all interesting.” Or beautiful, she wanted to add, though she was vain enough to believe that she was passably pretty. “If any gentleman has ever missed me that much, he has never said so.”
“They should have.” Stopping in the center of the dance floor, Jeremy turned and pulled Dory close to him, tucking their joined hands over their heart. “Peacock, I…”
This time it was Dory who stopped him with a finger to the lips. Her mind was still something of a muddled mess, her mother’s condition still weighing heavily on her mind. She went to speak, to tell him that tonight was only about pleasure, but the words fell silent on her lips when she saw the concern in Jeremy’s beautiful eyes.
“What is it, sweet?” he asked, shifting her in his arms so that he could look at her.
“Nothing. It is nothing.” She didn’t want her private life interfering with this magical time with Jeremy. It was too short and too precious as it was.
“No, it is something.” He inclined his head. “But I will not press. You may confide in me or not when you are ready.”
More than anything, Dory wanted to confide in him now, but something was holding her back. Perhaps it was because she still didn’t know him very well. Or at least her head didn’t. Her heart? Well, that was another matter entirely.
“Thank you,” she finally managed as her eyes flicked around the empty ballroom. “It looks so different without people.”
At that, Jeremy chuckled. “All things do, I suppose. If you had seen the gaming floor at dawn this morning, you would have said the same.”
“So you sleep here sometimes?” she asked. “I mean I know you have the suite of rooms upstairs, and you said that you did but…” Dory trailed off.
If she said that everyone knew that he kept a fine home on the far side of Grosvenor Square in Mayfair, that would be admitting that she knew his identity. Would that be a step too far too soon? She had no idea.
“Occasionally,” he replied, as if he understood her hesitation. “I have a home elsewhere, but, as I said last evening, there are some nights when it really is too late for me to venture home. Thus, the need for my suite here. It has its uses, as you can imagine.”
Now they were speaking of things that made Dory nervous. Very nervous.
Because other than sleeping, bed chambers typically had only one use and that wasn’t a use that a proper young lady should know anything about. At all.
Y
es, she had read Frost’s books and overheard conversations that were not proper for a young lady. But she was still innocent. And Jeremy? Well, if even half of the stories about him were true, he was…not.
“We could retire there, if you like,” he added when she remained silent. “Though the club is still a madhouse at this hour, I can assure you my rooms are quiet. I’ve also had a cold supper laid out, if you are hungry. Or if you are not, we can wait a bit to dine. It is your choice.”
He was asking her what she wanted. Not demanding. He was giving her a choice. For some peculiar reason, that made her trust him all the more.
“I think I would like that. All of it.” She nodded more firmly. “No, I am certain I would like it.”
“Then allow me to escort you, sweet.” Jeremy offered Dory his arm. “I would not want you to get lost along the way.”
This was it. Dory’s last chance to turn back. This time, both her heart and her head were in agreement. But she didn’t want to turn back. She was here for a reason. She was here to live out her fantasy before time ran out. And the only way she could do that was if she was brave enough to embrace what he was offering her.
“Thank you, Raven.” Dory took Jeremy’s arm. “I think I should like that very much.”
This is wrong. This is wrong. This is wrong.
That mantra repeated over and over in Jeremy’s head as he led Dory back through the twisting maze of corridors toward his private suite of rooms.
The part of him that was still a gentleman screamed at him to turn around and march Dory Tillsbury straight back toward the Peacock Door, hire her a hack and send her on her way home. And if he was still a gentleman, that was precisely what he would do.
But Jeremy was no longer a gentleman and hadn’t been for some time. He was a rake. That was why he had opened Dionysus in the first place. Because he wanted to bed women. Many of them, as often as he could.
His Temporary Mistress Page 9