by Merry Farmer
“Oy! Stop that!” Beatrice shouted at her, as loud as a fishwife.
Max swallowed. “Father isn’t going to send us all away, is he?” he asked Donavan with genuine concern.
“He is not,” Max’s father answered himself as he stepped out onto the front terrace, looking as dour as ever. “But he does wish you had consulted him before offering the use of his property as though it were a holiday resort.”
“Father.” Max’s face heated even more as he scrambled up the stairs to greet his father, tripping on the way. He cursed himself and did his best to look presentable as he reached the terrace and stepped across to shake his father’s hand, but he felt like a fly who had escaped a spider’s web, only to be drawn back in again. “I didn’t think you’d mind.”
His father answered with a sharp hum, clasping his hands behind his back once Max was finished shaking. “I had the old barn on the Gifford’s farm prepared to house these children,” he said, studying the girls with a frown as Annie and Beatrice and a few of the older girls rushed to get them in lines. The girls seemed to sense they were in the presence of someone important as Max’s father looked on and sobered surprisingly quickly. “And Mrs. Knight has given leave for Dora to set up a kitchen of sorts in the Gifford house to feed them.”
“Thank you, Father. That’s very generous of you,” Max said, though he wondered if setting Stephen’s girls up on the Gifford farm was a way to keep them out of sight and out of mind. The farm’s fields had been absorbed into the estate’s holdings a few years before, when old Mr. Gifford retired, and the barn and farmhouse had been empty since then. The girls would be comfortable, but distant.
“Your generosity is very much appreciated, your grace,” Stephen said, approaching with the humble manner Max found both attractive and uncomfortable.
When Max’s father stared down his nose at him, Max jumped back to Stephen’s side to usher him forward. “Father, I’d like to introduce you to Mr. Stephen Siddel,” he said with a smile, placing his hand on the small of Stephen’s back as he swept him forward.
Max realized his mistake as soon as he’d made it. His father was utterly magnanimous as he greeted Stephen, even deigning to shake Stephen’s hand, though their stations were miles apart. But Max could tell that he’d smiled too broadly, stood too close to Stephen, and glanced too openly at him by the way his father’s jaw clenched and his frown grew disappointed.
“Charmed, I’m sure,” his father said in muffled tones.
“Your kindness in hosting my girls truly astounds me, your grace.” Stephen bowed deeply. When he straightened, he adjusted his spectacles. “Many of my girls have never seen the country before. This is the chance of a lifetime for them. I’m certain they will remember you forever.”
Max’s father hummed and nodded. “Donavan will see to any of your needs. The farm is only a short walk from here. And I understand that your charges sing?”
“They do, your grace.” Stephen nodded deferentially. “And we would be happy to sing for you and your family this evening, if you would like.”
“My wife would enjoy that very much,” Max’s father said. He turned to Max. “A word with you, son.”
The look in his father’s eyes was unmistakable. He was about to be told off. He was certain his expression communicated as much to Stephen when he turned to him. “It’s probably a good idea to walk the girls down to the farm right away,” he said in a low voice. “You can take that path, through the woods—don’t worry, it’s small and not particularly dark—and on over the hill.”
“Understood,” Stephen said, the slight flicker of his eyebrow indicating that everything was understood.
As Stephen turned to wrangle the girls and their baggage and speed them on their way, Max turned back to this father.
“You know how I feel about you conducting your abominations on any property belonging to me,” his father said without preamble.
The comment stung Max on several levels, not the least of which was because he was entertaining the idea of doing exactly that.
“Father, there is nothing between Mr. Siddel and I that you need to worry about.” At least, not yet. “I am a patron of his orphanage, that is all.” For the time being. “This truly is a golden opportunity for those poor girls. You cannot imagine how bleak their lives are in London. I believe some of them have never breathed fresh air or felt a gentle breeze on their faces in their lives.”
His father narrowed his eyes slightly, clearly unconvinced.
Max gave up with a sigh. “I promised you I would never embarrass you or cause you public shame in any way, and I stand by that. But you can hardly think Mr. Siddel and I would even have the possibility of engaging in inappropriate behavior with twenty-five little girls in need of our constant attention this weekend.”
Again, his father hummed, though this time his shoulders loosened and his expression softened as though he believed Max. “I never did understand your tastes,” he said as though the topic were the last thing he wanted to talk about. “Your mother would like a concert, though. See to it that those waifs are ready to perform by five o’clock.” He turned to head back into the house.
“And will I be invited for supper afterwards?” Max asked, a hint of resentment in is voice.
“Are you going to insist your Mr. Siddel dine with us?” his father asked, turning back to him, but not fully.
“Yes,” Max answered without room for argument.
His father nodded. “Then no, you will not be invited.”
Without another word or look, his father walked on into the house. Max let out a heavy breath, sagging. He shouldn’t have expected anything different. Not only was he a superfluous, younger son without any chance of inheriting the ducal title, he was perverted in his father’s eyes. He had been since adolescence. Anyone who wondered why he wanted out of his own family needed to look no further than that.
Max turned and headed down the path, hoping to catch up to Stephen. He supposed that most sons were caught in embarrassing situations by their fathers during adolescence, but he doubted many had their father walk in on them while they were fellating a school chum. He’d never been more than a liability in his father’s eyes since that day.
“He knows, doesn’t he?” Stephen asked as soon as Max caught up.
“Yes,” Max said, falling into step with him.
Stephen settled into a grave frown, pushing his spectacles up his nose. “Is he the sort to cause trouble about it?”
“No, he’s the sort to cover his eyes and plug his ears and pretend nothing is amiss, as long as I do absolutely nothing to draw attention to myself,” Max answered.
A relieved smile spread across Stephen’s face. “All is well, then.” When Max sent him a wary look, Stephen shrugged and said, “We never did have anything to worry about from those who fear their own reputations through association with us.”
Max tilted his head to the side. “You raise a good point.”
“Sir, what is that?” One of the girls broke away from her friends to rush to Stephen’s side. She took his hand as though it were a perfectly natural thing to do and pointed out over the pasture they walked beside.
“That’s a sheep,” Stephen laughed.
“I thought sheep were white,” the girl said. “That one is brown.”
“Sheep come in all colors, Katie,” Stephen explained. Several of the other girls fell into step with them, looking impressed by the knowledge. “So do cows and chickens,” Stephen went on. “You are all going to learn such a lot this weekend.”
They reached the abandoned farm after a refreshing walk. True to what his father said, several members of the estate’s staff had tidied up the barn and laid out several palates for the girls to sleep on. The farmhouse chimneys were smoking, and the scent of bread and stew wafted out from the kitchens. There were plenty of activities on hand for the girls to partake in as well, from hoops and balls that had been brought down from the nursery Max had shared with his siblings
growing up to a copious amount of old drawing paper that was going yellow around the edges and a variety of pencils. In no time, Stephen had the girls sketching flowers and trees or throwing the balls to each other and through hoops.
“If that isn’t a scene of idyllic bliss, I don’t know what is,” Stephen said with a happy sigh once all the girls were deeply occupied.
“They all look so happy,” Max agreed, standing shoulder to shoulder with him, a smile on his face as he watched the scene. It filled him with a kind of warmth that was different from anything he’d felt before. It was a pure sort of satisfaction, an enjoyment of innocence and a deeply humbling awareness of the part he’d played in helping such innocent souls to thrive. “No wonder you enjoy your position as their guardian so much.”
“It has its moments,” Stephen admitted with a sideways grin. Clearly it was more than just moments to him, it was his life. “Though you haven’t yet witnessed an outbreak of vomiting or head colds.” He paused, chuckled, face turning pink, then went on with, “Or the overwhelming awkwardness of a girl blossoming into womanhood, but thinking she’s dying because of the blood.”
Max winced, then burst into laughter. “God. Of all the people ill-equipped to tackle a situation like that….”
Stephen shrugged. “Mrs. Ross handles it for the most part. I’ve long since had the mystery of female functioning spoiled for me. It’s no more embarrassing than being a boy of that same age in an ‘interesting state’ after a wrestling match with a schoolmate.”
Max snorted with laughter, finding himself more than a little aroused at the thought of adolescent Stephen getting worked up by what had likely been an innocuous sporting activity. “Those were the days,” he sighed, shaking his head.
Stephen turned his head away from the girls, looking at Max with a degree of longing in his blue eyes that had Max’s cock aching. Stephen’s gaze dropped to Max’s lips for a moment before he glanced over his shoulder to the barn. “We should make certain everything is in order for tonight,” he said, his face coloring.
“Oh?” Max turned to follow him to the barn. He would have followed him into the fires of hell, if that was where he’d been headed.
“I’m curious about the sleeping arrangements and the way these palates have been set up,” Stephen said in a perfectly natural voice, though Max was certain there was more to the invitation to investigate the barn with him. Stephen’s body moved with ease as they crossed through the open barn doors and into the relative dimness of the barn interior, but the brief look he sent over his shoulder was anything but relaxed.
“I’m not sure if Donavan and the others expect us to sleep in the barn or if we’re to have beds in the house,” Max said, playing along and pretending the arrangements were what Stephen wanted to see to.
As soon as they turned the corner and dipped out of sight of the others, Max acted on the signals he was certain Stephen had sent. He grabbed Stephen’s waist and pivoted with him until Stephen’s back hit the dusty wall of the barn, and leaned into him, slanting his mouth over his. The surprise burst of command had Stephen gasping. Stephen tensed for a moment as though he might reject Max’s boldness, but that hesitation vanished with a sigh. Stephen gripped the front of Max’s jacket, taking command of the intimacy. Feeling the force of Stephen’s sudden passion and the ferocity of his kiss made Max smolder as though he were burning from the inside out.
He groaned deep in his throat and intensified their kiss, tossing his arms around Stephen and tugging him even closer. Their bodies pressed together. The hardness of Stephen’s growing erection against his hip was so tempting Max couldn’t breathe. He gripped fistfuls of Stephen’s clothes as their mouths melded, tongues teasing and tasting each other, wishing he could rip those clothes right off to explore Stephen’s naked body. He’d never wanted anyone more in his life, as evidenced by the dangerously primed feeling in his groin. He was in serious danger of losing control right then and there, but none of that mattered as long as he had Stephen’s tongue in his mouth and his body flush against his.
The bounce of a ball rolling past gave them just enough warning to jerk apart before Jane dashed into the barn. Max breathed heavily, straightening his jacket as best he could as Jane retrieved the ball. When she picked it up and turned to discover Max and Stephen standing there, panting and probably red-faced and disheveled, she only registered mild surprise.
“What are you doing?” she asked, tilting her head to the side.
“We…um…that is….” Stephen shifted anxiously, tugging at the hem of his jacket.
“We were just moving some of these old bales of hay to make more room for you lot,” Max jumped in, kicking the bale that, blessedly, sat next to them. “It’s strenuous work.”
Jane barely even shrugged. “Can I have my scissors back?” she asked.
“Certainly not,” Max said with feigned indignation. “Take your ball and go play outside.”
“Okay.” Jane dashed back out into the sunshine.
Max turned to Stephen, letting out a breath of relief that turned into a nervous laugh. “We need to be more careful,” he managed to squeeze out.
“I’ll say,” Stephen said, his eyes wide with warning.
Max surged closer to him, sliding a hand around his back and bringing his lips to within an inch of Stephen’s. “I want you so badly that I don’t know what to do with myself.”
Stephen let out a shaky breath laced with longing before stealing another, deep kiss that spun Max’s head.
“No,” Stephen said, pulling back and shaking himself before sucking in a deep breath. “We definitely cannot do this here or now.” The way he looked at Max said that he desperately wanted to do everything and more. “It’s too dangerous. We need to focus on the girls.”
“As long as you know I want you,” Max said, dropping all pretense and fixing Stephen with the sultriest look he could manage. “And that it is going to happen.”
Stephen’s answering look was the sort of thing that would fuel Max’s hottest dreams for a long time to come. As hesitant as he could see Stephen was, they both knew where they were headed, and if he were honest, Max was certain the journey they took to get there would be as delicious as the destination.
Chapter 6
Stephen couldn’t believe his audacity. Or his foolishness. Especially given the circumstances. Once they left the barn to supervise the girls as they played, he and Max were excruciatingly careful to keep their distance. The way he felt, the way his blood pounded through him and his heart refused to settle, anyone who so much as glanced at the two of them together would sense in an instant the carnal spark that snapped between them. And there was simply too much at stake for the whole world to become wise to the attachment they were forming. There was too much at stake for him to form it. But how was he supposed to pull back now?
That held especially true that evening, when they scrubbed the girls as clean as they could with the farmhouse’s limited resources and marched them back up the hill and through the tiny stretch of woods to the estate house to perform for Max’s family.
“I didn’t realize my brother George would be here,” Max said in a grim voice, swaying far too close to Stephen for either of their good, as they waited in the hallway just outside of a large parlor, where Max’s family waited.
Stephen glanced carefully at Max, still feeling the charge of their kiss in spite of attempting to force his focus onto the girls and the performance for the better part of the afternoon. “Is there anything I should know about your brother?” he asked.
Max snorted. “Only that George is a shameless reprobate and a bully,” Max growled. When Stephen raised his eyebrows at him in question, Max went on with, “He’s only in the country to escape his gambling debts for the summer. Father will pay them off before the next session of Parliament, of course, but that’s only a temporary measure. In all likelihood, George is here to dry out and to avoid God only knows how many ladies he’s sullied as well.”
“He sounds like a delightful man,” Stephen drawled.
The two of them exchanged a wry look of camaraderie. The sight of Max’s hazel eyes flashing and his shapely mouth—a mouth that he could remember the taste of vividly—threatened to create an embarrassing bulge in Stephen’s trousers. He cleared his throat and looked away, staring straight forward into the section of the parlor that he could see. The girls. He had to focus on the girls. The consequences of letting that focus slip were too great.
“I wonder what’s taking them so long,” Max said, speaking Stephen’s own thought aloud.
“Sir, I’m tired,” little Ivy said, breaking out of line to stand by Stephen’s side. She took his hand and leaned heavily against his leg.
“It won’t be long, sweetheart,” Stephen told her, resting a hand on her head.
“I want to go back and play with the sheep,” Katie said from the restless rows of girls behind him.
A few of the others voiced their agreement.
“Can we sleep in the grass tonight?” Ginny asked, yawning.
“Yes, I want the stars watching me as I sleep,” Ursula agreed. “God can see me better that way.”
More chattering and agreement rose up from the girls. Stephen glanced over his shoulder at them, meeting Annie’s eyes where she stood at the back of the pack and warning her they were about to have a mutiny on their hands. Annie nodded and began shushing the girls nearest her.
Stephen turned to Max. “You don’t suppose there’s any way we can speed this process along, do you?”
His question was followed by a thump and a crack as Ivy’s sister, Lori, accidentally knocked a porcelain figure of a shepherdess off a gilded table in the hall where they waited. The shepherdess broke into several pieces, and Lori looked as though the police would come to cart her away at any moment.
Max’s lips twitched as though he didn’t know whether to laugh or groan. “I’ll go see what’s holding them up,” he said, striding forward into the parlor.