Courting the Forbidden Debutante

by Laura Martin

  He kissed her before rolling to one side and gathering her in his arms. Georgina knew she should feel shame or guilt, but right now all she felt was warmth and happiness. She was being held in the arms of a man she thought she might well be falling in love with. It couldn’t last, but right now in this moment she was happy.

  * * *

  It was dark outside and quiet, but Sam could feel Georgina’s chest moving up and down under his arms and hear her steady breathing.

  ‘Are you awake?’ she asked, shifting in his arms slightly.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘I don’t want to fall asleep as I know when I wake up this will be over.’

  ‘Don’t think about that.’

  ‘Tell me about your life in Australia,’ she said. ‘Distract me.’

  ‘What do you want to know?’

  ‘Tell me how you went from a young boy transported for stealing to the man who owns the only stud in Australia.’ She said it lightly, but he could tell it was a question she’d been wanting to ask for a while.

  ‘An old man’s generosity,’ he said quietly.

  ‘This was your friend Mr Fitzgerald’s father?’

  ‘It was. After we’d been in Australia for a couple of years, Crawford and I were assigned to Mr Fitzgerald’s farm to work. I was fourteen at the time and had two years of my sentence left to serve.’ He paused and for a moment he was back under the baking sun. ‘We were working in the fields one day, not far from the house. Mr Fitzgerald’s son was out working, too. I think it was harvest time and every pair of hands was needed.’

  As he spoke Georgina turned to face him and he could just make out the glint of her eyes in the darkness.

  ‘It was getting dark. Crawford and I were working side by side with George, Mr Fitzgerald’s son. We both saw a movement through the crop at the same time, a flash of colour so bright we immediately knew it to be a threat.’

  He heard Georgina take a sharp inhale of breath as if caught up in the moment and waiting to hear what happened.

  ‘It was a snake. Both Crawford and I pounced simultaneously, just as the snake launched itself at Fitzgerald. We tackled it before it could get its fangs in to his skin.’

  ‘It was poisonous?’ she asked.

  ‘Deadly.’

  ‘Fitzgerld told his father what had happened and the old man was convinced we’d saved his son’s life. From that day on he didn’t treat us like convict workers, although we still had two more years of our sentence to serve.’

  ‘He wanted to reward you for saving his son.’

  ‘He gave us an education, taught us all he knew about running a farm in Australia, treated us as though we were family.’

  For Sam, being treated as a human again, someone with feelings and emotions and needs, had been what he appreciated the most. All those years he’d been nothing more than a number, a boy to be worked until he was past weary and half-starved in the process. Mr Fitzgerald had given him a home, a future, and restored his belief in mankind.

  ‘He sounds like an exceptional man.’

  ‘He was. For a young boy who’d lost his father he was the perfect role model. I won’t pretend I wasn’t bitter for a long time, bitter about the loss of my family and the loss of my life as I knew it, but he taught me to see past all of that, to focus on the future.’

  ‘And that’s how you became so successful?’

  Sam grinned at a memory. ‘When we turned eighteen Mr Fitzgerald gave us all a parcel of land, not much, just enough to grow some crops or have a small number of livestock. He wanted us to prove to ourselves we could be a success.’

  ‘And it worked?’

  ‘It worked. Between us we own nearly half of New South Wales, and have land in some of the other territories as well.’

  ‘It sounds like an awful start, but you’ve got to where you want to be now,’ Georgina said and Sam could hear the wistfulness in her voice.

  ‘And what about your dreams?’ he asked. He knew she had them, knew she wished to travel the world, to be free to make her own decisions and not be tied by the expectations of society.

  ‘Mine are unrealistic,’ she said softly.

  ‘Sixteen years ago, when I first arrived in Australia a scared young boy with nothing and no one I would never have believed I would end up where I am today,’ he said, tracing a pattern across her shoulder with his fingers. ‘Anything is possible. Tell me about your dreams.’

  Georgina was quiet for a little while as if collecting her thoughts, but eventually she spoke. ‘I suppose I want freedom. The freedom to choose whether I ever get married or not, the freedom to come and go as I please, to travel without having to have a man by my side. I want to be my own mistress, to make my own decisions.’

  ‘What’s stopping you?’

  ‘The world I live in.’

  ‘Then change that world.’

  ‘I don’t know how,’ Georgina said softly. ‘I don’t know how to break free from the expectations everyone has of me. I don’t want to hurt anyone or disappoint anyone. I just want to have the same freedom a man of my class would have.’

  ‘I suppose you have to decide what is more important to you: not upsetting the people around you or leading the life you want.’

  Georgina fell quiet in his arms and Sam wondered if he had pushed her too far. He knew how difficult it would be for her to buck convention and make her own path in life, but she was a free spirit and he hated the thought of a husband crushing her dreams every day for the rest of her life. Silently he kissed her in the darkness, then wrapped his arms around her. They lay like that for a long time and Sam knew Georgina would be mulling over everything he’d said. He hoped she would decide to fight for her freedom, to choose how her life turned out, but he’d said all he could for now. Eventually he felt her breathing deepen and her body relax, and as the sky began to lighten a little outside the window he drifted off to sleep, too.

  Chapter Nineteen

  The first rays of sunlight filtering through the uncurtained windows woke Sam and for a moment he felt disorientated, unsure of where he was. It was only when he felt Georgina’s warm body in his arms that the events of the night before came back to him and he remembered they were in the old gatehouse.

  The fire had burned down, but there were still a few glowing embers in the grate so the room wasn’t completely freezing in temperature and Georgina’s body was warm and soft beside his.

  ‘Good morning,’ she murmured as she opened her eyes.

  ‘Good morning, beautiful.’

  Many women in her situation would have sat up and panicked, knowing they had given away their virtue to a man they could not marry and were still lying beside him in the morning, but Georgina just smiled and snuggled in closer to him.

  ‘We should be getting back soon,’ he said gently. The last thing he wanted was for her to think he was trying to get away, to move on from their intimacy without any repercussions. What he was concerned about was someone going into Georgina’s bedroom, perhaps a maid to light the early morning fire or to bring her that first cup of tea, and finding the bed empty and not slept in.

  ‘Five more minutes,’ she said, arching her neck and kissing him softly on the lips.

  Immediately he felt himself harden and knew it wouldn’t just be five more minutes.

  This time they made love frantically, as if they both knew it would be the very last time. Sam wanted to absorb every detail of Georgina’s body, from how her back curved into her buttocks to the smooth skin of her thighs that he couldn’t help kissing. He knew a man like him should never have got to know the intimate details of a woman like Georgina’s body and he wanted to be able to remember every inch of her. One day soon she would be married and he would be on his way back to Australia.

  * * *

  As they lay there afterwards, both breathing heavily, he saw the moment G
eorgina forced herself back to reality—it was as if a dark veil had come down over her face.

  ‘The Duke has asked me to marry him,’ she whispered into Sam’s chest.

  He hadn’t expected the stab of pain to his heart at her words. It wasn’t as though he’d ever expected anything more than this.

  ‘And what have you said?’ he asked, trying to keep any hint of emotion from his voice.

  ‘He gave me a few days to consider my answer.’

  ‘Is he a kind man?’ He couldn’t bear to think of her with someone cruel. In truth, he couldn’t bear to think of her with anyone else.

  ‘I think so...’ she shrugged ‘...I’ve spoken to him only a handful of times.’

  ‘Will he make you happy?’

  ‘No.’ She said this sadly and looked up at him from her position cradled on his chest. ‘But perhaps happiness is too much to expect.’

  ‘Is it?’

  ‘Isn’t it?’ she shot back.

  ‘Come away with me,’ he said before he could stop himself.

  ‘You don’t mean that.’

  He didn’t answer. He wanted her, wanted to take her back to his home and show her all the delights of Australia, wanted to wake up next to her every morning and build a future with her.

  Georgina looked deep into his eyes and sighed. ‘It can’t be,’ she said. ‘Our worlds are too different.’

  ‘What if you’re pregnant?’ he asked. The idea had crossed his mind the night before, the possibility of a pregnancy, but he’d quickly forgotten in the heat of the moment.

  ‘I’m to be married soon,’ Georgina said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

  ‘I will not let another man bring up my child,’ he said. That was unthinkable.

  ‘Let’s not worry about it now,’ she said. ‘It’s unlikely to be the case anyway.’

  Nodding, he knew he had to leave it there. He might be developing feelings for Georgina, feelings he suspected might even be love. But it wasn’t he who would have to give up everything and everyone he knew for them to be together. The one thing he would have to give up on—his deep-seated need to confront Georgina’s father about the past—he couldn’t do. So it was unfair to ask Georgina to give up so much more.

  Sadly she smiled at him before getting up off the bed, quickly pulling her chemise on over her head to cover her modesty. He watched her, marvelling at how she dealt with all the intricate fastenings of her dress apart from the bits at the very back. Before she could ask him to help he was on his feet, allowing his fingers to trail over the skin of her neck as he finished helping her get dressed. It was only when she turned to look at him, her eyes wide, that he remembered he was completely naked.

  ‘You should leave first,’ he said as he pulled his trousers on. ‘There will be more concern if you are not where you should be when the household wakes up.’

  ‘You’re right,’ Georgina said, pulling on her thick cloak and giving him a wistful look. He wondered if she wanted him to beg her to stay, beg her to refuse the Duke and run off with him instead. Silently he counted to ten to suppress the urge to do just that. It might be what she thought she wanted in this moment, but the reality would be very different to the fantasy she had in her mind. Sam knew exactly what it was like to leave your entire family, your entire world, behind and he could never ask anyone to do that for him.

  At the door she paused for a second, turning back to him and lifting herself up on her tiptoes so she could kiss him on the lips.

  ‘Stay just for a minute longer,’ Sam whispered. Even though it had been he who had urged her to return so no nosy maid would find her bed empty and unslept in, he couldn’t quite bring himself to part from Georgina just yet.

  ‘Just a minute,’ she murmured, tilting her chin as he trailed kisses along the angle of her jaw. Beneath his hands she felt soft and warm and for a moment he wished they could just tumble back into bed. He’d hoped their night of passion might slake the desire he felt for her, but it had just increased it tenfold. Every inch of his body wanted to possess her again and as her hips swayed forward into his he heard himself groan involuntarily.

  ‘I have to go,’ she said eventually, pulling away. Sam caught her hand and kissed her fingertips, watching as she closed her eyes to steady herself.

  He knew this had to be the end, but he just couldn’t seem to let go of her. In a few minutes she would once again be the untouchable Lady Georgina and he would be the man who could never legitimately have her.

  ‘Enough now,’ she said, more to herself than him. ‘Goodbye, Sam.’

  Then she was gone, casting a long, desire-filled glance back over her shoulder before disappearing around the corner of the gatehouse.

  * * *

  ‘You did it,’ Caroline stated as she linked her arm through Georgina’s and pulled her away from the rest of the group.

  Feigning confusion Georgina frowned. ‘Ice skating?’ she asked. ‘Yes, Mr Robertson was kind enough to accompany me on the ice.’

  ‘Stop it,’ Caroline said, her face earnest. ‘You know exactly what I mean. Tell me everything. Was it wonderful?’

  ‘I can’t believe you set it all up,’ Georgina said, glancing at her friend. She was incredibly grateful Caroline had arranged for her and Sam to spend some time alone, but she couldn’t quite believe her friend had had the audacity to set them up.

  ‘In a month’s time you’re going to be married to some old bore,’ Caroline whispered, lowering her voice as she received an enquiring glance from her mother. ‘Surely every young woman deserves to be swept off her feet by a rugged foreigner before settling in to the monotony of marriage.’

  Georgina turned to her friend. ‘What about you?’ she asked. ‘Have you been swept off your feet by someone?’

  Caroline blushed, something Georgina had only seen a handful of times.

  ‘No, and the way my mother is nagging me I’ll be engaged to some old decrepit lord by the end of the year...but all that means is you have to tell me every last detail. I shall have to live vicariously through you.’

  ‘Georgina, come here, dear,’ Lady Westchester called, motioning for her daughter to quicken her pace.

  ‘Don’t think you’re getting away with not telling me,’ Caroline whispered after her.

  Georgina quickly caught up with her mother, filling the place that had recently been vacated by Mr White, one of the untitled but obscenely rich young gentlemen her mother had invited for this little house party.

  ‘You looked flushed, dear,’ her mother said, regarding her critically. ‘Are you feeling unwell?’

  It was tempting to claim she was coming down with something so she could retire to her room and wallow in her feelings, but her mother would probably insist on calling a doctor who would give her some hideous infusion to drink.

  ‘Just the cold weather, Mother,’ she said, summoning a smile.

  ‘Good...’ Her mother paused, waiting for the rest of their party to draw away a little. It was frosty in the gardens and a little more snow had fallen overnight, but many of the guests had opted for a mid-morning stroll around the grounds to get some fresh air after the copious amount of wine that had been served at dinner the night before. ‘The Duke is not with us,’ her mother continued when they were alone.

  ‘No,’ Georgina said, ensuring her voice didn’t give away any emotion.

  ‘Did I notice him looking at you fondly over breakfast?’

  Of course Georgina had not told her mother of the Duke’s offer of marriage. Lady Westchester would accept immediately on her daughter’s behalf and the wedding would be arranged before the day was out. Georgina knew she had to accept, but she just wanted a few more hours.

  ‘I didn’t notice anything, Mother.’

  She wasn’t sure why she wanted a few more hours, perhaps to fantasise about running away with Sam, perhaps to remember their wo
nderful night together without a black cloud overshadowing the moment.

  ‘I’m sure he’s going to propose,’ her mother whispered. ‘He is notoriously picky about his social engagements and I doubt he would have accepted this invitation if he hadn’t decided you were the one for him.’

  ‘Why hasn’t he married before, Mother?’ Georgina asked, trying to distract her mother from the topic of proposals at least a little.

  ‘Oh, the normal reasons, I should imagine,’ Lady Westchester said with a dismissive wave of her hand. ‘Many men like to live their lives unencumbered by a wife or a family. Then when they reach a certain age they start to think about their mortality, the continuation of their family line, and they decide the time is right to get a wife.’

  It confirmed what Georgina had thought. There were no ugly skeletons, no succession of murdered fiancées or debts so large they could sink a small country. The Duke might not ever love her, probably wouldn’t ever care for her more than he did his favourite horse or valet, but there was no reason to think he wouldn’t make a decent enough husband.

  And if she wanted more than that...well, it was her own fault for letting Sam in, for allowing him to seduce her with his charm and his oh-so-tempting stories about his world, a world she would never get to experience.

  Chapter Twenty

  ‘It’s far too cold to go outside,’ Lady Westchester said, ‘even for a stroll into the village. Such a shame we’ve been besieged by such weather.’

  Sam followed her gaze out the window at the blizzard-like conditions swirling around the garden and had to agree with their hostess. It was far too cold to venture outside. The English winter was not something that he missed about his old homeland—give him a mild Australian day over this weather on any occasion.