A Deceptive Wager

by Ruth Ann Nordin

  Even now, the ridiculous instructions made Aaron roll his eyes. He had no desire to look at any lady’s body. It wasn’t his fault Kitty moved in such a way that directed his gaze to her. She was a temptress. And a good one at that. If nothing else, the fact that Mr. Stonewall was around made it much easier for Aaron to avoid being tricked by her.

  Aaron folded the missive, and, after a moment, he ripped it up into pieces so small that no one would be able to put them together in order to read it. No one needed to know the contents. With a glance at his chaperone, Aaron said, “I’m going to White’s.”

  As expected, Mr. Stonewall offered a solemn nod and headed for the door. Once, just once, he’d like to be able to go there without Mr. Stonewall, but he supposed the most he could expect was for Mr. Stonewall to wait in the carriage for him.

  When he entered White’s, he felt himself relax. What a hectic time the past couple of weeks had been. Ever since he got married, his entire life had been disrupted. The only time he felt at peace was when he’d been spared the company of his chaperone. He had no idea how exhausting it was to have someone constantly hovering nearby. He wondered if Kitty experienced the same feeling he did.

  He blinked in surprise. What had made him think that? Why should he care if she was inconvenienced or not? She was a lady. Ladies were notorious for seducing poor, unsuspecting gentlemen.

  Do you really believe those gentlemen are poor, unsuspecting souls? Just look at Lord Edon!

  His gaze went to Lord Edon who was regaling a group of gentlemen about his latest conquest.

  “I tried to ward her off, truly I did,” Lord Edon was saying, “but she wouldn’t take no for an answer. She was adamant I stay in bed with her for a little bit longer.”

  “And just how long was ‘a little bit longer’?” one of his admirers asked.

  “I was there until it was almost dawn.” Though such an admission should have caused him to blush, there was only a satisfied smirk on Lord Edon’s face. “She couldn’t get enough.”

  “Aren’t you ever worried you’ll get her with child?” a third gentleman asked. “A sheath has to be washed after each use.”

  “I have more than one sheath,” Lord Edon replied. “Besides, it’s been well over a month ago now, and she’s not expecting a child. If she was, she would have told me.”

  Usually, Aaron would keep to himself, but on this particular day, he wasn’t in the mood. He marched over to them and asked Lord Edon, “Does it really give you pleasure to be with another gentleman’s wife? You could deprive her husband of a rightful heir.”

  Everyone turned to him in surprise.

  After a moment, Lord Edon said, “She wasn’t married. The only thing I had to worry about was her angry brother.”

  She wasn’t married back then, but she might be now. Aaron didn’t know why the others should find this amusing, but they chuckled. “Who was this lady?” Aaron demanded.

  “Pardon?” Lord Edon asked.

  “This lady that you spent an entire night with.” Or more, for all Aaron knew. “Who was she?”

  Lord Edon paused then asked, “Does it matter?”

  “Yes. I recently married a lady who has an angry brother,” Aaron replied. “For all I know, you’re talking about her.”

  “Oh, I wasn’t with your wife. It was another lady.”

  “How can I be assured of that? You might not even know my title.”

  “Sure, I do. You’re a member of White’s.”

  And except for the few times he had talked to Roger, Lord Edon hadn’t once paid attention to him. “I bet you don’t know who I am.”

  “This is nonsense. I wasn’t with the lady you married.”

  “Since you don’t know who I am, the least you can do is tell me her name.”

  Lord Edon paled for a second, and that told Aaron he’d caught Lord Edon off guard.

  “Edon doesn’t tell the names of the ladies he’s been with,” one of the gentlemen told Aaron.

  “Why not? This is White’s,” Aaron said. “Everything said in here is kept secret. No one outside these walls will find out.” He crossed his arms. “Who was this lady who was so enraptured by you that she had to have you in her bed until dawn?”

  Lord Edon cleared his throat and straightened his cravat. “I never tell who the ladies were. What we did was too private for that.”

  “Oh, that’s considered private, but you can go into detail about the things you two did in bed?” Aaron asked.

  “That’s not fair,” a gentleman said. “He’s not always in bed with them.”

  This earned some laughs from those listening to them.

  Aaron could feel the heat rising up in his face as anger swelled up within him. “This might be fun for you and your friends, Lord Edon, but there are gentlemen who are married to the ladies you’re so casually engaged with. Some of us like to know our wives will bear our children instead of yours.”

  “I can assure you that no lady has ever gotten with child from my activities with her,” Lord Edon said.

  “How can you guarantee that?” Aaron demanded.

  “I’m careful,” Lord Edon said. “I make sure to bring plenty of sheaths with me.”

  “Do you even remember the ladies you’re with, or do you do this so much that they become meaningless to you?” Aaron asked.

  “That’s not fair. Of course, I remember them,” Lord Edon replied.

  “Then who was this lady with the angry brother?”

  Aaron didn’t realize he had shouted the question until Lord Edon glanced around the room. The gentlemen who hadn’t been paying attention to them were now looking in their direction.

  “I don’t have to deal with this,” Lord Edon said, looking as if he had every right to be upset when he most certainly did not.

  Aaron grabbed Lord Edon’s arm as the snake tried to slither past him. “You either tell me who she is, or I’ll take you out for a duel.”

  “Miss Covington,” Lord Edon blurted out.

  A few gentlemen gasped, and one asked, “Lady Cadwalader’s niece?”

  A wince flickered across Lord Edon’s face before he pulled away from Aaron. “There. It wasn’t your wife.”

  Aaron felt the tension leave him as Lord Edon slithered out of the establishment. He didn’t expect Kitty to be a virgin, but he was relieved to know she had at least not been with such a notorious rake.

  And she wasn’t with child. There was no illegitimate son or daughter on the way that he had to contend with. When she did have a child, it would be his.

  “Who would have thought Lady Cadwalader’s niece was begging him to stay in her bed?” a gentleman asked from behind Aaron. “That’d be quite a scandal if it got out.”

  “Especially since Lady Cadwalader prides herself on having a family that has a perfect reputation,” another gentleman replied.

  “I didn’t even think Miss Covington liked Lord Edon,” a third said. “I was sure I saw her scowl at him at the last ball.”

  “Maybe he didn’t stay in bed with her long enough,” a fourth joked.

  Aaron rolled his eyes and went to another room. He had all he could take from the gentlemen who idolized people like Lord Edon. If gentlemen like Lord Edon would stop going to bed with ladies, then the ladies’ husbands wouldn’t have to worry so much about whether or not their wives were going to have another gentleman’s child.

  Aaron headed straight for the brandy and poured himself a glass. He drank the whole thing in two swallows then poured another glass.

  “I can’t recall a time when someone rendered Lord Edon speechless,” someone said from behind Aaron.

  Aaron put the cap on the decanter and turned toward Lord Roderick. “I thought he was talking about the lady I recently married.”

  “You’re better off asking your wife about it instead of him.”

  “That would be true if I could trust ladies to tell the truth.”

  “Why don’t you trust ladies to tell the truth?”

&nbs
p; “Because they lie.”

  Lord Roderick’s eyebrows rose. “All of them?”

  “Of course, all of them. It’s in their nature.” Aaron walked past him and went to a chair that was away from a window. He didn’t think Mr. Stonewall would peek in on him, but one couldn’t be too sure.

  To his surprise, Lord Roderick sat beside him. “Not all ladies lie. Ladies are just like gentlemen. Some can be trusted, and some can’t. I, for one, don’t trust anything Lord Edon says.”

  “I don’t, either. I didn’t say some gentlemen can’t be trusted.”

  “I know. You just said all ladies lie. It’s odd that you would assume all ladies are liars when only some gentlemen are. If you had said all people lie, that would be more consistent.”

  “I don’t go around lying. If I say something, I mean it.”

  “I believe you, but I also know that not every lady lies. I happen to have a wife I trust. I made the mistake of not trusting her at first. Thankfully, everything is good between us now, but I almost ruined my chances of a love match because of the way I treated her.”

  Considering that Lord Roderick looked as happy as Roger did about marriage, Aaron decided not to reply. The last thing he wanted to do was irritate someone else by pressing the issue. Some gentlemen wanted to believe the best about the ladies they married. Why not let them live in the bliss of ignorance?

  Mr. Robinson came up to the doorway, saw Lord Roderick, and hurried off somewhere.

  Lord Roderick shook his head. “I’ll never understand him.”

  Aaron’s gaze went back to the doorway. “He’s probably too afraid of you to come into the room. I heard you made him muck out stalls.”

  The corner of Lord Roderick’s lip curled up. “I also made him empty chamber pots.”

  Aaron gasped then chuckled. “That’s right. You’re a sly devil.” He took a sip of the brandy.

  With a shrug, Lord Roderick said, “He deserved it. He caused his guardian a lot of grief. His guardian is my friend, but he’s also too soft on him. I tell my friend if he is firm with his ward, then his ward will behave.” He shrugged again. “It’s useless to point it out. His guardian is too kind for his own good.”

  “His guardian is Lord Clement, isn’t he?”

  He nodded.

  Lord Roderick was right. Lord Clement was too kind for his own good. In some ways, the gentleman reminded him of his father. Very likable and honorable. But easy to take advantage of, too.

  “I don’t understand why it’s so difficult for gentlemen to set down rules with those they have under their care,” Aaron said.

  “I don’t, either, but if I were to change the way my friend is, then he’d be a different person. If he were a different person, I probably wouldn’t be friends with him. We tend to be friends with someone for a reason.”

  Yes, Aaron supposed that made sense. Perhaps Lord Clement was friends with Lord Roderick because Lord Roderick was firm with people. The two probably balanced each other out.

  The footman came into the room with a neatly folded missive. At first, Aaron thought Mr. Stonewall was sending him a demand to leave the establishment, but the footman gave the missive to Lord Roderick.

  “What’s this?” Lord Roderick asked as he took it.

  “It was from a lady,” the footman said.

  “A lady? You mean, it’s from my wife?” Lord Roderick straightened up in his chair and opened the missive.

  “I don’t know what your wife looks like, and the lady didn’t identify herself. She only said to give it to you.” Without another word, the footman left the room.

  It was then that Aaron remembered the wager Mr. Robinson had made. He also remembered that this missive just might have been the idea that he had planted in Mr. Robinson’s head. Aaron’s gaze went to the door, and he noticed Mr. Robinson and a few other gentlemen coming into the room. Yes, this was it. Mr. Robinson was making an attempt to scare Lord Roderick.

  Lord Roderick read through the missive twice before he rolled his eyes and tore up the parchment.

  That was odd. Perhaps it was something else. “What was it?” Aaron asked, not able to hide his curiosity.

  “Some lady has me confused with someone else,” Lord Roderick replied. “It’s nothing.”

  Aaron glanced at Mr. Robinson who looked disappointed.

  “May I ask what was in the missive?” Aaron asked, directing his attention back to Mr. Robinson.

  Lord Roderick chuckled. “Oh, it was from a lady who’s threatening the father of her unborn child. She wrote that she’ll tell everyone about their affair if he doesn’t pay her to keep quiet.”

  “And that missive was addressed to you?” Lord Powell asked.

  “It was addressed to another person by my name,” Lord Roderick pointed out.

  “What name is that?” Lord Davenport asked.

  “Nate,” Lord Roderick replied.

  “Is that all?” Lord Powell asked.

  “Well, she erringly put in my title,” Lord Roderick said. “I think this other Nate lied and told her my title. Come to think of it, he could have lied about the ‘Nate’ part, too. This could very well be someone who is pretending to be me.” He shook his head. “The poor lady.”

  “Poor lady?” Aaron asked in surprise. “She’s the one who was intimate with a married gentleman. She is willing to bribe him to keep quiet so his wife doesn’t find out.” Aaron shut his mouth. What was he doing? This was all fake. This lady didn’t even exist!

  “I understand that,” Lord Roderick said. “I’m not condoning what she did. I’m just saying that this gentleman wasn’t even honest enough with her to give away his true identity. Lord Edon might have his faults, but at least he doesn’t lie about his name.”

  “And he was with Lady Cadwalader’s niece,” Lord Toplyn called out. “Imagine if Lady Cadwalader knew!”

  “She’d faint,” Lord Powell said.

  “Or fall over dead,” Lord Whitney spoke up.

  “Yes, she probably would fall over dead,” Lord Toplyn agreed. “She’d rather die than have Lord Edon tangled up in her perfect family.”

  Lord Davenport walked up to them. “This lady,” he gestured to the missive, “believes this is you. Aren’t you worried she’ll go to your wife and tell your wife that you have an illegitimate child on the way?”

  “No,” Lord Roderick said. “My wife trusts me. She knows I’d never be unfaithful to her.”

  “How can you be so sure of that?” Aaron asked in shock.

  “Because I know my wife, and she knows me. We don’t have to question what the other is doing,” Lord Roderick replied.

  “That’s ridiculous,” Mr. Robinson, the one who’d been behind this whole sham, said in disbelief. “No one can trust another person that much. You need to run out and warn your wife about what is going on. She could very well take your child and run off. Then you’d never see either one again.”

  “He’s right,” Aaron said. “This is serious.”

  “It’s only serious if two people can’t trust one another,” Lord Roderick replied. “And if that’s the case, they have more problems than a lady who was lied to by someone.”

  As much as Aaron hated to admit it, Lord Roderick had a good point.

  Mr. Robinson let out a frustrated groan and stormed out of the room. The other gentlemen chuckled, but Aaron didn’t think Lord Roderick noticed. Mr. Robinson had just lost the wager. He had been unable to frighten Lord Roderick. Now, he owed a good sum of money to the winners. Aaron had also lost the wager, but he hadn’t bet any more money than he could afford to lose. He wasn’t sure if Mr. Robinson had enough to cover his portion of the bet. That would be something Lord Clement might have to deal with once he found out about it.

  Since there was nothing else to hold their interest, the other gentlemen left the room. Lord Roderick threw the torn pieces of parchment into a nearby trashcan. Aaron was still in shock. How could anyone trust another person so deeply? It simply didn’t make sense. If he
hadn’t known about the wager, he would have been worried on Lord Roderick’s behalf. He would have expected Lord Roderick to get into a significant amount of trouble upon seeing his wife after that lady talked to her. But Lord Roderick didn’t have a care in the world.

  “Do you want to play chess?” Lord Roderick asked.

  Forcing the confusing situation aside, Aaron nodded. “All right.”

  “Excellent. I enjoy a challenge.”

  Glad to have his mind off of Lord Edon, Mr. Robinson, and the possibility that trust could exist in a marriage, Aaron joined Lord Roderick at the chessboard and played a couple of games with him.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Two days later, Kitty got an idea while she was sipping tea in the drawing room. She set her cup on the table and turned to Gretchen who had been drinking tea next to her on the settee.

  “There are a lot of books in the library,” Kitty said. “I wonder if any will be suitable for Teddy.”

  Gretchen’s eyebrows furrowed. “The library is Lord Northton’s room.”

  “So?”

  “A gentleman’s room is private. Ladies aren’t supposed to go in there unless they are invited.”

  “I’ve been in there before. There’s nothing private about it. All he has in that room are some chairs, a desk, and a lot of books.”

  “Even so, we should have his permission. We shouldn’t just barge in there.”

  “But he’s not even here. He’s at White’s.” She took Gretchen’s cup and put it on the table. “Come on. I overheard the maid saying that some of those books in there go back to his childhood. I doubt my husband was miserable and stuffy his entire life. At some point, he must have read something fun that would appeal to your nephew.”

  “We could buy a book from a merchant,” Gretchen argued as Kitty took her by the arm and helped her stand up.

  “Why do that when there could be some books already here? It’s senseless to let good books go to waste.”

  “But, but, this is a gentleman’s library.”

  “Exactly. It’s a library. It’s not a bedchamber. This won’t be like the time I rummaged through his clothes. This time, I’ll only rummage through books.”