Libertine's Wife (49 page)

Thaddeus Dench was still at large, in
hiding now for the murder of William Spencer. He thought it best
for his Aunt Cecily’s sake if he maintained his cousin was dead.
Dench remained on the loose. Garret took no chances with his
family’s safety. Plans to move them all to Ravensford Hall were
being made. Arianne was overseeing closing the London house,
occupying herself to take her mind off her grief.

Garret stared down at the letter he’d
just received from his overseer in Virginia. Turner answered many
of his questions. His eyes filled with unease to know how
vulnerable he’d made himself.

He could no longer avoid facing the
possibility of Martin’s involvement in the plot. His friend had
never returned to Virginia since the acquisition of the property
four years prior. He struggled to resign himself to the knowledge
he’d been betrayed.

Those months Martin claimed to be in
Virginia seeing to their investment each year, he lived a dual
life, as Thaddeus Dench possibly. While he wasn’t sure of what he
suspected, he said nothing to his wife. He thought of Amanda and
cursed Martin for his actions if it was true. He didn’t look
forward to the old woman discovering the truth about her
son.

He rubbed his eyes wearily, fighting
the irrefutable evidence his best friend and partner plotted his
death. It all made sense. Uneasy about dealing with William in the
event of his death, Martin insisted upon his changing his will when
they went into business together, making him beneficiary of Belle
Terre. Garret went further when the boys were born, making the man
their guardian in the event of his death.

Had Martin succeeded, he could have
only imagined what he would have done to his sons. Thoughts of his
wife’s safety came to mind. Fury filled him to feel so betrayed. He
wondered why Martin would have done such a thing. Never had he seen
this coming.

~ ~ ~

Arianne took a deep breath as they
approached the door to her husband’s apartment in a private
building that was as discreet as it was fashionable. Garret eyed
his wife, dressed to the nines in her Parisian couture and rolled
his eyes. His son Samuel was likely to make her hat his target with
his sling-shot.

Arianne was determined to meet and
adore all his children. He was pleased she took such an interest
without judgment. Most noblewomen would pretend his children didn’t
exist.

Arianne was blessedly different. There
was nothing remotely predictable about his wife. She surprised him
every day. She even hinted at wanting the children to come stay
with them when they retired to Ravensford Hall.

Garret groaned to think his peace would
soon be overrun with the sounds of their boisterous play. His life
had changed forever, he realized without regret. Arianne insisted
on being a part of all their lives— unheard of for one of her
station. She claimed to not care what anyone thought
anymore.

Garret opened the door and held it
aloft. The nannies and governesses who loitered in the foyer on
benches looked relieved when he arrived. He excused them to their
own devices for the next four hours. He grinned as the five
servants high-tailed it out the door. Arianne was too busy walking
beyond the entry way, into the salon, where unbelievable racket was
heard.

The pianoforte was playing a lively
tune. A lovely young, redheaded girl played while the others
chased, squealed, tormented, and threw every conceivable thing they
could find at one another. Everywhere you looked was all manner of
assorted debris. Throw pillows, knick knacks, and anything not
nailed down lay strewn everywhere. Arianne’s eyes grew wide as she
watched the five children wreaking havoc within.

“
They haven’t seen you yet
if you wish to run.” Garret’s eyes filled with amusement as he
watched the pandemonium. Too late, the eldest Gregory saw them and
bounded over, grinning ear to ear as he embraced his
father.

Arianne was stunned. The boy was a dead
ringer for his father. Even the merry green eyes that met hers
during the introductions were the same. The other children fell
silent at once to see their father. The girls looked at Arianne in
fascination while Samuel gazed in interest at her hat. She smiled
brightly as she met each and every one.

Deidre inspected her new gown with a
haughty sniff and informed her that lavender was the color of
mourning in Spain.

Samuel asked if she had anything hidden
under her large, pretentious hat.

Mary merely smiled and curtseyed,
glaring at the others.

Bella followed suit, and promptly
returned to the pianoforte, ignoring them all to launch into
another more sedate melody.

So far, of the five, she liked Gregory
and Mary the most. The others seemed to pick her apart as their
mothers had and find her wanting. Garret rescued her and pulled her
away, taking her into a sitting room down the hall.

“
Now do you see?” Garret
asked and chuckled. “They are a handful, my dear. I would not blame
you if you ran for home. I have the misfortune to have sired them.
I have to stay.”

Arianne scowled up at him,
disappointment in her gaze. “It didn’t go as I expected, but I
refuse to leave. They are yours. So will they be mine! We agreed,
Garret. We are in this together.”

“
Don’t say I didn’t warn
you.” Garret laughed at her annoyed expression.

“
I do like Mary and Gregory
very much. They’re both well-behaved and polite children,” she
allowed. “But I can see each of their mother’s influence in them
all.”

“
Deidre acts much like her
mother. Pay her no heed. Bella is not really rude, just driven with
her gift. Samuel, well, he is Samuel,” Garret explained and
shrugged away his own misgivings. “Two out of the five is about
normal for the first day, my love. Don’t try so hard.”

“
You should have allowed me
to bring their little brothers,” Arianne fumed, refusing to believe
she couldn’t win over his children in one day.

“
You must get to know them
first, and they you,” Garret said gently, seeing she was
overwrought. “It takes time, my love. Rome wasn’t built in a day.
The best thing to do is not let them walk upon you. They would
enjoy that and so would their mothers.”

Reminded of his five former
mistresses who sought her out the year before; her eyes
narrowed.
No, it wouldn’t do for the
children to tell tales
. Let their mothers
eat their hearts out. Suddenly a light of challenge entered her
eyes. Garret groaned and kissed her hand.

“
You cannot beat them, my
love. Trust me, ‘tis best to just try to survive the
visit.”

Arianne was appalled at his words.
“They act that way because you allow it, Garret. Do not think they
don’t know better. My guess is you never reprimand them, do
you?”

“
I see them once a week,
Arianne. That would take the whole four hours if I did
that.”

“
My father only needed to
say something once,” Arianne confided and smiled at the memory.
“Eustace used to say the man never raised his tone to get our
attention, and neither should you. It would appear you’ve let them
get away with this because you don’t see them every day, but it’s
no way to conduct a visit. You don’t appear to spend any individual
time with them at all.”

Garret nodded in agreement. “Yes, I can
see you have a point.”

“
I say we join forces. Our
two against their five? What do you say?”

“
You take the girls. I’ll
take the boys,” Garret offered.

“
You’re a coward, my lord.
Girls are far easier.”

“
Not mine,” Garret concluded
with a sad smile. “I think their mothers enjoy speaking ill of me
to them. I’ve noticed this coolness for some time; more so now that
I’m married.”

“
We will rectify that. When
they know they are all welcome at Ravensford Hall, they will feel
differently.”

Garret looked unsure. “Arianne, don’t
make them promises you don’t mean. It’s all I ask. If you wish them
there, that’s one thing. Don’t do this for me, because you think
you have to.”

Arianne looked angry then. She glared
up at him and whipped off the ridiculous hat. “I don’t do it for
you because I feel I have to, Garret. We decided we would trust
each other, share everything, and keep nothing from the other. Do
you recall that when I came home?”

“
I didn’t make you swear to
take on five children that aren’t yours, my dear.”

“
Maybe you should have,
Garret.” She looked up at him with a teasing smile. “I mean to play
a role here, even if they detest me.”

“
Let us go back before they
start torturing the servants.” She gave him a hard pinch. He winced
and smiled despite himself. “We have three hours and thirty-seven
minutes left.”

Arianne was introduced to each one of
the children once Garret commanded their attention with a loud
whistle through his teeth. One by one, they were presented to her.
They appeared confused at her presence, eyeing her like an
interesting insect at once.

Mary was indeed her favorite. Gregory
second. The other three were aloof, resentful of her presence, and
a trifle angry their father brought her along.

“
Don’t mind them, Lady
Ravensford,” Mary confided in a whisper as they sat together on the
settee. “They’re all poisoned by their mothers’ loose talk. That is
what my mother told me. She said my father was the best man she’s
ever known in all her life, and she’s known many, my
lady.”

Arianne smiled in relief. “It is my
hope you will all come to live at Ravensford Hall when we leave
London. I would like that very much.”

Mary looked hopeful, her green eyes
wide. “My mother would be pleased to let me. Truly, all but
Gregory’s mother would. That one is beyond any reason.”

Arianne realized Ms. Newland was also
her first visitor the day they all cornered her, trying to shock
her. She knew whatever motivated the woman, it wasn’t just money.
Garret assured her the woman received her fair share of support
monthly, but that would all change when Gregory left for
school.

No wonder the woman was out of sorts.
Her days as Lord Ravensford’s pampered former mistress were coming
to an end. His agreement only paid their support until the children
left for school. It was obvious Ms. Newland was fighting the
inevitable. Now Arianne was offering to take all his children
in.

All but Ms. Newland would be pleased to
relinquish their child to Garret’s care. Garret let her know the
other four mothers desired their freedom. Sending his children to
him would be desirable, as most had new protectors, and the
children got in the way.

That explained their resentment. She
could see they just needed to know they could rely on him. Only in
time would they see he wouldn’t desert them too. She was determined
they would all come to live with them, no matter how bad they
acted. Once they realized her and Garret were there for them, they
would improve. The only one she thought she’d have issue with was
Deidre.

Her noble mother, Constance Bellamy,
remarried and she wasn’t allowed to live with them. That certainly
explained her current attitude. The child was being raised by
servants at the lady’s home. Her absentee mother was now abroad,
due to arrive back in three months. It was appalling and now doubt
explained the girl’s hostility.

Samuel was getting too much for Libby
to handle. His recent brushes with the law aside, the woman was
tired of doing it all alone. Arianne knew once Garret got the boy
by the scruff, he’d straighten him out.

Bella would have to be limited to her
pianoforte practice. It appeared the child used her gift to retreat
from all that went on around her. She needed to interact with her
half-siblings, and her father. The mother’s influence shown through
her bright green eyes, narrowed in anger and resentment whenever
they looked at Garret. Her mother was away as well. The girl stayed
with her aged grandmother who was tone deaf and needed care
herself.

Gregory went to Oxford in the fall, and
was a good boy, from what she could see.

Mary was bound to be her favorite of
the girls. Arianne always wished for a little sister. She couldn’t
take the place of their mothers, but she could be more than just a
whispered name in their lives.

She’d not stay in the background of her
husband’s life. That wasn’t who either of them wished her to be. He
wanted an equal in his life, another half to a whole, to make him
feel complete. A lump formed in her throat as her gaze drifted to
him. He was sitting with both his sons, holding their rapt
attention with his talk of his plantation in Virginia.

They could do
this
, Arianne thought with a leap of hope.
She knew it would add more stress to their daily lives, create more
rampant gossip, and possibly ruin her chances of ever reentering
society once it was known. Did she care?

No, not when she saw how their eyes
greedily devoured their father when he wasn’t looking. They all
wanted something more from him; something they’d never had before.
She was determined they’d all have their wish.