03 - The Wicked Lady (8 page)

Kristen let her exasperation show. "Does everyone ye know have the same problem with my heritage?"

Rodney held up a hand in defense. "Not me. But Trevor now, that's an entirely different story."

"The same thing I've told him
," Kristen burst out, "but the mon is extremely hardheaded."

"Perhaps I should introduce my fiancée before you two start carrying on the conversation without me," Trevor said. "Rodney Norman Brownwell, Marquess of Middleton. I'd like you to meet Kristen Johnstone."

"Johnstone?" Rodney's eyes widened. He glanced at Trevor before turning back to Kristen. "Lovely lady, you have accomplished the inexplicable." Rodney gave her an exaggerated bow.  "You have somehow taken the most notorious rake in all of London out of circulation and seemingly managed to do it overnight."

Kristen liked this man.  At least this one smiled. Something she'd not seen Trevor do a lot. Trevor was far too serious. Rodney had the most unusual auburn hair and light green eyes, and he was very good looking. Nearly as handsome as Trevor.

"Ye might say we struck a bargain that neither of us could refuse." She smiled at Rodney.  "If ye'll excuse me, I need tae go change. I've somehow managed tae tear my dress."

"By all means.  But I do expect a promise to dance with me at the Cranford bash."

She looked at Trevor before leaving the room. "Are we going?" 

Rodney answered first. "Of course you are."

After Kristen had taken her leave, Rodney asked Trevor, "I noticed her cheek was red and swollen. Did she have an accident?"

"You might say that."  Trevor looked at his friend.  "Where did you hear my good news?"

"I heard it from my current lady love. She said Lady Eleanor saw you coming into a dress shop. And you know the gossip that woman can spread."

"Afraid I do. I guess I better write Grandmere so she doesn't hear it from anyone else. I also need for her to start making wedding plans. That should get her out of her bed and on her feet again." Trevor smiled.

"Until she meets the bride." Rodney raised a brow. "May I ask what possessed you to take a Scot for a bride? Wait a minute--"  Rodney held up his hand. "After seeing the lovely creature I know the answer. My God, she is a beauty!" Rodney sat down in one of the wing-back chairs.

"Yes, she is. But there is more to Kristen than meets the eye." Trevor grinned, deciding not to reveal his lady's background. That would be a secret between him and Kristen for now. "Tell me. Did you find out anymore on Grandmere's jewels?"

"Only that they have been scattered. The largest ruby is no longer in Scotland. It seems the Earl of Hayword purchased it for the then love of his life, Lady Carolyn Newberry. When they broke up, Carolyn sold the bauble, and that is where I've lost trail of that one. But never fear, I have several men hot on the trail."

"With Grandmere's health failing, I would like to grant her last wish and have the stolen jewelry returned to her."

"Do you really think the Scot stole her jewels?"

"Not really. Grandmere blames everything on our neighbors. But the highwaymen were probably my own low-life Englishmen."

"Nothing worse than a thief.  oo bad you don't know one. They could steal back all your possessions, post haste," Rodney suggested innocently.

Trevor had been about to take a swallow of bourbon but choked on his friend's comments.

"Are you all right?" Rodney asked.

When Trevor caught his breath, he grinned. "You know you might have hit on the perfect solution."

Kristen hurried to her room.  She couldn't let Trevor get under her skin especially since he now knew he could get his way just by kissing her.

The man drove her to distraction. If he thought she was going to bow to his every whim, then he didn't know her very well.  She'd seen how her mother had bowed and scraped to her stepfather, and he had treated her terribly. Kristen wanted no part of that.

She could play along with this masquerade as long as she remembered that was all it was. But she wasn't fooling herself that this lust she felt could last a lifetime. Only love lasted that long, and in her young eighteen years, she'd never seen love, much less experienced it. She wasn't even sure it existed.

Sighing, she removed her torn dress and slipped on a simple yellow day dress that Madam Marie had sent. Wouldn't it be wonderful to be loved and cherished by a man who loved her and only her? She couldn't think of anything that would make her happier, and she had no idea how it would feel to have a family where she truly belonged. She had never felt that in the hodgepodge family she'd been living in.

Her bedroom door swung open, and she jumped, thinking it would be Trevor. Hagan bounced through, dressed in his new clothes.

"Look at you, young man." Kristen smiled. "You look very proper."

"Yeah. Trevor said the same thing."  He strutted around for her and then frowned.  "What about Pa?"

"He hasn't changed a bit. He still reeks of whiskey. I'm so glad Trevor saved us, or we'd be back in his clutches."

Hagan sat on the edge of the bed. "Did Pa hurt you, Kristen?"

"Just a wee bit." She rubbed her swollen cheek, feeling the sore spot. "We don't have tae worry about that again."

"Trevor would never do such a thing." Hagan shook his head, but she could see he needed reassuring. "Would he?"

Kristen glanced at her brother's concerned frown, not knowing exactly what to say this time since they were in such different surroundings where she had very little control over their situation. "I don't think so."

"I like Trevor.  He bought me some clothes, and said I'd have something different for every day."

"Did he now?" Kristen smiled. "I got a lot of nice things, too. I guess we owe him a lot."

"Does this mean we have to pay him?" Hagan asked so innocently she wanted to cry.

"Not exactly," Kristen answered in a light voice. "I'll explain it tae ye someday."

"All right."  Hagan jumped off the bed and moved over to the dresser where he started examining the perfume bottles. Scrunching up his nose at the lovely fragrances and giving a disapproving frown, he said, "Trevor said I can start my schooling next week. Someone by the name of Master Benjamin is coming to teach me some things. He's called a tutor. What's a tutor?"

"I'm not sure."  She shrugged.  "It looks like ye'll have tae teach me what ye learn."

Hagan swung around and looked at his sister. "Why don't you go to school with me?"

"Because I'm too old."

"But if you don't know nothing, how are you going to learn?"

"I'm not sure.  But someday, I would like tae be able tae read."  Maybe somehow she could learn how to read along with Hagan.

The next week when Mr. Benjamin came to teach Hagan, Kristen stood outside the open door to the schoolroom so she could hear what he was teaching Hagan.  After all, she rarely saw much of Trevor because he was constantly working. Every time she went by his study, he had his head down, writing. Or some stranger would be standing in front of his desk.

She was listening so intently that she didn't notice Trevor had moved up behind her to see what she was doing.

Trevor smiled. So, she wanted to learn. He'd never known a woman who was interested in anything but sewing and clothes. But each day with Kristen brought a new surprise. Boring . . . she definitely was not. He hated to admit it, but he admired her spirit and feistiness.  Each day with Kristen brought a new surprise.  Carefully, he placed a hand on her arm.

Kristen jumped.

"Saints above! Ye scared me."  She took a deep breath and clutched at her chest. "I--I just wanted tae see what Hagan was doing." She turned and blushed, making her even more appealing. "I guess I should be doing something, but there is nothing tae do."

Trevor noticed how self-conscious she seemed, then she caught herself and added, "And ye are busy working."

"I know what you were doing, and it's all right."

"I just told ye what I was doing," she stubbornly insisted.

"Kristen, I have learned to read your expressions very well. You can't read, can you?" He watched her defiant stance. She
did
care what people thought of her, and he was glad.

"Dinna make fun of me!"

"I'm not making fun of you." He folded his arms, taking a stubborn stance of his own. "I have no problem with your learning.  If that is what you truly want." His brow lifted, giving her a chance to deny his offer. "From now on I'll have Mr. Benjamin teach you, also, if that will make you happy."

Her shoulders slumped a little. "But I'm so old." She spoke with a light-bitterness.

Reaching out, he took her hand. "You're never too old to learn. I wager you'd like to read and write. Am I right?"

She nodded her head.

"Then you shall have your wish." He smiled and hesitated before he added, "There is one thing I would like for you to do for me."

Kristen knew it was too good to be true. He would probably want to sleep with her, and she wasn't ready for that. She wanted to wait until they got married.  Even then, she wasn't sure she would be ready for her wifely duties.  But how could she refuse a man who had been so good to her?

"My grandmere's jewels were stolen by highwaymen about a year ago. I've been trying to track them down with the help of Rodney, whom you met earlier. I think one of the necklaces might show up at the Cranford ball."

Kristen didn't immediately answer. She was so relieved that his request wasn't what she'd thought. She moved over to a chair and placed her hand on the back before she spoke. "Did I hear ye right, mon? Ye, the saint of goodness, wants me tae steal it back for ye?"

"No," he said quickly. "I know you have a knack for spotting such valuable items. I will describe the jewelry and when you see it, you can let me know. Then I can make an offer to buy the item back."

"Buy it back when it's rightfully yers? Ye gentry have a funny way of doing things."

"It's called honesty, Kristen."

"More like foolishness, if ye ask me," Kristen said as she left the room.

When Kristen descended the stairs, Trevor couldn't believe the vision in front of him. She had dressed in a gown of pale blue silver over a blue satin slip. Trevor wondered if she knew she wore the colors of Scotland.

Her hair was a glorious mass of curls pulled up from the sides and left to hang down her back. But by far her most dazzling quality were those shinning emerald eyes that glowed at him with a radiance he couldn't ignore. She could say a lot with those eyes. He recalled how her skin felt, and he knew as he held her gaze with his that something was going on between them . . . something he liked.

"Anything wrong?" she asked when he failed to speak.

"No, sweetheart. I don't see a thing wrong with you."

"Then ye like my dress?"

"Yes, I would definitely say I like your dress." He nodded, then grinned. "You are magnificent!" It was amazing how she'd changed her appearance so quickly. Just putting on the new clothes seemed to have given her confidence. She now appeared aloof and regal, and he found himself very proud she belonged to him--well, almost belonged to him.

Magnificent
, Kristen thought. She'd just learned that word the other day, and she now knew Trevor had, in fact, given her her first compliment. She beamed beneath his approval and then sternly reminded herself it really didn't matter.

Don't get attached, she warned herself
. You'll
only get hurt.

The ride to the party was short, and soon they were walking up the stairs into a grand home surrounded by scores of carriages.

Kristen felt very much alone as they entered the ballroom. She didn't belong with these people, and she was afraid of embarrassing Trevor. They paused, and a footman dressed in black tails announced, "The Duke of Chatsworth and Lady Kristen Johnstone."

The room grew quiet and Kristen felt as if every pair of eye
s were on her. Self-consciously, she straightened her posture. Then, the chattering resumed at a faster pace than before. Now she really felt awkward as people turned to gape openly at her. "Everyone is staring," she whispered as she tugged on Trevor's arm.

Trevor leaned over and whispered, "They are staring at me, so relax." He patted her hand and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because I am titled. I usually don't attend these events."

"Why?"

"Mothers are looking for titles for their daughters."

There were so many pretty ladies, she didn't know why Trevor wouldn't be flattered by their attention.

Kristen went over every detail of her appearance. She knew her dress was appropriate. She only hoped the rest of her held up and she didn't make a complete fool out of herself.

After tonight everyone would know she was Claremont's fiancée, and she was surprised at how proud that made her feel. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined she'd end up marrying someone like Trevor. Come to think of it, she never thought she'd marry anyone. Now she wondered if fate had somehow pushed her to pick his pocket.