A Gentleman Never Tells (17 page)

None are so fond of secrets as those who do not mean to keep them.

—Charles Caleb Colton

Gabrielle and Brutus walked into the house after a brief good-bye to Brent at her front door. Brutus didn’t stop but continued down the corridor. Gabrielle knew he was heading for his pillow by the fireplace. She took her time removing her bonnet, cape, gloves, and pelisse. She was more confused than ever.

The problem was she had enjoyed every invigorating moment with the viscount. She enjoyed looking at him, talking to him, and kissing him. She found it stimulating to match wits with him, frustrating to try to astonish him, and humbling to commiserate with him over Prissy’s disappearance.

Her hands stilled when she caught sight of herself in the mirror that hung over one of the side tables in the vestibule. She was smiling, smiling because being with Lord Brentwood made her happy. He had many good qualities to recommend him. He was handsome, dashing, and pleasant. She had never enjoyed her time with Staunton. The earl’s son was handsome, but Gabrielle couldn’t ever remember smiling with him over a shared pleasure, lying awake at night and longing for his kisses, or praying some turn of events would happen so she could see him before the day was over.

Lord Brentwood was exciting and very appealing to all her senses. And already she missed not being with him.

It would be so easy for her to just accept the fact her father wanted her to marry him. Because the truth was she wanted to be with him, and she had wanted to be with him since the moment she saw him standing in the mist. It was as if fate had said to her,
This man is yours for the taking. Take him
. But Brent had not chosen her. By her actions that morning, she had forced all this on him, and now she had to do her best to give him back his freedom to choose his own wife.

Slowly her smile faded. She could easily allow herself to fall in love with him, if only he wasn’t merely fulfilling his obligation for being caught kissing her.

When she laid her things on the table, she noticed a letter addressed to her on the silver calling card plate. “Staunton,” she said, quickly picking it up. She had been waiting to hear from him. She broke the seal and read.

My Dearest Gabby,

If you should find yourself taking in the sights of St. James tomorrow afternoon, perhaps our paths will cross.

I am with kindest regards,
Staunton

It wasn’t the friendliest of correspondence, but at last he’d finally answered her. She needed to find Auntie Bethie immediately to see if she was free for a ride in the park.

Gabrielle walked down the corridor and looked into the drawing room. Auntie Bethie was reading in a chair by the fireplace. Brutus greeted her with a woof and wagged his tail but didn’t try to rise from his pillow.

“Good afternoon, Auntie,” she said, walking over and giving her aunt a kiss on her cheek, and then over to Brutus to pat his head and scratch his ears. Thanks to Brent, her old companion had had a wonderful time in the park.

“How was your afternoon?” Auntie Bethie asked, closing her book and laying it in her lap.

There was no way Gabrielle could keep a big smile off her face as she said, “It was quite enjoyable, Auntie.”

“I thought it would be. Lord Brentwood is certainly handsome enough to look at for an entire afternoon.”

“Most definitely,” Gabrielle said, holding her hands in front of the low-burning fire to warm them.

“Sit down and tell me all about it. I want to hear everything.”

Gabrielle made herself comfortable on the settee and took her time telling about the day. She went into great detail about the viscount losing his hat because of her bumping him with her parasol, about Brutus slobbering on the glossy shine of Lord Brentwood’s Hessians, and about the woman with the dog they had chased down. But she left out all references to the few exciting and satisfying minutes she spent in Brent’s arms.

When their laughter over the afternoon’s events had died down, Auntie Bethie said, “I’ve been thinking about something for a long time, even before I arrived in London, and it’s time I told you about it.”

Gabrielle moved to the edge of the settee. “Yes, tell me.”

“I’ve decided to leave Southampton and find a place here in London to lease.”

“Oh, Auntie, that is wonderful news! You know how I have always wanted you to be close by so we could see you more often.”

Her aunt’s eyes took on a sheen Gabrielle had never seen in them before and, for the first time she could ever remember, her aunt was close to tears.

“Yes, I know, my dear, but your father has never wanted that, and I have been somewhat at his mercy financially, as you know, for many years.”

Gabrielle rose from the settee and knelt in front of her aunt, taking hold of her hands. “I’m sorry my father has always treated you so atrociously.”

She lightly squeezed Gabrielle’s fingers. “No, my dear, he hasn’t. How can I think that when he has provided exceptionally well for me all these years because of his vow to my dear sister? And he has allowed me to visit you and Rosa a couple of times each year, so I can’t be too harsh on him. I have been very frugal, and because of his generosity, I’ve been able to save a good portion of my yearly allowance from him. I’ve made one or two investments that have paid me well. I now have enough that even if he stops my monthly allowance, I will live comfortably in London for the rest of my days.”

Happiness surged inside Gabrielle. “Stay in London, Auntie. You know I would never let you go without anything you needed.”

Her aunt’s eyes cleared, and she laughed in the deep, throaty voice Gabrielle loved to hear. “Thank you, dear. It makes me very happy to know you want me to live close by.”

“I have an idea, Auntie, why don’t we start looking tomorrow for places for you to lease?”

“Tomorrow?”

“Yes, we have no idea when Papa might return, and you should have something ready. We’ll get started early in the day and then perhaps in the afternoon we can take a drive through St. James Park.”

A knowing smile lifted the corners of her aunt’s lips. “A ride through St. James; now why doesn’t that surprise me? Of course we can, and we’ll insist Rosa join us. She spends entirely too much time in her room.”

“Ah, no, Auntie, please, not tomorrow,” Gabrielle said, rising. She ran her hands down the side of her skirt and felt Staunton’s note. She hadn’t expected her aunt to include her sister. That would never work. “Do you mind so terribly much if it’s just the two of us tomorrow?”

Auntie Bethie frowned. “I suppose not, as long as she doesn’t ask to join us. I would hate to tell her no.”

“Oh, I agree,” Gabrielle said, knowing if Rosa wanted to join them to look at houses, she would have to send a note to Staunton telling him they would have to meet at another time.

***

Later that night, Gabrielle’s eyes popped open, and she jerked upright in bed, at first not knowing what had disturbed her sleep. She propped herself up with her elbows and scanned the dark room and listened. Nothing appeared out of place, but for some reason she was certain what she’d heard was footsteps. It would be unusual for one of the servants to be on their floor in the dead of night. Perhaps her aunt or Rosa couldn’t sleep and had decided to go downstairs for a cup of chocolate.

Pushing the covers aside, Gabrielle rose from the bed and quickly put on her heavy velvet robe and shoved her feet into her slippers. She lit the candle she kept by her bed, and then hurried to her door and opened it. The corridor was cold, quiet, and dark except for a small slice of light under her sister’s door. Rosabelle often read late at night, so at first she wasn’t alarmed; but remembering the footsteps she heard, Gabrielle decided to go to Rosa’s room. She slowly turned the knob and quietly opened it and peeked inside.

Rosa was standing in front of her dressing table, combing her hair.

She gasped and turned toward Gabrielle. “Good heavens! You frightened me! What are you doing sneaking into my room? And with that candle in front of your face like that? It looks eerie!”

“I wasn’t sneaking,” Gabrielle said and blew out the candle as she walked into the room, closing the door behind her so their voices wouldn’t wake Auntie Bethie. “I heard footsteps and came out to see who was up. I saw your light and wanted to check on you.”

“Check on me? I’m no longer a little girl, Gabby. I don’t need you checking on me during the night like you used to.”

“And I don’t usually. I haven’t for a long time. You know that. Where were you?”

“Oh, I couldn’t sleep, so I was downstairs, getting some milk.”

Gabrielle feared she already knew what Rosa had been doing. “And you decided you needed to dress before going downstairs for milk?”

Rosabelle looked at her clothing.

Rosa opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, Gabrielle said, “And before you come up with another feeble excuse, remember I saw you earlier tonight and you were already in your night rail.”

Rosa turned back toward her dressing mirror and huffed. “You are mistaken, that’s all. I never dressed for bed tonight.”

“I am not mistaken, Rosa. Did you slip out of the house to meet Staunton?”

She whirled back to face Gabrielle. “So what if I did meet him in the garden for a few minutes? We hadn’t seen each other in weeks. We were dying to see each other.”

Anger at Staunton rose up in Gabrielle. How dare he continue to put Rosa’s reputation at risk. “That is what parties are for, Rosa. I’ve tried to impress upon you the jeopardy you face if you continue to meet Staunton in secret. You simply must not sneak out of the house again for any reason. That can only lead to trouble.”

“As you know so well, Gabby,” Rosa threw at her sister. “Tell me why it is perfectly all right for you to sneak out to meet Lord Brentwood, but it’s not all right for me to go out and meet Staunton. Don’t you think that’s a little hypocritical of you?”

“It may seem that way, but, Rosa, I’ve told you I didn’t go to Hyde to meet the viscount. We met quite by accident that morning.”

“And you expect me to believe that?”

“Yes, and even though it was an accidental meeting, it has led to disastrous consequences for both of us.”

Rosa walked over to the bed and picked up her sleeping gown, putting her back to Gabrielle. “Your situation really doesn’t matter to me at the moment, Gabby. I’ll just have to make sure you don’t catch me next time. Now if you don’t mind, I would appreciate your leaving my room. I’m ready to put on my night rail and sleep so I can dream about Staunton.”

Frustration with Rosa burned inside Gabrielle, and she grabbed her sister’s arms and turned her around. Rosa’s foolishness and impulsive behavior had gone too far. “I cannot allow you to be this flippant about your reputation. I will have to tell Papa and ask him to send you to one of his country estates where you will never see Staunton again.”

Rosa stiffened. “You wouldn’t.”

“Of course I will,” Gabrielle said coldly, thinking only about how much she detested Staunton for preying on Rosa’s affection for him.

Her sister’s blue eyes sparkled with apprehension, and her bottom lip trembled. “Please tell me you won’t tell Papa about me and Staunton. I promise never to meet him in secret again.”

Within seconds, Rosa went from a self-assured young lady, determined to get her way, to looking and sounding like a frightened child begging not to be punished. For a moment, as Gabrielle stared at her sister, she was tempted to give in and agree she wouldn’t tell the duke. But Brent came to her mind, and Gabrielle knew she couldn’t. She had given up too much already in order to save Rosa’s reputation. She would not let Staunton ruin it now.

“If I even suspect you are slipping out again to meet Staunton, or anyone else, I will not even tell you I know. I will go straight to Papa and let him deal with you.”

Gabrielle turned and walked out, knowing she couldn’t wait to have a talk tomorrow with Mr. Alfred Staunton.

***

Gabrielle watched Auntie Bethie shiver as the carriage bumped along the uneven terrain of St. James Park. They had spent several hours touring homes for lease in different areas of London, but her aunt wasn’t ready to make a decision to settle on any of them. There were few carriages in St. James, so Gabrielle had hoped to spot Staunton quickly, but there had been no such luck. They’d been riding the carriage path for almost an hour with no sign of her former fiancé. Gabrielle was beginning to think they had missed him or he’d decided not to meet her.

“Why must I suffer through another cold ride around this dreary park?” her aunt complained as Muggs allowed the horses to plod along slowly.

Deciding to be truthful, Gabrielle said, “If you must know, Auntie, I’m looking for someone.”

“Oh, fiddle faddle, Gabby! I know that. Why can’t you just invite the viscount for afternoon tea? It’s much warmer in the drawing room than out here. The damp air is threatening rain.”

“It’s not Lord Brentwood I am looking for this time,” Gabrielle admitted.

“Oh,” her aunt said, sounding surprised. “Has another young blade caught your eye?”

“No, no, Auntie, not this one for sure, but you must believe me when I tell you what I’m doing is very important.”

“I do believe you, dearie. I just don’t know why you want to conduct your affairs in the parks so blasted often. It’s not summer, you know. It’s not even spring, and it is damn cold out here.”

Gabrielle pulled the blanket farther up her aunt’s chest and tucked it around her neck. “Oh, Auntie, I would be happy to ride alone if I could, but you know I can’t, so I must bring you with me. We’ll stay only a few minutes more, I promise. Shall I pour you more chocolate?”

“No, I feel like I will float away if I drink any more before I find a chamber pot!” Auntie Bethie laughed at her remark and huddled down into the folds of the blanket.

Gabrielle joined her aunt’s laughter as they rounded a bend on the west side of the park. When Gabrielle looked up, she saw Staunton sitting on his horse not far away. His back was ramrod straight and his chin lifted in an arrogant tilt.

“It’s about time,” she spoke softly under her breath, feeling relief he’d arrived.