A Scandalous Deception (19 page)

But Marc grasped her elbow and refused to let
her take another step away from him. “Her husband isn’t dead,” he
said softly. “He is here. In London. And tomorrow he’ll head over
to Prestwick House as I did tonight and learn that she and Carraway
have set off for Derbyshire to attend Lady Juliet. I don’t like the
look of the man, Caroline. I think the girl needs to be
warned.”

“I beg your pardon?” She blinked up at him,
her hazel eyes clouded with confusion. “Her husband isn’t
dead?”

“Alive, well, and not a terribly charming
fellow.”

“She is a
widow
,” Caroline stressed as
though she didn’t truly believe him.

“I met the man this evening at Whites. Aaron
Pierce. He’s gone into business with Thurlstone and until tonight
was under the impression that his wife was dead. He didn’t appear
pleased to learn otherwise.”

She shook her head as though he made less
sense the more he talked. “They each thought the other was
dead?”

“I can’t truly answer to that, and I’m not
certain at all about what is going on; but I can tell you that the
man seemed rather murderous. I think you should send word to your
brother, warn him that Pierce will be headed to Prestwick Chase,
just to be safe.”

“Oh, heavens.” She touched a hand to her
heart. “Luke’s been so distracted as Juliet hasn’t been faring well
of late.” She sighed as though trying to sort out the best plan of
attack. “A note might not reach there in time. You’ll have to go
after them.”

“Me?” Marc scoffed. “I most certainly do not.
It’s your family. I’ve warned you. My duty here is done.”

She grasped his waistcoat in her hands and
gazed up at him. Heat coursed through his veins and it was all he
could do not to pull her into his arms.

“Please, Marc,” she whispered.

Oh God. She knew just how to twist him around
her finger. But it wasn’t her finger that he wanted. “Kiss me,
Caroline. Kiss me and I’ll do whatever you wish.”

From the entrance to the ballroom, someone
cleared their throat, and she took a step backwards, away from
Marc. Then she gulped and seemed to force a smile to her face.
“David darling,” she said. “There you are.”

Of all the Goddamned people to interrupt
them. Marc heaved a sigh and glanced over his shoulder to find the
very studious Viscount Staveley standing just a few feet away.
“Staveley,” he grumbled.

“Bethany Carteret said you’d come to get a
breath of fresh air,” the man said to his wife, not acknowledging
Marc’s presence in the least.

Caroline nodded quickly. “I think Felicity is
in trouble and she’s headed to Prestwick Chase.” Then she turned
her attention once more to Marc. “Please. If Captain Pierce truly
worries you, Lord Haversham, please go after them. I beg you.”

Before Marc could reply, however, Staveley
said, “Love,
I
can head to Prestwick Chase. There’s no need
to impose upon Lord Haversham for help.”

“You?” She blinked at her husband in
surprise.

Honestly, Marc was surprised too. The man
rarely left his library. He certainly wouldn’t be anyone’s first
choice as far as champions went.

“Of course,” the viscount replied, pushing
his spectacles up the bridge of his nose. “I’m just as capable as
anyone else. And I’d hate for us to be beholden to Lord
Haversham.”

Meaning the man had heard every word Marc had
said to his wife. An honorable man would be ashamed, Marc supposed,
but he’d never been accused of being honorable. So he turned
slightly and flashed the viscount an uncharitable grin. “Godspeed,
then, Staveley. About time you played Sir Galahad for her.” Then he
tipped his head in farewell to Caroline and said, “Evening, my
dear,” before brushing past Staveley and back inside the Carteret
ballroom.

Fin wrapped on Lissy’s door. Ericht and his
sister were already in the private dinning room, waiting for them.
“Lissy, dinner,” he called. But there was no sound on the other
side. Clearly, she was still avoiding him.

What the devil was he going to do about her?
About them? Things had been perfect between them, better than
perfect. Making love to her had felt like the most right thing he’d
ever done, and she’d been just as swept away as he was, he’d have
bet every last farthing he possessed. He’d simply declared himself
too quickly was all and frightened her, damned idiot that he
was.

He had, after all, heard Lieutenant Avery’s
words that night in the carriage. Captain Pierce obviously hadn’t
treated Lissy well. The very idea of marriage had to frighten her
to her core just like…Well, just like Georgie had been.

Oh, Georgie and Lissy were night and day. No
matter that they were sisters, two more different women didn’t
exist. And yet they’d both been mistreated by their husbands. The
mere mention of marriage could make Georgie scurry from a room as
though the devil himself was chasing after her. She’d relished the
freedom her widowhood had given her, the freedom to not be under an
abusive husband’s thumb. And Lissy was the same in that; it was
quite obvious now that he knew what to look for.

Fin scoffed. She had literally run from the
room with nothing more than the dress on her back and the slippers
on her feet. Damn it all, what
had
Pierce done to her? And
how could Fin convince her that he would never do the same? It had
taken forever to wear Georgie’s defenses down, for her to finally
agree to marry him. Was he in for an equally long battle with
Lissy’s demons?

Damn, he hoped not. He truly did love her, he
truly did want to marry her. But how to convince her? That was the
question that had plagued him the rest of the evening until now,
though he was no closer to an answer than he had been when she’d
fled the room earlier that evening.

Fin sidled closer to her door and said
softly, “I know you don’t want to see me, but you do have to eat,
sweetheart.”

He could sit her down and demand she speak to
him about their situation. Though the direct approach was never a
good one with Lissy. She’d be defiant, just on general principle.
Even now she wouldn’t even open the door for dinner as he was on
the other side of it.

He could be patient, like he had been with
Georgie. Though he truly didn’t relish that particular waiting game
again. Besides, the two women weren’t the same in the least. He
always knew Georgie would come around in the end, but Lissy…Well, a
more stubborn girl did not exist.

He could try coercion. He had, after all,
spilled his seed deep inside her. She would definitely want any
child from their union to have a father, to have a name, for God’s
sake. That wasn’t even up for debate. If she was with child, she’d
marry him and that would be it, but…

Well, if she’d only listen to reason.

“Felicity! Open the door,” he called, his
irritation growing the longer he stood there. Still, she said
nothing, the stubborn minx. She’d make Fin stand there, like dolt
all night, and she’d wait him out.

Best to retrieve Annie, he decided. Even if
Lissy refused to come down to eat, her maid could still bring a bit
of nourishment to her.

He started for the servant’s room and quickly
knocked on Annie’s door. “It’s Lord Carraway,” he called.

A half-second later, the door opened, and
Lissy’s maid, with a rather large bandage on her head, smiled up at
him. “Is everything all right, my lord?”

Things were the furthest they could be from
all right. “I can’t seem to coerce your lady into leaving her
chambers for dinner. I thought you might have better luck than I’ve
had.”

“Yes, of course.” Annie nodded quickly and
then winced as the movement must have hurt her injured head.

“Are you all right?” Fin asked.

“Just the teensiest bit dizzy, my lord.”

Fin scrubbed a hand across his face. Annie
was in no condition to do his bidding. “Do sit back down, then.” He
gestured her back inside her room. “I’ll get her to eat one way or
the other if it kills me.”

Annie laughed. “If she’s decided not to, it
just might.”

“Don’t I know it?” Fin sighed. “But do feel
better, Annie. Chivers’ leg has been set and the coach is being
repaired as we speak. We’ll head out at morning’s light.”

“I’ll be ready, my lord. And I’m certain Lady
Felicity will be in better spirits once we arrive. She’s been so
worried about Lady Juliet.”

“I’m certain you’re right.” He smiled in
farewell, though he wasn’t certain in the least.

Fin made his way down the old wooden steps
into the taproom. He nodded at the barkeeper. “Would it be possible
to have a tray delivered to Lady Felicity’s room?”

The man blinked at him. “Lady Felicity’s
room?”

“Yes. First room on the right at the top of
the steps.”

But the barkeeper shook his head. “The lady
is gone, my lord.”

“Gone?” Fin echoed, his heart nearly breaking
in two. What the devil had she done now? “Gone where?”

The man shrugged in response. “She said
something about her sister. Bought a horse from Old Jim, down
there.” He gestured to a fellow who didn’t seem all that old, but
he did seem more than foxed.

Fin raked a hand through his hair. Prestwick
Chase was only a few hours away. But it was dark as pitch outside.
Their carriage had lost a wheel thanks to the uneven road, even
with a bit of daylight. One false step by Old Jim’s horse and Lissy
would twist her pretty neck. “When was this?”

“Not sure, sir. We’ve been busy down here. At
least an hour or so, though, I’d say.”

An hour or so. Visions of Lissy’s lifeless
body along the side of the road flashed in Fin’s mind. His heart
twisted in his chest. If anything happened to her… “I need a
horse,” he said, hoping to block any more distressing images from
entering his mind.

The crunch of the gravel beneath her new
steed’s hooves signaled Lissy’s approach to Prestwick Chase. Even
in the dark she’d know the sound of that particular gravel, as
she’d traveled it so often when she was younger.

Not a candle was lit in any window at The
Chase, but she could see the manor outlined beneath the dim
moonlight. Never would she have imagined Prestwick Chase would be a
beacon of salvation for her, but that’s exactly what it was at the
moment.

Her legs ached, her back was sore, her cheeks
still stung from tears. But now that she was home, she’d be safe.
Safe from doing something else she’d regret as she didn’t trust
herself in the least where Fin was concerned. One more protestation
of love and she’d throw her arms around his neck, but that just
wouldn’t do. She had very aptly destroyed her own life. She
couldn’t destroy his too. She loved him too much to do that to
him.

She glanced again at her darkened childhood
home. Juliet would be asleep. Everyone would be asleep. She’d wake
the whole house at this hour, unless…Her sister
had
spent a
small fortune repairing the place, but had she fixed that faulty
window in the study? Lissy wasn’t certain if anyone else even knew
the window was faulty. In her youth, whenever she’d sneak away in
the dead of night, she’d always been alone. She’d never been caught
back in those days, back when the idea of just a bit of freedom
would keep her awake long into the night, and only a walk in the
moonlight could soothe her restlessness. If only a walk in the
moonlight was all it would take to soothe her now.

The memory of Fin’s kiss, his touch, the
gentle way he’d made love to her invaded Lissy’s thoughts again.
There would never be enough moonlit walks to ever soothe her soul,
of that she was more than certain.

She guided her horse to the stables,
refocusing on the situation at hand, or at least trying to. Pushing
Fin from her mind was next to impossible. She dismounted and led
the horse to one of the stalls. Though she was exhausted, Lissy
made quick work with the saddle, then sponged the horse down while
he drank his fill from a large bucket. The fellow deserved to drink
all he could, after all he’d done to get her safely home.