Deceiving the Duke of Kerrington (Ladies of Deception) (13 page)

            Hope reached up and gingerly
touched the heavy stones hanging around her neck. Pierce grabbed her hand and
placed her palm against his lips where he pressed a scorching kiss that she
felt pierce her straight in the heart.

            “I wasn’t talking about the
necklace, I was talking about you.”

            “Thank you,” she almost
whispered.

            It took all of his remaining
willpower to pull back when all he wanted to do was to sweep her into his arms
and kiss her madly, never letting her leave his side. The strength of his
emotions scared him, he wasn’t sure what he was feeling or what it meant and he
suddenly felt a desire to be alone to sort out all of the unfamiliar
sensations. His shoulders stiffened and his voice turned formal as he placed
the hand he had just kissed in the crook of his arm and began leading her back
to the wing where their bedchambers were located.

            “It’s getting late and
you’ve had a long day, I think you should get some sleep.”

            Hope was surprised that he
was suddenly acting formal and distant but tried not to read too much into it
lest it cause her cheerful mood to fade. She allowed him to walk her to her
door where he nodded slightly before murmuring a hasty goodbye and departing
quickly as if he couldn’t wait to get rid of her.

Chapter 16

            Hope rose the next morning
with the feeling of excitement in her belly. Today was the official start of
the house party and she knew that all morning various guests would be arriving
to participate. Though she dreaded meeting various members of the aristocracy,
some who would inevitably know Noelle, her excitement at seeing Pierce overrode
those emotions and she was feeling hopefully optimistic about the future. As
long as she tried to pretend that she truly was Lady Noelle and didn’t think about
the fact that she was in reality a lowly servant by birth and someone the duke
would never in a million years really tie himself too, she was happy.

            As Esther helped her into a
lavender gown that had been one of her favorites on Noelle she reveled in the
thought that she was dressing for Pierce, hoping that he would find her
appearance pleasing. She even allowed Esther to pin in a few sprigs of lilac
into her upswept curls before heading downstairs in search of Pierce.

            She couldn’t keep the smile
from her face as she passed a number of servants scurrying about seeing to
every last detail before company arrived. She walked into the breakfast room
hoping to find him there but she was surprised to only see the servants
clearing away dishes from the table indicating that he had already eaten. She
wondered if he perhaps had already left on an early morning ride over the
estate with Elliot. She slowed her pace as she resumed her search less
diligently, feeling foolish at being so eager to see him when she didn’t have
anything pressing to say, all she knew was that the prospect of seeing him had
prompted her actions.  Her footsteps slowed as she neared the parlor, hearing
voices inside and not sure she should intrude. Quietly she opened the door
slightly, just enough to give her a glimpse of the figures standing in the
room. One was unmistakably Pierce but the other was a girl she had never met.

            She took a minute to
appraise the girl, noting that the stranger was standing exceptionally close to
Pierce, closer than what was proper, and one hand was placed on his arm. The
girl was beautiful, with thick auburn hair and alabaster skin. She was
voluptuous yet graceful all at the same time. Hope held her breath and willed
her heart to stop beating so loudly as she strained to hear what they were
saying.

            She heard Pierce asking, “Do
you Eliza?” and gasped, so this was Eliza? The girl who stirred so much
negative emotion in Pierce just at the mention of her name? She listened with
newfound interest and something akin to jealousy knotting in her stomach.

            “Of course I do, Pierce. Why
else would I be here so soon after Phillip died? You loved me once, is it so
hard to believe you could again?” Hope waited in eager anticipation for
Pierce’s response.

            After a long silence Hope
heard him say, “No, it’s not hard to believe…” followed by Eliza throwing
herself into his arms.

Hope pulled her
hand back from the door as if it had been scorched, letting the heavy wooden
door close with a soft bang. She felt hot tears form in her eyes as she
scurried away as fast as she could, one hand covering her mouth to muffle her
cries.

***

            Pierce had just been
finishing up breaking his fast when the butler came in and announced that he
had a visitor waiting in the parlor. Not expecting guests to start arriving
until early afternoon, he was curious to see who was there to see him. He
gulped the last of his now cold tea before wiping his mouth with his napkin
before heading to see who the mystery guest could be.

            He walked into the parlor and
saw a girl standing gazing out one window. He didn’t have to see her face to
know who it was, he’d recognize that burnished red hair anywhere and his
thoughts began racing wildly. There had been a time when he would’ve welcomed
the sight of her, hoping and praying she would come to him and explain herself
and her actions, apologizing for the hurt she had caused him, but now the sight
of her was unwelcome and bordered on making him furious.

            “Lady Norton, to what do I
owe this visit?” He purposely called her by her married name as opposed to her
Christian name, avoiding any sort of familiarity with her and keeping his voice
cool.

            Eliza turned her green eyes
on him and the first thing he thought was how dull they looked in comparison to
Noelle’s sparkling amber eyes that he could gaze into forever.  A slow smile
spread across her face, she didn’t look at all as he expected a woman mourning
her husband should look. “Pierce, it’s been so long but you look just as
splendid as ever.” She stepped close, reaching one hand out to grasp his arm
but Pierce just shrugged it off.

            “I appreciate the
compliment, but why are you here?”

            “I’m here as an invited
guest, your mother issued the invitation. Is this any way to treat a guest,”
her voice turned low and sultry, “or former lover?” Her hand was once more on
his arm.

            He let out a sardonic laugh,
“We were never lovers, thank goodness. I was lucky enough to see the true side
of you before I was foolish enough to offer for your hand. You didn’t seem to
care about my feelings back then; I can’t imagine you care now.” Her expression
looked hurt but Pierce didn’t care. He’d suffered enough hurt at her greedy
hands years ago and wasn’t at all sympathetic to her feelings now. When she
didn’t say anything he said, “Do you Eliza?”

            “Of course I do, Pierce. Why
else would I be here so soon after Phillip died? You loved me once, is it so
hard to believe that you could again?”

            Pierce closed his eyes to
formulate his response. So this was the real reason she was here now, now that
she was a widow she thought to resume what she had started with him when they
were young, hoping to catch the biggest title and the most wealth. But he
wasn’t the same naive, love struck boy as he was then and he wasn’t as
intrigued by her beauty as he had been then either.

            “No, it’s not hard to
believe…” he was cut off by Eliza throwing herself into his arms, clinging to
him desperately as if he had just offered her the world. They were both
startled by the soft thud of the door closing and both looked to see who was
there. When it appeared that no one was present, Pierce took the opportunity to
force her away from him, holding her out at arm’s length.

            “Like I was saying—no it’s
not hard to believe I could love you again, it’s impossible.”

            Her eyes widened in anger,
her mouth forming a large O.  “What to do you mean? You’re not married are you?
Even if you are I wouldn’t mind, there could still be a place for me in your
life.”

            Disgusted, Pierce turned and
walked away from her, not wanting to look into her face for another second. For
what seemed like the millionth time he silently prayed and gave thanks that he
had found out her true motives before it was too late. He agitatedly poured
himself a measure of brandy, downing it all in one gulp before turning to her
once more.

            Eliza was now sitting on the
striped wing backed chair, eyeing him curiously. “Don’t tell me you’ve all of a
sudden acquired high moral standards and that dallying with me behind your
wife’s back would appall you. I’ve heard the rumors about you like everyone
else has.”

            “They’re called rumors for a
reason, and I wouldn’t dally with you behind my wife’s back because I don’t
have a wife, at least not yet. I’m betrothed to Lady Noelle Parrish and we’re
announcing our engagement at the ball tomorrow night.”

            “I fail to see how any of
this is relevant to you and I.” she artfully arranged her yellow muslin skirts,
looking as if she hadn’t a care in the world, “Unless you are in love with the
girl, is that it? Are you so in love with your fiancée that the thought of
being with me repulses you?”

            Pierce was silent, thinking
about her accusations. Was he in love with Noelle? That was absurd, he didn’t
believe in love and he hardly even knew the chit, but then why did it feel
wrong to tell Eliza that, like some sort of betrayal?

            Instead he said, “This is
all like some bad joke. You’d do well to forget this conversation ever took
place, heaven knows I’m going to try.” And with that he left, leaving Eliza
even more determined than ever to get him back in her grasp.

***

            Hope
kept herself occupied in her room most of the day, hoping to avoid the other
guests that had begun to arrive and Pierce for as long as possible. She was mad
at herself for allowing even a moment of hopefulness. She had been a fool to
believe that Pierce was a decent man and that she could ever be more to him
than a convenient wife to provide him with his much coveted heir and
respectability amongst the ton. If there was any way that she could honorably
back out of the engagement she would. In her head she kept cursing herself over
and over for ever agreeing to be a pawn in Noelle’s game. In hindsight she
wished that she had been brave enough to tell her no and return and live with
her mother in Shepard’s Bush. So what if she would never have been able to gain
another respectable lady’s maid position, at least she wouldn’t be forced to
marry a man she was in love with who just so happened to be in love with
another woman.

            And
that was the crux of the matter—she had fallen in love with the arrogant Duke
of Kerrington. She bolted into an upright position in her bed, shocking even
herself with the realization that she had allowed her heart to fall in love
with Pierce. How could that have happened? The realization made her angry all
over again. She was so foolish. Just when she began another endless round of
chastising herself, Esther entered the room.

            “Milady,
it’s time to get ready for afternoon tea on the veranda. I’ve been told that
most of the guests have arrived and the duchess is eager to introduce you to
them.”

            The
last thing Hope wanted to do was socialize and put on a happy face, but at
least the men were out riding and she wouldn’t have to face Pierce until
dinner. “Very well Esther, why don’t you straighten my hair up for me then I’ll
go down.”

            Esther
eyed her skeptically, “You can’t mean to go down in that dress, milady, it’s
all wrinkled.”

            Hope
looked down at her skirts and sure enough, they were crumpled beyond repair, “I
suppose I ought to change then.” It all seemed like more work than it was worth
but she didn’t want to embarrass the duchess by looking anything but proper.

            Esther
eyed her mistress suspiciously, not sure what had occurred to alter her mood so
drastically since she had readied her this morning—then she had been excited
and eager and now she looked sullen and morose. Esther didn’t dare inquire and
instead quickly set about her task of getting her ready for tea. She chose a
pink dress sprigged with blue flowers with a high waist. The bodice and sleeves
were lined with delicate ivory lace, a perfectly feminine dress for afternoon
tea. She topped it off with a chip straw bonnet with a cluster of pink roses
and blue ribbons on the side. When the despondent Noelle was dressed she looked
quite fetching, if only she’d smile and bring the sparkle back to her unique
eyes.

            Hope
reluctantly made her way to the veranda, spotting Caroline and making a quick
dash to her side. She was anxious to avoid running into anyone who might know the
real Lady Noelle. She knew it was inevitable but she wasn’t quite sure yet how
she’d deal with the encounter. Maybe if she kept her conversation vague and
brief she could avoid any awkwardness.

            Caroline
reached for her and gave her a quick hug, “My darling, you look fetching, such
a beauty. My son is lucky to have found himself such a beautiful wife.” Hope
felt her cheeks go red. “Now, the official engagement announcement hasn’t been
made until tomorrow’s ball so we’ll have to keep it a secret for one more day,
do you think you can manage?”

            She
nodded, if the duchess only knew how good she was at keeping secrets. Just then
an older lady walked up with two of her daughters in tow. She was plump and her
yellow gown did nothing for her sallow complexion, but neither did her pinched
expression, which was even more unbecoming.

            “Lady
Tolliver! I’m so delighted you and your daughters could make it.” Caroline
exclaimed.

            Hope
looked at her daughters just then, the first daughter being plump like her
mother with plain features and a large, straight nose. She turned to the other
daughter and thought she would be sick. Standing on her mother’s left was
Eliza. Hope noticed she had changed into a bottle green dress that went well
with her coloring and complexion. It was apparent that Eliza was the lucky one
in the family and had acquired all of the good looks. She was even more
striking up close and with the sunshine gleaming off of her auburn tresses.

            Caroline
introduced her then, “Lady Tolliver, this is Lady Noelle Parrish, Lord Brattondale’s
daughter. Noelle, Lady Tolliver is one of our neighbors. This is her daughter
Alice.” She motioned towards the plain daughter with her fan before gesturing
towards Eliza, “and this is Eliza, the recently widowed Lady Norton.”