Diamonds and Dreams (5 page)

It was a moment before Addison could stop
laughing. “It’s the t-t-truth!” he sputtered merrily. “And while
Lord Alders was busy peeling the wax off himself, you stood there
and told him stupid jokes. He was, needless to say, far from
amused. And people who are not amused do not laugh. You therefore
lost the bet quite completely. Now get ready, slave. We’re off to
Leighwood. You obviously like working, so it is work you will do.
As much as we can possibly wrench out of you.”

Saber closed his eyes again, willing
memories of the previous night to come to him. None did. “Were
there any witnesses to this outrageous bet?”

“Is Lord Alders himself good enough for you?
If not, Lady Alders was there too. You woke up the entire household
as a matter of fact.”

“God,” Saber groaned. He picked up his
coffee, didn’t notice the steam rising from the dark brew, and
promptly burned his mouth. Deeply aggravated, he stared at Addison,
who was in the throes of more hysterical laughter. “You and the
boys planned this, didn’t you? The four of you are forever
badgering me to go to the countryside with you, and now you’ve
finally—”

“It was an honest bet, and you gave your
word to keep your end of it, Saber. I’ve known you to do a lot of
things during our many years together, but I’ve never known you to
break an oath.”

“Then let it be recorded that I’m breaking
this one.”

“You’ll regret it.”

“I sincerely doubt that.”

Addison smiled. “Refusing to go to Leighwood
or disobeying us while there will cost you dearly. You’ll be
obliged to escort your Aunt Lucy and Aunt Clara to Paris, not to
mention whichever friends they decide to invite along for the trip.
I’ve already discussed it with the aunties, and they’re praying you
won’t honor the bet you made with the boys and me. You know how
long they’ve been wanting to see Paris again. And since they’re
unable to travel by themselves anymore, they’re quite anxious for
you to take them.”

Saber curled his hands into fists, realizing
he was thoroughly trapped. Backing out of the bet with Addison and
the boys was one thing, but disappointing his Aunt Lucy and Aunt
Clara was quite another. He couldn’t do that. It would hurt them
terribly.

However, escorting a bevy of elderly ladies
to Paris was about the worst thing he could think of himself doing.
He loved his two aunts dearly, but they and their friends had a way
of driving him to distraction. Being a slave for two weeks at
Leighwood was definitely the lesser of the two evils. “You and the
lads have tricked me into some outlandish wagers during the years,
Addison, but this one—”

“Is by far the best,” Addison finished for
him. “Better even than the time you lost a bet and had to escort
Prudence Weatherby to the Marlborough ball.”

Saber groaned again, remembering that not
only was Prudence Weatherby the homeliest girl in all of London,
but she also had some sort of deformity in her nose that caused her
to snort like a sow. The Marlborough ball had been one of the
longest, most irritating nights of his life.

At the look of revulsion on Saber’s face,
Addison grinned and strolled to the door. “Give over, Saber. You’ve
well and truly lost. And if you could possibly see your situation
in a more positive light, you would be thanking the boys and me for
all we’ve done and still plan to do. You need to be ruffled on
occasion. Your life is boring and uneventful, and a trip out of
London is just the thing for you. I cannot remember the last time
you joined us for a holiday in the country. The only times you ever
go are when you slip away for those passion-filled trysts with the
Frost Queen. And don’t try sending word to her of your whereabouts
for the next two weeks, Saber. Jillian’s not invited. If she dares
to show up, I will personally—”

Saber set down his cup, the loud rattle
cutting off Addison. “I was under the impression that Leighwood
belongs to me. Are you saying I am forbidden to invite—”

“Exactly. The agreement was that you would
do exactly as the boys and I say, and we say she’s not invited.
Whatever it is you see in that female serpent is beyond me
anyway.”

Jillian Somerset’s image came to Saber’s
mind. The young and extraordinarily beautiful widow of an elderly
earl, her hot body sheltered an icy heart, and that suited him
perfectly. He made no promises to her, saw no future with her, and
he’d made that clear from the very beginning of their relationship.
He suspected she harbored the secret desire to become his duchess,
but if she ever brought the subject up he’d dismiss her from his
life in an instant.

Addison saw the faraway look in Saber’s eyes
and realized he was pondering Jillian. “You’ll never meet anyone
else if you insist on spending what little free time you allow
yourself with her, Saber. Granted, she is a beautiful woman, but
hers is a cold beauty. I confess to shivering when she looks at me
with those glacial blue eyes of hers. There are dozens of other
lovely women who—”

“I’ve seen most all of them, care for none,
and have no desire to meet any others.” Bejeweled vultures, all of
them, he mused angrily. He was the prime piece of meat, and he did
everything he could to avoid their sharpened talons. “None are any
different than Jillian, Addison, so I fail to see the importance of
my becoming acquainted with them.”

“But—”

“At any rate, my love life is my own
concern, and I will not discuss it with you. I’m in no need of your
matchmaking anyway, and thank God I’m not. The last girl you
arranged for me to meet didn’t know what two plus two equals, and
could speak of nothing but her talent with napkins. For two solid
hours I had to sit and watch her fold a square of linen into
different shapes. One of them, as I recall, was my own profile. Now
why she thought I would enjoy wiping my mouth with my own face goes
quite beyond my lowly comprehension.”

Addison smiled. “Dulcie was beautiful
though, and if you’d married her, the place settings at your dinner
parties would have been the talk of London. I bet Jillian doesn’t
have such a unique talent.”

Saber raised a black brow and couldn’t
resist irritating Addison. “No, but I thoroughly enjoy the ones she
does
have.”

“She’s after your title and fortune.”

So is every other unmarried female in
London
, Saber raged silently. “She’ll get neither, and this
discussion is over.”

Addison tipped his imaginary hat and grinned
again. “I’ll meet you downstairs. I’ve already informed your staff
to prepare you for the trip, and I’ve sent a messenger to Leighwood
as well. It
will
be Leighwood rather than Paris, will it
not?”

“You know perfectly well it will be,” Saber
snapped. “You made sure of it.”

Addison couldn’t stop smiling. “Smashing!
I’ll be in the drawing room with your dear, sweet aunties. When I
left them they were having a discussion concerning the poor
unfortunate street girl who will be living with them. Sheltering,
teaching, and finding honest employment for destitute lasses is the
newest mission of mercy among the older ladies of the nobility.
From what I gather, Ladies Roth, Baldwin, Ainsworth, and Chapman
already have their little paupers.”

Saber’s shoulders sagged. A thieving street
waif in his home was just what he needed, he thought sardonically.
God. What other obnoxious bits of news were going to come to him
today? “I suppose Aunt Lucy and Aunt Clara are anxious to have one
of these lasses of their own?”

“‘The most ignorant and needy soul in all of
England.’ Those were their precise words. They have consented,
however, to wait until you return from your trip. I’ll go now and
inform them you’ve chosen to go to Leighwood rather than
Paris.”

“Addison, I swear I’ll have you on toast for
this!”

“The deuce, you say?” Addison exclaimed,
feigning fear. “Cheer up, old chap. The bet could have been for
higher stakes.”

Saber made a growling sound. “What, besides
going to Paris with Aunt Lucy, Aunt Clara, and a group of their
companions, could be worse than being a servant to you and those
three idiots I’m confused enough to call friends?”

Addison was silent for a moment. He looked
at the floor, then back up at Saber. “We could have stipulated the
fortnight be spent at Ravenhurst instead of Leighwood. God knows
something
must get you back to your ducal lands.”

Though Saber was a master at hiding his
emotions, Addison did not miss the fleeting look of rage in his
eyes and felt a wave of frustration and sadness. “You’ll have to
return one day, Saber,” he said quietly. “And when you do, it
should be with your duchess on your arm.”

Like a giant wave, grief gathered, swelled,
and crashed through Saber. He felt as though he were drowning in
it, “Addison—”

“If you won’t be told by me, your closest
friend, who will you listen to?”

“And you never let an opportunity pass to
tell me, do you?”

“Then you’ll hear me out?”

“Short of killing you, I cannot think of a
way to dissuade you. Besides, it is not the purpose of your life to
run mine?”

Addison was undaunted by his friend’s
sarcasm. He loved Saber like a brother and there was nothing he
wouldn’t do, dare, or shoulder in order to help him set his life
right again. “Five years, Saber. Five years or sixty months, or two
hundred and sixty weeks, or... How many days is that? Well, no
matter. However you look at it, it’s a very long time to hide from
the world.”

“I do not hide.”

“Very well,” Addison conceded. “Five years
is a long time to pretend you have no feelings for the world and
the people who live in it.”

“I am feeling impatience and anger at this
moment.”

“Lord Marion Tremayne,” Addison continued,
rocking from toes to heels. “Once a man of charm and laughter. But
that man met his death when Angelica Sheridan did. Yes, as I live
by bread, the truth is that he’s turned his face to the wall.”

“Addison, I will hear no more!” Saber
stormed to the window and glared out of it. Gripping the draperies,
he watched black smoke rising into the sky, casting a grayish film
over the city. The sight suited his mood. “Do not speak of
Angelica. She is the one subject I forbid you to ever try to
discuss with me.”

“She’s dead,” Addison went on heedlessly.
“You are
alive
. You have a life, and you must live it.”

Not without her
, Saber responded
silently, his hold on the curtains tightening.

“You are not unlike Winston’s Uncle Horatio,
Saber.”

“And I have the utmost respect for the man,”
Saber countered. “Granted, he appears rather sour at times,
but—”

“
Rather
? My God, Saber, the man was
weaned on a lemon! You said yourself he’s the most cantankerous man
in all of England! And not only that, he’s quite the most
fastidious man I’ve ever known. You, Saber, come in second. What do
the two of you do before starting your day? Wallow in a tub of
starch?”

“Are you implying that I should abandon all
civilized modes of behavior and become a tearabout as you and the
boys—”

“We are not tearabouts. We simply find ways
to bend the rules without breaking them. You used to enjoy that
also, Saber. But now...now you are as stuffy as—”

“Addison, you are trying my patience
sorely.”

“You’re angry because I speak the truth, and
you don’t care for the way it sounds. I realize you have specific
moral obligations as the Duke of Ravenhurst, Saber. As the Earl of
Aurora Hills, I have similar ones. There are certain codes of
decorum we must observe. But we are not required to be so
indifferent to life that we have neither the time nor inclination
to seek diversion. To laugh. To notice whether or not it is
raining. To sing a song! When was the last time you sang out
loud?”

“What bearing does that have on—”

“I’ll keep asking the question until you
answer it.”

Saber sighed and laid his forehead against
the window pane. “When I was a child.”

“Perhaps you should try it as an adult.”

“Perhaps you should leave this room
before—”

“But perhaps I shall stay until I’ve
finished what I’m saying.”

“I believe you’ve already said outside of
enough.”

Addison crossed his arms in front of his
chest. “Quite the contrary. I called on you yesterday morning. Did
the aunties inform you of that? No, of course not. How could they?
You were locked away in your office. And I knew why, Saber.
Yesterday would have been your fifth wedding anniversary. You do
the same thing each year. You lock yourself—”

“I was working.”

“You were not working. You were mourning.
And that is why the boys and I came and dragged you to Winston’s
last night.”

“I should have had the lot of you
arrested.”

“But you didn’t. Because as much as it goes
against your grain to admit it, you harbor a deep fondness for us.
We are your friends, and if you won’t help yourself it is our
obligation to—”

“I am in no need of help.”

“Ah, but you are.” Addison walked back into
the room, his hands clasped behind his back. “You think to mask
what is inside you, Saber, but the boys and I have known you for
too long to be fooled so easily. Since Angelica’s death, you have
been the epitome of social grace. Your manners are so utterly
spotless that you are quite the most boring member of the nobility.
Yes, I believe you even surpass Horatio Alders. You are definitely
and positively His Perfect Lordship, the Duke of Ravenhurst.”

Saber’s gaze narrowed until he could see
London’s gray haze only through the slashes of his eyes. “I assume
you mean that as an insult.”

“I do. Because there was a time, Saber, when
although you were the Duke of Ravenhurst, you were first and
foremost Saber Tremayne. And therein lie your many problems.”