No Decent Gentleman (16 page)

"I'm sorry for your bad experience," Sabrina replied.

"Don't be sorry," Lily said, reaching for the needlework on the table. "The fault doesn't lie with you."

Sabrina felt an embarrassed blush slowly heating her cheeks when the duchess opened the cloth to examine the crooked stitches. Embroidery was one feminine pastime she had never mastered. In fact, she hadn't cared a fig about sewing until this very moment when the duchess was inspecting her stitches.

"What remarkable needlework," Lily commented, glancing at her.

"Remarkably horrible."

"You sew much better than I do."

"Do I?" Sabrina just knew the American was patronizing her.

Lily opened her reticule and pulled out a handkerchief. "Look at this," she said, offering it to her. "Don't worry; it's clean."

That remark brought a smile to Sabrina's face. She opened the handkerchief and laid it flat on her lap. In the next instant, Sabrina burst out laughing. The duchess had spoken truthfully; her stitches were even more crooked than her own.

"Why, Winston could do a better job," Sabrina said, relief loosening her tongue.

Lily laughed. "I have no doubt of that."

"I meant no insult," Sabrina said.

"None taken," Lily told her. "Your embroidery is horrid too until compared with mine."

Forbes and Baxter walked into the drawing room. Each carried a silver tray; one held a Worcester tea and coffee service and the other a platter of almond cake slices.

"Down, Winston," Sabrina ordered when the dog stood to gobble the cake.

The wolfhound lay down again but kept his gaze fixed on the food. Streams of drool began to slide from the corners of his mouth.

Sabrina lifted two pieces of cake off the platter, broke them up onto a serving dish, and set it down in front of the dog. Winston leaned his head over the dish and began eating.

"Surrendering to the inevitable is sometimes easier," Sabrina said. "I baked last night, and Winston simply adores my—"

"You bake?" Lily asked in obvious surprise. "Did you bake this?"

Sabrina nodded.

"Delicious," Lily exclaimed after tasting the almond cake. "I didn't realize that the English aristocracy cooked and baked."

"Cooking and baking relax me," Sabrina told her. "I do it whenever I'm upset or nervous."

Lily grinned. "Oh, I do believe we'll be great friends after all," she said.

"Do you bake when you're upset?" Sabrina asked.

"No, I eat."

Sabrina burst out laughing.

"I'm so glad you're not snobby like those other ladies I've met," the duchess said, reaching out to touch her arm.

"I'm relieved to have found you," Sabrina agreed. "Do you have any hobbies? I mean, in addition to embroidery."

"I'm learning the pianoforte," Lily told her. "Baby Sarah shrieks with displeasure whenever I practice, so I don't think I'm ready for a recital."

Sabrina smiled at the other woman's honesty.

"I love animals, read voraciously, and am acquiring a taste for shopping." Lily paused for a moment and, with a smile, added, "You could say that my love for reading brought James and me together."

"His Grace has an interest in reading, too?"

"His Grace had a profound interest in my choice of reading material," Lily answered.

"What was it?" Sabrina asked.

"Secret codes, maps, and messages."

Sabrina felt confused. "I don't understand."

"I have been blessed with the ability to look only once at a page of writing and repeat what it says without changing a word," Lily told her. "During the recent conflict between our countries, I aided the American cause by memorizing British codes or giving detailed descriptions of supposed spies. James felt certain that this gift of mine had secured his brother's capture and death as a spy. He abducted me and dragged me to England to sit out the rest of the war. We fell in love and married."

"How wildly romantic and adventurous," Sabrina exclaimed. "Weren't you frightened?"

"I was angry," Lily answered. "And, as I recall, I wasn't feeling particularly romantic at the time. Adventures aren't as exciting as you might think."

"May I ask you a question?" Sabrina said, uncertain if she was doing the right thing by speaking up.

Lily nodded.

"This morning an old friend from Abingdon stopped by and told me that Adam has a mistress named Alexis Carstairs. Do you know her?"

"That doesn't sound like a friend to me," Lily said.

"You haven't answered my question," Sabrina said.

"Alexis Carstairs is the very beautiful and very wealthy widow of the late Earl of Rothbury, a man old enough to be her grandfather," Lily said, lowering her voice. "Shallow, arrogant, and conniving are the words I'd use to describe her. She's been angling after Adam since I've known him, even before her husband died."

"Is she ..." Sabrina hesitated for a moment but then continued, asking, "Is she really his mistress?"

The other woman's cheeks turned pink. "I don't know, but I could ask my husband if you wish."

"That won't be necessary," Sabrina said, shaking her head. "I apologize for making you uncomfortable."

Lily patted her hand. "Adam has as much integrity as my husband. I'm certain he's never succumbed to that woman's wiles."

Speaking so intimately about the marquess made Sabrina feel uncomfortable, but she thought the duchess might know something about Adam's background.

"The marquess has told me that he hails from the south of France," Sabrina said. "I know his father died when Adam was ten. It was then he came to England for his education. While he was here, his mother and his brother died."

"Yes, that's true," Lily said with a nod.

"Do you know anything else about him?" Sabrina asked.

Lily gave her a puzzled look and answered, "Why don't you ask Adam?"

"He evades almost all of my questions," Sabrina replied. "I've had the feeling that he's hiding something from me and thought that you—"

Lily burst out laughing. "I'm sorry, but you make him seem so nefarious. I'm positive the man is merely being perverse to annoy you. However, my husband knows absolutely everything about the marquess. I could ask him some questions for you, if you'd like."

Sabrina shook her head. "I'm afraid he'd tell Adam that I'd been prying. I'll probably learn more in time." Changing the subject, she said, "Tell me about America."

"America is almost paradise," Lily said.

Sabrina smiled. "You remain loyal to your native country."

"I hope you aren't overly patriotic," Lily said, "for I don't want my pet to offend you in any way when you come to visit."

"What kind of pet do you have?"

"An albino pig," Lily answered. "When he was a mere piglet, I saved him and his mother from becoming dinner on board my husband's ship."

"What does a pig have to do with patriotism?" Sabrina asked, puzzled.

"I named him Prinny in honor of the Prince Regent."

Sabrina burst out laughing, and Lily joined her. When Winston sat up and stole a piece of the almond cake off the table, they only laughed harder. Adam and Jamie found them like that when they walked into the drawing room a moment later.

"You know the dog cannot be trusted near food, Adam said to Sabrina.

"Let it go," Jamie said, obviously pleased that his wife had apparently found a friend. "Lily and I must be leaving."

Lily rose from the couch. "You will come to tea one afternoon?" she asked.

"I'd like that very much," Sabrina answered, rising from the couch when the other woman did. "Give Prinny my best regards."

As soon as the duke and duchess disappeared out the door, Adam turned to her and gave her a devastating smile. "I'm pleased that you and Lily like each other."

"She's not what I expected," Sabrina said.

His expression on her was warm. "And what did you expect?"

Sabrina thought of Alexis Carstairs. "I expected shallow, arrogant, and conniving."

"You will meet plenty of those types among the ton," Adam told her, and then changed the subject. "Have you begun your journal writing?"

"Yes, I was writing when Edgar arrived," Sabrina replied.

"Let's sit down and discuss what you've written," he suggested.

Sabrina followed Adam to the hearth. When Adam sat down on the couch, she sat in the chair opposite him. Lifting the journal off the table, she flipped through its pages to refresh her memory.

"I haven't progressed to the actual day," Sabrina said, looking up at him.
Oh, Lord
, she thought, realizing just how perfectly blue his eyes were.

Adam smiled as if he could read her thoughts. "Tell me what you've written," he said in a husky and intimate tone of voice.

"I began a week before my father's death," Sabrina began, tearing her gaze away from his. "That was the day Edgar asked for my father's permission to marry me if I'd have him."

Adam leaned back on the couch and stretched his left arm out across the top of it. His casual gesture caught her attention, and she wondered what life would be like married to the marquess and sitting together in front of the hearth each night.

"So, tell me what happened."

Sabrina gave herself a mental shake and focused on him. "As I said, Edgar asked for my hand in marriage, but my father refused."

"Were you there?" he asked.

Sabrina nodded.

"What was the baron's reaction to that?" Adam asked.

"He seemed surprised," Sabrina answered, gazing off into space, conjuring the scene in her mind's eye. "Edgar tried to reason with him by saying that our lands would be joined after his death, which would be a great inheritance to any son we produced. My father told him that I was never meant for him, which definitely made Edgar angry. He glanced in my direction and calmed down enough to apologize to my father for behaving badly."

"Did the baron visit you anytime after your father refused his suit?" Adam asked.

"Edgar visited me several times and insisted that my father would change his mind," Sabrina answered. "He would wait a week or two and then ask my father again."

"To your knowledge, did the baron ever threaten your father?"

"You cannot mean that Edgar had anything to do with my father's death."

"I am not implying any such thing," Adam assured her with a smile. "I merely want to know all of the facts."

Forbes and Higgins chose that moment to walk into the drawing room. Higgins served them a fresh pot of tea. Forbes carried a silver tray bearing cucumber sandwiches and slices of fruit pie.

Winston lifted his head in the air and sniffed. Aware that food had arrived, he sat up and stared at the contents of the tray.

"Lemon pie for my lady," Forbes said, passing her a dish. "And for my lord, hemlock pie."

Sabrina burst out laughing. Forbes winked at her.

"What is the joke?" Adam asked.

"It's a private matter," Sabrina said, setting her plate on the table.

"Very well, Princess. Keep your secrets," Adam said as the two majordomos left the room. "Winston, lie down."

The wolfhound refused to budge except to inch closer to the platter.

"The food is tormenting him," Sabrina said.

"Winston must learn not to touch food meant for people," Adam replied, and rose from the couch. Gently but firmly, he forced the wolfhound to lie down. Then he looked at Sabrina and asked, "My lady, may I have this dance?"

"What?"

"Dance with me while we train him," Adam said.

"I know how to waltz, but there's no music," Sabrina protested.

"Come, Princess," Adam said, holding out his hand to her. "Trust me."

Sabrina was unable to resist his devastating smile. Rising from the couch, she walked into his waiting arms as if she belonged there.

"Each time we dance past the table, I'll order Winston to lie down if he is standing," Adam told her. "That way he'll learn not to touch food even if no one is watching him."

Sabrina smiled as Adam began humming a waltz and leading her in a sweeping circle around the drawing room. He danced with the grace and ease of a man who had waltzed a thousand times.

"You waltz divinely," Sabrina complimented him.

"And so do you," Adam returned the compliment. "Who taught you how to dance?"

"Who taught you?" Sabrina countered.

"I asked first," he said.

"I asked second," she replied, echoing the coversation they'd had on their coach ride to Oxford.

"Eton required their students to learn social graces like dancing," Adam said with a smile. "Jamie Armstrong was my dancing partner."

Sabrina burst out laughing. "When Aunt Tess came to live with us after Mother died, she taught Courtney and me several dances," she told him. "Later on my father hired a dancing master to complete our dancing education."

"Were you and Courtney dancing partners?" he asked.

"No, Edgar partnered both of us," she answered.

Adam lost his smile. "I don't approve of your choice of partners."

"And I don't approve of yours," Sabrina countered with a jaunty smile.

Adam chuckled. "You needn't be jealous of my feelings for Jamie Armstrong."

"And you needn't be jealous of my feelings for Edgar Briggs," Sabrina said without thinking.

"My lady, you've set my mind at ease." Adam tightened his hold on her and whirled her to the far end of the drawing room.

The constant swirling motion combined with the man to intoxicate her senses. His piercing blue gaze mesmerized Sabrina. She was unable to resist when he stopped dancing and gently drew her into his embrace.

Adam inched his handsome face closer to capture her lips with his own. Enchanted with the man, Sabrina made no move to pull away. She closed her eyes at the very last moment.

Their lips touched, sending a jolt of delicious sensation coursing through her. His mouth felt warm and gently insistent.

Surrendering to his kiss, Sabrina sagged against his hard, unyielding body. His strong arms kept her imprisoned within his embrace, and she reveled in these new and exciting sensations.

And then the kiss was over as unexpectedly as it had begun. Sabrina opened her eyes and stared in a dreamy daze at him.