Notorious Deception (7 page)

“What did you discover?” Diana asked, coming directly to the point. She had learned, during her brief acquaintance with the earl, he would not have brought this meeting up unless it was somehow significant.

“Shortly after your father's estate was settled, a letter requesting the transfer of all business papers pertaining to the estate was received by Mr. Bartlett.”

“Who sent this letter?”

“Apparently, you did.”

Diana frowned up at the earl, waiting for an accusation of some kind. When it was not forthcoming, she asked, “Did you, by any chance, happen to see this letter?”

“I did.”

“Well,” Diana said, a hint of sarcasm in her tone,

“pray don't keep me in suspense any longer, my lord. Did I send the letter?”

“I think not,” he replied strongly. “The new solicitor, to whom the documents were to be sent, was Mr. Jonathan Marlow. Mr. Marlow, according to Mr. Bartlett, is a man of somewhat dubious reputation among those members of the legal profession.”

“Why do you believe I did not send this letter?” Diana asked, pleased but puzzled by the earl's lack of suspicion. “Was my middle name again incorrect on the signature?”

“No,” Derek replied. “Only a middle initial was used, and the signature naturally resembles your own. Since you have previously stated you have no knowledge of Mr. Marlow, I am inclined to believe this letter is another forgery.”

The earl reached up to grab a leaf off a tree, and as they walked past, he absently tore at it. “When Mr. Bartlett received the letter he reluctantly complied with the request and dutifully sent the papers on to Jonathan Marlow. As a precautionary measure, however, Mr. Bartlett kept in his possession a copy of those documents he thought were most significant. He still has, among other things, a copy of your father's will and a copy of your marriage contract.”

Diana heaved a sigh. “So you now finally believe I was married to Giles?”

“Yes,” the earl answered, without hesitation. “The marriage contract in Mr. Bartlett's possession exactly matches the copy you presented to me when you first arrived. Although the contract is not conclusive evidence the union actually took place, the intent was clearly there. I can think of no reason to doubt your story.”

“What happens now?” Diana ceased walking and faced the earl directly.

He looked down at her. “I made some very discreet inquires about your situation to James Bartlett. The next step is to produce your marriage lines. If the document predates Giles's wedding to Henriette, which you have already stated it does, Mr. Bartlett can file a petition on your behalf.”

Diana frowned. “For what?”

“So Giles's marriage to Henriette can be declared invalid and you may be recognized as his legal widow.”

She looked at him, totally confused. “Why on earth would I want to do that?”

The earl raised an eyebrow. “Was that not your original intention?”

“Good Lord, no,” she said, her eyes wide. “What have I done to leave you with that ludicrous impression?”

The earl took a deep breath. “Will you then please explain to me, madam,” he said with annoyance, “precisely why I have spent the past two days mucking about this city, making all sorts of inquiries, following numerous dead ends, if not to have your claim as Giles's widow proven and announced to the world?”

Diana was astonished by his remarks. No wonder he usually scowled at her, she thought, if he truly believed she sought recognition as the Dowager Countess of Harrowby.

“I never asked you to intervene on my behalf, my lord,” she proclaimed with emotion. “That, if I am not mistaken, was your own idea. I have never felt obligated to prove to anyone, yourself included, my true identity. I have merely been defending myself against your accusations for the past two days.” She raised her chin and continued speaking. “I came to London to settle my late husband's affairs and reclaim the property my father bequeathed to me. In light of the shocking discovery I have made since my arrival in London, I think it is best for all concerned if the notion of being declared Giles's legal widow be forgotten. That was never my original intention anyway.”

“Are you sure?” the earl asked, running his hand through his hair. “If you abandon this now, you will also be relinquishing any claim to the dowager countess's property and the widow's portion.”

“I don't want it,” Diana stated emphatically. “If I press the matter legally, I shall be subjecting innocent people, not to mention myself, to a very public and probably humiliating trial. What of Henriette and young Rosalind? Shall I fight to have an innocent child proclaimed a bastard just so I may use the title dowager countess? Surely you do not think I am so vain and selfish?”

She turned and began walking back to the phaeton before the earl could utter a response. He followed quickly after her, reaching her side in three great strides.

“I am sorry, Diana,” he said softly. “I have judged you most unfairly.”

The earl's apology soothed her growing resentment. “It's all right,” she said wearily. “I know this entire incident has not been easy for you either.”

“No, it has not,” the earl replied as they reached the phaeton. He gazed off in the distance. “What do you intend to do now?”

Diana shrugged her shoulders. “Return to Cornwall, I suppose. I still own Snowshill Manor, and I have a small amount of capital invested locally that provides me with a modest income. It will be sufficient until I can gain control of the properties my father left me.” She gave a hollow laugh. “I don't believe even Giles could have sold all of them.”

“Will you allow me to assist you with the investigation of the deeds of ownership for the remaining properties?”

“There really is no need for you to trouble yourself, my lord,” Diana said quietly.

“If you prefer I not involve myself, naturally I will comply, madam,” the earl said in a stiff voice.

He turned to walk away, but Diana detected the note of hurt in his voice, and she reached out to stop him. He looked down at her hand holding his coat lapel and then back up at her face. Her hand grasped the fabric.

“You misunderstand my meaning, my lord,” Diana said gently. “It is simply that I have no wish to further inconvenience you. Since you have been generous to offer your assistance, however, I shall be most grateful for it.”

Derek felt his throat go dry as he tried to formulate a reply to her gracious response. Diana stood so close to him, merely gazing at him, and her gentle touch made him feel warm, even through the layers of clothing. Transfixed by her gentle brown eyes, he slowly brought his gloveless hand over to brush against her cheek. Her skin was soft, smooth, and flawless, and it felt velvety to his touch.

Diana looked up at the earl's blue eyes twinkling down at her, and her breathing suddenly became very shallow. Her cheek felt warm where he caressed it, and she had the strangest feeling that he meant to kiss her. She licked her lips nervously, her pulse racing at the thought of their lips touching.

Derek succumbed to his desire and leaned down toward Diana, his lips gently caressing her mouth. He thought to give her only one chaste kiss, but as he touched her soft lips, he discovered he wanted more from her. He increased the pressure of his lips, his mouth opening slightly so his tongue could explore her sweetness.

Diana recoiled in astonishment at the first touch of his tongue. The earl was not deterred, and he deepened the kiss. Relaxing her guard, Diana allowed herself to truly experience the kiss—to enjoy the unique feel of him, the exotic taste of him, the hard strength of him. His kiss sent a wave of heat coursing through her body, and she heard herself moan with pleasure. Swept up in the moment, she clung to him with both hands, meeting his kisses with increasing ardor.

Suddenly, without warning, Diana felt herself being hurled toward the ground. The earl hugged her tightly against his chest when they rolled on the grass, his muscular body cushioning hers as they fell. Diana felt the breath rush from her lungs when they hit the ground, but the earl's solid body took most of the impact from the fall, and she was miraculously uninjured. When Diana finally regained her breath, she was horrified to discover the earl flat on his back, with her indecently sprawled atop him.

Fear clutched Diana's heart at the earl's very unexpected move and she tried to disengage herself from his strong embrace. He would not allow it, and she began to panic when she realized her legs were straddling the earl's hips. She could feel the rigid proof of his desire through her gown, and her fear intensified. Would he attack her now? Had her wanton response to his kisses given him the mistaken impression she would allow him to take liberties with her?

She struggled again to straighten herself upright, giving a shriek of alarm when the earl grabbed her forcefully by the hips and pulled her back against his hard flesh.

“For God's sake, keep still, woman,” he hissed in her ear. “Someone has just fired a shot at us and may very well be taking aim to fire another!”

“Are you injured?” Diana whispered, her voice breaking the eerie silence.

“No,” the earl answered with a grimace as he struggled to shift his position. Diana tried awkwardly to wiggle off him, but he still held her tightly by the hips and her knee became wedged between his upper thighs.

He let out a groan, and Diana immediately ceased her movement. “Did I hurt you?”

“Will you kindly remain still, madam, before you succeed in causing me a most indelicate injury,” he said through gritted teeth.

Diana flushed furiously when she caught the meaning of his words, and she stretched her offending leg out. She held her tongue for a few minutes, trying not to dwell on their acutely embarrassing position. She could feel every inch of the earl's hard body pressing intimately against her, his strong arms, his broad chest, his powerful thighs. As she tried to focus her thoughts on something else, anything else, besides the man pinned beneath her, Diana wondered if there had even been a pistol shot. She certainly had not heard anything. Of course, her senses had been focused rather intently on the earl's lips at the time.

“May I please get up now?” she whispered, her embarrassment mounting as she recalled her wanton response to his kisses.

“No,” Derek stated forcefully. He took a deep breath, tightened his arms around her shoulders in a viselike grip, and rolled her on to her back. As they turned, he kept his body indecently close to hers in order to protect her.

Diana's embarrassment knew no bounds as the earl flattened his body against hers. It had been bad enough when she had been draped over him, but now he lay intimately on top of her. She shut her eyes in pure mortification and was about to deliver a scathing retort when she heard the noise of a powder blast and the zipping sound of a bullet. She turned her head instinctively toward the sound, trying to rise, but the earl shoved her back down.

Diana groaned as her head hit the grass, but she said nothing. She lay motionless, and after a few minutes of heart-stopping quiet, Derek cautiously rose to his knees. He searched the small cluster of trees where the shots had come from, but could see no movement. He squinted hard, looking for the telltale glint of sunlight on metal that would alert him to the location of someone holding a weapon.

Finally deciding whoever had shot at them was no longer in the area, Derek turned his attention to Diana. She was sprawled on her back beneath him, her wide eyes riveted to his face. Her bonnet had been knocked off, and wisps of golden hair fell artfully about her face. He saw a faint bruise on her throat just below her jawline, and he had a most perverse desire to kiss it with his lips and caress it with his tongue. Her left hand was unconsciously curled across his thigh, and his flesh was pulsing at her innocent touch. He cleared his throat loudly and turned his head away, not wanting her to see the unbridled lust in his eyes.

God's blood, he cursed silently to himself. They had just been shot at by an unknown assailant who at that very moment could still be lurking about waiting for a second chance, and all he could think about was how much he wanted to kiss Diana again.

“Is it safe now?” Diana asked timidly.

“I believe it is safe now, madam,” Derek stated gruffly, rising to his feet. He reached down to lift Diana up, but kept his face averted, his eyes still scanning the area from which the bullets were fired.

Although Derek felt confident the immediate danger was past, he instinctively knew they would not be completely free of attack until they had escaped the park. He glanced quickly over at Diana as they walked to the carriage, trying to gage her condition. She was obviously badly shaken, but she retained her composure with surprising dignity. Thank God for that. The very last thing he needed in this situation was an hysterical female.

“I'm going to jump up into the carriage first,” Derek said as he untied the horses and held tightly to the reins. “If I give you an arm up, do you think you can swing up next to me?”

Diana regarded him with huge eyes, and giving him a wan smile, she nodded.

“Good,” he said succinctly. He was overwhelmingly glad she did not question his rather strange request. Valuable time would be wasted if he had to explain that, by entering the vehicle first, he would be deliberately making himself a target in case the attacker was still watching them.

He placed his hand on the side of the carriage and jumped into the phaeton. His eyes were moving constantly, alert to any possible danger.

“Ready?” the earl asked.

He held the carriage reins securely in his left hand, and without waiting for her to respond, he reached down with his right hand and hoisted her into the carriage. Despite her fear of heights and falling, it had been easier than she thought. All she had to do was hold on to his arm while he lifted her into the phaeton. He flicked the reins, and they took off at a rapid pace. Diana nearly fell off her seat, but with the earl's assistance, she straightened herself up and held on tightly. He did not slow the carriage until they were in the middle of traffic on Regent's Street.

Diana tried several times to begin a conversation, but she found her voice would not cooperate. Nervously she fussed with her hair, trying to pin back the loose strands falling forward onto her face. She felt the breeze on her head as the carriage drove down the street and realized her bonnet was missing. It was probably still lying in the grass back at the park, she decided, shivering with relief that she too was not back at the park on the ground.

The carriage came to a halt in front of Tristan and Caroline's home, and Diana at last found her voice. “Do you have any sort of explanation for what has just occurred, my lord?”

Derek turned to her slowly, giving her a devilish grin. “It appears, madam,” he said in a voice laden with relief, “that in a public park, in the middle of the afternoon, someone, in an attempt to wound or perhaps even kill us, fired two pistol shots.” His grin widened. “The question remains, however, as to which one of us was the intended target.”

 

“Damn it! How I wish I had been there!” Tristan repeated for the third time.

Derek, Diana, Caroline, and Tristan were gathered in Tristan's private study. Diana and Derek were seated in matching leather wing-back chairs in front of Tristan's massive oak desk, while Caroline sat a bit off to the side in a smaller chair. Tristan paced energetically in front of them.

Caroline rolled her eyes at her husband's remarks. “Yes, we all have heard how very disappointed you are, Tris. I am sure the next time Diana and Derek endeavor to get shot at they will be sure to include you in the party.”

Tristan gave his wife a quelling look, but she did not wither under his intense gaze. Giving her a broad smile, he turned back to Derek.

“Are you sure you didn't see anything?” Tristan inquired,.

“Nothing, Tris,” Derek informed his friend absently. Derek's attention was distracted from the conversation as his eyes wandered repeatedly to Diana. She sat stiffly in her chair, her untouched glass of brandy clutched tightly in her hands. Her face was nearly void of color, and she had been uncharacteristically silent since they had entered the study. He reached out, gently touching her arm.

“Would you like to go upstairs and rest?” he asked in a soft voice.

Diana looked up at him, her eyes wide and frightened. “I prefer not to be alone now.”

It didn't make sense to her, but now that the immediate danger had past, she could not stop her heart from racing nor her palms from sweating. She felt afraid and vulnerable, realizing how close they had come to being seriously injured. The earl had protected her life, and she needed the physical reassurance of his strong, masculine presence to fight the terror threatening to engulf her.

Diana saw the genuine concern in the earl's eyes and nearly lost her fragile composure. She looked away and unwittingly took a large sip from the glass she held. She immediately began coughing and sputtering as the fiery liquid burned all the way down to her stomach.

Tristan, standing next to Diana, reached over and patted her soundly on the back. “Packs a bit of a punch, doesn't it, Diana?”

She merely nodded and continued coughing, her eyes watering. When she finally regained her composure, the earl flashed her a sympathetic grin. “Try taking very small sips,” he advised.

She would have preferred to have thrown the rest of the liquor into the potted plant in the corner of the room, but all eyes were upon her. She took a cautious sip, somehow managing to swallow the rest without coughing. She placed the empty glass on the edge of Tristan's desk, quivering slightly from the alcohol and her vivid memories of the afternoon.

“What is to be done now, Derek,?” Caroline asked. “Shall the authorities be summoned so this incident can be investigated?”

Tristan and Derek exchanged knowing glances. “I don't think it is necessary to inform the authorities at this time,” Derek responded. “After all, we have no conclusive evidence to give them. Neither Diana nor I saw anyone.”

“What will you do?” Diana asked quietly, knowing the earl would not simply drop the matter.

“I will allow Tristan to help me, of course,” he answered with a smile as he stood up. “He is obviously very eager to get involved. Aren't you, Tris?”

“I shall organize a select group of men to begin making inquiries at once,” Tristan promised. “And now I do believe, Diana, it would be best if you went upstairs and rested a while.”

“Yes, of course,” Diana agreed, feeling more tired than ever before. Caroline quickly stood up also, her intentions to accompany Diana upstairs clear to everyone.

“No, Caroline,” the earl insisted in a deep voice. “I'll go with her.”

Caroline raised her eyebrows in surprise, but made no comment.

The earl placed a comforting arm around Diana's shoulders and led her out of the study.

They had already begun climbing the center hall staircase before Diana realized how heavily she was leaning on the earl, and she tried to pull away. He tightened his grip and began lightly stroking her back, hoping to soothe her. When they reached her bedchamber, he turned the brass door latch and entered the room first, pulling her in by the hand. He left her in the center of the room and casually strolled about, his eyes scanning every inch of the beautifully appointed chamber.

“Is there anyone under the bed?” Diana quipped, trying to rid herself of the rising panic she felt knowing she would soon be alone.

Derek grinned and walked over to her. He stood for a few seconds directly in front of her, his rich, blue eyes boring into her. She gave a small, nearly inaudible cry and stumbled toward him.

His arms wrapped around her, offering her the comfort and security she so desperately sought. “You are safe, Diana. You are safe,” he whispered gently over and over again into her ear, until she gradually felt calmness begin to replace her fear.

Diana swallowed convulsively, determined to keep herself from bursting into sobs. She lifted her face. “You must think I am the greatest fool,” she whispered.

“Don't say that, Diana. I've seen men on the battlefield act with far less courage and intelligence than you have shown today.”

Derek gazed down into her haunted eyes, feeling the control he was exerting on himself slip. He gave into his passionate need and leaned his head forward to claim Diana's lips, which he had ached to do since they had first arrived safely back at the house.

Diana responded to his kiss instantly, her arms reaching up to encircle his neck and press herself even closer to him. His lips moved against hers, teasing them open. His tongue slipped boldly into her sweet mouth, thrusting forward and then withdrawing. She met his probing tongue with her own.

Derek groaned aloud at her uninhibited, passionate response. He kissed her deeply again and again. His hands slid down her back and arms, caressing her, encouraging her to give into the fiery tremors of desire threatening to claim them. His lips traveled down to the base of her throat, kissing, nibbling, and biting at her neck. His hand moved lower, gently caressing her breasts. He could feel the furious pounding of her heart beneath his palm.

Derek reached up and pulled the pins from her hair, letting it fall to her hips in a golden wave. He buried his head in its rich softness, breathing in the sweet, clean scent of lavender. His senses were aflame. His chest was tight, his breathing labored, and his manhood heavy and stiff.

All he could focus on was the beautiful, passionate woman he held in his arms and the desperate ache of desire he felt for her. He wanted to see her lying naked on the bed, covered by nothing but her glorious tresses. He yearned to see and kiss every inch of Diana's exquisite body, to taste her flawless skin, to feast on her nipples. He wanted to feel her naked flesh moving against his own burning skin. He longed to hear her cry out in ecstasy as he thrust deep within her, taking them both higher and higher until everything exploded in the ultimate fulfillment. Derek wanted her with a fierce intensity he found almost frightening.

Greedily his fingers unfastened the buttons down the front of her gown, opening it to her waist. And then his mouth was on her nipples, and he was biting her gently through the soft fabric of her chemise, almost as if she were naked.

Diana responded mindlessly, arching her back and moaning deep in her throat. She had never imagined anything like this. She heard her own heartbeat pounding loudly in her ears, drowning out every bit of modesty, every bit of reason. All she could do was feel and experience the wondrous things the earl was doing to her. His lips traveled once more up to hers and he kissed her again, his tongue lightly exploring her mouth.