On A Cold Christmas Eve (6 page)

He raised an eyebrow imperiously.  "And your uncle?"

Another shrug and Adam was stuck again by how similar she was to Amelia.  The two of them would have been a force to be reckoned with had they come out together.  "Is not really my uncle, which I suspect a clever man of resources like you is already aware of.  He is a second cousin or something similar.  The title passed to him when my father died.  He would not much care if I lived or died, and he has made little secret of it within the 
ton
."  

Rising, she crossed to the window and looked out across the brown fields, the gray sky reflecting her mood.  "I had a limited debut Season, mostly because he feared I would expose my 'heathen ways,' to use his term and bring shame and scandal to him.  When it could no longer be avoided and the period of mourning had ended, there was a small gathering that served as my come-out. There was no ball or even a party, as that was deemed wasteful for someone like me, a woman with no prospects and unlikely to marry."

Turning back around, Lucy leaned against the window, arms crossed in front of her and in that moment, Adam had never seen a woman look more magnificent.  "The truth is, my lord, that I am probably not perfect in the social graces many women are expected to know.  I cannot embroider or paint, prefer to ride astride rather than at side, and do make the occasional social mistake.  So when my uncle deemed me unfit as a society wife, that label stuck.  Nothing in that regard has changed."

Approaching her again, Adam pressed close, close enough to make her uncomfortable so that she could feel the heat of his body seeping into hers.  In the last few moments, one thought, a singular thing had become clear in his mind - he wanted Lucy in his bed.  Badly.  And now that he had a plan of action, he would not stop until she was his.

In that moment, he wanted her off balance; he wanted her to tell him everything.  He wanted her to feel this same damn knot in the pit of her stomach that he had in his.  "So why did he accept my brother's offer if he deemed you unfit?"

"The money for my keep has run out," she informed him, not bothering to hide the nasty details and unwilling to look away in shame.  He would know everything soon enough if he didn't already.  "It was supposed to be enough to last until my fortieth year, provided I did not marry before then, but, as I am sure you can guess, very little of that money went to my care.  My uncle spent much of it, providing me a few basic gowns and not much else.  When he was desperate for money, he sold the family jewels, or at least those that were passed directly to me and not entailed to the estate."

"And if you marry?"  Adam needed to know.  He had to make certain before he made the offer.  He knew much of what she'd just told him, but to hear her say it drove home the point far more fully.

"If I marry, my husband receives my dowry, of course, as well as gains access to my fortune."  He would not want her around now, she was certain.  Her uncle would cause nothing but trouble when he discovered she hadn't married Archibald.  She didn't know what the earl had expected to gain from her marriage, but she was certain that there was something in it for him.  He never did anything without a reason or hope of financial gain.

Adam nodded, then backed away, giving Lucy room to breathe, knowing he needed some air as well before he did something foolish like ravish her right there against the bookshelves.  It was as his men had discovered.  However she didn't appear to know the rest of the story.  "And your uncle?" he asked, when he trusted himself to speak. "What does he receive?"

"Nothing as far as I know," Lucy replied, letting out a slow breath, thankful that Adam hadn't immediately demanded that she leave.  She was also glad that he had backed away, and yet sorry at the same time.  He had caused a delicious fluttering deep inside of her, one that she wanted to experience again if she could, though she knew that was unwise.  "He would be rid of me, which I know he desires.  Now that I have not married your brother, I would suspect that will anger him greatly, not to mention that the funds for my care are depleted, as I said."

Adam, by now back in control of his raging need, gestured for her to sit, so she did, accepting the second glass of brandy he offered her.  He wouldn't get her drunk but he did want her relaxed when he made his offer.  "Not nothing, Miss Cavendish," he informed her, and she gave him a quizzical look.

"Then what would he receive?  The money would belong to my husband and I."  She shook her head, her doubt clear.  "There is no provision for him in that part of the will."

He held out a piece of paper, which she took hesitantly.  After scanning it, she looked up at him, fear and distress evident in her eyes.  "This cannot be.  This letter...  My uncle and your brother in league with one another?  Where did you get this?"

"In some papers a Bow Street Runner who works for me uncovered."  Adam eased himself into the chair next to her, scooting it closer that was proper.  She never even noticed when he took her hand in his.  "Lucy," he began, testing the limits of what she would allow, at least for the moment.  For if she allowed that small liberty, she would, perhaps, be more open to his next suggestion, one that he very much wanted her to consider.

For her part, Lucy looked at Adam and blinked, though didn't reprimand him, so he felt free to continue.  "Had you married my brother, you would have been sold to a house in Covent Garden.  You know this already.  What you did not know, and I have only just come to learn, is that your uncle would have split your fortune with Archibald.  No one was to ever know the real truth of the matter, since my brother planned to claim he'd sent you off to Bedlam."  

Adam gently pulled the letter from Lucy's hand and placed it on the desk, before grasping her other hand in his.  "My brother is a destitute rake who gambles and drinks far too much.  He did this once before with another woman, and I stopped it.  I thought I had made certain this would never occur again, but I now believe my punishment of him was not enough.  Especially since this nefarious plan is even worse than his last."

"What happened before?"  Lucy wasn't certain she wanted to know, but knew she had to learn the truth.

"I found a husband for the young woman, as my brother had only bedded her and nothing more."  Adam closed his eyes for a moment before reopening them, the dark gaze now unreadable.  "That situation I was able to fix, but this time, it is not so simple."

Lucy swallowed hard, her earlier feeling of hope quickly disappearing.  If even a duke could not solve this problem, how would she ever hope to on her own?  "So I shall leave then.  I have no other choice."  She nodded in affirmation, not liking her decision but knowing that it was necessary.  She would never see this man again, but that, too, was also for the best.  He made her feel things, things she did not like, and if she were not careful, she would quickly become the whore her uncle had wanted her to become.  Given the way the duke was looking at her at the moment, she knew it was unavoidable, even as she was shocked by the realization.

"If you would be so kind as to tell me where the nearest coaching inn is, perhaps I can find a way to Bath.  I have distant relatives there, and..."  She was surprised when Adam put a finger to her lips to quiet her, a shot of awareness arcing between then.

"There is another paper.  One that I myself procured only last night."  He reached into his pocket and withdrew the special license he'd obtained while she slept, thankful that Overlook Hill was not as far outside of town as some of his other estates, and that the archbishop was a good friend.  "Archibald did mean to marry you, Lucy, and should he return, he could demand that you go away with him to Gretna Green.  The contract with your uncle would allow it, even though I would fight to prevent it."

"Then there is no hope?"  She dared not look at the paper in the duke's hand, uncertain as to whether or not she wanted to know what it said.

Shaking his head, Adam moved closer, and Lucy felt her breath hitch in her chest.  "There is always hope, Lucy.  Always.  And I did promise that I would keep you safe, protect you from both my brother and your uncle."

"How would you do this, my lord?" she asked, not quite understanding where he was going with this line of reasoning.  "There are contracts, as you said."  Her mind whirled.  She did not dare to hope that he might ask her the most important question a woman should ever hope to hear from a man.

Adam smiled then, the dark, ferocious smile that she'd seen a few times in the ballrooms of London.  "
I
 am the Duke of Enwright, after all.  You will be surprised to find that there is much I can accomplish when I am properly motivated."  Then he reached out and clasped her hands in his.  "I am also unmarried, and, as a duchess, you would have the full weight of my protection.  As my wife, you would be safe.  He could not harm you.  No one could, not even your uncle.  I have the special license and a chapel here on my property.  All you have to do is say yes."  Then he sat back and waited, knowing his words would hit her soon enough.

Swallowing hard, Lucy looked at him, her aqua eyes wide.  "Are you truly asking me, my lord?  Me?  Miss Lucy Cavendish, to marry you?"  In her wildest dreams, she had never once thought of this being the solution to her problem.  Mistress, yes, but wife?  Certainly not.

"Yes, Lucy."  Adam took a deep breath, ready to change his life forever because of his brother's idiocy and greed.  That he was becoming increasingly attracted to her was beside the point and it did not signify.  Honor and duty were paramount.  There would be consequences for what had transpired between Archibald and James, but this innocent woman would not be the one to bear them.  "I am asking you to be my wife.  So?  Will you?"  And then he waited, not at all certain of her answer.

Later that night as Lucy watched the modiste leave, she wondered if she'd made the right decision in accepting Adam's proposal.  It was, of course, the only decision she could have made, at least if she wanted to stay out of the London gutters.  Still, it was all happening so fast and she was in no way prepared to be a duchess.

She didn't even want to contemplate what being an actual wife would entail. With another man, she might have been able to handle the wifely duties expected of her, but with Adam?  She wasn't certain that she could conceal her growing attraction to him for very long.  If he found out, well, he'd made it clear he hadn't wanted a wife, ever, so she wasn't certain what he would do.

"Are you well?  I know this has been a difficult, and perhaps trying day for you," a gentle yet firm voice asked from the hallway, and Lucy turned to see Amelia, Adam's sister there.  

Lucy had ceased to think of Adam as just "the duke" at some point, though she wasn't quite certain when the change had occurred.  Earlier, when the modiste had been here for the fittings, Lucy had learned that Amelia and Adam were twins, not that she couldn't see the resemblance for herself.  And sisters, Lucy had long ago learned, were typically very protective of their brothers.  Perhaps she didn't approve of the match, though Lucy hoped that wasn't the case.

Nodding, Lucy rose from the dressing table in her new bedroom, not wanting to appear rude, though she was alarmed to find that she was shaking a bit, her hands quivering with a touch of fear.  She'd been moved to this room after accepting Adam's proposal, which, she'd quickly discovered came with many trappings, including a visit from the modiste, Madame Delphie, who was on a rare trip outside of London to visit a nearby estate.  It hadn't taken much to convince the seamstress to return to town by way of Overlook Hill, especially when such a lucrative contract was dangled before her.

After making the announcement of his impending nuptials to his staff, Adam had tucked himself away in his study, instructing Amelia and Elsie to being making preparations for the wedding the next day.  That had included Elsie modifying a few of Amelia's old gowns, one of which was the emerald confection that Lucy still wore from earlier in the day.

"This is all so new to me.  I am not certain that I am ready, even though I know that this is the best way," Lucy sighed as she ushered Amelia to a nearby chair and rang for some tea, deciding that honesty was the best course of action.  Dinner was not being served that night, and instead a light repast had been laid out in the formal dining room, as the estate's staff was busy trying to prepare for the rather rushed wedding, including a wedding breakfast.  Not that Lucy would have felt like eating much anyway.

As Amelia poured the tea that had arrived almost immediately, she looked pointedly at Lucy.  "Are you truly that frightened?  My brother is not an ogre, you know."  Then she sat back and waited for an answer.

"No, no," Lucy rushed to assure the other woman, not wanting to let on just how appealing she found Adam.  Lucy had thought the duke handsome when she'd barely glimpsed him back in London but to have the full weight of his gaze on her left her unnerved.  "That is not it at all.  It is merely that I never assumed I'd marry anyone, let alone marry a duke.  It is far above what I had ever dared to dream about."

Amelia seemed to consider that for a moment, before giving Lucy a soft smile, seemingly giving her approval of both Lucy's answer and the idea that she and Adam would be wed.  "I do understand, actually.  It is not so strange a concept to those of us who are of a certain age when we marry.  As I think you know, I was older and considerably on the shelf before I married.  So when Fitz offered for me, I was struck quite dumb actually."  Setting her teacup back down, she turned to face Lucy more directly, her gaze now somber.  "How much do you know of our family?"