Only Marriage Will Do (11 page)

“Under the circumstances, my dear, I believe we must abandon our plans to go to the Keep. You will return to London instead. You can stay at Dunham House until your aunt arrives, then either remove to her household or resume your journey north. I will offer my services as watchdog until she returns, although once your servants are alerted to the danger of St. Cyr, I have no doubt you will be perfectly safe from him.”

She gave him a hard stare that turned his blood to ice. “No.”

“No?” He blinked in surprise. Had she gone mad with grief? “Juliet, you must see reason. We can no longer travel together and definitely not as man and wife without a chaperone. We will be hard-pressed to return to London, which is only two days away, without the eruption of a major scandal.”

She must see the sense of this. To return was their only hope. Her brows gathered in a pucker he had come to recognize all too well.

“No, Amiable. I will not return to London until my brother does. On this point I am adamant.” Her stare didn’t waver. “Later this morning I will continue north. You, of course, are free to do as you wish.” She dropped her gaze to her lap. “I would relish your company and protection during the remainder of the journey, but if your conscience dictates it is not proper, then you must follow it.” She spoke in a calm tone, but under it he could hear the hurt, the anguish at being abandoned.

“Damnation.” He swore softly under his breath and rose, pacing again. By God, he would hate her by the end of this journey. Or love her. Stubborn did not begin to describe Lady Juliet Ferrers, but it did show the strength of her character. God help her husband. He chuckled. Most likely he’d just asked assistance for himself. He certainly could do worse than such a marriage. Whoa. He refused to go down that green leafy path at the moment. Best keep to the crisis at hand.

“Juliet, you know I will not leave you until you are in a safe haven.” He picked up the shirt that had fallen from the chair when she’d sat. “If that means another week on the road headed north, then to the north we go.” He stood in front of her and fixed her with the stare he reserved for the most recalcitrant recruits back in Virginia.

“Both of us. Although the rules of this engagement have changed, my lady. After our encounter last evening and now the removal of your chaperone, we will be even more circumspect in our behavior and appearance.”

She eyed him askance as she listened to his demands, and her face did not inspire confidence in him. Too passive, too timid, too smug. The smugness worried him most.

He continued to alter their arrangement in the only way that now made sense. “We will abandon the pretense of a married couple. Instead, we will now be traveling as brother and sister. A married sister, I believe. We can then observe the proprieties with separate rooms.” He held his breath, preparing for battle.

“I suppose that works as well as the other story.” She nodded and rose, acquiescing without a fuss.

He had expected her to put up a fight. Would she ever keep him guessing? There were worse faults in a wife. Why did he keep thinking that? Why did the thought of such a marriage bring on panic? It might be the simplest solution to all their problems.

They were good company together. She possessed a sharp wit and a delightful sense of humor, thank God. She was one of the most comely women of his acquaintance. Last night had shown they could make passion flame between them. And that crackling hot blaze had been kindled while they had been mostly clothed. What would happen if they were mostly unclothed? He needed to stay far away from those dangerous, seductive thoughts and concentrate on how to proceed.

“Very well, then,” he said, picking up the thread of the conversation. “If you will return to your room and pack your clothes we will leave as soon as possible.”

She smiled at him, a heartwarming curve to her lips. “I must confess, my dear, I have never packed a trunk in my life. It may take me some time to get everything just as it needs to be. Then we must have breakfast. I am simply starved after last night.”

Memories of Juliet across the dinner table in the candlelight, of their interlude on the sofa with her beautiful shoulders and breasts, her soft, sweet lips and wickedly tempting tongue assailed him so suddenly he took a step backward and bumped into the bed. His mouth dried but managed an answer. “I will have breakfast ordered for an hour from now, if that suits you? Afterward perhaps I can assist you with your trunk. I hope to be on the road no later than nine.”

Her wide smile crinkled her eyes. She was planning something. He’d lay a year’s pay on it. Pray God he had the fortitude to withstand her.

* * * *

Torches and lanterns dotted the walls around the inn yard at Coalville as the carriage came to a halt for the final time that day. From the shadows, hostlers appeared to take the exhausted horses into the stables. Amiable jumped down and extended his hand to help his charge descend. The yard sloped somewhat, causing the drop from the step to the ground to be more substantial than usual.

Juliet hesitated, glancing from the carriage step to him.

Amiable shook his head, grasped her about the waist, and pulled her toward him. He bit back a groan as her body pressed against his, then slid full length down him, setting every nerve afire.

Steady. This woman had tried to break his resolution all day. He damn well wouldn’t let her do so now. He took a deep breath and offered his arm. God, but he was surely a doomed man.

They had not left Towcester until the noon bell had rung, making it impossible to reach Coalville before dark. He had advocated stopping earlier, in Coventry where they changed horses and accepted a late luncheon.

Juliet, however, had been adamant about pressing on.

He had ridden a good part of the day, for the weather had been fair. Still, as the light faded into dusky pinks and mellow purples, he reluctantly joined her in the carriage. It would be folly to ride in the gathering darkness. Equal folly, of course, to ride inside with her, but then this whole affair had a stamp of inevitability on it.

He took little comfort from the fact that Roberts and George rode directly above them, though he smiled at the thought of calling on them for help in fending off Juliet. To her credit, she had barely glanced at him the entire time they sat opposite one other. Neither did she speak, other than to greet his entrance into the carriage.

Perhaps she brooded, worrying over Glynis. She might be praying for the girl. Was Juliet of a religious disposition? So much he did not know about her. If she continued in this downcast manner, tomorrow he would ride some of the day with her and engage her in conversation to take her mind off the maid. His knight once again summoned to rescue her damsel.

Amiable entered the bustling coaching inn, crowded this time of night with all manner of travelers, and shouldered his way through the boisterous throng in search of the proprietor. He spied the man on the far side of the taproom and led Juliet toward him.

“My sister and I require rooms for the night, sir.” A sudden bone-tired weariness assaulted him. The strain of the journey and the stress of his proximity to Juliet were taking their toll. He glanced at her.

She looked weary as well. She had coped with the same stresses and strains. Her anxiety about Glynis had likely drained her even further.

He smiled and squeezed her hand. “Not too much longer, my dear, and you can rest. Today has been a trial, I know.”

Her grateful nod was arrested by the innkeeper’s terse reply, “There’s ay but one room left, sir. You’ll have to make do with that I’m afraid.”

Amiable’s smile froze. Damn her. He swiveled his gaze to Juliet, who stared back at him innocently.

“I suppose then, brother, we will have to share.” Her brows were drawn down, but her eyes sparkled with a gleam of triumph.

Amiable remained silent until they were alone in their room, bags deposited and dinner ordered. Juliet crossed to the washstand, stripped off her gloves, and proceeded to remove the day’s grime from her hands and face. Waiting for the explosion.

“This is your fault, Juliet.”

She’d expected that accusation, but his outraged tone hurt just the same. “I know it is, Amiable. I am sorry.”

By the surprised look on his face, he seemed taken aback by her lack of denials and no offer of excuses. She had none to give. She had known if they stopped in Coventry most likely more than one room would be available. The gamble, however, that a late arrival in Coalville would leave only one room for their needs had been too good to resist. They would be expected to share a room, being brother and sister. The risk had paid off beautifully, though with the advent of Amiable’s sullen face, some of her joy dimmed.

“I suppose we can make do for the night.” He looked askance at the double bed. “I will request a mattress for the floor since there is no trundle bed.” Despite his practical tone, he frowned ominously.

“That sounds very sensible. There is no reason why we cannot sleep in the same room as long as we sleep apart.” She managed to make her voice matter-of-fact even though that scenario was the last thing she wanted. If he insisted on acting so outraged, however, perhaps she did not want him in her bed. It seemed a remote possibility in any case.

They ate dinner in silence, apparently having no appetite for conversation. To judge by their plates, neither did they have much desire for food either.

Once the dishes had been cleared and the pallet made up, Juliet opened her traveling chest and withdrew night rail, comb and brush, and various other necessary articles. She looked around the room and bit her bottom lip. The plain screen that concealed the chamber pot did so with little room to spare. If she tried to undress behind it, more than likely it would topple over, revealing more than she intended. Nothing else in the room could shield her from his gaze.

Only one option. Trying for subtlety, she cleared her throat to catch his attention. If he saw her with her night things, perhaps, he would take the initiative. Unlikely, though, for Amiable sat in the room’s one good chair, his gaze fixed on the fireplace.

Should she speak to him or simply undress? If she removed so much as her fichu, the man would probably flee the room and not return. For once perhaps caution would serve her best.

“Amiable? I would like to retire now. Would you mind leaving the room so I can get ready for bed?”

He shot up out of the chair.

“Of course.” One look at the jumble of items in her hands and he shifted from foot to foot. He cleared his throat and turned for the door. “I will return shortly.”

Juliet sighed in relief, put her bundle down on the bed, and untied the bow at the top of her stomacher. The laces had better not be knotted in the back or… “Oh.” She spun around. “Wait.” Dear God. Given their present circumstances, she hated to ask but had no choice. “Can you unlace my corset? I cannot do it by myself.”

He stopped dead, his hand on the latch. He turned, his mouth stern and his shoulders stiff. However, he nodded curtly and averted his eyes.

As she tugged on the bodice laces, loosening it enough so he could get at the corset strings in the back, she struggled to find something to say. Something to make the situation somehow all right. To put them back on easy terms with each other. Impossible, though, when every subject seemed taboo. She couldn’t even ask where he was going to wait for her to change, fearful he would not return at all. He might spend the night in the stable just to preserve the proprieties.

When the garment sagged, she drew it off and backed toward him. “I’m ready now.”

He stepped up behind her, his raspy breath loud in her ear. His fingers brushed against her skin, sending a shiver through her body. The corset loosened and still he spoke no word, his censure shouted by his silence. A silence broken only with the click of the door as it closed behind him.

She hung her head, her teeth tugging at her bottom lip.

Perhaps she had made a mistake. A tactical error. By forcing Amiable to share this room, she had stripped him of all choice in the matter.

She drew off her gown and underpinnings one by one, contemplating her actions during their past three days together. Altogether, a humiliating experience. She’d pursued him with the tenacity of a terrier after a fox. Stockings off, night rail on.

Had he ever made overtures toward her?

By the time she sat brushing her hair its customary one hundred strokes, she forced herself to concede that except for that blistering interlude on the sofa last evening, this had indeed been a one-sided affair. She had pursued the man unashamedly, even knowing of his reluctance. She had used her knowledge of his protective instincts to force him into this escort, although she had to admit he had followed her from London of his own free will. Nevertheless, she had done everything else in her power to seduce him and he’d refused—with that one exception—to be seduced. Could she not take “no” for an answer?

Utterly shameful behavior. In effect, she’d jeopardized his honor as a gentleman. After tonight, he would have to offer her marriage, as behavior expected of an honorable man who had compromised a lady. She had expected he would have offered it after last night’s escapade except neither of them had been thinking clearly.

She paused on stroke fifty-eight.

Did she want him to ask out of duty and honor alone? Even if he had no true feelings for her other than simple lust?

Juliet resumed her brushing, examining her heart as it beat much faster than normal. She yearned for this man with an inexplicable passion, but was that enough to marry him if he did not want her? Would she find happiness with him if affection lay on her side alone?

A sudden image sprang to mind of the early days of her brother’s marriage. Neither Duncan nor Kat had ever said a word about the circumstances surrounding their marriage, but the time immediately after their wedding had been one of great stress and unhappiness for Katarina. She had avoided Duncan for days, only seeing him at meals or when a society function required them to attend as a couple. Her brother had been miserable each time she rebuffed him. Their trip to Italy had been a final, desperate attempt on Duncan’s part to win Katarina’s regard. Juliet prayed nightly for its success, for the anguish that stared out from her brother’s eyes smote her heart.