Regency: Rakes & Reputations (Mills & Boon M&B) (34 page)

Against his better judgement, he let his eyes drift over to where Sophie now stood at the water’s edge. Having leaned forward to toss a handful of crumbs towards the flock of ducks now heading swiftly in her direction, she had let out a loud peal of laughter and was clapping her hands in delight as the comical antics of the noisy jostling birds captured the whole of her attention.

At the sight of her laughing face Marcus felt his stomach give a violent lurch, and it was all he could do to stop from hurling himself across the grass and dragging her into his arms. His entire body ached to feel the soft roundness of her curves pressed against him and to taste the incredible sweetness of her lips again.
God, but it’s going to be difficult to give her up!
He groaned inwardly, steeling himself to descend the pavilion steps and walk towards the water’s edge with a modicum of dignified composure.

‘Watch out for the swans,’ he advised, as he approached. ‘They are apt to go for the hand, if one isn’t careful.’

‘Oh, what a pity!’ she said, turning her attention to the far side of the lake, from which she could see two majestic-looking swans making a graceful approach. ‘I didn’t think that they would come while there were so many ducks squabbling for my offerings and now it has all gone!’

Rising to her feet, she shook the final few crumbs into the water, setting off another clamour, as the flapping, squawking waterfowl jostled one another witlessly in their frenzied attempts to get at the offerings.

‘There’s plenty more back there,’ offered Marcus with a light laugh, jerking his head towards the plates full of untouched delicacies still sitting on the table in the
pavilion. ‘Enough to satisfy even the most voracious of their appetites, I should think.’

‘Thank you, but I fear that I really ought to be thinking of leaving now,’ returned Sophie, casting a last regretful look at the swans, now drifting in aimless circles in search of long-gone provender. ‘Mrs Crayford distinctly said “afternoon drive”, as I recall, and it must be getting close to five o’clock by now, I should think.’

‘A quarter to,’ supplied the Viscount, after pulling out his watch and flipping open its lid to check the hour. ‘I’ll have the carriage brought round.’

Probably for the best
, he told himself sternly as Sophie gave a swift nod and turned to make her way back to the house.
I’ll just have to accept the fact that she means what she says and let her go to get on with her own life.

‘I trust that you’ve had no further attacks on your person since our last meeting?’ he then added, as if by afterthought.

‘No, of course not,’ she replied, with a vehement shake of her head. ‘I should have mentioned it had I done so. Apart from having to clear up my room after all the mess that my dear pupil caused, my life has gone on much as usual.’

‘Your pupil ransacked your room?’ Marcus bit back his anger. ‘When did this happen?’

‘I discovered it upon my return yesterday afternoon,’ she said in reply. ‘I must confess that I found it a trifle dispiriting at the time.’

Hardly surprising,
reflected the Viscount, with a wry grimace.
Coming on top of my boorish behaviour as it did! The perfect ending to a perfect day!

‘Does the boy make a habit of that sort of thing?’ he asked.

‘Not as such.’ She sighed. ‘He did set a host of frogs free in my room shortly after I arrived, and is inclined to be somewhat insolent at times, but he has never before gone to such a spiteful extreme.’

‘You administered a suitable punishment, I imagine?’

‘No, I refuse to give him the gratification of thinking that it bothered me. I have learned that, in Henry’s case, at least, children are apt not to repeat things that fail to have the effect they had hoped for. He won’t do it again.’

‘You’re quite certain that the lad was the culprit, I suppose?’

Faced with this latest piece of information, Marcus was seriously beginning to doubt that Sophie’s errant pupil had been to blame for the ransacking of her room. Since the unwitting governess had already been the unfortunate victim of two-bag snatches in a matter of hours, it was hardly a long shot for him to infer that the retrieval of the misdirected cipher had been the real purpose for each of these robberies. If so, and rather more to the point as far as Marcus was concerned, it was not difficult to deduce that the ransacking of her room could be laid squarely at the feet of whoever had been responsible for the bag snatching. A cold trickle of unease ran through him as it then became clear that what he had vaguely suspected all along was no longer open to any doubt.
One or other member of the Crayford household was behind all three attacks!
And, much as the Viscount would have taken great pleasure in being the one to apprehend the craven individual and teach him a much needed lesson in civility, he had sufficient
sense to appreciate that such things were best left in the more competent hands of Giles and his team of experts. He could only thank God that Sophie no longer had the damned invoice in her possession!

A slight furrow appeared on Sophie’s brow as she pondered his question.

‘Reasonably so,’ she replied cautiously. ‘I admit that I did, at first, suspect Arthur Crayford, but, having seen him leave the house just before I myself left, I was obliged to discount him. Apart from which,’ she added, her tone more scathing, ‘I cannot imagine him going to so much trouble for so little return—his methods are far more confrontational.’

Not any more, they aren’t,
reflected Marcus with a certain amount of satisfaction. But then, bearing in mind his brother’s remarks regarding the sometimes dual personalities of hardened criminals, he realised that it might be unwise to dismiss the coxcomb entirely.

‘You always keep your bedroom door locked, I imagine?’ he then asked, as they were about to re-enter the house. ‘An open door is often regarded as an open invitation, in certain quarters.’

Giving him a reassuring smile, Sophie replied, ‘I hadn’t always done so—except at night, of course. But I shall be sure to do so from now on.’

‘Very wise,’ agreed the Viscount somewhat inattentively, since his mind had instantly latched on to Sophie’s veiled reference to the nightly locking of her door.
That evil toad Crayford at his tricks again
, he supposed, harnessing his fury at the thought of Sophie having been obliged to endure such iniquitous harassment. Hopefully, yesterday’s warning should have put a stop to the noxious little swine’s activities, but, if not, Marcus was in no doubt that he would soon find a way
of dissuading the young wretch in some other, possibly less gentlemanly fashion.

Not that Sophie’s future well-being was really any concern of his, he was at pains to remind himself. Now that she had made her intentions clear, it merely remained for him to see her safely home, put in a cursory appearance at the Crayford soiree and simply put the whole sorry business out of his mind as though none of it had ever happened.

If only life were that simple …

A
n open curricle, as Mrs Bellamy had been swift to point out upon their departure, was not, perhaps, an ideal mode of transport for what was to be a somewhat chillier journey back to Town, but to Sophie’s undisguised delight Helstone had already thought to cater for such an eventuality. Having equipped himself with one of the soft woollen rugs that were draped over the backs of the sofas in the cottage’s parlour, he had tucked it behind his driving seat, in the event of an emergency.

At the first sign of Sophie’s shivering, he swung his equipage over to the side of the road and, pulling out the rug, draped it neatly about her shoulders saying, with a somewhat wry smile, ‘Since you insist upon denying me the pleasure of lavishing you with furs, at least allow me the privilege of ensuring your comfort for the duration of this trip.’

Snuggling blissfully into the cosy warmth, Sophie gave a contented sigh. ‘You are very kind, my lord, and I really must thank you for a most enjoyable afternoon.’
Pausing, she then cast him an uneasy glance before continuing. ‘I’m truly sorry that we failed to see eye to eye over—um—a certain matter, but I feel sure that, once you have had a chance to review the situation, you will agree that it is really for the best that we do not continue to see each other.’

Whilst it cost her a great deal to make this pronouncement, Sophie was convinced that it was the right and proper thing to do. She already had an inkling that the Viscount had accepted the fact that she was never going to agree to become his mistress, and, that being so, there could be no further need for him to remain in touch with her. She would go her way and he, no doubt, would continue to go his. He would never know the true extent of her feelings for him and she would have to learn to live with the knowledge of what she might have had, had she been a little more courageous or even a little less prideful, perhaps!

‘That might prove a little difficult,’ replied Marcus, in response to her ultimatum. ‘I have already accepted an invitation to attend this function that the Crayfords are holding on Tuesday evening. I feel that it would be rather discourteous of me to default at this stage.’ Not that he really gave a tinker’s cuss as to what the Crayfords might think or feel about his failure to attend their pathetic little soiree, but, even though his carefully laid plans had failed to tempt Sophie away from her chosen path of virtue, the Viscount still had every intention of finding some way of persuading her employers to treat their governess with a little more respect than hitherto.

Unable to think up an adequate reason as to why Helstone should not fulfil his commitment, Sophie remained silent, although her thoughts were chaotic. The Viscount’s having agreed to put in an appearance
at the Crayfords’ rout would mean that she too would be obliged to attend the hastily arranged function, occasioning even more time in his company—a situation that she was desperately keen to avoid, well aware that every minute spent in such close proximity with him took her yet another step closer to her eventual undoing.

As the carriage swung sharply around a bend in the road, she could feel the warmth of Helstone’s disturbingly muscular thigh pressing hard against hers, causing a hot spiral of longing to course throughout her entire body. Desperately trying to edge herself away from his enticing nearness, Sophie racked her brains for some topic of conversation that might help take her mind off the all too alluring images that her thoughts were presently conjuring up.

‘You don’t happen to know what your brother did with my bill of sale, I suppose?’ she asked.

‘He used it to help him solve some puzzle or other,’ replied Marcus off-handedly, achingly aware of her presence next to him. Sophie’s vain attempts to put more space between them had not passed him by, but had merely served to underline what he could only suppose was her growing antipathy towards him. Despite this rather dispiriting conclusion, however, he still had every intention of carrying out the task he had set himself. By the time he had finished with the Crayfords, he vowed, they would be blessing the day that Sophie had chosen to cross their threshold. With a surfeit of friends and acquaintances who owed him enough favours to serve his purpose, he intended to call in those favours by way of obliging several highborn members of the
Ton
to show their faces at some of the ghastly-sounding functions that the socially inept Mrs Crayford had spoken of in their earlier conversation. That should ensure that
her indomitable governess slept safe in her bed at nights, if nothing else, he thought to himself in satisfaction.

‘Puzzle?’ ventured Sophie, breaking into his reverie.

‘Apparently, the thing was in code,’ he replied, hastily returning his attention to the subject in hand. ‘Seems there’s some sort of a plot afoot to do away with the Duke of Wellington, and your invoice unravelled the mystery as to the gang’s next meeting place.’

‘But that’s appalling!’ she cried, turning towards him, her fists clenched and her clear blue eyes alight with anger. ‘His Grace is a national hero! Why, only a few months ago the crowds were pelting his carriage with flowers as he drove down Pall Mall. My father thought him the greatest general our country has ever known. Why would anyone wish to harm him now, after all he has done?’

Unwilling to share his brother’s concerns regarding the growing unrest in the country, Marcus thought it best to change the subject.

‘Probably just a few crack pots trying to stir up trouble,’ he said, doing his best to adopt his normal blasé manner. ‘I should put it out of my mind, if I were you. I’m sure that my brother has it all in hand, thanks to that invoice of yours.’

Sophie was silent for a moment or two, apparently digesting this advice, but then, turning to face him once more, she said, ‘But surely your brother cannot suspect that decrepit old bookseller of being involved in such a plot?’

‘Probably not,’ conceded the Viscount, who was now devoting the majority of his attention to negotiating the sharp turn out of Sloane Street into Lennox Gardens. Having brought his carriage neatly to a halt outside the
Crayford residence, he then looked across at her to add, somewhat mischievously, ‘But I’m bound to say that clerk of his looked decidedly shifty when I went into the back office to have your atlas wrapped.’

‘
Your
atlas, you mean!’ she retaliated at once, just as he had known that she would. ‘
My
atlas is still in the shop!’

‘As you please,’ he replied, giving her another of his lop-sided grins, before leaping down from his seat and skirting around the vehicle in order to be ready to offer her his assistance.

But instead of holding out his hand, as she had expected, the Viscount reached forward and, placing both hands firmly at her waist, swung her out of her seat to deposit her neatly on to the pavement.

Thoroughly taken aback by his unanticipated manoeuvre, Sophie stood in breathless bewilderment as she waited for Helstone to release his hold on her. When he did not immediately do so, however, her eyes flew up to his face, questioningly.

Helstone’s expression, she discovered, was quite incomprehensible; his eyes, as they looked searchingly into hers, seemed to bore deep down into her very soul, setting up such a violent trembling within her that, had his hands not still been at her waist, she would have sworn that her knees were ready to give way beneath her. Her mind in complete disarray, she had almost convinced herself that the Viscount was about to kiss her…out here in the street…in full view of anyone who might be watching…when, with a sudden start, he blinked and, hurriedly releasing his hold, stepped away from her, a perplexed frown on his forehead.

Then, just as if the incident had never taken place, he drew in a deep breath, offered the thoroughly shaken
Sophie his arm and escorted her up the short flight of steps that led to the Crayfords’ front door.

Any thoughts that she might have had regarding his strange behaviour were wiped completely from her mind by the fact that, even before the Viscount had reached out his hand to raise the knocker, the front door was opened by none other than Mrs Crayford herself, albeit that the highly indignant features of Hawkins the butler could be seen at his mistress’s elbow.

‘Ah, there you are, your lordship,’ gushed Mrs Crayford, as she hurriedly reversed to allow the pair to enter the hallway. ‘We were beginning to fear that you had met with some dreadful accident. How very naughty of Miss Flint to have kept you out for so long—you must be quite exhausted. You will come in and take a little refreshment, I trust?’

‘It is exceedingly kind of you to offer,’ returned Marcus, affecting an extravagant bow in order to hide his expression of utter disgust. ‘However, Miss Flint and I have already dined and, as to our being late, I was unaware that any particular time of arrival had been specified. I was under the impression that my cousin’s Sunday afternoons were hers to do with as she pleases.’

‘Why, yes, of course,’ replied the now highly flustered matron, braving the steely glint in the Viscount’s eye to add, with a slight hint of defiance, ‘After the children have attended the morning church service, Miss Flint’s time is her own.’

‘As I surmised,’ observed the Viscount smoothly. ‘My sister, the Duchess of Marchmont, practises a very similar arrangement with her children’s governess.’

Marcus’s casual reference to one of Society’s most admired hostesses at once claimed Mrs Crayford’s entire
attention, as had been his intention. That he had then gone on to liken her domestic arrangements to those of the illustrious Duchess was almost enough to deprive the coarse vulgarian of her power of speech.

‘One tries to be fair,’ she eventually managed, vigorously fanning her reddening cheeks with her handkerchief, while Sophie did her best to control the expression of sheer disbelief that threatened.

In point of fact, not a single Sunday afternoon had passed since Sophie’s arrival without Mrs Crayford having plied her with some secretarial chore or other. At the very start of her employment Sophie had been far too grateful to have been accepted for the position to even consider putting up any sort of resistance to this continual encroachment into what was meant to be her free time, as a result of which her employer now seemed to take it for granted that her children’s governess would be prepared to make herself available to her as and whenever her services were called upon. Especially since Sophie’s non-complaining lack of resistance obviated the need for Mrs Crayford to employ a secretary, thereby allowing her employer to put the generous quarterage that she received from her husband to cover the household expenses to what she considered far better use—namely, her own self-adornment.

Having done his best to raise Sophie’s stock a little higher, Marcus made ready to leave. Executing another elegant bow in Mrs Crayford’s direction, he turned to bid farewell to Sophie, but just as he did so his eyes chanced to fall on the footman who was waiting to open the door. Recognising him at once as the fellow who had delivered Sophie’s message to him the previous evening, the Viscount was again beset by the feeling that he had come across the man before, in some other capacity.

‘What’s that chap’s name?’ he murmured under his breath, as he lifted Sophie’s hand to brush his lips across the tips of her fingers. ‘I keep getting the feeling that I know him from somewhere.’

Although she was quite startled at being questioned in such a covert manner, Sophie strove to maintain an impassive mien. Dipping his lordship a quick curtsey, she mouthed the word ‘Fisher’ at him, before straightening up and offering him her grateful thanks for ‘a most delightful afternoon’.

‘My pleasure entirely, dear coz,’ he said, as he stepped away from her. ‘We must endeavour to repeat the experience in the very near future.’

Ignoring her reproachful frown, he tossed another brief nod at her employer before turning smartly on his heel and striding towards the front door, still racking his brains as to why the footman’s features should seem so familiar to him.

Before he was halfway out of the door, however, Mrs Crayford, suddenly galvanised into action, dashed across the hallway and grasped at his arm.

‘You haven’t forgotten our little soiree on Tuesday evening, have you, my lord?’ she gasped anxiously.

Steeling himself not to rip her clutching fingers from his coat-sleeve, the Viscount forced a smile to his lips, saying, ‘I shall be here, ma’am—you have my word.’

Then, without further ado, he ran lightly down the steps, hoisted himself up into his driving seat and, after signalling Kimble to let go the horses’ heads, flicked the reins and headed towards his Grosvenor Square establishment.

Having come to the conclusion that there was little point in bemoaning the afternoon’s lack of success in the seduction stakes, he set his mind to concentrating
on the recurring puzzle that the footman’s appearance had set him.

A pasty-looking, sharp-featured individual…eyes set too close together…distinctively pointed nose.

His unanticipated jerk of the reins had Kimble almost out of his seat as the two grey thoroughbreds skidded to an abrupt halt.

‘Have a heart, guv!’ protested the tiger, ruefully massaging his bruised knee. ‘Nearly had me under that there coal wagon.’

‘Teach you not to fall asleep on the job,’ retorted Marcus. ‘Hop down and help me head ‘em back up towards Bond Street.’

‘Thought we was going home,’ muttered the aggrieved Kimble, reluctantly doing as he had been bidden. ‘Took me eyes off the road for the barest mo, only to find meself hanging on to me perch for dear life—a bit of notice wouldn’t have gone amiss!’

‘Sorry about that,’ returned the Viscount, shooting his groom an unrepentant grin as the man wheeled the greys around until the entire equipage faced in the opposite direction. ‘I give you leave to drown your sorrows in the King’s Arms—I find I need to have an urgent word with the Major.’

Having been unable to fathom Helstone’s untoward interest in the Crayfords’ footman, Sophie found herself casting the manservant a surreptitious glance—only to find Fisher regarding her in an equally disquieting manner. Hurriedly dropping her eyes, she made for the stairs, but was immediately forestalled by Mrs Crayford’s sharp insistence that she should join the family in the drawing room.