Surrender (64 page)

barmaid and walked over to the group of

card players.

 
Gentlemen," he said calmly,
 
I wonder

if you would all be so good as to allow

Edgeworth and myself a word in private."

One of the young pups looked up,

scowling.
 
Here, now, we were just getting

into some deep play. You've got no right

to barge in like this."

But another young man was already

on his feet, eyes widening in belated

recognition.
 
Your pardon, stone vale. Take

your time. I believe we can all wait to

continue this particular game. Perhaps our

luck will turn in the meantime."

Lucas glanced at the man and smiled

faintly.
 
The only way your luck will come

about is to find another game. As long

as you play with Edgeworth, you will no

doubt continue to lose."

I'll have you know I won several

hundred pounds not more
 
n an hour

ago," the first man declared.

 
Did you really? And how far down are

you now?"

The man glared at Lucas.
 
That's none

of your business."

 
I agree. But you may do as you wish. I

assure you I have no great interest in your

losses. Now, if you will excuse me?"

Come on, Harry," the second man

muttered, dragging his friend away from

the table.
 
You don't want to get into a

brawl with stone vale. Take my word for

it. Friend of mine served under him on

the Peninsula. Says he knows how to take

care of himself."

Edgeworth watched the two young men

disappear and then he turned to face

Lucas.
 
I don't much appreciate your

scaring off my lambs before they have been

properly fleeced, stone vale. Just because

you have had the good fortune to marry

money does not mean the rest of us must

not continue to make a living."

 
I am certain you will find other sources

of income before dawn. You have always

been quite adept at relieving the unwary

of whatever they happened to have in their

pockets. Tell me, Edgeworth, is there a bit

more sport to be had in cheating foolish

young men who have merely had too much

to drink than there is in stealing from

young men who are dead or dying?"

Edgeworth ruffled the cards on the table.

 
So you did see me that day. I wondered

about it at the time. I should have slit your

throat while I had the chance and made

quite certain you were dead."

 
Why didn't you?"

Edgeworth shrugged.
 
To be honest, I

did not think you would live until sundown

with that hole in your leg. Who could

have guessed you'd make it, stone vale?

You do seem to have the most amazing

luck."

 
Lately someone has been trying to

change my luck. I decided to consult

with you to see if you might have any

notion of who would want to do that."

Edgeworth
  
smiled,
  
his
  
eyes
  
glittering

behind
  
half-closed
  
lids.
   
Someone
  
who

has
 
lost
 
a
 
great
 
deal
 
of money to
 
you

at some point in the past, perhaps?"

-
    
That list would include yourself."

 
So it would."

Lucas paused.
 
Are you going to force

me to kill you, after all, Edgeworth?"

 
Rest assured, I have no intention of

letting you call me out. Just how do

you perceive your luck to have changed?

It seems to me you have done very well

for yourself lately."

 
There have been one or two minor

incidents. There is no need to detail

them. If you truly know nothing about

them, then the less said, the better. If

you do have some knowledge of them,

however; then you may want to see that

they cease."

 
Why should I care what happens to

you? You have been a great nuisance to

me, stone vale."

 
Let
 
me
 
put
 
it
 
this
 
way.
  
If there
 
is

another incident of any sort that I find,

shall we say, disturbing, I shall come

looking for you and we will discuss the

matter in more depth. Perhaps at Clery

Field? At dawn?"

Edgeworth's hand stilled on the cards.

 
Hardly fair if I am not the perpetrator of

these incidents."

 
Yes, but very little in life is fair, is it?

I found that out for certain the day I

watched you walk among the dead and

wounded and take whatever you could find

in their pockets."

Lucas got to his feet, turned, and

walked away from the card table without

a backward glance.

Victoria was standing at the window

clad in her nightgown when she heard

the connecting door open behind her. She

whirled around. Lucas had changed into

his dressing gown.

 
There you are. Thank heavens. I have

been so worried." She flew to him on bare

feet and threw herself into his arms.

Lucas staggered a bit as his bad leg gave

slightly under the impact, but he caught

his balance quickly. His arms closed tightly

around her.
 
I shall have to see to it that

you get worried more often if this is the

greeting I can expect."

 
Pray
  
do
  
not
  
tease
  
me."
  
She
  
raised

her head from his shoulder and frowned

severely.
 
Where have you been? What have

you been doing? Did you discover anything

useful?"

Lucas caught her chin in his hand.
 
One

question at a time, sweetheart. I have had

a long night."

 
Well, so have I. And I must tell you,

Lucas, that I will not allow you to order

me to stay home again while you are out

larking about in search of information.

Sitting around waiting is very hard on

the nerves. Now, just what did you do?

Did you find Edgeworth?"

He released her and dropped into a

chair.
 
I found him, for all the good it

will do. I cannot tell if he knows anything

about what is going on or not. But he does

have some motive for wanting to cause

trouble for me."

She nodded quickly, sitting down across

from him.
 
Because you are more or less

responsible for making him unwelcome in

the clubs."

Lucas rubbed his leg.
 
Actually, it all

goes back a bit farther than that."

She studied him intently.
 
Just what does

it all go back to, Lucas?"

 
To the day I got this damned hole in

my leg. Edgeworth was there."

 
You mean he also fought that day?"

 
Not exactly/ Lucas said.
  
Let us say

he chose to watch the battle from a safe

distance."

Victoria finally understood.
 
He broke

and ran?"

 
It happens in battle. Edgeworth was not

the first, nor will he be the last. Who

knows? If more men had the sense not

to stand their ground and shoot at each

other until there was no one left standing,

we might have less warfare."

Victoria was astonished.
 
Lucas, you are

not condemning him for his cowardice?"

 
Not particularly. Cowardice under fire

may not be considered an admirable

trait"

 
I should think not."

 
But I can understand it." He slid her

a cool glance.
 
And forgive it. Fear is

not easy to deal with and warfare is a

remarkably unintelligent way to resolve

problems. If I learned nothing else during

my career in the army, I learned that

much. The idea of a man choosing to

flee from the scene of battle is not so

difficult to accept. It almost seems rather

logical when you think about it."

Victoria recovered from her initial shock

and gave that notion some close thought.

 
You may have a point. Never let your

friends in the clubs hear you say such

things, though."

He smiled.
 
I am not a complete fool.

I only say such things to you, Vicky. You

are the one person I know with whom I

can talk freely."

She smiled at him, aware of a sweet

warmth welling up inside.
 
That is the

nicest thing you have ever said to me. I

am very glad you feel that way, Lucas,

because I have discovered I feel exactly the

same toward you. I have told you things I

have never even told Aunt Cleo."

 
I am glad," he said simply.

Victoria smiled warmly.
 
But no matter

how you feel intellectually on the subject

of cowardice under fire, I know you would

be incapable of behaving like a coward

yourself. Edgeworth undoubtedly knows

that, too. Is that why he holds a grudge

against you? He knows you saw him flee?"

 
That is partly it. The other part is that I

saw what he did after the battle. He walked

through the field and robbed the dead."

Victoria stared at him.
 
Good God, I

can hardly credit it." Then another thought

shook her.
 
Did he know you were lying on

that field? Did he see you?"

 
He saw me."

 
And he did nothing to help you?"

 
He assumed I wouldn't last long anyway

and he was rather busy collecting jewelry,

watches, and other souvenirs," Lucas

explained.

Victoria leapt to her feet and raged back

and forth across the room. She had never

been so shaken with fury.
 
I will shoot the

man the next time I see him, I swear I will.

How dare he sink so low? How could he

act in such a despicable fashion? To leave

you lying there like that. It is absolutely

unforgivable."

 
I tend to agree with you that he sank to

the depths that day. Nor has he conducted

himself with much honor since," Lucas said

grimly.

 
No, he certainly has not. I wonder if

Isabel Rycott found out about his habit

of cheating at cards. Perhaps that is why

she dropped him. She likes weak men,

but she may draw the line at that sort

of weakness."

 
Perhaps."

Victoria whirled around and paced back

the other way.
 
So you believe Edgeworth

really is behind the incidents? That he

holds a grudge against you because you

know the truth about him?"

 
It is possible. I cannot escape a certain

feeling that he knew more than he was

willing to say tonight. I warned him that

if anything else happens, I will look to him

first for an explanation, but
 
."

She eyed him carefully.
 
But you are

not one hundred percent convinced he is

to blame for what has happened to us?"

 
I think there is more to the story."

Because I was the target of some of the

incidents?"

  
Tis entirely possible Edgeworth selected

you as a target because he knew it would

annoy me," Lucas said.

Victoria sat down on the edge of the

bed.
 
This is very frustrating. We are no

better off than we were before you sought

him out."

 
That remains to be seen. If there are no

more incidents, I will be able to assume I

warned off the right man."

 
True." She frowned, thinking about it.

 
But if the incidents continue, we must

also consider the fact that my stepfather

is alive."

 
Regardless of the outcome in that

quarter, I, personally, feel that I made

tremendous progress in another area this

evening," Lucas continued smoothly.

She looked over at him, intrigued.
 
How

is that?"

 
I was referring to your admission that

I have the power to seduce you anytime I

please."

 
Oh, that." She felt the heat flood her

cheeks.

Lucas got to his feet and came toward

her.
 
Yes, that. A minor issue to you,

perhaps, my dear, but a matter of

overwhelming import to me. It gives

me great hope, you see. One of these

days you are going to take the last step

and admit you love me."

She rose and backed away from him.

 
You probably should not read too much

into what I said as we got out of the

carriage, Lucas. I was very annoyed with

you at the time and spoke without

thinking."

He smiled.
 
Are you going to retract

your words now? You cannot possibly

deny them. I will not allow it?"

She groaned and took another step

backward.
 
You are going to assume far

too much from this. You will see it as a

form of surrender. I just know you will."

 
Would surrender be so bad, Vicky?"

 
Intolerable." She took one more step

backward and found herself up against

the wall. Her eyes widened as he stalked

toward her.

Lucas's eyes were gleaming as he

closed the distance between them. Very

deliberately he caged her, flattening his

palms against the wall on either side of

her head. His mouth hovered bare inches

above hers.

 
Intolerable, hmmm? Very well, madam,

why don't we call it a step toward a

negotiated truce rather than a step toward

surrender?"

She caught her breath.
 
In order for it

to be a step toward a negotiated truce,

we would both have to give up an equal

amount of ground, my lord. You would

have to admit I have the same power

over you."

 
Yes, I would, wouldn't I?"

Her tongue touched the corner of her

mouth.
 
Are you admitting I can seduce

you at will?"

 
Madam, you can seduce me by merely

walking across the drawing room or serving

me a cup of tea. Every time I look

at my picture of Strelitzia reginae, I am

seduced."

 
Oh." Then she smiled slowly.
 
Is this

another example of your skill at strategy,

Lucas?"

He did not answer that with words.

Instead, his mouth closed over hers, hot,

exciting and intoxicating. Victoria put her

arms around his neck, glorying in the heat

and strength of him.

He slid his hand down her side to her

thigh and lifted the thin stuff of her night

clothes up to her waist.

 
Lucas?"

 
Part your legs, sweetheart."

She moaned softly and, shivering delight

fully, did as he directed. His hand slipped

between her thighs.

 
Lucas."

 
Yes, sweetheart. That's it. That is what

I want from you. Call it a truce or call it

surrender. It does not signify."

She clutched at him as his tongue eased

into her mouth just as he eased a finger

into her moist heat. He began moving both

tongue and finger in and out of her in a

simultaneous rhythm. Victoria thought her

legs would collapse.

She retained just enough self mastery to

fumble with the opening of his dressing

gown. She found him hard and heavy

with his arousal. Her fingers circled him

gently.

 
Oh, God, Vicky."

He pulled her back toward the bed,

dragging her down onto it. Then he was

on top of her, kissing her breasts, her

silky stomach, and the soft skin of her

thighs. Without warning, his kiss became

even more intimate. Victoria gasped, first

in shock and then in wonder, as she felt his

mouth on the most secret part of her.

 
Lucas, this is outrageous. You cannot

mean to
 
." Her fingers clenched in his

dark hair and her whole body tightened

unbearably.
 
Lucas."

She was still in the midst of her searing

climax when she felt him glide up the

length of her and surge deeply, heavily

into her body. Victoria's teeth sank into

the skin of his bare shoulder. She clung to

him as if she would never let him go as his

hoarse, exultant shout echoed in her ears.

 
I must say, you and Lucas have certainly

contrived to brush through the entire

incident quite nicely." Cleo raised her

watering pot to reach a fuchsia plant

that hung from a beam.
 
You were a

great success at the Foxtons" last night.

It is obvious you do not even need Jessica

Atherton's public approval. The ton has

decided you are their favorite couple, and

the Season, one hopes, will be over before

you can do anything to ruin that status."

 
One hopes." Victoria grinned.
 
I believe

Lucas is harboring the same sentiments.

You and he must get together and share

your concerns over my behavior."

 
We would no doubt have a great deal to

talk about, would we not?" Cleo smiled.
 
I