The Belligerent Miss Boynton AND The Lurid Lady Lockport (Two Companion Full-Length Regency Novels) (6 page)

It was not too many minutes before Jared reined in his mount before the seated Amanda, his deep blue eyes widening just slightly at the sight of the now wide-awake and definitely wary bundle in her arms.

Jared dismounted and walked full around the seated pair without saying a word, two sets of wide, anxious eyes following his every movement. When he finally spoke, his voice was maddeningly calm and somewhat amused. "You do have a penchant for consorting with the most outlandish creatures, imp."

Tom could feel his rescuer's arms tighten about him, and he jumped up to defend the beautiful lady from this nasty man. "Yer shove off and leave me loidy be, Guv'nor! Her be a fine loidy and me frien', and 'less yer want a pop on the noggin' yer'll take yerself away."

Jared threw up his hands in surrender. "Well, well, Amanda. Once again you've managed to discover a champion. First I must contend with an irate innkeeper and his simpleton daughter, and now you've somehow enlisted this young gallant to fight your battles. I must admit I'm impressed." He turned his attention to the boy. "Have no fear, lad, I'll not hurt your lady. We're old friends." He winked at Amanda, his intention clear. "Isn't that right,
my dear?"

Amanda's gaze went from Tom, to Jared, and back to the boy once more. It would accomplish nothing to upset Tom further, for the child was wavering on his feet and looked ready to drop from fatigue. "It's true, Tom, Lord Storm is indeed my friend—and now he's your friend, too."

"Yes, yes. Indeed. Such a jolly, jolly trio of chums," Jared agreed happily, so that Amanda longed to hit him. "Through thick, through thin; friends forever, and all that."

She glared at him, saying, "In fact, Lord Storm is such a good friend that he's going to let you ride up in front of him all the way to my home, where my groom, Harrow, will fill your belly with some good food and find you a bed for the night." She smiled broadly at Jared, not having won the war, surely, but at least not entirely losing this particular battle. "Isn't that right, my lord?"

Jared eyed the boy and could see the fear and fatigue on his face. If he were the sort to keep score, he thought, he would have to say that he owed one Miss Amanda Boynton at least a crushing setdown and a brace of stern lectures on the perfidy of women who seek their pleasure in making utter fools of extremely good, excruciatingly kind and forbearing gentlemen.

But now, clearly, was not the time for any such personally soothing indulgences on his part. Shrugging as he mentally consigned his entire suit of clothes to the rubbish bin, Jared then leaned down and hoisted the filthy-dirty boy into his arms. "Right you are, Miss Boynton. Now, up you go, lad. You just sit here on Devil until I help Miss Boynton mount. I'll be up behind you in a moment."

As he offered his hand to Amanda he whispered between gritted teeth, "if you felt in such dire need of a chaperon, Amanda, I think the chit at the inn would have been a better choice. She was a regular dragon in your defense." Then he picked her up and set her down none too gently on the mare's back.

Amanda giggled as she adjusted her skirts around her ankles and back over the horse's rump. "How you do run on, my lord. I find Tom an exceptionally fine chaperon. But do be careful. I think the boy already feels some allegiance to me. Therefore, you might be wise not to be your usual insulting self in front of him. He may just make good his threat to, er, 'pop yer on yer noggin.'"

Jared's mouth opened and closed several times as a variety of cutting responses flitted through his head, but he finally settled for no more than an abrupt
Hrrumph
before flinging himself up behind the dirty urchin who sat patting the stallion's neck and muttering unintelligible praises into his cocked ear.

Amanda led the way down the road, feeling rather content with herself, with Jared's black horse dancing along under the slight extra weight. By late afternoon, the trio arrived at Fox Chase.

They drew the horses up at the crest of the hill and gazed down at the view before them in the small valley. Jared, astounded at the rundown look of the manor and stables and the general neglected air of the surrounding fields, turned to Amanda with a question in his eyes.

Her voice was bitter as she swept an arm across the scene. "Behold what Peregrine Denton has done to the finest estate in the district.
Now
do you question my running away from him and all he represents?"

Jared shifted the sleeping Tom into a more comfortable position against his chest and urged his mount forward. "I'm sorry, Amanda. I didn't know."

"No," she countered dully as she followed along. "Nobody knew. And nobody
wanted
to know. All of my father's friends melted away when he died and left Mama and me to the mercies of someone like Denton. He promised my mother he'd look after us if they married, and then proceeded to drain every cent he could out of the land and the house. You should take a tour of my home while you're here, my lord, and see how he stripped away anything he could sell in the markets. Even," her voice broke, "even my parent's portraits."

Jared suddenly felt very ashamed about the plans he had for this young girl. But the special license he'd arranged for before going to meet Amanda was still in his pocket, and a wealthy husband such as he could do a lot to ease the burden she had been carrying these years.

"How long did you live here alone with Denton?" It bothered him more than he cared to admit to himself that Amanda had ever resided under a roof with Denton, with only servants for protection.

"Three years," Amanda answered quietly. "Nanny stayed for a while after Mama died, but Denton finally sent her away. She lives in Sussex now with her sister, and I'll join her there once I retrieve Tempest." Her head lifted with a jerk as she realized what she had revealed. Curse her blabbering tongue!

Jared chose to ignore her disclosed plans since he had no thought of allowing her to pursue them, and motioned for her to precede him down the remainder of the hill to Fox Chase.

As they neared the stables Amanda spurred her mount forward calling out, "Harrow! Harrow, you old reprobate, where are you? It's Miss Mandy come home again."

She reined in and jumped down from the mare, skirts lifted high as she dashed toward the bent-over figure of an old man shuffling toward her, and flung herself into his arms. "Oh, Harrow! You can't know how glad I am to see you! "

"It's glad I am to be seeing you, Missy, glad and happy. But what are you doing here and," he looked over her shoulder to the horse now coming into the yard, "who are these folks you have with you?"

Amanda disengaged herself from the old man's embrace and turned a dazzling smile toward Jared as he dismounted and helped Tom down from the saddle. "Harrow, I introduce to you my rescuer, Lord Storm, and my new friend, Tom. Lord Storm accompanied me here from London and Tom, well, Tom we met on the way." She turned toward Harrow with a plea in her voice. "Tom is very hungry, Harrow, and so am I. Do you have something cooking on your fire?"

"Aye, lass, as you knew I would," the old man said, staring at Jared. "All of you, come inside and I'll dish it out."

Jared held out his hand to Tom, who took it warily, and they trailed after the old man toward a room at the back of the once fine but now empty stables—following an appetizing aroma that wafted from that general area.

Amanda did not follow. Instead, she ran over to the fence and gave a low whistle. Out in the meadow a proud head lifted and gave an answering whinny. The spring sun glinted on the chestnut coat of the huge stallion as he raced to the fence, his long, quite unique tawny mane and tail flying in the breeze.

Amanda climbed to the top of the fence and pressed her face close to the horse's neck, hugging him, while the stallion nuzzled her shoulder. "Oh, Tempest, my dearest, dearest love, how I've missed you."

Jared, thoroughly bemused, watched from the shadows of the stable as the small girl motioned to the huge red horse. The stallion moved alongside the fence so that his mistress could slide her leg over onto his back. Grasping his mane in her hand, she eased the rest of her body sideways until she was mounted astride. And then, in a flash, the two were off, pelting across the meadow as one perfect unit—freedom of line and spirit apparent in their fluid movement, Amanda's full skirts and unbound hair trailing in the wind.

Jared stood transfixed until they were out of sight, watching the magnificent stallion and the beautiful young girl.

"I knew she couldna ate 'til she rode on Tempest," Harrow said, chuckling. He had come up beside Jared quietly, and the sudden voice startled him from his uncomfortable thoughts—thoughts that had a lot to do with seeing himself as a heartless despoiler of innocents. "Don't fret, my lord. My girl knows what she's about. That horse wouldna harm her none."

"I never saw anything like that in my life, Harrow. She was astride him bareback. That slip of a girl!" Jared shook his head in amazement.

The cackle came again. "Miss Mandy's been riding since afore she could walk. Her Da taught her, you know." Suddenly he was serious. "I fed the boy and he'll be eating yours and Miss Mandy's if I let him alone in there. But, before you be goin' in, can I ask you a question, my lord? What's my Missy doing here? She was apposed to be havin' a fine do-up in London."

Jared turned to the man and explained softly, "Denton threatened to sell the horse if your Miss Mandy refused to marry the man of his choice, so she ran away." He looked to the empty field once more. "I can see now her great attachment to the beast. Anyway, she plans to ride off on Tempest, to go live with her old nurse."

"But she can't be doin' that! Mr. Denton will find her sure, and then there'll be the devil to pay." Harrow was silent for a moment and then asked, "What affair be this of yours, if I may be so bold, my lord?"

Jared decided that discretion, besides being the better part of valor, might, in this instance, save him from a pitchfork to the backside. "I met Miss Amanda at Almacks and she told me of her plans," he said smoothly. I knew her father, and so, of course, couldn't let her do such a hare-brained thing. Therefore, not being able to talk her out of her mad scheme, I came with her."

"No one talks Miss Mandy out of somethin' she's made her mind up to do, my lord, so don't let that worry you none. But you say you knew his lordship. I guess I didn't quite catch your name, sir."

"Jared Delaney, Harrow. Or, by my title, Lord Storm. I have several of the Fox Chase bloodline in my stables, though the strain is diluted now. Best horseflesh I've ever owned."

Recognition dawned in Harrow's eyes. "Ah, aye, now I place you, my lord. It's been some years, though. I thank you for bringin' my girl home to me. But what are we to do now?"

Jared cast his eyes toward the meadow but there still was no sign of Amanda. Good. He placed a companionable arm around the old groom's shoulders, turned him back toward the stables, and began, "Now, Harrow, that's precisely what I wanted to take up with you, perhaps over that stew you mentioned..."

#

When hunger finally forced Amanda to return to the stables she saw Jared sitting in Harrow's modest room, his legs propped up on the table and a mug in his hand. Tom was fast asleep in the corner, dirty as ever, and Harrow was just ladling out more stew.

Although secretly amazed the debonair Lord Storm would condescend to spending his evening in the stables, she ignored him as she crossed to the old groom and planted a light kiss on his cheek. "Is that for me, dear Harrow? I'm famished!"

"That it is, lass, that it is. Sit yourself down and tuck into this while I go rub down Tempest. I wager you ran him to a standstill."

"Harrow! As if I would ever do such a thing! I walked him all the way back to the stables, and well you know it." She playfully made a face at her old friend's departing back, and then dutifully sat down and attacked her meal.

Jared watched in silence until she was finished, then swung his feet to the floor and sat up. "All right, imp, now that you've eaten I think we had best get down to cases. Where do we go from here?"

Amanda put her fork down carefully and stared at Jared.

"
We
are not going anywhere, my lord. I am going to Nanny. You may go to perdition for all I care."

"Really? And what of young Tom over there?"

Amanda's eyes went to the slight figure lying on Harrow's narrow bed. She answered in a small voice, "I don't know."

Jared pursued his advantage. "And what of Harrow? When your stepfather discovers his part in this escapade of yours he'll turn him off. Have you stopped to think of that, or of anything but your own selfish desires?"

Amanda was thoroughly dejected. She knew she had planned badly, but the need to hurt her stepfather and rescue Tempest had made her act hastily. His lordship was right, of course. Her stepfather would sack Harrow and the old man would be cast off to roam the countryside. That would leave no place for Tom, either. Pushing her mind even further, she could well imagine her stepfather tracking her to Nanny's door. Oh, she was so tired—too utterly exhausted to think.

"All right," she admitted at last, sighing. "You've made your point. I've made a horrid jumble of everything." She put her head in her hands, the picture of defeat.

Jared, who had been patiently waiting for this moment of realization on Amanda's part, was more than ready to offer his suggestions for the solution of her problems. "I would be willing to have Harrow at Storm Haven. If your father trusted him, that's all the reason I need to employ him. I would even be willing to have him bring Tom along. The boy seems to like Devil, and Harrow could train him for some small duties around the stables."

Amanda's head flew up like a shot. "You'd do this for me? After all the trouble I've caused? Oh, thank you, my lord, thank you!" A slow flush crept up her cheeks as she saw the mischievous gleam in Jared's eye. "No, I don't think I should be grateful. Should I, my lord? At least not until I learn why you're suddenly being so amenable."