The Danger in Tempting an Earl (29 page)

“What I don’t understand is why you would try to kill Lady Crossby now. With Crossby dead, there’s no need for . . .” He stopped himself and considered everything he knew. His mouth dropped. “You still want to fulfill his wish by preventing me from marrying her. But that’s . . . that’s . . .”

“Love,” Lady Trapleigh said.

Lucien shook his head in disbelief. “No. It’s insane! Have you no consideration for your son?”

Lady Trapleigh shrugged. “He’s being raised at an estate close to the Welsh border by people who can offer him a proper future. His father was married and his mother is famous for having bedded half the men in England. The last thing that child needs is to be associated with me.” She shook her head, looking weary. “All I wanted was to grant Charles his final wish.”

“Well, I can’t tell you how pleased I am by your lack of success,” Lucien stated as he took Lady Trapleigh roughly by the arm, pulled her to her feet and steered her straight toward the door. “You can look forward to a lengthy sojourn at Newgate now.”

“I
s it finally over?” Katherine asked Lucien when he returned to the bedroom after ensuring that Lady Trapleigh had been escorted off the premises by two Bow Street Runners.

“I believe so,” he said, “for us at least.” Sinking down next to her, he pulled her against him and she instinctively breathed him in, that familiar scent of sandalwood filling her senses.

It felt wonderful to be held in his strong embrace . . . safe. “It was lucky that you arrived when you did.” Turning in Lucien’s arms, Katherine gazed into his eyes. “I could have died.”

“I know, my sweet,” he whispered gently as he placed a tender kiss upon her forehead. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here with you when she arrived.”

“You couldn’t fall asleep?”

“No.” Twining his fingers with hers, he raised her hand to his lips and placed a soft kiss upon her knuckles. “So much has happened lately, I fear my mind was incapable of rest. Will you please forgive me?”

“Always,” she murmured.

His lips brushed hers, and in the next instant, she felt his hand caressing her thigh. After being shot at and kidnapped, she could finally enjoy being loved without fearing for her life, and as she sank further into Lucien’s embrace, Katherine understood what it meant to be truly happy.

Epilogue

T
wo weeks later, after fetching Sophia home from Bath, Lucien swept Katherine across the ballroom floor of Darwich House, her skirts twirling about her legs as they moved in time to the waltz being played. They were not the only popular couple that evening, and there could be no denying that Lady Darwich had been crowned the luckiest hostess in Town. Only a week had passed since Lucien had married the love of his life by special license, so he was amused to discover that marrying a widow who’d almost been murdered by her late husband’s mistress was no longer the topic du jour—not when the Duke of Kingsborough had just announced his betrothal to a woman who’d been nobody of consequence until it had been discovered that she was the Marquess of Deerhurst’s granddaughter. Lucien smiled at the thought and decided that he would have to get Kingsborough to tell him the details of that story later.

And then of course there was Mr. Neville to consider. The fact that Lucien had only just heard of
that
scandal this very evening was a testament to how absorbed he’d been by his own troubles these past few weeks.

Leading Katherine in a wide circle that took them past the orchestra, Lucien met her eyes. They were alight with wonder. “You seemed preoccupied just now,” she said, her cheeks dimpling as she spoke. “Any thoughts you’d care to share?”

“I was just appreciating my own good fortune,” he confided. “I still fear that this is but a dream from which I’ll soon awaken.”

“I hope not, for I would miss you terribly if that were the case.” She smiled, and his heart gave a little shudder.

God, how he loved this woman.

“Then perhaps I’d best keep dreaming,” he whispered as the dance drew to a close. Taking Katherine by the arm, he led her over to the refreshment table, where he offered her a glass of lemonade.

“Congratulations on your wedding,” Mr. Goodard said as he approached. “I can’t say that it came as a surprise, but I am very happy for you both.”

“So are Carlyle and Barrymore, I assure you,” Lucien said with a chuckle. “They both wagered on her ladyship and I tying the knot before the end of the Season—placed their bets at White’s, you know.”

“I say, I wish I would have been that predictive,” Mr. Goodard said.

“You could always bet on yourself,” Katherine suggested with a hint of mischief. “How are things progressing with Lady Julie?”

An expression of deep melancholia descended upon Mr. Goodard’s handsome face. “Alas, I cannot tell the lady’s mind. She has me quite perplexed, though I was relieved to discover that her interest in you, Roxberry, was a ruse. Still, I find it impossible to discern whether or not she looks favorably upon my attempts at flattery or if she’d rather be rid of me altogether.”

“Mr. Goodard,” Katherine began sympathetically, “I believe—”

“Surely her intentions will become known with time,” Lucien said, deliberately cutting off his wife. He tried not to look at her just then, for he was well aware that she was probably scowling.

“I’m sure you’re quite right,” Mr. Goodard said. “In the meantime, I shall see if she’d like to dance.”

“Care to explain yourself?” Katherine asked as soon as Mr. Goodard was out of earshot.

Lucien took a sip of his drink as he stared out over the ballroom. “Winning your hand wasn’t easy, my dear, but it was worth every effort. I daresay I’m doing Mr. Goodard a favor by
not
divulging the true nature of Lady Julie’s heart.”

“And just when I thought you were being perfectly beastly,” Katherine murmured. “Your intentions prove you to be a veritable romantic.”

He had no chance to respond when Lord and Lady Huntley walked up to them. “I must say that after everything, I had rather expected to attend a grand Society wedding. Imagine my disappointment when I heard you’d married in secret,” Lady Huntley said. She smiled adoringly at her husband as she added, “Would you be kind enough to pour me a glass of lemonade?”

“Certainly,” Huntley said. He picked up an empty glass from a tray on the table and proceeded to do as his wife had asked, saying, “Please forgive her ladyship. What she
meant
to say was congratulations. Isn’t that right, my dear?” He handed Lady Huntley her glass.

“My friend is well aware that I am thrilled on her behalf, isn’t that so, Lady Roxberry?” Lady Huntley smiled as her gaze shifted to Lucien. “I do believe she’s made an excellent match for herself. Truly, I couldn’t be happier.”

“It’s kind of you to say so, my lady,” Lucien said, offering the countess a slight bow.

Her smile never faltered as she added, “That said, I will personally have you skewered if you ever do anything to upset her.”

A sound not entirely dissimilar to that of a strangled giggle escaped Katherine, while Huntley snorted in response. “At last her true nature is revealed,” he muttered.

“Understood,” Lucien said, addressing Lady Huntley. To Lord Huntley he quietly murmured, “You wife has quite a vicious bite.”

Huntley nodded. “And I hear that yours can take out a man with a vase.”

Lucien bit back a smile, his forehead creasing as his brows drew together. “Should we live in fear?”

“Just treat her like a princess and you’ll be fine,” Huntley said.

“You do realize that we’re standing right here, don’t you?” Lady Huntley asked, her arms crossed as she eyed both gentlemen.

“Heaven forbid we dare to forget it,” Huntley said, but when his wife opened her mouth, undoubtedly intending to make another rejoinder, her husband smoothly stopped her by asking if she’d do him the honor of partnering with him for the next set.

“Would you care to follow suit?” Lucien asked Katherine when they were once again alone.

She nodded her consent. “Just as long as you’re not issuing your invitation out of concern for your own head.”

“Not at all,” Lucien said. “I am merely trying to protect Lady Darwich’s crystal.”

Katherine laughed, her dark curls swaying as she shook her head with merriment. “You really are incorrigible, you know.”

Taking her hand in his, Lucien led Katherine into a country dance. “I’m beginning to realize as much,” he said with a wink.

“R
oxberry,” a female voice called once the dance had ended and Lucien was leading Katherine away from the dance floor. He recognized it immediately and was therefore not the least bit surprised to find his grandmother coming toward them.

She was looking quite elegant in a plum-colored evening gown, her hair wrapped neatly in a turban to match. “May I suggest that you keep your passion for your wife in check or you’ll have no choice but to run outside and cool off?” There was an edge of mischief to her tone.

Lucien heard Katherine wince beside him, or was that him who’d made that sound? Certainly his grandmother was known for being bold, so he really ought not be surprised by such a statement. And yet he was. They were out in public, for heaven’s sake! He coughed to conceal his slight embarrassment. “We were merely dancing,” he stated. “Nothing wrong with that.”

Hester Marvaine, Dowager Countess of Roxberry, gazed back at him unblinkingly. “You were looking at her as if you were quite prepared to gobble her up right there on the dance floor.”

“I most certainly was not,” Lucien protested.

“You most certainly
were,
” his dear grandmother insisted.

Katherine tugged at Lucien’s arm as if hoping to extricate herself so she could escape. He wouldn’t allow that. If he was to suffer his grandmother’s candor, then by God, so would she—for good and for worse and all that. He grinned.

“What’s so funny?” his grandmother asked.

“You are, of course.” The matriarch frowned. Clearly she did not approve of that notion. “After all, considering all the stories you’ve told me of your younger years, I cannot help but wonder if you’re not being a tiny bit hypocritical.”

Katherine gasped. “Roxberry,” she hissed. “Apologize to your grandmamma.” She turned toward the lady in question. “Please, my lady, I’m so terribly sorry.”

“Thank you, my dear,” the dowager said, her spine straightening a fraction, “but Roxberry does make a fine point, though I would like to remind you that things were different back then.”

“How so?” Lucien asked, unable to hide his mirth. He was having a wonderful time needling her, and the fact that she allowed it was what had always made him love her as dearly as he did. His mother would never have been so tolerant.

“Well, for one thing, there was a revolution going on,” his grandmother said.

Lucien quirked a brow. “I hardly see how French politics would have had any bearing on your discretion in regard to flirtation.”

His grandmother sighed as if he’d been the most obtuse person on the planet, and then to confirm the notion, she said, “No, I don’t suppose you would.”

Katherine groaned.

Deciding to salvage what little affection his grandmother held for him after such a discussion, Lucien reached for her hand and raised it to his lips. “Will you dance with me later?” he asked. “Perhaps a quadrille?”

His grandmother chuckled. “Only if you promise to remain on your best behavior. I won’t allow you to look at
me
like that. As a matter of fact, I’ll stomp on your feet if you do.”

Lucien smiled. “I promise to restrain myself.” He looked around. “Has Mama arrived, by any chance? I haven’t seen her yet.”

“She decided to stay home in the end,” his grandmother said. “Another megrim, I believe.”

Again? This was becoming a bad habit of hers—no doubt a result of the melancholy she’d been suffering since her husband’s death. Silently, Lucien made a note to address the issue soon.

“Oh, if you’ll excuse me, my dears, I’m just going to have a word with the Dowager Duchess of Kingsborough,” Lucien’s grandmother said. “Fetch me when it’s time for us to dance, will you? A quadrille sounds lovely indeed.”

At Lucien’s side, Katherine shook her head. “I don’t believe I’ll ever grow accustomed to the way in which you talk to each other,” she said as they watched the dowager countess walk away.

Lucien considered that. “No, I don’t believe I would ever have dared say such things to
your
grandmamma.”

“Good Lord, no! She would have eaten you alive!”

“I’m well aware of it,” Lucien grinned as he guided her toward the French doors leading outside into the garden. “In fact, there’s nobody else I can be so forward with—except you, of course.”

Turning her head at a slight angle, Katherine looked up at him, her eyes locking with his as they stepped out onto the terrace. The air was cool, the cloudless sky strewn with stars. “I do hope you’re ready for me to respond in kind.”

“I say, is that a challenge?” he asked as he guided her down some steps and onto a graveled path.

She shrugged. “If you like.”

“Hmm . . . I do believe I like it a great deal.”

“Well, then perhaps I ought to tell you my reason for bringing you out here.”

Lucien frowned. “I think you must be confused, since
I
was clearly the one who brought
you
out here, my dear. You accepted my arm and I guided you out onto the terrace, down the steps and to this very point on the path.”

“That’s just something you think, Lucien, when the truth of it is that I felt an uncanny urge to fling myself at you in there. I thought the cover of darkness would serve us better.”

Her impish tone made him laugh. “It certainly seems as if you’ve gotten the better of me.”

“Not yet, but I’m about to.” Giggling, she pulled away from him and raced around the corner of a neatly trimmed hedge.

Intrigued, Lucien hurried after her, his eyes squinting through the murky darkness until he caught sight of some fluttering silk. “Got you,” he said as he snatched hold of her wrist and pulled her toward him.

“Shh . . . ,” she whispered. “I would hate for us to be discovered.”

“And why is that?”

“Because then it will be at least another hour before I’ll be able to do this.” And twining her arms around his neck, she rose up onto her tiptoes, pressed her lips against his and kissed him with so much love and tenderness that he would forever look back upon this wondrous moment as one of many, in their happily ever after.