The Duke and the Dressmaker (The St. James Series) (6 page)

“Tell me your thoughts, Mother. I know you want to.”
Philip smiled cautiously, but he was anxious for any assistance with Sara’s problem.

“Some
one has to protect that girl. She is much more stoic about her pain than you would believe. She looks like she could break easily, but you should see the bruises on that poor girl’s body. Philip, it is awful. You need to do something about this.”

The more she talked, the closer she came to her son.

“Mother, what would you have me do? She didn’t tell you anything. I can’t go after a ghost. We have no idea what is going on. I am attempting to get information in other ways, but to no avail yet. And she is not forthcoming about her business.” Philip’s eyebrows rose as he stared at his mother.

“Well, you better make it our business, young man. How are you going to feel if she
turns up dead one day? Do you know how much guilt I will bear if that happens, Philip? You better act while you still can. She has no one. We need to help her.”

Philip
turned and stared out the window. “I intend to, Mother. Believe me, I will find out who is hurting Lady Downey.”

Chapter Ten

When Sara
awoke, it was morning. Where was she anyway? She peered around the room trying to recall what had brought her to this beautiful place. Memories flooded her mind. She stared at her left hand. Someone had splinted her finger. She cringed in pain as she tried to sit up. Now she remembered, she was at the St. James home. She recalled starting out to see the duchess, but she could not remember how she arrived.

As soon as she
attempted to get out of bed, a maid appeared in front of her. “My lady, you should not be getting out of bed. Her Grace will be very upset.”

“Well, I need to wash up and take care of certain needs.”

“I will help you, my lady.”

Sara did not want to give in
, since she never had a maid around to help her before. But she conceded that if she ever needed one, it would be now. Every bone in her body ached. After a bit of a struggle with her fingers and the water, she was finally able to feel clean. There was a fresh night rail on the chair for her to wear, but she could not get back into bed. There was simply too much to be done. She had two weeks to raise three times as much money. Sewing would not get done with her lying about. The maid, however, tried her best to get her back into bed.

“I am sorry, but I must go home. I have many things to do.” Sara
tugged at her shoes.

The
duchess strode in quietly and spoke. “Are you feeling better, Sara?”

“Why, yes, Your Grace, I am.
” Sara stood quickly and brushed the wrinkles from her gown. “I appreciate your help, but I really must be going. I have much sewing to do.”

“Remember, you agreed to call me Mary. Would you please do me the honor of coming downstairs and having breakfast with me? I am sure you must be hungry by now.”

Mary’s voice soothed her imme
diately. Sara realized the duchess was right; she was starving. What could it hurt to have breakfast before she left? She realized it would be rude to walk away without properly thanking her for her help. Breakfast would be a great way to accomplish that, and she had very little food at home.

“Of course, Mary, I would be delighted to have breakfast with you.” She followed Mary out the door and down the stairs
, her cloak over her arm.

The two sat in the
breakfast room. The maids served plates of eggs and ham, toast, and pastries with icing. Sara’s mouth watered. She had not eaten well ever since Stinky had arrived. She could not afford expensive food anymore. At home, she ate as little as possible.

The
duchess filled Sara’s plate. “Here you are, my dear. I gave you a bit of everything. We have a wonderful cook here. You must try her pastries.” Mary smiled as she set Sara’s plate in front of her and poured her a cup of tea.

“Thank you, Mary.” Smoothing a napkin on her lap, she settled her left hand on the table and took a sip of tea.
As soon as she picked up her fork, the duke entered. She couldn’t help but stare at him. The man truly was magnificent. His hair was dark, his eyes a warm blue. Everything about him was perfection, even his cravat. How did men tie those things anyway? When his gaze met hers, she almost choked on her food. Mary pretended not to notice her blush.

Sara set her utensils down to regain her composure.

“Good morning, Your Grace. I thank you for your hospitality last night. I remember little, but I am sure I owe you both for your fine care.”

The
duke sat across from Sara. “You are welcome, Lady Downey. But you certainly do not owe us anything. Well, other than an explanation for what happened to you. How did you end up in such a predicament?”

Sara swallowed hard and cast her eyes down. “I don’t understand, Your Grace
. What predicament?”

“How did you get yourself in such a state as to collapse on our doorstep? And who broke your finger? I realize maybe you were not comfortable talking about it with Dr. Newberry, but I think you should be truthful with us. I think we deserve that much, Lady Downey.”

The duchess brought her hand down abruptly next to her plate. “Philip, where are your manners? You will not bother the lady while she is eating. Your rude interrogation can wait.” The dowager glared at her son.

Philip nodded slowly.
“Of course, Mother, you are correct. I apologize, Lady Downey.” He accepted his mother’s chastisement without another word.

Sara ate timidly as the duke stared at her. Ris
ing from his chair, Philip retrieved a plate and filled it before taking his seat again.

“Sara, tell me, is there a friend you can stay with while you are recovering?
Is there someone at the boardinghouse who could assist you?” asked Mary.

Sara played with the napkin in her lap. “I am afraid I do not have many friends. Ever since my husband left, people tend to avoid me. You know how demanding the
ton
can be. I am now a working woman, and there is little appreciation for my place in society.” She then lifted her chin. “I will be fine, Your Grace. I appreciate your concern, but I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I have much work to be done.”

Philip curbed his tongue.
A broken finger and a bruised body and she planned on continuing to sew. The woman had an iron will. Perhaps she had succumbed to exhaustion yesterday. Was she that desperate for money? He reflected on his visit with the private investigator earlier in the week. The man better be a fast worker. He didn’t care how much it would cost. He wanted to know who was beating his woman.

His woman?
Where had that come from? Philip stared at Sara, shock running through his mind at his traitorous thoughts. The woman did have a way of making certain parts of his body stand at attention every time she was in the room. As a matter of fact, he wanted more food right now, but didn’t dare get up to go to the sideboard. He sat directly across from the siren, and she would surely notice if he stood.

What was it about her, anyway? No woman had this effect on him. Miranda could make him hard, but this was different. There were more emotions in play here, and he didn’t like it. He needed to remind himself
of the havoc the female gender was capable of causing in his life. He was determined to prevent that from ever happening again.

But right now h
e wanted to hold her, not just make love to her. He needed to soothe her, protect her, and force the fear out of her eyes. She was turning him into someone he didn’t recognize. Philip didn’t remember having the same feelings for Caroline. What was happening to him?

They ate in silence until
Emma strolled into the breakfast room.

“Oh, Lady Downey, I am so excited to see you.
” Emma ran over to the table, her face flushed with excitement. “Do you know when my gowns will be ready? I was really hoping for my pink one to be ready this week. There is to be a ball at the Earl of Ardleigh’s at the end of the week and the pink gown would be absolutely stunning for then. Philip is allowing me to attend, since he is friends with the earl, isn’t that so, Philip? He is going to escort me. I am so thrilled to be going. I cannot wait to see what everyone else is wearing. How many gowns are you making for the ball? Oh my goodness, what happened to your finger?” Emma pulled up short and stared with her mouth open.

“Emma, cease your chattering tongue, child
. You are exhausting Lady Downey just by your prattle. Stop, please. You will not be in attendance if you cannot demonstrate better manners.” The duchess pulled on her daughter’s arm and gave her a harsh look.

“I am sorry,
Mother. I am just a bit excited. Pray forgive me, Lady Downey.” Emma blushed.

“Emma, you are fine. I am working on your pink gown now. I plan to have it finish
ed for you midweek. Hopefully, if you could, we might schedule a fitting for Wednesday. That is why I need to get back. There is much work to be done.”

Sara moved to collect herself and made motions to get up from her chair.

The duchess stood quickly and grabbed her daughter’s hand. “Come, Emma, I need your help in the kitchen for a moment. Please excuse us, Lady Downey.”

Philip
thought to applaud his mother’s timing. She did have a quick mind.

“Now, Lady Downey, you were going to tell me what happened to you yesterday, were you not?” Philip
studied his companion. He was not allowing her to leave without some explanation. He hoped she understood that by his look.

“All right,
Your Grace. I will tell you what happened. But you won’t be happy. I cannot tell you much.” She took a sip of tea and set her cup back before locking her gaze on his.

“Please, let me decide that.”
Zounds, but the woman took his breath away. Her green eyes mesmerized him.

“It is very simple
. I am being blackmailed. I do not know who he is, just that he has threatened to break every bone in my body if I don’t pay him what he wants. As you can see, he has made a great start on my bones.” Sara didn’t pull her gaze from his as she held up her left hand.

Philip fought to keep his rage under control. He would kill the man.

“This man broke your finger?” He could hear his own pulse in his eardrums.

“Yes.
He was in to see me a short time ago and threatened me. Yesterday he returned and broke my finger.”

“Why is he blackmailing you?”

Tears stuck to the end of Sara’s lashes. She turned her head and stared at the sideboard. “I think that is my business and not yours, Your Grace.”

Philip reached across the table and
, with one finger on her jaw, turned her face to him. Tears spilled down her cheeks. He fought the need to pull her onto his lap and wrap his arms around her.

“I cannot help you if you are not honest with me
,” he whispered.

Sara sighed and twisted her napkin again. She pulled her face away from his touch and glanced at her lap.
“My husband was a gambler, apparently. He gambled when we were married and did not repay his debts. They have since killed him and now are expecting me to pay what he owed.”

“
Are you certain your husband is dead? This isn’t a rumor, is it?” Philip’s mind flew. Then where was his ex-wife? Would she be back?

Sara nodded, embarrassed.

“Fine, then I will pay him whatever he wants. Then he will leave you alone.”

Sara jumped from her chair. “No! You
mustn’t! He said if I told anyone, he would make me pay.” The fear in her eyes broke his heart.

“And what more could he do to you than to break every bone in your body, Sara?”
She was not thinking clearly. How could she not see what she should do? Why wouldn’t she let him handle it?

Sara’s face turned red as she closed her eyes
and turned her head away before speaking.

“Please,” she whispered. “
I could not bear what he threatened. Promise me you will not do anything.”

“Ah, yes, I forget there are worse things for a woman. Pardon my insensitivity, but I will not promise you any such thing. The man will never touch you again.”

Philip observed the woman in front of him. His heart broke at the fear in her eyes when he spoke of this man’s threats. He wasn’t quite sure how he would accomplish it, but he would protect her. The thought of another man’s hands on Sara Downey caused his blood to hurtle through his body at a speed he didn’t like. He would do everything in his power to prevent that cruel fate from happening again.

Philip stood and held his hand out to her.
“Come, I will escort you home, Lady Downey.”

“Oh, but I must thank your mother for her assistance.”

He remained standing with his hand outstretched. “I will convey your appreciation. You probably would not want Emma to see you right now. I will take care of everything.”

Sara stood and placed her hand in his.
A warmth she had never felt before swept through her body. She looked closely at him. Who was this man?