The Mysterious Governess (Daughters of Sin Book 3) (12 page)

As long as the means justified the glorious outcome she had in mind, she’d be forgiven. It was only natural Sir Aubrey would wish to reward her bravery in seeing him vindicated, his reputation restored and Lord Debenham branded the villain he really was.

Her family would forgive her for the same reasons. And Araminta would be the beautiful consort at Sir Aubrey side, responsible for his rise from beleaguered politician to one of the leading peers in the land. Only last night Araminta had heard whispers that the health of the ailing, childless uncle to whom he was heir had taken a turn for the worse.

The strains of Haydn drifted across from the orchestra, mingling with the aroma of roasted chestnuts from a nearby brazier. Araminta felt almost giddy with her own boldness but as she raised her hand to knock, her courage almost failed her, which was rare indeed.

Then she thought of his astonishment when she presented him with the letter, and of the kisses he’d rain all over her as he begged her to marry him; and excitement curdled in her belly. She was conscious of a tremendous heat between her legs, similar to the sensations she’d felt when Jem had been so overcome with desire that he’d all but kidnapped her before kissing her so passionately in the tavern. She pushed aside the intruding memory of Lord Debenham’s kiss in the hackney carriage shortly afterwards. She couldn’t deny the excitement she’d felt at the time, but upon reflection she was glad she’d pursued the safer option: Sir Aubrey.

Quietly, she turned the door knob and slowly opened the door. Her moment had nearly come. Soon, Sir Aubrey and she would realize their shared destiny. Yes, indeed, victory was about to be hers.

With heart beating wildly, she stepped across the threshold. In just a moment she would drop the gauze veil and Sir Aubrey would spring to his feet in a blaze of hungry ardor that she’d so boldly taken steps to be alone with him.

She put her hand to the ribbons that tied the veil in place and her heart beat even more wildly. Her body was on fire. There he was, sprawled upon a sea of cushions, it appeared, his eyes lust-laden as he focused them on her. He’d obviously heard her enter for he swung round, still sprawled amidst the cushions. He didn’t even rise though the wicked glint in his eye made up for that.

And then he spoke. Words that stole the breath from her lungs and left her crazy with dismay. Then blood lust.

His voice was a low growl, dangerous with desire. “Hetty? Is that you, my darling? Come! My, my, so this is what you had in store for me.”

A
cool breeze had sprung up. Cosmo rubbed his hands together as he and Lissa decided the final points on how to proceed, beneath an overhanging tree branch upon which two lanterns swung.

“I predict rich pickings, Miss Hazlett,” Cosmo remarked happily, encompassing the supper house a few yards away with a sweep of his arm. “Why, they’ve not even gone to the trouble of putting out the lantern hanging by the entrance. Very accommodating.” He chuckled. “You must make detailed sketches of their clothes so their identities might be further verified. Mrs. Crossing’s, in particular. Her husband is an exacting man.”

It was at this point Lissa realized she could not go ahead with the arrangement.
An exacting man
. Earlier, as she’d watched from the darkness while Mr. Crossing and Cosmo had talked near the rotunda, she’d been struck by Mr. Crossing’s belligerent manner. Even from a distance he’d appeared a frightening man, broad-shouldered with a massive head upon a bull-like neck. The way he’d waved his fists around reminded Lissa of two pork knuckles aggressively facing each other off in mid air.

Now she realized that she was about to become party to a situation that may well endanger the anonymous woman in that supper box.

“I can’t do it,” she whispered, raising her head to look at Cosmo. “Even if she is guilty, it’s not right.”

Cosmo’s mouth dropped open, as if he truly were caught by surprise. “What do you mean, you won’t do it? You’re as motivated by the riches that will come your way as I am. Besides, I’ve made a pledge and the pair is only a stone’s throw away. You
must
do it. I can’t be made to look a fool.”

Cosmo put his hands on her shoulders and drew her into the light. He looked more panicked than menacing. “You
will
do it, otherwise I’ll tell Mama about your young man. You know you’re not allowed followers. I’ll tell her he’s been making improper advances and that you’ve encouraged him. Don’t think I didn’t notice the way you looked at him when he came to visit. And he at you. Something is going on. Well, let me tell you, Mama will happily shred
his
reputation, if you’re not so worried about your own. She’s very effective at that sort of thing. So do your job and do it well, Miss Hazlett, if you don’t want to suffer the consequences.”

Lissa shook off his grasp and rose. She hated this man who wielded his power in such a petty, tyrannical fashion. Of course, she could expose him and leave the Lamont household but the exhilaration she’d felt when Cosmo had unexpectedly thrust a sovereign into her hand after dinner had coalesced into a sense of her value and increasing power. He’d never have done such a thing if he’d not realized how reliant he was on her. Between his threats and the unexpected money, she saw that clearly.

So Lissa refrained from her impulse to flounce off into the night. To leave Cosmo, the Lamonts and London meant abandoning this arrangement, her only avenue towards independence.

“Your threats don’t frighten me, Master Cosmo, because I know you need me too much,” she said calmly. “But you will
continue
to pay me, as agreed, for if you do not, I have no incentive for staying or for keeping our arrangement secret.”

This had the desired effect. Of course he was frightened of exposure, though he hid it well enough. Just as Lissa hid her grave misgivings about what she was about to do as they trod the dark stretch of grass in silence.

Perhaps they would be confronted with a scene of perfect innocence. Perhaps the couple had slipped away already, unnoticed. She tried one final gambit. “This wasn’t what I agreed to do when I said I would do your sketches,” she whispered as they paused by a statue of a small boy. “It’s...so sordid. Please, Master Cosmo. Surely you can tell Mr. Crossing you never saw his wife. Just this once?”

“Do you know how much Mr. Crossing has offered?” Cosmo sounded determined. “Miss Hazlett, he has seen the detail in those sketches and tells me only a master could render such an exact likeness in just a few quick strokes. Do you realize how valuable this is? I can garner so many more such commissions. I can make a fortune from this!
We
can make a fortune, but we need to work together.”

He gave her a small push and she stumbled forward as he added in her ear, “Console yourself...you’re only recording the truth. If Mrs. Crossing is guilty of a misdemeanor, it’s
her
fault, isn’t it?”

It soon became clear that whatever was happening within the supper box was far from innocent. Lissa leapt back at the plaintive moan of ecstasy that issued clearly from the small wooden structure, while Cosmo dashed forward to investigate where a peephole might afford him a proper view.

He had to return to drag Lissa with him while she tried to block her ears to the sounds of joyful lovemaking within.

Cosmo drew her to the rear of the building. A back curtain was not fully drawn, and through a full inch of exposed window, a tangle of naked limbs could be seen on the banquette by the far wall. A single candle burned on a low table, bathing the room with light.

“How can I possibly draw something like...
that
?” Lissa felt ill with shame as she turned her head away. “Besides, I can’t see their faces.”

For once, Cosmo looked uncertain. Then a look of greed and prurience crossed his face. “I shall call you when they are finished and...putting themselves to rights. As long as they are identifiable, that should be sufficient. I can elaborate on what I saw, when I hand the sketch to Mr. Crossing.”

Lissa lingered, confused, her heart pumping. The gentleman had had his hand up the lady’s skirts and she appeared to be...liking it. Of course she knew how animals procreated but she’d never properly considered what human love-making entailed, though she’d certainly never have expected anything like this. The more she thought about it, the more disappointed she became. How could this brutish behavior resemble anything like love?

When she envisaged herself enjoying greater intimacy with Ralph she was swamped with tenderness. Her heart seemed to hitch in her chest during the quick, unexpected occasions she’d hugged him. An overwhelming sense of liking and trust had seeped right through her. She’d wanted to keep hugging him. Dear Lord, she’d have been horrified if he’d done anything remotely like what the man inside was doing to Mrs. Crossing. If indeed it
was
Mrs. Crossing.

But that’s what Cosmo was being paid so handsomely to ascertain, and Lissa was merely required to record what she saw. The truth. Could she make herself feel any better about it if she put it that way?

Soon Cosmo was back at her side, hurrying her back to the supper house, pushing her head toward the opening in the curtains. Now she could see quite clearly what was happening within and make out the distinguishing features of those involved.

The lady, who appeared young and very pretty, was retying her garter at the knee while the gentleman, who Lissa now saw was much younger than she’d believed, was angled behind her, doing up the buttons at the back of her gown.

Cosmo pointed at Lissa’s sketchbook which she’d withdrawn from her pockets and obediently she began to sketch. She was able to capture the limpid look of love in the young lady’s pale blue eyes. Though they were slightly protuberant, this did not detract from her prettiness. Her lips were moist and full and her flaxen hair curled over one shoulder. Every now and again, her lover would stroke her hand as she tidied her coiffure.

The gesture caught at Lissa’s heart. With her sketchbook resting on the window sill, her pencil flew over the parchment. She was unable to willingly do a bad rendition and besides, Cosmo knew she was fully capable.

Just as Lissa finished with a flourish, a gasp made them raise their gazes and focus again on the scene inside.

Perhaps the young man had caught a tendril of hair in the top button of the young lady’s dress, for she gave a little yelp and turned her head toward him. Lissa caught the moment they locked gazes and the look they exchanged was one of such tenderness, she nearly dropped her pencil.

Without a word, the young man took the lady’s face gently in his hands and kissed her lingeringly on the mouth. The night was silent and quite clearly they could hear him utter the words, “If I can’t be with you forever, I will die.” The young lady closed her eyes and pulled him down beside her so she could rest her head upon his shoulder. He stroked her cheek and went on, his tone lower but more urgent, “Promise me you’ll have courage. That you’ll be waiting at the docks for the first Dover crossing of the coming month.”

The young lady gave a short sob as she twisted in his arms to look at him. “How can I bear the wait? How can I bear the thought that I will see you again in public but not be able to acknowledge you?”

“Because that is the only way forward. The only way we can be together.” He took her shoulders and helped her to rise, looking down at her with tender desperation. “I shall send you a note regarding the tides, but only the one. Otherwise it’s too dangerous. You won’t lose heart?”

Lissa sent a panicked look at Cosmo who firmly removed the sketchbook from her grasp. He then put his hand on her shoulder to steer her away as the young lady’s reply drifted across the silence. “I would take any risk to be with you, my darling William, for each beating from Mr. Crossing only hardens my resolve.”

Lissa pulled out of Cosmo’s grasp as he drew her with him across the grass towards the rotunda. “You can’t give the sketch to Mr. Crossing after what you just heard!” she protested. “Mr. Crossing beats her! You can’t blame her for taking a lover. She needs to escape.”

“Don’t be such a ninny. She’s dishonored her husband. Mrs. Crossing belongs to Mr. Crossing, and he can do to her what he likes. If he beats her, it’s because she deserves it. I would, if I were her husband and she disobeyed me. I’m only too glad we could aid Mr. Crossing in his quest for justice for he acts quite within the law, and you know it.”

Lissa could barely speak for anger. She tugged at Cosmo’s arm, as he started to walk on. “Mrs. Crossing is running away because her husband is so cruel to her. Can you not understand that’s what she meant? She’s in
danger
. You can’t risk her safety and future happiness.”

“She should have thought of that before.” It started as a sneer but was spoiled when Cosmo sniggered, and Lissa was reminded of one of his infantile sisters. “I think I can sting him for four times what he promised, now that I’ve recorded everything.”

***

I
f Araminta had been able to indulge herself, she’d be sobbing her outrage in the safety of her bedchamber, on her soft feather mattress, with Jane not asking any questions but waiting on her, nevertheless, with warm possets and soothing concoctions. Though perhaps something stronger would be more in order.

She’d certainly not be standing here, feeling as vulnerable as she ever had, with this...dangerous gentleman regarding her with quiet interest.

She drew in a shuddering breath and tried to smile.
Pretend to like what is happening
, she told herself. Pretense was everything.

The truth was, though, that the glittering life that had beckoned to Araminta from a shiny platter heaped high with promise lay in a heap of cinders.

Cinders, like the charcoal remains of the letter she’d taken from Hetty and which she’d tried to use to make Sir Aubrey understand where he must direct his honor. Everything had moved so quickly in the past half hour. Sir Aubrey had thought Araminta was Hetty, and that could not be forgiven. Dear God, he’d taken Araminta’s virtue and so what if he’d mistaken her for her sister, dressed as she was in an identical dress and shrouded with a veil as she’d thrown herself upon him? He was more than ready for her when she’d impaled herself upon his pulsing, rock-hard member in her supreme sacrifice for the good of her family.