Velvet Embrace (45 page)

"I don't know about that," John shook his head slowly. "People aren't so different from horses. They need patience and understanding . . . a firm hand sometimes, a loose rein others. I'd think about it carefully, Miss Brie. Your father would have been proud to have Stanton for a son."

Brie did think about it, but she had none of John's confidence about her future. Nor could she objectively view her relationship with Dominic. She would toss restlessly in her bed each night until she fell asleep, and then she would dream of him. In her dreams, Dominic would take her in his arms and make love to her till she thought she would die of happiness, but once or twice her fantasies turned to nightmares, filled with hatred and fear. Brie would wake, gasping for breath, still feeling the strangling pressure of strong fingers around her throat. It left her with a sense of foreboding that she found hard to understand and even harder to dispel.

Brie's relationship with Dominic was the subject of concern in yet another quarter, for Caroline was still determined to bring her cousin and the rakish Lord Stanton together.

Caroline had never learned precisely what had happened the night Dominic stayed at Greenwood—and she had wisely refrained from asking Brie about it—but she could tell
something
was different. Brie had positively glowed the next morning, and Lord Stanton had smiled at her in a way that was unmistakably intimate, his cool gaze softening whenever he looked at her. Caroline, who was no stranger to courting rituals since she had grown up with three older sisters, had no trouble recognizing the possessive interest in his eyes.

She spent several days contemplating what else could be done to further Brie's cause, but she was still dwelling on the vexing problem at the end of the week—even when she was supposed to be playing chess with Julian.

"The devil take it, Caroline, can't you keep your mind on the game?" Julian demanded as he neatly checkmated her defenseless queen.

Startled, Caroline looked up from the chessboard. "I beg your pardon, Julian. I suppose I am worried about Brie."

"Yes?"

"I . . .
I think she is in love with your friend, Lord Stanton."

"That doesn't surprise me. Dominic can charm the birds out of the trees if he puts his mind to it."

Caroline eyed Julian curiously. He didn't seem disturbed to have a rival for Brie's affection, for he was casually rearranging the playing pieces. "But I thought you were in love with Brie," she said doubtfully.

A smile curved his lips. "I was, once. A strong case of
calflove
, I've come to realize. Luckily Brie had the good sense to turn me down."

"Then you wouldn't mind if Brie married Lord Stanton?"

Julian shot her a disapproving glance. "This is hardly a suitable subject for us to be discussing, don't you think?"

"I don't see why not. We are her friends, and I for one am concerned for her happiness. Lord Stanton is said to be a rake and a womanizer and—"

"You aren't even supposed to know of such things."

"Well, I do! And I think it's horrid that girls are supposed to be blind to what goes on around them."

Julian tried to repress a grin at her sudden earnestness. "I expect the gossip about Dominic is greatly exaggerated. He just doesn't care what people say about him."

"Then you ought to help me."

"Help you? Help you do what?"

"Why, help me help
them
make a match of it, of course." When Julian laughed out loud, Caroline glared. "I don't see what you find so amusing."

"Caroline," Julian said patiently as he attempted to control his humor, "Dominic wouldn't thank me for interfering in his
affairs,
or you either for that matter."

"But we must do something!"

"I've already warned him not to trifle with Brie. If I say any more on the subject, I'll have to back up my words with pistols at dawn." When Caroline's eyes widened, Julian leaned back in
his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. "Besides, I'm not sure that we would be doing Brie a favor. Dominic has the devil's own temper at times, not to mention a tongue that can let blood faster than a rapier. Before this, I had always thought him too cold-hearted to fall in love."

"Then you think he returns her regard?"

"I don't believe there's any question that he's attracted to Brie, but whether he will marry her is a different matter entirely. He's always had a particular aversion to marriage."

"But why?"
Caroline persisted. "I can't believe that he simply hates women, not with all the affairs he is said to have had."

"No, he doesn't hate women. He just won't allow himself to trust them. I suppose it might have something to do with his mother."

"What about his mother?"

"To tell the truth, I'm not really sure. Normally Dom won't talk about her. But as I understand it, she deserted him when he was quite young—just walked out one day, leaving her husband and son behind. Shortly afterward Dominic lost his father, too."

"Oh, how sad!
Was it an accident?"

Julian shook his head. "Dominic's father was a French count who owned a large part of Burgundy—
Valdois
, I think the place was called. The
comte
was sentenced to death for murdering
a
woman who lived on the neighboring estate.

"Murder!"
Caroline exclaimed in horror. "Was he guilty?"

"Lord, I have no idea. Dom certainly doesn't think so, but he only told me the barest details."

"Surely there had to be proof of some kind."

"Caroline, it happened during that bloody revolution of theirs, when the French beheaded
their own
king. They delighted in chopping off the heads of anyone with blue blood, most particularly loyal royalists. I doubt if the Comte de
Valdois
was even accorded a trial. If so, it would have been a farce. Dominic is still bitter about it—and about his mother's

desertion
. To this day he refuses to see her or speak to her, and he won't acknowledge her existence if they meet in public."

"I can certainly understand why!"

"Well, the whole thing seems a little odd to me. I met Lady Harriet last year, and while I'd never say this to Dominic, I thought her a lovely, kind lady. She didn't strike me as being the type of woman to abandon her family for no reason at all. She's remarried now, and she appeared to be quite content with her husband."

When Caroline chewed thoughtfully at her lower lip, Julian leaned toward her and pulled one of her curls. "What are you thinking now, minx?"

"Lord Stanton simply must marry Brie. She will be miserable without him."

"Well, I warn you, there'll be no use trying to hurry him. Dominic has never been in love before. He'll be very cautious—and slow. He probably doesn't even realize that he's in deep water now."

"But what if he never realizes it?" Caroline asked, gazing up at Julian expectantly.

Julian settled back in his chair. "That is entirely possible. We'll just have to see what happens, won't we?"

It was several days later when they all left for London—Brie, Caroline, Katherine, Julian, and a number of servants. Two carriages were required to accommodate them and their vast array of luggage.

As they pulled away from Greenwood, Brie tried to remain calm, but there were butterflies in her stomach brought on by nervous excitement. Caroline, too, was in high spirits, and Julian could be heard whistling cheerfully as he rode beside the coach.

Only Katherine stared out of the carriage window, not sharing in the general mood of anticipation.

The hour was late when Dominic's coach reached London and pulled up before his townhouse in Berkeley Square, but he lost no time in sending a message to Jason. Some half hour later, the
Marquess
of
Effing
was ushered into the library.

Dominic offered his friend a brandy, and when they were both settled before the blazing fire, he raised his glass in salute. "I take it congratulations are in order? You certainly look less hag-ridden than when I last saw you."

Jason laughed. "I tell you, Dom, I've been through some harrowing experiences before, but nothing quite as frightening as childbirth. The doctor assured me Lauren had an easy time, but it scared the devil out of me. I was amazed at how calm she was. The pain she must have suffered! We may dub woman the weaker sex, but courage and determination aren't only male traits."

Dominic shifted restlessly in his chair. Odd, but he had been having similar thoughts of late. Brie had shown . . . but that would have to wait. Driving away thoughts of her, he returned to the subject. "And the babe, a girl, did you say?"

"Yes, a beautiful daughter. No, don't grin at me. She
is
beautiful, and so incredibly small. I expect she'll have Lauren's eyes."

Jason continued in the same vein for several minutes before
he recalled the purpose of his visit. "You have mellowed, old friend," he said with a chuckle. "My raptures have been boring you to flinders and you haven't once interrupted me. You want to know about
Germain
? Actually there's been no change since I last wrote you. He has recovered enough to talk, but so far he hasn't been inclined to divulge any secrets. I can take you to see him tomorrow, if you wish."

Nodding in agreement, Dominic then told Jason about
Boulter
and the recent events of the past weeks, though he avoided mention of Brie's part in the affair.

Jason's expression grew grim as he listened to the tale. "It's unfortunate that
Boulter
is dead," he said at the conclusion. "Did you get any information from him?"

"Only that he and his brother were hired to kill me. My guess is that when
Germain
failed, they followed me from London."

"And do you still think it has something to do with your activities during the war?"

Dominic nodded slowly. "That's the only explanation I can think of. But why go to so much trouble to make it look like an accident? No doubt
Boulter
had several opportunities to put a bullet through me. And
Germain's
challenge was contrived to look natural enough."