A Gentleman's Wager (3 page)

‘No, wandering about his garden,’ she said.

Louisa pushed the door a little too firmly and it slammed sharply. Tight-lipped, she glanced between Bella and the closet as if unsure what to say.

‘It’s not that bad. I watched him swimming in the river. That’s all.’ Bella had to hide her expression in the drapes. Louisa was something of a prude when it came to men. Gracious, Bella wasn’t even sure she’d ever kissed one. But just the thought of Lucerne Marlinscar – his creamy flawless skin, his long lean body dipping in and out of the water and his hand working over his beautiful erect cock – plastered a huge grin across her face.

‘That’s all?’ Louisa said stiffly.

‘More or less.’

‘Somehow, I don’t believe you. Even if he were swimming in the buff, you wouldn’t fret over meeting him this much. There’s obviously something else.’

Bella chewed her bottom lip and clenched her hands to stop them straying towards her thighs. She wondered how much to tell. She’d definitely skip the part with Mark. Louisa wouldn’t understand that; servants were just the people who did her bidding. As for Lucerne, she found herself surprisingly reluctant now that Louisa was asking, although all week she’d been itching to tell someone.

‘Confession time,’ said Louisa. She patted the lid of her trunk, a habit she must have picked up from her aunt. She stared expectantly at Bella, who remained on the bed.

‘All right, I watched him masturbate … watched him play with himself,’ Bella explained, uncertain that her friend would understand the word. She slipped her shoes off, and curled her toes into the cotton sheets of the bed. ‘He lay down on the river-bank after his swim, and he looked so peaceful, so … anyway, I couldn’t help myself. Now you can be shocked.’

Louisa didn’t look even slightly shocked. ‘Did he see you?’ she asked.

Bella frowned, puzzled by Louisa’s composure. In the past when Bella had tried to talk about men, her friend had generally turned scarlet and accused her of harlotry. Clearly she’d become used to gossip.

‘Well, we didn’t exactly get to formal introductions, but yes, he saw me. I think he might recognise me and I don’t know how he’ll react. Can you imagine the fuss Joshua will make if he finds out? He’ll probably try to stop me leaving the house.’

Their parents had died of influenza when Bella was just a girl, and Joshua had inherited the estate, the mine and guardianship of his sister. Barely a man, he’d had trouble controlling her, and she’d driven out one governess after another. Thankfully, these days Joshua trusted her not to get into too much mischief. Consequently Bella enjoyed more freedom than even her married friends did, for she was burdened with neither husband nor chaperone.

Louisa furrowed her brow. ‘You should have thought about that earlier.’ She picked up her linen and crossed the rug to the chest of drawers. ‘As I see it, either you can claim to be ill, which will look suspicious, or you’ll just have to brazen it out.’

Bella scowled at her back. ‘Thanks for your support.’

Louisa shrugged good-naturedly. ‘You do have a knack
of
making trouble for yourself,’ she said over her shoulder. ‘Anyway, you said Lord Marlinscar was bringing a friend. Any idea who it is?’

Bella shook her head. When Joshua had told her, she’d been too overwhelmed to pay much attention to details. ‘I think his name’s Wakefield.’

‘Oh!’

Louisa quickly busied herself with her undergarments. Bella peered curiously at her back for a moment, half-convinced she’d seen Louisa’s lips tug into a sly smile, then she slipped her feet back into her shoes and got off the bed.

‘I’ll go and see how long dinner will be,’ she said. ‘Come down when you’re finished.’

Viscount Marlinscar, six feet two, clothed and with the fire glow warming his pale skin, was every bit as delicious as Bella remembered. Her pulse fluttered in her throat as she stepped over the threshold into the parlour where Joshua was greeting him. Over breakfast, she’d been having doubts about the sense of watching him earlier, but now she didn’t regret it one bit.

‘Mister Rushdale. Thank you again for inviting us.’

‘Lord Marlinscar and Captain Wakefield,’ Joshua replied. He turned towards Bella. ‘Gentlemen, allow me to introduce my sister, Annabella, and our guest, Miss Louisa Stanley.’

Louisa dropped into a formal curtsey, but Bella was too busy wondering if she was about to be recognised and she barely gave Captain Wakefield a glance. She’d make up for her manners later.

‘Miss Stanley, we meet again,’ said the Captain softly.

‘You are already acquainted?’ Joshua asked, and his sharp gaze flickered back and forth between the two.

‘Yes, we travelled on the same coach,’ Louisa explained. ‘Captain Wakefield was kind enough to keep the rogues at bay. Well, the reverand, at least.’

Meanwhile, Bella met Lucerne’s eyes and saw an unmistakable flicker of recognition. She watched, temporarily dumbstruck, as he left the chattering group and stepped forwards to meet her.

‘Enchanted, madam,’ he said before pressing his bow-shaped lips to her fingertips. He studied her along the length of her extended arm, his azure gaze taking in each detail of her face and sparking the first traces of a blush across her cheekbones. ‘It is so nice to meet you again, Miss Rushdale,’ he said, under his breath so the others wouldn’t hear. ‘I already feel as though we’re acquainted.’

Bella snatched her hand away, but Lucerne’s smile didn’t waver. He took hold of her elbow instead. ‘Shall we sit down?’

Bella reluctantly let him guide her to the window seat; refusing him would draw too much attention. At least on the far side of the room they’d be out of earshot of her brother. She squeezed herself as far into the scuffed upholstery as possible, hoping he would take the hint that she didn’t want to discuss her misdemeanour, but Lucerne sat deliberately close.

Bella stared out of the leaded panes at the kitchen garden, presenting him with her profile. His gaze was making the hairs on the nape of her neck stand on end. She wondered if he thought he had a right to stare after she’d blatantly spied on him. She felt very uncomfortable.

‘Am I such a monster that you want to hide from me every time we meet?’ asked Lucerne.

Bella turned her head in response to his voice. Lucerne opened his eyes wider as if wordlessly repeating the question.

‘I don’t know. Are you?’ she said. Faced with his amused expression, her sense of unease evaporated.

‘Lord, I hope not.’

Bella shuffled forwards on the seat so that her skirt covered his knee. She noticed his attention shift briefly to the burgundy cloth, but he didn’t brush it off. Instead, he inclined his head towards her face again.

‘What were you doing in my tree?’ he asked with sudden candour.

Bella couldn’t prevent her sudden intake of breath or the nervous smile that immediately tweaked the corners of her mouth. Their eyes locked for a moment. A desire to laugh fluttered in her throat. ‘Daydreaming,’ she said mischievously.

‘Is that so?’ Lucerne favoured her with a smile that drove away the last of her fears of exposure. Apparently, their awkward second meeting was going to be a lot easier than she’d envisaged.

Throughout their lunch of soup, grouse and poached salmon, Bella strained to keep her eyes off Lucerne. It was hardly ladylike to stare at the man as he ate, but thankfully the conversation was mostly between Lucerne and her brother, and her interest went unobserved. Also unobserved, at least by Bella, were the intimate looks passing between Louisa and Captain Wakefield. It wasn’t until Lucerne pointed them out afterwards, as they strolled around the garden together, that Bella even gave the captain a second glance.

‘They seem quite taken with each other,’ Lucerne said, indicating the pair who were seated in the wooden arbour, out of the chill breeze that was gently buffeting the empty swing. The weak afternoon sun was streaming into the tiny shelter, flecking the captain’s light-brown hair with soft gold highlights and making Louisa seem
even
more fragile than usual. Bella supposed that they appeared quite interested in each other, but Louisa was always unerringly polite.

‘Are you attempting to match-make?’ she asked, and peered up at Lucerne. He shook his head.

‘Lord no, that would never do. Wakefield can barely afford his own upkeep, let alone set up house.’

‘Ah, but Louisa has money of her own. She inherited her brother’s estate.’

‘Did she,’ he mused, and rubbed a finger over his bottom lip and chin as if pondering something. ‘Still, society demands.’

Bella wondered if he thought his friend might be after Louisa’s money, but she didn’t voice the concern; nor did Lucerne, whose expression had become rather serious. Instead, she focused on Wakefield again, trying to see him as a prospective lover for her friend. He was pleasing enough to look at, straight nosed, clean-shaven with smoky-grey eyes. His uniform was rather lovely, though: all scarlet with a silver trim and gleaming silver buttons and gorget. Bella had no idea which regiment it represented, but it must have been very expensive.

‘Surely he isn’t penniless,’ she remarked.

Lucerne stopped walking and rested his hand against the section of trellis work supporting the sweet peas. ‘No, but his father left him debts and he has a few of his own, as well as four sisters to support.’ He paused for thought and suddenly his expression grew a lot lighter. ‘In any case, who said his intentions were honourable? We all know what soldiers are like – not as bad as sailors, but even so …’

Bella gave Wakefield a cold hard stare. She hoped he wasn’t stringing her friend along. She didn’t want to see Louisa married to some decrepit old man because the actions of some idiot soldier had ruined her.

‘How do you know he has any intentions?’ she asked Lucerne. Switching her attention to Louisa, she noticed that her friend did look rather smitten; there was a hint of colour in her cheeks that hadn’t been there at breakfast and clearly wasn’t a result of the cold air.

‘Because he regaled me with tales of her charms, their meeting and the tedious coach journey all last night.’ Lucerne yawned theatrically and brushed his blond hair back from his face. ‘No need to worry, though, it’s all above board and hopelessly proper. Just one chaste kiss outside the coaching inn, unless she’s mentioned something Frederick didn’t.’

Bella sucked her tongue, loath to admit that Louisa hadn’t confided a thing. ‘No,’ she said, and her voice sounded reedy and defensive. ‘She never even mentioned him.’ Instead, she’d let Bella ramble on about Lauwine being occupied when she’d obviously already known, having met Wakefield on the coach.

‘How long are you going to stay at Lauwine?’ she asked, deliberately changing the subject before her sour thoughts ruined her mood for the afternoon.

Lucerne shrugged his broad shoulders. ‘At least until Christmas, I’ve guests until then, and possibly until spring if I find plenty to entertain myself with.’

‘Do you ride? I could show you the best places to go,’ offered Bella, thinking of the many desolate stretches of moor where they could be alone together. There was a rocky plateau about three miles away where she’d first seduced Mark, which she thought Lucerne might like to see.

Lucerne tilted his head and moved a fraction closer so that she could feel his warm breath against her ear. ‘That could be fun; we’ll have to arrange a date.’

A shiver of excitement tingled in Bella’s chest and throat. She swallowed as his fingers brushed lightly
against
her upper arm, stroking gently over the pile fabric of her sleeve. He held her gaze a moment, then broke eye contact and pulled out his pocket watch, an ornate silver affair with a decorated face. ‘It’s time Wakefield and I were leaving.’

‘Already?’ Bella said, shocked by his sudden change of demeanour.

‘Yes, I’m expecting someone. We’ll have to finish our conversation some other time.’ He crossed the lawn to where Wakefield was sitting with Louisa, Bella trailing behind him. She wondered if she should mention going riding again. Maybe he was free tomorrow. The possibility made her feel rather panicked. Joshua emerged from the house and walked over to join them.

‘Now?’ Wakefield asked Lucerne. The Marquis nodded and Wakefield rose to his feet. ‘It’s been a delight meeting you all,’ he said, sharing a long slow look with Louisa and very brief nods to Bella.

Lucerne gave the three of them a rather more formal bow. ‘Thank you, ladies. Mister Rushdale. You’ll have to come to the hall soon.’ He touched his lips to Bella’s hand, holding her there a fraction too long for decorum.

Bella watched the men ride to where the lane curved out of sight behind the hedgerow, and then turned towards the house with Louisa.

‘Your journey obviously wasn’t that tedious,’ said Bella, trying to keep the accusatory tone from her voice. ‘I suppose the gouty reverend had driven the bit about making love to a young army captain out of your head, or doesn’t that count as an adventure any more?’

Louisa turned scarlet and bowed her head. ‘It wasn’t like that,’ she said rather quickly, and kicked a pebble so that it rattled on the flagstones by the front door. ‘We only met the night before last. I know hardly anything
about
him, but he mentioned Lauwine, so when you mentioned it as well I put two and two together.’

‘And didn’t think to tell me.’

Louisa nervously twisted her finger into one of her blonde ringlets. ‘What do you want to know?’

‘Have you kissed him?’

‘Once, outside the coaching inn. But that’s all.’

Bella opened her eyes and mouth wide, making a pretence of being shocked. ‘Louisa!’ she hissed. ‘What would your aunt say?’

Louisa didn’t take it as a joke. She covered her oval face with one hand, hiding her expression. ‘I don’t know,’ she murmured through her fingers. ‘Something horrid, I expect. That she should never have let me come here.’

‘You’re of age.’

‘I know, but you don’t know what she’s like. She thinks any man under the age of fifty is a libertine and a scoundrel who’s only after one thing, so the only men I meet are stuffy, balding, and fawn over me as if I’m some sort of doll. It’s maddening. Frederick’s six times as good as any of them.’