Engaging the Earl (7 page)

“Oh, Fanny.” Her lungs ached. “You have the right of it, of course. What do I know of this new Edward?”

“Nothing, my lady. And men return from war much changed.”

Edward had certainly changed. Who was he now? Was he the distant stranger who rarely gave her a second glance? Or the laughing, tender lover who’d just kissed her in the woods? More confused than ever, she followed Fanny out of the park and on toward home to receive her betrothed.

…

“Bloody hell.” Rand cursed, loud and foul. Six years—
six years
—had done nothing to temper his attraction to her. If anything, absence had solidified the pull between them. Kissing her soft willing lips had stirred something in him that he thought had died at Talavera. With Elena, the sex was always good, but it hadn’t gone beyond kinship and physical pleasure. Merely being in Kitty’s presence managed to twist something deep inside him. That she still had that kind of power over him shocked and disconcerted him.

In her plain dress, with her hair almost carelessly tucked under an unadorned straw bonnet, she couldn’t have looked more different than the glamorous peacock who’d commanded Sinclair’s drawing room. And she’d elected to take a solitary walk in the relative seclusion of Kensington Gardens, rather than reign over admiring crowds in Hyde Park during the fashionable hour. Strange behavior for a toast of the town. The lack of artifice did not detract from her appeal; in fact, she’d never looked lovelier. God help him. He was far from cured of Kitty Granville

Even worse, he’d kissed her after suffering another episode. As though losing himself in her eager warmth would somehow obscure the harrowing truth of the madness that haunted him. He shouldn’t have touched her, especially when he had nothing to offer her, except the very real possibility of a lifetime tied to a bedlamite.

Something wet slobbered against his hand, interrupting his internal rant. He looked down to find Vera practically smiling up at him, her water-sopped tail swishing back and forth. Kat had forgotten her animal.

“Come on then, you mangy whelp,” he said, not without affection as the dog frolicked alongside him. “I can’t very well leave you here.”

Picking up a stick, he threw it into the distance and watched Vera lope after it with a good-natured bark. He should be annoyed to find himself stuck with Kitty’s animal. Instead, he was happy for the company on the walk home.

As he and Vera neared Grosvenor Square, they encountered Toby Hobart, wearing the brightest blue tailcoat Rand had even seen, with an orange striped waistcoat beneath.

“How fortuitous,” Toby said, the sun glinting off his upswept coppery hair. “I was just coming from your mausoleum.”

“Hobart. To what do I owe your colorful presence?”

“I came to deliver an invitation to a country house party my mother is planning in a fortnight. She’s keen to have the most talked-about peer in attendance.” Vera’s restless whine drew his attention. “Is that Kat’s hound?”

“As it happens, yes.”

“What are you doing with her?”

“Lady Katherine and I met by chance in Kensington Gardens. She recalled a forgotten engagement and rushed away.” He was careful to keep his tone bland. “It was only after she’d gone that I realized she’d left the creature behind.”

“No doubt it is the garden party Nugent is throwing today that disconcerted her. If I don’t exert myself, I, too, will be late to the affair.”

“Don’t let me keep you. We wouldn’t want to leave Sinclair and his betrothed to their own devices for too long.”

Toby chuckled as he took his leave. “I daresay Sin wouldn’t mind. He’s absolutely besotted.” As Rand continued homeward, he wondered if there was any man who wasn’t under Kitty’s spell.

Beside him, Vera barked and nuzzled into his hand. The sour expression on his valet’s face when Vera trotted into the front hall behind Rand suggested Burgess did not share his affection for the canine. “Your solicitor awaits your pleasure in the parlor, my lord.”

“Yes, we have an appointment to go over matters related to the earldom.” Rand wasn’t sure which room in this mausoleum was the parlor. Had it been up to him, he’d have contented himself with a much more modest home in town, but a man did not decline a gift from his sovereign. “Send him to the study, will you, Burgess?” He trotted up the stairs and into his bed chamber with both Burgess and Vera following. “And see that our little friend here is bathed.”

Burgess made a moue of distaste as he regarded the canine, and Rand could have sworn the animal’s eyes narrowed in response. “Surely, you don’t mean to keep it.”

Pulling off his cravat and shirt, Rand rinsed his face and neck. “Indeed I do. See to her bath, if you please.”

Burgess placed a towel in the hand Rand held out. “If you had a butler, he could arrange the matter. An earl’s household should maintain a butler.”

“Why do I need a butler when I already have you?” He dried his face and neck with vigorous strokes. “A shirt, if you please.”

Burgess already had a shirt at the ready and handed it to him. “Your staff is inadequate to your station.”

“I should think a butler would challenge your role in this household.”

“Not at all. As valet, I’m quite safe from challenge.” He eyed Vera as she made herself at home, curling up into a ball on the carpet at the foot of the bed. “That creature has a most unpleasant odor.”

“Which is why she needs a bath.”

“I shall have a footman attend to her,” Burgess said with an exaggerated sigh. “I suppose you’d like me to confer with Cook about the evening meal?”

Rand pulled the door open and stepped through it. “I don’t see who else is going to do it. Unless you’ve gone and hired a housekeeper while I was out.”

“What you need, my lord, is a countess to oversee your household.”

An image of Kitty flashed in his mind. He shoved it away. She had no place in this bedlamite world of his. No. Everything was as it should be. Kitty would marry Sinclair, a man who was clearly devoted to her and could offer her a husband of sound mind.

“Just see about the dog, will you?” he said brusquely before slamming the door behind him.

Chapter Five

Kat remained distracted throughout the luncheon, replaying the taste and feel of Edward’s kisses over and over again. The intimacy in the park proved he wasn’t indifferent to her after all. Far from it.

Frustrated, she shook her head against the emotions swirling through her. The man had devastated her with his abandonment, yet she’d allowed him to kiss her, to touch her. Even worse, everything about this new Edward entranced her—perhaps even more so than the soft, sensitive boy who had left her. The sharp angles and long lines of his body, the almost harsh turn of his nose, all contrived to give him a dangerous edge that enthralled her.

The guests’ laughter brought her back to the reality of her parents’ intimate garden party. The small, amiable group included Bea, Toby, and their mother. And Laurie, of course. These days, he always seemed to be underfoot.

Guilt stabbed her at the uncharitable thought. As her betrothed, Laurie should be attentive. While he treated her with the highest regard and gentle kindness, she’d betrayed him by allowing Edward liberties Laurie would never think to attempt.

“Are you well?” Laurie’s solicitous voice broke into her thoughts.

“Of course,” she answered, while her conscience continued to berate her. “Why do you ask?”

“You seem out of sorts.”

She bristled inwardly, but answered with calm civility. “I am a little. I’ve misplaced Vera.”

That caught Toby’s attention. “Not to worry, Kat. I just saw that mutt of yours with Rand.”

Kat’s cheeks warmed. Cutting a guilty glance toward her parents, she found them engrossed in conversation with her aunt. “Oh well, thank goodness for that,” she replied in an easy tone. “I should go and retrieve her this afternoon.”

“Why would the earl be in possession of your animal?” Laurie asked, taking a sip of his wine.

“Fanny and I came across him in Kensington Gardens.” She favored her betrothed with an engaging smile—one that usually distracted him sufficiently enough to head off any uncomfortable exchanges. “Then I remembered you were due to arrive shortly, so I rushed back to prepare myself to receive you.”

It had the desired effect. The heat of interest sparked in Laurie’s admiring eyes as they ran over her. “You
are
in excellent looks today.” He reached for a hand and placed a kiss at her fingertips. “I’m a most fortunate man.”

“And don’t you forget it,” Kat replied in the playful saucy manner she knew he loved.

Laurie’s heated gaze held hers until Bea’s words drew their attention. “I am surprised Vera let you leave her behind.”

Laurie leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “It is peculiar. Usually the animal is stuck at your side.”

Kat frowned. They were right. She’d been so wrapped up in her encounter with Edward that she hadn’t given Vera’s strange behavior much thought. A most loyal creature, the dog rarely left her side. And yet the animal had instantly fallen under Edward’s spell. Apparently the man had the same effect on all females. It was strange, though, how staunchly Vera had stayed by Edward’s side—almost as if she were guarding him.

The gentlemen rose and followed Kat’s father to the library for drinks and cheroots. Kat’s mother and Aunt Winifred rose and headed to the parlor, leaving Kat and Bea alone in the garden.

Bea moved closer, taking the seat next to Kat with a conspiratorial expression on her face. “I saw the Amazon today.”

Bile rose in Kat at the thought of the woman who could very well be Edward’s mistress. “Where?”

“She was at Madame de Lancy’s.” The Amazon patronized the same fashionable modiste that Kat herself frequented? “You should have seen her in the dressing area, walking around without a care for modesty. She even took off her chemise when Madame’s girls took her measurements.”

Kat was truly shocked. “No!”

“Yes.” With a vigorous nod, Bea gestured to her own décolletage. “And they are enormous.”

Kat regarded her own modest attributes in that area. Had Edward compared her breasts unfavorably to the Amazon when he’d touched her intimately in the gardens? Chagrin arrowed through her at the thought.

“She ordered all sorts of things, even intimate things,” Bea was saying. “And you’ll never guess who she said the bill should be sent to.”

“Who?” Kat asked with a sinking feeling.

“The Earl of Randolph.”

Her stomach felt queasy. “So not only is she his mistress, but she doesn’t even attempt to hide the fact.”

“She didn’t announce it loudly or anything, but I was behind the curtain changing and I overheard her.”

Unable to contemplate hearing any more, Kat rose in a strident motion. “Let’s find Laurie and Toby and insist that they amuse us.”

Bea stood and linked her arm with Kat’s as they walked through the French doors that led into the empty dining room. “She was most kind.”

“Who?”

“The Maid of Malagon, of course.”

“You conversed with her?”

“Oh yes. Elena said we must go riding in Hyde Park.”

“Elena?” Kat’s eyebrow rose. “You are on familiar terms?”

Bea nodded. “I quite like her. She is most amusing. Fighting off an entire regiment of French soldiers. Whoever heard of a female receiving a commendation for war-time bravery? She is quite the heroine.”

…

The Maid of Malagon was also the topic of conversation between Laurie and Toby in the library. They stood off in the corner while the Earl of Nugent sat at his desk, conferring with his man of business about some newly-arisen emergency at his country estate.

Laurie eyed the amber liquid in his glass. “I gather she is Randolph’s mistress,” he said, not bothering to disguise his distaste.

“Most assuredly,” Toby answered.

Laurie thought of the proud, unapologetic way the Spanish woman carried herself. “Has he set her up in an exclusive arrangement?”

Toby laughed. “Not likely. No man will ever own Elena, not even for a contracted period of time.”

Somehow that did not surprise Laurie. Elena Márquez-Navarro did not seem particularly conquerable. He had to admit though—however inappropriate her public and private conduct—the Maid of Malagon was a handsome woman. Her appeal was nothing like the exquisite delicate beauty his betrothed possessed, of course, but she was an appealing specimen nonetheless. And the body on her. Only a molly would fail to take notice of her bountiful curves. “She’s a lightskirt then.”

“I wouldn’t say that. She is a woman not bound by any sort of convention. Elena does what she wants, when she wants.”

They were interrupted by Kat and Bea, who took them off for a game of whist. Later, when the time came to depart, Laurie lingered after the others had gone. Casting an indulgent look in his direction, Kat’s parents tactfully withdrew to allow them to say their good-byes in private. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Laurie pulled Kat into the cloak room beneath the stairs.

“What are you doing?” she hissed, darting a look at the servant stationed in the front hall. “What will the footman think?”

Pulling her into his arms, he inhaled the subtle scent of violets. “He’ll think I want to steal a kiss from my betrothed.” He nuzzled her neck. “And he’d be quite correct in his assumption.”

A delicate blush bloomed on her cheeks. “You are incorrigible.” Despite her stern tone, she relented a bit in his arms.

Laurie had been unaccountably randy all afternoon so he took advantage of her softening. Bringing his lips down to taste hers, he nipped at her lower lip before allowing his tongue to invade her mouth with slightly less restraint than he usually showed in her presence. She stiffened for a moment and then seemed to decide to allow him the liberty.

He pulled her body up against his so that they were touching from hip to breast, her soft chest pressing against his while his tongue stroked hers. What would it feel like to have Elena Márquez-Navarro’s ample bosom crushed against him? The unbidden image caused the temperature of his blood to soar. He broke the kiss on a muttered oath, mortified to have insulted his betrothed by thinking of the Spanish jade during such an intimate moment.

“What is it?” Kat whispered, her cheeks flushed.

He inhaled. “You are just so lovely that if I don’t restrain myself now, I fear I won’t be able to stop.”

Doubt flashed in her eyes, making him hate himself. “Are you angry with me?”

“Not at all.” He pressed a gentle kiss on her lips before guiding her out of their hiding place. “I just can’t wait to make you my wife so I can have you all to myself.”

Taking his leave, he bounded down the front outside stairs with his blood still running hot. For the first time in his memory, he was relieved to be out of his betrothed’s company. What was wrong with him? To think of the Spanish jade while kissing his future wife was the height of disrespect. He’d been faithful to Kat since before their betrothal, which could explain his body’s current state of agitation. And since the Maid of Malagon made no secret of being free with her favors, perhaps it was natural for a man to think of her in a carnal way.

His thoughts turned to Gentleman Jackson’s. Throwing a few punches would be just the thing to settle his body. Dismissing any further thought of Randolph’s mistress, he quickened his step in the direction of the boxing saloon.