Charming a Spy (14 page)

“We do seem to be racking up confidences between us,” Kat laughed.

“Wait until our proposition begins in earnest,” he said. “You will soon have secrets much juicier than those. Much, much juicier.”

Kat’s cheeks blushed. There were people all around them. Someone could easily overhear them. But she didn’t really want him to stop.

“Your Grace, when shall we… learn more of each other’s revelations?” Kat asked.

“My eager Ms. Dubois,” he teased. “I’m looking forward to it also. Be patient.”

“But my brother…” Kat started.

“Patience,” he said.

“Guests, guests. May I have your attention?” Mrs. Grier said. “If you will take your seats, we’ll get started with the second part of the evening with wonderful performances which are sure to make your ears tingle with musical delight.”

“We will continue this discussion later, Ms. Dubois,” Geoff promised. “There’s no shortage of secrets to exchange,” he said under his breath so only she could hear as he went to take his seat.

‡

R
afe watched the
duke practically whispering in Katherine’s ear.

He hadn’t anticipated she would be such a little whore. Honestly, he had expected her to be a virgin, missing most of her marriageable years holed up in her house like a nun, stupidly waiting for her brother’s return. She even tried to play the prude when he kissed her earlier, practically having a seizure and almost biting his damn tongue near off.

But the guilty look on her face when he’d accused her of boffing the duke, told him he was right. He’d only said it in the first place as a delay tactic so he could figure out what to do when she threatened to run and tell her aunt. He didn’t expect it was actually true. But now watching the two of them, knowing how she’d reacted to his accusations, she was guilty as sin. Katherine Dubois was a lot of things, but pure wasn’t one of them.

Rafe was suspicious when Stamwell first started paying attention to Katherine. But at the time he wasn’t too concerned. He was, after all, only a man. Who wouldn’t lust after Katherine’s voluptuous body? Those enormous tits, curvy hips… she was practically born to be fucked.

Surely Stamwell wasn’t actually considering her for the position of duchess. She wasn’t cut out for the role. Katherine was too erratic, too brazen. He thought Stamwell would have his fun with her, but then would come to his senses and marry his sister, Jessica.

Rafe realized the error in his thinking when the duke had engineered the whole picnic outing so he would be driving alone with Katherine. If a man wanted to spend time with her talking, he might actually be interested in more than just sex.

Only one woman would become Duchess of Stamwell, and it was going to be Jessica. Rafe was one ceremony away from settling his debts and he wasn’t about to let some silly chit steal his chance of getting his hands on the duke’s money.

Rafe couldn’t hide from ruffians trying to break his legs any longer. He didn’t want to travel from city to city in order to find clubs that would gain his admission, and he wanted to return to London. Maybe even take his rightful place in parliament. In Rafe’s mind, it was time he got his life back. Therefore, no one could get in the way of Stamwell marrying Jessica, most certainly not some French slut masquerading as a British debutante.

His intention was to get Katherine to fall in love with him instead. He was going to give her a little taste of his honey and she’d grow sweet on him. But when the bitch turned around and stung him instead, Rafe decided to take a different route.

If he couldn’t remove Katherine from the marriage competition by wooing her himself, he would have to be more creative. Perhaps he could get her out of the picture in a different way… in a more permanent way.

‡

T
iptoeing through the
upstairs hallways, Geoff enjoyed the familiar thrill of sneaking around. Finally, the fun part of the job. No more picnics or parlor games, now it was time to get familiar with his suspect. Geoff had been looking forward to getting very familiar with Katherine all day.

He quietly opened the door to her bedroom and slipped inside. Geoff chose this room for her because it was one of his favorites as a child, always sunny and full of light. Now, though, it was pitch black. Geoff gave his eyes a moment to adjust to the dark.

The room slowly came into focus and then he spotted Katherine, curled on her side, a mass of chocolate-colored hair spread out across the pillow. She was sound asleep and looked so comfortable, for a moment he considered laying down beside her, spooning his body around hers. Instead, he moved to her side and laid his hand softly on her shoulder.

“Shhhhh…” he whispered. “It’s me.” Katherine was groggy but blinked awake and looked up at him through veiled lashes. Her eyes were gorgeous. Even in the dark, the emerald green seemed to glint.

“Geoff,” she said in a sleepy voice. He chuckled to himself. A man slips into her bedroom and awakens her in the middle of the night and Katherine doesn’t even seem surprised. Not much rankled her. “What time is it?”

“It’s a little after midnight. Don’t worry, no one saw me sneak in here,” he said.

“Are you here to… do you want me now?” That wasn’t his original idea exactly, but now that she said the words out loud he wanted it to be the plan. Not yet though. Business first.

“I want to talk to you about Luke. I’m sorry we didn’t have a chance to start our investigation with all of the activity today. I promised you I would start today and I always keep my promises.”

“Not always. Technically, it is already tomorrow,” Katherine said.

He laughed. “So it is. Will you allow me this little infraction?”

“I suppose I must since you are here now.”

“Shall we get started?”

“Yes, let’s. But I can barely see you in the dark.”

Geoff lit a candle on her bedside table. “There, now you can see me.” And Lord help him, now he could see her. The flickering candlelight cast her body in silhouette through her thin night rail. Her pert breasts shone through like two enormous ripe melons. Kat saw the direction of his gaze and grabbed a blanket, pulling it up over her chest. Just as well. He couldn’t concentrate with that particular temptation in front of him.

“Well, if this is the only way I can get your undivided attention,” she said, “we might as well begin our investigation.” The search had already been underway for some time, but she didn’t need to know that yet.

“Right,” he said, “Now tell me everything you know about what happened to your brother.”

“That’s the problem. I know almost nothing,” Katherine said.

“Well then… start at the beginning. Tell me about when Luke left for war.”

Kat took a breath. “It was an awful time. When Luke first told Aunt Ellie he was going to fight Napoleon, she locked herself in her bedroom for three days. She refused to eat, turning the maids away and wept from morning ’til night. But I knew Luke was determined. Once he set his mind to something, no amount of tears or screaming would prevent him. He was going to fight for his country.”

“I mean you no offense, but I must ask,” he paused, thinking about how he could most delicately phrase the question. Best probably to come out and ask. “Dubois. Isn’t it French?”

“Yes, my father was French. He was a diplomat. He met my mother at a regency ball and they fell in love.”

“So was it difficult for Luke to fight against his father’s country? To fight against his own people?”

“It’s funny. Until you just said that, it never even occurred to me he was fighting against his own people. I’m not sure it occurred to Luke either. At least not like that. He wasn’t going to war against France, he was going to fight Napoleon’s armies.”

“I see,” he said. Was she telling the truth? Could it really be Luke Dubois went to war with the French and had no thoughts of betraying his own father? Geoff pondered whether one could separate the country and the ruler.

In his own case, Geoff had absolutely no allegiance to the Prince Regent. He was a self-indulgent, erratic buffoon Geoff wouldn’t give the time of day, let alone his life. What Geoff fought for wasn’t England either. He fought because he wanted to prove to himself that he was worth more than a duke, but that backfired when Wickham pulled him out of the trenches for precisely that reason. Needless to say, if Luke really was fighting for England than he certainly had less selfish reasons than Geoff.

“He sent us a letter every week the first year. They were always so much fun to read. Even though he was probably seeing and experiencing horrors… ones we couldn’t even imagine… he would keep it light, send us stories about the small things. One time a kitten followed his regiment for so long, one of the soldiers finally took pity on him and put him in his coat pocket. Once warm and safe, the kitten took no time at all relieving himself in the soldier’s pocket.” They both laughed a little.

“I know he didn’t want to worry Aunt Ellie,” Kat continued. “The last letter we received from him said he may not be able to write for a while, but all was well. Of course, we heard about Corunna after the fact and figured he wouldn’t be able to write.”

“What happened then?”

“Nothing.”

“What else did you hear though?”

“Nothing.”

“Then you’re still only certain he’s alive because of this feeling you have?”

“I know it sounds crazy. But I know he didn’t die. I feel it. He is still alive.”

“If there is one thing I’ve learned in my military career it’s that you have to listen to your instincts, to what your mind knows without any facts,” he said.

“So you believe me?” Her voice held hope in it. Faith in him.

He hated it but couldn’t tell her everything. Not yet.

“I believe
you
believe he is still alive.”

“I do, Geoff. I really do. Which is why I need your help. I have spent many months asking everyone I can think what could have possibly happened to him. I’ve spoken to other men who came home from the war who said they had seen him before Corunna but not since. Government officials haven’t given me any information even though I’ve contacted many of them. That’s why I was so desperate and broke into the offices where you discovered me. When I met you and learned who you were, well, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to ask you for help.”

“I’m glad you didn’t resist,” he said.

“You are?” she asked, hopefulness lingering in her voice. If he weren’t careful, this chit could be his downfall.

“Yes. I think I may be able to help you get an answer. I’m not promising it’s going to be the one you want. I don’t know what it will be… honestly. But it will, hopefully, help you find some semblance of peace.”

“Thank you,” she said quietly, looking down at her own hands still clutching the sheets. “And your compensation?”

It was the perfect opening. Normally, he would take her in his arms and make love to her with fierce abandon. He would kiss her and lick her and suck her until she cried out in ecstasy and revealed her darkest secrets at the same time. Then he would leave the next morning without looking back. But this wasn’t normal. This was Katherine.

She was like no woman he’d ever known. Kat was daring… broke into buildings, she surprised him, and made his blood boil with the tiniest touch. She believed things in her heart without evidence of it and would do anything for the only family she had left. Ms. Dubois was more loyal and brave than most soldiers he’d met. He couldn’t bring himself to use her
that
way.

“I think I’ve erred,” Geoff said. “Agreeing to the proposition was a mistake. I will help you Katherine. But you don’t need to do this. I can’t make you.”

“You’re not making me.”

“But Katherine—”

“You’re helping me,” she interrupted. “And I want to help you. I want to give you pleasure however you wish. It’s all I can offer you in exchange for what you are doing, and I am giving it to you freely.”

“Katherine, you don’t know what you’re saying.” He had to stop this nonsense. Yes, he was a rogue and a spy, but somewhere deep down he was also a gentleman.