The Devil Rogue (35 page)

Ian could sense the anguish the king felt, saw the pain of his past actions cloud his eyes
.
“How long were you imprisoned?”
he asked quietly.

“Five years, until I escaped with the help of
good men who’d remained loyal to me
.
Eventually I was able to overthrow my cousin, but it took many years to restore my country to its former prosperity.”

“You could have written, at least told Angela the truth.”

“I did write
to
her
.
By the time I had ousted my cousin from
power
, Anna was already dead, but I did write to our daughter
.
It is only now that I have learned the baron kept the
letters
from her.”

Ian suddenly remembered something the baron had said
.
“You don’t know what I’m up against now.”
He almost felt sorry for the baron
. A
lmost.

“
Yes, I know, this whole thing has been entirely too tragic,” the king said
.
“
But
I
hope to make amends
to the best of my ability.”

Ian felt a strange kinship with this man, knowing what it was like to want desperately to make amends to Angela
.
It yet remained whether she would be able to find it in her heart to forgive either one of them
.
Her father had a
relatively
plausible
excuse
based on
his account of events beyond his control
.

Ian
strongly
doubted a spiteful need for revenge was just cause for his
own
actions.

“Now, I wish to know what your intentions are with my daughter,” the king boomed in his accented voice
.
“Even as an absent father, her welfare is of the utmost concern to me
.
It has come to my attention
that she is at present
your mistress.
”
His brows dr
e
w together in a disapproving frown.
“This
distresse
s
me greatly
.
”

“I’ve already asked for her hand in marriage, your majesty, but she refused me.”

“Refused!” the king barked
.
“On what grounds?
”

“She was merely apprehensive
to
enter into a life of cruelty such as she’d known with her stepfather, I believe
.
She said she didn’t wish to be under any man’s thumb
. T
o me,
it
equates to her
dread
of that
same
fate
.
”

“She must marry you
. S
he shall marry you, even if I have to force her into it!”

“No, you must
n
o
t, your majesty
.
That would be the worst thing you could do
.
As you
have
no doubt
guessed
, I
’
m in love with Angela
. I’ve
been trying to coax her into accepting my proposal
. T
here are some details about my initial interest in her that she is unaware of
.
I fear she may reject me altogether when she
learns
the truth.”

The king waved his hand in dismissal
.
“
I already know what you have done
,
this scheme that has woven your lives together.”

Ian’s eyebrows raised in surprise
.
“How
—
”

“I have people everywhere, lad
.
Do you think I would have allowed my daughter to
be in any kind of danger
?
Even though I did not approve of your method
s
, you have prove
d
yourself
a good and loyal friend
to this John Winston. You’re
a man who is not afraid
to seek out those who caused his death.
”

“If she will have me, I’m determined to marry her,” Ian
said
.

“This I believe, my good man
.
It is time we get you home
.
” The king’s voice was kind, as he said, “
What say you we form a united front and give her this news together?”
He leaned forward in a conspiratorial manner, his mouth quirked in a lopsided smile
.
“I may be the ruler of a country, but I’m still a nervous father about to confront a long lost daughter.”

Ian
laughed
, liking this man who may very likely become his father-in-law
, if all went well
.
“
Your wish is my command, your majesty.”

5

Villarreal / The Devil Rogue
                                     

Chapter
2
1

ANGELA SAT QUIETLY
reading in the library, her
stockinged
feet tucked
beneath
her skirts
.
Sprinkles
lay
curled in a furry little ball on her lap
, t
he sound of his gentle purring len
ding
a feeling of serenity to the moment
.
H
er body absorb
ed
the
familiar
hypnotic cadence
,
confirmation
of a contented kitten
.
S
he’d never
had
a pet before
.
The
B
aron had been too vicious a man to risk having
one
in the house.
Sprinkles had been a gift from Ian, and
she loved
the
wee
thing
already
.

Ian had called her to his study
that afternoon
, presenting her with a round wicker basket
.
It was covered by a downy
,
blue blanket
with
a big
,
blue bow
tied to
the handle
.
The small lump
be
neath the blanket
had moved slightly, followed by a
rust
y meow
.
When she
’d
pulled back the
covering,
there was a kitten inside
. He was
black with white paws, and a sprinkling of white spots around his face.

“Oh, how utterly marvelous!” she
’d
exclaimed, picking
up
the kitten
,
cradling him in her arms.

Ian cleared his throat
.
“
S
ince you’d gone to so much trouble in your attempt to rescue that
‘
other
’
kitten,
I thought
maybe you’d like one of your own.”

“I’ve never received such a thoughtful gift
,” Angela said, her eyes prickling with tears
.
“
Thank you, Ian
.
” She snuggled the kitten close to her chin
, savoring
its warmth and
the softness of
its
fur
.
She smiled wryly.
“You must have realized by now there really was no kitten
.
It was just an excuse to hide what really happened
—
”

“Yes
,
I know, princess,” Ian said
in a gentle
voice
.
“But if there ever were a kitten in danger, I
have no
doubt
s
you would gladly rescue it.”
He smiled down at her.

She held the kitten up, his back paws dangling
.
“I think
I shall
call you Sprinkles, little one, because of all the white spots on your face
.
It looks as though you just stuck your n
ose in a bowl of powdered sugar.
”

“It’s an apt description, indeed
,”
Ian
s
aid,
chuckl
ing
.
“
Sprinkles, it is.”

Angela
tucked
Sprinkles into the crook of her arm,
and
approached Ian
. When she was
close enough
, she rose
onto her
tip-
toes and kiss
ed
his lips lightly, tenderly
.
“Thank you so very much, Ian,” she whispered
against his rough cheek
.

His arm
snaked
around her waist, holding her against the
unyielding
wall of his chest
.
Looking down into her glittering eyes, he said
in
that
deep,
throaty
voice
of his
, “It was my pleasure to
charm
you with such a
simple thing.”

H
e kissed her gentl
y
, his lips warm and firm
.
Then he deepened the kiss, his tongue
insinuating itself oh, so wickedly into her mouth, tangling deliciously with hers.

She sighed against his lips, a shiver running through her body
as it
quickened to a
familiar state of arousal
.
Sprinkles g
ave
a rusty meow of protest from between their embracing bodies, changing the moment
.
They broke apart, laughing over
their neglect of poor Sprinkles in the midst of their passion.

“I shall take him to the kitchen and see what I can find to feed him,” Angela said.

“I believe a saucer of milk would mollify him, after such carelessness to his sensibilities,” Ian
suggested.
“I have a bit of business to tend to, so I
shall
see you later
.
It should take no more than an hour or two.
”

That was the last Angela had seen of him, having counted the third hour passed since he’d left
.
She’d gone to the kitchen, procuring a saucer of milk for Sprinkles
.
Mrs. Olsen, Mrs. Brown, Rosemary, and the rest of the household staff cluck
ed
and coo
ed
over what a ‘tiny sweet thing’ he was.

Mrs. Haversham and Conners were there too, fussing over Sprinkles
.
They’d been settled comfortably in nice rooms on the third floor, except for Viola, who’d been given a room on the second floor, so she wouldn’t have an extra flight of stairs to traverse
.

Ian was obviously not the cold-hearted tyrant his reputation implied.

The three
aging servants
had integrated well into the household, with Mrs. Haversham happy to assist Mrs. Olsen in the kitchen
.
Mrs. Olsen, in turn, accepted the other woman’s presence in her territory with a warm welcome, claiming an extra pair of hands gave her a much needed
reprieve
.
Connors was assigned to work with Phillips, as a sort of mentor to the young man, teaching him the finer aspects in his role as doorman and butler
.
The two seemed to get along quite well,
with
Phillips looking toward the older, more seasoned veteran with awe and respect.

Bringing Sprinkles along for company,
Angela had
retired to the library to await Ian’s return
.
When she’d received his
earlier
summons to meet with him in the
stud
y, she’d
hoped
,
with no small amount of anticipation
,
that
he might propose marriage again
.
Instead he’d presented her with this precious gift, distracting her mind from the subject.

The words on the page blurred as
she
wondered for the thousandth
time what could be keeping Ian
.
The soft rustle of skirts coming from the doorway drew her attention from the page she’d been trying
without success
to read.

“May I join you?” Lady Blackridge asked politely.

“Yes, of course,” Angela said, closing the book
.
“I’ve just been reading the same few paragraphs over and over, anyway.”

“What a sweet little kitten,” Lady Blackridge said, noticing Sprinkles on Angela’s lap
.
“Where
ever did you find him
?
It is a
he
, isn’t it?”

Angela smiled at the viscountess
.
“Yes, it’s a he
.
His name is Sprinkles
.
He was a gift from Ian.”

“What a terribly sweet gesture, and not at all like my son,” Lady Blackridge said with a soft chuckle
.
“He has certainly changed since you arrived.”

“Changed?”
Angela could hardly believe she was having any civilized conversation with the viscountess at all, let alone one that included her son as the main topic.

“You’ve had quite a positive influence on him, my dear
.
You’re the first woman he has ever made an
y
kind of effort for, and the only woman he has invited
in
to his home.”

“It wasn’t so much an invitation, my lady,
as
a business agreement,” Angela replied, trying to keep things in perspective
.
Her heart was beating a little faster, caused by the viscountess’s words
.
Angela
was afraid to hope that she meant much more to Ian than just a temporary fling.

“No doubt it started out that way, but it is obvious there is more going on in his head and his heart
where you are concerned.
”

“And what are your feelings on the matter, my lady?” Angela inquired cautiously.

“I cherished your mother’s friendship, Miss Hopkins
.
I see much of her in you
.
Perhaps when certain mysteries are solved, you’ll have a better concept of who you are
.
I like you very much, as you remind me of Anna, but my wish is for my son’s happiness
.
” She
smiled broadly
.
“But, i
f the two of you are destined to be together, who am I to say nay?”

Angela realized that the viscountess had done no less than give her approval and her blessing if a match should result between Ian and herself
.
It lifted her spirits, and her hopes, and she dared to dream of a future with Ian.

A sound in the hall caught
their
attention before t
he door to the library crashed open,
slamming against the wall behind it,
tearing the smile from the viscountess’s face, and
scaring the wits out of
Angela
.
Carefully, she placed Sprinkles on
the
cushion beside her
and stood
as
T
he
B
aron stalked into the room carrying a pistol
.
It was aimed directly at her.

Lady Blackridge also stood.
“What is the meaning of this?”
Her voice was strong and steady, unlike the way Angela was feeling at the moment.

“Why,
your ladyship
, I’m here to collect my insurance policy,”
T
he
B
aron stated with cold determination
.
He gave the viscountess barely a glance as he continued to glare at Angela.

The gleaming intensity in his pale eyes was terrifying,
sending panic shooting through
Angela
, paralyzing her limbs
.
He was a desperate man, capable of anything,
his gaze fevered with the flames of insanity
.

“What do you want?”
Anglela
asked carefully, trying to remain calm
.
She knew instinctively that in his state of mind, anything could set him off.

“I want you, dear step-daughter, to walk out of here with me.”
The gun in his hand remained leveled at her chest.

Angela silently acknowledged his use of the term
step-daughter
.
“
I will go with you,
as long as you
don’t
harm
any
one,” she said in a soft tone of voice.