The Naked King (7 page)

He broke the kiss off too soon; she moaned a little in protest.

“Shh, love,” he whispered, his forehead resting against hers, “we are about to have company.”

“What?”
Her eyes flew open, and she scrambled away from him. She looked around; Madam Celeste was standing in the doorway to the dressing room area, laughing.

“Oh, monsieur, you must save your lovemaking for a place more private. What will mademoiselle think of such carryings on by her sister?”

Stephen took Anne’s hand and tugged her to stand next to him. “She will think the truth, won’t you, Evie? That I am head over heels for Lady Anne.” He pressed a kiss to Anne’s palm. “And now I believe Lady Anne is ready for you to take her measurements, madam. Come sit with me, Lady Evangeline, while we wait.”

“But . . .” There would be no hiding her meager proportions in Madam Celeste’s fitting room.

“Come.” Madam Celeste stepped aside and gestured for Anne to go first, probably so she couldn’t turn tail and flee. “We will free you from that drab cocoon and turn you into the butterfly, oui?”

If only that were possible. Anne looked at Mr. Parker-Roth and Evie. They both made shooing motions, urging her to go off with Madam Celeste.

Ah well, it was clear she had no choice in the matter. She’d have to submit to Madam Celeste’s transformative abilities, even if she emerged only a rather ungainly moth.

She took a sustaining breath and led the way back to the dressing room.

Chapter 5

“Will Madam Celeste really be able to get a ball gown made by tonight?” Evie flushed and looked at Anne. “I mean two ball gowns, of course.”

“I told her to do yours first, Evie,” Anne said as they climbed the steps to Crane House. “I can wear one of my old dresses.”

“No, you can’t.” Evie looked at Stephen. “You won’t let her do that, will you?”

“Of course not. There is no need to worry, however. Celeste will have gowns done with time to spare. She is extremely gifted and has exceptionally talented assistants.”

He reached for the doorknob, but before his fingers could close around it, the portal was flung open and a very untidy looking butler was revealed on the threshold. His cravat was askew and his hair was disarranged as if he’d been running his hands through it.

“Hobbes,” Anne said, alarm clear in her voice, “whatever is the matter?”

“Oh, my lady, I—” Hobbes tried to assume a stoic, butler-ish demeanor, but failed miserably. He wrung his hands. “The young gentlemen have gone missing.”

“Gone missing?! What do you mean, ‘gone missing’?” Anne asked sharply, pushing her way past the luckless butler and looking around the entry as if the boys might be hiding under a table or behind a chair. “Where could they have gone?”

“I don’t know, my lady.” Hobbes looked at Stephen like a drowning man going down for the third time.

“You don’t
know
?” It was a wonder Anne didn’t grab Hobbes by the neck. The man clearly feared such action; he stepped back out of reach.

“Anne, if Hobbes knew where the boys were, they wouldn’t be missing.” Giving the man an apoplexy wasn’t going to help matters.

Anne looked as if she wished to tear Stephen’s head from his shoulders. “I know that, damn it.” Tears filled her eyes.

“Anne, this is London,” Evie began, “I can’t think—”

Anne cut her sister off. “Exactly. This is London where all manner of villains live. It is not the country. The boys know their way around the country, and everyone knows them. But here—they may be trapped in a narrow alley by a gang of thieves at this very moment.”

It looked as if everyone, including Hobbes, was going to cry.

“Anne, we are in Mayfair, not Seven Dials. I don’t believe we need fear for the boys’ safety.” Stephen turned to Hobbes. “When did you discover them missing?”

“About ten minutes ago, sir. And I should say the dog is missing as well.”

“Ah, there’s your answer,” Stephen said, looking at Anne. “The boys took Harry for a walk.”

“But wasn’t one of the footmen supposed to do that?” Anne asked Hobbes. It didn’t bode well for whichever hapless footman had failed in his duty.

“Yes, my lady. However, Miss Strange wished some furniture rearranged. Charles, a very responsible lad I must say, let the dog out into the back garden, but the animal was not content there. Lord Rutledge and his brother said they would take it to the park in the square, and Miss Strange agreed.”

“Where
is
Cousin Clorinda?” Evie asked.

“She went to visit Lady Brentwood, my lady, shortly before the young men went missing.”

All the color drained from Anne’s face. Now what was amiss? She looked as if she were on the verge of collapse again. Stephen took her arm. “Have you sent anyone to look for the boys, Hobbes?”

“Aye. Charles and the other lads searched the square thoroughly, sir. They have just returned. We were going to send for Miss Strange when you arrived.”

“Clorinda will be of no help,” Anne said, jerking her arm out of Stephen’s hold. She appeared to have shaken off whatever fit had befallen her. “We need to expand the search at once, spreading out in all directions. I will go—”

“You will let Hobbes and the footmen attend to it,” Stephen said firmly. He turned to the butler. “Send men out as far as Park Lane and Oxford, Mount, and Bond streets. If they still don’t find the boys, have them regroup and try farther afield, but I strongly suspect young Philip and George will come home on their own in a little while.”

Hobbes looked very relieved to be given orders. “Very good, sir.”

Anne was not relieved; she was incensed. “You are far too highhanded, sir. My father put me in charge of my brothers’ welfare; of course I will help in the search.”

“The footmen will do very much better without you.”

“They will not.”

He was not going to waste time arguing with her as she clearly was not of a mind to be persuaded. If she’d bother to give the subject even a moment’s thought, she’d realize if she went out, the men would be distracted by their need to keep her safe. “You will not go with them.”

“I won’t stay home,” she said, looking a bit desperate. “I can’t.”

Evie put her hand on Anne’s shoulder. She looked worried, too, but not as frantic as Anne. “I’m sure the boys are all right. They are together and they have Harry.”

“But this is
London
, Evie. Anything could happen.”

If he didn’t get Anne out of here soon, she’d work herself and Evie into a full-fledged case of hysteria. “Now that I think of it, it’s most likely Harry remembered his fine romp through Hyde Park this morning and insisted on taking your brothers there.”

“Oh.” Anne frowned for a moment and then nodded, the dark cloud lifting from her features. “Yes, of course. You must be right. I think I can retrace our route. It is certainly worth a try.” She was out the door as she finished her sentence.

Wasn’t she going to wait for him? “Hobbes, you’ll organize the operations?”

“Yes, sir. Right away.”

“And you’ll be all right here, Evie?”

Evie smiled. “I’ll be fine. You’d better go after Anne, though. She might be halfway to Park Lane already.”

“I don’t doubt it—and don’t worry. We’ll find the boys.”

Evie frowned. “But Hyde Park is quite large, isn’t it?”

“Yes, but Harry struck me as a very intelligent dog. If we don’t find him, he’ll find us.”

He heard Evie laugh as he dashed out the door. As she’d predicted, Anne was not waiting politely for him at the bottom of the steps. He caught a glimpse of her hideous brown dress turning the corner toward Park Lane before she was completely hidden from view. He strode after her. The woman would keep him on his toes once they wed.

He stumbled, but quickly caught his balance. Was he actually going to marry her?

It looked very much as though he was. His honor demanded it.

His honor and other things. He grinned. He was quite looking forward to their marriage bed.

If anyone had told him yesterday he’d be betrothed today to a woman he’d just met, he’d have called the fellow a fool. On the other hand, some of his best decisions had been made on the spur of the moment. After years of navigating unknown terrain and negotiating with natives and other plant collectors, he’d become very good at making split second decisions. He trusted his gut.

And his gut liked Anne.

He had to admire her dedication to her family. So many society women concerned themselves only with themselves and their amusements. Not Anne. She’d take as passionate care of their children as she did her brothers and sister. And she was already used to managing an estate with little or no guidance—Crazy Crane must be gone as much as Stephen.

Now why did the thought of leaving Anne on his estate sit like a rock in his belly? It was the perfect situation. He couldn’t have found a better bride for his purposes if he’d conducted a thorough search of the
ton
’s ballrooms. He must still be feeling the residual effects of too much brandy.

He turned the corner and saw her about ten yards ahead, striding purposefully along in that frightful frock. At least she didn’t have this morning’s dreadful bonnet to complete the fashion disaster, though this selection wasn’t much better. He lengthened his own stride.

“You should slow down, you know,” he said when he caught up to her. He didn’t try to get her to take his arm. It was clear she’d have no part of that.

She spared him a glance. “Why? Am I moving too quickly for you?”

“No, but we are creating a bit of a spectacle.” He nodded at a group of bucks sauntering down the other side of the street. One of them had stopped to put his quizzing glass to his eye. “And don’t, I pray you, stick your tongue out at that fellow.”

Anne slowed a little. “I would never do something so ill-bred, but I can’t imagine why those men feel the need to take note of me.”

Poor Anne. London society was going to be a very rude shock for her. Why hadn’t she ever had a Season? Was it because of the boys? She would have been around seventeen when they were born, and he’d wager twins could throw the most ordered household into disarray. But then why hadn’t she come up to Town the next year? Lady Farrington, Crane’s older sister, had still been alive then and in fine fettle—she could have sponsored Anne.

“Well, besides the fact you are a strikingly beautiful unknown”—in a dreadful dress, but he didn’t say that, of course—“I was chasing you down Upper Brook Street.”

That stopped her cold. “You weren’t chasing me.”

“Well, actually, I was.” He took the opportunity to put her hand on his arm.

She scowled, but left her hand where it was as they started walking again. “That’s horrible.” She darted another glance at the group.

“That’s London. The
ton
is always watching and gossiping. I’ll wager any number of busybodies is peering out their windows right now as we pass.”

“No!” Her head swiveled toward the houses in time to see the curtains on the two closest twitch back into place. “How can you stand it?”

He shrugged. “I’m used to it. I’ve learned not to care too much what people think—though I grant you, it’s far easier for a man to disregard society’s opinion than for a woman. Women have to be much more careful of their reputations.”

“Yes.”

Now why the hell was she flushing and looking so miserable? “Is something the matter?”

“N-no.” She cleared her throat. “Of course not.”

She clearly wasn’t going to confide in him now. No matter. He would find out eventually what was troubling her. “And I confess it helps that I’m rarely in Town.”

She glanced at him. “Why are you here now? I thought you’d be off exploring some foreign jungle.”

It was a good question; he’d been asking it himself recently. Usually he couldn’t wait to set off on another expedition, but of late he’d had little enthusiasm for travel.

“My good friend the Earl of Kenderly married in February so I wanted to be in England to celebrate with him. And my older brother’s first son was born last month.” He laughed. “Poor Jack is mostly a red-faced, screaming little lump of humanity, but John and Meg are both besotted with him.”

“Give him a month or two.” Anne smiled. “I remember how tiny the twins were when they were born. We weren’t at all sure they would live, yet look at them now.” Her smile abruptly turned to a scowl. “I would like to look at them now. What were they thinking, going off like that?”

“I imagine they weren’t thinking at all. In my experience, ten-year-old boys don’t look much beyond the present moment.”

“That may be true of George,” Anne said, worry twisting her features. “He has a sad tendency to leap before he looks, but Philip is almost preternaturally careful.”

They reached Park Lane, and Stephen had to grab Anne’s arm to keep her from dashing out in front of a carriage. “Here now, I’d say George is not the only impetuous one in your family.”

She flushed. “There was much less traffic when I was here this morning.”

“Of course. Everyone else was still in bed, sound asleep.” He took her arm firmly and guided her across the street and through the gate into the park. The path west to Kensington Gardens ran straight ahead; the path south to the Serpentine and Rotten Row was on their left.

Anne stopped abruptly. “Hyde Park is so large.” Dismay clouded her eyes. “How will we ever find them?”

“Don’t worry. We’ll find them.” He started down the path toward the Serpentine, but Anne dug in her heels.

“Wait! How do you know they went that way?”

“I don’t—”

“Exactly. You don’t. They could just as easily have taken this other path. We shall have to divide up. I’ll go—”

“You will go with me, my girl. You are not venturing off on your own, so disabuse yourself of that notion immediately.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. There are two paths and two of us, ergo—”

“When did you know young boys and dogs to stick to paths?”

That stopped her in mid-word. “Oh.”

“Precisely. Furthermore it is completely beyond the pale for a young woman—”

“I am not a young woman.”

Mr. Parker-Roth turned his eyes heavenward as if looking for Divine support. “Right, you are ancient. People will still talk if you amble around the park unescorted.”

“I don’t care what people say. I care about Philip and George and their safety.”

“And I care about
your
safety. Hyde Park is no longer infested with highwaymen, but that’s not to say it’s safe for a woman alone.” Mr. Parker-Roth grinned suddenly. “If nothing else some drunken buck might accost you.”

She had to laugh in spite of her worry; the man was impossible. “But you assured me you weren’t drunk any longer.”

“And I’m not, so you are quite safe as long as you stay by my side.”

“But . . .” She looked at the other path. They would waste so much time if they chose the wrong direction.

“Come, Anne.” Mr. Parker-Roth took her arm firmly. “If you’d let me finish my sentence earlier, you would have heard me say I don’t know, but I suspect the boys—or at least Harry—were headed to the Serpentine. That was your goal this morning, wasn’t it?”

“No, at least not intentionally. I was just following Harry.”

“There you go. I imagine Harry smelled water and was making his way there when I distracted him.”

“I suppose you might be correct.” She fervently hoped he was as she fell into step beside him.

“Of course I’m correct.” He shook her arm a little. “And do stop worrying. The boys are likely having a wonderful time and won’t thank us for interrupting their fun.”