Too Hot For A Rake (24 page)

“You planned it,” screeched Mrs. Trasker, pointing her finger at the earl. “Yes you did, and you want me and me Harry to hang for it!”

“I don’t know who you are, madam. The wages of sin must always end in retribution, they say. My regrets.” He turned away from her.

Waverley leaned into the carriage and said, “Glynhaven, you are guilty of attempted abduction and I’ll see you hang for that, if for nothing else.”

“But I am guilty of no such thing, my good man. Lady Fairchild readily consented to marry me.” He looked at her with doleful eyes. “Have you changed your mind again, ma’am? Tsk, tsk. First you spurn Darlington, and now you spurn me. You seem to take pleasure in agreeing to be wed and then jilting your suitors. Unkind in you, ma’am. Most unkind.”

“Why, you…” Waverley lunged for his throat.

“Let him go, Waverley,” Sebastian said, yanking the marquis out of the carriage.

His rage abated, but it turned to puzzlement. “Why did you stop me?” he asked.

“Will you grant me a moment to discuss what’s to be done? In private, if you please,” said Sebastian.

“As you wish,” he said reluctantly.

“We’ll join you,” Olivia said to her husband. He nodded and offered his arm. Waverley did the same for Helena, but when they mounted the steps, Amy stopped them. “Casper’s wounded bad, milady. They’re takin’ him to town. May I go?”

“Of course, dear. With my blessings,” said Helena. Their eyes met and a look of sympathetic understanding passed between them.

Waverley led the way into the library. He shut the door behind him. “What do you have in mind, Brooks?”

“You can’t press charges, Waverley.”

“But he’s guilty. I’ve no doubt he
is
the ringleader. He certainly needed the money. I know for a fact that his father died leaving him with an estate mortgaged to the hilt.”

“That may well be, but his role in this horrid business cannot become known.”

Waverley’s eyes narrowed. “Why not? We have proof that he is guilty of attempted abduction.”

“Be reasonable, Waverley. Do you really want Helena to have to testify against the earl in a London courtroom? It’s not a good idea. The publicity would be another disaster for her. She doesn’t need any more notoriety, does she?”

Helena was thunderstruck by this. “I hadn’t thought of that.”

“My sister isn’t the only one who would suffer if this gets out. Father holds a lot of power in Parliament. Think what such a scandal would do to him. Think what it would mean for your future as well, my lord. Anyone can see that you’re in love with Helena. You cannot begin your lives together under a cloud of scandal.”

Waverley recalled his disastrous meeting with the duke, but he said nothing. “What do you suggest? We can’t let Glynhaven walk away free from all his dirty deeds.”

Sebastian turned to Helena. “Where was it the earl meant to take you?”

“He has a ship waiting to take us to Cherbourg and then to the chateau of his odious friend Lord Saltash. We were to be married at sea by the captain.”

“Where is this ship moored?”

“It’s moored off the beach in Sennen Cove. It might still be awaiting our arrival, for all I know.”

“Very likely,” murmured Waverley, his eyes dark with fury.

Olivia and Sebastian exchanged significant glances.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking, my darling?” Sebastian grinned at his wife.

“You two are too much in love to see the forest for the trees. Sebastian…
we
have a better idea,” said Olivia.

Waverley looked doubtful. “The villagers may tolerate smuggling, but never murder. They’ll want his blood as much as Captain Le Clair does.”

“What are you two thinking?” asked Helena.

“Glynhaven’s smart enough to know he can make trouble for you,” said her sister. “Let Sebastian explain the solution we have in mind.”

“Let’s offer the earl an alternative. To save his worthless skin, we’ll allow him to think he’s free to take up permanent residence in France. We’ll escort him to his ship and send him off with our blessings.”

“What kind of punishment is that?” Waverley asked petulantly.

“You forget the French authorities. They don’t take kindly to having their merchant ship destroyed along with passengers and crew, and their cargo stolen as well. Glynhaven will be arrested when the ship lands in Cherbourg, but the French won’t bother with a public trial. He’ll never leave France alive, I promise you. With Le Clair’s testimony, the French will see to it that the Earl of Glynhaven meets his just rewards.”

Helena nodded in approval. “A sad, but necessary ending for a vile monster.”

“What about the townsfolk?” Waverley objected. “They want his blood. How should I explain your plan, Sebastian?”

“You needn’t tell them the whole of it. It’s enough to say that our government has stepped in to negotiate a delicate international affair that threatened a crisis. That should satisfy them, don’t you think? I leave it to you to deal with the town fathers as you see fit, but swear them to secrecy.”

“How do you propose we get the earl on board without creating a stir?”

“I shall send an order to the local militia to detain his ship. It will sail for France only after you and I deliver him to the captain. As for Le Clair, he’ll be escorted to London. Someone in the home office will take his deposition and send him home to France. His written statement will be enough to convict the Traskers and their accomplices.”

The marquis felt as if Sebastian had taken a heavy burden from him. “I can rest easy now, thanks to your excellent strategies.”

Sebastian laughed. “You can’t rest easy just yet, my lord. You have a role to play in this drama. Will you come with me and tell Glynhaven that you have agreed to my plan to allow him to travel to France?”

Waverley’s eyes lit up. “That would be my greatest pleasure, sir.”

“Why don’t you see to your sister while we tend to this, Livy? She’s been through enough today. She needs to rest. We’ll see to the business at hand. Care to join me, Waverley?”

The marquis grinned. “With pleasure.” He kissed Helena on the forehead and followed Sebastian out.

That Evening…

Helena shut the door, relieved to be in the privacy of her chamber. “Help me out of this horrid gown, Livy. I’ll never wear it again so long as I live.”

“Right. We’ll burn it to rid the evidence of today’s near disaster.” She turned Helena around and began to unbutton the offensive garment. “Who would have believed it?” she murmured, warming to her task with such enthusiasm, she tore off some of the buttons.

“Believed what?”

“Father agreed to send you here until the
ton
forgets your broken betrothal to Darlington. And what does my demure sister do, but roil the pot.”

Helena stepped out of her gown and turned to Olivia. “What do you mean?”

“If you think news of Glynhaven’s disastrous ball did not reach the ears of London gossips, think again. Didn’t you guess? It was in all the scandal sheets.”

“I hadn’t thought…. Father knows?”

“Of course, you ninny. The whole family knows.” Olivia reached into her portmanteau and pulled out a letter. “Father asked me to give you this. For your eyes alone, he said.”

She tore off the seal with trembling hands, smoothed the single sheet open, and read it.

The blood in Helena’s veins turned to ice. When she finished reading the letter, she handed it to Olivia.

Olivia read it and said, “I’m so sorry, love. Sebastian told me that Waverley came to London to see Father, but I never guessed this would be the outcome.”

“So that was why he went to London,” Helena said in a flat voice. “‘Just business,’ he told me, and I thought no more of it. I can’t say I’m surprised. Ironic, isn’t it? Father turned him down because of his reputation as a rake.” Helena’s laugh skirted the edge of hysteria.

“The pot calling the kettle black, you mean. Our dear father was no saint, was he?”

“No matter, Livy. I’m in love with Waverley and we’ll marry with or without Father’s blessing.”

About to respond, Olivia changed her mind and kept her thoughts to herself.

“What are you thinking? Don’t hold out on me, Livy.”

“Father’s dug his heels in.”

Helena’s eyes held the fire of determination. “I’ll never give Waverley up. Never.”

London

“Come in,” said the duke at a knock on his bedchamber door.

“This just came from the home office, your grace. I know it’s late, but I thought…”

“I’ll have it, please.” He dismissed Dunston with a wave of his hand and broke the seal. He rose from his chair by the fireside, left his chamber and strode through the connecting door without bothering to knock.

“Your grace! You startled me,” said the duchess. With the slightest of nods, she dismissed her abigail, who put the hairbrush down at once and disappeared. “What’s the matter?”

He thrust the note at her. “Read this.”

The duchess smoothed it on her dressing table and read it quickly, while her husband paced back and forth. “Abduction! Thank God Helena was saved from that fate. We have the Marquis of Waverley to thank for rescuing her.”

“Helena fancies herself in love with him but she’s wrong. It’s nothing but a case of hero worship. She’ll get over it.”

But the duchess thought otherwise. “I think not, Tony. The marquis saved our daughter’s life. Doesn’t this change anything for you? I must admit, it gives me food for thought.”

“It changes nothing. The whole world knows that this man’s an infernal rake, I tell you. I won’t allow Helena to marry him. He may have saved her life, but hero worship is not love, my dear. Why can’t she fall in love with the right man? First it’s Darlington and now it’s Waverley. Has she no sense at all?”

The duchess knew better than to interrupt his tirade.

“Two suitors in one year! Our daughter Helena has an uncanny knack for picking the wrong man.”

The duchess turned her head to hide her grin.

“Well, Ellen! What ought we to do?”

“You already know the answer, my dear.”

He stopped pacing and raised his quizzing glass. “And that is?”

“You must find it in your heart to consent to the marriage. It’s not your choice to make, you know.”

Land’s End

“Walk with me in the garden, Desmond. I want to talk to you.”

“Of course, love.” He offered his arm and she took it. “How are you feeling?”

Helena didn’t speak until they were too far away to be heard. “Bloody angry with you. That’s how I feel. Why didn’t you tell me you went to London to ask my father for my hand in marriage?”

“He rejected my suit for your hand. I didn’t know how to break the news to you.”

She couldn’t hide her grin. “Coward.”

“I suppose I am, but I haven’t given up. I’ll win you somehow, lovely lady. I promise you that.”

The paths had at last been cleared of much of the undergrowth. Spring bulbs poked through, some in full bloom. Daffodils waved their yellow heads at them, but Helena was so lost in thought, she took no notice of their beauty.

When they came to the newly rebuilt gazebo, Waverley said, “Sit with me beloved, and I’ll tell all.”

When she took her seat, she said, “Go on.”

“I did everything but grovel at your father’s feet, but an anonymous letter reached him before I did.”

“Glynhaven?”

“Without a doubt. The earl made sure the scandal at the ball became known not only to your father, but also to the world. He arranged to have the whole sordid affair made public in the London journals.”

“Go on.”

He took her hand in his. “There isn’t much more to tell. Your father said he would not allow his daughter to suffer a lifetime of humiliation. I argued I was no longer the wild man of my youth. ‘Once a rake, always a rake,’ he insisted. I could not penetrate that wall of resistance no matter how hard I tried.”

“What you may not know is that I am very much my father’s daughter.” She laughed, but humor was missing. “When we marry, you’ll learn just how much my father and I are alike. I was not yet one year old when my father withheld my favorite stuffed bear. I was so much attached to it, I howled loud and long, but my father has a difficult time backing down. When my mother begged him to give it back to me, he said I was too old for such nonsense and refused.”

“How cruel. You were a mere infant.”

A sly smile curled her lips. “According to my mother, I held my breath until I turned blue. My father was so afraid I would die, he gave me back my bear at once.”

Waverley laughed. “Will you hold your breath and turn blue until your father gives in?”

“If nothing else prevails. Shall you hate it?”

“Very likely.” He rose and held his arms out. Helena went willingly into what turned out to be a prolonged embrace.

“I want you, Waverley,” she said in a rasping voice. Her hands ran down his back.

“My love,” he murmured with poignant tenderness.

Just two little words, but they very nearly broke her heart. She made a silent vow. Father or no, she’d have this man come what may. “I need you. Now, my beloved.”

“No, my bewitching raven. Not if we’re ever to have a chance to win your father’s consent. You’ve already tricked me once into a premature tryst, haven’t you? Let’s hope you’re not with child.”

“That might make it easier for us to marry. Father couldn’t stand the scandal.” She giggled.

“What?”

“I was thinking of the last time I saw you buck naked.”

“You thought I was someone else then. What was that poor fellow’s name?”

“I’ve forgotten. Do you remember when I first touched you?”

He smirked in the time-honored way that began with cavemen. “How can I ever forget? It changed my life. Where did you learn such devilish tricks?”

She giggled again. “Oh, I’ve had worlds of experience in the art of lust.”

“Liar. But you do get better all the time.” He kissed her.

When he stopped, she said, “Dear me. I see stars.”

“I’m that good, am I? Thank you for the tribute, love.”

She burst out laughing. “That’s not what I meant, my darling. The heavenly stars are out. We’ll have to hurry and change or we’ll be late for dinner.”