Chapter Three

A dam felt badly for how wooden Mrs. Malcolm had become after her shawl slipped. On the other hand, he didn’t feel at all unhappy over what it had revealed. He’d tried not to stare, but in that dress, the fullness of her breasts was evident. He’d half expected to see a rosy nipple peek over the neckline.

Still, as gentlemanly as possible, he’d looked away and completed the dance. Strangely, he’d already been taken with her, even when she’d demurely put her gloved hand in his. The zing of excitement that ensued was unfamiliar. From the start, each and every pull of attraction he’d felt for her was, in fact, unusual.

Regardless, he had to set it aside. She was most definitely not a suitable candidate for becoming his wife. Even if she weren’t married, a governess, no matter what airs she put on to seem like a lady, could not fit into his world, nor would he want her to. Amongst the ton , Mrs. Malcolm would be forever playing a part for which she was not destined. There would be mishaps, like tonight. No one danced while wearing a shawl and for good reason.

Pushing out of the warm assembly room, he strode out onto the back terrace and took his flask from his jacket pocket. Sipping the fine French brandy, he accepted there could be nothing between them except his ardent admiration for her hair, face, and figure.

Still, he couldn’t deny the hope she would perform the role of chaperone again in the future. Elsewise, unless he happened upon her while visiting the Beasleys’ home, this might have been the only time he would see her. Certainly, the singular time he would ever dance with her.

With that thought in mind — disturbing him more than it should — he was shocked to hear his name and turn to see her.

She rushed toward him across the darkened terrace.

“Did you not hear me calling you?”

“I confess, I did not.” His heartbeat sped up at this strange turn of events. “Is something wrong?” She was breathing hard, and the view was magnificent. His mouth went suddenly dry, and his body sizzled as it had when he had first touched her hand.

How extraordinary!

Thinking her distraught, he reached out and took her hand again.

“What are you doing?” She stared at their joined hands, then back at his face.

“I have no idea,” he said. He was the one who ought to ask her why she had followed him. Regardless, he thanked his good fortune.

Could it be she was tired of the husband at home, wherever home was? Maybe she wanted a quick dalliance behind the hedge. Maybe the unfamiliar excitement of attending a ball, something a governess probably never did, had left her over stimulated.

In any case, he felt an answering excitement at being near her, glad she had pursued him.

Taking her other hand, he drew her close. They were far enough from the lamps on the terrace that if anyone looked out, their identities would be concealed. She was trembling under his touch.

“Your eyes are pure silver in the moonlight,” he told her. “And you are easily the most beautiful woman here.”

“Am I?”

He couldn’t discern from her husky tone what she was feeling. Passion, perhaps?

“Yes. And easily the most captivating.” It was true. He’d known it from the moment he’d seen her in the rich wine-colored gown, making all those around her look washed out and wan. The ballroom’s massive chandeliers had made her honey-colored hair glow with a golden halo.

Without asking for permission, he leaned toward her and kissed her. She was motionless, at least for a second, and then her lips moved on his.

Groaning at her acquiescence, Adam slanted his mouth against hers and licked the satin seam of her lips, ready to dive in and taste her sweetness. He felt a fist slam into his gut.

“Ooph!” He didn’t double over, but he stood back in case her knee was coming next.

“How dare you!” she raged.

Was it possible both the trembling he’d felt and the passion in her voice had been from fury not desire?

“My apologies, Mrs. Malcolm. When you sought me out, running after me into the garden, I thought —”

He stopped and flinched when she reached forward. However, all she did was go for his pocket and snag the end of her shawl, entirely forgotten by him.

“Whatever you thought, you were wrong.” Turning heel, she ran just as quickly back inside.

“Bloody hell!” Adam swore viciously at his own stupidity. He had cocked that up for certain.

Adam sent his card in the morning via a footman, asking if he might come calling the following day. Then he waited on tenterhooks. If the answer was no, Mrs. Malcolm had told her employer of his despicable behavior. If it was yes, then at least he would get his foot in the door. He wanted to apologize in person to the governess, and that would be made difficult, especially if he was confined to the drawing room sipping tea.

Which was precisely where he found himself . In a repeat of the previous visit, he was seated opposite Lady Beasley and Lady Susanne.

“I wanted to thank you personally for introducing me to others at the assembly,” he said to explain his visit.

“A pleasure, my lord. The entire evening was a delight, was it not?”

“Indeed,” he said, hoping to hear the bright tone of Mrs. Malcolm’s violin floating from the other room.

“I understand you danced together twice,” Lady Beasley said. “And now, here you are.”

He tugged at his cravat, which was suddenly choking him. She considered him to be a suitor, and in a way, he was. Lady Susanne was a solidly acceptable choice for a wife. He liked her company already both for her soft-spoken manner and her gentle ways. Moreover, she was a good dancer and smiled a great deal. She was pretty in a sweet, cherubic way, and he might become fond of her if he spent more time in her company.

What’s more, his sisters would like her, and his mother would be especially pleased if he made a match with her friend’s daughter.

However, that didn’t change the fact that he’d kissed Mrs. Malcolm, nor how his thoughts were even then wandering to her silvery-green eyes and her full lips.

“The musicians were fine,” he said, trying to come up with something to say, “and yes, I believe we did dance twice.”

“And the supper was better than expected, Mother,” Lady Susanne said. “The spread in the Tea Room contained everything from absolutely transparent broth to sandwiches to the most delicious little cake squares.”

Lady Beasley nodded. “No thick, white pottage and stale bread?” she quipped.

Adam ignored their conversation and craned his head to see past them to where the door at the far end stood open. If only Mrs. Malcolm would come into view, then he would rise to his feet and, in some way, impart his apology even if only with his eyes.

A shadowy figure was down the other end, he thought, although it might be his dire imaginings.

“What did you think, my lord?” came Lady Beasley query.

Was she still talking about the food? “It was as good as any at a London ball, to be sure.”

They stared at him.

“I asked if you had yet been to the Sydney Gardens.”

“Did you?” When had they stopped speaking about soup? He chuckled lightly. “My mistake.”

Lady Susanne joined him with a good-natured laugh. “It is no matter. I’m sure you have much on your mind. Mother explained you are in Bath to determine whether to sell your maternal grandparents’ home. Your own mother lived there, did she not?”

“She did.” He thought her a very amiable young lady. She was good fun, didn’t put on airs, nor was she too silly. Truthfully, his grandparents’ investment property was low on his list, far beneath enjoying the ladies of Bath to determine if one might be a suitable wife. “Would you have an opinion on the best course of action if I told you I have been charged with two options?”

Lady Beasley eyed her daughter, who shook her head.

“I am sure I know little about such things.”

“But you must have an opinion,” he pressed. “To sell, to keep closed up, or to keep and lease, risking damage by dissolute tenants.”

“I suppose I do, but your opinion must be infinitely more informed and thus better.”

Lady Beasley nodded with satisfaction at her daughter’s neutral, even placating response.

Hearing footsteps, Adam peered between them but couldn’t see anyone.

“Are you well, my lord?”

They were both staring at him in return.

“I wondered if Mrs. Malcolm were here.”

“Our governess?” Lady Beasley asked with surprise.

“I think of her now as your chaperone. I didn’t see her to say goodbye the other night, and that seemed dreadfully rude of me.”

Lady Beasley blinked at him, and for a moment, Adam wondered if she suspected something.

However, Susanne smiled. “That’s very kind of you. I believe she is teaching my sisters at present, but I’ll tell her you asked after her. Will that suffice?”

“Perfectly,” he said, feeling thwarted. Unless Mrs. Malcolm acted as chaperone again. To that end, he would invite Lady Susanne on an outing and try to make it happen.

“Would you like to take a walk through the Sydney Gardens? Perhaps tomorrow if the weather permits.”

“That would be lovely,” Lady Susanne said. “You are free to accompany us, aren’t you, Mother?”

“Most certainly, I am,” Lady Beasley answered, “and I shall.”

Blast!

Alice knew he was in the house that very minute. She’d overheard Lady Beasley mention his name to Lord Beasley before he’d escaped to the York Club on the exclusive and elevated terrace known as Edgar Buildings.

Her conflicted emotions had kept her awake the night of the ball into the wee hours. Since then, she had decided despite how attracted she was to Lord Diamond — uncomfortably so, in fact — he was to be avoided.

She had adored dancing with him until her misstep. And she had not struggled when he’d drawn her close. Most certainly, she had felt a sizzle of sensual satisfaction the instant his mouth claimed hers.

Then she’d recalled who she was and where she was, not to mention what had happened last time she’d been attracted to a man. Socking him in the stomach had seemed a natural reaction. Alice wished she’d done it to Richard when he’d first kissed her. If she had, she would still be a member of the ton , perhaps married by now to an upstanding gentleman.

And how upstanding could Lord Diamond be if he was supposedly interested in Susanne, an entirely appropriate match, yet willy-nilly kissed her, a woman of seemingly inappropriate status. Only men who took advantage of women would behave thusly.

After the first lessons of the day were finished and the girls were taking a break, Alice thought the safest place until she was sure Lord Diamond had left, short of staying cooped up in her room, would be the back garden. It was a generous sized space, not something one would find in the middle of London.

With the peonies in bloom, she promenaded around the perimeter, working off some pent-up energy before taking a seat in the shade. No book, no violin, nothing but her thoughts.

That was a mistake because they returned immediately to Lord Diamond. He was fine looking with very dark hair, cobalt blue eyes, a strong chin, and a tall muscular frame without a hint of sedentary, overindulgent paunch.

He was undoubtedly also a flash swell!

What’s more, astonishingly enough, the man was walking directly toward her. She rose to her feet when he was two yards away.

“What are you doing here?” He was even bolder than Richard Fairclough had been. But this time, she was not a reckless debutante, eager to kiss and ready to be deceived.

“I was visiting Lady Susanne, but I had hoped to see you.”

“A governess does not sit in the drawing room during a visit,” she pointed out.

“I realize that. After I took my leave, I appreciated the benefit of a corner house and strolled along the hedgerow until I saw you.”

She folded her arms, wanting to present him with a wall of strength.

“You cannot see me through the hedgerow. It is a privacy hedge of the thickest yews.”

“Truthfully, I peered between the branches, hoping to get a glimpse. And when I saw you, I pushed my way in.”

Her heart was beginning to pound. “You are a scoundrel, as I suspected.”

“I assure you I am not.” He looked amused, which was infuriating. “No one has ever said such a thing before.”

“What do you call kissing me behind the ballroom?”

“Delightful,” he said. “Until you punched me, that is. I thought women only slapped a man’s face.”

Ah-ha, Alice thought. He was a rascal. “You would know, I suppose.”

“I have never been slapped, nor called a scoundrel before. And that is no lie,” Lord Diamond vowed. “Nor have I ever kissed a woman who didn’t wish to be kissed.”

“Until now.”

He cocked his head.

She wondered if he doubted her. Maybe he was so full of himself he imagined she’d wanted and enjoyed his kiss. In truth, she’d been so surprised by the swiftly unfolding events, when suddenly, he had drawn her close and kissed her, for a second — before she regained her senses — she had enjoyed it. Immensely. Her body had thrummed with pleasure, and she’d wanted to melt against him. He smelled good and kissed better than he smelled.

“Until now,” he agreed finally. “Which is why I came here today. I wish to apologize. It seems I keep having to apologize to you.”

That was probably a ruse. After all, he was compromising her at that moment by sneaking into the yard and being alone with her.

“You have said your apology. Thus, you may go, and we shall hopefully never see one another again.”

A foolish statement since he was apparently in Bath for the small Season, and she was stuck here until the girls outgrew her in about four years.

“I have said my apology for my ill-advised, rash action, but have you accepted it? Perhaps if you do with the understanding the kiss was born of an impetuous nature, combined with your loveliness and my own mistaken notion you were chasing me...” He trailed off and rubbed a hand over his handsome chin.

“Chasing you?” she muttered into the pause, rolling her eyes.

The old Alice of four years ago might have done just that. She had, in fact, done something similar on a few occasions before the final ruinous event that had led to her demise and into a marriage of the utmost disappointment.

He cocked his head and appraised her.

“Well?” she prompted when he remained silent, her cheeks warming under his scrutiny.

He grinned suddenly, then shook his head. “I confess I have entirely forgotten where my meandering thoughts were going.”

Alice felt a smile tug at her own lips, but she managed to restrain herself. Just because he had called her lovely and apologized profusely didn’t mean he wasn’t a cad.

“No wonder you have lost the message you intended to impart, after all that fluff. And if I accept your apology, then what? Does it make a bit of difference?”

“Ah, yes! That is what I was saying. You are very helpful, Mrs. Malcolm.”

He was teasing her, and she was allowing him. She ought to turn heel and disappear into the house and let him retreat through the hedgerow.

“The difference is if you have forgiven me, then when we meet again, we can have a light and easy discourse, rather than any tension. At the very least, I can give you a friendly wave when I come to collect Lady Susanne.”

The rogue! Just like that all her good feelings toward Lord Diamond dissipated. He was too worldly for the Beasleys’ eldest daughter. And any man who kissed a chaperone and still wanted to escort her charge was assuredly a reprobate.

Despite knowing she should mind her own business, through gritted teeth, Alice asked, “Where are you escorting Lady Susanne?”

“We are going to Sydney Gardens to take a walk. I hear it is quite the place.”

Hoping she didn’t look like the disapproving scold she felt at that instant, she tried to keep her mouth from pursing.

“It was ‘the place’,” she corrected. “It has fallen out of fashion, and the Royal Victoria Park has become all the rage. Regardless, Lady Beasley prefers the former because of fond memories from childhood, hot air balloons and fireworks. That sort of thing.”

“Not at the same time, I would hope,” his lordship quipped. He was trying to be funny and charming but was not succeeding, not with her.

“Do you think it wise to court her?” Alice couldn’t help asking.

“Wise?” he repeated, plainly befuddled. “Isn’t she of marriageable age and of good character?”

“Yes,” she bit out.

“Then I cannot see how it would be unwise.”

Because you kissed me! she wanted to point out and emphatically, too, perhaps even raising her voice. However, she did not. Her lips pursed after all, which made her feel old, and then she managed to speak.

“Very well. If that is your decision.”

She couldn’t figure out how to make him leave her, and it would be detrimental for them to be found together.

“Good day, Lord Diamond.” Alice walked away.