Chapter Eight

M atthew loved the way Purity's eyes flashed, catching the lights from around the room and looking like true sapphires.

"Why?" he asked, leaning down to catch her fragrance.

"The music, my lord," she said, glancing around, her voice sounding choked. She even had put a hand up to his chest. "It has stopped, yet you are still holding on to me."

Matthew sighed heavily. "Another mistake."

She was tugging to free herself, and they were in danger of making a spectacle. Quickly releasing his hold, he stepped back before calmly offering her his arm. Purity took it despite looking around to make sure no one had witnessed their lagging behind the other dancers.

In truth, he hadn't noticed the song had ended, too enchanted by everything about her.

Strangely, Varley of all people was watching them, although he turned away as soon as Matthew spied him. That man had a bee in his bonnet to be sure. Perhaps nothing more than blatant male interest in the most exquisite female in the room.

Maybe others were envious of how he'd scooped up the Season's diamond in both nature and name — for by his reckoning, he was the only gentleman to be granted two dances.

The rest of the evening he had to continue partnering with other ladies in case Purity was watching. But he stopped before the last dance so he could speak with her mother.

"I hope you've had a pleasurable evening, Lady Diamond."

"I have, thank you. Seeing my daughter happy gives me great happiness in return."

"May I collect Lady Purity for a ride in Hyde Park in two days? Weather permitting, naturally."

"It would be best if you ask her directly, my lord, for unlike my eldest daughter and my son, riding is not Lady Purity's favorite pastime."

"And what is?" he asked.

The countess narrowed her eyes. "If my daughter wishes you to know more about her, she will tell you herself. However, as far as the park goes, she would enjoy an open-air carriage more than horses, as long as we send a chaperone on horseback to accompany you."

"A splendid idea." Matthew decided not to wait and ask Purity. He would turn up and say the countess had given him permission.

They didn't call him the Fox for nothing.

More excited than he ought to be for a simple park outing in broad daylight, Matthew practically hopped out of his curricle. He enjoyed driving his jaunty two-wheeled contraption, sometimes a little too swiftly if the park wasn't crowded.

With his heart thumping at the prospect of seeing Purity again and his step light — was this what it felt like to really admire a female? — he rapped on the Diamonds' door.

Their butler, to whom he was now an accustomed visitor, gave Matthew entrance, allowing him to wait in the drawing room. The Piccadilly home was starting to feel familiar and comfortable.

For this reason, when a man he'd never seen before came in behind him, Matthew's hackles immediately rose at the notion of a rival suitor. That was until he noticed the distinct family resemblance.

"Mr. Dunley tells me you are Lord Foxford," said the dark-haired stranger with eyes as blue as his sister's. "I am the only Diamond brother."

"Well met," Matthew said, shaking the proffered hand and thinking him jovial at the onset. "As I understand it, you have no title different from your rather unique family name, thus you are Lord Diamond, just as your father."

"Indeed, I am. Sometimes confusing, but usually we muddle through. If there is a bill to pay for a horse or the tailor, I refer those to the senior Lord Diamond. If a pretty lady comes calling, then naturally, I am the Lord Diamond she seeks."

Matthew smiled, liking him on the spot. "I am here to take your sister for a ride."

"As am I," Diamond said. "I shall be your shadow on horseback."

"Ah, I see. Our chaperone." Matthew's happiness dimmed a little. He wasn't going to be able to pull anything over with this snappy young lord on the watch.

"Don't worry," young Diamond said. "I'm not a frig pig. Just behave with common decency and none of us shall end up in the gossip rags."

"Good day, Brother, Lord Foxford," Purity greeted them as she entered. "Apparently, I am being taken out in a carriage without being properly asked, as if I am a child or a dimwit. Either way, I do not appreciate it."

Her brother smiled as if used to such protests. However, since her expression was pleasant and she was dressed for the occasion in a ruddy-hued paisley dress and shawl with a matching bonnet, Matthew assumed she was game for the outing and merely needed her feathers smoothed.

"Lady Purity, my intent was to show you and your family the utmost respect, going above and beyond by asking your mother for the honor of taking you to the park. Alas, afterward, I didn't see you again at the ball. I was unaware I ought to have sent a formal invitation to your home after getting one of your parents' permission. Obviously, I am still greatly in need of your tutelage, and I hope you are not offended."

Diamond's mouth had dropped as if he'd never heard such deference to his sister. Purity, on the other hand, narrowed her eyes, recognizing drivel when she heard it.

"All you had to do was ask," she said softly, holding his gaze and utterly mesmerizing him until she blinked. "I am ready," she added.

Turning on her booted heel, she led the way from the room.

Diamond gave him a pitying look, as if Matthew were in for a trying time with his arse on a bandbox and no more hope of overcoming her iron barrier of politeness than of breaking down a brick wall with a teaspoon.

But Matthew knew her weakness — his kiss! Unfortunately, it was a useless weapon if he couldn't get the fair damsel alone.

On the other hand, he was granted the pleasure of close confines, feeling the heat of her pressed against his side, while she held her hat with one hand against the mild zephyr barely blowing through the leaves.

"Not enough pins, my lady?" he asked, giving her a sideways glance.

"I fear not. A little gusty out but blissfully sunny." With that, she directed her face toward the sunshine, closed her eyes, and seemed to drink it in.

What an odd kitten! She most assuredly wouldn't forgive herself if she blemished her skin, yet she was being almost devil-may-care about it.

With a start, he realized he ought to put up the hood to protect her. But that would shield them somewhat from her brother's watchful eye. What a conundrum!

After a minute of his wondering what to do, his companion said, "My lord, you appear to be on the horns of a dilemma, furrowing your brow when you ought to be relaxed and enjoying the day."

"I confess I don't know the correct course of action."

"Tell me," she said, placing her gloved hand upon his arm.

Such a simple gesture, trusting, genteel — and arousing as anything short of her dragging his head down to kiss her! He was momentarily tongue-tied.

Him, the Fox!

More than that, his shaft sprang to life, throbbing with longing. Not a particularly prudent time for scorching lust, so he took a deep breath and focused on the Hyde Park Corner entrance, turning right to go along the carriage path running parallel to Park Lane.

Then he cleared his throat. "I merely wondered whether, given the sunshine, I should put up the hood."

She laughed lightly. "Why all that fretting for such a trivial matter, my lord?"

"I wouldn't want your brother to think I'm trying to hide you from him."

"I see. How considerate of you. Extremely un-Foxlike, I would go so far as to say. Anyway, we'll be in the shade of the chestnut and lime trees soon enough. Thank you for worrying."

He'd been called a considerate lover before, but a compliment of simply being thoughtful was novel. He liked it, despite how parts of him desperately wanted to show her the other ways he could be considerate, too.

In fact, his length was not diminishing but pressing against his trousers, and he began to recite Shakespeare in his head to help it subside.

As soon as they entered the park, Matthew could see it was too full with other Londoners enjoying the warm day to show off any fancy driving, nothing to make her squeal with excitement or terror while she clutched him closely, pressing her breasts to his arm.

And there was his arousal again, as if he were a green youth and keeping company with his first milkmaid.

" The Times got it wrong yesterday. Did you read it?" she asked.

"I did not," he confessed. That damned paper! He had started to go out of his way not to read any but the most serious of the business pages, hoping not to happen upon any society gossip.

"A small mention was all," she told him, "reporting how badly you behaved on Lady Tisendale's dance floor, practically assaulting some horribly offended lady before abandoning her and leaving early. I attended the entire ball, and when you weren't dancing with me, you hardly danced. The few you did partake of seemed perfectly executed, not that I was watching you all evening, of course."

"I wouldn't have minded if you had been," he said, pleased to learn she'd been spying on him the way he had been on her. However, used to the truth being twisted, the answer was obvious. "The horribly offended lady was you."

"Me?" She paused. " Oh! When the music stopped," she recalled. Then she shook her head. "But you didn't assault me, and I wasn't offended, only a little embarrassed in case people were looking."

Matthew shrugged. "For the most part, some witness gives them a kernel of a story, and they make an entire meal out of it."

Diamond came alongside, interrupting their discussion.

"You can't get up to anything untoward in such a throng," he said. "I see a chum up ahead. I'll circle back in a few minutes."

With that, he urged his spirited mount forward.

"Adam," Purity called after him, but he disappeared between other riders and carriages. "Oh, what a nuisance. Unreliable half-wit of a brother."

"He is correct, isn't he?" Matthew asked. "I can't do anything wicked like kiss you, no matter how much I desperately wish to do so."

She blinked, lips slightly parted as her gaze dropped to his mouth. He could see the flutter of her pulse at the base of her neck.

"Incorrigible," she said finally.

Matthew could tell if they'd been alone, a kiss would certainly have been allowed, and it would have been spectacular. Her breasts were rising and falling more quickly with the pace of her breathing.

He would need more than the cover of a carriage hood to be able to follow his wish.

"Besides, it's not our behavior that is in question," she said, her cheeks pink.

Matthew attributed their high color more to her sensual thoughts than from the sun.

"It is the distinct inappropriateness of my being seated beside you," she continued, "with no chaperone in sight. Mother will tan his hide when we return."

"I say we should enjoy ourselves while we can."

"That does seem to be your philosophy," she agreed.

If he wasn't mistaken, she rolled her eyes.

Then she added, "Furthermore, I am enjoying myself."

"Then stop worrying over what other people will think. Just this once."

She took in a sharp breath and sent it out in an exasperated puff.

"Very well. I shall try."

"After all," he said, "you are a young woman with your life ahead of you, born into wealth and comfort, assured because of your beauty and sweetness to make a good marriage match. And yet, you do not always seem happy."

He hoped he hadn't said too much, but he added, "I have only been blessed to hear your laughter once, maybe twice."

"What you say is true," she agreed. "My eldest sister is nearly always happy and laughing and making others do the same. The comparison between us has ever been stark and to my detriment. I am not serious by nature, but I tend to want everything to be just so before I can relax."

"Really?" he quipped. "I hadn't noticed."

As intended, his words elicited a smile.

"When you find everything is not up to your standards," he observed, "you wish to make them perfect ahead of any enjoyment."

"Precisely," she said. "Ever since childhood. If my parents held a party, I felt it was my duty to make certain the guests were happy."

"There are things you cannot control, my lady," he reminded her, thinking of his father's untimely death. But he wouldn't mention that early, dreadful lesson when they were trying to have an entertaining ride. Yet, perhaps he could give her a new perspective.

"If people around us wish to have unkind thoughts, there is little you can do. What's more, even amongst the things you can influence, you might find a sense of relief if you don't worry about them, either. Occasionally, let someone else be concerned over all the trivialities of the day."

"The trivialities?" she asked.

He nodded. "Most of them are decidedly small issues, which will be forgotten when the sun sets, so why bother yourself?"

After a moment, she nodded, too. "I shall attempt a respite from trying to bring to order that which is insignificant." She tapped her chin. "I should make a list of things with which I am overly troubled. I can consult it to make sure I do not—"

When Matthew began to laugh, she broke off.

Raising her dark eyebrows, she asked, "What have I said that is amusing you?"

"You are going to make a list," he began, but fell to laughing again.

She crossed her arms over her shapely bosom.

"Please," he said between chortles. "Don't take offense. You must see how funny that is. An orderly, careful list of things you are trying not to care about."

He could imagine her diligently going to her writing desk, marking down what she ought not to worry over, and then worrying over whether she had included everything. Matthew laughed even harder.

"Cease braying like a donkey," she said without rancor, cracking a smile. "You are correct. I shall endeavor to be more like you in some matters."

He gasped for air. "I wouldn't suggest being so drastic in changing your nature."

She ignored him. "I should go somewhere fun where one needn't worry."

"And where is that, my lady?"

"Vauxhall," she pronounced, looking pleased with her suggestion.

He winced.

"Is there a problem?"

Shrugging, he tried to put it delicately. "I haven't been there for about three years, but my impression was the gardens had lost their sheen of respectability even then."

This time, she chuckled. "Did you just hear yourself, my lord? That sounds like something I would say."

"True enough." He was enjoying their companionable chatter. Not as much as he would enjoy tupping her, but he would take what was given, like a starving man with crumbs. "But I wouldn't want you to be shocked by the vulgar guests."

The whores who lingered upon the Dark Walk at Vauxhall were not the caliber of whom he ever partook, even as a randy youth. The food, too, was considered to lack the quality of its heyday. As for the entertainment, he simply wasn't sure. It had gone from being theatre-level to something one might witness at a country fair.

"My parents have a warm place in their hearts for Vauxhall since they went there when they were young and falling in love. They don't care how the Pleasure Gardens have changed. They still enjoy the fireworks and sometimes stroll around the less seedy sections at the front. Maybe tomorrow night, they will take me and my brother, too."

She cocked her head, looking more knowing than he'd previously believed. " He has an interest in looking at some of those vulgar guests you mentioned."

Matthew was shocked she was teasing him over hedge whores where young Diamond was concerned. But he thought she was also asking him a question.

"I have no interest in looking," he promised.

She frowned.

"Or touching," he amended. "What I am hoping to convey is that I do not go to the seedier parts of Vauxhall for any reason."

She smiled. "Good. You have enough trouble not causing a scandal in a ballroom or the theatre. I cannot imagine what you might get up to in a dark garden." Then she laughed heartily at her own words.

The sound was like water bubbling from a spring, enchanting him. She became more appealing the more he knew of her.

"Perhaps I shall see you and your family at Vauxhall tomorrow night."

"Perhaps," she agreed.