Chapter Six

S he came to an abrupt halt. “My lord? Might I help you?”

“Actually, yes. I hoped I might run into you if I skulked here for a few minutes.”

“You do not enjoy the conversation of my brothers?” she said coldly.

“I do, very much. But I wanted to speak to you alone.”

Her heart lurched. “Why?”

“To apologize. I think I upset you, speaking of your father at dinner.” He stood in front of her, his head bent solicitously toward her. She could smell his soap, the hint of wine on his breath, make out the texture of his smooth, recently shaved skin…

“I was not upset,” she managed. “To hear him spoken of in such terms is a pleasure to all of us.”

“Pleasure and pain,” he said. “I am sorry for the latter. You were very close to him, I think. I know, when we worked together, he missed you very badly.”

“That must have been while I went with Aubrey and the twins to visit Felicia in London.” She blinked rapidly. “His passing has left a black, empty hole,” she blurted, and was appalled.

“Is that why your work”—he waved a hand toward her almost-cleared desk—“is so important to you?”

“Partly, perhaps. Everyone needs…purpose.”

His gaze dropped to the region of her mouth. Nervously, fearing she had left crumbs there, she flicked her tongue over her lips, and heard his breath hitch. He raised his hand and touched her cheek with the very tips of his fingers—such a brief, butterflylike caress, and yet her blood seemed to sizzle.

He bent nearer, his gaze curiously intent. Was he going to kiss her? Heat surged beneath her skin, and yet she did not step back.

What did she want? What did he want? For an instant he held perfectly still, almost like a painting, a living, breathing portrait. And then his lips quirked, drawing her helpless gaze to their fine texture and curiously sensual shape. How would they feel against hers?

“You don’t know, do you?” he said softly. “You have no idea how extraordinarily beautiful you are.”

“Fustian, my lord,” she said, swinging away from him. “There is no point in flattering me. I was looking for Mrs. Macy.”

He straightened. “I think she is with Sir Julius. They have old business to discuss.”

Damn the woman . And yet… “You like her,” Delilah said, frowning. “Your sister likes her.”

“Yes. Does that mean you do not?”

“She caused him pain. I have never seen—” She broke off, shrugging impatiently. “I cannot wish him such anguish again.”

His steady eyes caught hers. “That is not up to you or me. Pain and anguish are part of life. One has to feel to live.”

For no obvious reason, she sensed threat and attacked first. “What do you feel, then, my lord? What pain or anguish gives you the right to wish it on my brother, who has suffered so much already?”

“I don’t wish it on him. But we cannot prevent it either. Not for him or her.”

She curled her lip. “ Laissez faire ? Was that what your diplomatic missions amounted to also? You will excuse me, sir. I’m sure you can find your own way back to the dining room.”

She needed to escape from him, from the emotions and desires churning in her stomach. Yet as soon as she left him, she felt his loss. Had he really been about to kiss her? Why? And why had he not?

An impulse born of kindness, but I am too ill-tempered and too old. And a bastard, besides …

Antonia had returned to the drawing room when Delilah slipped back inside. Lucy sat beside her, deep in animated conversation. For some reason, that made Delilah feel very alone.

The gentlemen joined them shortly afterward. The twins played a clowning duet on the pianoforte that was really very funny. The next time Delilah noticed, Lucy had moved seats, and Julius now sat beside Antonia.

She wasn’t entirely surprised when he escorted her out of the French window to the terrace. Everyone else spilled out too, enjoying the fresh evening air, for once without rain to dampen the spirits and the paths underfoot.

Julius and Antonia were nowhere in sight. Delilah tried not to care. He was older and wiser than he had been ten years ago. And perhaps Linfield was right that feeling made one truly alive. Was that not at the heart of the twins’ scheme to send him to the ball?

“Shall we have tea?” Felicia said as the servants wheeled the trolley into the drawing room. “Oh, tell the others, will you, Delly?”

This time, Delilah was reluctant to track them down. She wasn’t surprised to find them in a close embrace. What astonished her was the fact that she felt not anxiety or anger but envy.

She whisked herself away. “I think they’re just coming,” she called to Felicia.

“You look flustered,” Linfield said. He stood in the shadowy part of the terrace some distance from the lights shining through the glass doors.

It struck her suddenly that if she told Linfield what she had seen, Antonia might well be dismissed from his sister’s service. That would teach her… And what have I become that I could even consider such small-minded tale-bearing?

Disgusted with herself, she shook her head and muttered, “Not in the slightest. I am looking forward to tea.”

She walked quickly inside and accepted a cup of tea from Felicia. The place next to her sister was free, but, leaving it for Linfield, she moved on.

Unexpectedly, he stayed with her. “Am I correct in guessing that your mother is Helena Hampshire?”

Delilah blinked. “You recognized her?”

“Not until I saw the bill advertising her play outside the theatre. She is quite famous, is she not? Illustrious, even.”

“I have tickets for the opening night of her play, if you would like to go.”

“I would very much like that. Especially in your company.”

“Don’t be silly. The tickets are yours. Go with a friend or take your sister.”

“I would rather take you.”

She frowned. “Are you trying to make my sister jealous? It won’t work.”

“Your sisters are all very charming, as is mine, but I am at a loss where they fit in this conversation. May I not escort you to the theatre?”

“No,” she said automatically, for it was hardly proper for an unmarried lady. Then she remembered that she was thirty years old and a confirmed spinster. Was this not the independence and the freedom she had craved? And his presence might well prevent any further confidences from Nell about her marital problems. It was even possible Linfield’s titled presence would scare Reggie back into line where her own threats probably bounced off him.

And why on earth would her mother want to be married to someone who had to be threatened into staying with her? The pride and status of being the wife of so admired an actor?

Her gaze refocused on Linfield. “I’ll give you the tickets before you go.”

“You can give me them on the night. The theatre is more fun with friends. And I promise to be the perfect gentleman.”

She frowned at him. Why did he press her? Was it possible she had got everything wrong and he was not pursuing Felicia? Or…did he imagine that because she was the daughter of an actress she was some lightskirt? But then again, why would that make any difference to him? Linfield, distinguished, refined, and handsome, could surely have his pick of the most beautiful women of whatever degree.

“I shall think about it,” she said, and he smiled, which did very odd things to her insides.

The evening drew to a close. Lord Linfield’s carriage was sent for, and the whole family prepared to escort their guests to the front step.

Delilah, melting into the background as she struggled to understand Lord Linfield and her own foolish feelings, followed the others from the drawing room and found the man himself holding the door for her.

“What is it?” he asked.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“You have been on edge all evening. If you are troubled, I would like to help.”

Heat seeped under her skin. “You are mistaken. I have nothing to be troubled about. But I thank you for your concern.”

He still stood in front of her, gazing down at her, a faint frown between his brows. “Nothing at all? About your family? Or the path you have chosen? Your work?”

“Nothing,” she repeated, relieved he had not guessed. “Or not beyond my concern for Julius.”

A few moments longer, he waited. And then he stood aside to let her pass.

*

Denzil had given her every opportunity to confide. He could not believe she knew the harm she was doing. But he had seen the parcel in the hall addressed to Mr. Charles in York. And he had seen that her desk in the morning room still bore about half the documents he had seen there before. She was sending her work early. Because it was urgent, or because it troubled her?

Either way, she did not tell. And so he picked up her parcel in passing and hid it beneath the folds of his traveling cloak. An ungracious act toward gracious hosts, though in fact he was doing her a favor. “Mr. Charles” would be searched soon enough, and the less connection to Delilah and her family, the better.

All the same, he spent the carriage ride back to Blackhaven trying to throw off his guilt. He remembered he had almost kissed her in the morning room. He had been distracting her, of course, from the fact that he was where he should not have been, but somehow he had forgotten that when he stood so close to her, inhaling her heady scent. She was all allure and vulnerability, and the combination was irresistible.

And yet he had resisted, because even he was not that big a scoundrel. He wanted her to trust him, not take him to bed. He shifted position, staring out of the window at nothing. He hardly knew her, and yet he was sure she would never give her body without her heart. He doubted her heart had ever been won. And suddenly, he wanted to be the one to win it. He wanted to win her .

Perhaps he should have begun with honesty. Not deceit and now theft, dishonorable by any standards. But while his heart seemed to trust her, his head could not.

Both Elaine and Antonia were largely silent on the journey to the hotel, so it was not difficult to wish them both goodnight at their respective bedchambers and enter the sitting room.

There, he lit the lamp and several more candles, and untied the parcel he had purloined.

It didn’t take him too long to find what he searched for. And it stunned him, because now he had a date and a place for assassination. And it was all to do with the Blackhaven theatre, and the visiting company that included Delilah’s mother.

*

Delilah, discovering herself alone in the drawing room with guttering candles, rose and blew them out. She only vaguely remembered the others retiring, all pleased with the way the dinner party had gone. Despite Antonia, Delilah was conscious of a novel excitement building in her stomach, like the fluttering of butterfly wings.

She had believed Lord Linfield’s calls, his attention to her, were part of his attraction to Felicia. But what if that were not so? What if he only asked for Felicia because she was the nominal lady of the house, being the only one who was married?

Delilah had been admired in her youth. She remembered bold young men flirting with her. Some had been princes. It had been so common she had stopped noticing, because no one ever intrigued her enough for her to allow any relationship to develop. No one had ever asked for her hand, and she had not expected them to, because although she often moved in her father’s important circles, she was still illegitimate.

Papa had said the right man would not care about her irregular birth, though her various stepmothers had disagreed. But Linfield… Even that glimpse of him years ago had stayed with her. And he had remembered her.

Had he really almost kissed her this evening? Why? Why did he want to take her to the theatre unless he liked her? And he must agree that she was at an age when no one would consider it improper. Perhaps she should give him the tickets and buy more for herself and whoever else in the family would like to come, make it a large party. Although the thought of being alone with him was intoxicating…

Taking the last candle with her, she crossed the hall toward the staircase and saw the light shining under the library door. The servants must have forgotten to put them out. She changed direction and opened the library door.

Julius stood gazing out of the open window toward the sea. He often did that. The sea had been his life for so long that he missed it. He had borrowed a vessel from a neighbor and longed to buy it—only until the land was profitable again, there was no money for such luxuries.

“I didn’t realize you were in here,” she said as he turned toward her. “I came to douse the candles, since I sent the servants to bed.”

“I’ll put them out when I go.” He met her gaze, and a frown twitched his brow. “Is everything well?”

“Yes, of course.” Her fingers twisted on the door handle, then she came into the room. “It is her, isn’t it? That Mrs. Macy?”

“The lady I was engaged to, yes.”

“Is she pursuing you again now that her first choice of husband is dead?”

He winced, then let out a short breath of laughter. “I think, rather, she was in pursuit of the truth. We had a conversation this evening that we should have had ten years ago. She never sent me away. In fact, she was at least as hurt as me and pushed into what I think was an unpleasant marriage, besides. It was her parents who lied to me, and to her, and hid our letters so that she would marry Macy.”

Delilah stared at him in disbelief. “Is that what she told you?”

“It is what we deduced,” he retorted.

“Oh, Julius, don’t fall for the lies again,” Delilah pleaded. “She has Linfield and his sister eating out of her hand, their servants caring for her son while she still receives a salary and, through them, access to the best Society. Now she has seen that you have a fine estate here. Macy left her with nothing, you know.”

He scowled. “Of course I know. And you are misinterpreting everything.”

“Am I?” she challenged.

“Yes. You don’t know her, Delly.”

“I know what she did to you ten years ago.”

“What was done to both of us.”

She went up to him, scowling with worry and fear for him. “Don’t be foolish, Julius. She married Macy a bare three weeks after she dismissed you. One does not find oneself married accidentally. She snared him and his wealth as easily as she caught you. Only he at least protected his family from her machinations.”

“By leaving her dependent on a brother whose face would curdle the milk?”

“Exactly! Why would he have done that unless he had reason not to trust her?”

“Don’t, Del,” he said between his teeth. “You don’t know her at all.”

“I know enough. Ten years ago, you had me frightened to let you sail away. Even Papa was anxious.”

“And you imagine this is history repeating itself?” he said.

“It does, you know.”

“Perhaps. But not consistently.” He gave her his crooked half-smile. “Believe it or not, I was never a fool. I am used to reading people’s characters. Instead of hating her, consider why I loved her in the first place.” He bent and kissed her cheek. “Goodnight, Delilah.”

*

Delilah tried. But everything around her felt suddenly unsettled. Her siblings all seemed to be harboring secrets and went about with an air of excitement that contrasted too vividly with the peace of their early months at Black Hill. Change was in the air. And Delilah, for so long the mother figure of the family, could not protect them.

Julius was different. Six years her senior, he had always been her admired and adored big brother, and she could not bear to see him brought low, as he had been ten years ago. And yet he had a point. He really was no fool. He had been a Royal Navy captain, about to be promoted to commodore when he chose retirement instead. He understood men in all their best and worst characteristics. And while it was possible he had a blind spot where women were concerned, she should not assume it.

And there had been no excuse for her behavior last night. She had been unforgivably rude to a guest.

She could not concentrate on her work. Linfield and his theatre invitation kept intruding. If she forced herself to stop thinking about him, she instead saw her brother’s face when he spoke of Antonia. And Antonia herself, a flash of hurt in her eyes at Delilah’s attack, yet refusing to be intimidated.

Guilt niggled at her.

She had no right to interfere in Julius’s life and undoubtedly owed Antonia an apology. And if she were to see Lord Linfield again while she was with Antonia…

Abruptly, she pushed the papers away from her and jumped to her feet. She would not think of Linfield. She very much doubted he was thinking of her. He flirted to pass the time, and really, he was much more suited to Felicia, who deserved a kind, loyal, and loving husband after the unspeakable Nick Maitland. When Linfield was her brother-in-law, she would feel much more comfortable around him.

She strode away, as though she could leave her sillier self behind. She was behaving like a sad, twittering old maid convinced the young man courting a beautiful young family member really came to see her.

She could not keep dwelling upon Lord Linfield. She would think about mending the bedroom curtains instead, and perhaps call on Antonia to clear the air.

Both the old carriage and the decent one had already been taken by her siblings, so Delilah was reduced once more to driving herself in the gig. She was just climbing into it when the twins appeared in the stable yard.

“Are you going to Miss Talbot’s ‘at home’?” Leona asked cheerfully.

Delilah frowned, reaching for the vague memory of a conversation last night. “Did I say I would?” she asked cautiously.

“She didn’t require a response, just said she would be receiving in her hotel sitting room this afternoon. Julius is going. And Felicia and Lucy. At least.”

“Oh.” Then there would be few opportunities for private speech with Antonia. Was that a good thing? “I’m not sure,” she said. “I’ll see if there is time. Don’t get up to too much mischief while I’m gone.”

On reaching Blackhaven, she devoted herself to finding thread of just the right shades. She found a couple at a market stall near the harbor, and then some better ones at the draper’s shop in the high street. After that, in need of refreshment, she went to the hotel tearoom, a respectable enough place for a mature lady to sit alone.

Here, she tried to decide whether to call on Miss Talbot. Antonia would undoubtedly be there, but what Delilah had to say should not really be overheard. Besides, Lord Linfield would be present too, and her desire to see him again should not be pandered to.

As she poured a second cup from the pot, she saw Roderick, Cornelius, and Aubrey leave the hotel without noticing her. Perhaps Antonia would have more time now if the guests were thinning out.

But before she had finished her second cup of tea, Delilah glimpsed Antonia herself crossing the foyer to the front door, and with her was Julius.

Her lips tightened before she forced herself to relax. Nothing had changed, and she could speak to Antonia another day. Doubtless she would be at the castle garden party.

What was the matter with her? She had wasted a whole day vacillating, when she should have been working, and all she had to show for her efforts was a few reels of cotton.

She left the tearoom and was crossing the foyer to the front door when a stranger approached her. He appeared to be a gentleman and bowed to her in a respectful manner.

“Excuse me, ma’am. We have not been introduced, but am I correct in believing you to be Miss Vale?”

“I am.”

“My name is Macy. Timothy Macy.”

That got her attention.

Macy smiled apologetically. “My brother was married to the lady who left the hotel with your brother Captain Vale only five minutes ago. Forgive me, but I could not help noticing that the sight appeared to distress you.”

“You are mistaken,” Delilah replied, for that was no one else’s business, and she most definitely did not care to be observed. “You will excuse me.”

“Of course.” He stood aside at once. “I merely hoped you and I might be allies in a common cause. Are you sure you cannot spare me a moment of your time?”

He spread his arm, indicating the sofa he had just risen from. Another man sat there, though he rose when she turned to him. She recognized him as Mr. Dunnett from the charitable hospital, a man whom Julius disliked.

Delilah knew she should walk away. But she wanted to know the truth about Antonia, and as usual, curiosity won. “A moment only, sir, for I am expected elsewhere.”

“Allow me to be frank, Miss Vale,” Macy said as he sat down opposite her. “My poor brother made a bad choice in his bride. You might say he was driven to his early grave by his disappointment. In short, the woman is a menace, and it grieves me to see her dig her claws into such a great man as Sir Julius. I think it grieves you also.”

Delilah’s instinct urged her to walk away. Instead, she chose to defend Julius and, by implication, Antonia. “You are aware that my brother and your sister-in-law are old friends?”

“They were engaged,” Macy said wryly, “before she decided my brother was richer.”

It was so much what Delilah had always believed that all her old anger returned.

“Then she needs another distraction,” she snapped.

“I have one in mind,” Macy said blandly, glancing significantly at Mr. Dunnett, who beamed at her. “But I might need your help in deflecting her from the captain.”

Delilah gazed at him. She did not trust him or like him. But she had to agree that Julius’s relationship with Antonia must be nipped in the bud. “What is it you want me to do?”

“Merely inform your brother of Antonia’s betrothal to Mr. Dunnett, who is, contrary to the general belief in Blackhaven, an extremely wealthy man. She has been flirting with Sir Julius only to inspire Mr. Dunnett to make her an offer.”

Delilah looked again at Mr. Dunnett. Julius was right. The man was a weasel, and no woman in her right mind would prefer him over her gallant brother. Even one eyed and lame, Julius outshone him in every way. Except wealth. Was Antonia really so mercenary? She had jilted Julius before for a richer man, although he now believed they had been lied to by others—probably, in fact, by Mr. Macy, who sat smiling at her now.

This man had the guardianship of Antonia’s child, which gave him a huge hold over her. What motivated him to interfere? Mere spite?

“And Mrs. Macy is willing to marry Mr. Dunnett?” she asked.

Macy smiled. “Not only willing but eager, as you will see.”

It didn’t make a great deal of sense. Why would Dunnett want to marry this mercenary and awful creature that they were making Antonia out to be? She was a lady by birth, of course, and Dunnett did not appear to have much claim to gentility of his own. However, Macy’s attitude to a family member he was supposed to protect turned Delilah’s stomach. Against the odds, all her sympathies were with the victim of this nastiness.

She rose and coldly inclined her head. “Most illuminating, gentlemen. Goodbye.”

She walked regally out of the hotel, nodding to the doorman, while inwardly she felt grubby for even listening to Antonia’s brother-in-law.

She would have nothing else to do with him.