Rescued By The Earl's Vows

‘Changed your mind?’ he drawled. He certainly didn’t care if she drove with him or not. Well, not much at least.

‘Not at all. I was admiring your horses. It is not often one sees a pair so perfectly matched, although the offside one is a little heavier in build, I believe.’

His jaw dropped. No one but his own very expert groom had noted the slight discrepancy in the horses’ bone structure. ‘Got an eye for a bit of blood and bone, have you, my lady?’ Damn it, that was not the smoothest thing he could have said.

‘I like to see a nicely matched pair. My father had a pair of beautiful steppers. I would love to drive them.’ She leaned towards them, stretching out a hand as if to pat Romulus. The brute showed the whites of his eyes.

Jaimie started forward. ‘Be careful.’

She stopped before she got too close. ‘Testy, is he?’

‘Always. And, no, you may not drive them.’ Never again would any woman drive his horses.

The expected pout did not make an appearance. Instead, she cast him an expressive look. ‘We’ll leave that discussion for later.’

That discussion was closed. He assisted her up on to the phaeton and, on the way around to climb into the driver’s seat, he spoke to his tiger in a low voice. ‘When we reach the park you can take yourself off. I’ll pick you up at the gate for the drive back.’

The lad touched his cap. ‘Yes, me lord. But stir yer stumps, would ya? His fussiness would like to be orf.’

Jaimie stroked ‘his fussiness’ along his neck and down his wither and the horse settled before he sprang into the carriage and took up the reins. The boy leaped up behind.

The animals weren’t quite as energetic as they had been on the drive over, but they were still feeling their bits. He urged them into a spanking trot, feathering between a couple of slower carriages and into a break in the traffic. Lady Tess sat calmly with her hands in her lap, clearly trusting him not to tip her into the road.

Most normal ladies were notoriously nervous about anything that looked the least bit hazardous. Then there were the reckless ones, like his first wife, who took ridiculous risks. Clearly, Lady Tess fell into the latter camp. And he was a twice-born fool to get involved with her nonsense.

‘We are fortunate the weather is clear today,’ he said as they turned the corner at the end of the street. Weather being the safest topic of conversation.

‘After the rain of the past few days, we are fortunate indeed,’ she replied coolly.

As they entered Hyde Park, many heads turned in their direction. Open mouths and wide eyes abounded. News of his driving Lady Tess would be all around town by the end of the evening. His teeth gritted at the thought, but it couldn’t be helped. There were only so many respectable ways to talk to a lady in relative private and this was one of them.

The gossips would be jumping to all kinds of conclusions. Did she know that? The horses slowed to a funereal pace as they joined the traffic mincing down Rotten Row.

His tiger jumped down and hared off.

Lady Tess frowned.

He was getting quite a few frowns today. ‘I told him to go, because I do not want our conversation overheard.’

The frown cleared. ‘Where better to be alone than in plain view of the world.’ She chuckled. ‘I can see why you are good at what you do.’

‘What I do?’ He quirked a brow.

‘Finding people. Investigating things.’

Damn that article, though few knew the real depth of his ‘investigations’ as she had called them. And it was as good a time as any to get to the point of this drive, even if he was enjoying her company more than he would have imagined. ‘Who is it you want me to find?’

She hesitated. ‘May I have your assurance you will keep my confidence, no matter what?’

He probably ought to be insulted by her question. Indeed, on one level he was insulted. On another, the fact that she was even considering giving him her trust felt like an incredible compliment. Why would that be?

‘Why are you smiling in that mocking way?’ she asked. ‘Did I say something you find foolish?’

Prickly little thing. ‘I didn’t realise I was smiling.’ But if he was mocking anyone, it was himself. At the way she kept surprising him. ‘And, yes, you can be assured that anything you tell me will remain confidential.’

She drew in a deep breath, drawing his attention to the snug fit of her carriage dress. To the way it moulded to the soft curves and hollows of her petite form. He turned his eyes resolutely to his horses. He was not here to flirt with the woman. He was here because she needed his help, despite that she irritated him beyond endurance.

‘I am trying to locate my father’s bailiff, Mr Freeps. He left for another position shortly after my father died.’

Not what he had expected at all. He had been waiting for something along the lines of the boy she had spoken of, or another sold or pawned item she wanted back.

‘Surely your cousin’s man of business would have this information?’

‘Yes, and he would immediately report my request to my cousin.’

‘I see.’

‘What do you see?’

The defiance in her voice, her wariness of his motives, struck him on the raw.

He gave her an impatient glance. ‘I see why you do not wish to go to your cousin’s man of business. Why exactly do you wish to find this man Freeps?’

‘Why is that any of your concern?’

‘And when I find him, what then?’

‘If you find him, you will provide me with his address. That is all.’ She pressed her lips together.

‘Lady Tess, I realise you and I are not well acquainted and I am sure I have no interest in your secrets, but I do not work for anyone unless I know the full story. For example, should you wish to accuse this servant of theft, I would need to know this, so he is not forewarned.’

She stiffened at the word theft. He pretended not to notice.

‘If, however, it is simply your intention to reassure yourself of this person’s wellbeing, I can include that sort of information in my report.’

Her hands clenched in her lap.

‘It isn’t either of those things, is it?’

‘No.’ Her voice was low and being held under tight control. ‘I need to ask him something. In person.’

He frowned. ‘Something of a private nature, then?’

‘Yes.’

Damn the woman. What on earth was she hiding?

* * *

Lord Sandford was the most annoying creature Tess had ever met. Why couldn’t he simply do as she asked? ‘There is no reason for you to know anything apart from the name of the person I would like found and their last-known address. I would have known this had I not been absent from home at the time of his departure.’

She had been prostrate after her father had died and Cousin Phin had packed her off to an aunt in Bath to recover her wits.

‘Are you implying there is some sort of injustice you hope to redress?’

The surprise in his voice irritated her beyond rational thought. ‘Is that so impossible to believe?’ Unfortunately, it was far more selfish than that. She ignored a pang of guilt. After all, he might be more likely to help her if he thought her reason altruistic rather than self-serving.

A sudden urge to tell him the whole truth, to tell him about Greydon, took her aback. She couldn’t. What if he told Rowan? She dared not take the chance.

His voice dropped to a low seductive murmur. ‘You have not yet heard my price for undertaking this service.’

Her stomach gave a little hop. She risked a glance at his face to find him looking at her with a small smile on his lips as if he was once more amused.

She swallowed. It was the one thing that had kept her awake all night. What on earth would he demand as payment? He had said at the masquerade that he didn’t want money. Heat scalded her cheeks. ‘Tell me.’

‘Before I impart this person’s whereabouts to you, you will tell me the real reason you wish to find him. The full truth. I will have your word on that.’

‘You would trust my word?’

‘Why would I not? I trust until a person proves unworthy.’

‘And if they do prove untrustworthy?’

‘Then I seek retribution.’

A shiver passed over her skin at the hint of menace in his words. She glanced over at him, trying to read his expression, but he seemed completely focused on guiding the horses out through the gate and there was no way of guessing what might be on his mind.

‘Well?’ he asked when they had moved into the traffic on Park Lane.

‘I accept.’ She would simply have to tell him a truth that did not lead to Grey and if he didn’t like it, too bad. She handed him a piece of paper with Freeps’s full name on it and some other bits of information about his family she had remembered that might come in useful. ‘This should help you find him.’

He tucked the note into his waistcoat pocket without even so much as a glance. No doubt he’d be handing it off to one of his minions since it was likely he had far more important clients requiring his services.

Resentment tightened her chest. She took a deep breath. She could not afford resentment. His offer was what she had wanted all along.

Life was becoming exceedingly complex. What with Cousin Rowan and now Lord Sandford, she felt as if she was walking through a meadow full of cows. One misstep would cause no end of mess.

A new topic of conversation was needed. ‘Where is the Sandford estate?’

He stiffened. ‘Why do you want to know?’

Hah! What an interesting reaction. ‘No reason. I am simply making polite conversation. It is something I can easily look up in Debrett’s should I be interested enough. Which I really am not.’

He made an odd sound, like a laugh being turned into a cough. ‘Touché, Lady Tess.’

‘We are not engaged in a battle, Lord Sandford.’

‘Merely a war of words.’ Again that disdainfully amused tone in his voice.

They neared the corner of Piccadilly. He slowed just enough to let his tiger leap up behind them. She glanced over her shoulder. ‘Isn’t that a little dangerous?’

‘Na, miss. I does it all the time. Saves getting the horses all of a bother.’

She blinked, surprised the tiger had answered her directly. The Earl said nothing when she had expected him to issue an admonition to the lad for impertinence. She was surprised yet glad when he did not.

‘Sandford is in Derbyshire.’

So he had decided to be civil after all. ‘I have never been there. I grew up in Kent.’ She gave a little shiver. ‘I hear it is cold and rainy in the north.’

‘It can be rather bleak in winter, can it not, Remmy?’

‘Yes, me lord. Proper chilly.’

‘But it has a stark beauty that grows on one.’ He sounded almost wistful.

The north must have some redeeming qualities, she supposed. ‘Do you go there in the summer?’

‘I never go there if I can help it.’ The words were spoken in a flat tone of voice.

She bit her tongue to stop herself from asking why. Theirs was a business relationship, nothing more. He didn’t seem to be the sort of man who would take kindly to someone prying into his personal life.

‘I would miss not visiting my home.’ Her chest squeezed painfully. Unless she could get her bracelet back, it was likely she would never see it again.

Lord Sandford cast her a sideways glance. ‘Is something wrong?’

She realised she was gripping the side of the carriage for all she was worth. She dropped her hand into her lap. ‘Not a thing.’

His eyes narrowed. ‘Come now, Lady Tess, your expression was one of pure horror.’

‘I should be more careful with my thoughts, should I not?’ Particularly around him. He noticed too much.

He frowned. ‘Is there something you are not telling me? Something with which I can help?’

Hope lifted her heart. No. What was she thinking? He would never understand a woman desiring to make her own life choices rather than be dependent on a man, be that a husband or a cousin. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to think clearly. She gave him a tight smile. ‘I think it would be unwise to accept any offer of assistance from you, Lord Sandford. Who knows what sort of price you would set?’

The tiger gave a little snigger.

‘Round two also to you, Lady Tess.’

He pulled up at her cousin’s front door. ‘It has been a pleasure.’

‘When will I hear from you?’

‘When I have something to report.’

She wanted to press him, but did not dare in case he changed his mind. Men were such obstinate, fickle creatures.

He jumped down and escorted her to the door where he bowed over her hand. ‘I will let you know when I have news.’

The butler opened the door to his knock.

Sandford touched his hat. ‘Good day, Lady Tess. Thank you for a pleasant afternoon.’ He sauntered back to his carriage.

Blasted man. He really was the most annoying individual she had ever met. He thought he could get away with anything just because he was rich and handsome.

So very handsome. If any man could be described as an Adonis, it was he. And he drove to an inch, handling the ribbons with expert ease. It had been impossible not to notice all the ladies casting admiring glances his way.

Pah. What did that have to do with anything?

Chapter Three

Two days had passed since Tess had given Lord Sandford the information about Freeps and there was still no word. All morning she had been sitting in the drawing room with her needlework in hand, listening for the arrival of the mail.

And when it came, she had received nothing.

She was being foolish. Too anxious. A single gentleman did not write notes to a single lady who was not a relative or an intended. She certainly had no wish to set alarm bells ringing in Wilhelmina’s feather brain. If they thought Lord Sandford was trifling with her, they’d have her sent north in the blink of an eye. Or they would if Mr Stedman wasn’t still showing a marked interest in her.

Wilhelmina drifted in wearing her Phineas-has-issued-an-edict face. Edicts had been issued more and more frequently of late. Tess tensed.

‘Good morning, Theresa,’ Wilhelmina said with a vague smile. ‘I missed you at breakfast and couldn’t find you anywhere afterwards.’

Worse and worse. Tess let her needlework fall into her lap and forced a cheerful smile. ‘I went for my usual early morning walk.’ The walk her cousin did not approve of.

Wilhelmina’s glance sharpened. ‘With your maid, I assume.’

Poor old Mims was far too old to be trotting along at the pace Tess preferred. ‘I took one of the footmen.’

‘Carver gave his approval?’

Tess gritted her teeth. ‘He did.’

A vaguely disgruntled expression flitted across her cousin’s face. ‘That is good then. He always complains to me when his schedule for the day is altered without his knowledge.’

That wasn’t it at all. Wilhelmina loved her role of Countess and she loved catching Tess out in one mistake or another. Tess had quickly learned how to avoid her traps. Not that Wilhelmina realised Tess was on to her. She was far too self-absorbed.

Her cousin took the chaise longue and reclined along its length. ‘Ring for tea, there’s a dear.’

She could have rung for tea before she sat down, but it amused her to treat Tess like a servant. Tess put her embroidery aside and got up to tug on the bell pull beside the hearth.

‘How is your work coming along?’ Wilhelmina asked the moment she sat down.

‘Very well. I have it half done.’ She was embroidering a cushion cover for her trousseau at Wilhelmina’s suggestion.

‘May I see?’

Wilhelmina accounted herself an expert needlewoman, though she rarely set a stitch herself. Tess thought it might be because she was becoming short-sighted and didn’t want to wear spectacles.

She took the piece over. Her cousin sat up and made a space for her on the chaise.

Oh, yes, she definitely had some instruction to impart from dearest Phin. Tess sank down beside her. ‘I only have one bird left to finish.’

Wilhelmina held the fabric up to the light. ‘I think you need a couple more French knots here. See, there’s a space. What do you think?’

Dash it, the woman was right. The French knots had taken her for ever to complete and had made her fingers sore. She had known a few more were needed, but didn’t think anyone would notice. ‘Thank you for pointing it out, Cousin. I’ll be sure to fill in the gaps.’

With a self-satisfied smile, Wilhelmina handed the work back. ‘I did tell you we are attending the Halliwells’ ball on Friday, did I not?’

‘You did, indeed.’

‘Which gown will you wear?’

Tess mentally ran through her meagre wardrobe. She had already decided which gown to wear, but if she named it, Wilhelmina was sure to prefer a different one. ‘The pale green, I think. I like something with a bit of colour.’

True to form, Wilhelmina frowned. ‘Not for the Halliwells. All the younger ladies will be wearing white.’

‘Hmm. There is the white-and-silver tissue, I suppose.’

‘You have worn that one at least four times. People will start to talk. No. Wear the one with the roses festooned at the hem and neckline.’

Tess bowed her head in compliance and to hide her smile. It was the dress she had planned to wear all along.

How much nicer this would have all been if she could have been friends with her cousin’s wife. They could have enjoyed this Season together as. Instead it was a battle of wits and Wilhelmina had so few of them it was becoming quite boring.

‘Why not wear your mother’s diamonds? They will look perfect with that gown. Phineas reminded me only this morning that you have never worn them.’

The breath rushed from her lungs. She swallowed the lump in her throat. ‘I...umm... I am not sure where her bracelet is.’ She winced at how feeble she sounded. ‘I put it away somewhere. The clasp was broken.’

‘You don’t know where you put a diamond bracelet? Well, I must say, that is careless in the extreme. Have that maid of yours look for it and we will send it to Rundell & Bridge for repair.’

‘I hate to put Phin to the expense,’ Tess managed. ‘Who knows how much it might cost?’

Wilhelmina frowned. ‘I shall have to ask him what he thinks. In the meantime, please find it.’

Tess nodded. ‘Yes, Cousin. I will do so.’ The reprieve would give her time to think up some more plausible excuse as to where the bracelet had gone. Right now her brain seemed to have frozen solid. She began to relax.

‘Oh, and by the way, Theresa...’

Tess tensed again. ‘By the way’ always heralded Phin’s less pleasant admonitions and instructions.

‘As you know, my dearest Phineas has your best interests in mind and he has agreed to meet with Mr Stedman to discuss,’ her voice rose to an excited squeak, ‘the settlements.’ She clasped her hands together. ‘Isn’t it exciting?’

Tess stared at her cousin’s wife. ‘Mr Stedman hasn’t yet asked for my permission to approach Phin. I thought...’

Her voice tailed off at Wilhelmina’s annoyed expression.

‘Phin said I might have a little more time,’ she continued valiantly. ‘I hardly know the man.’

‘It is a preliminary discussion only,’ Wilhelmina said, but her expression was just a little too smug. ‘You know, if you wish to get to know a gentleman, you must make an effort to spend more time in his company. Phin is concerned that Mr Stedman might ask for repayment of your father’s debts at any moment, particularly if he is made to wait too long for your answer.’ She shook her head sadly. ‘If only your father hadn’t left the estate in such a mess, we wouldn’t be in this position. You do understand, do you not?’

A pang of guilt twisted in Tess’s chest. Until after his death, she’d had no idea Papa had borrowed a large sum money from Mr Stedman. Perhaps she could have helped him avoid such a thing if only she had known. Perhaps he would have avoided the accident with his gun.

Her blood ran cold. ‘Yes, Wilhelmina. I do understand.’

A sly look crossed the other woman’s face. ‘Who was that gentlemen dressed as the grim reaper at the masquerade the other night? You never did say. You wasted a good deal of the evening in his company.’

Her stomach sank. ‘I have no idea. I thought you knew him. He left before the unmasking. And it was only one dance.’

‘You did go outside with him.’

‘I also went outside with Mr Stedman.’

Wilhelmina pressed her lips tightly together for a moment. ‘Well, I am glad we have had this little talk. I am sure you will do your utmost to assist your family. I will see you at dinner.’

Accepting her dismissal, Tess tidied up her needlework and traipsed up to her chamber. Now she was really in trouble. How was it Phin had recalled her mother’s bracelet when he had not mentioned it once in the past year? If she was going to avoid marriage to Stedman, she needed to find Grey quickly.

* * *

‘There is a person to see you, my lord.’

‘A person?’ Jaimie looked up from his paperwork and recoiled at the odd look on Rider’s face. One of shocked indignation.

He frowned. Some of the men he employed at the agency were of the rough-and-ready sort, but none of them would come here to visit him. They would go to Growler by way of the back door. Growler was ostensibly his secretary and lived in. The butler no longer took any notice of Growler’s comings and goings, much as he disapproved of the erstwhile bruiser.

‘Did he give his name, Rider?’

‘It is not a he, my lord.’

Jaimie pushed to his feet. ‘A woman?’

Rider sniffed. ‘A female, my lord, who refuses to state her business either to Growler or to me and refuses to leave without seeing you.’ He coughed behind his hand. ‘Growler thinks you will want to see her, but I can have a footman—’

‘Growler thought...’ It must be an informant. Jaimie raised a hand. ‘I had best see her. Bring tea, would you, Rider?’ He might as well take a proper break from what he was doing, now he had been interrupted, rather than continue to sit staring into space. ‘Make sure you put biscuits on the tray.’ Nothing like one of cook’s biscuits to loosen an unwilling tongue.

‘Very well, my lord.’ He stepped back.

An oddly rotund figure in an old black woollen cloak, its hood drawn low so as to hide the wearer’s face, sidled around the butler and into the room.

‘Hey, you!’ Rider said. ‘I told you to wait.’

Jaimie let out a shocked laugh. ‘It’s all right, Rider. Fetch the tea, please.’

With a huff of annoyance, Rider departed, his whole demeanour imparting the silent news that if this sort of thing continued, a man of his dignity would be handing in his notice.

She pushed the hood back to reveal a floppy mobcap. The only thing that looked the least bit like her was her face.

‘Who are you supposed to be now, Lady Tess? I must say, I prefer Artemis.’

‘Hah,’ she said, but there was a smile in her eyes he had never seen before. A naughty smile that hit him low and tightened his body in places a gentleman was required to ignore in the presence of a lady.

She threw off the cloak and untied the sash holding two pillows, one at her front and the other in the small of her back. ‘It’s not funny. I am dashed hot.’

He tamped down the urge to smile. Fought the allure of her lush body. His first wife had been tall, elegant and slender, while Lady Tess was all soft curves and tempting dimples. But it seemed in temperament, the ladies were much the same. The last thing he wanted was to be drawn into Lady Tess’s orbit.

He retreated into studied indifference. ‘This really is beyond the pale, you know,’ he said in bored tones.

‘It was the only way to escape the house unnoticed.’

He frowned. ‘That is not what I meant and you know it. No lady should visit a gentleman’s abode in the middle of the night.’ He glanced at the clock. ‘Good heavens, girl, it’s gone one in the morning.’

‘I had to wait until everyone was asleep.’ She grinned and he had to stop himself from grinning back. ‘Also I thought I might be more likely to catch you at home after midnight.’