A Taste of Seduction (14 page)

“The same blood flows in my veins. And I love women.”

Augustus's silence spoke volumes. There would be no convincing his brother to marry Claire, and he doubted Corby would agree either.

Just when Evangeline and the life he'd always wanted was within his grasp, he now had his brother's life and his family's very safety and existence to contend with—
and
the villainess who was out to kill him.

He would not allow his brother to be humiliated and be sent to jail—or perhaps even sentenced to hang. Either he had to find a way to keep Corby quiet or he'd have to marry Claire.

“I'm sorry,” Augustus said, deep sorrow in his voice. “I'm sorry that Evangeline is free and you are not. I'm sorry God made me this way. If Corby allows, I will marry Claire.”

“You don't hold much hope of that?” At Augustus's shake of the head, he added, “Well, we will deal with Corby when we have to. Evangeline and I are still not sure what we both want. She may not want to marry me.” That thought hurt a lot.

Besides, he still did not know how
he
felt about Evangeline's return. He desired her, yes, but he'd buried his love for her under a mountain of hurt and disillusion. He was finding it difficult to let his feelings develop, afraid that something else would happen—that she would realize what a diamond of the first water she was and decide that she did not wish to be with a man such as he.

“Rumor is she came to London for you.”

“Only to find out why I did not save her. I still don't understand why she does not hate me.” As a rich, beautiful widow, she could now marry any man she wanted. Why would she settle for him? Before he could consider walking away from his obligations to Claire and Augustus and his family, he had to be sure, not only of how he felt about her but also that she loved him enough to overlook how little he'd bring to any relationship.

“A woman who wants answers is either out for revenge or in love. I don't believe it is revenge, so it must be love.”

Hadley bit back an impolite retort. “Your talk is premature. Evangeline and I are not even sure if we wish to rekindle our past relationship. Anyway, if the Libertine Scholars do not stop this madwoman who has tried to kill me twice now, it may be a moot problem. You do understand that Evangeline was shot because of me. I should be dead. In addition, I was attacked a few nights ago in this very street. I have a knife wound on my arm to prove it.”

Augustus's face paled. “I did not realize the situation had become so serious. We should move the wedding up in case anything should happen to you.”

His brother's words were like a slap in the face. Was Augustus really more concerned with ensuring that he was wed before he might be killed, rather than with the fact that he was targeted for death?

“Then who would protect you from Corby and run your bloody estate?” The words came out of Hadley's mouth harshly.

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry,” Augustus said immediately. “It's just that I can't think of anything but everyone finding out that I…If you are dead, I don't know what Corby will do.”

Hadley sighed. “I am taking Evangeline to Lathero. Partly it is to keep her safe, and me along with her. And partly, perhaps, it is an effort to lure out our enemy. But mostly it's to see what is left between us. Before you object, Evangeline is now a target, and I will not let her be hurt on my behalf. There would be no honor in that.”

What worried him, though, was that if Victoria truly wanted Evangeline dead, he might not be able to stop her. The Libertine Scholars were running out of time.
He
was running out of time.

“We need to hold Corby off until I can think of a way out of this mess,” Hadley said decisively. “We agreed to announce the engagement at the end of the season. You may tell Corby I'll honor that agreement.” If matters worked out between him and Evangeline, he wouldn't mind reneging on his promise, given that Corby had demonstrated that he had the honor of an alley cat. He would find a way to stop Lord Corby and protect Augustus while giving himself a chance of a life with Evangeline.

“Thank you. I'm so sorry to put you in this position. If we defeat Corby, I swear I'll learn how to run the estates.” Augustus rose tiredly from his chair. “I'm going to bed, and I'll be returning to Hardstone Hall in the morning.”

Hadley rose to his feet and shook his brother's hand. “Once I find the Libertine Scholars' enemy, I will seek a way to ensure that Corby keeps his mouth shut. If I find one, I won't marry Claire. Agreed?”

“Agreed. It is more than I deserve.” As Augustus reached the door he hesitated. At last he said, “Please don't tell anyone about me. Even your friends, and especially not Evangeline. I couldn't bear for them to know. Promise me.”

That was going to be difficult, Hadley knew. He would have to enlist the Libertine Scholars' help with Corby, and as for Evangeline…How could he keep this a secret? He might have to marry Claire, and if he did, he wanted her to know why. “You never told me what proof Corby has.”

“Corby says that a maid spied through a keyhole and saw me with a young gentleman. I do not know if that is true, but in any case Corby knows of my condition, though I have no idea how he learned about it. I swear I'll be more discreet in future.”

Hadley felt a great wave of sadness for his brother. Augustus was not free to love whom he wished, and suddenly Hadley understood how heartbreaking that must be. To have to live in fear, watching every smile, every touch…

“I swear I'll not tell a soul unless you approve. I will always do everything I can to protect you and the family.” As he had done all his life.

“I don't know why you're being so honorable. I have left everything to you all my life. I am a grown man now, and still I need you to save me.”

“Perhaps it's time to learn to stand up for yourself.”

“Perhaps so.”

“I'll always be there to support you.”

“I know that.” Augustus stepped into the corridor. “I hope all goes well between Evangeline and you at Lathero,” he said, looking back at his brother. “And if it does, we will find a way to stop Corby, even if I have to kill him myself.” At Hadley's startled expression, Augustus gave a sad chuckle. “That's me trying to stand on my own two feet.”

“Let's hope it won't come to that,” Hadley said, his words genuine. As he watched his brother slowly close the door, his heart hurt for Augustus. Only a couple of hours ago a life with Evangeline had seemed within his grasp if he wanted it. But there was a madwoman out to kill him, and now his brother's blackmailer had to be stopped, or else he would have to marry Claire.

What was it Augustus had said? Life truly
wasn't
fair.

Part of him was champing at the bit to get Evangeline alone at Lathero, but now he wasn't sure what to do. Unless Corby could be stopped, wasn't he simply getting her hopes up for nothing? And while he'd thought that another reason for bringing her to Lathero was to avoid having her remain a target in London, he now had to wonder whether, by leaving town, Evangeline wasn't walking directly
into
danger rather than away from it.

Hadley rubbed his face. Exhaustion saw him wanting his bed, but now he had to talk to Arend. He hated doing this, but as he set off into the night, he could see no other way to both help his brother and leave him free to pursue Evangeline. The Libertine Scholars would have to help him find something on the Marquis of Corby.

And fast.

Evangeline was astounded at how happy Sealey was when they took him to Lord Coldhurst's house. Henry and her son were inseparable from the moment they met, indicating that Sealey needed other children round him. He was lonely.

The only reason she had been reluctant to leave London—well, the main reason—was her son. Sealey was her everything. She knew the men would never let anything happen to her boy, and that he was safest of all in Sebastian's house with the other children.

Sebastian, of course, had been amazed when he first saw Sealey, but soon that amazement had changed to anger at Evangeline, though Beatrice had successfully pleaded with him to keep it in check. Nevertheless, the fierce words he had said to her as she was leaving—“You tell him before he marries Claire or I will”—reverberated in her ears as the carriage began its journey to Lathero. She did hope that soon she'd be able to share her amazing secret with the man she still loved. Hadley would be overjoyed, she was sure. They had talked about having a family. A very large family.

A warm glow infused her body, starting at her toes. Finally they would have their chance to work toward happiness, and she wasn't about to let Victoria ruin that.

Yesterday, as Evangeline had been packing, Marisa had been in her room reading the journals, and she'd struck gold. She'd found a passage implicating Isobel's stepmother.

Evangeline had packed that journal in her hand luggage, which was safely on the seat opposite her, and she was buzzing to share it with Hadley. Marisa had copied the page verbatim and would soon be sharing it with the rest of the Libertine Scholars. Shortly they would have the proof they needed to ensure Victoria's defeat.

At the same time, Evangeline worried about Isobel. What would happen to her? The social disgrace would ruin her chances of a good match. And Evangeline was concerned about the game Arend was playing with her friend. Should she warn her to be wary? When she got back to London, she decided, she would speak with Isobel about Arend.

Soon her thoughts returned to Hadley, though, and what this time together at Lathero might mean for their future. She was eager to have a chance to rekindle their love affair. No, it was a chance to start again. To build something stronger. A future.

To keep scandal from ensuing, she had left London on her own, informing everyone that she was visiting a sick friend. The carriage had headed northwest out of town before turning south toward Surrey.

Hadley had left last night. There was a risk that their disappearance from London at the same time would cause gossip, but to her it was a risk worth taking. The Libertine Scholars had Runners watching Victoria, and Evangeline's carriage was well guarded.

She made the trip slowly, taking it in easy stages, stopping frequently to change horses. She spent one night in a comfortable coaching inn that Hadley had recommended. She wore her widow's weeds and veil to hide her identity.

As they drew closer to her destination the countryside became more and more familiar, and her thoughts turned black. Her childhood home was only a few miles from Lathero, and the thought of confronting her mother was very appealing.

She sighed, abandoning the thought. It was an indication of how much she'd grown that she realized nothing she could legally do would give her back the five years her mother and Dougal had stolen from her. She had to let the anger go or it would eat her from the inside out. She didn't want to waste her life seeking revenge, as Victoria was doing. She had a son to live for, and now, potentially, a life with Sealey's father.

Rachel was traveling with her, and it was her exclamation that pulled Evangeline out of her morbid thoughts.

“I somehow imagined Lord Fullerton's lodge was small. It's magnificent.”

Evangeline smiled and let her eyes take in the familiar sweeping expanse of lawn running up to the well-appointed garden marking the entrance to the lodge. The circular drive with the Aphrodite fountain was bubbling, the sun glinting off the water, framing the majestic four-story lodge of Bath yellowed limestone.

Lathero had never looked so alive and thriving. It had been a very long five years since she'd been here. Her hand flew to her mouth to stifle a happy sob. She'd never imagined she'd be back here, or that she would see Hadley again, or that she would be able to be enfolded in his warm embrace—that she would feel safe. She decided there and then that she would not allow the bad memories of the past to encroach on her time here. This was their sunshine place. This was a step into her future. And when she looked at Lathero's beautiful setting, she prayed that one day it would be a home she could share with Sealey and his father.

Joy lifted her as she saw Torbet standing on the top step. As the carriage drew up he came down to help her alight, and he defied convention by drawing her into a hug. He was the closest thing Hadley had to a father, given how his own father had treated him as a punching bag, and her heart swelled with emotion at his gesture.

“Welcome, Lady Evangeline. It's wonderful to see you again. I'm sorry that I did not assist you when—”

She gave a gentle shake of her head. “That time is past. There is nothing for you to apologize for. I don't want to spoil this reunion with regrets or undeserved guilt, so we will no longer mention my…my time away.”

The butler stood straighter, the years almost seeming to drop away. “As you wish.” He swept his arm out to indicate another section of the estate. “We did not know when you would arrive. His lordship is in the field behind the stable, with his vines.”

She looked up at him. “Vines?”

“He has become quite enthused with winemaking. But I will leave him to tell you his story.”

As she stepped over the threshold, her body began to tremble. This was really happening. Her senses exploded with the familiar sights and sounds and smells of the house. The entrance's wooden floor was so highly polished she could almost see her face in it, and the staff were lined up along the Persian rug in the hall as if to greet the lady of the house. She was touched by the honor Torbet was extending to her.

She'd just finished the introductions and seen that Rachel was shown where her luggage was to go and what room she'd been given—a suite next to Hadley's—when she happened to glance through the doorway into the garden room, a smaller, less formal room overlooking the rose garden. It had been her favorite room years ago. On a fine day the doors opened wide onto a terrace, and the fragrant scent from the roses would drift in as she sat watching Hadley paint. His easel would be set up near the doors where the light was best, and she would watch his face, a picture of concentration, as his brush worshiped the canvas. He was very talented.

The doors to the garden were closed, so it wasn't the roses that attracted her immediate attention. Instead she found her eyes drawn to a massive portrait hanging above the large fireplace. The painting was exquisite. You could almost see the willow's branches waving in the breeze. The woman sitting under the tree was her, yet wasn't her.

Evangeline had not seen this painting before, so it must have been painted after she had been abducted. The other clue was the way Hadley had portrayed her. She looked quite beautiful, her hair falling in waves around her bare shoulders, her profile exquisite, until you looked closer. Her eyes were cold and hard, her smile pure evil. The coldness and artifice made this woman, the woman who looked exactly like her, a stranger.

Evangeline drew in a deep breath. Someone in pain had painted the image; it was obvious in every stroke of the brush. He'd been so hurt, surely as hurt as she had been. She had to keep remembering that she wasn't the only victim.

Torbet came to stand beside her as she gazed at the painting.

“He painted for months after you left. I think expressing his bitterness and hurt on canvas was cathartic for him. Unfortunately, as soon as he finished this he never painted again.”

“That is indeed a shame. He loved painting, and he was very good.”

Torbet nodded. “Perhaps now that you have returned he'll start painting again.”

She looked once more at the portrait before her. “I hope so.” And she truly did. Painting had always soothed Hadley and filled his life. Torbet was the one who had seen his talent and nurtured it.

Taking leave of the butler, she made her way through the rose gardens, down past their special willow tree, and out the back gate to the small hilly fields behind the stable, where the land sloped down toward a stream.

She put her hand up to shield her eyes from the sun and drank in the beauty of the vineyard in front of her. She noted a few men working among the vines, yet only one man drew her eye…the man who stood in the middle of the farthest row, bent over working.

His coat was off, he wore no waistcoat, and his shirtsleeves were rolled up, revealing tanned arms. If not for the cut of his trousers and the innate presence about his person, he could have simply been another farm laborer.

As she watched, one of the men called to Hadley, indicating he was not doing something correctly. Hadley made his way to the worker's side, allowing him to demonstrate—it looked like they were tying the vines to twine hung between the posts.

He didn't notice her arrival, and she moved under one of the many willows lining the stream, into the deep shadows of the overhanging branches. The shade cooled the heat she felt at the knowledge that tonight she would be in the embrace of those strong tanned arms once again.

The men patiently showed Hadley how to prune the vines and tie them down. He worked alongside them, and when they handed him the pail of water, he drank from the ladle with the rest of them.

This was what she had always admired and loved about Hadley. He was the son of a duke, yet he treated everyone with equal politeness, grace, and importance. No doubt his upbringing, watching his father behave worse than the lowest cad and brute, was at the heart of his ability to cross the barriers of the class system. He had always had an affinity for those less fortunate. That was probably why, when they'd met, he hadn't minded that her family was poor, even though a second son, especially a second son of a duke, usually looked for a financially advantageous match. She now understood how much he must have loved her to be willing to run away to Gretna Green. Did he love her still?

A feeling that he was being watched made him look toward the tree line. For a moment he thought an enemy was present, and given that his life had been threatened twice already, he looked hurriedly round. Out in the open he was a target.

Still, something in his brain indicated that whoever was watching him was not a threat. It took but moments for him to determine who was gazing his way and understand why he had reacted so. His body recognized her even from this distance, and his heart now thundered in his chest. He looked at the sun, realizing it was later than he'd thought. He let a smile wash over him. She'd arrived.

He called to Jack, his head vintner, and said, “Let's call it a day, gentlemen.”

He loved that Evangeline was sitting quietly watching him. Did she feel the past dropping away as he did? Having her back at Lathero heightened his senses.

Then he remembered Augustus, and his heart plummeted to his feet. She was not going to like the conversation they would have to have.

He'd debated long and hard about telling her Augustus's story, but he'd sworn to his brother that he would tell no one, meaning that until he had sorted out the situation his tongue was tied. He could only offer her these three days. He wasn't at liberty to offer her more. If he could, he would.

With his heart weighing heavily in his chest, he strode toward her, wanting this conversation over with as quickly as possible. He hoped she loved him enough to stay anyway, but he would understand if she couldn't.

When he reached the willows she ran into his arms, and for one tiny moment, everything felt right with the world. She hugged him as if her life depended on it, and his resolve weakened. Perhaps he should say nothing right away, let her think they had a future together. Then what? Destroy her world if he could not find a way to stop Corby? As he looked into her eyes, filled with so much love and hope, he couldn't do it. It would hurt whenever he told her; best to get it done now.

As if she sensed him holding back, she stepped out of his arms and looked at him with a cute puzzled frown. He took her hand and led her toward their special tree.

Once she was comfortably seated she said, “Something is wrong.”

He sank down to sit beside her and cupped her chin in his palm. “You are so beautiful.” He bent and placed a soft kiss to her lips but pulled back when she tried to deepen the kiss. Again she looked at him in confusion.

“You agreeing to come to Lathero means more than I can ever express in words.”

“I feel exactly the same about being here. I have to keep pinching myself to make myself believe I'm…with you.”

“When you made the suggestion that we spend time together here, to get to know each other again, I knew in my soul I didn't really need any time. You've owned my heart since the moment I woke up with you cradling my head on that little country lane.” He inwardly cursed at the unfairness of it all. “However, since we made the arrangement to come here, I've learned that I may indeed have to marry Lady Claire.” Her hand flew to her mouth to stifle a cry. “I will spend the next two weeks doing everything in my power to ensure I don't have to, but you deserve the truth. For too long we were in the dark. If I don't, ah, take care of a situation, I will have no alternative but to marry Claire.”

Her eyes searched his face. “If this is about money, if your family needs money, I have money. Plenty of it.”

He raised her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss on her knuckles. “I wish it were about money, but it's not. Our estates are thriving. And before you ask, I cannot divulge the situation I am facing. I made a vow of secrecy, and I have to honor that.”