Deceiving the Duke of Kerrington (Ladies of Deception) (12 page)

            “Are we to picnic at the
house then?” Hope finally inquired, confused by his odd behavior.

            “Not quite, I’m taking you
somewhere I haven’t been in years.” Hope figured she’d just have to be patient
and see for herself as it became clear that Pierce wasn’t going to say anything
more.

            She was stunned to see him
leading her off past the maze of hedges before continuing on towards the
cluster of trees that had been her solace the night before. When they reached
the trees he dropped her hand to reach up and pull back the branches,
indicating for her to enter before he followed shortly behind.

            Once inside, Pierce
stretched to his full height and looked around, “Goodness, I haven’t been here
in ages, I forgot how magical it is.”

            Hope looked up into his
face, “That’s exactly what I thought when I stumbled upon it yesterday.”

            He looked at her
incredulously, “You’ve been here?”

            “Yes, I found it quite by
accident while I was wandering the grounds yesterday. It started to rain while
I was doing a little discovering and I tried to wait out the storm in the
shelter of the trees before I decided if I did that I might be here forever. I
had just come from here when you ran into me completely drenched.”

            He smiled at her, “Have you
seen all of it then?”

            “All of it? I think so…” she
looked around once more wondering what she could’ve missed the first time.

            He surprised her by grabbing
her hand and leading her towards the back of the clearing, “Come, I have
something I want to show you.” By the time they got to the back wall of trees
she was beginning to think him daft, certainly there was nothing more to see.
Pierce turned to her and handed her the bag containing their picnic, “Hold this
please,” then he squatted down and began poking and prodding amongst the
branches as if he was looking for something specific. He must’ve found it
because he looked up just then and smiled at her triumphantly and she couldn’t
help but smile in return at his boyish enthusiasm.

            Clearing a layer of branches
that had been cleverly placed as a disguise then holding back the few remaining
attached branches he turned to her and said, “I’ll take the picnic and you’ll
have to bend over a bit to get in, do you think you can manage?”

            “I’ll certainly try,” she
exclaimed excitedly, pleasantly surprised by the prospect of an adventure. A
few strands of her hair caught on the branches as she entered the hidden
dwelling but once she was successfully in she looked around and gasped. She was
standing in a perfectly circular room, made entirely of thick tree trunks, but
unlike the space they just left, there was no tree branches blocking the sky,
allowing the sun to beat down unfiltered. She looked around and noticed a
rigged fort of some sort off to the side with a wooden top and what appeared to
be a telescope sitting next to it, dirty and faded from being exposed to the
elements for who knew how many years.

            She heard Pierce enter with
a low grunt and turned towards him, “Was this your secret hideout as a child?”

            “It was. Somehow I
remembered it being much larger.” His large frame filled the space, almost
making it feel uncomfortably tight but she tried to ignore his nearness.

            “Well I’d venture to guess that
you were much smaller then you are now so it probably did indeed seem much
larger.”

            “I used to spend hours here
going on adventures in my imagination,” he gestured to the shoddy fort. “I
built that with fallen branches I would collect…obviously I’m not much of a
builder.” He smiled at the memories. “My only regret is that I never had anyone
to share it with. I used to be so jealous of my friends who had siblings for in
my mind it was the ideal solution to always have a built in friend. Being an
only child could be quite lonely at times.”

            Without thinking, Hope
replied, “Tell me about it, I think that’s why I cultivated such an
imagination.”

            Pierce looked at her
strangely, one dark eyebrow raised, “But what about Devon? Surely having an
older brother provided some sort of company when you were children.”

            Realizing her error, she
made to recover quickly, “Oh you know how older brothers can be. To Devon I was
mostly a bother and with our different interests and pursuits we hardly had
time to spend with one another so I did spend quite a bit of time alone. I was
just thinking that I could sort of relate,” she trailed off hoping that he
would buy her explanation.

            “I suppose that could be the
case with siblings, not that I have any experience with which to compare.”

            Eager to change the subject,
Hope gestured towards the bag he held and said, “Shall we eat? I know it’s not
very ladylike of me to admit it, but I’m famished.” Just as she finished
speaking, and much to her embarrassment, her stomach growled loudly causing her
cheeks to burn and Pierce to laugh.

            Thrusting the bag at her
Pierce said, “By all means, do help yourself while I spread the…” running a
hand nervously through his hair he continued, “seems in my haste I forgot to
grab the blanket,” giving her a nervous smile he rushed on, “I suppose if you
don’t mind waiting I could run back to the stables and grab the quilt I had
packed.”

            “Oh don’t be ridiculous, the
ground will be perfectly fine. Besides, I’m not sure my stomach could handle
the wait.” Pierce watched in surprise as she gracefully lowered herself to the
dirty ground, careful to make sure her skirts were appropriately covering her
as she sat. Having no other choice, he sat down next to her.

            “Well, why don’t we see what
cook packed and put your poor stomach to rest. I forget you didn’t come to
dinner last night so you truly must be starving and with the way I rushed you
out of the house this morning I doubt you got a bite to eat earlier either.” He
suddenly felt guilty for being the cause of her missing not only one but two
meals in less than a day, knowing that he was most likely the reason she had
missed dinner the night before.

            He reached into the sack and
pulled out cold chicken wrapped in a cloth, a small dish of salmagundi, two
bright red apples, and biscuits. The fare, though simple, looked divine to Hope
and she gladly took the proffered food thinking that cold chicken had never
tasted so good. They sat eating silently for a time before Pierce reached in
the bag and pulled out a bottle of wine but as he rummaged further he realized
that cook had forgotten to pack glasses.

            Opening the bottle he handed
it to Hope saying, “Apparently there are no glasses so we’ll have to drink
straight from the bottle. You can go first.”

            Hope eyed the bottle
speculatively before deciding to throw caution to the wind—she was eating cold
chicken while sitting on the dirt floor of a hidden childhood fort and suddenly
drinking from a bottle of wine seemed like a perfectly acceptable thing to do.
Grabbing the bottle from Pierce’s hand, she tried to ignore the tingle she felt
at the slight brushing of their hands before she tilted her head back and drank
deeply from the bottle.

            Pierce watched her lips
press to the bottle as she drank and momentarily felt jealous realizing he
wanted those lips pressed to his. Trying to distract himself he said, “You
surprise me Noelle.”

            She looked at him
sheepishly, “I apologize, I’m not quite sure what overcame me.”

            He was looking at her with
the same look he gave her right before he kissed her. His voice was low and
husky, “Don’t ever apologize, I find you quite refreshing.”

            Hope felt herself being
drawn into him, watching his chiseled lips and hanging onto every word that
escaped them. When she looked up into his dark eyes she noticed he was looking
at her lips as well. She nervously licked them before shaking her head, trying
to dispel the cloud of desire that was enshrouding her, determined not to give
into him this time.

It took every
ounce of willpower that she possessed to pull back and look away, biting into
her apple to dispel the mood. Though she was still chewing her bite of apple,
she nervously said, “Thanks for today. It was nice, and thanks for sharing your
fort with me.”

Though Noelle
was clearly trying to distract him from his desire to kiss her, he found that
her methods were no less distracting. Watching her lick her lips and bite into
the luscious red peel of the apple about did him in, he couldn’t take his eyes
off of her mouth. Though she did it all with a perfect innocence, it was almost
more temptation than he could take. What he really wanted to do was to lay her
back on the hard ground and kiss that perfectly plump mouth senseless but she
had made it clear that she wouldn’t appreciate the overture.

Instead he
forced himself to listen to her talking and by some miracle he was able to
respond, “I’ve never brought anyone here before, ever.”

She looked at
him in surprise, her large amber eyes holding what he interpreted as and
desperately hoped was delight, “Really? Then I am honored and will cherish this
day forever.”

He smiled,
knowing he would too, for it had been the first time in ages where he felt
completely comfortable with a member of the fairer sex and instead of grasping
for excuses to get away from her, he was hesitant for the day to end, scared
that the lonesomeness that had plagued him so much of late would return full
force, realizing for the first time how much Noelle’s presence in his life had
almost cured him completely of that loneliness. Odd that.

Chapter 15

Hope’s thoughts
wandered to the enjoyable day she had spent with Pierce as Esther flitted
around readying her for dinner. It was still odd for her to be catered to and
pampered instead of being the one doing the catering, but it was refreshing to
sit back and just have time to think. She was actually looking forward to
dinner tonight, oddly excited at the prospect of seeing Pierce again. Today he
had felt like something more than a confusing opponent in this odd game she had
been forced into, he had actually felt more like a friend.

            When Esther had placed the
last pin in her hair and declared her ready, Hope leaned forward and rummaged
through her jewelry box until she found the ruby necklace her mother had given
her on their last visit. She quickly clasped it into place on her neck, feeling
the heavy stone fall just below her collarbone. She quickly surveyed herself in
the looking glass and was pleased by the results—she had never noticed before
how pretty she actually was. Of course, she had always thought Noelle was
beautiful but had never imagined she could look just like her!

            Gathering herself after one
final glance in the mirror, she left her bedchamber and headed anxiously to the
dining room. As she entered the large room she noticed not one but two figures
stand as she entered. Briefly her eyes flicked to Pierce before looking back at
the stranger standing next to him. The man was not quite as tall or as broad as
Pierce but he definitely had an imposing presence. He had dark hair and wicked
good looks, though once again she found even his looks lacking in comparison to
Pierce’s. When he looked into her eyes as he reached for her hand, she was
surprised to see their striking contrast of pale blue against his tanned skin.

He placed a soft
kiss to her hand before saying, “Pleased to meet you Lady Noelle, I’m Lord
Martineau, Pierce’s oldest and closest friend. Did I mention that I’m also his
handsomest?” There was a twinkle in his eye as he spoke.

“Apparently his
most conceited as well, but pleased to meet you nonetheless.”

She was
surprised when Pierce threw back his head and laughed. “Seems to me that she
has you pegged, dear friend.” Lord Martineau just scowled before taking his
seat.

Pierce was at
Hope’s side where he gently took her hand and placed it on his arm before
walking her around to the other side of the long table to help her into her
seat. “Well said, my little minx. Elliot’s ego can use some deflating once in
awhile.”

Hope arched one
perfectly shaped brow, “It’s no wonder you two are such good friends, it seems
to me you have much in common.”

He leaned in
close to her ear as he pushed in her chair, “And you, miss, have a sharp
tongue.”

She looked up at
him, an innocent expression on her face, “I prefer to think of it as an honest
one.” He just rolled his eyes and went back to his seat across the table from
hers, feeling invigorated by their verbal sparring.

Just as he had
resumed sitting, his mother walked into the room and he was once more on his
feet, but before he even had the chance to go escort her to her own seat,
Elliot had whisked by him and had helped himself to the honors.

“Ah, can I just
tell you how lovely you are looking tonight, duchess?”

Caroline laughed
and swatted Elliot’s arm, “Oh do stop flirting with me, Lord Martineau, I’m
much too old for the likes of you.”

Elliot reared
back, feigning shock, “Too old? Never. Too beautiful? That’s much closer to the
truth.”

Caroline reached
up and patted his cheek as she chuckled, “You’re quite the flatterer, now why
are you wasting those pretty words on an old lady like me when there are young ladies
galore for you to charm in London?”

“That’s the crux
of it—it’s much more fun and safe to flirt when you’re not concerned with said
flirting being misconstrued as a marriage proposal.” He pulled out her chair
and waited while she sat and made herself comfortable before going back to his
own seat.

“And why, might
I ask, are the gentleman of the ton so afraid of marriage? First Pierce, and
now you too Elliot? Is there some sort of epidemic sweeping London’s
ballrooms?”

Hope couldn’t
resist piping in, “Cowardice, perhaps?” She had only said it in jest, but she
didn’t miss the look of pain that flashed in Elliot’s eyes before it
disappeared just as quickly as it had come. Once again he was back to his
casual bantering, as if he was hiding some secret pain behind his
lightheartedness.

He turned to her
and said, “It appears that England’s two most beautiful women are out of my
reach, so what’s a bachelor such as myself to do if I can’t have either of you?”

His mocking leer
irritated her and she had the sudden desire to reach forward and strangle him
with his perfectly tied cravat, suddenly annoyed by his incessant joking and
though she had only known the man for a matter of minutes, he seemed as if he was
hard pressed to take anything seriously. No wonder he couldn’t find a girl to
marry.

Luckily she was
saved from answering by the footman who began serving dinner. She mostly ate in
silence, observing the interactions of the people around her. It was apparent
that they were all comfortable and familiar with one another and she enjoyed
listening to them fill Caroline in on all the gossip that they had been privy
to during the season.  Every now and then she would look up and find Pierce
staring at her, causing her heart to speed up its cadence. Several times when
she made eye contact with him and caught him looking, instead of him glancing
away and pretending like he hadn’t been ogling her with his eyes, he would
boldly stare back, not daring to break eye contact. Inevitably, Hope was always
the one to look away, embarrassed by his audaciousness.

When dinner was
finally over, Hope rose, anticipating spending some time with Caroline while
the men retired to the library for port. Pierce surprised her by putting one
large hand on Elliot’s shoulder and saying, “If you don’t mind man, I’m going
to forgo the port tonight. I had promised Noelle that I’d show her the pictures
in the gallery and I know she must be getting tired after our long day so I
don’t want to keep her waiting.”

Pictures in the
gallery? It was the first Hope had heard anything of it, but the look he gave
her silenced her and she waited, anxious to see what he was all about.

Elliot gave
Pierce a mischievous look, “It’s no disappointment to me; I think it’s no
secret that I’d much prefer your mother’s company to yours anyway. Now run
along little ones, the duchess and I have much to discuss.”

Pierce escorted
Hope out of the room, leading her up the wide staircase and up towards the
gallery before either one of them spoke. Hope was surprised that Pierce allowed
so much time to lapse in silence, knowing his previous dislike of it. This time
she would have welcomed his conversation, for her curiosity was fully piqued
and she was dying to know what he was up too.

Pierce was
surprised that Noelle didn’t badger him with endless questions regarding his
actions the minute they were alone. He himself still wasn’t one hundred percent
sure what had compelled him to do what he had done. He knew that he would face
endless teasing from Elliot, but he’d deal with the consequences later. All he
knew was that from the moment Noelle had set foot in the dining room, he had
been hard pressed to take his eyes off of her. Though she was dressed in a
simple white muslin dress with a dark blue ribbon tied just under her breasts,
her golden hair shone brilliantly in the candlelight and her amber eyes
mesmerized him.

He knew that she
could feel his hungry stare on her and the few times their eyes had met across
the table, he couldn’t find it in him to look away even then. He still wanted
to slug Elliot every time he thought of his audacity at ever labeling the girl
as nondescript. Clearly Elliot was blind.

They came to a
stop in front of a large stone fireplace, the walls lined on each side of the
gallery with large, guilt framed paintings of generations of dukes and duchesses
gone by. His own father and mother’s painting hung proudly above the fireplace,
displayed in a notable place of honor. He watched as Noelle looked around at
the paintings before looking back at him, “Well they didn’t break the mold with
you, you look like every other Duke of Kerrington that has ever had the
privilege to grace this earth.”

Pierce chuckled,
“I suppose there is some family resemblance.”

Hope turned
towards him and looked up into his smoldering eyes, “Is that why you were so
eager to show me these paintings? So I could be assured that every generation
of Chadwick’s is as handsome as the next?”

Pierce felt the
space between them electrify as she inched closer, “Are you saying you find me
handsome?”

“I suppose if
you like tall, dark, snarling men than you would rank right up there.”

It was his turn
to inch closer, “For your information, I haven’t snarled once today.”

She widened her
eyes and gave him an impish look, “Oh, I’m very proud of you. I’d say such
noble efforts deserve a reward.”

Pierce felt his
pulse quicken and his blood warm, “Yes, I would agree. What do you have in
mind?”

In that moment,
looking up into his black eyes that danced with devils, Hope knew that more
than anything she’d like to reward him with a kiss, but she wasn’t sure she’d
have the nerve to deliver.

            Pierce watched for one long
moment, holding his breath in anticipation. The minute she stood up on her toes
and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips he felt a jolt in his midsection. As far
as kisses go, it was perhaps the briefest and most chaste he had ever received
but the fact that it had come from her and was given of her own free will did
something incredible and completely foreign to every nerve in his entire body.

            Hope pulled back shyly,
embarrassed by her actions and desperately hoped he didn’t think less of her
for her forwardness. She couldn’t tell by the look on his face if he was
pleased or not.

            After a few seconds he led
her quietly to a chair and said, “Wait right here, I’ll be back in a minute.”

            Hope didn’t know what to
think as she sat and fretted about what had just occurred between the two of
them. She conjured up an image of him rushing into the nearest room to wipe the
kiss she had bestowed on him from his lips in revulsion, the thought sending
another wave of embarrassment washing over her. What if he had truly been
repulsed by her kiss? She thought back to the other times they had kissed and
he had never seemed disgusted, but this was the first time she had initiated it
and he wasn’t the one leading off in their passionate interludes.

            Before she had any longer to
fret about it, Pierce had returned carrying a rectangular velvet box in one
hand. He reached down and lifted her to her feet with his free hand then held
the box between them, “I wanted you to have this, it reminded me of your eyes.
Or rather, your eyes reminded me of it and I knew it must be yours.”

            He opened the latch and lifted
the lid of the box to reveal an exquisite necklace composed of large faceted
amber teardrop stones encased in gold, alternating with smaller sparkling round
diamonds. Hope gasped and automatically reached one hand to her throat,
clutching tightly the ruby necklace her mother had given her.

            Watching her actions, Pierce
said, “This necklace is beautiful, but it doesn’t even begin to do your eyes
justice.”

            He reached to dispense of
the ruby pendant when Hope squeaked, “It was my mother’s.” At least that part
was true.

            Pierce’s eyes showed
understanding, “It’s sentimental I gather?”

            Hope thought a moment before
speaking, “It’s not that—I’ve just never worn anything so fancy, I’m not sure I
could.”

            “Nonsense, as Duchess of
Kerrington you will have access to all the family jewels and will wear many
pieces much finer than this. I thought every lady looked forward to the
prospect of wearing such things.”

            “If you haven’t noticed, I’m
not like most ladies.” She looked into his eyes then, and for the first time
since meeting him she was filled with an overwhelming desire, almost need to
tell him the truth, to tell him who and what she really was, but she knew she
couldn’t and even more importantly, that she wouldn’t.

            He smiled, “Oh, I’ve
definitely taken note and must admit that I’m relieved to find out you’re not
quite like all the rest of them.” Hope dropped her hands then and allowed him
to reach back and remove the ruby pendant which she let fall into her hand
while he put the much larger, more opulent necklace into place around her
delicate throat. When the necklace was clasped, he bent down and placed a
tender kiss on the back of her neck right above where the necklace closed
before turning her around to face him.

            Pierce let his breath rush
out of him, “Exquisite.”