In the Garden of Temptation (26 page)

Lady Ashworth!
The resemblance to her son was
remarkable.

“
You are Adam’s mother.” She
spoke to the obvious.

“
This is true, and as his
only living parent it has become my duty to see to his interests. I
do hope you understand me.”

If Catherine did understand she had no
intention of admitting it. “I’m afraid I’m confused.”

She stared at the countess wide-eyed, making
certain just the right amount of bewilderment shaded her
features.

“
See here, madam, I have no
desire to bandy words with you. You know exactly what I mean. You
and my son have been the
on dit
of the summer. That has been bad enough, but now
it comes to my attention that you two irresponsible fools are
considering leaving the country. What can you be
thinking?”

“
I assume my husband has
told you this.”

Catherine was stalling, for she could not
bring herself to admit the truth to this cold, unpleasant
woman.

The countess waved her hand in disgust. “The
baron, bah!—horrible man.” She shuddered. “Believe it or not I pity
you, but I can’t see sacrificing my son to ease your burden.”

The dowager’s attitude was so condescending
Catherine bristled. “I don’t think Adam considers our being
together a sacrifice.”

“
Come now, my dear, you have
little to lose and everything to gain from a liaison with my son.
The same cannot be said for Adam. His life will be
destroyed.”

“
Destroyed…that’s a very
strong word.”

“
Not too strong, however,”
Lady Ashworth countered. “Adam has a political career waiting for
him. He is a well-known man and highly respected. He cannot do this
thing without creating a tremendous scandal.”

“
Talk dies down in time,”
Catherine said, but her words sounded unconvincing even to
herself.

“
And meanwhile Adam’s family
will suffer. I’m not just speaking for myself, although I would
find the situation horrifying. He has a sister and an extended
family. What of them? Are you more important than all those
people?” By the look on the dowager’s face, she did not think
so.

“
We just want to be
together. Is that so hard to understand?” Catherine asked
plaintively.

Lady Ashworth clasped her hands under her
considerable bosom, her expression unyielding. “One’s duty must
come first. You were not born a peasant—you know this.”

Perhaps now was the time to confess just how
far the situation had gone. “It is not only I. There is more than
myself to consider.”

“
I know about the child,”
the dowager snapped.

“
I see.” Obviously, it would
not make any difference. “Edgar has been busy this day.”

“
Your husband wants to do
the noble thing. He should be given credit for his finer instincts.
Most men would toss you out on your backside. You should be
grateful for his restraint.”

Grateful?
What would this unfeeling beldam know about it?
Maybe Catherine ought to tell her how matters really stood, but
what good would it do? This woman was not sympathetic regardless of
what she professed.

“
It is your
grandchild.”

Lady Ashworth drew in a self-righteous breath
and her nostrils flared indignantly. “Let me make myself clear,
young woman. You carry a bastard, nothing more. I will grandparent
the legitimate offspring of my children. I have no intention of
acknowledging a tragic mistake.”

Tears stung the back of Catherine’s throat as
she fought not to cry. She was outraged at labeling her precious
child with such a foul name.

“
I am certain Adam will not
feel that way,” she whispered brokenly. Her control had begun to
slip.

“
Spare him the decision,”
the countess urged her. “If you love him do not make him choose. Do
not rob him of his heritage, for he will come to hate you for it.
He should expect to pass his title on to his own son. He cannot do
that if he does not wed legally.”

Catherine was too stunned to speak.

The dowager countess, apparently sensing the
advantage, struck quickly to seal her case.

“
You have a home waiting for
you and a husband who wishes to care for you and your baby. Take
the child as a parting gift from my son and let him continue on
with his life. I ask this for Adam’s sake.”

As much as she might detest Lady Ashworth,
Catherine knew the woman was right. Adam must not be allowed to
toss everything away on a momentary obsession. Not that she
mistrusted the integrity of his feelings, for she knew the earl
loved her. But he would love again and more rightly.

“
I promise only to think
about it,” she said, struggling to regain her composure, too proud
to allow the countess more.

“
You do that, Lady
Bourgeault.” On her way from the room, Lady Ashworth brushed past
Catherine, leaving a faint scent of lavender soap. She paused at
the door and turned. “Let us hope for all our sakes you have the
moral fiber needed to make the correct decision. Good day to you,
madam.”

Long after the countess had departed,
Catherine stared at the spot where the woman had stood in the
doorway. Her mind was awash in conflicting emotions, not the least
of which was grief. Already she had put her fledgling hopes for a
brighter future to rest. Now she saw it as simply a matter of going
through the motions until all the threads could be sewn up right
and tight. Oh, she dreaded having to tell Adam they must part. The
real challenge would be forcing him to accept the inevitable.

“
My lady, I’m so glad I’ve
found you. I’ve been searching for you everywhere.” Edna rushed
into the room, obviously relieved at having found her mistress. She
stopped abruptly as she caught sight of the baroness’ face. “Are
you all right?”

“
I’m fine,” Catherine lied.
“Where have you been? I’ve been looking for you, also.”

“
My lady,” the little
servant wailed, “I heard you ring for me, and I tried to answer
your summons, I swear, but Mr. Gant was in the corridor and would
not let me pass. Said something about the master’s orders. I’m so
sorry.”

“
It’s nothing to worry
about,” Catherine reassured her. “I wanted you to take a message to
Lord Ashworth.”

“
I can do it now. Where is
it?”

“
It’s a verbal message. Tell
Lord Ashworth I need to see him at our place as soon as
possible.”

“
Wouldn’t you rather I speak
to his man, my lady?”

“
It doesn’t matter. Go to
the door and ask for the earl. If he’s not there you may speak with
his servant.”

Edna looked surprised by this lack of
intrigue.

The baroness smiled gently. “Discretion is no
longer important,” she said in a weary voice.

“
Oh…” was all Edna said. And
then, “Are you certain you are all right?”

“
Yes, yes, please just go,”
Catherine said impatiently as she pressed the maid to
leave.

Another lie that, for she would never be all
right again.

*****

“
My lord, may I have a word
with you?”

“
Of course, Ames. Come
in.”

Lord Ashworth stood before the mirror in his
bedchamber as he shaved the shadow of his course, dark beard. He
had only recently returned home and was busy making preparations
for the evening ahead.

“
There is a gentleman in the
foyer who would like to speak with you.”

“
Who is it?” the earl asked
without much interest.

He took the corner of the towel hanging
around his neck and dabbed at the excess shaving soap still
clinging to his chin. Pity he had to go through this routine twice
a day if he were to stay clean-shaven, he thought. He glanced in
the mirror at the butler, his eyebrows raised in question.

“
It is the man who attended
your mother’s ball last spring without an invitation.”

Adam swung around. “Lord Bourgeault?”

“
Yes, sir.”

“
Damn! What is he doing
here?” The earl began to scrub the soap from his face in
earnest.

“
I don’t know, my lord, but
this is his second visit today.”

“
He must be determined to
see me.”

“
Actually, he requested a
meeting with your mother when he was here earlier.”

“
Really?” Adam asked,
surprised. “Did she receive him?”

“
She did.”

“
You wouldn’t know what it
was about, would you?”

“
He said something about
averting a disaster.”

“
Put him in the study, Ames.
I’ll be down as soon as I can get dressed.”

The earl was uneasy about this new turn of
events. He considered it a bold move for the baron to appear on the
Ashworth doorstep although probably not out of character. Up till
now Lord Bourgeault had not interfered in Adam’s relationship with
Catherine. He wondered if the baron’s benign neglect was about to
come to an end.

Ten minutes found Lord Ashworth entering his
study. He walked briskly across the room to confront his guest.

“
Bourgeault,” he greeted
tersely, “what can I do for you?”

“
I do like speech with you,
Ashworth.” The baron’s tone was snide. “You never make me sashay
through the niceties before getting down to business. So
refreshing.”

“
And you, sir, can be
counted on to bog down the conversation in sarcasm,” the earl
countered. “I have a feeling this meeting will be unpleasant. What
say we get on with it?”

“
As you wish.” The baron ran
his thumb and index finger along the corners of his mouth as he
watched the earl. “I’m taking my wife home in a few
days.”

A tense quiet filled the room. “And…?” Adam’s
voice sliced the silence like a whip.

“
I do not want you to
interfere.”

“
What makes you think I
would try to stop you?”

“
Come now.” The baron
sounded exasperated. “I thought we had decided to make a clean
breast of it. We both know what this is about, so don’t play the
fool.”

“
Why don’t you elaborate,
Bourgeault?” Adam was content to hold his cards.

The baron’s eyes narrowed to steely slits.
“You are having an affair with my wife that began months ago when
you visited my home.” He paused, his attitude dramatic. “I invited
you there for that very purpose.”

The earl went rigid with shock. “You goddamn
bastard! What the hell are you talking about?”

“
It’s not that hard to
understand, really,” the baron murmured in silky accents. “My wife
and I have had trouble conceiving. I thought a younger man might
prove to be more, ah…shall we say, potent.”

“
You said you wanted to sell
me your horses,” the earl ground out in disbelief.

“
Yes, well, it was a ruse, I
admit it.” The baron shrugged as if it were an unimportant detail.
“You never really believed it anyway, did you?”

“
Why would you do such a
thing?” Adam asked, appalled.

“
I need a son to inherit.
Not such an unusual thing if you give it some thought.” Lord
Bourgeault sighed. “Such a pity the experiment has failed. I fear
Catherine may be barren.”

“
Are you saying you used me
like a stud to service your wife?”

The baron grinned as though the analogy were
apt. “I suppose you could put it that way.”

“
How could you debase your
wife in such a manner?”

“
She agreed it was
necessary.”

Adam advanced on the man, fists clenched in
knots at his sides. “That’s a lie! I ought to break your bloody
neck for such a vile accusation.”

Lord Bourgeault held his ground, but
something shifted in his opaque eyes, revealing his sudden
apprehension at the threat of violence.

“
Do you believe I could
accomplish this without her cooperation?” he asked in a rush.
“Think. It would have left a great deal to chance, don’t you
see?”

Adam did see and he did not
like it one bit. He refused to accept that Catherine could be so
coldly calculating. She loved him—he
kne
w that to be true. This evil man
merely wanted Adam to doubt her, and that wasn’t going to
happen.

“
You sicken me, Bourgeault,”
he snarled. “Get out of my home before I have your bony carcass
thrown into the street.” As a sudden thought occurred to him, he
added, “And leave my mother out of your scheming or I will come
after you, I swear it.”

“
I’ll go but make no
mistake. My wife goes with me.”

Lord Bourgeault edged toward the door and
into the passageway beyond with the earl in angry pursuit.

“
We’ll see about that, won’t
we, Bourgeault?”

As the two men reached the main hall the door
chime rang, echoing through the rooms on the bottom floor of the
mansion. Ames appeared from the direction of the dining hall and in
a dignified manner answered the summons. A tiny voice on the other
side of the door asked to be directed to Lord Ashworth, if you
please, and the butler permitted the person to enter.