Legendary Lover (7 page)

AT
GROVELAND
 
HOUSE
,
 
THE
 
DUCHESS
 
OFFERED

Venus a sunny lady's chamber adorned in aquamarine damask and pale Empire furniture in which to refresh
herself
, suggesting they meet in the garden in ten minutes.

Which gave her only a few moments to send a note to Jack.

As Lady Groveland dashed off her message requesting his presence for tea, she ignored high-minded principles in the interests of matters of the heart. Call it kismet or sorcery, she'd recognized an affinity between her profligate godson and the extraordinary Miss
Duras
and she intended to meddle. So she lied without a qualm, asking Jack to stop by briefly to help her decide on a bequest for her grandchildren. The marquis served as her surrogate advisor in business matters when her son was absent.

"Find him, wherever he is," she ordered her footman, standing beside her at the ready. "Check Mme.
Robuchon's
first if he's not at home. Lucy's is his favorite afternoon retreat."

The duchess well understood the ways of a fashionable buck. Her husband had lived a bachelor life for two decades before they'd met; her son had followed his father's pattern. She knew how wealthy young men spent their leisure time. She also kept abreast of all the gossip through her lady's maid, Molly, who could tell you by noon each day who had had breakfast with whom.

The duchess gave instructions to her maid, her confidante in all things. "The minute Jack arrives, have him brought to the garden."

"He's going to be right furious with you, my lady," Molly
warned,
her eyes wide with alarm.

"Not in front of Miss
Duras
, he won't be."

"Sure enough, he might," the maid disagreed. "You know his temper."

"I also know he was melancholy last night when Miss
Duras
left, whether he cared to admit it or not. Why shouldn't I give him a nudge in the right direction?"

"You're ever so brave, my lady," Molly declared. "Melancholy or not, the marquis is frightfully hot-tempered."

"I've known him since he was a suckling babe," the duchess observed, tucking a hennaed curl into place. "I can handle him. You just see that he comes into the garden. And then after a decent interval, call me in with a message. Now, not a word from anyone that Miss
Duras
is visiting when he arrives."

"My lips are sealed, my lady."

"See that the rest of the staffs are as well."

And so saying, the duchess twitched her skirt into place and sailed from the room with the stage presence of an accomplished actress.

THE
    
GARDEN
    
WAS
    
PEACEFUL
    
AND
    
SERENE,

tucked
away behind serpentine brick walls covered with cascading roses.
A spreading magnolia
planted by some long-ago Groveland shaded one corner where a tea table had been arranged.

Venus was lounging on a silk-cushioned chaise, the cream tussah a perfect foil for her golden beauty and
fern-green muslin gown. She waved at the sight of the duchess descending the terrace steps, and Peggy cheerfully waved back.

"I told Oliver we deserved our best champagne after all our hard work this afternoon," the duchess said as she approached.

"I've already been served." Venus held her half-empty glass up for her hostess to see. "Your butler insisted I try the lemon-curd tarts too. You see," she went on, indicating the depleted plate, "I took him up on the offer."

"Tell me what I can do to help tomorrow," Peggy declared, pouring herself a glass of champagne. "I haven't had so much fun in ages. Perhaps you could instruct me concerning some purchases for my own charity hospital."

"I'd be delighted. 1 plan to return to the Exhibition tomorrow for my next round of purchases."

"Capital! Let me replenish your wineglass." The duchess had deliberately chosen to have their tea without servants in attendance. She had every confidence the marquis would be found, and she wished no spectators when he appeared.

The ladies had finished one bottle of champagne, the lemon-curd tarts, and half of the salmon sandwiches, and their discussion of the recently appointed poor-law board was in full swing, when Jack arrived on the terrace. Having positioned her chair so the terrace door was in sight, the duchess rose from her chair immediately and waved in welcome.

Venus turned to see who was arriving, and a warm flush immediately colored her face.

Jack's descent was arrested midway down the terrace
stairs when he saw Peggy's guest and, for the briefest moment, he debated turning around and leaving.
Grandchildren's bequests indeed.
Now he knew why Peggy's footman had been so insistent, why he wasn't willing to have Jack come to see the duchess that evening.

Damn Peggy's guile, he irritably thought. He couldn't cut and run, of course, and she knew it. Bloody hell, this was going to be awkward.

But he was urbane and gracious as he made his bows to the ladies, and after a small hesitation, he sat at Peggy's invitation. He had no intention of refusing the duchess's offer of champagne. He might need several glasses to survive this clumsy, misguided scheme.

Peggy cheerfully maintained the flow of the conversation, chattering on about their afternoon at the docks, going off in raptures over the sleek, racy
Duras
vessel being used for transport, extolling the virtue and reward in undertaking a charity hospital, repeatedly refilling Jack's glass as he emptied it.

Outside the duchess's relentless stream of garrulous-ness, the marquis and Miss
Duras
found themselves oppressively aware of each other, acutely conscious of all that had passed between them last evening. Assailed by inopportune feelings, traitorous memory, ill-defined longings, they responded vaguely to Peggy's attempts at conversation.

Venus had the wholesome look of a country maid in her light muslin gown and undone hair, Jack testily thought—fresh and ripe, infinitely tempting—and he cursed his godmother's conniving intent. Who the hell could resist such toothsome allure? He held his glass out for a refill, as if he could drink himself into some oblivion where he'd no longer be susceptible to such tantalizing sensuality.

Jack smelled of a woman's perfume, Venus crossly thought, as though she had a right to be angry, as though her anger could protect her from her desires. His dark beauty and lean, muscled body, his unquenchable virility irrepressibly lured her while he lounged in his chair, seemingly unaware of his powerful allure. She vowed to resist her unconscionable longing, refusing to yield to his seductive appeal like every woman he'd ever known.

Molly's shout shattered the increasingly taut unease. "A message for you, my lady!" she cried, waving a sheet of paper from the distant terrace.

"I can't imagine what's come over Molly," the duchess said in mock indignation. "I thought I'd trained her better than to scream like that.
If you'll excuse me for a moment."
She came to her feet, waving back at her maid. "Jack, pour Miss
Duras
more champagne. Her glass is empty. I'll be back in a minute."

As the duchess crossed the green lawn, the marquis rose to refill Venus's glass. "I take it you weren't aware of Peggy's machinations." Her discomfort had been obvious.

"Hardly," she curtly replied. "I don't know what she expects to accomplish. Please—" she held up her hand "—I really don't want any more champagne."

"In that case, I'll drink it all." Bottle in hand, he dropped back into his chair.

"Uncomfortable, are you?" Venus sardonically murmured, grateful he was as disconcerted as she.

"God, yes.
Peggy brought me here on pretext of business. I should give her a tongue-lashing."

73

"Do you think it would do any good?"

He found himself laughing.
"Hell, no."

"Please don't stay on my account. I'll tell Peggy not to waste her time and ours in future." She spoke briskly, his laughter reminding her too much of last night. She wanted him to leave and save her from temptation.

He should have been relieved at her words, but oddly he wasn't. "Maybe I'm not wasting my time."

"You are
,
I assure you. I don't care to be the subject of any new wagers."

"No one collected on their bets. I denied everything. And if anyone wishes to dispute my account, they're free to challenge me."

"No one will."

He shook his head.

"How chivalrous,
Redvers
. I should thank you, I suppose, but then you smell of perfume in the middle of the afternoon."

He looked at her over the rim of his glass. "Does it offend you?"

"Don't look at me like that. And yes, it does."

"I was just accompanying a friend of mine. I didn't participate."

"Don't explain. What you do with your time is of no importance to me."

"But you don't like the scent of perfume on me."

"Because of what it implies of your indolent life.
Have you no other interests?"

"Would it matter if I did?"

"Of course not.
I don't know why we're even having this conversation."

"Probably because I'd like to make love to you again, despite every warning bell going off in my brain—and if

74

you
don't think me too immodest, I suspect you do as well."

"I certainly
do not."
But her cheeks turned pink and she wouldn't meet his gaze.

"I'm not saying we would, only that we'd like to. I'm as unwilling as you to give in to these unprecedented feelings."

She heard the word
unprecedented
and took a deep breath, as though she could still the flutter in her stomach by such simple means. The word echoed her own disobedient emotions, filled her brain with expectation,
flared
hotly where she didn't wish to feel any heat. "Yes, unwilling. I agree."

His gaze sharpened. He knew that sound. And it suddenly became a question of whether he cared to act on his feelings.

For the lady was willing, whether she acknowledged it or not.

He softly swore, not familiar with curbing his desires. "I dislike these sensations."

"I think you should leave."

"Or we should leave together." The words seemed quite independent of his wishes.

"It's impossible ..."

But there was ambiguity in her tone. "I've a river house, not too far away," he slowly said, choosing his words with care, as if he needed justification for what he was saying. "It's wholly unfashionable and rustic. No one would see us there."

"I hate this. I hate you for making me feel this way."

"You could chastise me to your heart's content upriver," he replied with a faint smile.

75

"How can it even signify who you take there? How can you distinguish anymore?"

He seemed not to have heard her. "I should have left when I first saw you. I don't know why I didn't."

"How smoothly charming you
are
."

He shrugged. "I'm sorry for my candor. I generally prefer dissimulation in these arrangements. It's so much easier."

"You find it difficult to consider making love to me?"

"I find it unnerving in the extreme."

She gazed at him for a tremulous moment. "I understand completely," she whispered.

"We're damned tyros at this . . . shocking susceptibility."

Her heart beat wildly.
"Absolute novices."

"Peggy is peeking through the drawing-room curtains, along with Molly," he noted, dipping his head in their direction. "Shall we make love here and delight their little hearts?"

"Acquit me,
Redvers
, of your exhibitionist tendencies."

"Jack," he murmured.

It took her several seconds to reply. "Jack," she finally
said,
very low, sumptuous possibility in the word.

And rising, he held out his hand.

Chapter
6
        
esse
           

KZS
 
VO
  
ONE
  
APPROACHED
  
THEM
  
AS
  
THEY
  
LEFT

save
Oliver, who handed the marquis his hat and cane.

"Tell your mistress,
who's hiding in the drawing room
, that she will suffer my wrath at some more convenient time."

"Very good, sir.
I'll relay your message." The major-domo's face was impassive.

"And thank the duchess for her tasty tea," Venus offered.

"She'll be pleased you enjoyed yourself, my lady." Oliver played proxy for his mistress with suave civility.

"Give her a further warning," Jack added, hoping to curtail any additional interference. "If she meddles again, I won't come to her next ball."

"Your message will be conveyed, my lord."

Jack took Venus's hand and drew her toward the door. "She won't listen, of course, but perhaps she might hesitate a moment or so and give us time to escape her watchful eye."

"You mean she'd have us followed?"

"God only knows with Peggy. She lives her life with more drama than most. And I'd just as soon reach my river home without observation."

But the duchess had no intention of following the