No Decent Gentleman (25 page)

"Thank God you've come to your senses," Belladonna said with relief. "Is there anything you would like to know about bedding your husband?"

"Bedding?" A high blush stained Sabrina's cheeks. "I only want to speak to Adam and cannot wait for his return."

"Adam will assume you want to be his wife if you go to Stonehurst," Belladonna told her.

"That's correct," Aunt Tess agreed. "You'll never go wrong if you follow one simple rule: Trust your husband in all matters."

Lady DeFaye nodded. "Adam will show you how it's done."

"How it's done?" Sabrina echoed, her face draining of color.

"There's nothing to fear," Aunt Tess assured her, patting her shoulder. "Would the world be so populated if there wasn't pleasure in the act?"

"Absolutely not! The world would be deserted," Belladonna answered her aunt's rhetorical question. Then she added mischievously, "To my knowledge, darling, there's only been one immaculate conception, and that occurred almost two thousand years ago. So, you see, millions of women have enjoyed bedding down with men."

Sabrina hadn't thought in those terms, but supposed Belladonna was correct. For better or for worse, she was going to Adam... .

By six o'clock that evening, Sabrina and Winston were ensconced in Adam's quarters on board
The Voyager
. She'd never traveled by water before and hoped she wouldn't get sick.

Doubts began to swirl around in her mind. Her future would be sealed once she arrived at Stonehurst; she would be Adam's wife until death parted them. Was this what she wanted? More importantly, what did Adam want now? Would he welcome her after the terrible words she'd said? Even worse, would he make her his wife in fact and then exact revenge for what she'd said? No, that was too absurd even to consider. Adam St. Aubyn was a man of integrity.

Her confidence in him made her smile. After watching the wolfhound eat supper with his usual gusto, Sabrina let the ship's rocking motion lull her to sleep.

Sabrina was already dressed and waiting the next morning when someone knocked on her door. "Come in," she called.

The door opened, and Captain Tibbets walked into the cabin. A boy followed him, set a tray on the table, and left.

''I thought you would like a light breakfast while we drop anchor and prepare to disembark."

"We've arrived?" Sabrina said.

The captain nodded. "I have duties on deck and will return in a few minutes."

Alone again, Sabrina knew she would be unable to swallow a bite until after she'd faced her husband. She set the tray on the floor for Winston, who immediately began to eat both of their breakfasts.

Her husband
.

Sabrina smiled to herself. Those two words warmed her heart. The only frightening thing was the possibility that he would send her away.

A knock on the door drew her attention away from Adam, and she heard the captain call out, "My lady, are you ready to leave?"

"Yes, Captain."

Captain Tibbetts walked in and was followed by the two seaman who would carry her belongings on deck. Sabrina let the captain escort her down the narrow passageway to the stairs that led on deck.

No fog
, Sabrina thought, stepping out into the bright sunlight. She breathed deeply of the crisp, salty air. Overhead, the sky was a healthy shade of blue, so different from London's yellow gloom.

"There's Stonehurst," Captain Tibbets said, pointing at an island in the bay.

The breathtaking beauty of her husband's rocky fortress caught Sabrina by surprise. Crowned by a jewel of a castle, the small island rose toward the heavens. The whole panorama seemed too perfect to be real, an idealized image conceived in an artist's mind.

"What are those buildings near the beach?" Sabrina asked.

"Those are the homes of his lordship's servants," the captain told her. "One can only reach the island by boat, though the trip across the bay is short. Come, my lady. The longboat awaits us."

Sabrina saw that the longboat had already been lowered into the water. Several men, including the first mate, sat in it. Only then did she realize that she would need to climb down the rope ladder to the boat.

"How will Winston get down?" she asked.

"Don't worry about the dog," the captain said. "We'll use the pulley reserved for the sick or injured."

He gestured to where his men were harnessing a struggling Winston into a slinglike contraption attached to a pulley. Taking the silver container of sweets out of her hand, Captain Tibbets said, "You go down first, and I'll see to the dog."

The captain helped her over the side of the boat, and Sabrina started to climb down. The first mate's hands were there to help her the final few rungs. Then Winston was lowered into the boat, and the captain climbed down after the dog was settled.

Within ten minutes the men were pulling the longboat onto the sandy beach near the stone houses of the little village. Several of the island's inhabitants had gathered to watch.

Captain Tibbets helped her out of the boat and handed her the box of sweets. Winston needed no assistance. He leaped out of the boat and began running around on the sand.

"Come, my lady," Captain Tibbets said, offering her his hand. "We must walk up that pathway."

Sabrina looked up at the castle. It seemed higher from the beach than it had from the ship.

"The walk is two hundred and thirty feet up," the captain said.

"
Captain Tibbets
."

Sabrina turned toward the voice and saw Abdul making his way past the curious spectators. He stopped in front of her and bowed from the waist.

"Welcome, my princess," Abdul greeted her.

Sabrina was shocked by his gesture and words. How did this servant know Adam's pet name for her?

"Will you accompany us?" Abdul asked the captain.

"I'll leave the lady in your capable hands," Captain Tibbets refused. "I have a full cargo, and my men are anxious to set sail."

Abdul nodded and then turned to Sabrina, saying, "Please, come with me."

"Thank you, sir," she called to the captain. "Come, Winston."

Sabrina walked up the long pathway to the castle set on top of the mount. In silence, Abdul walked beside her while Winston raced to and fro and inhaled myriad new scents.

Abdul escorted Sabrina into the castle's great hall with its magnificently timbered ceiling. The walls had been painted a stark white, which emphasized the portraits, banners, and sconces adorning it. The furniture was oak, as was the floor. The white marble hearth blended with the walls.

"Sit, Winston," Sabrina ordered, standing near the hearth.

A small, rotund man rushed forward and spoke in a foreign language that she failed to recognize. When Abdul answered in the same language, the little man turned to her and bowed from the waist. Then he hurried out of the hall.

"Razi has gone to find his lordship," Abdul told her. He bowed again and then left the hall.

Alone now, Sabrina felt the insecurities and doubts creeping back into her mind. She felt like an unwanted guest, an intruder. She didn't belong here.

And then Adam walked into the hall. Ignoring the wolfhound's enthusiastic greeting, he paused inside the archway and stared at her.

Sabrina had never seen him dressed so casually. In his black breeches and black shirt opened at the neck, he appeared even more handsome than she remembered.

"What are you doing here?" Adam asked, walking across the hall toward her.

Oh, Lord, he's keeping his expression placid
, Sabrina thought.
No help there
.

"I stopped by to apologize for my bad behavior," Sabrina said, and gave him a tentative smile.

Adam cocked a dark brow at her. "You happened to be in the vicinity of my island and decided to stop by?"

"Yes, my lord," Sabrina replied, trying to hide her smile and dropping her gaze. When he said nothing, she ventured a peek at him and saw his gaze fixed on the betrothal ring she wore on her left hand.

"I've brought you a peace offering," she said, holding up the silver box.

"And what would that be?" he asked, lifting his gaze to hers.

"French sunshine and exotic locales."

Adam smiled then and crossed the remaining distance between them. He accepted her gift and set it on a table. Then he lifted her left hand to his lips and said, "I forgive you, Princess."

"And I forgive you for lying to me," Sabrina replied. Then she amended herself by saying, "As long as you never lie to me again."

"No more lies," Adam agreed.

"No half-truths or omissions either."

Adam inclined his head and smiled at her.

And Sabrina knew that his devastating smile would always remind her of French sunshine.

Adam took her hands in his and drew her toward him. He looked down at her through those blue eyes and said in a quiet voice, "I would have given you an annulment if you had met another gentleman you could have loved."

Sabrina smiled and placed the palm of her hand against his cheek. "I know you are a man of integrity," she said.

"I want to kiss you into a daze and then show you our home," Adam said, "but you look fatigued by your journey from London. I'll show you to your chamber." Before escorting her out of the hall, Adam called to the little man, "Razi, please bring a tray of baked eggs, bacon, rolls, and tea for my lady."

"Yes, master," Razi said.

"Why does he call you
master
!" Sabrina asked, walking with him out of the hall.

"Some of my men keep the old ways," Adam answered.

"What do you mean by the 'old ways'?" she asked.

"Razi hails from the East where employees call their employers
master
instead of
my lord
."

Adam guided her up the stairs to the third floor. When they reached the first closed door, Sabrina walked toward it.

"That is not your chamber," Adam told her. "Come this way."

"Oh, is it your chamber?" she asked.

"That door leads to the east wing, which remains unused," he told her. "Never venture inside, as it could prove dangerous before I finish my renovations."

Adam led her into an enormous bedchamber. The luxurious room had been decorated in pale blue and ivory.

Sabrina crossed the room to look outside at the picturesque mainland village of Marazion. Turning around to face him, she asked, "Where does that door lead?"

"My chamber," Adam said with his devastating smile.

Sabrina blushed, but a knock on the door saved her further embarrassment. Razi walked in with the tray of food and set it down on the desk.

In an instant, Winston was at the desk and trying to reach the food.

"Sit, Winston," Adam ordered, and the dog obeyed. "Eat while the food is hot. I will take poor Winston downstairs and give him something suitable for a dog."

Sabrina sat down at the desk. She reached for the fork but froze in surprise when Adam crossed the chamber to unbutton the back of her gown.

"When you have finished your meal, you will find a robe lying on the bed," Adam told her, leaning close to whisper against her ear.

Sabrina couldn't move or speak. His breath against her cheek made her feel hot and cold at the same time.

"Come, Winston."

Sabrina watched him go into the dressing room and return with a robe. He set it on the bed and, after smiling at her, walked toward the door.

"My lord?" she called out before he left the chamber.

Adam turned around and focused his penetrating gaze on her, making her almost forget what she was going to say.

"No more lies?" Sabrina verified.

"I give you my word," Adam promised. "My lying days have ended."

Chapter 12

No more lies
. That thought popped into her head as soon as she opened her eyes a few hours later. Sabrina yawned and stretched and then lifted her left hand up to look at her winter rose betrothal ring. How different her life was than it had been only a few weeks earlier. Now she was the Countess of Abingdon, the Marchioness of Stonehurst, and the unacknowledged granddaughter of King George III.

No matter how exalted her new position in life was, Sabrina decided, she still had obligations to fulfill. The most important task would be proving her father had not committed suicide.

Sitting up, Sabrina saw the single rose lying on the pillow beside her. She smiled at her husband's gesture, but the thought of him watching her sleep embarrassed her and made her feel vulnerable.

A note lay on the pillow beside the rose. She picked it up and read:
The garments in the dressing room are yours.

Rising from the bed, Sabrina crossed the chamber to look out the window. She studied the shadows being cast on the mainland village across the bay and knew that the hour was late in the afternoon. She must have been more tired than she'd thought.

Sabrina turned away from the window and crossed the chamber to the dressing room. Gowns and shawls and cloaks and robes and every other piece of lady's apparel filled the small chamber.

Instantly suspicious, Sabrina wondered who owned the clothing. She couldn't believe that her husband would give her gowns that had belonged to another woman.

Trust is what a happy marriage is based on, she told herself. She needed to trust her husband.

Accepting the note's invitation, Sabrina selected a pale blue gown fashioned from the softest merino wool. A shawl and blue slippers complemented the gown.

Sabrina inspected herself in the full-length mirror on the far side of the chamber. Satisfied with what she saw, she left the chamber and walked down the corridor the same way she'd come earlier.

Passing the door to the east wing, Sabrina heard voices emanating from behind the closed door and stopped short to listen. One voice belonged to her husband, but he was speaking an unfamiliar foreign language.

Suddenly, the door opened and Sabrina leaped back a pace. Razi stepped outside the east wing and stared in surprise at her. She felt like an eavesdropper. Then he called something in that foreign language.

Adam appeared and closed the door behind him. "So, you have finally awakened," he said, giving her a warm smile of greeting.