Tempting a Sinner (27 page)

“God bless, Mally. Please try and forgive me.”

“There’s nothing to forgive. Without your support, my mother and I would’ve starved to death.”

His smile was crooked as he blew her a kiss. “Once I’ve been gone awhile, free the poor maid and give her that bag of coin. If you can convince her not to say anything about my presence here, that would be even better.”

“I’ll do my best.”

He strode over to the narrow window and climbed out onto the steeply angled roof. Malinda waited until she heard the sound of a horse moving off below before she turned her attention to Daisy, who was sitting patiently in the chair, her eyes huge above the gag.

Malinda removed the gag and held up the bag of coins.

“Please don’t scream, Daisy. He didn’t want to hurt you and this money is yours.” She smiled beguilingly. “Can we pretend that nothing happened and go back to sleep?”

B
enedict finally spotted the carriage on the road ahead of him and breathed a prayer of thankfulness. He’d used all the resources of the Sinners to demand fast horses and the quickest changes of mount along the road, and yet he still hadn’t been sure he’d find her in time.

A horse came out of the forest and the rider drew alongside him. He recognized one of the men he’d sent to guard the rear.

“Jarvis. It’s me.”

“My lord, is something wrong?”

“You tell me. Is her ladyship in good health?”

“I believe so, sir.” He cast a quick glance at Benedict’s mount. “Your horse looks done for. Do you want me to ride ahead and stop the carriage?”

“There’s no point in alarming them. I’ll catch up. Please remain in place and keep watch.”

“Are you expecting trouble, sir?”

“I’m not sure. Just keep your wits about you.”

Jarvis touched his hat and fell back, leaving Benedict to urge his tired mount closer to the much slower carriage. There was a tollbooth on the road ahead. If he was lucky, he’d catch them there.

As he approached, Jon Snow, who was sitting on the box with the coachman, swiveled around and pointed his pistol at him. Benedict waved and Jon’s face relaxed.

“My lord.”

The coach slowed to a stop. Benedict dismounted and tied the reins of his horse to the back of the conveyance. He opened the door and pulled himself up into the interior of the carriage, his legs aching from his hard ride.

“Benedict?”

Malinda’s pale, bruised face appeared, and he took the seat opposite her and nodded.

“My lady.”

She regarded him suspiciously. “Did you get my note?”

“What note?”

“The one I sent you from the inn yesterday evening.”

“No.”

“Then why are you here?”

He stared at her for a long time as he tried to collect his scattered thoughts. “How has your journey been?”

“You came all the way to ask me
that?
”

“I thought you might have encountered some trouble along the way.”

“With six men guarding me?”

“Malinda, I could enlist a whole regiment to guard you and you’d still do exactly what you wanted anyway.” He narrowed his eyes. “What
did
you do?”

“For goodness’ sake, Benedict, I have done nothing but sit in this carriage, go into the inn Jon Snow ordered me to last night, eat my dinner, and go to bed.”

“You also asked Jon if you could return to London.”

A slight flush gathered on her cheeks. “Which was a mistake I soon rectified.”

“You wrote to me and assumed that I’d come after you because of that note. What did you say that was so important?”

“I’m not stupid enough to put all my secrets in a letter.”

“Then why weren’t you surprised to see me?”

“Because—” She sniffed. “In my note I apologized and asked you to visit me when you had time.”

“You apologized to me. For what?”

“For running away again.”

He leaned back against the cushioned seat and studied her closely. “What were you going to say before you decided to distract me with your apology?”

“Benedict, you are
impossible!
”

“Would your attempts to divert my attention away from your behavior at the inn last night have anything to do with your unexpected nocturnal visitor?”

She opened her mouth and then closed it again.

“I stopped briefly at the inn to change horses and spoke to a very charming young lady named Daisy. Do you remember her?” He paused. “I’m sure you do. She’s the poor woman your visitor tied up so that he could speak to you. She was under the mistaken impression that your companion was in love with you and that she was aiding in a proposed elopement.”

She snorted. “If she described my visitor thusly, you must know that she was mistaken.”

“Who was he?”

She stared back at him, her hazel eyes bright within the dark confines of the carriage.

“It was my stepfather.”

“George Makethorpe.”

“I suppose you think you know all about him, don’t you?”

“Obviously not, because in your shoes I would’ve shot him.”

“He was stupid enough to agree to take part in the raid, thinking it would only hurt your father. He didn’t realize that Fred Castleton had other plans both for my father and for the money. When my mother and I were in danger, he did the best he could and took us away from the regiment.”

“He told you all this?”

“Last night.” She sighed. “I thought my father was the one responsible for planning the ambush. But George said he’d been taken away by the marquis before Fred brought the idea up.”

“So George reckoned Fred had to silence your father in case he remembered anything, and betrayed them.”

“I suspect Fred would have preferred to be the only one who emerged from that ambush alive.” She drew an audible breath. “It seems that both of our fathers were taken advantage of.”

“Indeed. Is that why you wrote to me and apologized?”

“No.”

“No?”

“I wrote that letter before I saw George.”

“How interesting.”

She glared at him. “I realized that even if you didn’t trust me, I should try to trust you.”

“Trust that I would find a way out of your difficulties with Castleton? I assume he used me as a lever to spur you on to tell that ridiculous story about your part in the ambush?”

“Benedict, he said my father had come up with the scheme because the marquis had threatened to drum him out of the army if I didn’t stop consorting with his son. He
said
that if I didn’t persuade you to drop the matter, he would inform against my father
and
yours, and destroy your career.”

“And you thought that was important?”

“Of
course
I did.” She pressed her hand to her heart. “You laugh at the notion, but you truly are the most honorable man I’ve ever met. I couldn’t allow myself to be the architect of your downfall.”

“But I’m not eighteen anymore.” He hesitated trying to find the right words, words that wouldn’t hurt her. “I’ve learned that honor comes at a cost, and that I’m willing to use every dirty trick I know to safeguard my country and those I care for.” He met her gaze. “I’m not that boy you loved anymore. I don’t need you to fight my battles for me.”

She looked away from him, and he felt the loss of connection like a punch in the gut.

“I know you’ve grown up and lost the ability to trust anyone. It doesn’t mean that I can’t trust you to make things right. That’s exactly why I came to you in the first place and why I decided to return to London.”

She was slipping away from him again; he could feel it in his bones.

“I trust you.”

She shook her head. “Benedict . . .”

“I trust you with my heart. I always have.” He took a deep breath. “That’s why I’m here. That’s why I came after you. I don’t ever want to have to choose between my career and the woman I love, but if it came down to it?” He forced a smile. “I’d resign in a heartbeat.”

He moved across to her seat, picked her up, and settled her gently in his lap. “Please don’t argue with me about this. I don’t think I can bear it.”

Her hand crept up to rest on the curve of her jaw. “Are you feeling quite well?”

“Never better.”

She examined his face closely. “You’ve been fighting.”

“I damned near killed Fred Castleton.”

“Good.” She held his gaze. “There was another reason why I wanted to see you.”

“Apart from apologizing?”

“Yes, and this part had to be said to your face. I agreed to go to the convent because I had no choice.” She squirmed uneasily on his lap. “I was pregnant.”

Surprise slammed through him. “Why didn’t you tell me at the time?”

“For a long time, I didn’t realize what was wrong with me, and then I thought our marriage had been dissolved, and . . .” She swallowed hard. “I couldn’t bear to ask your father to provide for his son
and
daughter’s bastard.”

He thought about the papers Faith had told him to read in private that he’d left behind on his desk. Had she hoped to prepare him for this?

“So Doris isn’t your sister; she’s your daughter?
My
daughter? Good God, no wonder she reminded me of someone. She is very like my mother, isn’t she?”

“Just in looks.” She cupped his chin. “Aren’t you angry with me?”

“When it was my father who ran you off, and I let him?” He shook his head. “We were too young to know any better, and we were exploited by those who should have had our best interests at heart. I’m glad that George used his money to save you, your mother, and our child. My father certainly has a lot to answer for.”

He rested his chin on the top of her head, and she leaned in against his shoulder. “Is that everything now, Benedict?”

“Unless you have any other dark secrets you’d like to share with me, my lady, then, yes.”

“I’m glad. Despite what you might think, I hate being at odds with you.” She kissed his throat and then suddenly stiffened. “I am worried that my stepfather intends to seek out Fred Castleton, though.”

“If he does and he kills the man, I’ll be damn grateful to him.” He tightened his arm around her. “I wanted to kill Fred so badly for hurting you, and yet I had to keep him alive to find out the truth.”

“Which you did.”

“Which is why you should’ve trusted me right from the start.”

“Benedict . . .”

He stopped her mouth with his own, kissing her gently until she responded and then neither of them retained the ability to voice anything for quite a while.

Benedict stirred. “I just had a terrible thought.”

“What?”

“Doris.”

“What about her?”

“She saw me chained and naked in your bed.”

“Not
naked
. I always made sure you were decently covered when she was around.”

“Thank goodness for that. Does she know?”

“That I’m her mother, or that you are her father? Neither. I planned on telling her on her eighteenth birthday.”

He calculated rapidly in his head. “Which must be soon.”

“Yes.”

He claimed her hand. “Might I suggest that we reveal we are married first, and then tell her together?”

She smiled up at him. “I knew you would come in useful at some point.”

“I’m glad to be of service.” He kissed her hand. “We’re just coming through the gates of Alford Park. Perhaps you might care to alight first in case anyone tries to shoot me?”

She smiled at him. “I’d be delighted.”

M
alinda opened the door into the crimson bedchamber and spied Benedict stretched out on the covers. He was a glorious sight, his long naked limbs, tight stomach, and muscled chest gleaming in the candlelight.

“Ah, there you are, Malinda. I was beginning to think you weren’t coming to bed.”

She advanced slowly toward him, enjoying staring at him too much to hurry. Not only was he her legal husband, but she had a perfect right to live in Alford Park. Everything had turned out far better than she had anticipated.

“I had a lot to catch up on. Apparently Jenny has taken on the role of housekeeper and seems quite willing to settle here with her boys. Would you mind if she stayed?”

“Not at all. As long as you don’t mind.” He patted the sheets. “Come to bed.”

She climbed onto the bed, sank down beside him, and he gathered her close.

“You still don’t have a competent ladies’ maid and you have too many clothes on to sleep comfortably. May I help relieve you of some of them?”

She surrendered herself into his hands as he slowly and competently undressed her down to her shift. With a sigh she lay down and pressed her cheek against his chest. He stroked his fingers through her hair, withdrawing the pins, and put them in a neat pile on the bedside table.

“Why does this feel so comfortable?” she whispered.

“Because it is.”

“That’s hardly helpful.”

“I like lying next to you. I always have. Do you remember when we were children, we’d lie on our backs and stare at the stars and imagine how we might travel there?”

“I remember. Such foolish dreams.”

He kissed the top of her head. “Not so foolish, love, because here we are, together at last. That was my favorite dream of all.”

She came up on one elbow to stare down at him. “Now you are just being silly.”

He held her gaze, his blue eyes clear. “I always knew I wanted you, Malinda, and I very rarely fail to achieve my goals.”

“Is that why you agreed to help me?”

He slowly blinked at her. “Naturally. I hate to lose.”

“So I’m some kind of prize?”

His smile was a delight. “I suppose you are.”

“And having achieved this prize, what happens now? You move on to your next conquest?”

He slid his hand into her hair and brought her mouth down to within an inch of his. “Not unless I want to get shot again.” He kissed her very thoroughly until she had to kiss him back. “I’m not a fool, Malinda. Having been lucky enough to be given a second chance, I’m not going to ruin it.”

“A second chance at what?”

He frowned at her, one hand stroking her back. “Why are you interrogating me right now? Can we not spend one quiet night enjoying each other in this bed before you launch your next campaign to infuriate me?”

“What?” she repeated softly. “You said that you trust me with your heart. What exactly does that mean?”

“You are determined to make things difficult, aren’t you?”

“No, I’m just trying to make sure I understand you correctly.”

“Before you decide to tell me how
you
feel about me?”

She nodded, too scared to speak.

His gaze softened. “I love you. I always have. Everything I’ve done has been because of that.”

“Oh.”

“Is that all you have to say?” he demanded. Reaching up, he carefully rolled her underneath him and straddled her, keeping his weight off her. “I spill my heart out to you, and all you can say is, ‘oh’?” He kissed her. “You knew, dammit. You came to me for help because deep down you knew I loved you and that I always would.”

She studied his handsome face and considered the note of uncertainty in his voice and the slight trembling of his body. Had she known?

“Mally . . .”

She drew him down over her and licked at his lips until, with a helpless sound, he opened his mouth to her. She kissed him slowly, savoring the taste and texture of his mouth as if for the first time. He didn’t stop her or try to take control of the kiss. Pushing on his shoulders, she made him go onto his back. His cock jutted out from the fair hair at his groin, straining for her touch.

She hadn’t needed to chain him to her bed. He would’ve done what she’d wanted. He always had caved in to her eventually. . . .

Wrapping her hand around his shaft, she played with the wetness streaming down until she could easily slide his slick flesh between her fingers. His hips bucked and his back arched off the bed as he caught her rhythm and responded to it. She straddled him and rubbed the crown of his cock against her clit until she was as wet and slippery as he was, and could slide easily inside her.

She took him deep and held him there, her gaze fixed on his.

“Are you sure it isn’t just about this?”

“The sex?”

She squeezed her inner muscles around his shaft, enjoying the heightening of her own pleasure and the throbbing she’d set off in his flesh.

“It is rather remarkable, isn’t it?” she murmured, bringing one of his hands to her clit. “Make me come.”

He kept hold of her wrist. “If it had just been about this, we wouldn’t have found each other again. You’re my best friend and my lover.” His grip tightened. “Tell me that you feel the same.”

There was an edge of uncertainty in his voice that she’d never heard before.

“Is the great Benedict Keyes asking me if I love him?”

“Yes.” The stark need in his eyes made her want to cry.

“I thought you knew everything.”

“Not this.”

“Of course I love you. How could you ever doubt it? I always shoot men that I love.”

His smile wobbled. “Mally, I—”

She bent to kiss him and let him start thrusting upward as she rose above him. She came hard and he joined her a moment later, his cock holding deep as he climaxed inside her. With a sigh, she lowered herself over him, her face buried against his shoulder. Reaching up, she touched his cheek.

“It’s all right, Benedict.”

“I know.”

She brought her fingers to her mouth, tasted the salt of his tears, and almost wept herself. There were some limits to teasing him that even she must adhere to.

“There
is
one more thing I should tell you.”

“God,
no
.”

Beneath her his muscles stiffened. She found herself grinning with anticipation as he braced himself for yet another battle. Fighting with Benedict was always glorious because they could always make up in bed.

“I think Doris is going to have a baby brother or sister before the year is out.”

He clapped his hands over his face and his shoulders started to shake. Alarmed, Malinda sat up and smacked him on the chest.

“It’s not that surprising, is it? Considering—”

He removed his hands to reveal his laughing face and shook his head. “Oh, Malinda, my dearest, darling love. Never change, will you?”