The Christmas Wager (19 page)

provide me with further proof.‖

―Very well,‖ Thomas said, beginning to trace Andrew‘s left

nipple with his tongue.

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Jamie Fessenden

142

Chapter 23

ANDREW woke up in Thomas‘s arms the next morning, still

sleepy from the lord keeping him awake nearly all night long

with his… attentions. Somewhere between the fourth and fifth

lovemaking session, Andrew had decided that Thomas did

indeed seem to enjoy it. Was Thomas truly in love with him?

Well, he was still less certain of that. But for now, he was

willing to believe it might be possible.

Thomas stirred and sighed contentedly, as his hand began

to explore Andrew‘s body once more, moving slowly downward

from his chest.

―You‘re insatiable,‖ Andrew said, laughing, turning his

head to kiss Thomas gently on the tip of the nose. ―But I think

it must be close to breakfast, and I—
we
—should get dressed.‖

―No,‖ Thomas whined piteously as Andrew climbed out of

the bed, reaching for his lover like a child being deprived of a

new toy.

Andrew laughed at him. ―You look adorable,‖ he said,

marveling at how he loved being able to say those words at long

last, ―but I‘m famished. And it‘s Boxing Day, don‘t forget.‖

―Oh, bother,‖ Thomas groaned. ―Mother always makes us

stand in a line, while the servants parade by. I doubt they like

it any more than I do. Except for the money, of course.‖

Andrew padded naked across the cold room, wishing

desperately that they‘d thought to put another log or two on the

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fire before falling asleep. He opened the connecting door to his

room and froze.

The young blond servant—Percy, was it?—was tending to

the fire in his room, having let himself in through the hall door.

Percy glanced up as the door opened, and his eyes widened in

shock as he took in Andrew‘s nakedness.

―I‘m sorry, sir. I came to wake you and His Lordship for

breakfast.‖

Andrew was mortified, but there was no hiding his nudity

now. After a split second‘s hesitation, he walked into the room

and took his trousers from the bed, where he‘d laid out his

clothes the night before.

―I apologize for my state of undress, Percy,‖ he said,

slipping into the trousers. ―I suddenly remembered something I

needed to ask His Lordship, and… well, I‘m afraid we‘re often

very casual around each other, knowing each other as well as

we do.‖

His explanation sounded suspicious, even to him. But

Percy said, ―Yes, sir. It‘s none of my concern, of course. Is there

anything else I can do for you, sir?‖

Andrew wasn‘t quite certain he liked the way Percy said

that, but he couldn‘t pin down what was bothering him about it.

―No, thank you, Percy. That will be all.‖

AFTER breakfast, the Barringtons dressed in formal attire, and

Simcox gathered the servants in the entrance hall. As each

person paraded by, each of the family members shook hands,

and the duke presented them with a beribboned box containing

their Christmas gift of coins.

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144

When Thomas took the hand of Percy, he thought he saw

something in the young man‘s eyes that disturbed him—a

certain insolence, perhaps. But it was barely perceptible, and

he couldn‘t be certain he wasn‘t imaging it.

He had witnessed Andrew‘s encounter with the lad that

morning, and Andrew had come back into his room later,

horribly embarrassed by the whole thing. Thomas had laughed

about it then, but now he thought Andrew might not be wrong

in thinking that this could spell trouble.

When the small ceremony was over, and the servants had

returned to work, Edward took his younger brother aside and

said in a hushed tone, ―Thomas, would you mind escorting

Susan out to the garden for a short time this morning?‖

Thomas had been hoping to spend more time with Andrew

that morning—in a way which would have been most unsuited

to the presence of children—and he was, at first, a bit annoyed

by the request. ―Surely your daughter would prefer to spend

time with her father, Edward.‖

―No doubt,‖ Edward replied, ―but at the moment, I need to

spend some time alone with Miss Hudson. We would prefer not

to have Susan along, and more importantly, we would prefer

not to have
you
along, if you get my meaning.‖

Thomas looked at him, startled. ―Oh. Yes, of course.‖

―You understand,‖ Edward continued, uncomfortably, ―as

long as you and our parents are nearby, Rebecca must pretend

to fawn over you. At least, until she makes up her mind

about… things.‖

Thomas wasn‘t certain that was the case, but he saw no

reason to interfere with Edward winning Rebecca. It would at

least free him from his father‘s arrangements, for the time

being, and increase the likelihood of Thomas returning to

London with his allowance intact.

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―I understand perfectly,‖ he replied.

He found Susan playing with her new doll in the sitting

room, while Rebecca watched over her and chatted about dolls

she used to have as a child.

―My favorite was a lovely little doll from France, very much

like yours. Have you given her a name?‖

Susan was putting a tiny blue shawl around the doll‘s

shoulders. ―Her name is Emily.‖

―Emily! That‘s a delightful name.‖

From his position near the doorway, Thomas said, ―Are

those new clothes you‘ve got for her?‖ He was noticing several

colorful dresses and hats laid out on the floor beside the girl.

Susan looked up and grinned. ―Grandmother gave them to

me.‖

―I think,‖ Rebecca told him, ―they used to belong to… well,

to a doll very much like Emily. Duchess Barrington had them

brought down from the attic.‖

―How fortunate that she found them.‖

He entered the room and hunched down beside the little

girl. ―How would you like to go for a walk in the garden with me

and Uncle Andrew?‖

―Is Aunt Rebecca coming?‖

Thomas gave Rebecca a nearly imperceptible shake of the

head, and the young woman took the hint. ―No, thank you,‖

she said, ―I‘m quite comfortable here by the warm fire. You go

and have a good time.‖

―Can I bring Emily?‖ Susan asked.

Thomas smiled at her. ―Of course, poppet.‖

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Chapter 24

THEY walked to the duck pond, each of the young men holding

one of Susan‘s tiny mittened hands, Emily tucked snuggly in

the front of Susan‘s coat, peering out between two buttons. The

snow had finally stopped, and the walkway had been shoveled

by one of the staff, though footing was still a bit treacherous in

places.

The little girl hadn‘t thought to demand the presence of

Hew and Duncan, for once, and Andrew was grateful for that.

Not that he didn‘t enjoy the twins‘ company, but he needed

some time to clear his head.

Last night had been the culmination of years of fantasy—

fantasy which he had never expected to come true. Now he was

at a loss. The comfortable relationship that he and Thomas had

shared for several years was now shattered. Replaced, he

hoped, by something deeper and more meaningful, but also

something fraught with peril. Even if Thomas was indeed in

love with him, romantic entanglements often ended badly. And

few people were capable of remaining on close friendly terms

with lovers who turned away from them. If the relationship

soured, the friendship he had shared with Thomas would likely

be over, as well.

Even more perilous was the chance that they might be

caught, as they nearly had been this morning. England had

very strict laws against this sort of relationship between two

men. It was punishable by imprisonment and sometimes even

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death. They would have to keep their love secret for the rest of

their lives, and be forever vigilant. One slip could destroy them.

Andrew sighed and forced his thoughts back to the

present. It would do no good to dwell on that possible outcome.

They would simply have to be cautious. Though keeping

Thomas from loudly proclaiming his affections from the

rooftops—especially when he was in his cups—might prove a

daunting task.

Though he felt he shouldn‘t find the image amusing, under

the circumstances, Andrew nevertheless smiled and gave the

lord an affectionate look. Thomas didn‘t notice, being caught

up in an animated discussion with his niece about the ducks,

geese, and swans in Hyde Park. The wind tousled his chestnut

hair, and his cheeks were rose-red from the morning chill. He

looked, to Andrew, like a cherub—a grown-up cherub, if there

could be such a thing, but one who still retained a childlike air

about him. Andrew imagined that Thomas would always look

that way, even well into old age.

―There are swans down at the pond,‖ Susan was saying.

―Do you think they‘ll be there today?‖

―No, poppet,‖ Thomas replied, ―I think they‘ve flown south

for the winter.‖

―Why would they do that?‖

―Perhaps because they have more sense than we do. It‘s

warm in the south, even when it gets very cold here.‖

He scooped her up in his arms, careful not to crush Emily

in the process. ―Speaking of which, I think you‘re starting to

shiver a bit. Perhaps we should go back inside for a while.‖

Susan did not protest, so they followed the walkway

around to the back of the house.

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It was there, on one of the ballroom patios, that they came

across the fight.

There was such a crowd gathered that at first Andrew

couldn‘t tell who was scuffling. But when the throng of

servants saw them approach, they parted, anxious expressions

on their faces. In the middle of them, still oblivious to the lord‘s

presence, two boys were thrashing at each other on the ground.

Andrew recognized one right away as Hew. The other took a

moment, but he soon realized it was Percy, the young upstairs

servant.

―What‘s the meaning of this?‖ Thomas said sharply. ―Stop

this, at once!‖

When the boys didn‘t appear to hear him, Andrew grabbed

Hew by his thick wool collar and yanked him off Percy. The

other boy had apparently been getting the worst of it. He lay on

the ground, his arms still raised to defend his face, his nose

bleeding.

―Hew!‖ Andrew said, shaking the young man. ―What do

you think you‘re doing?‖

Hew stopped struggling when he realized who had him by

the collar. He was panting, but looked fine otherwise. Duncan

had somehow appeared from the crowd, and both young men

were trying to talk at once. Andrew raised a hand and said,

―One at a time, please. Hew, since you‘re the one involved in

this, why don‘t you tell me what happened.‖

―I‘m sorry, sir. That bastard was—‖

The boy stopped speaking, apparently unwilling to go on.

Percy, once he recognized Andrew and Thomas, had gone

ashen. Something, Andrew knew, was frightening the boy,

beyond getting a pummeling from Hew.

―He was what?‖

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Hew shot a look at Susan, who appeared curious, but

fortunately hadn‘t found the scuffle to be frightening. ―This lout

was being disrespectful of you and His Lordship, sir. But please

don‘t ask me to repeat what he was saying in polite company.‖

Andrew was able to guess pretty quickly what this was

about, and a chill went up his spine. But he had to know

exactly what rumors—or truths—the servant boy was

spreading around. Since Percy looked terrified, at the moment,

he doubted he‘d get much out of him but evasions.

―You, get up,‖ he ordered the young man, ―but stay here.‖

While Thomas ordered one of the other servants to bring a

damp cloth for Percy‘s nose, Andrew pulled Hew off to the side.

The rest of the servants had begun to disperse, not wanting to

incur Thomas‘s wrath, so the two were able to find a corner

where they could talk without being overheard.

―Now,‖ Andrew said, in a low voice, ―tell me exactly what

this is about.‖