The Dark Earl (10 page)

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Authors: Virginia Henley

Tags: #Romance, #Historical, #Fiction, #General

BOOK: The Dark Earl
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“It suggests that you are an outrageous baggage,” he murmured.
Harry felt inordinately pleased with his response.
Her mother watched the byplay across the table, then spoke to D’Arcy. “You are a perfect host. We would love to entertain you at Hampden House. Promise you will accept if I invite you to dinner?”
“I would be most honored, Your Grace.”
“Oh, no formalities, please. Call me Lu.”
 
 
On the carriage ride home, the duchess did not bring up the subject of Thomas Anson. She did, however, announce that she intended to reciprocate D’Arcy’s hospitality and invite him to dinner. Then she changed the subject to William Montagu. “I adore Will’s Scottish brogue. He spent the entire dinner gazing across the table and then told me that all my daughters were bonny lassies.”
Jane spoke up. “I wish I’d been seated next to Will. He makes my pulses race.”
“What’s wrong with Henry Edgcumbe?” her mother asked.
“Well, nothing, except he spent most of his time conversing with Trixy.”
“Can I help it if men find me irresistible?” Trixy teased. “Lord Anson told me I had a dainty appetite. Gentlemen notice these things, Jane.”
Harry smiled her secret smile.
 
 
Later, at home, Harry beckoned her brother into the guest chamber she was sharing with Rachel. “I spoke with Will Montagu tonight about you and his brother visiting Hazard House. I told him that next time Rachel and I intended to go.”
“How could you, Harry? I told you that in confidence.”
“Don’t worry, James. Will told me he would be only too happy to accompany us. The whole thing will be a lark. Make your plans with John and Will and let us know which evening you decide upon.”
When Harry and her young aunt were abed, she asked Rachel if her relationship with James Butler was progressing.
“I can’t believe how well we get along. It’s as if we’ve known each other for years.”
“I can see that the Irish rogue is attracted to you, but is the feeling mutual?”
“Oh, yes. He fair takes my breath away.”
“Splendid! Then it is a full-blown courtship,” Harry declared. “Isn’t it amazing the things that can be accomplished at a simple dinner party?”
Rachel laughed. “Nothing about the Earl of Durham’s dinner was simple.”
“No. It was delightfully complex. I was invited to the theater tomorrow evening. I agreed to go only if the captain invited you. So you can expect a note in the post from him in the morning.”
“Oh, Harry, that was clever. So D’Arcy is definitely courting you?”
“I suppose he’s trying. But I’m going to the theater with Thomas Anson.”
Chapter Five
 
“D
arling, I fail to see the attraction. When you can have your pick of escorts such as the Earl of Durham, or Montagu, who’s heir to the dukedom of Buccleuch, why would you choose Thomas Anson?” the duchess asked her daughter.
“The attraction is physical,” Harry explained, rolling her eyes in mock ecstasy.
Her mother laughed. “Well, there is that, if you like the dark, dominant type.”
“
You
obviously did.”
“Well, who could resist James Hamilton? But be warned, Harry. Anson has to work for a living, and he told me himself he couldn’t afford the luxury of a wife.”
“Don’t worry, Mother. I don’t expect him to propose marriage.”
“That’s precisely why I
shall
worry,” she said dryly.
“What could possibly happen when I’m in the company of my maiden aunt?”
Rachel found it difficult to keep a straight face. They heard the doorbell. “Oh, they’re here.” She pulled on her evening gloves and picked up her cloak.
The two gentlemen awaited them downstairs in the entrance hall. When they stepped outside, Harry saw that Lord Butler had brought his carriage. She waited until he helped her young aunt inside before she spoke. “I’m sure you’d rather spend the evening alone with Rachel. I have no intention of playing gooseberry.”
The two men exchanged a speaking glance before Butler jumped into the carriage.
Harry tucked her arm into Anson’s. “Why don’t we walk to the corner and hail a hansom cab?”
“Is this charade to deceive your mother?”
“It is quite impossible to deceive Lady Lu; I’ve tried often enough. When she asked me what my attraction to you was, I told her quite frankly that it was
physical
.”
“You thoroughly delight in being precocious.”
“I freely admit it. Are you complimenting me, or censuring me?”
“And pray, what is the difference? When I censure you, you take it as a compliment.”
She squeezed his arm. “If I am such a sore trial, why are you courting me?”
“You are the daughter of wealthy nobility.” He paused, then added almost reluctantly, “And you are the most attractive, maddening female in London.”
“You seem completely dispassionate; then suddenly you say something that gives it the lie.”
“My dispassion is a mask. I assure you, my life has been deeply affected by my emotions. I simply don’t display them.”
“You pride yourself on being in control—of both others and yourself. I wonder what it would take to make you lose that rigid control.”
Thomas hailed a hansom cab and helped Harry inside. He took the seat opposite her, so he could see her face in the glow of the lamp. “If you persist in your outrageous behavior, you may find out,” he warned.
She ignored the warning. “Are you taking me to the Royal Surrey Theatre in Blackfriars to see
The Widow and Her Wooers
?”
He refused to be baited. “No, I chose a play that would appeal to someone who champions the poor and believes in equal rights for women. I’m taking you to the Pavilion in Piccadilly to see
Oliver Twist.
”
Harry’s face was suddenly transformed. Her provocative expression vanished and was replaced by a soft, radiant look as if her heart were melting. “Oh, that is so perceptive of you.
Oliver Twist
is the perfect choice.”
 
 
During the first act, when Harry got a lump in her throat, she felt Thomas take her hand. During the second act, when a tear rolled down her cheek, he wiped it away with his thumb. When it was over, she was crying openly and he pressed his linen handkerchief into her hand. “Oh, I don’t know when I’ve enjoyed myself so much.”
When they left the theater, Thomas said, “Come on, I know just what you need.”
He took her down Piccadilly to Swallow Street and led the way into an oyster bar. He ordered her champagne and oysters, and he asked for the same, but with ale.
Oh dear, the only oysters I’ve eaten have always been decently breaded. Can I do this without embarrassing myself?
When the oysters came, Harry sipped her wine and watched her companion, and then she followed his lead to the letter. After a shake of pepper, a dash of vinegar, and a squeeze of lemon, she proceeded to lift the half shell and tip the raw oyster into her mouth. She held her breath and swallowed. Then she laughed, feeling excessively proud of her accomplishment. She repeated the process nine times, and then looked at him with round eyes, as if to say,
Please help me.
Thomas grinned. “You’ve never had raw oysters on the half shell before, have you?”
Harry shook her head.
He took the three that remained before her. “You are a brave woman.”
 
 
When they left the café, Thomas hailed a hansom cab, but this time he sat next to Harry. He knew the ride from Piccadilly would not be a long one, so he decided to make the most of it. Slowly, he removed her evening glove and took her fingers to his lips. When she seemed to enjoy the intimacy, he slipped his arm about her and drew her close.
He dipped his head and when his mouth covered hers, she opened her lips to welcome his kiss. His embrace tightened and he kissed her again. This time he brushed her lips with his tongue, and he felt her shudder. His kiss deepened. He drank from her mouth, which was hot and sweet with passion.
Thomas felt his cock, which had already hardened and lengthened, begin to pulse.
He was both surprised and pleased at how splendidly uninhibited her response to his kisses was. His imagination took flight, picturing her beneath him, naked, in his bed.
He curbed his desire. He wanted far more than a quick fuck in a carriage.
 
 
Harry’s senses were filled with the male scent of him and the taste of him. She felt the slow, hot glide of his lips along her neck and moaned softly. Her arms stole around his back and she felt the powerful muscles beneath his coat. She tried to imagine what it would feel like if her naked breasts were pressed against his wide chest, and desire flared in her like wildfire spreading through her veins.
The carriage slowed, and it took her a moment before she became aware of anything but Thomas Anson. When he eased his arms from around her, she gazed up into his dark eyes and sighed. “Oh, I was right,” she said softly.
“It is physical.”
 
 
Thomas Anson lay awake for hours contemplating his evening with Lady Harriet. Only a month ago, he had had a vile argument with his ailing father about marriage.
“You’ll soon be thirty. It’s more than high time you found a wife! You’ll need a rich heiress for the upkeep of Shugborough,”
his father had said.
Thomas sneered. Losing Shugborough’s treasures hadn’t stopped his father from gambling. Until he’d fallen ill a couple of years ago, he’d been out every night indulging his addiction at Brooks’s and other London clubs.
“You want me to follow in your noble footsteps—marry an heiress and squander her fortune. Marriage doesn’t appeal to me, and after watching yours all my life, is it any wonder?”
“You and your sainted mother want me dead!”
he shouted.
“You look down your nose at me, you arrogant young swine, but when I’m gone, you’ll be in for a rude awakening. All the expenses will fall on your shoulders—then we’ll see how you cope, Lord Bloody High-and-Mighty!”
Thomas had left the chamber before he helped his father to meet his maker. He vowed that the last thing he would do was follow his father’s orders to marry. Shortly after that, he had attended the opening of the Crystal Palace and encountered Lady Harriet Hamilton.
Thomas thumped his pillow and laughed at himself.
How bloody ironic.
He wanted nothing more than to fly in the face of his father’s demands, but his inner voice was now urging him to open his mind to the possibility of securing Harriet Hamilton in marriage.
Both her parents came from noble families of the highest distinction. Abercorn held titles in England, Ireland, and Scotland, and her mother, Lady Louisa Russell, was the daughter of the venerable Duke of Bedford. Abercorn had abundant wealth and property in three countries. Added to this was the enticing allure of the possessions that had once belonged to Shugborough.
A picture of Harry came full-blown into his mind.
There’s no denying she is a rare beauty. Though she can be precocious beyond bearing, she simply needs taming.
Remembering the taste of her kisses, he felt his cock begin to stir.
I warrant she would be rewarding in bed.
 
 
Toward morning, Thomas awoke in a panic. He had had his recurring nightmare that Shugborough was on fire. He threw back the covers and ran to the window, drenched in fear. Only then did he realize he was in London, and he had been dreaming. He returned to bed, but was determined to stay awake so his nightmare would not return.
In the morning, as Thomas was about to leave the town house in St. James’s Square, his father’s attorney, Martin Fowler, arrived.
Another summons from the querulous old devil. It’s the third this month. No point in questioning Fowler. The man isn’t even civil.
Thomas bade him a curt “Good morning” and departed. He was on his way to Whitehall. Before things went further with Lady Harriet, he intended to see Abercorn and get his permission to court his daughter. Her father might want no connection with Lichfield’s son, and Thomas had too much pride to sneak around behind his back.
James Hamilton was a member of the Queen’s Privy Council, and Thomas Anson, familiar with the Parliament buildings, made his way to the Privy Council offices. He presented his card to the clerk and asked to see Abercorn.
After a few minutes’ wait, Hamilton came out to greet him and took him into his office. “It’s good to see you, Lord Anson. You’re here on a matter of business, I take it.” Hamilton handled the business affairs of Prince Albert, who was the force behind moving the Crystal Palace from Hyde Park to a permanent location. It was a showcase for Britain’s manufactured goods, which were superior to those of most other countries, and Abercorn negotiated the contracts and handled the reams of paperwork connected with the enterprise.

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