Bedford Street Brigade 02 - Love Unbidden (23 page)

Lorna wound her arms around Hugh’s neck and pressed her body closer to his. This is what she’d always dreamed of experiencing. And she couldn’t imagine anyone more perfect making her dreams come true.

He deepened his kisses and she allowed her body to become a part of his. She craved everything he offered her, throbbed with an emotion she couldn’t explain. A moan escaped from deep inside her, a plea for him to continue to kiss her, touch her.

His hands roamed over her body, caressing her in places she’d never been touched before. Her body burned with a need for something more, screamed with desire, ached for a completion she didn’t understand.

He kissed her until their breaths came out in gulps of desperation, in ragged gasps to fill their lungs. They kissed until neither of them had the strength to stand alone. Then Lorna clung to him because she couldn’t bear to be separated from him.

It was at that moment she knew.

Even though she’d told herself she would never trust anyone enough to give them her heart, she’d done it. She loved Hugh. Loved him with every fiber of her being. Wanted him with a desperation she couldn’t understand. Cherished him because he was a treasure she never thought she would find.

For the first time in her life, Lorna realized how vulnerable she was. And how complete.

Hugh dismounted and handed the reins to the waiting stable boy. “Rub him down well,” he ordered, then walked toward the house. He stopped before he reached the front door and went around the side of the manor house. There was a narrow path beyond the snow-covered plot Cook used to grow vegetables. He took it.

He knew where he was going, he just didn’t know why. At least he told himself he didn’t.

His long strides ate up the ground with the same desperation as he’d pushed his horse. He needed to be by himself. He’d assumed riding at breakneck speed through the light covering of snow would calm his restlessness, clear the muddled thoughts clouding his mind. But it hadn’t. He was as puzzled as ever. As uncertain of what to do as he’d been since he’d met her. As confused about his reactions to her as ever. More confused, even.

He reached the frozen stream in little time. This was where he came to sort things out. To be by himself.

In spring and summer he’d remove his boots and wade in the cool water. Or sit along the bank and listen to the gentle sound of the water rushing downstream. Today that wasn’t possible. Instead, he braced his feet, locked his hands behind his back, and stared out onto the partially frozen water.

He needed to think. He needed to try to understand why she affected him like she did. Why he acted the way he did whenever he was around her. Why he only wanted to hold her. And kiss her. And…make love to her.

Bloody hell. What was wrong with him? After the repeated lectures he’d given himself about not falling in love with another woman, why had he done so? And he had. He remembered how it felt when he fell in love with Angela. Remembered the gnawing desire that clenched deep in his gut. Remembered the restless cravings that wouldn’t go away. The unrelenting yearning to hold Angela. And kiss Angela. And…

He picked up a handful of snow and c
rushed it until it was a hard ball. With an angry roar, he threw it across the stream like a missile aimed at an attacking enemy.

He thought he’d be satisfied if he kissed her just once more. Instead, each kiss only fueled the longing to kiss her again. And again. And never stop.

He’d never met a female who made him feel so complete. Who was easier to talk to. Who understood his feelings. Who could complete his thoughts as if he’d spoken them aloud.

She was intelligent, and knowledgeable. Interested in hearing about every case he’d ever worked on. Wanted to know the details, even when that meant describing a gory death. Or a bloody injury. She was the bravest person he’d ever met. What other female would dare risk traveling halfway across England by herself?

He picked up another handful of snow. He didn’t know how he’d survive not having her around when they returned to London. Didn’t know if he wanted to try not having her with him.

With another vengeful bellow, he threw the snowball as hard as he could.

“Are you aiming your anger and frustration at anyone in particular,” she asked from behind him, “or simply reliving a youthful pastime?”

He turned. His heart skipped a beat.

She may not think she was a beauty, and perhaps she wasn’t, but there were times when just having her walk into a room, or come down the stairs, or stand on a blanket of snow a few feet away from him, like now, stole his breath.

Hugh closed the distance between them. “My brother and I used to come here as boys. Father taught us to swim in this stream. And Mother would bring the girls and we’d all sit down beneath that tree and eat a picnic lunch.” He pointed to the big elm tree nearby.

“It sounds wonderful.”

“Do you have a special place where you picnicked with your parents?”

“Yes, there was a beautiful spot at Chillbrooke Manor. Mother would always bring a book and Father and I would lie beneath the shade and listen while she read.”

He smiled. “I’m afraid Jackson and I couldn’t sit still long enough to enjoy Mother’s attempts to cultivate us. The girls did, of course. And Father pretended to listen. But he usually fell asleep before she reached the end of the first page.”

“That sounds marvelous.”

Hugh studied the expression on her face. The look in her eyes told him she’d been a lonely little girl. “Do you ever wish you’d have had
brothers and sisters?”

The upturn of her lips couldn’t quite be called a smile. “Mother and Father tried to have more children, but only one survived until birth, a baby boy. He died a few days after he was born.”

Hugh watched as she pulled her cloak tighter around her. He stepped close and gathered her against him. She leaned into him as if it were the most natural thing for her to do so. She fit against him as if the two of them were made to be together.

“Why did you come out?” he asked, pressing her cheek to his chest and wrapping his coat around her.

“I wanted to speak with you.”

“About what?”

“About your intentions. We’ve been here nearly a week now, and you haven’t mentioned what we should do.”

“What would you like to do?”

Her gaze shot upward and she looked at him with wide eyes. “You’re asking me? You’re letting me decide?”

“I’m asking,” he said, nestling her face against his chest. “But I’m not promising to let you decide. I’ll only promise to explain what options are open to you.”

“I want to go to Scotland.”

“If you go, how long do you intend to stay?”

“Until I turn twenty-one. Perhaps a month or two longer.”

“How are you going to live? You don’t have any money.”

She sagged against him as if the bravado left her body.

“I intend to find my relatives and ask them to take me in. I’ll promise to repay them.”

“And if they refuse? Or, if you cannot find them? Or they betray you for a reward offered by your cousin? What then?”

“I don’t know.”

There was a hint of fear in her voice, a wavering of the boldness he was used to hearing. “Then would you at least consider that going to Scotland is not the wisest choice?”

“If not Scotland, then where would you have me go? And don’t say back to London because I’ll fight you every step of the way if you try to take me back.”

He sighed. “No, not London.”

She lifted her gaze again. “Then where?”

“We’ll stay here. At Winsome Abbey. We’ll stay until you reach your majority, then we’ll return.”

She stepped out of his arms. “You’ll let me stay here until after I reach my majority? You won’t take me back before I can protect myself
from my cousin?”

“No. Chillbrooke will have no hold over you when you return. You will be able to fight him on legal grounds. Although how you’re going to manage without a husband, I don’t know.”

Her gaze lowered to the ground and a knot tightened around his heart. This brave woman was so amazing he couldn’t explain the many ways she moved him.

“Thank you,” she said when she lifted her gaze.

Hugh’s reaction was instinctive. Even though he’d just told himself he couldn’t kiss her again, no force known to man was powerful enough to stop him.

He lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers. He skimmed her lips with his tongue and she opened to admit him. Passion that had lain dormant for the five years since Angela died came to life. Hunger that he thought he’d never feel again consumed him. Desire he was certain he could master raged out of control. He tilted her face beneath his and intensified his kisses.

She matched his demands with an intensity that startled him. There was something magical in the force that bound them to each other. Something astonishing.

As loathe as he was to sever the bond of their flesh, he knew he must. The next step beyond kissing was impossible.

He pulled away from her but couldn’t release her. He gathered her to him and held her until their breathing calmed. Until their thundering heartbeats slowed.

“Thank you,” she whispered again, but this time he wasn’t sure what she was thanking him for—his promise to let her stay here until after her twenty-first birthday. Or for the kiss they shared.

Without asking, he turned her in his arms and led her back to the manor house. Her birthday was in seven days.

They would be the longest seven days of his life.

. . .

There wasn’t a more beautiful sight than the one Lorna focused on out
side her bedroom window. As far as she could see, snow glistened beneath the full moon. She would always think of Winsome Abbey as an enchanted land. Always remember her time here as a fairy tale. Everything had been perfect. Hugh had seen to it that it was.

He’d kept his distance the first two days after the kisses they’d shared by the stream. But on the third day, he sought her out.

They spent every day together walking in the garden when the weather was agreeable. They spent every evening in front of the fireplace, sometimes talking, sometimes simply listening to the crackling of the flames in the hearth. And last night they’d celebrated her birthday with a special meal. Cook even surprised her with a cake.

That’s when he told her they would leave in the morning. That’s when Lorna knew her magical time at Winsome Abby was over.

She looked at the perfect scene outside her window. Everything about the time she’d spent here had been wonderful. For the first time in her life, a handsome man had looked at her like she was the most beautiful woman on earth.

For the first time in her life, she’d been kissed like she was the most desired woman on earth.

For the first time, she knew what it felt like to love. And even felt like someone loved her in return.

Her heart overflowed with happiness. Hugh had given her memories she would never forget. Memories more precious than the wealth that was now hers.

There was only one more memory she wanted to take with her. Only one more dream she wanted fulfilled.

Lorna left her room and walked down the hall to where Hugh slept. When she reached his room, she didn’t allow herself time to consider what she was doing, but opened the door and entered his room.

His voice whispered in the darkness. “Lorna?”

Without answering him, she walked across the room. When she reached his bed, she stopped. With trembling fingers she undid the tie that held her robe together and let it drop to the floor.

She locked her gaze with his, then watched as his gaze skimmed downward. When his eyes came back to hers, she took a final step to him. He lifted the covers as an invitation to join him and she lay down beside him.

He turned to his side and looked down on her. “Are you sure?”

She’d never been more sure of anything in her life. Never wanted anything so badly in her life.

Lorna’s answer was to reach up and wrap her arms around his neck. Then, she pulled his head downward until their lips touched. 

Other than Hugh asking when she came down for breakfast if she was all right, they hadn’t spoken about last night since they’d settled in the carriage to return to London. In fact, they hadn’t spoken much at all.

When Hugh tried to broach the subject, she stopped his words before they could discuss the night before. She didn’t want words to erase the magical night she’d spent in his bed. In his arms.

What they’d shared had been beautiful. He’d been a patient and considerate lover, making her first experience as breathtaking as possible. She had no intention of remembering any of the discomfort, only how wonderful it had been to lie with the man she loved for this first—and only—time.

This would be her most cherished memory. A memory she would only relive in her heart until eternity.

Lorna looked out the carriage window at the snow covered countryside. It was easier than looking at the frown etched across his forehead. She knew his thoughts were serious. Knew their actions last night forced him to consider something he never thought he’d be required to do. Rules of Society dictated that he do the honorable thing and marry her. But she wouldn’t allow that to happen. Marriage wasn’t the reason she’d gone to his bed.

She ventured a glance at the somber expression on his face, then breathed in a deep sigh. Although she’d avoided this conversation since they’d started their journey several hours ago, the deep furrows on his forehead told her she couldn’t avoid it any longer. She needed to get this discussion over with.

“I want to thank
you for letting me turn twenty-one before taking me back to London.”

Her words seemed to interrupt him from his weighty thoughts. “I didn’t see that I had a choice. Once you explained your cousin’s plan, I knew it would be impossible to keep you safe. Chillbrooke would have devised some way to force a marriage. Now, I am the one who has done that.”

A heavy weight plummeted to the pit of her stomach. “Don’t even consider that I expect you to marry me. You do not want to marry. And neither do I.”

“It doesn’t matter what either of us want.”

“Of course it does. I am old enough that I cannot be forced to marry. I choose to remain single.”

“Then you are in more danger from your cousin than you were before you reached your majority.”

“You don’t know that.”

He leaned forward and rested his forearms on his knees. “How long do you think your cousin will allow you to live before you meet with an unfortunate accident that will make him three hundred
thousand pounds wealthier?”

Lorna’s breath caught in her throat. His next words caused her stomach to roil until she feared she might be ill.

“The only way to keep your inheritance out of your cousin’s hands is to place it in your husband’s. The only way for you to remain safe is for you to marry.”

She built up a brave front and faced him squarely. “Then I will find someone to marry me. Someone who can stand up to my cousin and not let him intimidate him.”

“That someone is me.”

She shook her head. “No. I won’t force you to marry me.”

“After what happened between us last night, I don’t see where either of us has a choice.”

“What happened last night didn’t have any drastic consequences. No one need ever know.”

His eyebrows shot upward. “And if you are with child?”

“I’m not.”

“How can you know?”

“Because my mother tried repeatedly and was unable to conceive. When she did, she was unable to carry a babe more than a month or two at the outside.
She lost so many before she finally had me that she had completely lost hope.”

“And you think you are the same?”

“I will assume I am until proven otherwise.”

Hugh leaned back against the squabs. “You have the next two days to accustom yourself to the idea of marrying. That’s how long it will take us to reach London. Once we arrive, the choice is out of your hands.”

Before she could argue further, he rested his head in the corner of the carriage and closed his eyes.

Lorna stared at his handsome features, at the strong cut of his jaw,
and the unrelenting arch of his brows. He was a formidable adversary. She’d known that from the start. But she was a fierce opponent as well. She had no intention of forcing him to marry her. People would assume he married her for her money. Because a man as handsome as Hugh Baxter would never willingly choose anyone as plain as Lorna Willis.

. . .

The carriage stopped in front of Mack Wallace’s house on Bedford Street and Hugh dismounted. Although he’d always cherish the time he and Lorna had been alone, he was glad to be in London. Glad because he needed help protecting her, and there weren’t any better bodyguards than his fellow Bedford Street investigators.

He turned to help Lorna from the carriage.

“Where are we?” she asked, looking out her window at the unfamiliar area.

“The Bedford Street Brigade headquarters. Mack and Cora Wallace live here.” Hugh held out his arm and Lorna took it. They’d only taken a few steps before she asked her next question.

“Why are we here?”

“You’re going to stay here until I get this straightened out.”

She stopped just inside the gated yard. “I’d rather—”

Hugh didn’t give her a chance to complete her sentence, but put his hand beneath her elbow and ushered her to the front door. Mack opened the door before Hugh could lift the knocker.

“Welcome back.” Mack stepped back to let them in. He closed the door behind them.

“It’s good to be here.” Hugh placed his arm around Lorna’s waist. “Mack this is Lady Lorna Willis, the late Earl of Chillbrooke’s daughter. Lorna, this is Mack Wallace.”

“It’s a pleasure, Lady Lorna.”

“Mine as well. Hugh spoke of you often.”

“Only in complimentary terms, I hope.”

Lorna smiled. “Of course.”

“Is Cora in?” Hugh asked.

“She’s in the kitchen with Roarke. I think he’s trying to talk her into allowing him to sample the pie she made for dessert.”

“That sounds like him.”

“I’ll get them. She’ll be glad that you’re back. Why don’t you take Lady Lorna into the morning room and I’ll tell Roarke and Cora you’re here.”

Hugh nodded, then escorted Lorna to the morning room. It felt as if he’d been gone for years, but the minute he stepped into the familiar surroundings, he felt as if he’d never left.

“Are you sure Mrs. Wallace won’t mind if I stay?”

“I’ll let you be the judge of that. If you think you’re not welcome, I’ll take you someplace else.”

That seemed to pacify her, but Hugh knew he didn’t have to worry. Cora would never turn her away.

Cora’s welcome was obvious when she entered the room.

“Hugh,” Cora said, walking across the room with extended arms in welcome. “I was beginning to worry about you.”

She reached Hugh and gave him a tight squeeze. As tight as her protruding stomach would allow.

“And what company have you brought for me?”

“Cora, this is Lady Lorna Willis. She needs a place to stay for a few days if you don’t mind.”

“Mind? I’d love to have another female to talk to.” She reached out and took Lorna’s hands in hers. “Welcome, Lady Lorna. I’m happy to meet you.”

“Likewise, Mrs. Wallace.”

“Cora. You must
call me Cora.”

“And please, call me Lorna.”

“And this rascal,” she said turning as Roarke entered the room, “is Roarke Livingston. He’s one of Mack’s investigators.”

“How do you do, Lady Lorna,” he said, offering Lorna a smile and a bow.

“Don’t be fooled by his charming good looks and innocent smile, Lorna,” Hugh said shaking his head in answer to Roarke’s roguish grin. “We have to warn all the ladies about his wicked ways.”

“Don’t believe a word of it,” Roarke answered. “Since I’m the youngest of the investigators, they expect me to be the
most unruly. Instead, I’m the most sensible and well-disciplined of the lot.”

“Roarke has a point there,” Mack said. He helped Cora to a chair, then indicated that the rest of them sit. Before they were settled, Mrs. Ramesdale, Mack’s cook, entered with a tray of tea and
biscuits. Mack poured and passed the biscuits, then sat back in his chair.

“Very well, Hugh, it’s time for you to tell us what this is all about.”

Hugh focused his gaze on Lorna, then turned back to Mack. “Lady Lorna and I need to marry as soon as possible.”