Notorious Deception (2 page)

“I have come a great distance, sir, in order to settle the affairs of my late husband,” she said in a strong voice. Diana faltered a bit as the men exchanged glances. Tristan's face was alight with amusement; the earl glowered with annoyance.

“He has been dead for over three months,” Derek stated flatly. “What has taken you so long?”

Diana looked up unflinchingly into the man's cold blue eyes before she said, “News of Giles's death has only recently reached me. I have been traveling for nearly two weeks now.”

“Exactly where have you come from, madam?” Derek asked mockingly.

“Cornwall,” Diana responded calmly, determined not to lose her temper no matter how cruelly provoked.

“Cornwall? Near Truro?” Tristan asked.

“No,” Diana answered, turning her attention to him. “Farther down the coast from Truro, nearer to St. Ives. The closest village to my home is called Zennor.”

“This is really too much, Tristan,” the earl interrupted with annoyance. “I am not about to sit through a long discourse on the geography of Cornwall.” He shifted restlessly from foot to foot. “I do believe that I have had quite enough. I think it is time to summon Dobbs and have her
ladyship
escorted out of here at once.”

Diana felt her anger ignite at both the earl's words and his sarcasm. She had been wrong to go there. She should have known better. It was only fitting that Giles's relations would treat her in such a disgraceful manner. Diana turned sharply to the earl and, with as much dignity as she could muster, rose to her feet.

“It will not be necessary for you to call your servant, my lord,” she stated. “I will take my leave of my own accord. And gladly. I can assure you, I have had quite enough of your rude and ill-bred behavior.” Diana fumbled momentarily in her black reticule before pulling forth several crumpled sheets of paper. “Here is a list of the properties Giles managed while we were wed. I still own them, as the marriage contract clearly states. I am requesting your solicitor forward the deeds of ownership to my residence at once. The address is listed on the copy of the marriage contract.”

Derek reluctantly took the papers she offered him, his eyes gleaming brightly with speculation. “Bravo, madam,” he sneered. “You seem to have found both your spirit and your imagination.” He turned to Tristan and remarked further, “She appears to be warming to the part, don't you think?”

But Tristan was no longer smiling. “Perhaps we have been a bit hasty, Derek. I think we should listen to what she has to say.”

The earl lifted an eyebrow. “Not you too, Tristan?” he responded suspiciously. “Don't tell me that you are somehow tangled up in this ridiculous farce?”

While the two men argued the point, Diana decided to make her escape. She sped swiftly past them, determined to leave the room as quickly as possible. Now that she realized her mistake in coming, she wanted nothing more than to leave and forget the entire incident. She would not subject herself to any more rude and hostile behavior. Diana did not know precisely where she would go once she left, since she did not know a soul in London, but it didn't matter. Uppermost in her mind was the need to be free of the Earls of Harrowby, both former and present.

Diana had almost reached the drawing room doors when Tristan called to her to stop. The strength of command in his voice caused her to react automatically and she obeyed him.

It was a good thing too that she did, for a split second later the doors swung open, barely missing slamming into her head. A short, slender figure, clad entirely from head to toe in black, swept regally into the room.

“Derek,” the woman called out in a throaty voice. “I have only just arrived, but I insisted to Dobbs that I see you immediately. The trip from Darford was positively draining, yet I felt I should greet you before I went to my rooms. Dobbs actually tried to dissuade me, and then he insisted on announcing me. Can you imagine—announcing me in my own home? The very idea. I told him I would not stand for it, of course.”

While the woman paused a brief moment to catch her breath, the earl said, “Henriette—” but was cut off as she began speaking again.

“Tristan,” she exclaimed, seeming to recover instantly from her exhaustion as she spotted the other man. “How very lovely to see you.” She held out her hand dramatically for him to kiss and Tristan reluctantly complied. “And who is your friend?” Henriette inclined her head toward Diana.

Tristan didn't answer the woman, and she waited only a mere heartbeat before walking up to Diana and introducing herself. “I am Henriette Rutledge,” she announced. “Countess of Harrowby.”

For a brief moment Diana felt a flicker of sympathy for the earl. She couldn't imagine how he survived being married to such an overbearing woman. No wonder he scowled all the time. Diana turned her attention back to Henriette, who was talking about her difficult journey into town. She was pretty, Diana conceded, with her brilliant green eyes and dark hair, and probably near to Diana's age of twenty-two. And yet, Diana thought, Henriette resembled a black magpie, chattering away, her slim figure encased in a long pelisse of black silk with puffed sleeves and a half-dress cap of silk with its small black feather perched on top of her head.

Finally, Henriette ceased her tirade and looked expectantly at Diana. Since Diana did not have the faintest idea what had been said, she merely smiled. When Diana saw that Henriette had regained her breath and was about to begin another soliloquy, she spoke quickly.

“I was just explaining to your husband,” Diana said. but Henriette immediately interjected.

“My husband,” Henriette shrieked. “You cannot possibly mean Derek?”

“You did introduce yourself as the Countess of Harrowby, Henriette,” Tristan said.

Henriette shot Tristan a positively chilling look and said, “'Tis a reasonable mistake. After all it has only been a few short months since my dearest Giles was so cruelly taken from me.”

“Your dearest Giles?” Diana said. She made a low, choked sound as she stared at Henriette.

“Yes,” Henriette responded, enjoying the intense attention everyone was now affording her. “Tristan was right however. I did make a mistake. Although I am far too young for the title, I am actually the
Dowager
Countess of Harrowby. Giles's widow.”

For a brief moment Diana thought she would faint. The room swam dizzily before her eyes, and she felt as if all the blood had just drained from her head. Suddenly, she felt Tristan's strong grip on her arm.

“Steady, my dear,” he whispered in her ear as he encircled her waist and directed her toward the settee on the far side of the room.

Diana was instantly comforted by his gentle concern and strong presence, and she leaned heavily against him for support. When they reached the settee, she sank down gratefully on the lush velvet upholstery, her eyes staring straight ahead, unseeing. Her mind was completely blank, and she sat rigidly, as if in a trance. Henriette's voice droned on in the distance, a faint buzzing in Diana's ears.

The loud bang of the door awoke Diana from her trance, and quickly looking around the room, she saw that the other woman was gone. She then looked at the earl.

“I can assure you, my lord,” Diana whispered, her voice vibrating with emotion, “I do not find your little jest in any way amusing.”

“Nor do I find your jest amusing, madam,” the earl countered calmly.

“Who was that woman?” Diana asked, pointing at the door, still not believing what she had heard.

“Precisely who she said,” Derek answered. “Giles's widow, the Dowager Countess of Harrowby.”

“But that is not possible!” Diana exclaimed, her voice rising with alarm. “I am Giles's widow.”

“Indeed?” The earl's mouth twisted into a mocking sneer. “And may I ask precisely how long you were married to my cousin?”

“Over three years.”

“Oh, damn.” That expletive came from Tristan, who then moved back across the room to retrieve the brandy decanter and refill his glass.

Derek rubbed his hands across his chin in frustration. “I must tell you, madam, I am becoming increasingly annoyed with this whole charade. I demand you come clean of this entire matter and tell us who sent you here to play this ridiculous practical joke.”

“No one has sent me here!” Diana screeched in reply. She bit her lip firmly to keep from saying anything else until she regained her temper. Finally, Diana said in a chilling tone, “My father always warned me the gentry were a queer lot. If this is not a childish prank, then I can only assume it is some sort of elaborate plot to cheat me out of my property. I can assure you, sir, it shall not succeed.”

The bravado of Diana's statement did not lessen the fact that she was badly shaken by the entire incident, but she vowed she would die before allowing the earl to witness any of her distress. He had been cold, arrogant, and insulting from the moment she'd arrived, and she refused to be intimidated any further.

“I am afraid, Diana, it is neither a prank nor an attempt to cheat you,” Tristan said softly. “I think we need to hear your entire story, from the beginning please, before we can make any sense of this.”

Diana glanced uncertainly at the two men, who were regarding her even more intently than when she had first arrived. She was not entirely convinced of their sincerity, especially the earl's, but she reasoned that the only way to get to the truth would be to explain her situation.

“I grew up in various parts of England,” Diana began in a soft, clear voice. “My mother died when I was six and my father was always pursuing some business venture, and he did not wish to be tied down to any particular location. Therefore, we were constantly moving. I had various nurses and several governesses during my childhood who saw to my care and upbringing. When I reached the age of fifteen my father sent me to Mrs. Elliston's Academy for Young Ladies in Sussex to complete my education. I graduated from the academy soon after my eighteenth birthday, and I took up residence in the new house my father had built outside of Bath.

“I was introduced to the earl by my father the summer I returned from school. Apparently Giles and my father were involved in several business ventures together. I was never able to clearly ascertain the nature of their business dealings. The earl came to our home for dinner on occasion, and since I acted as hostess for my father, I spent several evenings with him.

“At the time, Giles had recently come into his title, and my father was rather impressed to have a peer of the realm as a business partner. I suppose it is the curse of the merchant classes to be in awe of the nobility. No matter how successful he became, my father always worried he still carried the smell of the shop about him. Anyway, my father was extremely successful in his business dealings and was considered a man of very affluent means. Much to his dismay, however, he was not included in the upper echelons of society owing to his lack of appropriate connections. I believe that served to heighten his interest in Giles.

“Later that summer, my father informed me he had approached Giles with the idea of entering into a marriage with me. Having previously led a somewhat sheltered and secluded life, I found the notion appealing. Giles was charming, clever, and witty during the brief time I had spent in his company, and I must confess I was captivated by him. When I pressed my father for details about the possibility of a marriage with the earl, he admitted Giles was a bit reluctant to agree because of my lack of social stature. But father felt confident he would bring Giles up to scratch. My father was an extremely forceful man. He was fond of success and not easily deterred. Giles presented a challenge to him. It wasn't until much later that I realized my father had a substantial monetary hold on the earl, and that was how he was finally able to force the match. It was a fact Giles took great delight in pointing out to me during our marriage.”

Diana paused for a moment, lost in her memories. After a brief hesitation, she said, “Eventually, my father's will prevailed, and before the summer ended, Giles proposed. Naturally, I accepted. My father had worked so hard to bring him around, and I was naive and impressionable enough to be taken in by Giles's winning ways. We were married in September of that year.”

“When and where?” Derek asked, eyeing Diana irritably.

“The year was 1814. The wedding took place on September third in Chippenham, a small hamlet north of Bath. Only my father and my old nurse, Agnes, were in attendance. We stayed overnight in the village and the next morning Giles and I set out for Cornwall.”

“Impossible,” Derek said while pacing the room in agitation. “I was back in England during that time and I took up residence in London. I distinctly remember seeing Giles several times during the month of October. He never once said anything, nor in any way acted as though he were married. If memory serves me correctly, he began courting Henriette that season.”

Diana swallowed hard at that statement and fell silent. She glanced out the long French window and dully watched the pelting raindrops slither down the glass. She felt strangely numb and lethargic.

“Calm down, Derek, and allow her to finish,” Tristan advised. “Please continue.”

A bit less sure of herself, Diana began speaking again. “There really is very little left to say. The journey to Cornwall took nearly a week. Giles became increasingly annoyed with the endless traveling and took to projecting his anger at me. He became strange and unaccountably hostile at times, gloomy on other occasions. I was seriously beginning to doubt the wisdom of our marriage when we arrived in Cornwall. We immediately moved into Snowshill Manor, a lovely restored Elizabethan estate my father had purchased as a wedding gift for us, and Giles proclaimed an interest in acquiring a tin or copper mine.”

“This cannot possibly be accurate,” Derek said, interrupting again. “How could Giles have been in Cornwall playing the devoted husband and here in London at the same time?”

Diana's face flushed with heat and she looked down at her hands. “I did not say, my lord, that Giles was playing the devoted husband. He left me in Cornwall only two days after we arrived. It was many months before I saw him again.”

“Come now, madam,” he said, disbelief etched in his voice. “You expect us to believe Giles deserted his new bride in the wilds of Cornwall and did not return for several months? Did you not question your husband's absence?”

Diana squirmed uncomfortably on the settee, the earl's statement bringing all the endless days and nights of uncertainty back into her heart. “Of course I questioned my husband's absence,” she snapped. “He told me he was going to London to settle some business affairs and would return to Cornwall to take me back to the city with him before Christmas. But Giles did not return for over six months. By that time, my father had suddenly taken ill with fever and died, and I was quite distressed. Giles insisted I observe at least a year of mourning before I considered accompanying him to London. Naturally, I agreed. And then Giles left again.”

“When did you next see him,” Tristan inquired gently.

“Not until September of that year,” Diana said, feeling the telltale warmth of humiliation rising again. “He brought several papers pertaining to my father's estate he wanted me to sign. It was at that time I learned my father had made a separate provision for me in his will, allocating the bulk of his wealth to me and not my husband. He also had certain properties held in trust for me that Giles was allowed to manage, but not sell without my permission.”

“I don't imagine Giles was pleased to learn of that,” the earl stated knowledgeably.

“No, he was not,” Diana said, almost whispering as she recalled her late husband's angry reaction. “Giles was furious when he discovered I controlled the purse strings. He shouted names at me and accused me of all sorts of horrible things. He claimed I was in league with my father to cheat him out of his rightful due. Truth be told, I was glad when he left. Giles returned to Cornwall only three times during the following two years. On each occasion he brought a large folder of documents for me to sign. He said the papers allowed him the use of certain funds.”

“And you signed them?” Derek asked, a trace of sympathy creeping into his voice.

“Yes,” Diana whispered, hanging her head. “I quickly learned how ruthless Giles could be when denied what he desired.” She shuddered when she saw the two men exchange concerned glances.

“How did you learn of Giles's death?”

“I read of his death in the
Times
. Cornwall is a bit remote, but we are not totally cut off from the rest of the country. The newspaper was several weeks old and the obituary notice rather brief. I noticed the announcement was placed a month after the date of his death. Was Giles ill for a long period of time?”

The earl's blue eyes did not waver. “No. My cousin died suddenly.”

“Oh.” A fleeting sense of guilt invaded Diana as she struggled and then failed to evoke a feeling of sympathy within her heart over her husband's death. “After reading the notice in the paper, I reasoned Giles's relatives had probably tried to locate me, but were unable to, so I decided it would be best if I came to London on my own. The obituary mentioned the earl's widow. I assumed they were referring to me.” Diana's voice trailed off in a mixture of exhaustion and disbelief.

The room fell silent. Tristan rose from his leather wing-back chair and nearly dragged Derek out of his seat and across the room.

“I've always held the opinion that your cousin was a bastard, but even this seems too low for Giles. A bigamist for heaven's sake!” Tristan hissed, keeping his voice low so Diana would not overhear the conversation.

“This is extreme, even for Giles,” Derek admitted. “Do you believe her story, Tris?”

Tristan shot Derek an incredible look. “I know you are not a man easily given to trust, Derek, but even you cannot doubt her sincerity. Good Lord, man, who in creation would make up such a bizarre tale? And for what possible gain?”

Derek looked past Tristan to the settee, where the young woman sat. She looked forlorn and helpless, but even her distress could not diminish the glow of her golden hair, the pink coloring of her high cheekbones, the charm of her full, lush mouth and finely chiseled nose. Her eyes were an elegant and expressive brown with long, thick golden lashes. Her features proclaimed her a pretty woman, but the creamy alabaster sparkle of her complexion declared her a rare beauty.

She was fashionable and expensively dressed and had the unmistakable look of quality. Her distress was obvious; her agitation seemed genuine, her manner genteel. She was not, by any means, a common woman. Yet Derek was still not entirely convinced. There was one other remote explanation. He crossed the room toward her.

Diana felt rather than heard his approach. She raised her eyes slowly, taking in every measure of his attire from his gleaming black Hessian boots and tight-fitting, buff-colored leather breeches to his ivory shirt, white cravat, and double-breasted green coat with its shiny brass buttons. Her eyes widened in surprise when they reached his handsome face. For the first time since she had entered the room, the earl was not scowling at her. He looked, she thought incredibly, almost kind.

“Is it possible, madam, that the husband of which you speak is not, in fact, my late cousin, Giles Rutledge?” he asked in a quiet voice.

Diana drew her brows together for a moment and pondered his question. “It is, I suppose, a possibility, my lord,” she answered slowly.

Relaxing slightly at this last hope, Diana sank back against the comfortable sofa. She took a deep breath and absently looked around the drawing room, taking note of her surroundings for the first time. Green watered silk covered the walls and elegant swags of the same fabric draped the tall, narrow windows. The center carpet was white with an intricate design in shades of green, gold, and brown. The furnishings were very English in style. A Sheraton satinwood cabinet with painted oval panels instantly caught her attention. The overall effect was warm and inviting.