Secrets of Seduction (9 page)

If he’d had any doubts, they would have been wiped away by her response to him this morning—the sweet flush of desire on her face, the unguarded openness of her expression, the honesty in her blue eyes. Her shyness was unfeigned, and her nervous chatter was actually endearing to him.

Yet she was perhaps the last woman he wanted to marry, in part because of the dangerous effect she had on him.

Apparently she had no desire to wed him, either. It
frankly astonished Hawk that she’d rejected the idea of marriage so readily. Most ladies her age would have leapt at the chance to snare a wealthy earl, even a reclusive, scarred, ill-tempered one. Initially her refusal had won a measure of admiration from him, until she’d stated her reasons. Her talk of love had roused an instinctive discord in Hawk. She wanted a husband who could love her, and he had absolutely no intention of loving again.

Not that the choice was his to make. He didn’t believe he was even capable of loving again. He’d buried his heart with his dead wife.

His discord had stayed with him until this moment—and regrettably translated to his mount. When the stallion shied at a phantom object in the adjacent woods, Hawk brought him up short, then used a firm leg and a soft word to send the horse forward again into a stronger canter. He had no business letting his foul mood affect the nervous animal.

Relying on small circles and more complicated patterns to regain the stallion’s attention, Hawk wiped his mind clear of the frustrating beauty inhabiting his castle in order to refocus on his work.

Nearly an hour later, just as he was finishing with the stallion’s schooling, Hawk caught a glimpse of a horsewoman riding toward him. Recognizing Lady Skye, Hawk swore another low oath. He should have expected her to do the unexpected and follow him out to the meadow behind the castle.

Just as unexpectedly, she was riding bareback, astride like a man. Her golden hair was down, while the hem
of her gown was hiked up a bit to show dark stockings and an expanse of pale thigh.

Remembering those smooth, slender limbs wrapped around him made a rush of heat spike through Hawk.

So did her appearance when she reached the edge of the meadow where he’d come to a halt. She looked as charming and lovely as a summer morning.

Her skin had an enchanting flush that only enhanced her beauty, bringing to mind the potent memory of how she tasted, how she’d responded. He could still feel her beneath him, writhing with the desire he’d awakened in her.…

Fiercely disciplining the riot of his senses, Hawk eyed her disapprovingly, making it clear by his stare that he was not happy to see her. “What the devil are you doing here, Lady Skye?”

“I saw you riding off on your stallion from my bedchamber window, so I went to your stables to await your return. When you never appeared, I decided to come to you. I feared you wouldn’t give me the chance to speak otherwise.” When his frowning gaze narrowed on her mount, she added hastily, “This is one of my own carriage horses. I didn’t want to take one of yours without permission.”

“You balked at acting without my permission?” he drawled, his gruff reply designed to keep her at a distance. “How astonishing.”

His sarcasm won a quick smile from her. “I know you are protective of your horses, and I did not want to get your grooms in trouble.”

Lady Skye’s consideration impressed him, but Hawk was not about to let her see it. In the face of his dispassion, she went on doggedly.

“I have been watching you from afar these past few minutes, Lord Hawkhurst. I had heard you were an amazing horseman, but you look like a centaur, a seamless part of your horse.” She glanced pointedly at the stallion, who was standing quietly and obediently now. “Your grooms told me that splendid creature is said to be rather wild. No one else will dare mount him. How do you manage it?”

“You did not come here to discuss my horsemanship,” he returned impatiently.

She offered him another smile, this one conciliatory. “Well, no. I was worried that I had made you angry.”

At that vast understatement, a spark of sardonic amusement stirred inside Hawk.

“Actually, I wished to apologize to you,” Lady Skye offered.

“Indeed.”

“Yes. Not for last night. I am not sorry for … mating with you. It was too remarkable to regret. But I am extremely sorry for complicating your life. I truly did not mean to put you in such a quandary.”

Hawk didn’t know whether to be flattered or exasperated by her efforts to disarm him. He kept his stare level, resisting her charm.

“I hoped we might calmly discuss our dilemma.”

“There is nothing to discuss. If you are carrying my child, you will marry me.”

Her features remained calm. “You are right. We would have no choice. If it turns out that I am with child, I will marry you. But I hope that isn’t likely.”

“When were your last courses?”

Her eyes widened, and she looked a trifle embarrassed.
Young ladies did not discuss such delicate matters as female bodily functions with gentlemen.

“You are certainly frank, my lord.”

“I was married for several years, remember? Carnal relations depended on my wife’s courses.”

“I finished mine a few days ago.”

“So we have several more weeks before the question is settled.”

“Yes. We will have to wait and see. Meanwhile, I have a proposal for you.”

Hawk cocked his head. “I am listening.”

“I want to remain here at the castle until we learn if I have conceived. It will be only a short time, a month at most.”

His mouth twisted at her perseverance. “You can wait elsewhere just as well, Lady Skye. You cannot stay here. The risk of scandal is too great.”

“My family regularly lives on the edge of scandal. I am not concerned.”

“You should be.”

She returned his unyielding gaze steadily. “I am not a green girl, Lord Hawkhurst. I make my own decisions, and I am willing to live with the consequences.”

“But I am not.”

Skye lifted a well-shaped eyebrow. “Do you know your trouble? You are just too honorable.”

“I didn’t know there was such a thing as being too honorable,” he said dryly.

“Oh, there is. A surfeit runs in my family as well. Take my brother, for instance. He might very well call you out to defend
my
honor. Trust me, you don’t want Quinn to know what happened between us last night.”

It was said lightly but her inference was obvious. At
her audacity, another shaft of unwilling amusement pricked Hawk. Not only had she intruded into his home and upended his hard-won peace, but she was hinting that she had the leverage to blackmail him.

Hawk shook his head. “You can’t win with that argument, sweeting. You won’t tell your brother for fear he would insist on our marriage.”

She sighed and dimpled. “Alas, that’s true. You are too astute, my lord. But I still need help finding my uncle’s former love, and I cannot do it alone. I
need
you.”

Her pretense at helplessness rang false, as Hawk was sure she knew, for she tried a different tack.

“Righting wrongs is your league’s primary mission, is it not? Well, what happened to my uncle is a profound wrong. One you could help me set right.” Her tone turned earnest. “Just imagine how lonely he is. He has no wife or children of his own. Even if she is no longer alive, it would mean so much to him to know that he had sired a child with his true love.”

When he remained silent, Skye offered another argument. “I will make you a simple bargain. If you will help me with my uncle’s plight, I will help you with preparing your house for your bride.” She quickly raised a hand, preventing Hawk’s immediate rejection. “Before you say no, let me explain. I can send for Aunt Bella this morning to act as chaperone. And until she arrives, I’m certain it would be possible to ask your temporary housekeeper or one of the other village matrons to stay a night or two at the castle.”

“Searching for your uncle’s lover could take weeks or even months. I can’t afford that much time away.”

“But perhaps you can. You said construction was
set to start at week’s end, and you have hired an architect to supervise. By the time you return here, the repairs will be well under way. And I can work on hiring your household staff while you are away. There is so much to be done.… Not only clearing out the years of dirt and cobwebs but decorating and refurbishing also. Aunt Isabella has excellent taste, as I’m sure you know. And actually so do I.”

Hawk shook his head in disbelief. Lady Skye was trying to commandeer his life and arrange matters to her satisfaction, but ever so sweetly, like a governess making the bitter medicine go down more easily. Only she was like no governess he’d ever seen.

Hawk was struck again by how novel she was. Novel, unique, fresh … and strong-willed. She was like a damned burr under his saddle. No doubt she counted on her persistence driving him to distraction until he gave in.

“When we are done with the house,” she continued, “I will even help you court Miss Olwen. My family has a great deal of influence in society. With my brother being an earl and my cousin Ash a marquess, we can open doors to her that would otherwise be closed.”

He had no doubt that every objection he made, Lady Skye would come up with a solution. Her suggestions were eminently logical but pointless. He had no choice but to refuse her request for help, since he had serious obligations that took precedence.

“Please just say you will think about it,” she pleaded. She must have realized he would say no such thing, for she gave an exaggerated sigh. “I suspected you would be this stubborn.”

“You are calling
me
stubborn?”

“Yes. But I am not one to admit defeat without a fight. I tend to remain optimistic, even when a cause seems hopeless. And I have faith you will eventually do the right thing,” she added serenely.

Hawk gave a grunt of exasperation. “Don’t count on it.”

“I am very impressed, my lord. You’ve gone for five entire minutes without making that growling sound.” Humor lit her eyes as she surveyed him. “Is that a hint of a smile I see? That is progress indeed. But I would be astonished if you can actually laugh, you are such a grouch.”

He had to admit she amused him with her deliberate attempts to provoke him. He was a stranger to laughter and preferred to stay that way. Yet he found himself smiling back at her, damn her.

Skye looked annoyingly satisfied by her achievement. “I will return to the house now and leave you to your work. I was much too nervous to eat breakfast before I spoke to you, but now that I have braved the lion, so to speak, I realize I am famished.”

Her blue eyes were perfectly innocent, yet there was a glimmer of laughter there, blast her cheek. She was teasing him in order to coerce him out of his foul humor.

She was succeeding, too. When Hawk met her gaze, something shivered through him, part laughter, part physical desire.

Then her smile faltered and he knew she had felt that same powerful jolt of sexual need. Suddenly she looked shy again, and without another word, she turned her horse away.

Hawk watched her leave with a feeling strongly akin to relief.

Oh, yes, Lady Skye was enormously dangerous to him. In less than a day, she’d incited him to forsake his scruples and possibly ruined his carefully calculated future. And that was nothing compared to the myriad of emotions she roused in him so effortlessly. In the past day he’d been, in turn, suspicious, curious, irritated, protective, passionate, angry, appalled, exasperated, amused, at peace.… He couldn’t deny that with her he’d enjoyed a deep, dreamless, peaceful sleep for the first time in forever.

What shocked him, though, was how much he still wanted Skye. The desire to make love to her was still stinging his body, when his only burning desire should have been to serve and lead the Guardians.

His predicament would only grow worse with time, Hawk knew, for he couldn’t just throw her out, and she wouldn’t leave quietly. Her appearance of delicacy hid a spine of steel.

Yet she would have to give up eventually if he remained adamant. Moreover, he could ratchet up his efforts to drive her away, making it as uncomfortable as possible for her to stay.

Wholly aside from the risk of scandal, he didn’t want Lady Skye Wilde living in the same house as he. He wanted no warmth and comfort in his life, nothing womanly and soft that would remind him so painfully of what he had lost.

Deliberately Hawk turned the stallion away from the castle. He had meant to return to the stables, but it was wiser to keep away when Lady Skye could be lurking around any corner, ready to ambush him with her vexing, tenacious optimism and her vital, vibrant smile.

When the earl
remained away the entire day, Skye suspected he was purposely avoiding her, but when dusk fell, she grew worried. He would exhaust himself, riding for so long with no sustenance.

By nightfall, the daily housekeeper and maids had departed, leaving only Thomas Gilpin, the grizzled old man who acted as the castle caretaker. A longtime employee of the estate, Gilpin had been present when the earl’s family perished in the fire, but he was not forthcoming in answering Skye’s questions about the tragedy, in part, she suspected, because his memory seemed to be failing.