Stroke of Midnight (21 page)

Ever so quietly, she closed the door while leaving it open just a crack. Peering through the slit into the corridor, Laura satisfied herself of the view. The opposite door could be seen easily and now she need only await the arrival of her quarry.

A pair of hands circled her waist from behind.

Her heart jolted against her ribs. Gasping, she lashed out at her captor, bumping against the muscled body of a man. She struggled without success to dislodge his firm grip. The alluring scent of dark spice washed over her even as she parted her lips to cry out for help.

His hand clapped over her mouth. “Calm down, Laura. It’s only me.”

That deep voice dispelled her panic and she went limp in his arms, breathing hard against his fingers.

“Do you promise not to scream?” he asked.

As she gave a jerky nod, he removed his hand and swiveled her around to face him. She found herself facing his tall dark shadow in the gloom. Her fingers convulsed around his upper arms. “Alex!” she gasped. “For mercy’s sake, you frightened me half to death!”

“Sorry. I thought you were expecting me.”

“Yes!” Quickly she amended, “But not here. I told you to meet me in the bedchamber across the corridor.”

“I’m well aware of that. And I suspected you had some scheme in the works. What did you write in that note to Evelyn?”

A quiver ran through Laura. Blast him, he must have been watching her. How had she not noticed? She thrust up her chin. “I don’t know what you mean.”

He chuckled softly. “Jade. You most certainly do.”

He went still, his fingers still loosely holding her by the waist. All of a sudden he let go and paced to the door to peer out. A thin wash of lamplight from the corridor illuminated the hard angles of his face. The scar made him appear to be a pirate embarked upon a wicked mission.

Laura crossed her arms. “I’ve changed my mind,” she said stiffly. “I don’t wish to talk to you anymore—”

“Shh. Someone is coming up the stairs.”

Struck silent, she joined him and looked out. Just in time to see Evelyn approach the opposite door and then disappear inside the bedchamber.

Alex closed the door. “I begin to see,” he murmured. “Such a diabolical mind you have, Miss Falkner. Instead of your beauteous self, I was to find the gossipy duchess awaiting me. No doubt you had some plan for us to be discovered together, hmm?”

She said nothing. The acid of resentment burned her throat. Why did Alex always have to ruin everything?

He took a step closer. “Now tell me, what exactly did you write to convince Evelyn to come up here?”

Laura couldn’t bide her tongue a moment longer. “I imitated your penmanship and said that you were impressed by her cleverness in exposing Miss Falkner. And that you wished to celebrate by having your own private supper dance with her in that bedchamber at midnight.”

He laughed aloud. “If only you knew Evelyn, you’d realize just how ingenious that is. She’s been trying to seduce me for ten years.”

Laura stared at him through the darkness. “You can’t mean that you and she have never…” Feeling the rise of a blush, she stopped. It was just too scandalous to speak aloud—especially since she had absolutely no interest in his intimate affairs. None whatsoever.

While she was distracted, Alex pulled her into his arms. “I can assure you, I’ve never made love to Evelyn. So there’s no need for you to be jealous.”

“Jealous!” A plethora of emotions churned inside her, the chief of which was fury at him for assuming she still viewed Evelyn as a rival for his affections. With a shove to his chest, Laura thrust him away. “Is that what you think this is about? Jealousy? After you
told
Evelyn that I was in disguise—and where she could find me?”

He took her hands in his. “Laura, listen to me,” he said, his voice turning serious. “When she came to call yesterday with her new puppy and wanted our dogs to play together, I had to tell her that Charlie had been a gift to my aunt. I swear it never occurred to me that she’d seen you on the street with him. I was only trying to get rid of the woman. I never imagined she’d visit Aunt Josie for the purpose of exposing you to society.”

His words held the ring of truth, but Laura didn’t want to be pacified. “Well! You still can’t mind very much that the truth has come out. Now that I’m known to be a ruined woman, you’re intending to make vile advances toward me—just like Mr. Stanhope-Jones!”

“
What?
” Alex tightened his hands around hers. “What did that miscreant say to you?”

“Nothing worse than what
you’ve
been planning to say.” She tried to pull her hands free, but the endeavor was futile. Maybe it didn’t matter, anyway, because she preferred to tell him off straight to his face—if only she could see him through the gloom. “That’s why I wanted you to be caught with Evelyn. I wanted the both of you to know exactly what it feels like to be involved in a horrid scandal. To know that everyone is staring at you. Judging you. Scorning you.”

Much to her chagrin, her voice caught on the last two words and spoiled the effect of her righteous tirade.

At once, Alex enclosed her in the circle of his arms. He molded her to his solid body while his lips nuzzled her hair. “Darling, has it been so dreadful for you tonight? Never mind, I know it has been, and I should have been here to offer you my protection. If it hadn’t been for my stupid pride…”

“Stupid pride, yes. That’s the perfect description of you. I would also add depraved and arrogant, as well!”

He had the audacity to laugh softly, his breath stirring her hair. “Let me finish, minx. When you refused to see me this afternoon, I assumed you’d decided against allowing me into your confidence. It was a blow, I’ll admit, and I left in a fit of anger, vowing never to darken your doorstep again.”

“Didn’t Lady Josephine tell you that Evelyn had come to call?”

He shook his head. “You know the state of my aunt’s memory. She never mentioned a word. I wouldn’t have known, either, except that my valet heard through the servants’ grapevine what had happened and told me this evening. I made haste back to my aunt’s house, but the two of you had already left for the ball.” His fingers gently rubbed the nape of her neck, sending warm shivers down her back. “I came here as swiftly as I could. Alas, the damage had already been done. And I was beginning to panic because I didn’t see you anywhere. I was afraid you might have run off.”

Panic? Over her? Laura intended to scoff, but his deep, mesmerizing voice had a softening effect on her anger. So did his soothing touch. She wanted desperately to believe that Alex truly cared for her, that she was not just another warm female body for him to conquer.

Foolish though it might be, she laid her head on his shoulder. His coat felt smooth against her cheek, and his familiar scent both comforted and thrilled her. “You must have arrived while I was upstairs here removing my disguise.”

“And was that when you concocted your devious scheme, hmm?” His hands drifted downward to massage the tension from her back. “The one that I have so cleverly foiled?”

She tilted her chin to scowl at him through the darkness. “Stupid prideful man,” she said without rancor.

“Prideful, yes. After all, I did end up with the right woman.”

He brought his mouth down on hers, lightly at first, then with an escalating ardor that Laura felt powerless to resist. Rising on tiptoes, she fully participated, parting her lips to welcome the intimacy of his tongue. It was a fierce, intense, exhilarating kiss and she wrapped her arms around his neck, the better to savor the compelling sensations that swept through every inch of her.

The right woman
 … did he truly regard her that way, or was he just employing his famous charm? She yearned to believe he had suffered from their abrupt separation ten years ago as much as she had. Alex had been very attentive during their whirlwind courtship, though he had never declared his love in so many words. She’d thought that the many stolen kisses they’d shared had conveyed the depth of his devotion to her.

But those memories paled in comparison with the womanly passion he aroused in her now. Laura could not recall ever feeling such a fire in her body. It consumed her, weakened her, frightened her.

In an attempt to recover her equilibrium, she drew back slightly. “I won’t be your mistress, Alex.”

He gave a soft laugh as his thumb traced her damp lips. “Have I asked you to be? Of course not. My stupid pride could never bear the rejection.”

“Stop teasing. I’m quite serious. I won’t be seduced by you.”

“Not ever?” Holding her close with one arm, he moved his other hand downward over the curve of her breasts. “What a pity. For I should very much like to caress you without the restriction of gown and corset.”

She caught her breath as he cupped her fullness, his fingertip deftly stroking the tip. Never before had he touched her with such boldness; all of their youthful kisses had been quite chaste. Shuddering with desire, Laura told herself to stop him, but couldn’t find the words. And he was far from finished. Much to her shock, he slid his hand between her legs as far as her gown would allow. He bent his head closer and murmured huskily, “I’d like to see you entirely unclothed, Laura. So that I might learn every inch of your lovely body.”

“Alex … you shouldn’t
say
such things…”

But even as she spoke, Laura negated her own words by lifting her mouth for his kiss. All of her awareness was focused lower, where he continued to stroke her in lazy circles through the layers of cloth. The forbidden pleasure of it caused a mindless rush of heat. His arm gripped her waist, holding her upright, or her legs might have melted. The insistent beating of her blood proved far more enticing than any prudish objections. The darkness of the room seemed to enhance the pleasurable sensations, and her need for him pulsed like a persistent pounding …

He abruptly removed his hand. Laura moaned, beset by a vague sense of being robbed of something enticing just beyond her reach. In the next instant, it struck her that the pounding was actually someone rapping on the door.

Even as that comprehension flooded her, the door was flung open and she squinted against the brightness of lamplight. Several people crowded the corridor, though she could not discern their faces.

A collective gasp came from the onlookers. One figure advanced ahead of the others into the bedchamber. The lamp she held up illuminated her bulldog features, and the sight was a dash of ice water to Laura’s overheated senses. Mrs. Dorcas Grayling.

Laura bit back a groan. Dear God in heaven. Her scheme had gone awry in the worst possible manner.
She
had been caught with Alex.

“What is the meaning of this?” Mrs. Grayling snapped. “Lord Copley, how could you allow yourself to be duped by such a female? As for you, you little hussy”—her gaze had shifted on Laura—“you shall be banished from decent society at once!”

Alex still held Laura in his arms. Bending down, he whispered in her ear, “Go along with whatever I say. Trust me in this.”

Trust him? How could she?

But she had no other choice. The Earl of Copley had far greater influence than a disgraced companion. These ladies would disdain any word out of her mouth. There was nothing to be said anyway, Laura thought bleakly. She had been caught in a compromising situation, and no adroit explanation could ever excuse her behavior—even if she could think of one.

Alex caught her hand and drew her toward the goggle-eyed women. One of them, Laura realized with a jolt, was Evelyn. It was small consolation that the duchess looked exceedingly peeved, her lips pruned and her brow wrinkled in an unattractive frown.

“Ladies, I’m very pleased to see each and every one of you.” With a charming smile, Alex surveyed the small gathering. “You could not have arrived at a better time.”

“I beg your pardon?” Mrs. Grayling said huffily.

Laura was just as confused. Whatever ploy he was about, it would be useless. These women already had made up their minds. Now she longed only to duck her head, walk out of the room, and escape this ordeal. But Alex kept a firm grasp on her fingers.

“Indeed you
should
beg our pardon,” he chided in a teasing manner. “You’ve interrupted a tender moment, as I’m sure you’ll realize when I share the news.”

Evelyn pushed her way to the front. “News? What news? What are you doing in here with that … that coquette? You sent me a note…” She fell silent, apparently realizing it wouldn’t be wise to mention that
she
had come up here to meet him.

His smile took on an ironic sharpness. “Since you ask, Duchess, I shall allow
you
to be the first to congratulate us. I’m happy to announce that Miss Laura Falkner has just accepted my offer of marriage. She is to be my bride.”

Chapter 19

Amid the clamor of gasps and exclamations from the ladies, Laura stood motionless. Her mind was blank, her body numb. She felt Alex’s arm drawing her close to his side in the manner of an adoring fiancé. He pressed a kiss to her brow and embellished his tall tale by telling the ladies that Laura had made him the happiest man alive.

Agree with whatever I say. Trust me in this.

Woodenly, Laura smiled and murmured thank you when several of the women offered their tentative congratulations. Evelyn was the only one who refused to do so, and flounced away down the stairs.

Alex proceeded to declare that such fine, upstanding, fair-minded ladies couldn’t possibly hold his innocent bride-to-be to blame for the long-ago actions of her father, now, could they? He said they would soon realize that Laura would make him the perfect wife, and that as Lady Copley, she would be sure to invite them all to the first party they gave as newlyweds.

Listening to his spiel, Laura felt certain that this had to be a twisted trick he was playing. At any moment he would laugh and say,
What, did you really believe I would marry her? Of course it’s merely a hoax!

But he didn’t. He asked the ladies if they would hold their tongues for the moment so that his aunt would not learn the news from anyone else but him. Then he enlisted their aid as chaperones while he finished discussing the wedding arrangements with his affianced bride.