Temptation: 3 (Timeless Series) (24 page)

“I’m sure he’d be proud of you, if he could see how you’ve taken care of your family.”

“I doubt it,” he said ruefully, then added after meeting her questioning eyes, “Oh, I took care of them, but he’d abhor the way I let the hate for the one responsible guide my life. My father would never be proud of that.” Parker shook his head. “It simply wasn’t his way. But as God is my witness I still hate Henry Sterling for his part in my family’s loss. I’d love to shut down his mines.” He stopped talking and stared out at the water, as if lost in thought.

Penny was just about to say something when he continued in a more heated voice. “His greed knows no bounds. I guess you could say in a way I owe the man for the life I now have because it’s what drove me out of a living hell.” Parker’s sad smile appeared. “Without hate, I’d probably still be content to live and mine in western Pennsylvania for a few dollars a day, living in a shack owned by the company, shopping at the company store, just as my father and grandfather had done before me. Instead, I vowed to escape—to give my family a different sort of life.”

After ending his tirade, he shrugged. “I can’t fathom why I told you so much. Nor do I know why I’m so maudlin today.” His pensive gaze refocused on hers. “You’re a good listener. Has anyone ever told you that?”

Offering a slight smile, Penny shook her head. “No. No one’s ever spoken to me as you are now except my father.”

“Well, you are. Would you ever expect I came from such humble beginnings, seeing all this?” His hand swept out to indicate what surrounded him. He sighed again and his stare returned to the water. “Sometimes I feel I’m twisted because, despite rising so far, I’m not one of them, but I’m not what I used to be either. What’s worse, I can’t help the prejudice I feel toward the higher classes for their mistreatment of those socially inferior, those masses whose servitude the upper class feels is owed to them simply because of their lower status.”

“Not all are that way,” Penny said. He seemed so lost and more than anything, she wanted to ease the pain in his voice. “I think you are perfect the way you are.” In a way, she grasped his meaning. His words described how she was beginning to feel about her life. She was no longer that privileged girl of a year ago. Nor had she come from poverty, so she had no idea what his earlier life must have been like. Still, she did feel a connection with him because she also felt torn, like she didn’t belong anywhere either.

Their gazes locked and before her eyes, his expression heated, taking on a new dimension. He wanted to kiss her and more than anything, she wanted his kiss. But he didn’t follow through.

Instead he shook it off and stared out at the water. “Are you still planning on marrying him?”

Penney cringed. “Parker, please don’t ask me that,” she pleaded, not sure of what her answer was anymore. She’d been relieved to find she wasn’t carrying his babe, but didn’t understand her regret when that moment of truth came. It was simply something she didn’t want to think about, even now a week later. She focused on her hands.

“Why?” When she didn’t answer, he added, “You know there’s something between us.”

Trepidation ran through her at how true his words rang. “I can’t explain it. I can’t tell you why. I can only tell you it’s something I must do to survive.”

She sensed his searching gaze before he gently placed his hand on her neck, cradling her head in his palm and forcing her to look at him as he guided her lips closer.

Penny closed her eyes, wishing she didn’t love the feel of that hand on her, his thumb skimming her cheek in a soft caress. If only she could ignore the burst of pleasure exploding inside her when his lips grazed hers, barely connecting.

“You’re a stubborn one, Miss Penny Layton, but alas not as stubborn as me,” he whispered, just before their mouths touched for the softest of kisses.
One that was over much too quickly.

Penny had an even harder time pushing away disappointment when all of a sudden, with his lips gone, she was abruptly pulled from her seat as Parker stood and grabbed her hand. “We’d best get back.”

Dazed, she could only follow him, wondering why he seemed so unaffected, especially given her most pressing thought was to pull him back and continue kissing him, with the idea of encouraging him to use those wonderful hands again.

“I understand you had a couple of interesting passengers on your last voyage to America.”

Lucas Davis almost choked on his drink, not expecting Markham Collingswood’s words. He’d made port that afternoon and had sent word to the duke, asking for a meeting.
Surprised that his request had been granted so quickly, he had accepted the duke’s invitation to dinner with pleasure.

Working to keep surprise off his face, Lucas glanced at the duke, who added, “I owe you my gratitude for bending your rule. I’m sure Geoff is dying to know how one particular lady is faring.”

As a guest of honor, Lucas had spent a good part of dinner thinking of a way to let Geoff in on Penny’s change of plans without alerting the others at the table, including Markham’s mother, Hermione, and his younger sister, Vivian. And now it seemed he needn’t have bothered. They were all obviously aware of this. Lucas turned to Geoff with eyebrows lifted, searching for confirmation.

Geoff grinned and shrugged. “Markham has a nasty habit of finding out all my secrets. He knows all about Lady Penelope’s escape to America.”

“Lady Penelope?”

“Oh, that’s right.” Geoff had the grace to blush. “You still don’t know. She didn’t want anyone to learn of her true identity, so she went by Penny Layton.”

“Penny Layton is a lady? As in nobility?” he asked, unable to stop the stunned expression from taking over his face.

“Yes.” Markham nodded.
“Lady Penelope Lytton, as in heiress.” Markham cleared his throat. “It seems she and Geoff concocted a plan to run away to America. Geoff plans to meet her there.”

“An heiress?
Good God, I don’t believe this.” Lucas chuckled. “Parker was right about the lady hiding some big secrets. I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“I’m sorry for the inexcusable duplicity. Geoff placed you in an untenable position, but from what he told me, the lady was desperate. Her parents were the Earl and Countess of
Lytherton. Robert Lytton was one of my best friends until he and his wife died in a tragic carriage accident nearly a year ago,” the duke explained.

“I’m sorry to hear of your loss,” Lucas said sincerely. “So Penny lost her parents, just as she’d told my brother she had?”

“Yes.”

Lucas nodded and was just about to take a forkful of food, but he halted the fork at his mouth, unable to hide his curiosity. Flashing a grin, he shook his head. “Why travel to America and why change her name?”

“The answer’s a little complicated,” Markham said, his expression turning solemn. Swirling his wine, he glanced at it. After taking a sip, he set his glass on the table, still fingering the stem in an obvious attempt to gain his words. “Lady Penelope disguised her birthright and ran away to keep out of her guardian’s control. She planned on meeting Geoff in California.”
He cleared his throat. “She’s too damn headstrong for her own good.”

“An apt description,” Lucas said just as solemnly. “We wouldn’t let her go off by herself. You should know Parker found out what she was really about and talked her into waiting for Geoff at his home.” When the duke and his brother’s eyes met in silent communication, Lucas quickly added, “My mother and sister live with him, so there’s no impropriety. I know how you English are with your rules.”

“That wasn’t my worry,” Markham replied.

Lucas sat up straight. “There’s more to this than you’re letting on, isn’t there?”

Markham nodded, and then explained in detail everything pertaining to the lady, her guardian, her betrothal, and ending with the news that he and Geoff planned to sail to America on his ship when it left port.

“You’re both more than welcome. But your return journey may be delayed as my ship’s going into dry dock for maintenance the minute we land,” Lucas replied, once he had time to digest the information.

The news didn’t faze Markham. “I’ve cleared up pressing business in anticipation of a trip.”

“It would have to be for an extended stay. I don’t plan on sailing again for several months,” Lucas warned. “Of course, you can always travel to New York or Norfolk where my other ships dock to return earlier, but I don’t have their schedules off the top of my head.”

“An extended stay might be nice. Geoff was already planning on spending several months there, plus Jones, my man of business, can handle anything that comes up in the meantime.” Smiling, the duke rubbed his hands together. “I quite like the idea and see no problem with waiting for your ship to come out of dry dock.” Markham glanced up and asked sheepishly, “That is, if you don’t mind houseguests? I hope I’m not being too forward.”

“Of course not.
I’m staying with Parker, and I’ve no doubts he’ll welcome you with open arms,” Lucas lied. He picked up his wineglass and took a lengthy sip. Now all he had to do was convince Parker that the duke’s visit was worthwhile for their business interests.

“Good, good. Our plans are set then.” Markham smiled. “I’m looking forward to it, as I’m sure Geoff is looking forward to seeing Lady Penelope again. Everything should work out splendidly. I doubt the earl can interfere. By the time we’re back, his influence over the heiress will have ended.” Markham held up his glass of wine and said to all at the table, “Here’s to Geoff and Lady Penelope. May they find happiness together once they are
married.”

“Are you planning on making a move, or are you going to concede defeat?”

Parker’s voice startled Penny out of her thoughts. Her focus lifted from his strong hands to his chest, then moved higher. She inhaled deeply to stop guilt in the form of warmth seeping into her face at being caught covertly studying his fingers while pretending absorption in the chessboard.

He stood and headed to the bar at the far end of the library. “’Tis obvious this is going to be a long night, and I need reinforcements. Would you like one?” he asked, holding up a glass.

Spying the usual amusement in his blue-gray gaze, she clenched a fist, fighting the urge to punch the expression away. “No, I’ll pass tonight,” she declined politely, though she didn’t want to. She’d love one. Only now she understood how much she needed all her wits about her to deal with him. Penny was simply too susceptible to his charm, especially during evenings like this when in the company of his family.

Her thoughts then shifted to her situation.

Soon after their ride to his special place weeks earlier, Parker’s demeanor had changed. Oh, he never gave her cause to worry about his conduct, which was always above reproach and very appropriate, but he no longer hid his yearning.

Ignoring the need ever present in his eyes was next to impossible, made even more so when her own desires simmered in her soul as well. The thought of those beautiful hands roaming over her was a constant one, making her forget at times she was supposed to be waiting for Geoff. And thoughts along those lines only made her feel guilty and undeserving of Geoff’s love.

“How about you, Mother?” Parker said, drawing Penny’s attention back to the room. His nod indicated his sister who sat reading across from her. “Catherine? Can I get you something?”

“Of course.” Catherine smiled warmly. At the same time Elizabeth shook her head and said, “Not tonight, dear.”

Parker poured another drink. Penny watched as he handed it to Catherine, the smile on his face speaking of amused indulgence.
Though in command at all times, he seemed different with his family. He took care of them, but it wasn’t lost on her that Catherine had a certain amount of freedom, a freedom to be different from most young women of Penny’s station. He could be totally protective while also accepting, an amazing aspect in her mind and so like her father.

Ambling back to the table, Parker curled his lips at the corners. “Well?” He sat and lifted a brow. She looked at him with the question in her eyes and that same disarming grin spread, causing the thousands of butterflies in Penny’s tummy to flutter. “You know I have you, so give it up.”

Pushing the sensation away, she rolled her eyes. “You’re so sure?”

“Yes, and so are you.” He chuckled. “Maybe you’ll win the next game,” he offered, taking a sip of his bourbon and holding her gaze.

The challenge in those eyes seemed to mock her. Seemed to be saying he was winning and there was more than a chess game at stake. Her chin jutted out and she said haughtily, her accent becoming more pronounced, “We’ll see about that.”

Parker only laughed. “Spoken like a true lady of the manor.”

Penny made her move and tried very hard to ignore the pleasure surging through her at his obvious approval.

~~

“Just the person I was looking for.”

Shielding her eyes, Penny glanced up and noted Parker sauntering their way as she weeded in the garden next to his mother. “It’s a beautiful fall day. You don’t mind if I take advantage of it and steal your helper for a ride, do you, Mother?” he asked, halting behind them.

Elizabeth sighed, and sat back on her feet from her kneeling position. “Of course not. I never meant for her to spend all her time helping me, but she seems determined to make herself useful.” She wiped her forehead with her arm.

Parker chuckled and bent to pull Penny to her feet. “Come on, angel. You’ve earned a ride.”

“I guess I could be persuaded.” She brushed a bit of dirt off her dress.

“I thought we could ride over to see your friend Mindy.”

“Really?” Penny’s delighted squeal filled the early October air. “I had almost given up seeing her.”

“I’ve been too busy for such a long ride, but I remember promising you.” He nodded to his mother. “We’ll be gone for several hours.”

“Enjoy your ride,” Elizabeth said, still on her heels. She stared after them with a huge grin lighting her face as Parker led her through the garden.

Their trip on horseback took more than an hour before ending at a tidy farmhouse centered among fields being harvested.

Parker and Penny dismounted at the same time.

Penny started toward the house just as Mindy burst out the door, not stopping until she had her in a hug.

“You’re still here? I was so worried,” Mindy said, laughing. “I can’t believe you’ve come for a visit.”

“I know we didn’t give you any notice. I hope it’s all right?” Penny asked tentatively.

“Of course it is. You know both Mary and I owe your family much,” Mindy scolded, keeping an arm around her while she led her up the whitewashed porch stairs.

Mary Johnson, Mindy’s sister, stepped out onto the porch. “Lady Lytton. What a wonderful surprise. Please come in.”

Penny winced. She was a countess in her own right, and after marrying, her husband would acquire the title of earl. Her family’s title had passed to her, due to an earlier provision from an eccentric pair of great-great-grandparents. She hadn’t informed Mary of her ruse, thinking it wouldn’t matter.

Out of the corner of her eye, she flashed a quick glance at Parker, who now tended the horses, to judge his reaction. She heaved a relieved sigh, relaxing her shoulders a bit when his face showed no emotion. “We’re in America now, so please call me Penny,” she said softly, in an attempt to brush aside Mary’s use of her title.

“I’d be honored, my lady,” Mary gushed. “Penny it is.”

Turning toward Parker, Penny couldn’t meet his gaze as he strode up to stand beside her. She ignored her rising trepidation and said with more calm than she felt, “Parker Davis, allow me to introduce Mary Johnson, Mindy’s sister.”

Parker took Mary’s hand, kissing it while saying in a most charming voice, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Johnson. Mindy has told me all about you.”

Blushing, Mary patted her hair. “The pleasure is mine, Mr. Davis,” she stammered. “She’s also told us all about you and your brother, Captain Davis. I know I have the two of you to thank for her safe passage. Please! Come inside. Can I offer you both some tea?”

Penny and Parker drank tea, catching up on the last six weeks before talk centered on the ball the Davises were hosting. Elizabeth had instructed both Parker and Penny to invite Mindy as well as her sister and her husband. When nothing in Parker’s words or facial expression indicated he’d overheard Mary’s slip, the rest of Penny’s apprehension eased.

They were just about to leave when Mindy grabbed her hand. “Penny, you have to see my new room. Mary let me decorate it any way I wanted. We ordered pillows and material from Baltimore.”

Looking at Parker with a question in her eyes, his answer was an indulgent smile along with, “Go ahead. I’ll wait here.”

The two scampered off.

Once they were out of earshot, Mindy whispered, “So, how is it you’re still here? I thought you determined to make your way to California.”

“I was, but my plans changed.” Penny explained her mishap at the train station and Parker’s intervention.

“Thank heavens you’re safe. Now that I know you’re in the area, we can visit more often.”

The two friends spent another few minutes oohing and
aahing over her room, before heading back down the stairs and into the parlor, where Mary and Parker stood talking amicably. Amid hugs, Penny reiterated Elizabeth’s invitation to the Harvest Ball.

On the trip back, Parker stayed silent, letting Penny carry on the conversation, grunting occasionally to let her know he was listening to her rambles.

When they approached the bend in the road leading to Parker’s bluff, he asked unexpectedly, “Are you in a hurry to get back?”

“No,” she answered truthfully, wondering what was on his mind. Something in his voice had the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end, eliciting a feeling of impending doom.

Parker dismounted near the same rock the two had sat on and talked weeks earlier. He turned and placed his hands on her waist, easily lifting her off the horse, his expression unyielding.

Penny hurriedly moved out of his grasp once she was on the ground, but stopped short when his voice cut through the air with rapier sharpness.

“Were you ever going to tell me?”

“Tell you what?” Stalling for time, she spun away from him and walked past the big boulder, keeping her gaze on the serene scene below.

“Who you really are.” He’d moved with her and was now directly behind her.

“I’m not sure I understand what you’re asking,” she said evasively.

He chuckled, but the sound was anything but humorous. “I had a pleasant and illuminating chat with Mrs. Johnson while you were occupied with Mindy. Would you care to know what we discussed?” He reached for her arm, forcing her to turn around and face him.

Penny heard the bitter edge to his voice and she couldn’t meet his eyes. “I wouldn’t know,” she murmured, looking at the ground.

“I’m sure you can hazard a guess. Go ahead and try.”

Penny chanced a glance at his eyes and was stunned to see a cold glare emanating from his gaze. Everything in his stiff demeanor said he was livid and his anger scared her. She’d never seen him like this, and while watching him, fear, much as she felt when she’d been back with the earl, streaked through her.

“No? Cat got your tongue?” he sneered savagely. “All right, if you can’t remember, I’ll tell you. You are none other than Lady Penelope Lytton, daughter of the late Earl and Countess of Lytherton. Ring a bell?”

“Please! You don’t understand,” she whispered, growing more concerned.

“Oh, I think I do. God, you’re a countess, an heiress to Lytton Mines, no less. How you must have secretly laughed at me when I first brought you here to this very spot and bared my soul about my past. Me, a lowly coal miner, thinking to marry a lady and the owner of the mine. What a fool I was,” he hissed.

“That’s not true. Please don’t look at me like that. You’re scaring me,” she begged, cringing from the unyielding glimmer of hate written over his features, before his expression became an implacable frozen mask. “Why are you acting so horribly?”

“You’re a goddamned aristocrat—one of those simpering, spoiled misses I can’t abide. Not only that, you own mines that suck the life out of its workers.”

She shook her head. “No. That’s not true.”

“Now I understand why you won’t marry me. I’m good enough to use for pleasure, but not for a husband. You need the brother of a duke for that,” Parker said, ignoring her denial, not keeping the fury out of his voice.

Tears blurred her eyes. “How can you say such a thing?”

“I say it because it is true.”

“No.”

“Then prove it,” he ground out. “Marry me.”

The accusations he hurled at her stung. This hidden irrational side terrified her. He hadn’t spoken of marriage since the afternoon they’d ridden to this very spot. If he had asked the question before now, she might have accepted. That she was coming to think more favorably toward the idea made her realize how out of control her feelings had gotten. During the past few weeks, she’d begun to think he might actually love her as she had come to love him, even though he never spoke of it. Right now, with fear guiding her, she wasn’t sure about anything. And because indecision filled her, she offered her most honest answer.

“I can’t,” she replied softly.

“I see,” he whispered in a tone that belied his words. “Damn, how was I so stupid as to think someone like you could actually be happy with someone like me?”

“What have I done to make you hate me all of a sudden?” she asked, holding her head high, her clipped English accent slipping into her speech.

Noticing her stance, he shook his head and said with derision, “Ah, the lady to the manor born. You do that so well. I don’t hate you. I just have no use for you.”

She flinched as more tears threatened. But she would not cry. Fury filled her, and using it as a crutch, she flung it back at him, “Why are you so angry? What have I done besides keep my past a secret?”

“You exist. You’re all the same, money-loving bloodsuckers of the lower classes, thinking it’s all right to suck them dry for your own gain and amusement. Is that what I’ve been?
An amusement? An adventure?”

“No!” she
yelled, her voice horror-struck. At this point she couldn’t halt the tears now streaming down her face. His words struck at her very core, sending a cold feeling throughout her system. How could he think those things after all they’d shared? She stared at him with tear-glazed eyes. “Surely you know the person you describe is not me.”

“Isn’t it? It’s all right to share a bed with me, but not my name? No, you’d rather have a man you don’t love, your Geoff, brother to a duke, than a mere cloddish American commoner with neither title nor breeding who once toiled as a miner.”