The Marquis At Midnight (15 page)

Well, it was sufficient to say that the week
was not quite finished yet and that there was really only one way
she wanted to end it.

Thinking about
exactly
how
she
wanted to end it made Grace go warm all over, but her feelings for
the man had been confused from the outset by her undeniable desire
for him. Even when she had hated him, there had been no denying the
attraction that existed between them.

‘Are you thinking pleasant thoughts, my
lady,’ he murmured, voice husky.

She met his eyes. How could she have ever
thought those gray eyes cold? They seemed to burn with quite
extraordinary intensity. ‘I am enjoying the dance,’ she said, a
little primly.

The smile that curved his
lips saw right through her. ‘Oh, the
dance
. I thought that you might be
enjoying the sensation of being in my arms.’

That smile was irresistible. Who would have
thought a man of such gravity could look so wicked? ‘Well, perhaps
a little.’

‘I do believe I am damned by faint
praise.’

She met his eyes again and shook her head
slowly. ‘I think you know better than that.’

He dipped his head, acknowledging this.
‘Perhaps.’

The underlying sexual
tension between them was at once unnerving and exciting. It made
her feel afraid and elated all at once. She remembered her dazed
acquiescence to his kiss earlier in the day, the way his mouth had
felt against her skin, the way her body had trembled on the edge of
some strange, new discovery. Something that had felt familiar and
yet entirely foreign to her and she knew that she wanted to feel it
again, that she
could
feel it again, if only Morvyn took her there, to that place
that lay on the edge of reason.

‘Have I told you how delightful you look
tonight?’ His voice, smoky and filled with something that, on
another man, she might have taken for incorrigible, but surely not
in the very sensible marquis? The more she learned about him, the
more it seemed that she had known very little to begin with. ‘That
dress…’

Grace smiled up at him. ‘It becomes me?’

‘It would become you more if it were on the
floor and you were in my arms.’

The breath hissed out of her, the rough edge
to the words making her shiver. She moistened her lips, trying hard
to control the fresh surge of desire the image invoked. It was
shocking, to say such a thing to her, but she was not shocked. She
was merely… aroused. ‘That is…’ She trailed off, unable to find the
words.

‘Yes, my dear Lady Pemberton? What is
it?’

Their eyes clashed again and she flushed.
She could feel the heat of his body merge with the heat of her own
and felt lightheaded. It was not dissimilar to the fever she had
experienced when she was a child, except that she preferred the
cause and could not help but eagerly anticipate the cure.

‘My Lord, I do believe you are trying to
seduce me.’

‘Not trying,’ he objected,
drawing her just a little closer. ‘I
am
seducing you. Perhaps not on this
dance floor, although if you continue to look at me like that I
might not be responsible for my actions...’

‘My Lord Morvyn!’

‘...but certainly, seducing you has become a
matter of particular interest to me. I chastised myself most
severely earlier today, telling myself that I was going far too
quickly, but then, I see you tonight and all my good work is undone
in an instant. I am unmanned, yet again.’

There was no answer to that. None. All she
could do was look at him and know that, with all her heart, she
would willingly be seduced by him, quite possibly on this very
dance floor. She sighed, allowing herself to enjoy the music, the
movement, and, most of all, the moment.

‘I wish we were alone together,’ she
murmured, almost to herself.

He gave a soft chuckle. ‘Oh Grace! If we
were alone together, this dance would be a very different one, I
promise you that.’

Grace smiled and let herself float.

She could not wait for Morvyn to teach her
that dance.

At the same time as her friend was dancing
rapturously in her beau’s arms, Hester was having a difficult time
of it.

Unable to avoid Lovington and, indeed, a
little afraid to, as she desperately needed him to remain at the
ball and under their watchful eye, she had finally allowed herself
to be captured by him. It was awkward, of course. Clearly, he
wanted to talk to her in private, but one thing that Hester did not
want to do was to be seen disappearing with Silas Lovington.

Acknowledging him was bad enough. To have
anybody believe there was something illicit between them would be
disastrous.

She really wanted Grace
with her. At least Lovington knew that her friend was familiar with
the situation and her friend’s presence would afford a measure of
good sense Hester doubted she was capable of. He would be quite
willing to speak freely in front of Grace and it would lend an aura
of respectability to
any
private conversation, but Morvyn had swept Grace
off onto dance and so it was that Lovington managed to capture his
quarry when she was alone.

‘My Lady Woodward.’

Oh, how she
hated
that silky purr. As
was his custom, he was dressed entirely in black, but for his
waistcoat of gold embossed knots against black satin. Even his
stockings were black, embossed with matching gold knots at the side
of each ankle. He reminded Hester of a spider. She did so detest
spiders. ‘Lord Lovington. How good to see you.’

‘I am glad to hear it. I was beginning to
wonder if you were avoiding me.’

Hester gave a small, unconvincing titter of
laughter. ‘Of course not. It is just that the weather has been so
wretchedly bad. I have stayed in to avoid it.’

The heavily lidded eyes regarded her
narrowly, but the smile never left his lips. ‘But of course. How
very pleasant it is to enjoy the comforts of hearth and home and
with your husband by your side, or so I hear. What a relief,
especially as Lord Woodward has been so prickly, of late. Not
working too hard, is he?’

Hester looked up at him uncertainly. ‘It is
true that my husband has been kept very busy. He assists Lord
Abercrombie, you know. The Prince of Wales' newly appointed foreign
minister.’ It was odd, but when they had associated together more
frequently, Hester had never discussed Porter with Lovington. The
subject of her husband had never come up. She wished it had not
done so now, for it made her uncomfortable.

‘I do know.’ Lovington murmured. ‘Perhaps we
should go somewhere more… quiet? I have a matter I wish to discuss
with you.’

Hester
really
did not want to go anywhere
more private with Lovington. She felt as if every eye in the room
was fixed on her. ‘I have my reputation to consider, Lord
Lovington,’ she said, voice brittle. ‘Whatever it is that you want
will not restore it to me.’

Lovington looked down at her thoughtfully.
‘Need I remind you that I hold your happiness in my hands?’

‘I am unlikely to forget it.’ Hester paused,
taking a deep breath. ‘I wish to buy them back. My IOUs and my
necklace.’

‘Yes? Have you come into funds of a sudden,
my lady?’

‘I will raise the necessary funds.’

The smile widened a little. ‘Ah yes… the
lovely Lady Pemberton. She certainly has the Marquis of Morvyn
intrigued.’

Just as Hester did not care for Lovington
discussing Porter, she found herself feeling equally protective of
Grace and so refused to be drawn on the subject. ‘I can raise the
monies to repay my IOU’s to you, my lord. In a week, you should
have the monies.’

‘I do not require money from you, Hester. As
I intimated the other day, you can have your IOU’s back and the
Woodward necklace merely by doing me a small service.’

Lovington had been moving,
slowly, almost imperceptibly, so that now they were out of earshot,
if not out of eyeshot. Hester could only imagine how this looked,
this cozy
tete-a-tete
, but what choice did she have? ‘What kind of favor?’ She
could not imagine what he wanted from her.

‘Something of your husband’s. Nothing very
much.’

Hester frowned at him.
Something of Porters?
What was this
about?
‘I don’t understand. What could you
want of my husband’s?’

Lovington hesitated for a moment. ‘A mere
trinket, really. It was given to him some time ago by the French
ambassador. I think you will find he keeps it fairly close to
him.’

‘What kind of trinket?’

‘A gold fob seal carved with a carnelian
crest. It is quite unmistakable.’

‘Why do you want it?’

‘It is a collectors item and, as I am a
collector of such things, I have a fancy for it. Your husband is
unlikely to ever sell it. Especially not to me.’

Hester stared at him. ‘So you’re tell me
that if I get this… this fob you will let me have everything back?
The IOUs, the necklace?’

‘Exactly.’ His smile widened a little. ‘And
you will not find yourself burdened any longer by a friendship that
is, shall we say, a little uncomfortable?’

Hester tried to evaluate
what he was saying. If she understood him correctly, and that was
always difficult with a man like Lovington, he was offering a way
out that did not involve her raising the funds to redeem her chits.
Of course, he was so subtle that his meaning was frequently lost in
nuance, but Hester rather thought he would count the debt
paid
and
return
her necklace if she stole a fob from Porter.

Nothing peculiar about that.

‘That seems like a generous offer,’ she said
slowly, stalling for time. By now, her necklace should be back in
her possession. Well, Bertie’s possession, but it was the same
thing. If she stalled Lovington, played along with him, this whole
conversation might be over all the sooner.

‘Excellent.’ His satisfaction was obvious.
‘I knew that you were a sensible woman.’

Did he indeed. Hester rather suspected he
knew she was a shallow, silly woman who had done something
reckless, which he had been quick to take advantage of. She had
vaguely known Silas Lovington before she had been introduced by
Selena Ramsay, but only to nod to. She was aware that her husband
did not like the man, but it had never been an issue until he had
been present at that wretched club and she had lost all of that
money and, well, clearly Lord Lovington knew an opportunity when
one presented itself. She could not help but wonder if acquiring
this ‘trinket’ had been his purpose all along.

Hester may be a foolish woman upon occasion,
but she was no fool. Lovington had been after something and he had
set about obtaining it in the most devious way possible. Had he
blackmailed Selena Ramsay into performing an introduction?

‘When do you need it?’

‘In the next few days. Your husband is away
tonight, but he will be returning tomorrow, yes?’

‘Yes,’ she agreed slowly. Lovington seemed
to know quite a lot about Porter’s movements.

‘Then you will have an opportunity to
acquire it in the next few days.’ He tilted his head a little,
regarding her closely. ‘You see, Hester? Your problems are almost
at an end.’

How she
hated
it when he called her Hester.
She smiled at this sally, however, and hoped against hope that he
was right. If Bertie had that necklace and she and Grace could
raise the funds, then her problems really
would
be at an end. Because she had
absolutely no intention of stealing anything from Porter. Lovington
was beguiling her with flummery, but she wasn’t
that
green.

‘I will do what I can, my lord.’

‘Hester!’

Hester turned to find Grace hurrying toward
her.

‘Your savior,’ Lovington murmured at her
side. ‘I rather thought she would have arrived sooner.’

Hester ignored him, smiling at Grace who
looked flushed. ‘Did you enjoy the dance?’

‘It was delightful, if a little warm. There
are so many people.’ She made a brief curtsey to Lovington. ‘My
lord.’

‘Lady Pemberton. And where is your faithful
swain?’

Grace arched an eyebrow. ‘My lord?’

‘The increasingly attentive Marquis of
Morvyn.’

‘Obtaining a glass of lemonade for me,’
Grace returned, unperturbed. ‘He is fetching one for you as well,
my dear. I fear that you, too, may be a little flushed.’

Hester smothered a smile, once again in
admiration for her friend’s cool management of a man that, frankly,
made her profoundly uneasy.

‘And may we expect to see the banns posted
soon?’ Lovington enquired sweetly.

‘It would be most inappropriate for me to
speculate. Perhaps you should ask Lord Morvyn. I am sure he would
be happy to give you an answer.’

But it seemed that Lord Lovington had no
intention of waiting for the arrival of Morvyn, for he excused
himself almost immediately and left them alone.

‘Really, Grace, you are more effective than
a tonic for ridding one of inconvenient headaches.’

Grace made a face. ‘I am sorry, dearest. I
should not have left you alone for so long.’

‘Nonsense. We knew he would seek me out
tonight so it is no more than we expected.’

‘What did he want?’

‘He wants me to obtain something of
Porter’s. If I do, he will consider our debt cleared and return my
IOUs and the necklace.’

Grace looked surprised. ‘Really? But what
could he want of Porter’s?’