The Lady Forfeits

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‘My lord …?’ Diana gave him a searching glance as the silence between them lengthened uncomfortably.

Had she said too much? Been too frank about her character? But surely it was better for him to know the worst of her before they embarked on a marriage together, rather than learn of it after the event?

She had certainly believed so. But perhaps she had been a little too honest? ‘I could perhaps attempt to … quell, some of my more independent inclinations.’

‘There is no need to do so on my account, I assure you,’ he said with a twinkle in his eye before turning to dismiss the attentive Soames, waiting until the butler had left the room before continuing. ‘Diana, I had expected to be bored, at the very least, in any marriage I undertook; it is something of a relief to know that will not, after all, be the case.’

Her eyes widened. ‘You do not think it preferable to wait and perhaps marry a woman whom you love?’

‘Love?’ He managed to convey a wealth of loathing in that single word.

‘You do not believe in the emotion?’ she asked cautiously.

His top lip curled back disdainfully. ‘My dear Diana, I have discovered that love comes in many guises—and all of them false.’

She could perhaps understand Gabriel’s cynicism towards the emotion when he had been so completely ostracised after being falsely accused of taking advantage of an innocent young lady. Had he loved the young lady before she had played him false?

Yes, Diana could sympathise with him—possibly even shared his cynicism towards love. Malcolm Castle had certainly made nonsense of that emotion when he’d professed to still love Diana, but had every intention of marrying another woman!

She sighed. ‘Perhaps you are right and a marriage such as ours, based on nothing so tenuous and fickle as love, but on common sense and honesty instead, is for the best.’

Gabriel frowned as he heard the heaviness in Diana’s tone. One and twenty was very young for such a beautiful young lady to have formed such a pragmatic view on love and marriage. But perhaps, with the experience of her parents’ marriage, and her young man’s recent abandonment of her, she was perfectly justified in forming that opinion. After all, Gabriel had been but twenty years old himself when he learnt that hard lesson.

‘Which is not to say …’ he stood up slowly to move around the table to take Diana’s hand in his before pulling her effortlessly to her feet ‘… there will not be other … compensations in our marriage to make up for that lack of love.’

She blinked up at him as she obviously realised it was his intention to kiss her once again. ‘I—my lord, it is only nine o’clock in the morning!’

Gabriel threw back his head and laughed. ‘I trust, my dear, you are not about to put time limitations on when and where I may make love to you?’

Not at all. Indeed, she would dare anyone to put limitations on a man such as Gabriel Faulkner. It was only that his behaviour now deviated drastically from her Aunt Humphries’s description of what marriage would be like.

Her aunt had led her to believe that it was usual for a husband and wife to go about their daily lives separately—for the husband that involved dealing with business and correspondence in the morning and visiting his club in the afternoon, for the wife it meant dealing with the household responsibilities, such as menus of the day, answering letters, receiving visitors and returning those visits in turn, along with needlework and reading. Evenings would possibly be spent together, either at home or attending social functions, followed by returning home and retiring to their separate bedchambers.

On one, possibly two nights a week, the husband might briefly join the wife in her bedchamber, during which time it was the wife’s duty to do whatever her husband required of her. Aunt Humphries had been a little sketchy as to what that ‘whatever’ might entail, with the added advice that a husband had ‘needs’ a wife must satisfy, ‘silently and without complaint’ …

Luckily, Diana had some idea as to what those ‘needs’ might entail; her father had bred deer on the estate in Hampshire—no doubt what took place between a husband and wife in their marriage bed was not so very different from that process. Such an undignified business that it was not surprising her aunt had chosen not to discuss it!

But at no time had Diana’s aunt mentioned that a husband—or, in this particular case, a betrothed—was in the habit of stealing kisses throughout the day. Most especially the type of kisses that yesterday had made Diana’s toes curl in her satin slippers!

She straightened. ‘As I assured you yesterday, I believe I know my duty towards my future husband, my lord.’

Gabriel’s brow lowered. Damn it, he did not wish Diana to allow him to kiss her out of a sense of duty; he wanted her to now give freely what he had taken so demandingly yesterday. ‘Gabriel,’ he encouraged huskily.

That pulse was once again beating intriguingly in the slender column of her throat. ‘It would be improper of me to be so familiar until after we are wed, my lord,’ she said, her eyes lowered demurely.

His jaw clenched. ‘I believe you know me well enough by now to realise that I have no care for what is considered “proper”.’

She gave a nervous smile. ‘I am not sure—’ Her words were cut off abruptly as Gabriel lowered his head and took possession of her lips.

Full and sensuous lips that had tempted him unbearably this past hour as Diana had first sipped her tea and then bit into a slice of buttered toast smothered in honey. He’d found himself imagining heatedly what other uses those deliciously plump lips might be put to …

She tasted of that honey she had spread so liberally over her toast earlier, deliciously sweet, with an underlying heat that encouraged him to kiss her more deeply. His tongue appreciated the honey upon her lips before moving past that plumpness and into the hot, moist cavern of her mouth.

There had been no shortage of women in Gabriel’s life during his years spent on the Continent: blondes, redheads, dusky-haired and dusky-skinned Italian women, young and slightly older, all experienced, and all initially intrigued by his scandalous past, but choosing to linger after once sharing his bed in the hopes of being invited to share it again.

He had become an expert lover during those years, able to give satisfaction to even the most demanding and experienced of women. That he had never personally enjoyed anything more than the immediate satisfaction of the flesh was not the fault of any of those women; Gabriel had only allowed his physical emotions to become engaged in those trysts.

Holding Diana in his arms, moulding the soft curves of her body against his, tasting, feeding from her lips and experiencing the sweetness of her instinctive response, brought out a gentleness in Gabriel, a need to protect that he had long thought forgotten, if not completely dead—emotions that he knew from experience could be called incautious at best and dangerous at worst. Slowly introducing Diana to the pleasures of their marriage bed, melting that cool exterior, was one thing, feeling anything more than that physical pleasure himself was something Gabriel did not intend to allow to happen. No matter how tempting the honeypot!

Not liking the trend of his own thoughts one little bit, he swiftly removed his mouth from hers and raised his head before putting her firmly away from him. ‘I think we should stop there, don’t you, Diana?’

Diana felt too dazed at first to wonder why he’d ended their kiss so abruptly, but as his words penetrated that daze she instantly felt the embarrassed flush that heated her cheeks. Had her enthusiasm in responding to his love-making perhaps been inappropriate in his future countess, after all?

She stepped back, her expression becoming cool despite feeling her legs tremble slightly from the effects of that passionate kiss. ‘I believe you were the one who initiated that kiss, sir.’

He looked down his arrogant nose at her. ‘Are you questioning my right to do so?’

Diana suddenly realised that once she was Gabriel’s wife, she would have no right to question him about anything he might choose to demand of her. Could she bear that? Could she stand being nothing more than this man’s possession, his to do with whatever he wished?

If it succeeded in salving her wounded pride following Malcolm’s betrayal of the love they had professed to feel for each other, then yes, she could, she thought defiantly. ‘I apologise if you feel I lacked … decorum just now,’ she said stiffly. ‘I—I am overset, I believe, and far too emotional, both from Caroline and Elizabeth’s disappearance and seeing the announcement of our betrothal this morning.’

Gabriel felt a moment’s regret, guilt even, for what Diana evidently believed. But only for a moment—the tender emotions he had briefly felt towards her whilst kissing her were not for someone as disillusioned as he. Far better to keep some distance between them. For as much as he believed he would enjoy introducing her to all the pleasures of the flesh once they were wed, he had no wish to do so if there was any danger she might give in to romantic flights of fancy. It would only result in her knowing a worse disillusionment than she had already suffered at the hands of her fickle young man.

Gabriel stepped away and placed his hands firmly behind his back to withstand the temptation to touch her again. ‘No doubt we will receive an avalanche of visiting cards and invitations this morning following the announcement of our betrothal.’ His mouth twisted derisively. ‘The socially polite and the simply curious, all anxious to claim they were the first to receive Lord Gabriel Faulkner upon his return to London after an eight-year absence. Needless to say, I do not expect you to accept any invitations without first consulting me,’ he added.

Diana bristled with obvious indignation. ‘I may have lived all my life in the country, but even so I trust I know the correct way to behave. As such, of course I will not receive visitors, or accept any invitations, without first discussing them with you.’

He gave a hard smile. ‘My request has little to do with behaving correctly and more to do with the fact that I do not care for most of society.’

Diana was well aware of the reason for Gabriel’s dictate—‘request’ was not at all a fitting description! She also empathised with it; as the daughter of a notorious countess, Diana would no doubt come in for her own share of curiosity where society was concerned following the announcement of their betrothal. As such, she was more than happy to leave the choice of deciding which invitations they would accept or decline to Gabriel’s superior knowledge on the subject; left to her own devices, she might make a social gaffe.

She stifled a sigh. ‘I believe I will go upstairs and check upon my aunt.’

‘Perhaps whilst there you might suggest it would be a good idea if she were to join us for dinner this evening?’

Diana was aware that this was no more a ‘suggestion’ than Gabriel’s earlier dictate had been a ‘request’. ‘I will certainly enquire if she is feeling well enough to join us this evening,’ she answered coolly. She might as well start as she meant to go on; she had no intention of allowing Gabriel to simply dominate every aspect of her life, however arrogant he was.

He frowned slightly. ‘And I suppose that is the best I can hope for?’

‘It is.’ Diana met his dark gaze unblinkingly.

Gabriel gave her an appreciative smile. One thing he could say for Diana—she did not back down from any of his challenges. ‘It is my intention this morning to make discreet enquiries concerning your two sisters. I will obviously need detailed descriptions of them both …’ He listened attentively as Diana eagerly supplied him with those details. ‘Is there anything else you need to tell me before I go?’

She looked confused. ‘Such as?’

His mouth quirked ruefully. ‘Such as could either of your sisters have run off to be with a young man?’

‘Certainly not!’ Diana’s denial was immediate.

Gabriel held up his hands defensively. ‘I had to ask.’

There were high wings of indignant colour in her creamy cheeks now. ‘My sisters may have behaved rashly by running away, but I do not believe they would have been so rash as to have totally ruined their reputations, my lord.’

Gabriel wished he felt the same certainty about that as she did. Unfortunately, even if neither Caroline nor Elizabeth had initially run off to be with a man, he knew that situation could have changed. Caroline had, according to Diana, now been missing for over two weeks, and her sister Elizabeth only two days less than that. Plenty of time for unscrupulous men to have noted and taken advantage of two young women alone and unprotected.

‘I am glad to hear it,’ was all he said, as he didn’t want to distress her further. ‘Please pass along my respects to your aunt.’

Diana watched as he crossed the breakfast room in long and forceful strides, noting the way his dark-brown superfine moulded to the width of his shoulders and narrow waist, his buff-coloured pantaloons doing the same for his long and muscled thighs. Physical attributes, along with those sensually pleasurable kisses, which set her pulse racing just to think of them, indicating that the best—and certainly the safest—course was not to think about them at all!

‘I had almost forgotten …’ Gabriel suddenly said as he came to a halt in the doorway to turn and look back at her standing so elegantly in the centre of the room. ‘I realise that Hampshire is a large county, but do you by any chance know of a family named Morton?’ He had already sent several old comrades into Hampshire in search of Dominic Vaughn and the woman he had announced it was his intention to marry, but it would be negligent on his part not to enquire if Diana knew of the woman’s family. Something he had almost forgotten to do since kissing her earlier.

‘Morton?’ She looked momentarily startled. ‘The butler at Shoreley Park is named Morton, but, apart from that, I’m not aware of any family of that name.’

Gabriel’s expression became guarded. ‘Indeed? And does he possess a family? In particular, a daughter of marriageable age?’

‘Not that I am aware of … No, I am sure he does not,’ she said firmly. ‘Morton has been with us for years. I am sure I would have heard of a daughter if he had one.’

‘Hmm,’ Gabriel murmured softly. ‘Still, it is curious that your butler also possesses that name …’

‘Why is it curious, my lord?’ Diana looked puzzled.

‘I am not sure.’ He scowled darkly, the pieces of that particular puzzle becoming more obscure the deeper he delved into it. ‘It is a start at least,’ he muttered. ‘It may be that this butler has a niece of that name.’

‘I do not recall him ever mentioning one …’ A frown creased Diana’s creamy brow. ‘What is this woman to you, my lord?’

Gabriel became suddenly still. ‘Why should you assume she is anything to me?’

A delicate blush coloured her cheeks. ‘I thought, as you asked about her—’

‘Did you think that because I said the woman is young I must, either now or some time in the past, have had some personal interest in her?’ he queried with a gleam in his eyes she wasn’t at all sure of.

Diana had no idea what to think. In fact, this whole conversation was somewhat confusing to her. Indeed, she still felt slightly befuddled by her response to his kiss earlier and its abrupt and slightly hurtful ending.

She suddenly became aware how little she really knew of the man she had agreed to marry. She had believed him yesterday when he’d told her that he was not responsible for seducing that young girl and leaving her pregnant. However, she had to acknowledge that his past might appear in a somewhat different light to her if she were to learn that the allegedly wronged woman from eight years ago, and the one he now sought, were one and the same …