Gentleman's Guide 01 - His Impetuous Debutante (7 page)

Coming upon more supper
boxes, she shot quick glances to see who the occupants were. The
orchestra played not far away and the music lifted her soul. If she
thought it possible, she would have requested a piece by Mozart or
Handel, just to make the evening complete. Smiling beneath the veil
and feeling carefree, she strolled past the diners until she
saw
them
.
Muttering a curse, her mood quickly dissipated.

Of all the places they
could have gone this evening, why did they come here?
She was afraid to turn too quickly, for fear of
catching their attention, so she continued on, hoping they wouldn’t
notice. Remembering her disguise, she realized they couldn’t
possibly recognize her, nor would they even bother looking. Noting
that Lord Sandlin was glancing her way, she kept walking,
pretending to be with the group ahead, continuing until she was far
away and out of sight.

Phoebe found a bench and quickly sat
down, trying to calm her breathing and shaky hands. She kept
reminding herself that she was still safe. There was no possible
way any of them would recognize her. All she had to do was stroll
by once more, appearing to be with others, then out of the gardens,
and back home where she was safe. Rationalizing that she had
panicked for no reason, Phoebe stood, straightened her shoulders
and began her retreat, not glancing once at their party as she
passed.

*

Taylor was standing at the entrance of
the supper box when he saw the veiled lady approach again. It was
unusual to find a veiled woman in such a place, especially one
wearing such dark clothing. There hadn’t been masquerades here in
years and she stuck out among other visitors to the gardens.
Perhaps she had recently come out of mourning and was still
uncomfortable with outings, though she appeared to be in full
mourning. If that were the case, she shouldn’t even be out of her
house. When she returned he watched her graceful walk, straight
posture, and realized that she was now with a different group.
Perhaps she had come alone, which would have been foolish. Or maybe
she was with a large party. No one ever knew what to expect here.
Yet, the situation seemed odd, as none of the people she followed
so closely seemed to talk to her, or even acknowledge her
presence.

Perhaps she was alone after all. For a
fleeting moment he considered approaching her, then shook his head,
dismissing the idea. Then again, if she was recently from mourning,
perhaps she was a widow. He set the thought aside. He didn’t even
know who she was. The idea was idiotic, and yet he couldn’t take
his eyes from her.

She approached the supper boxes and
skirted to the opposite side of the group as if she was
intentionally trying not to come too close to him, which was
ridiculous, of course. He strained for a closer looked and tried to
see an image behind the veil, but was only rewarded a profile,
barely discernable. Something was very familiar about the lady, but
he couldn’t place it. He continued to watch her when she passed and
studied her carefully, hoping to find a clue to her identity. Had
she been a friend, or wife of a friend? He didn’t know. It wasn’t
until he watched her from behind, noting the gentle sway of her
hips, that recognition settled in his stomach. Groaning, he denied
that it was possible. His eyes trailed up from her hips searching
for the color of her hair. Black, shiny and curly. Darker than the
night. Darker than the clothes she wore, or the veil.

“
Bloody hell.” He slammed
his glass down on the table and left his friends without a single
explanation.

Taylor trailed her, studying her walk
and the black hair slipping from its pins, beginning to fall down
her back. The more he watched her, the more he hoped the woman
would do something to prove he was mistaken. Unfortunately, the
more he followed and watched, the more certain he
became.

Indisposed, was she? He
knew her mother had forbidden her to come here at night. Noah
hadn’t gone against Lady Felding’s wishes but, apparently, the
daughter had. Did she have any idea the chance she was taking? What
could happen to her? Good Lord, she would have had to travel here
alone, and enter the gardens alone. How long had she been walking
about,
alone
?

Obviously, she hadn’t been listening
to him or anyone else and this was by far the most reckless pursuit
she had undertaken. It was now time to teach her a lesson.
Increasing his stride he brought himself even with her.

“
I couldn’t help noticing
that you appear to be alone this evening. May I offer my
escort?”

She quickly shook her head.

“
Come now, what kind of
gentleman would I be if I let you walk about alone?”

If he hadn’t been sure before, he was
sure now. It was her scent. The light fragrance of lilacs. So light
it was hardly noticeable. Grabbing her hand he put it in the crook
of his arm. When she tried to pull it away, he held tight. She
trembled. “I would never forgive myself if I allowed you to walk
about unescorted and something happened.” He didn’t expect a
response, yet. “Why do you wear a veil and dress so
darkly?”

No answer.

“
Are you just coming out
of mourning?”

Her head nodded in the
affirmative.

“
My condolences then. A
husband per chance?”

Lady Phoebe started to shake her head
no but stopped.

“
Is this your first outing
then?”

Another affirmative.

“
I can see why you chose
the Gardens. It is a lovely night.”

Again, an affirmative nod of the
veiled head.

*

Phoebe was in such a panic, thinking
wildly how to disengage herself from this situation that she wasn’t
even aware Lord Sandlin had led her off the main walk and into a
poorly lit, secluded one. When the realization struck her she
stopped dead in her tracks and began to pull away.

“
You don’t want to leave
me so soon do you?”

She vigorously shook her
head.

“
Come, let’s not have any
games between us.”

His soothing seductive voice came to
her and Phoebe’s heart began to beat a wild tattoo.

“
A woman doesn’t come to
the Gardens, alone, without looking for something specific.” He
slid his hands up her arms. Phoebe tried to take a step back. He
followed. She took another. He followed and it continued until she
found her legs pressed up against a bench.

All the warnings of what could happen
came screaming to her brain. But that was with others. This was
Lord Sandlin. All she had to do was reveal herself and he would
step away. But, if she was revealed, things would go much worse for
her, though her virtue would remain safe. There must be a way out
of this situation without him learning it was her. She looked up at
his face, trying to read his emotions. She only saw his boyish,
devilish grin. Good Lord, she was in deep.

“
Would it make you feel
better if I told you I had lost a spouse as well?” Sandlin offered.
“I know the loneliness that can follow. The loneliness of someone
to hold.” He was stepping closer. “The loneliness of needing
someone to fulfill only those needs a spouse could previously.”
Closer yet.

Their thighs were practically touching
and Phoebe had nowhere to run.

“
I am alone tonight as
well. My friends, they have womanly companionship. I, however, do
not.” Now they were touching. “I believe we both came here looking
for the same thing. Someone to share the night with.” He traced his
finger along her collar bone, then along her skin, directly above
the lace of her bodice, across the gentle swell of her
breast.

Phoebe sucked in a quick breath.
Nobody had ever touched her in such a manner. It made her feel
wicked and alive. She needed to get out of here now, before he
touched anything else on her person. Already she knew she would
never forget the strange stirring his simple caress had
caused.

He was leaning into her closer now.
“But not here, where we might be discovered.” Taking a step back,
he took her arm and turned back the way they had come.

Phoebe walked beside him, trying to
control her breathing, and tried to think. There had to be a way
out of this. Where was he taking her? She could already guess what
he had in mind. Was he really a widower? She shook her head and
brought her immediate concern back into focus. She needed to get
away from him, immediately.

As soon as they exited the gardens,
she began to pull away, heading in the opposite direction. Sandlin
held tight to her arm. “Not so quickly, mysterious lady. The night
is young.”

Phoebe bit her lip.

“
This is probably very new
to you. I understand. But you will be glad you came with me. I
promise.” His voice was edged with silky seduction.

Phoebe had no choice but to allow him
to help her into a carriage. Her only other choice was to jerk away
and run down the street and she didn’t want to draw the attention
of anyone else. She had to remind herself that this was Sandlin and
she was as safe with him as she would be with Noah.

He gave the driver an address she
didn’t hear and settled beside her. He was so close that the full
length of his thigh was touching hers. Phoebe tried to move over,
only to find her skirt caught under him.

“
Having second thoughts?”
he asked in that silky voice.

She shook her head
aggressively.

“
Perhaps you would like me
to stop the carriage so you can leave?”

She nodded frantically.

Sandlin only chuckled. “Trust me, dear
lady, you won’t be sorry.” He leaned into her and she was pushed
back against the side of the carriage. He lifted his hand to her
veil. Phoebe quickly grabbed a hold. He chuckled again. “So, you
don’t want me to see your face. I’ll kiss the delicious lips I am
sure you are concealing later, when you have gotten to know me
better.”

Phoebe had hoped he would back away,
but he didn’t. Something more horrifying happened. Instead of
kissing her lips, he pressed his lips along the trail his finger
had early taken, just above the lace of her bodice. She felt as if
she had been burned and the fire shot through her body. Screeching,
she reeled up, sliding away from him, and landing on her bottom on
the floor of the carriage.

Sandlin threw his head back in
laughter. She could only sit there, staring up at him, eyes and
mouth wide open. He didn’t even bother to help her up. He simply
looked down at her.

Anger replaced the laughter in his
eyes. Perhaps Sandlin didn’t appreciate being rejected. Maybe it
hadn’t ever happened before. She would certainly believe that
possibility. Well, she certainly wasn’t going to get off the floor,
as the alternative was much too dangerous to even consider at the
moment. Perhaps if she stayed there and continued to refuse his
advances he would give up and let her out. Instead, he leaned over
her. “I was wondering how far you would allow my advances,
Phoebe.”

She gasped. He knew who she was! How
long had he known? Surely not before the carriage, not in the
garden when he had led her down the path. He placed his hands
underneath her arms and lifted her to the opposite seat. “You can
talk now. I know who you are. I have known since I started
following you.”

She could only gasp, not sure what to
say, and pushed herself back against the cushions.

Lifting his hand, he ripped the veil
away from her face. “You little fool.”

Phoebe found her voice, not sure who
she was more angry with. “If you knew it was me right away, why did
you do and say all those things?” She did not believe for a minute
he knew who she was before they entered the carriage.

“
To teach you a lesson.
Obviously you have trouble understanding. I thought perhaps you
needed an example of what could happen.”

“
But I knew it was you the
entire time. So I knew I was safe,” she argued with dignity,
straightening her skirts.

“
You were far from safe,
dearest Phoebe. What if it had been someone else? Then
what?”

“
I would have refused and
been on my way.”

“
What if someone else
would have recognized you?”

“
They didn’t.”

“
What if someone, drunk
and full of himself, had decided to seek what was behind the
veil?”

“
That didn’t
happen.”

Sandlin blew out a frustrated breath.
“Perhaps I should have just followed you and waited, as I always
do, until a man took interest. But how far would I have let it go
before intervening? I am not sure. Perhaps as far as you allowed
me, so you could know real fear.” His voice had once again risen in
anger.

Her eyes widened. He wouldn’t have.
But, right now he was angry enough to let such an occurrence
happen. “That wouldn’t have happened. The only reason I ended up as
I did with you was because I was trying to think of a way out of
the situation without alerting you to who I was.”

“
I am well aware of what
you were up to. I could feel you shaking. But that doesn’t dismiss
the fact that you were there
alone
tonight, does it?”