Silence of Scandal (15 page)

Their school master had only been a few years older than Phillip, keen on all the sciences, all forms of discovery and their mutual interests had flung them together. Reading his father’s diary over again he could see that their affair had only begun in earnest after his brother had left school. They had obviously been as discreet as possible and there cannot have been many that knew about it.

He folded the blackmail demands back into the book and returned it to the secret drawer. It had remained undiscovered so far, better that it stay there rather than fall into the hands of anyone else. He wanted those vile blackmail notes as evidence of the crime when he gutted the bastard who had done this to his family.

He stood quickly as the clock on the mantle chimed midnight. The hours had flown by. He couldn’t think without a clear head. The effects of the day and the previous three began telling on him.

He would sleep tonight and then restart investigations in the morning. He picked up the lamp as he left and then locked the study. His boot heels echoed as he trod heavily up the stone staircase. He came to Elizabeth’s door and stopped momentarily.

There was nothing for it; she would have to be questioned closely. She appeared guileless but she was involved somehow as her father was the man who had bought the gaming notes. She had been forced to marry him as he had been forced to marry her. Was that part of the blackmailer’s plans to punish the Ormond name further? To what end he couldn’t fathom. It wasn’t as if Elizabeth was horrible or an aging spinster and her being deaf was no bar to him enjoying her company.

Now that he had become accustomed to her tone and the way she formed her words she was as easy to understand as anyone with any form of accent. It wasn’t even as though he might not be able to have an heir. That looked as though it may still be a possibility what with the way her eyes had wandered curiously over his body.

Surely her father couldn’t possibly have wanted his daughter married to an unscrupulous man. If the tale of Phillip’s love life came out she would be ruined as much as he. The man clearly didn’t expect that to happen so were Hardacre and the blackmailer in league with one another or even one in the same? If that was the case, and it seemed to be the only reasonable answer, then Hardacre had not gained a thing. He had returned Ormond with no further demand than to marry his daughter. What else did the man have to gain?

The questions came rapidly to him but the answers would have to wait until morning.

Talking to Elizabeth about it all would be his next step. It wasn’t going to be an easy interview. She only had to pretend to misunderstand him and his search for the truth would be scuppered. He would have to make sure that the shrew of a maid was well out of the way before he asked any pertinent questions. Even though Phillip and his lover were both dead there was still enough prejudice in the world to make his own life and that of anyone connected with him, completely untenable if the truth was discovered by an outsider.

He passed Elizabeth’s door and walked onto his own suite. Grady had been in and turned down his bed. He undressed quickly, hung his clothes in the wardrobe and closed the wardrobe door. Even though he was shattered both physically and emotionally sleep didn’t come easily to him. He stared up at his canopy for a long time thinking about the life his brother must have led.

To love someone so completely unattainable must have been a terrible cross to bear. Being forced into secrets and lies would have weighed heavily on Phillip’s conscience and in his heart. Alexander groaned as he thought of his brother’s marriage to Anne. If she hadn’t known before she must have known about his preferences soon after the wedding. It wasn’t as if one could avoid the marriage bed forever.

Reminded of his own wife, his mind wandered to the beautiful woman sleeping only a few doors away from him. He wondered if she had loved before. He hoped that her tears of their wedding day were not for a previous lover. He hadn’t ever had time to consider his own situation. It had only been a very few weeks since his arrival back at Ormond. Taking a wife had been the last thing on his mind while tramping across the battle fields of Spain and France.

Now he thought of the beauty he had married. Whatever this blackmailer or even Hardacre had hoped to achieve had clearly failed. Alexander certainly wasn’t unhappy with his lot. Elizabeth was intelligent, compassionate and charming in her way. Her voice was easily understood when you listened to her for a few moments and her strange laughter and loud sobbing were easily explained away. He needed to become better acquainted with her. He wanted to know her likes and dislikes her preferences and interests. He couldn’t live in a marriage without love. It would shrivel his soul. He was already more than attracted to her. Somehow he had to discover a way that would make her look past all of his financial difficulties and allow her to fall in love with him.

He thought back to how his stomach had dropped at the sight of the rabid dog waiting to tear out the throat of the beautiful woman. He shuddered and sweat broke out on his brow at the thought of what could have happened if he had delayed his return any longer. The look of acceptance on her face when she thought he was about to shoot her pierced his soul.
Why would she have done such a thing?
It was unfathomable.

What was even stranger was the way his own heart had leapt in his chest at the thought of her coming to any harm. He hadn’t expected to feel so moved.  They had been married but three days and he’d known her barely a few hours. It made no sense but the way his thoughts of her swirled unstoppably in his head came very close to caring. How the thoughts of her had affected him so riotously when he was bathing was something he didn’t want to look at too closely. His own behaviour had left a lot to be desired and he vowed never to be so weak again.

His heart swelled at the remembrance of her words as she had washed. She had been scared of him but she still accepted her fate. His eyes drifted shut and a smile played across his mouth as he thought again of her naked in his bath, her creamy skin covered in slippery, glistening bubbles.

Deafness be damned! It meant nothing to him. She was absolutely perfect!

He ignored his rapidly swelling desire and rolled over in his bed. This time he would grit his teeth and bear the agony. The next time he took his pleasure it would be with his wife beneath him calling out his name as she came apart in his arms. He looked at the empty space beside him and sighed deeply. He reached out across the sheets, his fingers playing across the cool material and he hoped against hope that it wouldn’t be long before she lay there beside him.

Chapter Nine

Seduction and Secrets

A whole week had passed and Alexander had barely seen his wife. He rose before dawn every morning and he couldn’t wait for her to wake. The estate needed constant attention and with Giles gone to concentrate his own small estate there was now only himself and Geoffrey to take charge. As soon as he was sure of his financial situation and if there was to be any further threat from the blackmailer he would employ more people but until that time he had to do the work himself.

His wife had obviously not kept to her rooms while he was absent. He had caught brief glimpses of her influence in the house.

There were fresh flowers in a vase on the hall stand and in the salon every day. Some of the roses had come from the now nearly clear garden but they had been artfully arranged among a pretty mixture of wildflowers.

He had noticed that several old and worn tapestries, ones that his father clearly couldn’t sell, had been carefully cleaned, repaired and re-hung along the echoing hallways. He admired the new silk cushions on the chaise and in the chairs and as he brushed a weary hand over them he wondered where she had found the material to make them.

Still worried about the estate finances he asked Grady if he had been purchasing material in town but Grady had shaken his head and insisted that Sarah had found the swathes of silk in the attic. Apparently the cushions had been made from two pairs of curtains that had been replaced in the dining room several years previously. Alexander’s mother had thought the material, though dated in style, was far too beautiful to be thrown away and apparently Elizabeth, Betty, Sarah and Beth had plans for several other sets that remained in storage.

Although he came home exhausted Alexander tried to see Elizabeth in the evenings, bathing each night and taking great care with his dress but each time he was disappointed and sat at the table alone as Grady took her dinner to her room. Her recalcitrant maid would say nothing more than that his wife was tired or indisposed and preferred the quiet of her own chambers. Alexander was too exhausted to argue.

He was sure of the real reason behind her avoidance techniques. It was clear that she didn’t want to see him. He guessed that if he asked certain questions she would be forced to lie. He brooded for another day before he decided that she wasn’t going to escape from him again.

He rose before dawn as usual but instead of heading straight outside he went to the kitchen, surprising cook who was just sipping on a dark brew of tea. Her cup rattled in its saucer as she put her morning beverage down and rose from her chair but Alexander smiled and reassured her.

“Drink your tea and pay no mind to me. I will take my lady’s tray this morning, cook. Please would you ready whatever she normally takes as soon as you have finished.”

Cook stared open mouthed at the Duke.

“Her maid does her tray, Your Grace. Betty won’t let any of us touch it,” she spoke quickly and gave a nod of her head as if to convince herself.

Alexander shook his head just as determinedly.

“Well cook, I will be preparing it today. While I am here her Grace’s maid will no longer find it necessary to offer this service for my wife will be taking her breakfast with me from now on. I will load us a tray and take it up to her.” He began searching for tea cups and plates amongst the many cupboards.

The cook grinned and leapt into action, brushing him aside as she gathered the crockery and cutlery. There was soon a tray laden with silver dishes full of griddled bacon and boiled eggs, plates of spiced ham and cheese, more dishes of fresh fruit and oatmeal. Alexander staggered back up the stairs under the weight of it all. He rapped smartly on the bedroom door with the toe of his boot, for forms sake as she couldn’t hear it, and then he walked straight in.

The bedroom was in darkness and he placed the heavy tray on the dressing table before moving to the curtains and letting in the early morning sunlight. He turned to look at the bed. The yellow drapes were drawn closed around the bed but he could hear her gentle breathing.

He pulled back              the curtain and gazed at her. Her dark curls were strewn across the pillow in riotous disorder, her lashes kissed her rose coloured cheeks and her ruby lips were turned up in the hint of a smile. He was about to lean forwards and touch her shoulder to waken her when she rolled to one side and reached a slim hand out across the bed.

“Alessander.” she whispered as her fingertips fluttered over the sheets and then she sighed and drew her hand slowly back again.

Alexander staggered backwards.

My God! She was dreaming of him! She wanted him as much as he wanted her.

Before he could change his mind or wonder about the possible consequences he turned back to the door and quickly locked it behind him then he stripped his clothes to his under garments, slid silently under the coverlet and into bed with her. He gently pulled her towards him careful not to wake her, though for a moment, as her soft scent enveloped him the sound of his own thumping heart gave him cause for concern. He smiled when he remembered that she couldn’t hear it.

As though drawn to his heat she snuggled in closer and a few seconds later her hand wandered up his naked chest, her fingers sliding gently into the dark hair across his pectorals. He drew in a breath as her fingertip touched his rapidly stiffening nipple and he hoped to heaven that she wouldn’t scream the house down when she discovered him in bed beside her. Apart from the fact that he was unsure of her own reaction, he wasn’t sure that the four inch thick oak door would be enough to hold her vicious maid off.

He lay there for a few moments longer enjoying the feel of her against him before he leaned into her luscious curls and breathed in deeply. They smelled of almond blossom and fresh air and he wondered if she had gathered the flowers from the trees for her toilette. His own hair fell forwards and touched the hollow of her neck. She moved her hand and flicked it away as it tickled her skin and then she stilled and he knew that she had wakened.

He pressed his finger to her lips as she opened her eyes and looked at him. She blinked slowly as if wondering if she were still in a dream and for a moment astonishment shone in her face but then the shock of reality set in. She shot up from the pillow, grabbing the sheet around her.

“Alessander, what are you doing here?” Her voice was still husky with sleep.

He leaned up and caught hold of her shoulders, ignoring her momentary resistance before pulling her back down into the warmth of the bed with him. He waited until the flush that had risen to her cheeks subsided before he turned her to face him so she could see his lips.

“I brought you breakfast. I know that we have both been busy and I have noticed the changes around Ormond but I have missed you this last week.” His fingertips skimmed lightly down her cheek.

She lowered her lashes.

“Alessander, I’m sorry if you think I have done anything untoward but this place is so empty. I was hoping to cheer it up a little, give it some life. If you don’t like what I have done it can all be removed.”

Alexander stared at her and began to stroke the length of her throat with his knuckles. When she looked at him again he shook his head.

“No, you have worked hard to improve the place and it all looks wonderful. I only hope I can soon give you some money to make some new purchases. You are skilled with a needle and thread. I would never have believed those tapestries could be brought back to life.”

Elizabeth gave a small smile and flushed at his praise.

“The moths were very unhappy but I hoped you would be pleased. I am having plenty of help from everyone and there is much more I can do without costing you a penny. I was hoping to ask Geoffrey to frame your brother’s drawings to replace some of the pictures in the gallery. They are detailed and interesting and shouldn’t be hidden away.”

Alexander cupped her face with his hand. He brushed the pad of his thumb across her blushing skin. Her skin was as velvety as a peach. From her words he knew that her heart was equally soft. He gulped back emotions that threatened to swamp him. Phillip’s inventions might not have withstood actual manufacture but the drawings themselves were exemplary.

“That is wonderful idea. It will be a great way to honour my brother and you are very kind to think of it. Perhaps we can choose some together. It would give us time to become better acquainted with one another.” He wasn’t sure why he had said the words. He was lying right next to her, half-naked, drowning in an almost overwhelming desire to kiss her senseless but he didn’t want to force her into anything she wasn’t ready for.

She looked up at him and reached to touch his face in return but then hesitated and her eyes wandered over where he lay beside her.

“You make me confused Alessander. My heart feels strange when I am near to you. I know that you were forced into this marriage against your will. I only want you to be happy. I do not want for you to think that anything else is needed or wanted.” She couldn’t look at his face. She couldn’t bear to see him reject her.

Alexander frowned at her words. Had he read her signals wrong? Did she not want him? Had he mistaken her dream? There was no way he was going to force himself on an unwilling woman. Her cheek had turned a deeper hue and he brushed the back of his finger against her silken skin. She looked back up at him and he spoke again.

“I would take nothing from you that you would not willingly give but I have to tell you, Elizabeth that you are driving me beyond mad with desire.”

She blinked slowly at his words, searching the heat in his eyes before she slid her hand from the sheets again and pressed her palm to his face. She touched his scrubby cheek and then ran her fingertip over his bottom lip.

He swallowed at the sensations that raged through his body as he caught her finger in his mouth and sucked very gently.

Her eyes opened wide as she withdrew her moistened finger and she moved her hand down the column of his throat to his broad shoulder. She felt her way down the taught muscles of his arm, her palm almost burning with his heat and then she pressed her hand to his chest. She gazed at her hand for a moment and then her eyes flicked back up to his face. She could see the desire in his eyes.
Her disability meant nothing to him. He wanted her.

“I can feel your heart. It is beating as fast as my own,” she breathed up at him as her heart exploded with love.

Alexander groaned and moved his own hand slowly over her cotton covered breast. She made no objection. Her heart was indeed thumping frantically through the thin material of her nightgown. He moved his hand lower and caught the weight of her breast in his palm. She shivered as she smiled and pressed herself closer and he immediately lost the battle for control over his desires. He slipped his arms around her body and pulled her in close.

“May the Saints preserve me! You are driving me insane with want.” His lips brushed hers with his words as any semblance of self-control deserted him and he was suddenly ravishing her lips, devouring them as she writhed against his near naked body.

He slanted his mouth as his tongue tasted hers for the first time and the last vestige of his discipline vanished completely. He had to see her. He groaned his surrender as his hands flew to her night rail and fumbled with the lace. Her fingers replaced his as she pulled on the ribbon and her gown fell open. He feasted his eyes on her rose pink nipples and then bent his head to worship at them.

She arched her body into him as he suckled on the tender morsel, his fingertips circling her other aching peak. They hardened immediately and she let out a low moan that grew louder as he laved her untried flesh.

He tried to calm his fervour as his tongue slid up her neck and around her jaw. He found the temptingly soft skin beneath her ear before skimming along her throat and down once again to the valley between her luscious peaks. He moved slowly down her body dragging the nightgown with him and exposing more and more of her pale flesh. Every inch he kissed drove her wild with delight until she was heaving on the bed, her body screaming for something more.

He pulled the cotton gown from her hips and flung it to the floor then he stared at her in the morning sunshine. Her nipples were dark and peaked from his attentions, her hair was a tangle of wanton ringlets strewn across the pillow, her body glowed with passion.

He looked down at the treasure concealed beneath another glossy thatch at the apex of her thighs and he moved his hands to press her legs apart.

Moisture glistened and there was no way that he was going to deprive himself of this delicacy. He bent his head, about to touch her with the tip of his tongue.

There was a sudden thunderous banging on the door. Shouts and screams and language the like of which he had rarely heard off the battlefield reached his ears.

The real banshee had risen and discovered his deception.

“Alessander?”

He looked up to where Elizabeth was understandably confused as to what he was waiting for. He stared at her for a second and then the door began rattling on its hinges. He feared for the ancient wood.

“It would seem that your maid has discovered my treachery,” he said sorrowfully as he pulled himself away from her and pointed towards the shaking portal.

Elizabeth turned her head towards the door. It shook visibly again and her eyes grew wide with apprehension. She flew from the bed and grabbed up her nightgown taking only a moment to slip it over her head and pull the drawstring close to her throat. Alexander lugged on his breeches and shirt and shoved his feet quickly into his boots. He ran his fingers through his dishevelled hair and turned to the dressing table to serve them breakfast while his wife put on her wrapper and moved to the door to unlock it.