The Star-Crossed Bride (8 page)

He could see the question bubbling up inside her; until, suddenly, she turned her face into the placid mask of boredom she had been wearing throughout the tedious dinner. Lifting her wineglass to her lips, she waved him away yet again, as if she still thought him no more than a faceless footman. A swift rush of pride flooded through him at her grasp of the situation. At the same time he found it necessary to dampen the prickle of irritation he felt at how easily he had become invisible to Emily and her family by donning a footman's uniform. He dismissed his own foolishness with a silent scoff. If it had not been for this faceless disguise, he 'd be lucky to still be alive. He watched the countess from the corner of his eye — a footman never looked his betters in the eye, Nan had whispered to him hurriedly. Soames, the butler, had given him the same advice — along with much more along the same vein — in solemn tones after hiring him.

He had obviously been overawed with Valentine's references, which were forged in the name of the duke of Kerstone. No doubt his brother-in-law would forgive him for using the title in such a worthy cause. The duke had given him a spare signet ring and sealing wax so that he could handle certain matters in a discreet and timely manner.

Dinner continued for a short time before the countess suggested that she and Emily retire and leave Granbury alone to his cigar. Politely, he declined the need to smoke and insisted on joining the ladies immediately. The countess nodded her assent, a pleased gleam in her eye. Emily stood, quiet and demure. Valentine marveled that she could look so, when he knew what effort it must take for her to avoid glancing his way.

As they passed from the dining room into the music room, where Emily was obviously expected to put her musical talents on display for Granbury, Valentine felt himself relax. The countess had overlooked him, despite the fact that he had stood next to her, offering her dishes, refilling her wine, taking discarded dishes away. He warned himself not to get too cocky but it seemed likely that as long as he behaved in the unexceptional manner of a properly trained footman, he could remain here and keep an eye on Emily — at least until the duke and Miranda arrived to do the job properly.

As he carried his heavy tray into the kitchen, Nan stared at him, wide-eyed with worry. He knew he needed to talk to her quickly — but how to do so privately as well, in the bustling kitchen? Before he could decide on how to draw her away she batted her eyes at him and asked him to help her with a heavy pail of water that needed to be carried to Lady Emily's room. They had no sooner reached the relative privacy of the back stairs before she turned to him. "Well?"

He smiled at her imperious question. "I avoided discovery, thanks to you."

Nan studied him critically, "The clipping I gave that neat 'air of yours makes it more raggedy, and your 'ands are not too fine for a footman, I suppose. But you still walk too tall, and your step's a bit too cocky."

"Is it?" He tried to match the gait he had seen the other footman use. It would have helped to have some recent experience with such servants, but Anderlin hadn't had a footman in years. He shrugged away the concern. He'd just have to rely on Nan's tutoring. The maid's allegiance had been a surprise. When she discovered him in the hall outside Emily's room, he had hoped to keep her silent for long enough to escape. Instead, she had declared herself fully in favor of breaking her mistress' engagement, and had come up with a plan to keep him near Emily so that he could keep an eye on her while they pried away Granbury's hold.

He supposed it was the letter proving Granbury's misdeeds which had convinced her of his desire to protect her mistress. Though he did not yet fully trust her motives, so far she hadn't led him wrong. "Is this walk better?"

"I suppose." As they hurried up the back stairs, Nan whispered nervously, "Did all go well?"

"The countess did not once look at my face." The girl's forehead was still creased with worry, so he added, "And I only dropped the fish into her lap once."

For a startled moment she stopped on the steps, and then, realizing he was joking, she forced a giggle. "'Eaven's above, you near gave me a fright."

Valentine smiled in return. "Forgive me for teasing, Nan. I have just spent two hours wondering if every time I approached the table, I would be found out and whipped senseless — or worse. I am a bit giddy with relief that your idea worked so well."

She beamed at the compliment to her ingenuity. "Then Lady Emily did not give you away?"

"No, she did not. I safely delivered my note and she understood matters even more rapidly than we had hoped."

"Good. The only thing to give your disguise away would likely be Lady Emily making moon eyes. It would not go well for 'er if 'er ladyship found out that you were 'ere."

Or for Nan herself. Valentine admired the girl for not saying so aloud. "You're a good girl, Nan, to help Lady Emily. I promise no one in this household will ever know of it from my lips, no matter what happens. And I will see that you are properly rewarded when this business is finished."

They had reached Emily's room as they talked, and he carefully poured half of the bucket of water into Emily's pitcher, and used the rest to fill a large washbowl that Nan indicated to him. He reflected that this masquerade involved doing a great deal of real work. But for Emily, he would do anything.

"It'll be reward enough if you can keep 'er from marryin' that devil." Nan's voice quavered slightly with emotion. "I knew 'e was a bad 'un, but after the letter you read me, I 'd rather kill 'im meself than let Lady Emily wed 'im."

If only Emily had read the letter as well. Apparently she had survived the afternoon without his aid. Her expression had reflected sheer misery as she picked at the tasty dishes he had set before her, but that was only to be expected. Without the knowledge that he had not escaped the household and left her alone to face Granbury, she must have felt that the marriage was inevitable. She did not realize that Valentine had discovered the man was more than simply unsavory, he was a murderer.

No one would expect Emily to honor the engagement once that information became known. He would show her the letter tonight, even though it would be painful for her to learn the details. If .... He whispered to Nan, "Is everything set for me to visit her tonight?"

The girl bit her lip and looked uncertainly at him. "It ain't a bit proper, you goin' right to 'er room, you know."

He thought, with guilt, of seeing Emily in her nightgown, holding her against him, never wanting to let her go. "I can promise that I will be a gentleman where Lady Emily is concerned, Nan."

She didn't look eager to accept his word, which made his estimation of her intelligence rise even further.

"I must let her read the letter, so that she will understand the kind of man she is dealing with."

"I could give it to her," Nan offered, reluctance to help sneak him up to Emily's room plain on her features.

For a moment he considered allowing Nan to show Emily the letter. But no. It was the only piece of hard evidence he had, he could not let it out of his own hands. Nor could he bear the thought of Emily reading those cold, horrible details of murder and dishonor without him beside her to ease her shock. "I must keep it with me, Nan. If Kerstone were to arrive tomorrow, he could use it to convince the countess that her plans for Emily are not only unwise, but dangerous."

Stubbornly, the girl crossed her arms and replied. "'Is grace would take your word — "

If only the duke was the only one he needed to convince, he'd have had to agree with her. "But would the countess take his?"

She gave in with a little frown and a shake of her head. "You've got that right." A little sigh escaped her. "Very well, I'll 'elp you sneak in tonight, but I 'm staying, too. I can be a . . . a chaperone."

Valentine readily nodded his assent to that condition. He could not afford to let his emotions get the better of him while he was alone with Emily. Nan would make sure that he kept to his good intentions. "Will you have a chance to warn her? I don't want to startle her."

"I'll warn 'er. If she says she doesn't want your company, then I can't help you." She uncrossed her arms. "An' it'll be past midnight before it's safe for me to come and get you."

They hurried down the stairs, aware that their simple errand had taken them longer than was reasonable. Soames was an exacting man, and already Valentine had seen evidence that the butler kept a close eye on every household matter within his purview. As he slipped into his hard cot, unnoticed by his fellow footman snoring away on another cot, he felt like a mouse trapped in a house full of lazy cats. It would only take one to notice him, and then — he did not want to think further than that.

* * * * *

"Lord Granbury is exasperating, to say the least." Emily tossed the feather that had been scratching her scalp for the last three hours onto her dressing table. What she really wanted to do was pound on the door until they let her out so that she could find Valentine and scold him for choosing such a dangerous disguise. Her heart still beat like a hammer when she thought of what could have happened if she had not gotten control of her first reaction to seeing him. She could have blurted out his name, she had been so shocked.

"The marquess does have enough presence for two or three lords, my lady," Nancy agreed dryly.

"Hah! Enough presence for ten men. After all, he told me himself that he was no ordinary man." How had she managed to survive the rest of the dinner? To pretend she had not paid Valentine any more notice than she might have the usual footman? It had been sheer torture not to look at him, or drag him aside to question him about how he had ended up in a footman's uniform in the countess's dining room.

Nancy stepped around to pick up the feather, wrap it carefully in tissue paper, and put it in its box. She said soothingly, "It's time for bed now, my lady. You needn't see Lord Granbury again tonight. Don't get yourself all worked up. 'Er ladyship will not like it."

"Her ladyship likes very little I do these days. I must have played a dozen songs partway before she found one pleasing enough to let me finish it through. My fingers are aching." Emily was horrified to find tears in her eyes. Surreptitiously, she bent her head and dashed them away. Crying in front of Nancy would be the final humiliation of her day. And, despite wracking her brain, she could not think of a single way to ask about the newest footman without betraying unusual interest. Locked in her room as she would be, she could not even sneak below stairs to speak to him. It was maddening not to know what he was planning. Nancy fumbled at her hair, not at all the smooth lady's maid that Emily had come to take for granted. She looked into the mirror and gasped as she saw that the girl was pale and trembling. "Nancy, are you ill?"

"No, Lady Emily. I . . ." the girl's eyes were huge and dark in her face. "I . . . need to ask you if you mind a visitor tonight."

Emily could not suppress her gasp of outrage.

Nan hurried the next words, "I'll be with you, my lady I will protect your reputation."

Anger coursed through Emily and she stood and half turned to face the girl. "Do you mean to tell me that Lord Granbury has seen fit to bribe you to admit him to my room tonight?"

"No, my lady." Nancy's tone lowered in shock and her eyebrows wiggled comically in her effort to be subtle and discreet. "It is . . ." she lowered her voice further ". . . a footman, my lady."

Valentine. "I see." Emily sank back onto her seat, her heart suddenly beating fiercely. So he had not abandoned her for a career as a footman. "I see." And how was it now that Nancy was delivering his messages? She gave the girl an assessing look and Nancy began frantically brushing out her hair. So busy with her thoughts, Emily did not even take time to suggest the girl be more gentle unless she wanted her mistress to be bald in a fortnight. "How did he come to give you this message?"

The girl trembled as she answered. "He was coming out of your room just as I carried in fresh laundry my lady."

Emily shut her eyes, imagining the scene. "I take it you chose not to raise a hue and cry then?" The question was, why? Emily hoped the answer was more than that Nan had been swayed by Valentine's smile, as charming as it was.

In the mirror, their eyes met and Nancy blurted out, "Please don't be angry at me, my lady. I don't think he means you any 'arm."

Emily did her best to smile reassuringly. "I am grateful that you did not raise the alarm, Nancy." But she was puzzled, too.

It must have shown in her face, because the girl rushed to explain herself. "I took a breath to scream, my lady, and 'e clapped 'is hand over my mouth and dragged me back into your room so fast I fair thought I was to be kilt."

Emily smiled, thinking of gentle Valentine menacing susceptible Nancy. That meant it was not his engaging smile or his boyish good looks which had caused the maid to trust him. "He did not hurt you?"

"No, my lady, he just asked me to 'ear 'im out — for sake of your safety."

"Obviously you found his story convincing?" How much had Valentine confided in the maid?

"I did indeed. I've never really taken to the marquess, begging your pardon for saying so. I always 'oped you'd come to your senses before you married 'im." She stopped, putting her hands over her mouth as if she 'd just uttered the worst blasphemy imaginable. "I'm sorry, my lady. But it seems 'e's not just the kind to make a maid's neck 'airs rise, either. 'E's a bad man and you can't let yourself marry 'im."

Emily could only agree, although she wondered why both Valentine and Nancy found the man even more despicable than she did. "Thank you, Nancy, for your loyalty."

"I don't want to see you come to 'arm, my lady. I think the countess let her grief over your father's death affect her judgment. I 'm sure 'is grace, the duke of Kerstone, will set things right, soon as he gets 'ere."

Emily raised her brows at the maid, surprised at the extent of Nancy's knowledge. "No doubt my dear cousin will find some way to convince my mother that she will not be lauded for pressing this marriage forward against my wishes."