The Rake's Rebellious Lady Read online

  Oh, no, this was foolish! She must control her feelings. It would not do for her to show any sign of partiality this early in their acquaintance. He would think she was setting her cap at him! Even though Julia was making signs to her, she would not go to join them just yet.

  They had all been invited for the pleasure of having supper, listening to music or playing cards. Some of the gentlemen were already playing cards at tables set up at the far end of the room, but Sir Frederick, Mr Bellingham and Julia were standing near the French windows, which opened on to the terrace, possibly because the room was already warm. She smiled at Julia, and then turned to the elderly lady who had come to greet Lady Taunton, schooling herself to patience. In a little while she would excuse herself and join her own friends.

  However, before she could do so, she was joined by three other friends: a young lady by the name of Helen Telford, her brother Henry and her cousin Stephen Rivers. Caroline joined in the animated conversation, for they had all attended a balloon ascension that morning, and there was much to say on the subject. It had truly been a marvellous sight, and Mr Rivers was telling them that he had spoken to one of the balloonists and hoped to take a trip in a balloon himself very soon.

  ‘You will not do so, sir,’ Helen said, and looked shocked.

  ‘Oh, you lucky thing,’ Caroline said at almost the same moment. ‘I should love to go up in a balloon. It looked so exciting. Just think how wonderful it would be to float across the sky and look down on what is happening below.’

  ‘Do you not think that you might fall over the edge?’ a voice asked from behind her. She felt a tingle at the nape of her neck and turned to see the person she had somehow expected. ‘Or are you so intrepid that you would dare anything, Miss Holbrook?’

  Caroline looked into Sir Frederick’s dark eyes and saw the mockery there. ‘I believe I should like it of all things,’ she replied, challenging him. She had a feeling that he was trying to provoke her deliberately and, as before, she was aware that to let herself like him too much might be foolish. ‘I think it would be almost impossible to fall out unless one were very stupid, sir—unless it was to crash, of course, but I do not believe that happens so very often.’

  ‘I am certain it would not dare with you on board,’ Freddie said, much amused by her answer. He had been watching her from across the room, fascinated by the play of emotions on her expressive face, and he knew he was not the only one to think her exceptional. She was certainly a hit, for you could not go anywhere in society without hearing her name. If her artlessness were real, she was truly a pearl amongst women.

  ‘Now, be truthful, Miss Holbrook,’ he said and studied her face, trying to probe beneath the surface. She intrigued him. She must marry well, for she had no fortune, but her manner seemed to say that she would as lief take a nobody as a duke, which had added greatly to her popularity. Was that the real Caroline or just an act? ‘Would you truly wish for a balloon flight? I believe I could arrange it if you dare?’ His brows rose, answering her challenge with one of his own.

  ‘Do you really mean it?’ Caroline was ecstatic, her face alight with pleasure. ‘Oh, if only I could. My aunt would not approve, naturally, but perhaps she need not know exactly what I have been doing. We could arrange to drive out to Richmond…Mr Bellingham, too, perhaps?’

  ‘May I be one of this party?’ Mr Rivers asked. ‘If Helen and Henry came too, it would be quite respectable. A picnic in Richmond Park and a balloon ascension, too. I’m sure your aunt could not object—and she need not know the whole of it, of course.’

  Freddie groaned inwardly. He had made the suggestion idly, believing that Caroline would withdraw at the last moment, but from the expression of delight on her face it was clear that she was all for the excursion.

  ‘Oh, I should love that,’ Caroline declared with enthusiasm, ‘and if we are to go in a party, my aunt will not think it her duty to come with me. When shall you arrange it, sir?’

  ‘For next week,’ Freddie said, pulled in by some force stronger than his will. ‘On Thursday if it is fine. I shall call for you myself at ten in the morning, Miss Holbrook.’

  ‘Oh, thank you!’ Her eyes were glowing. ‘You are so kind, sir. I cannot thank you enough.’

  ‘I believe you may change your mind when it comes to it,’ Freddie said. ‘But for now, will you do me the honour of becoming my partner at a game of whist?’

  ‘Yes, why not?’ Caroline said. She laid her hand on his arm, giving him a brilliant smile. Freddie almost blinked—he had the impression that the sun had just come out and it sent him a little dizzy. She was truly an enchantress, whatever else she might be. ‘Tell me, who are we to oppose?’

  ‘George and Julia,’ Freddie said. ‘She is very modest about her skill, and tells me she plays whist with her grandmother for peppermints.’

  ‘Oh, does she?’ Caroline nodded happily. ‘I used to play for humbugs with Nicolas. He usually won all the sweets from my jar—but I think he cheated. When I played with Tom I usually won.’

  ‘Ah, yes, your brothers,’ Freddie said. ‘Do you think either of them will join you in town?’

  ‘I do not think so,’ Caroline said wistfully. ‘Tom would if he could afford it, I think, but Nicolas is in France at the moment. He was sent as a liaison officer and I have not heard from him for almost a month now.’

  ‘Well, perhaps he will surprise you on his return,’ Freddie said. It would be interesting to observe her with her brothers, he imagined. ‘Ah, George, you see I have captured Miss Holbrook. I told you I should persuade her to join us.’

  ‘Oh, good,’ Julia said and then blushed shyly. ‘I should like that of all things, that is if Miss Holbrook chooses.’

  ‘I believe we are to oppose each other, Julia, and I must wish you good fortune, though I dare say you will not need it with Mr Bellingham as your partner.’

  ‘Julia is a demon card player,’ George said and laughed. ‘Do not be deceived by her modesty, Miss Holbrook. I warn you, at the card table she is ruthless.’

  Caroline laughed. She felt fortunate to have been singled out as a fourth at their table, for some of the other company were not likely to be as much fun as her companions.

  Someone had begun to play the pianoforte as they settled at their table. As the room was so large they were able to hear the music without losing concentration on their game, or disturbing those who wished to listen to the music. It was a very comfortable, pleasant arrangement.

  ‘It is such a nice large room,’ Caroline remarked. ‘Of course, not all houses are built so obligingly.’

  ‘Deuced difficult to heat in the winter, I imagine,’ Freddie observed. ‘I prefer separate rooms if the play is serious, but for an evening like this it could not be bettered.’

  ‘Yes, though it is too warm for my liking. Not like your barn of a place, Freddie. That is cold even in summer,’ George remarked.

  ‘You are right, George,’ Freddie replied. ‘I am thinking of making some changes for the future.’

  ‘You will need to when you marry.’

  ‘If I marry…’

  ‘My dear chap,’ George said. ‘Your uncle would be damned annoyed if you do not produce an heir, I should imagine. You owe it to the family, you know they are relying on you.’ George coughed behind his hand. ‘I beg your pardon, ladies, I forgot myself for a moment. Remiss of me. Mixed company, you know.’

  ‘Oh, you need not fear,’ Caroline said and dimpled at him. ‘You must know that I have heard far worse from my grandfather. When his gout is playing him up the air is like to turn blue. Poor Mama almost fainted one day—the things he said to her!’

  ‘Grandmother is a little like that, though she lowers her voice so that I shouldn’t hear,’ Julia said. ‘But of course I do.’

  ‘I do not believe I know your grandfather,’ George said, wrinkling his brow. ‘No one has mentioned him in my hearing.’

  ‘Really, George,’ Freddie drawled. ‘Surely you’ve heard of the Marquis of Bolling
brook?’

  ‘Good lord!’ George looked astonished. ‘Everyone knows—or has heard—of the Marquis, of course. I hadn’t connected the two.’

  ‘I believe Grandfather was a rake,’ Caroline said. ‘At least when he was much younger. I know there are some mysteries, secrets in his past, but of course he has never told me anything.’

  ‘No?’ Freddie raised his brows. ‘You surprise me, Miss Holbrook. I would have imagined quite otherwise. However, perhaps I can unravel at least one of those mysteries for you. I know that your grandfather once took part in a bare-knuckle fight that lasted for twenty rounds. That is one of the few of his escapades that it is permissible to repeat in polite society.’

  ‘How did you know that?’ Caroline asked, her mouth quivering as she quizzed him with her eyes. ‘Tell me, sir—did he win?’

  ‘Yes, I believe he did.’

  ‘Oh, well done, Grandfather!’ Caroline said and calmly laid her trump card, taking the trick. ‘I must ask him about it when I next see him…if I ever do.’ She sighed.

  ‘Well done,’ Freddie said, as she collected her cards and laid a small club. ‘A gentleman perhaps paying for his misdeeds. However, there were many other escapades that might not be so admirable as that fight, as I understand it.’

  ‘You must tell us,’ Caroline cried, taking the next hand with a nine of clubs. ‘I have heard he was a gambler and…well, perhaps I should not say.’ She glanced at Julia and then down at her cards.

  ‘No, perhaps not,’ Freddie said.

  ‘I think we should change the subject, Freddie,’ George observed with amusement. ‘It is Julia’s birthday dance this weekend. I trust you will be there, Miss Holbrook—and you, Freddie?’

  The subject was successfully turned and they applied themselves to the cards. When everyone began to drift into the dining room, several other young people joined them at their table, and the conversation became very animated. Someone mentioned the balloon ascension and somehow the party grew to three carriages, to include Mr Bellingham and his niece Julia.

  * * *

  After supper, Caroline suggested to Julia that they should join forces against the gentlemen at cards, an idea that was taken up with pleasure. Luck must have been with them, for they won two games to one and enjoyed the feeling very much. Despite her shyness, Julia had true character, gathered no doubt from the long hours she had spent playing cards with her formidable grandmother, and she could be ruthless when it came to taking a trick.

  Caroline asked Julia if she would care to go shopping with her the next morning. An arrangement was made to meet, and they parted on good terms.

  Caroline was feeling very pleased with herself as she joined her mother, who had consented to accompany them that evening. However, her smile faded as Aunt Louisa came up to them, looking very satisfied with herself.

  ‘I am pleased to see that you have taken my advice,’ she said, her smug tone making Caroline itch to quarrel with her. ‘I observed Sir Frederick’s manner towards you this evening. I think he is taken with you. If you continue as you are, I am certain that he will come up to scratch before the Season is done.’

  ‘I am not sure that you are right, Aunt,’ Caroline said, containing her irritation with commendable control. Her aunt’s comments made her uncomfortable, for she had certainly not set her cap at Sir Frederick. Indeed, until recently she had not been sure that she liked him. She had now revised her opinion and was secretly afraid that she was beginning to like him rather a lot, which only made her cross. She certainly would not wish him to think that she was angling for a proposal! ‘We are becoming better acquainted, but there is nothing to show an attachment on either side.’

  ‘You must listen to your aunt, Caroline,’ Marianne Holbrook said nervously. She had sensed the friction between them and it made her uneasy, because she knew that her sister would lecture her on her daughter’s faults when they were alone. Of course Caroline was a trifle headstrong and wilful, but she was also kind and thoughtful and her mother did not wish to be lectured on the subject. ‘I am sure she knows best.’

  ‘Yes, Mama, of course,’ Caroline said, though her face was set like thunder. ‘I dare say my aunt knows much more than I on a great number of things—but perhaps on this I may be allowed to judge for myself.’

  ‘You are a stubborn, ungrateful girl,’ her aunt said. ‘Well, I shall not argue with you, Caroline, but you will see that I am right soon enough.’

  * * *

  Caroline’s dreams were peaceful enough, though when she woke she did so with a start. She had been dreaming of a room filled with gentlemen playing cards, and a deadly game was taking place between two men, one of whom was Sir Frederick. The reason it had caused her to shiver upon waking was that she knew it was she for whom they were playing.

  She laughed as she realised that the dream must have been because of the talk of her grandfather and his reputation last night. What a dreadful rake he must have been in his youth! And by the sound of things, it was not the worst of his escapades by half.

  She had always been fond of the old reprobate, though as a child she had seen little of him. He had begun to take more interest in her as she grew up, and on her last visit she had spent some time with him in his library, looking at his books and pictures. However, he had lost patience with her mother and they had left under a cloud. Since then she had heard nothing from him.

  She thought about it and then sat down at the writing desk in her bedchamber, deciding to write to him about her visit to London. If he did not wish to read her letter, he could throw it into the fire. However, she thought he must sometimes be lonely, for she knew that his family seldom visited him.

  She smiled as she sanded and then sealed her letter with wax and a beautiful gold seal ring that her father had given her as a keepsake shortly before his death. Taking her letter downstairs to be left with the others for franking and posting, she then collected her pelisse and bonnet and, with her maid in attendance, set out for her appointment with Julia Fairchild.

  They were to meet at a fashionable milliner’s shop and from there would go on to a shop that sold delightful shawls and other pretty trifles. Julia had told her that she had seen a beaded purse that she particularly admired, and Caroline had been thinking of a rather attractive green bonnet she had seen when out with her aunt the previous week. She meant to purchase it if she could, though her aunt had thought it too dark for her.

  * * *

  When she arrived at the shop, she discovered that Mr Bellingham had accompanied his niece, and, as they went in to look at the delightful bonnets on offer, she saw Sir Frederick cross the road. He entered a few moments after them, she thought by prior arrangement with his friend, for Mr Bellingham was not at all surprised to see him.

  Caroline was before the mirror, trying on the bonnet she had seen in the window, and Sir Frederick stood behind her, nodding his approval.

  ‘You should wear more green,’ he told her. ‘I particularly like that on you, Miss Holbrook. You have the colouring for it.’

  ‘You are very kind, sir,’ she said and laid it down. ‘But I am not sure that it is just what I want.’ She wandered away, determined not to let him influence her. Was her aunt right? Was he paying her attention with the notion of asking her to marry him? Mr Bellingham had mentioned that he must marry to oblige his family the previous evening. Did she wish to be married simply for the getting of an heir? She was not sure how she felt about that and she would not allow herself to be rushed into a more intimate acquaintance. She picked up a deep blue velvet hat and perched it on the back of her head. It was becoming but slightly racy, more suited to an older lady, perhaps. She was about to put it down again when she saw Sir Frederick shake his head at her, registering disapproval, and on a spurt of independence, she held it out to the assistant. ‘I shall take this if you please,’ she said defiantly.

  ‘Do you think you should?’ Freddie said, hoping that his expression gave no hint of his satisfaction. She was ravishing
in that hat, but he had learned his lesson earlier. ‘I think Lady Taunton will not approve. Perhaps you would do better to think about it for a while?’

  ‘I shall mostly certainly buy it,’ Caroline said, a militant sparkle in her eye. ‘I do not allow anyone to dictate to me if I can prevent it, sir.’

  ‘Very sensible of you, Miss Holbrook,’ he said innocently, but she detected a gleam of mockery in his dark eyes. ‘But I will wager she forbids you to wear it.’

  ‘What do you wager?’ she demanded at once, her eyes bright with challenge.

  Sir Freddie thought for an instant before answering. ‘If you succeed in wearing it tomorrow when I call for you to go driving, I shall grant you one wish, Miss Holbrook—and if you are forbidden to leave the house with such a wicked thing on your head, you must grant me my wish.’

  Caroline was a little taken aback, for she had imagined he would make a small wager of a guinea or some such thing. A wish might mean anything, but, since she had no intention of letting her aunt dictate to her in the matter, she had no hesitation in taking his wager. In her pleasure at thinking of what she would demand from him, she did not realise that she had agreed to drive out with him. It was not until much later that day that she began to wonder just what he had in mind should she lose the wager…

  Chapter Four

  Tom was thoughtful as he took leave of his grandfather and set out for London that morning. He had stayed for ten days, because the contents of the package given to him to examine had taken some serious thought on his behalf, and because he sensed his grandfather was feeling lonely. Lord Bollingbrook had put some propositions to him, which would mean a journey overseas if he accepted them. He had been given time to think them over, and to consider what they might mean to his life. Meanwhile, he was in possession of sufficient funds to pay the most pressing of his debts at home, and the news that both his brother and sister would shortly come into modest fortunes of their own.