Kitabı oku: «A Wayward Woman»

Tainted with scandal …

Undone by passion …

Can he truly win the heart of

A
Wayward Woman

Helen Dickson

and

Anne Herries

bring you two sparkling and sensational all-new historical romances

A
Wayward Woman

HELEN DICKSON ANNE HERRIES

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Diamonds, Deception and the Debutante HELEN DICKSON

Author Note

Diamonds, Deception and the Debutante is set in the Regency period. It is one of the most turbulent, glittering and romantic times in our history, when rakes and dandies, outrageous gambling and scandals abounded. It is a period enjoyed by both readers and writers alike. I am no exception.

Every one of my books is special to me, but the one I am working on at the time is always the most important. When I finish a book I always intend having a break from writing to catch up on things I set aside until the story is finished before embarking on another, but invariably my imagination begins to stir and in no time at all I’m off again.

History has always held a fascination for me—it was one of my best subjects at school. I am interested in how people lived, how different everything was from today and how much one can learn from the past. My inspiration is drawn from many things. I am an avid reader and I enjoy music and walking. My characters are not based in any direct way on anyone in particular and I use my own brush to paint things in a fictional way. I do home in on certain traits and embody them in the characters in my books. I love seeing the people I create come to life and develop personalities of their own.

Writing is something I enjoy tremendously and it gives me a great deal of personal satisfaction. I hope you enjoy reading Diamonds, Deception and the Debutante as much as I enjoyed writing it.

About the Author

HELEN DICKSON was born and lives in South Yorkshire with her retired farm manager husband. Having moved out of the busy farmhouse where she raised their two sons, she has more time to indulge in her favourite pastimes. She enjoys being outdoors, travelling, reading and music. An incurable romantic, she writes for pleasure. It was a love of history that led her to write historical fiction.

Prologue

June 1815

As the rain lashed down to compound the misery of the troops, the scene was set for battle. The British troops had been engaged by the French and forced to retire after a sharp engagement lasting the afternoon and they had to struggle to hold their position. The following morning Wellington drew back, establishing himself at the posting inn at the village of Waterloo.

It was here that one of Colonel Lance Bingham’s staff officers brought him a note. It was crumpled and stained, as if it had passed through many hands.

‘A lad brought it, sir,’ the staff officer said. ‘It’s urgent, and he said I had to deliver it to you personally.’

Colonel Bingham tore the missive open and read it quickly. He spoke one word, ‘Delphine.’ Apart from a tightening of his jaw, his expression did not betray even a flicker of reaction. ‘There is something I have to do.’

‘But, sir, what if General Bonaparte …’

‘Don’t worry. I’ll be back. Take me to the lad.’

Knowing he risked being court-marshalled for leaving his post on the eve of battle, Colonel Bingham rode away from the encampment. With rain beating at his face, following the lad on a small but swift-footed nag, he prayed to God that he was right and that Bonaparte wouldn’t attack before dawn, for it was his way to fly at his opponents without waiting to be attacked.

The farmhouse to which he had been summoned was down a dirt track. It was a humble dwelling, the stench of animals and their dung as strong inside the house as it was in the farmyard. The lad, who was the son of the farmer and his wife, hung back, pointing to a room at the top of a rickety staircase. Climbing up, Colonel Bingham paused in the doorway. It was dimly lit, hot and fetid with the stench of childbirth. A man stood next to the bed on which a woman lay, and in a corner of the room a young woman nursed an infant.

The man turned to look at the stranger, who seemed to fill the room with his presence. He saw an officer in military uniform, tall and with broad, muscular shoulders, deep chest and narrow waist, his handsome features ruggedly hewn.

‘Colonel Bingham?’

He nodded, removing his hat, his face set and grim.

‘I am Reverend Hugh Watson—attached to His Majesty’s army,’ he said, stepping back from the bed to allow him to approach. ‘Thank goodness you have come. Miss Jenkins hasn’t much time left. When the midwife who attended the young woman at the birth of her child realised she would not pull through, when Miss Jenkins requested a clergyman to be absolved of her sins, she summoned me.’

Giving the clergyman, who had a prayer book open in his hands, a cool glance, taking note of his crumpled dark suit and grimy neck linen and that he was in need of a shave, never had Colonel Lance Bingham seen a man who looked less like a clergyman.

Seeming reluctant to approach the bed, his face hardened into an expressionless mask, Lance observed the woman from where he stood. Not having seen her these seven months gone, he did not recognise her as the attractive, vivacious young woman who had kept him happily entertained throughout most of his years as a soldier in Spain. Drenched in sour sweat, she was lying beneath the covers, her lank brown hair trailed over the pillow. Her face was waxen and thinner than it had been, and dark rings circled her deep brown eyes.

As if she sensed he was there they fluttered open and settled on his face. Her heart beat softly inside her with love and wonderment that he had come. A smile lifted her tiredly drooping mouth. ‘Lance—you came.’ She tried to raise a hand to him, but sapped of strength it remained where it was.

Dropping to his knees beside the bed, Lance took her hand and raised it to his lips. ‘Delphine, what in God’s name are you doing here? I told you to go back to England.’

‘I did, but then I followed you to Belgium—as I followed you to Spain, remember? I—haven’t been well. I didn’t think I would survive the birth. I did, but I know I haven’t much time, Lance—but it gladdens my heart to see you again.’

‘Miss Jenkins has just been delivered of your child,’ the clergyman informed him.

Colonel Bingham stiffened and for the briefest of moments, shock registered in his eyes. ‘My child? Is this true, Delphine?’

She nodded. ‘A girl. You have a daughter, Lance. A beautiful daughter.’

Lance knew he would never again feel the shame, the guilt, the absolute wretchedness that seized him then, as he looked at what he believed to be the dying spirit of the woman who had taken his fancy when he had seen her perform on the London stage, this woman who had followed him to Spain, from one battlefield to the next, without complaint, without demanding anything from him, and was now slipping away.

When they had met, her freshness and vivacity were something his jaded spirits had badly needed. Delphine had proved to be a thoroughly delightful mistress. She had been there to satisfy his craving for carnal appeasement. They had talked and laughed and kissed and shared sweet intimacies. But knowing nothing could come of their affair, he couldn’t let her waste one moment of her precious life loving him or waiting for him, and so he had ended it, telling himself that he had done the right thing, the noble thing. But nothing had prepared him for the days and nights of missing her, of the sweet softness of her in his arms.

‘Delphine, I have to ask …’

‘The child is yours,’ she uttered forcefully. ‘Never doubt it. There has been no one else. No one was good enough—after you.’

He bent his head over her hand. ‘Dear sweet Lord, this is the cruellest thing you have ever done to me. Why did you not write and tell me? I would have come to you, Delphine. I would not have let you endure this alone.’

‘I am sorry. I didn’t know what else to do. I—I thought you might hate me—that you would turn me away—but I had nowhere else to go. I couldn’t go home and I had to do something, which was why I came to Belgium—to find you.’

‘You were afraid of me?’ His voice was soft with compassion. ‘You were afraid to tell me? Am I such an ogre, Delphine?’

‘No …’ She trembled and clutched his hand, a great wash of tears brimming in her eyes.

Lance felt his heart jolt for her pain. He would give anything to know how to comfort her, to reassure her that he would not leave her. He was an arrogant bastard, he knew that himself, a man who liked, demanded, his own determined way, but the emotion this woman aroused in him, the sweetness that flowed through him from her, could be matched by nothing he had ever known before.

‘Don’t cry, my love,’ he murmured. ‘I’m here now. You’re safe with me and always will be.’

‘Go and look at your daughter, Lance. You will see she is yours.’

Lance did as she bade and went to look at the flesh-and-blood evidence of the result of their loving. His heart began to beat against his chest wall. The wet nurse pushed away the cover shielding the infant’s face. This was his child and he was almost too afraid to look at her because he did not know how he would feel when he did. He forced himself to look at the babe’s face, compelled by some force he did not recognise. As he looked she yawned and turned her face towards him, before settling herself to sleep against the woman’s breast.

It was his mother’s face and his own he saw, the line of her brow with the distinctive widow’s peak, the way in which her eyes were set in her skull, the black winging eyebrows, and the tiny cleft in her round chin. On her head her hair swirled against her skull, a clump of curls, coal black like his own, on her crown.

Turning from her, he went back to the bed. ‘She is a fine girl, Delphine.’

‘Yes, a fine baby girl. I’ve named her Charlotte—after my mother. As her father you will—look after her, won’t you, Lance, be responsible for her—care for her and protect her? She has no one else.’

Lance nodded, a terrible constriction in his throat, for she was so weak, so defenceless against what was to happen to her. He damned all the fates that prevented him from righting the wrong he had done her by casting her from him, the cruel fates that prevented him from having this warm and lovely girl in his life once more.

‘You have my guarantee that she will be supported in a manner suitable to her upbringing. But—is there anything I can do to ease your suffering? Anything at all?’

‘You could do the honourable, gentlemanly thing and marry Miss Jenkins, sir,’ the clergyman suggested stoutly, almost forcefully. ‘The child is a bastard and the stigma of being born out of wedlock will follow her all the days of her life. As your legitimate daughter her future will be secure.’

Lance was momentarily lost for words. Before this it would have been impossible, unthinkable to take her for his wife for he had a position to consider and a wife such as Delphine would not have been tolerated, but, by heaven, this changed everything. Lance knew a man’s rightful claim to being a gentleman was not something one could inherit. Compassion, honour and integrity were just three of the characteristics. Certainly a man had a responsibility and an obligation to protect those who were close to him, those who depended on him, from the cruelties of the world. Looking from Delphine to the child, never had he felt the weight of that responsibility as he did now. He could not in all conscience and honour cast Delphine aside along with their child like something worthless.

Without any visible emotion, he said, ‘Is this what you want, Delphine?’

She nodded, a tear trickling out of the corner of her eye and quickly becoming soaked up in the pillow. ‘For our daughter’s sake. I am dying, Lance, so I will not be a burden to you and you will be free to go on as before. It won’t be long. Will you do this—for me?’

‘I shall be proud to make you my wife, Delphine,’ Lance said hoarsely. He looked at the clergyman. ‘Very well. Get on with it.’

After summoning the farmer and his wife to bear witness to the proceedings, they spoke their vows, the infant beginning to wail lustily when the clergyman pronounced them man and wife.

Delphine smiled and closed her eyes. ‘You can go now, Lance. There is nothing more to be done.’

That seemed to be so. With a final sigh her head rolled to one side.

Lance stared at her, unable to believe this dear, sweet girl—his wife for such a short time—was dead. Oh, sweet, sweet Jesus, he prayed as he bent his head, the agony he felt slicing his heart to the core.

The clergyman went to Delphine and placed his head to her chest. Straightening up, he shook his head solemnly. When he was about to pull the sheet over her face, Lance stayed his hand.

‘Wait.’ He looked at her face one last time, as if to absorb her image for all time. It had taken on a serenity absent before death, so calm and untroubled he felt his throat ache. The eyes were closed, the lashes long and dark in a fan on her cheek. The skin, no longer the almost grey look of the dead, had taken on a soft honey cream.

Not one to show his emotions, after taking a moment to compose himself, Lance signed some papers and then handed the clergyman some money for the burial, telling him to have Delphine interred in the graveyard of the local church. His face stony, his eyes empty, he turned his attention to the woman holding his child.

‘You are English?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘What are you called?’

‘Mary Grey, sir. My own baby died—six days now—and the midwife who attended your wife asked if I would wet nurse your daughter.’

‘And your husband?’

‘I have no husband, sir. My man died before I gave birth.’

‘I see.’ He thought for a moment, considering her. At least she was clean and quietly spoken. ‘Will you continue to wet nurse the child and take her to an address in England? You will be well paid for your trouble. I will send someone to accompany you—along with a letter for you to give to my mother.’

‘Yes, sir.’

The clergyman moved from the bed. ‘Don’t feel you have to remain, Colonel. I will take care of things.’

‘Thank you. I do have to return to my regiment. Battle is imminent. Tomorrow many will die. Your services as a priest will be needed, too.’

The child began to whimper. He looked at it and quickly looked away as if he couldn’t bear to look at her, trying to defend himself against the rising and violent tide of anger directed against this tiny being—this infant whose entry into the world had taken the life of its mother. Angry, relentlessly so and unable to understand why he should feel like this, his face absolute and without expression, without a backward glance Colonel Bingham left the farmhouse.

Mary Grey had noted the look on his face and recognised it for what it was. He blamed the child for its mother’s death, this she understood, but she was confident it was a problem that would solve itself. But in this she was to be proved wrong.

In silence the clergyman watched him go. What could he say? How could anyone—man or woman—recover from such pain and the agony of such grief?

Lance rode back to his regiment, eager for the battle to begin so that he could lose himself in the fray and forget what had just transpired—and the fact that he had a daughter.

Chapter One

‘Miss Belle, I simply do not know what to do with you. Your grandmother is waiting for you in the dining room, and she doesn’t like to be kept waiting. Now hurry. You look fine, you really do.’

Isabelle ‘Belle’ Ainsley spun round from the mirror, the bright green of her eyes flashing brilliantly as her temper rose. ‘For heaven’s sake, Daisy. I am nineteen years old and will not be hurried. And I will not look fine until I am satisfied with how I look.’ She twisted back to the mirror, scowling petulantly at her hair, which, as usual, refused to be confined. Daisy had arranged it in twists and curls about her head, but a curl as wayward as the girl herself had sprung free and no matter how she tried to tuck it away, it defiantly sprang back.

Daisy shook her head in amusement, unperturbed by her new mistress’s outburst of temper. ‘We both know that could take all night and that would never do. You certainly have your grandmother’s temper, but she’s older and if I were you I wouldn’t delay any longer or you’ll feel the rough edge of her tongue.’

Belle groaned with exasperation and then in a fit of pique she grabbed a pair of scissors and cut off the offending curl. In a swirl of satin and lace she flounced across the room and out of the door, not deigning to look at Daisy’s bemused face.

Belle’s descent of the grand staircase was not in the least ladylike and brought a combination of smiles, raised eyebrows and frowns of concern from the footmen who paused in their duties to watch her. She was certainly a wondrous sight to behold, was Lady Isabelle. In the tomb-like silence of the Dowager Countess of Harworth’s stately home, the arrival of her granddaughter from America ranked as an uproar and had not only the servants scratching their heads, but the countess as well. And now the countess was in high dudgeon over being kept waiting.

Entering the dining room, Belle steeled herself for the unpleasant scene that was bound to occur. Her grandmother rose stiffly from the chair where she was reclining, her hand gripping the gold knob of her cane. At seventy-two she was still a handsome woman with white hair, elegant, regal bearing, and the aloof, unshakeable confidence and poise that comes from living a thoroughly privileged life. Despite the stiff dignity and rigid self-control that characterised her every gesture, she had known her share of grief, having outlived her husband and two sons.

‘Good evening, Isabelle,’ she said, looking with disapproval over her granddaughter’s choice of dress, which had seen much wear and was not in the least the kind a young lady of breeding would wear in a respectable English drawing room. The sooner her dressmaker arrived to begin fitting her out for a new wardrobe the better. ‘You are inordinately tardy. What do you have to say for yourself?’

‘I’m so sorry, Grandmother. I did not mean to upset you. I simply could not decide which dress to wear. I chose this because it is such a pretty colour and looks well on me. You could have started dinner without me. You didn’t have to wait.’

The Dowager gave her an icy look. ‘In this house we dine together, Isabelle, and I do not like being kept waiting. How many times must I tell you that I demand punctuality at all times? Thank goodness we do not have guests. You have grieved cook, who has been trying unsuccessfully to keep our dinner warm and palatable.’

‘Then I shall make a point of apologising to cook,’ Belle said, unable to understand why her grandmother was making such a fuss about nothing. ‘I have no wish to put anyone out. I could quite easily fetch my own food from the kitchen.’

‘And that is another thing. You will not do work that is best left to the servants.’ She sighed, shaking her head wearily. ‘You have so much to learn I hardly know where to begin.’

‘But I like to be kept busy,’ Belle answered, smiling across at the agitated lady.

‘I shall see that you are—with matters concerning your future role in life, although I realised from the start how difficult and unyielding is your nature.’

‘Papa would doubtless have agreed with you. He ever despaired of me.’ Thinking of her father, dead these two months, a lump appeared in Belle’s throat and the lovely eyes were shadowed momentarily. ‘I miss him very much.’

‘As I do.’ The faded blue eyes never wavered, but there was a hoarseness in the countess’s voice that told Belle of her grandmother’s inner grief over the death of her second son. ‘It was his wish that you come to England, where you will be taught the finer points of being a lady—and I shall see that you do if I expire in the attempt.’

Belle swallowed down the lump in her throat. How difficult her life had suddenly become and how difficult the transition had been for her to leave her beloved Charleston and come to London. She missed it so much. Would she ever fit in here? she wondered. How she hated having to live by her grandmother’s strict rules when her father had allowed her to roam as free as a bird back home. The task of learning to be the lady her grandmother intended her to become was both daunting and seemingly impossible.

She looked at her grandmother, her green eyes wide and vulnerable. ‘I’m sure I must be a terrible disappointment to you, Grandmother, but I will try not to let you down. Despite what you think, I am only foolish, not stupid. I am ignorant of your ways, but I will learn.’

‘Then you will have to work very hard.’

The countess knew she had her work cut out with her granddaughter. Her manners were unrefined and she knew nothing about genteel behaviour. She was a wild child, as wild as they come. At first sight they had regarded each other, two fiercely indomitable wills clashing in silence. That her granddaughter was proud and strong and followed her own rules was obvious, but the countess would not concede defeat.

Belle crossed to the long table and waited until Gosforth, the butler—who had a habit of appearing and disappearing seemingly from nowhere—had seated her grandmother properly, before pulling out her own chair and seating herself, which earned her another condemning frown from the elderly lady.

The dowager looked at Gosforth. ‘We are ready to start, Gosforth, now my granddaughter has deigned to join me. I suppose we might as well see how cold the beef has grown.’

Belle sighed, folding her hands demurely in her lap. The evening was definitely off to a bad start. If only there was some distraction. Anything would be preferable to an evening at home alone with her grandmother, who would endeavour to teach her unsophisticated American grand daughter how young English ladies behaved. All Belle’s attempts to try to curb her restlessness and be demure were unsuccessful.

Already—and unbeknown to her grandmother—on her daily rides across Hampstead Heath, Belle had garnered the favours of several curious local young beaux—one with raffish good looks and much sought after, apparently. His name was Carlton Robinson. On occasion he had watched for her when she rode out, and when she had managed to shake off her accompanying groom—who despaired of trying to keep up with her since she could ride like the wind with the devil on her tail—he had joined her.

Carlton Robinson had never met anyone quite like this American girl and he had soon turned to putty under the assault of her big green eyes and stunning looks. Out of boredom it was all a game to Belle, and when she had captured him completely, the game had soured and she had sent the young man packing—blissfully unaware of the consequences of her liaison with this particular gentleman.

She sighed, taking a large, unladylike gulp of her wine, already wishing the evening would end so she could escape to her room—and to make matters worse the beef was overdone.

The following morning, standing at her bedroom window overlooking the gardens, the countess watched her granddaughter as she cantered up the drive—hatless and astride, her long legs gripping her mount, her hair blowing loose in the wind, and having left the groom somewhere on the Heath.

That very morning one of the countess’s acquaintances had hastened to inform her of a scandal that was beginning to unfold concerning Isabelle—a scandal that was entirely of Isabelle’s making, if it was to be believed. The countess was incensed by her granddaughter’s behaviour. Not in her wildest dreams had she imagined that the lovely, inexperienced young woman would form a liaison with a young man whose exploits were the talk of London as soon as she arrived. And Carlton Robinson! No man but he would dare, would have the temerity, the sheer effrontery to interfere with the granddaughter of the Dowager Countess of Harworth. She summoned Isabelle to the salon immediately.

Daisy had heard the gossip and told Belle she could expect no mercy from her grandmother. Belle’s naïvety and inexperience had not prepared her for a young man of Carlton Robinson’s reputation. Not to be made a fool of by an ignorant American girl, he had let his tongue loose to do its worst and turned the tables on Belle. He had laughingly told his friends that the American girl was an amusingly peculiar, pathetic little thing from the backwoods of America, and when she was launched, he had no intention of plying his suit.

An inexplicable premonition of dread mounted the closer Belle got to the salon. After listening to what her grandmother had to say, making no attempt to conceal her anger and disappointment, Belle was swamped with remorse and shame.

‘Well? What have you to say for yourself?’ the countess demanded of the wretched girl.

‘I’m so sorry, Grandmother. It was nothing, please believe me. We—met when I was riding on the Heath. We only met three times. He—said he liked my company. I didn’t like him, so I ended it. Daisy has told me that the odious man has said some dreadful, wicked things about me that simply are not true.’

‘Carlton Robinson says objectionable things about people all the time,’ the countess answered drily.

‘I never meant for this to happen. I didn’t know.’

‘There’s a great deal you don’t know. A girl newly arrived from America—ignorant to our ways—he saw you as easy prey.’ She shook her head wearily, blaming herself for allowing Isabelle too much freedom. ‘I accept that you are ignorant of how things are done in England, Isabelle. Carlton Robinson is a conceited braggart and the most lascivious reprobate in town. Resentful of your rejection, he has tried to destroy your reputation in the most alarming manner—to make you a hopeless social outcast before you have even made your début.’

‘I’m sorry, Grandmother,’ Belle whispered brokenly, truly repentant. ‘You risked a great deal taking me into your home. Little did you know you would be risking disgrace.’ She looked at her grandmother, her eyes wide and vulnerable and shining with tears. ‘I’ve a hideous disposition and I haven’t a feminine accomplishment to my name. What is to be done?’

The countess’s heart melted for the lovely, spirited, bewildered girl her younger son had borne, and in a moment her old loyal heart had her fighting in defence of her granddaughter, at whose door the blame had been unfairly laid. ‘We shall do as the Ainsleys have always done, Isabelle,’ she said on a gentler note, ‘and weather the scandal. By the time you make your début, hopefully it will have blown over.’

And so the Dowager Countess of Harworth began to shape the artless, unsophisticated girl from America into a respectable English young lady. Isabelle hadn’t a grain of sense or propriety in her, but her determination not to be restricted or confined had to be curbed. She knew nothing of fashion and cared even less, but Isabelle had been well tutored in most subjects. She spoke perfect French, read Latin and Greek, and she had a good head for numbers.

Miss Bertram, a woman of unimpeachable character, was to arrive today to begin instructing her on the refinements of etiquette. No one would dare to question the acceptability and character of any young lady in her charge. The Season would begin in just a few short weeks. Hopefully it would be enough time for Isabelle to learn everything she needed to know to make a full-fledged début and to outfit her for the full Season. Until then the countess would begin by taking her to the theatre, where she could be seen but not approached, but apart from that, she must be kept locked away from everyone.

Her grandmother’s house, situated close to Hampstead Heath, was unlike anything Belle had imagined. She had been mesmerised by its splendour—imposing without being austere. This was where her grandmother lived when she came to London, preferring the relative peace and quiet of living just outside the city, where the air was cleaner. The ancestral home, Harworth Hall, was in a place called Wiltshire.

On her arrival in England, at first Belle had objected and fought against all her grandmother’s efforts to make her conform. Her grandmother was hard to please, overbearing and possessive, whereas Belle was a free spirit and used to doing as she wished, and she wasn’t ready to be buried alive by protocol and the traditional English customs. But now her ‘hysterics’, as her grandmother called it, had cooled to an acceptance of her situation and a steely determination. Admitting her lack of knowledge about English protocol, Belle was sensitive enough to realise that she was lacking in certain social skills—and she was her own harshest critic. She accepted that her grandmother was the only family she had, and, like it or not, this was now her home, so she had best conform and make the best of it.

‘The famous diamonds.’

Rowland looked at Lance, realisation dawning on him. ‘Ah, how interesting—those diamonds. I think this needs further examination, old chap. I thought they were under lock and key, never to see the light of day again. Now I understand. It certainly explains the attraction—although after all that has happened in the past between your two families, I doubt the Dowager Countess of Harworth would consider a Bingham suitable for the hand of her granddaughter.’

‘Who said anything about wedding her?’

‘Then it’s time you gave it some thought. Besides, you do realise that not a woman in town will spare the rest of us a glance until you have been claimed. You’re not getting any younger, you know. If you intend to sire a dynasty, then you’d better get started.’

‘I have already started, Rowland, and after my tragic marriage to Delphine I am not looking for another wife, and won’t be doing so for a good many years.’ Lance grinned, a hint of the old wickedness in his eyes that Roland had not seen in a long time. ‘I have a few more years of grand debauchery to enjoy before I settle for one woman.’

If he had thought to convince his friend he failed, for although society thought otherwise, Lance’s days as a debauchee were long and truly behind him. Lance was the stuff ladies’ dreams were made of, fatally handsome and with the devil’s own charm. Having spent several years as a soldier, his daring and courage in the face of the enemy had won him praise from the highest—from Wellington himself. His skill and knowledge in numerous bloody battles added to his reputation as a clever strategist and an invincible opponent.

The Lance Bingham who had returned to England was very different from the one who had left. The changes were startling. In contrast to the idle young men who lounged about the clubs and ballrooms with bored languor, Lance was full of energy, deeply tanned, muscular and extremely fit, sharp and authoritative, and although he laughed and charmed his way back into society, there was an aura about him of a man who had done and seen all there was to see and do, a man who had confronted danger and enjoyed it. It was an aura that women couldn’t resist and which added to his attraction.

‘I wonder why the old girl’s suddenly decided to show the diamonds off,’ Rowland mused.

Lance shrugged. ‘I have wondered myself.’

‘Have you never tried to get them back? After all they are right fully yours.’

‘No—at least not lately.’

‘And now you’re back in England, will you attempt to get them back? Although I don’t see how you can. Getting the great lady to part with those precious diamonds will be like getting blood out of the proverbial stone. I’d stake my life on it.’

‘I wouldn’t want your life for a gold pot, but I am always game for a friendly bet. A hundred pounds says you’re wrong. I will have the diamonds in my possession by dawn tomorrow.’

Rowland chuckled, happy to pick up the gauntlet. ‘Make it two hundred and you’re on. I love a sure bet. But the fascinating young lady will be returning to Hampstead after the ball, so how will you be settling this bet?’

Lance shrugged nonchalantly. ‘You’ll have to wait and see.’

Rowland smiled smugly. ‘I doubt you’ll succeed. I’ll call on you tomorrow to claim my winnings. Now, as much as I would like to stay and chat, right now I see the delectable Amanda, the daughter of Viscount Grenville, has just arrived. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll go and secure a dance or two before her card is full.’

Left alone, Lance considered the amazing bet he had made, and he knew he would have to act quickly if he were to see it through. Normally he would have kept his money in his pocket, but there were reasons why he’d impulsively made the bet. There were benefits to be obtained from securing the diamonds, for not only were they were worth a fortune, by rights they belonged to him.

Lance continued to watch the two Ainsley women as the dowager countess greeted those she knew. There was insolence and arrogance written into every line of Belle Ainsely’s taut young body, but its symmetry was spellbinding. She was exquisite and he had already made up his mind to be formally presented to her. If her dragon of a grandmother objected, then with the inbred arrogance and pride of a man who is not accustomed to being denied, which of course he did not expect to be, he would find a way of introducing himself.

At some point during the evening he was confident that he would succeed in separating her from the laughing, chattering throng and whisk her away to some quiet arbour, where they would drink champagne and engage in the dalliance that was the stuff of life to him.

Chapter Two

Nothing had prepared Belle for the splendour that was Carlton House, which faced the south side of Pall Mall; its gardens abutted St James’s Park.

Following her grandmother past the graceful staircase and through the spacious, opulent residence, which was packed with hundreds of people—nobility, politicians, the influential, the wealthy, the elite of London society—admiring the superb collection of works of art hung on the walls of every room, ornate fireplaces, crystal chandeliers—dripping with hundreds of thousands of crystals and ablaze with blinding light, marble busts in niches, mirrors and gold leaf—Belle, finding it all magically impressive, absorbed every detail.

The dowager countess smiled at her mixture of fascination and bemusement. ‘Wait until you see the rest of the house—and the table. The food will be delicious—even though it does have so far to travel from the kitchens that it invariably arrives cold. The Prince shows great imagination in planning these parties and one always enjoys his hospitality.’

Belle stopped and closed her eyes, dizzy with the incomprehensible sights of so much dazzling splendour. Quickly recovering, she snapped open her fan and briskly fanned herself. ‘It would be impossible not to. I’ve never seen anything like it,’ the dazzled girl said. ‘How can all these people not be struck blind by all this beauty?’

‘The Prince stresses there is nothing in Europe that can compare with Carlton House. As for being struck blind, why, these people have seen it for so long that it’s lost all meaning to them.’

‘You mean they don’t appreciate it?’

‘Not as much as you evidently do. The Prince would be well pleased.’

Belle said not a word, merely drinking in every sight as though she had never before in her life seen such beauty. The supper table was covered with linen cloths and laden with delicacies far more numerous than Belle could ever have imagined. It glittered and sparkled and gleamed gold and silver on both sides, running the length of the dining room and into the conservatory beyond. The oriental theme the Prince had chosen for the table decorations was exquisite in every minute detail. At equal distances elaborate crystal fountains bubbled musically, the liquid in them not water but wine.

The atmosphere became electrified when the Prince arrived, looking larger than life and extremely grand in a military uniform heavily trimmed with gold braid. His eyes twinkled good-humouredly as he welcomed everyone and there was a great deal of bowing and dipping of curtsies.

While waiting to be seated, Belle looked about her, her eyes drawn to Lord Bingham, who stood across the room conversing with a group of young bucks. She studied him surreptitiously. His blue eyes glinted with a sardonic expression. Broad shouldered, narrow of waist, with a muscular leg, he gave the appearance of an athlete, a man who fenced and hunted. Yet, she thought, with that determined, clefted chin there was a certain air of masculinity, something attractive, almost compelling, about him, and certainly dangerous.

As Lance became tired of standing around, his eyes sought out the detectable Belle Ainsley, which, despite the house being almost full to capacity, wasn’t too difficult. He saw her surrounded by doting swains enthralled by her uncommon beauty, a premise that, curiously, strangely nettled his mood on finding himself observing her audience of aristocratic suitors. She was enjoying herself, laughing and at ease, a natural temptress, he thought, alluring and provocative and with the body of a goddess. He had to fight the insane impulse to disperse her personal entourage of admirers, carry her to a quiet place, take hold of that lithe, warm, breathing form, crush it beneath him and kiss the irreverent laughter from her soft, inviting lips.

Belle was seated next to her grandmother, Lord Bingham several places away from her on the opposite side of the table. She tried hard not to look at him, but found her eyes turned constantly in his direction. At one point he caught her glance and held her eyes with his warmly glowing blue orbs. His lips widened leisurely into a rakish grin as his gaze ranged over her, and he inclined his head to her in the merest mockery of a bow and raised his glass.

Considering the perusals she had been subjected to so far, Belle deemed his perusal far too bold. At least other men had the decency to size her up with discretion, but Lord Bingham made no attempt to hide his penchant for studying and caressing and feeding on every aspect of her person so that she felt she was being devoured.

Hot with embarrassment over being caught staring and the smug manner in which he’d acknowledged her, Belle curled her lips in derision and, lifting her chin in an attitude of haughty displeasure, looked away, aware that if she didn’t stop it and take more interest in the general conversation that was going on around her, her grandmother would notice.

It proved to be an especially fine banquet and, continuing to find herself the recipient of Lord Bingham’s careful perusal and feeling the dire need of its numbing effects, Belle imbibed more wine than she normally would have done. There was no protection from that rogue’s hungering eyes, and at times the warm glow she saw in them made her feel quite naked. She was not at all surprised when she realised her nerves were taut enough to be plucked.

Three hours later when the banquet had ended, Belle strolled through the lantern-lit gardens with her grandmother, who had become overcome with the heat and thought some fresh air might help alleviate her headache, which had become quite intense. She also strove to keep Isabelle in her sights.

People collected in groups to gossip while high-spirited young couples sought privacy among the shrubs. After she had excused herself to go to the ladies’ retiring room when her grandmother stopped to acknowledge an acquaintance, on returning and finding herself alone for the first time since she had entered Carlton House, Belle followed the sound of music and stood in the ballroom, watching dancers attired in satins and silks swirling around the floor in time to a lilting waltz.

Suddenly she got that unnerving feeling she got when someone was staring at her. The sensation was so strong she could almost feel the eyes on her, and then a deep voice seemed to leap out from behind her, and said, ‘Dance with me.’

Belle turned in astonishment as the officer materialised from the shadows. Belle recognised that mocking smile—it was identical to the one he had given her across the table, when he’d caught her inadvertently staring at him. His voice was deep and throaty, like thick honey. It was a seductive voice that made her think of highly improper things. It seemed to caress each word he uttered, and she knew there couldn’t be many women who could resist a voice like that, not if the man speaking looked like Lord Bingham. But she told herself she needn’t worry, for she was completely immune to that potent masculine allure.

‘That would not be appropriate. I don’t know you.’

Lance laughed at her. ‘Well, my fine lady, you should indeed know me—and if you don’t, I will tell you that I am Lance Bingham, at your service. Now does my name sound familiar?’

‘My grandmother has already told me who you are,’ Belle replied coolly.

‘I thought she might.’

She looked at him directly. ‘Why does she not like you?’

Instead of reacting with offence, he merely chuckled. ‘You should ask your grandmother. You may find what she has to tell you—interesting.’ He grinned, his mouth curving up at one corner. Beneath his heavy, drooping lids his eyes were filled with amusement, and idle speculation. ‘What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?’

She cocked a dark, finely arched brow above a baleful glare, which, with the chillingly beautiful smile, could have frozen the heart of the fiercest opponent. Woe to the man this woman unleashed her wrath upon.

‘I’m minding my own business. I suggest you mind yours.’

He grinned. ‘You’re outspoken.’

‘None of your business. Why don’t you just go away?’

‘Hostile, too. I don’t often encounter hostility from young ladies.’

‘I’m surprised.’

‘You’re not impressed?’

‘Not a bit.’

Those seductive blue eyes settled on her. ‘Well, Miss Isabelle, I find you quite challenging.’

‘You do?’

‘Did anyone ever tell you you’re quite lovely?’

‘All the time.’

‘And you’ve got lovely hair. You’re got a provocative mouth, too.’

‘Save your breath. I am not interested.’

‘No?’ He arched a brow.

‘Not in the slightest.’

‘I find that hard to believe.’

‘You are very convincing. You actually make a woman believe you are speaking the truth—but then you have undoubtedly had a great deal of practice.’

He grinned. ‘True, but I am sincere.’

Belle could feel her cheeks warming as she met those smiling blue eyes. ‘You seem terribly sure of yourself, my lord.’

‘And I can see you’re not easily taken in, but can you not understand what a man like myself experiences in the presence of such a beautiful woman?’

Belle peered at him frostily. ‘And I can see you’re all talk.’

Leaning forwards, Lance ensnared her gaze and carefully probed those dark green eyes as a slow smile curved his lips. ‘You’ve got me all wrong. You’ve awakened emotions within me that I was sure I was incapable of feeling—some of which are appreciative—others I’m simply struggling to restrain.’

‘Then you will just have to curb your emotions, my lord, for I am not interested.’

He cocked a sleek black brow. ‘No?’

‘Conceited, aren’t you? Conceited and arrogant.’

He pretended offence. ‘You do me a terrible injustice. In fact, you make me feel quite downcast and disconsolate. Here I am, complimenting you on your beauty, and you start casting aspersions on my character. You think I’m insufferable?’

‘Quite,’ she agreed heatedly.

‘That’s quite a temper you have,’ he said, shaking his head in teasing, chiding reproof. ‘And here I was thinking that you wanted me to ask you to dance.’

Her eyes flared. ‘Do you actually think I was waiting for you to ask me?’

Her show of outrage bestirred his hearty laughter. Thoroughly incensed, Belle glowered at him until his amusement dwindled to nothing more than a slanted grin. ‘You can’t fault a soldier recently returned from the wars for hoping that such would be the case. You really are quite the most enticing female I’ve met. So, what do you say? Will you dance with me?’

‘No. Like I said, you are insufferable. I don’t think I like you very much.’

‘A little would do. Actually, I’m quite delightful once you get to know me. I do have a reputation, I admit it frankly—but I’ve been dreadfully maligned. You shouldn’t believe all you hear about me.’

Belle gazed at him with a cool hauteur. After a moment he smiled a devilishly engaging smile, offended demeanour gone.

‘Are you sure you don’t want to dance?’

‘Quite sure,’ she retorted.

‘You don’t know what you’re missing.’

‘Sore feet, probably.’

‘It’s a long time since I trod on a lady’s toes, Belle.’

Her heart lurched at his familiar use of her name. ‘Maybe so, but I will not risk it. I did not invite you to ask me to dance.’

He grinned unrepentantly. ‘I know. I took it upon myself. Always was impetuous.’

‘Now why doesn’t that surprise me? If you will excuse me, I see my grandmother beckoning to me.’

Lance Bingham gave her a mock-polite nod, eyelids drooping, a half-smile playing on his mouth. Lowering his head, he spoke softly into her ear, his warm breath fanning her neck. Mingled with an underlying essence of soap, the pleasantly aromatic bouquet of his cologne drifted into her nostrils and twined amazingly through her senses, and she found the manly fragrance intoxicating.

‘Go if you must, but I will not give up.’

True to his word, Lance Bingham didn’t. His mind never wandering far from the diamonds around her neck, Belle Ainsley’s delectable form fully visible to his hungry eyes was an inducement he was unable to resist.

The Dowager Countess of Harworth had watched him throughout the evening carefully. She had seen him approach Isabelle and noted her rejection. However she was unsettled by it. Countless young women surrounded him all the time, all vying for his attention. Lord Bingham, she noted, treated them with amused tolerance, for his attention was on the only female at Carlton House who seemed immune to his magnetism—her granddaughter.

Having serious cause to doubt that he had never seen such perfection before and tempted to dally with the lady to his heart’s content, half an hour after he had spoken to her, Lance threw caution to the four winds and approached Belle once more.

From where she sat conversing with two elderly ladies who were friends of her grandmother, glancing up, Belle saw his head above the crowd and instinctively knew he was looking for her. When he turned his imperious head his eyes locked on to hers and he smiled, a lazy cocksure smile. When he strode arrogantly towards her, she was not in the least surprised when the crowd parted before him like the Red Sea before Moses.

Belle lifted her eyes to look into his face. He was smiling down at her, the bright blueness of his eyes catching her breath. She was used to male admiration, but this one was the first to rouse her hostility while at the same time stirring her senses and capturing her imagination. Not that she’d let him see it, for that was not her way, but she had never reacted like this before to any man.

‘As you do not appear to be taken for this dance, I wonder if I might—’

Belle raised her chin haughtily. ‘Thank you, but I am not dancing at the moment.’

‘I can see that, which is why I am here. Now, if the ladies will excuse us …’

Bowing in the direction of the open-mouthed ladies, Lance took Belle’s hand, pulled her out of the chair and whisked her into the middle of the swirling dancers where he took her into his arms. Belle was so unused to anyone forcing her to do something against her will that she went with him, automatically falling into the right steps of the waltz before she realised what she was doing.

Her astonishment at his outrageous audacity was short lived and anger took over. For two pins she would walk off the floor and leave him standing, but she was acutely aware that almost everyone was watching them and she could not do that. To do so would be a slight to him, and she could not do such a thing to him in front of all these people. Nor could she shame her grandmother by creating a scene, even though she did not hold a high opinion of Lord Bingham and had told her in no uncertain terms that she must have nothing to do with him. So she made up her mind not to speak to him and leave when the dance ended

They danced in silence for a few moments, a silence in which Lance noted the strange lights dancing in her shining hair, and her slender shoulders gleaming with a soft, creamy lustre. ‘This is pleasant, is it not?’ he said at length, and there was a touch of irony in his mocking tone.

Feeling his arm tighten about her, Belle stiffened and for an incredulous moment she was speechless. Looking into his eyes, she forgot her intention not to engage in conversation with him. ‘I would be obliged if you would not hold me so tightly. I am only dancing with you because you dragged me on to the floor,’ she said with an effort, in the coldest and most condescending manner. ‘Do you usually snatch your partners away from their chaperons so ungallantly?’

He raised one thick, well-defined eyebrow, looking down at her. A faint half-smile played on his lips as if he knew exactly what was going on in her mind. ‘Only when I think they might refuse to dance with me—or need rescuing.’

‘I did not need rescuing, as you well know, Lord Bingham,’ she retorted, resenting his effect on her, the masculine assurance of his bearing. But she was conscious of an unwilling excitement, seeing him arrogantly mocking, and recklessly attractive. Here they were, together in the middle of the dance floor, in an atmosphere bristling with tension. ‘I was perfectly happy where I was.’

‘I don’t believe you. Besides, it’s not every day I get to dance with an American girl.’

Belle looked at him condescendingly and gritted out a menacing smile. ‘Lord Bingham, I am curious about your name. You see, I knew some Binghams in Charleston. Scurvy lot they were—thieves and cutthroats. Are you perhaps related, sir?’

The sweetness of her tone did not hide the sneer she intended. He met it with a flicker of amusement showing upon his lips. ‘It’s not impossible. I have distant family scattered all over the place. Who knows? Some of them may quite possibly have settled in the Carolinas. You dance divinely, by the way,’ he murmured, spinning her in an exaggerated whirl that made her catch her breath.

‘Will you please behave yourself?’ She spoke sharply, jerking away from him.

‘I do,’ he murmured, his warm breath fanning her cheek as he pulled her back to him. ‘We are partners. How else should I behave?’

‘Do not hold me so tightly. Be a gentleman—if that is not too difficult for you.’

‘A gentleman?’ he said, flashing his white teeth in a lazy grin, his gaze dipping lingeringly to her soft lips. ‘How can I do that? I am but an ignorant soldier, unschooled in the postures of the court, trained only to fire a gun and fight the enemy.’

‘Do not play the simpleton with me. It won’t work. Why have you singled me out from all the other ladies to dance?’

‘Is it so very strange for a man to want to dance with the most beautiful woman in the room? You are a very beautiful—enough to drive a man to madness.’

‘I really had no idea,’ she apologised sarcastically. ‘Perhaps you would like to prove your words.’

‘Prove? ‘

Calmly Belle met his gaze. How she yearned to erase that smirking grin from his lips. ‘Your madness!’ She sounded flippant and casual. ‘But you need not burden me. A few flecks of foam about your mouth would serve as well to prove the claim.’ She ignored the amusement that shone from his eyes and was sure her remark would have had him laughing out loud had they not been in the middle of a crowded dance floor. ‘Am I the first female you’ve ever met who didn’t want to dance with you?’

‘I confess to being somewhat spoiled by women who seemed to enjoy dancing with me. And you,’ he added, knocking back her momentary sense of triumph, ‘have been too long surrounded by besotted beaux who would willingly kiss the ground on which you walk, begging your permission to be your lord and master.’

‘Heaven forbid! I will never call any man my lord and nor will I allow a man to be my master. When I marry it will be a partnership. I will not be a dutiful little wife expected to behave like an obedient servant.’

Lance glanced down at her with an odd combination of humorous scepticism and certainty. ‘No I don’t suppose you will. You have quite a following of admirers,’ he commented, his eyes skimming over the bachelors who had been among her audience earlier. They were now eyeing him enviously and with keen attention. ‘I must say that I’m relieved you didn’t walk off the floor and leave me standing.’

‘Had I done so, I would have put my own reputation in jeopardy.’

His eyes, sweeping over her face and coming to rest on the sparkling gems around her throat, narrowed. ‘Even so. You should know that if I want something I take it, whatever the consequences.’ He lowered his head as he spun her round, his lips close to her ear. ‘I’ve never seduced a girl from Charleston before.’

Deeply shocked by his remark, Belle had the urge to kick his shin and leave him standing, regardless of the consequences, but instead she controlled her expression and met his look head on. ‘No? Then might I suggest you go there and find one. I am not so easily seduced,’ she retorted, too angry to be humiliated.

‘No?’

‘A very definite no. I wouldn’t let you touch me to save me from drowning.’

He looked down at her with mock disappointment. ‘I am mortified to hear that—but it’s early days. I always enjoy the chase. You will think differently when you get to know me.’

Belle looked at him with withering scorn. ‘Why, of all the conceited, arrogant—what a thoroughly selfish, insufferable individual you are, Lord Bingham. Do you make lewd remarks to all the women you dance with?’

‘And do you treat every gentleman who dances with you with such animosity—or only me?’

‘Lord Bingham, in the first place, you are no gentleman—which I have already pointed out. In the second, I don’t like you. And in the third, you should not be speaking to me at all.’

‘I shouldn’t?’ Her hostility didn’t offend him in the slightest. In fact, it added to his determination to get to know her better.

‘We have not been properly introduced.’

‘Do you mind?’

‘No—not really,’ she confessed honestly, hating the protocol that now ruled her every waking moment, tying her in knots lest she do or say the wrong thing.

‘Good. Neither do I. I would like it if you would call me Lance,’ he said, his gaze settling on her face, ‘since I intend for us to become better acquainted.’

‘Forgive me, but that would go against the basics my grandmother has tried to teach me since coming to this country. I have been taught to show proper respect for gentleman of any standing.’

Lance considered her at length and had to wonder why she refused to be so informal with him after he had invited her to be. ‘I must assume by your answer that you’re averse to the familiarity.’

‘It is what my grandmother would demand of me.’

‘Does that mean you insist on me addressing you in like manner?’

‘Whether you adhere to the strict code of gentlemanly conduct is entirely your affair.’

His eyebrow quirked with some amusement. ‘Come now, Belle—and in case you’re wondering, I know that is what you are called since I have made enquiries—’

‘I wasn’t,’ she cut in crossly.

‘—but your grandmother is stuck in the past,’ he continued. ‘Times are changing—at least I hope they are.’

Belle had never known her name could sound so very different, so warmly evocative when spoken by a man, or that she could feel as if she were dissolving inside when those soft, mellow tones caressed her senses.

‘Can you not agree that if we are to get to know each other on more intimate terms,’ Lance went on, lowering his head so that his mouth was very close to her ear, ‘it should allow us privileges above the usual stilted decorum of strangers?’

His husky voice and the closeness of his mouth so that she could feel his warm breath on her cheek was almost her undoing. She blushed scarlet. There was still so much of the girl in her at war with the young woman, and this man had the knack of bringing it quickly to the surface. Yet for all her annoyance with him, she was aware of everything about him—of the handsome face above the scarlet jacket, tanned and healthy. She was surprised to see, at close quarters, faint lines of weariness about his face as silently, reluctantly, she felt drawn once more towards him. Recollecting herself, she tried to change her thoughts, finding her emotions distasteful.

‘But that is precisely what we are, Lord Bingham, strangers—and I intend for us to remain that way. I am convinced you have plied many light o’ loves with similar persuasive reasoning. I can well imagine that you have become quite adept at swaying besotted young girls from the path their parents have urged them to follow.’

His eyes twinkled down at her. She was right. Apart from Delphine, there had been temporary light o’ loves—and one or two had lasted longer than others—but he had never considered his involvement with them of any consequence. ‘You are very astute, Belle, but if you think you have the measure of me, then you are very much mistaken. I saw you the moment you arrived and I’ve wanted to speak to you all evening.’

‘And now you have,’ she said, staring into those eyes that had ensnared her own. ‘And don’t get any high-minded ideas that you’re any better than the other gentleman I have partnered tonight, because if you do you will be wrong.’

Belle thought he was too much aware of her physically, and that the banter was leading to something. He made her uneasy and yet at the same time he stimulated and excited her. He did seem to have a way about him and she could not fault any woman for falling under his spell, for she found to her amazement that her heart was not so distantly detached as she had imagined it to be. To her amazement his voice and the way he looked at her evoked a strangely pleasurable disturbance in areas far too private for an untried virgin even to consider, much less invite, and she didn’t quite know what to make of them. They seemed almost wanton. But she didn’t intend making it easy for him.

‘Clearly I didn’t make my aversion to conversing with you plain enough,’ she retorted hotly.