A Season of Romance Read online

  ‘Everyone is talking about you and Lord Bairstow,’ she said, her smile coming across more as a grimace. ‘Congratulations.’

  Adela blinked at her aunt, deliberately obtuse. ‘Upon what?’

  ‘Clearly the man has intentions. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I cannot imagine why. Nor, from what I have heard, can anyone else in the room. It is not as though he needs your money.’

  ‘Perhaps he enjoys my company,’ Adela suggested, with a whimsical smile.

  ‘Excuse me my dear, but I find that unlikely.’

  ‘Yes, I imagine you do.’ Adela gritted her teeth and somehow kept her tone civil. ‘But everyone seems so sure that Lord Bairstow intends to propose, Obviously, I would never reject such a man, so there seems little point in you and Daniel remaining beneath my roof.’ Adela ignored her aunt’s sharp intake of breath. She had gone too far and brought Adela’s retaliation upon herself. ‘There is nothing for you here.’

  ‘You owe us some hospitality after our kindness to you and your mother in Ripon. I have a mind to stay in London a little longer.’

  ‘Then by all means stay. But I should have thought that you would find the Jordans’ society more agreeable, given that you and I make precious little effort to disguise the fact that we don’t like one another.’

  A hint of anxiety fuelled her aunt’s expression. ‘Why do you mention the Jordans?’

  ‘I have heard rumours.’ She offered up a thin smile. ‘You are not the only one to listen to gossip. Besides, I happen to know that you and Daniel stayed with them the night before you came here.’

  ‘How on earth…’

  ‘Why Aunt, the ton is a hot bed of gossip.’ Adela offered the woman a wide-eyed look of innocent surprise. ‘You of all people should be aware of that. More than one person has told me, in the strictest confidence, naturally, that you were once Lord Jordan’s mistress.’ She turned away from her aunt, satisfied to have had the last word.

  *

  Ezra stood in the shadows, watching as Ripon entered Adela’s library. He listened outside the door as he rifled through its contents, muttering to himself and making no attempt to conduct a quiet, methodical search. He flattened himself against the wainscoting when the door abruptly flew open and Ripon stomped through it, his face like thunder. Instead of returning to the party, he turned in the opposite direction and headed for the door to the garden. Ezra stepped forward and beckoned to Harker.

  ‘Ripon has gone outside,’ he said sotto voce. ‘Follow him. I want to know who he talks to. Don’t lose him and don’t let him see you. This could be vital.’

  Harker faded away without a word.

  Ezra strolled back into the drawing room. The crowd had thinned, but those still remaining watched him avidly. He noticed Adela in conversation with her aunt. Neither lady looked satisfied with their stilted conversation. Ezra joined them and treated Adela to an intimate smile.

  ‘Are you going on somewhere, Lord Bairstow?’ Mrs Gantz asked.

  ‘If I do, it will be to my club.’

  ‘Ah, that safe bastion of male exclusivity. You will have had more than your share of foolish female company this evening, I would imagine.’

  Ezra glanced at Adela and could see that she was struggling to contain her anger. ‘Your imagination has got the better of you, ma’am,’ he replied with cool civility. ‘I have endured very little foolishness in this room tonight.’ He allowed his words to trail off without adding until now. ‘Pray, excuse us.’ He proffered his arm and Adela placed her hand on it.

  ‘You did not need to do that. I am quite capable of holding my own when it comes to tempering my aunt’s spite.’

  ‘Even so, I expect it makes a pleasant change for you not to have to.’

  ‘It does, and I am sorry.’ She smiled up at him, seemingly more accustomed to the speculative looks being sent their way and finding it easier to ignore them. ‘You rescued me, and I thank you by being ungracious.’

  ‘Never that.’ He patted the hand resting on his sleeve.

  ‘Where did you disappear to? Not that I am keeping track of your movements, you understand. I am merely curious.’

  ‘I followed your cousin. He went into the library and searched it.’ Ezra chuckled. ‘He didn’t seem too pleased when he came up empty-handed.’

  ‘I wonder what he expected to find.’

  ‘So do I. But I am more concerned about where he has gone to now. He went off in the direction of the garden with purpose in his stride.’

  Adela inhaled sharply. ‘You think he has gone to meet someone?’

  ‘I have sent Harker after him, so we shall soon know.’

  ‘Almost everyone has left now.’ Adela glanced around the rapidly emptying room. ‘News of your extraordinary behaviour will be all over London before dawn.’

  ‘You don’t give the gossip machine sufficient credit, my sweet. Word will already have spread.’

  She sent him a mischievous smile. ‘I dare say you will be inundated with females anxious to console you when word of my refusing your proposal circulates with equal rapidity.’

  ‘They will be wasting their efforts. I shall be totally inconsolable.’

  ‘Liar!’ She dug her fingers into his forearm.

  ‘Shall we ride in the park tomorrow?’ he asked.

  ‘And confirm the rumours?’ She raised a brow. ‘You don’t do things by halves, do you?’

  ‘I don’t know. I’ve never done anything like this before.’

  ‘Identifying the traitor must mean a great deal to you.’ She spoke softly and looked away from him, but Ezra caught a glimpse of hurt feelings reflected in her expression.

  ‘Your safety is my primary concern.’

  ‘And yet if my cousin is responsible for the attempts on my life, they would have happened regardless.’ She looked more in control of herself as she smiled up at him. ‘You have nothing to reproach yourself for. Besides, now that I know Papa uncovered the traitor’s name and it very likely cost him his life, I am equally anxious to see him brought to justice.’

  ‘Then we are in accord.’

  Harker re-entered the room and came up to Ezra’s side.

  ‘He met with a maid.’ He paused and sent Adela a sympathetic look. ‘Your maid, ma’am.’

  Adela stifled a cry. ‘I knew there was something not quite right about Bess,’ she said, her anger palpable. ‘But how could she know Daniel? And what—or who—persuaded her to betray me?’

  Ezra glanced around the room. Almost everyone had now left, and those finding excuses to linger continued to watch them closely.

  ‘We can’t talk about this now. I assume your maid knows where your father’s papers are.’

  ‘She is aware that I have locked something away, but not what—although Daniel would guess, I’m sure. But I have the only key.’

  ‘Change of plan. I will call upon you in the morning and offer to take you for a carriage ride. Have the goodness to sort through your father’s things this evening, extract anything you think significant and bring it with you tomorrow. We will go through it together, if you are in agreement.’

  She bit her lip and nodded. ‘Yes, all right.’

  ‘In the meantime, keep your door locked and mind what you say in front of your maid.’

  Adela tossed her head, setting curls dancing around her face. ‘I will find it hard to talk to her at all.’

  ‘Good evening, Lady Adela.’ Ezra spoke loudly, bowing over her hand and then kissing the back of it. ‘Until tomorrow.’

  Adela curtsied. ‘I look forward to it, Lord Bairstow.’

  *

  The rest of the guests left when Ezra did, and Adela found herself alone with her mother and aunt. Daniel joined them, out of breath and seeming anxious. Adela couldn’t bring herself to look at him.

  ‘That went well, Mama,’ she said, ‘but you look done in. Let me help you upstairs. You and I can have hot chocolate sent up to your sitting room and have a cosy conversation. Then you need to rest, and
I intend to retire, too. These events are so exhausting.’

  She sensed her aunt’s frustration at Adela’s plan. A plan that pointedly excluded her and her devious son, who had probably not given up hope of trying to discourage her interest in Ezra. She took her mother’s arm and wished her aunt and cousin a curt goodnight.

  They encountered Talbot in the vestibule and Adela paused to thank him for his efforts that evening.

  ‘It was a pleasure to be of service, my lady,’ he said, inclining his head.

  She asked for the hot chocolate and was assured that it would be delivered momentarily. As they awaited its arrival, Adela fended off her mother’s natural questions about Ezra, assuring her that she did not expect a declaration.

  ‘Even so, my dear, everyone was astonished. And delighted, of course. Lord Bairstow has adroitly avoided the marriage mart for years. He must like you very much to make his intentions so apparent, which shows great good judgement on his part.’

  ‘You assume too much, Mama. Now, tell me how much you enjoyed reacquainting yourself with some of your old friends. Have they changed much?’

  Once she had set her mother off on that course, Adela was required to do little more than nod and add the occasional word of encouragement. She rattled on about the success of the evening until their drinks were gone and Mama’s eyelids began to droop. Adela rang the bell and left her in the capable hands of her maid.

  She then returned to her own room and immediately examined her escritoire for signs that the lock had been forced. She found none, but was convinced she could detect a faint whiff of a familiar male cologne in the atmosphere. Was it her imagination? If Bess had brought Daniel into her room, she would not be responsible for her actions. Anger surged through her at the girl’s presumptive behaviour, but she quelled her ire and went instead to fetch the key from its hiding place. She calmed down a little when she unlocked her desk and found everything undisturbed.

  Locking it again, she rang the bell for Bess and barely spoke when the girl arrived, breathless, to help her undress. It was not the first time that she had been slow to answer the bell. Now she understood why. Unless Adela missed her guess, Daniel had gone out of his way to make himself agreeable to her the moment he entered the house so that he would have someone to spy on her. Daniel was handsome and could be charming when it suited his purpose. A vulnerable girl of Bess’s ilk would be child’s play to bend to his will.

  Why did you do it, Bess?

  Aware that Ezra didn’t want her to reveal what she knew, Adela tried to behave normally, but dismissed Bess the moment she had completed her duties. She locked her door firmly behind her, then sat down at her desk and started going through Papa’s things.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Ezra arrived promptly to collect Adela the following morning. She greeted him with a sunny smile that failed to completely hide the dark circles beneath her eyes. Either she had not slept well or had stayed up half the night reading her father’s papers. Harker appeared from the depths of the house, carrying a bundle. The papers, presumably. Of her mother, aunt and cousin there was no sign. He assumed the ladies would still be in bed, it being too early for a customary call. The cousin’s whereabouts concerned him rather more.

  ‘Where are we going?’ Adela asked, once she was installed in his carriage.

  ‘To my house in order to study your papers without interruption. I hope you don’t mind. No one will see you enter, and my servants are discreet. I realise it is an unorthodox request—an imposition, perhaps, and certainly presumptive.’

  ‘It is a little late to worry about my reputation.’ She gave a casual shrug and abruptly changed the subject. ‘I think Daniel has been in my room,’ she said.

  ‘What makes you so sure?’ he asked sharply, sitting forward.

  She explained about the lingering aroma of his cologne. ‘He favours a blend of lavender and citrus, which is distinctive and overwhelming. I suspect that he seduced my maid, or else charmed her in some way…offered her something in return for her cooperation. I cannot think why else she would risk her position by being so disloyal.’

  ‘I am sorry your privacy has been invaded,’ he said, reaching forward to cover her hand with his. ‘It must be deeply distressing, and I can tell just by looking at you that it has upset you a great deal.’

  She shrugged off his concerns and kept her tone brisk, matter-of-fact. ‘The papers had not been touched. I imagine that even Daniel would not dare to force the lock, and Bess has no idea where I hide the key.’

  ‘Well, that’s something, but even so…’

  Ezra ground his jaw as he struggled to contain his anger. Anger and guilt, since he was partly responsible for her dilemma. Ripon had convinced himself that Adela would eventually agree to become his wife, if only out of a sense of family loyalty. Now Ezra had come along, and Ripon saw his carefully laid plans dissipate before his eyes. He was not the type of man to concede defeat with dignity and would be looking for revenge, especially if Jordan—a master manipulator—had goaded him into it.

  The carriage came to a halt in the mews behind Ezra’s house. He alighted and helped Adela down, took her arm and led her inside. His butler had been given orders to keep all the servants out of the way when he arrived with his guest, and with Harker close behind them they were able to reach Ezra’s library without being seen. The room was warm, thanks to a highly-banked fire, and sunshine poured in through the full-length windows. Adela looked around with interest.

  ‘My fingers itch to delve into your collection of books,’ she admitted. ‘You have a great deal more than are available to me at Eaton Square. My father was not a great reader. He never found the time.’

  ‘Feel free to help yourself next time you call. But for now, please have a seat,’ Ezra invited, conducting her to a chair on one side of his desk. He took the one on its opposite side and asked Harker to unwrap the documents. Once he had done so, Harker left the room, closing the door softly behind him. ‘I am sorry if my delving into your father’s personal affairs feels intrusive, but you must see how important it is. I would not otherwise dream of…’

  ‘It’s all right.’ She smiled and help up a hand to cut off his apology. ‘I understand.’

  Ezra returned her smile. ‘Thank you. But before you tell me if you found anything of interest, I would like to share my thoughts regarding your cousin. I had hoped to shield you from the sordid particulars, but in view of his behaviour you deserve to know as much as I do. And indeed, what I suspect.’

  Adela looked startled but sat a little straighter and folded her hands in her lap. ‘Then by all means continue.’

  ‘You have heard rumours about your aunt and her long-standing relationship with Lord Jordan?’

  Her head shot up. ‘Yes, and I thought it a little odd that Lady Jordan would have her husband’s former mistress as a house guest, even just for one night.’

  Ezra chuckled. ‘Quite a few ladies choose to turn a blind eye to their husbands’ nefarious activities. Some are even grateful to be relieved of their duties.’

  Adela’s eyes glistened with mischief. ‘To which duties do you refer?’ she asked with an innocent smile.

  Ezra shook his head. ‘You will find out for yourself one day.’

  She wrinkled her nose. ‘That is debateable. If I ever do decide to marry, I would not take kindly to being thought incapable of maintaining my husband’s interest. It would be insulting.’

  ‘Anyone who married you, my sweet, would have no desire to stray.’

  Adela blushed and lowered her gaze. ‘I have agreed to help you. I don’t require false flattery.’

  He regarded her impassively, wondering if she felt the connection. The indefinable something that drew them towards one another against all sense of reason. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. Ezra never lost control. Not ever. Duty always came first with him, making it impossible to put his own interests ahead of the security of the country he loved. Not that it mattered, he told himself. Sh
e very likely did not feel the same deep emotional investment, or recognise it for what it was even if she did, because of her comparative inexperience. He, on the other hand, had spent a largely sleepless night trying to make sense of a senseless situation. She had been right to suggest that he need not have made his interest in her quite as obvious as he had, thereby putting himself in a position that would require him to do the honourable thing by her.

  He would propose when all this was over. Gentlemanly conduct and the protection of her reputation would demand it of him. But he honestly believed that her disinclination for matrimony was genuine, and that she would actually refuse him. Perhaps that was why he had taken the risk. Or then again, it could be because he enjoyed a challenge. Anything worth having was worth fighting for, and he was astonished by his determination to have Adela as a permanent presence in his life. Anything that felt so intrinsically right couldn’t possibly be wrong.

  Ezra realised that Adela’s words had provoked a lengthy silence and that she was staring at him with curiosity. He cleared his throat and continued with his explanation. ‘I mentioned your aunt’s former arrangement with Jordan because his name is high on my list of suspects,’ he told her.

  ‘Oh!’ Her mouth fell open. ‘You think he is the traitor and that Daniel is helping him by trying to find my father’s papers?’

  ‘The connection, put together with Ripon’s determination to pry into your personal affairs, seems a little too coincidental for any alternative explanation to ring true.’

  ‘I suppose it does.’ She nibbled abstractedly at the end of one gloved finger. ‘My aunt does still seem to be on the most intimate of terms with Lord Jordan. One must admire her nerve, since I have openly heard her refer to the friendship on several occasions, almost as though she is proud of the connection.’