The Irresistible Lady Behind the Mask Page 5

  How she had missed Hudson and his friendship, but she had learned to live without them. She had blamed him and their fathers for ending such a great friendship. Nevertheless, she had taken solace in the knowledge that she was pursuing her dreams.

  Looking back now, she had to say they had still been children back then. She had seen Hudson as a spotty and weak lad, one who wouldn’t have been able to handle her sprightly and ambitious nature.

  Staring at his portrait, she had to agree that he was no longer that person. He appeared to have matured since then, and the years had been kind to him, making him a handsome and dashing fellow.

  Tempest couldn’t help the pinch of regret that snaked up her body. Maybe if they had been older at that time, she wouldn’t have treated him so and would have given it some consideration. But it was too late. She’d already made up her mind never to marry, and he was engaged to her cousin.

  What was she going to do?

  Chapter 5

  Valerie’s hysterical weeping drew Tempest out of her reverie. She dragged her gaze from the portrait to stare at her cousin, who was still dabbing her eyes with her handkerchief.

  Exhaling softly, Tempest remarked, “I know him. He’s Hudson Danvers. We used to be childhood … friends.”

  Eyeing her cousin to see her reaction at her news, she wondered if the young chit knew that she and Hudson had been more than friends. Was she aware that the man had once offered for her?

  Valerie’s head bobbed up and down, and more tendrils flew from their hold at her nape. “I vaguely remember him coming here and you going over to his place at Strombridge which, unfortunately, is to become my new home.”

  Squashing the pang that hit her chest at the mention of Hudson’s familial estate where she had spent many days, she studied her cousin.

  In her opinion, Hudson was considered a good catch. Although he was the fourth son, she believed he was entitled to a part of his father’s properties. He might not be as wealthy as his brothers, but she believed he would be able to take care of her cousin.

  Nothing had been spoken about him in the years that followed his absence in her life. Her father only mentioned him in passing to drive home the point that she was still unwed when she should have been married to him.

  Tempest also went out of her way to avoid his father. Whenever he came calling, she would feign illness or look for an excuse to leave the house without his or her father’s knowledge.

  Since it was important she maintained a very low profile, given her secret life, she couldn’t be found in places where she could put a listening ear out for news of him. Even in her establishment, she didn’t give room for gossip. Knowing the ton couldn’t be trifled with, she avoided them every chance she got.

  Consequently, she didn’t quite understand the reason for her cousin’s tears. Although she felt a little sense of betrayal that of all the women in London and beyond, Hudson had chosen to propose to her cousin.

  If she allowed herself to dwell on it, she might think he did it on purpose; perhaps to spite her for her rejection years ago.

  “Valerie, do put your tears at bay and tell me why you think he’s a bad match,” she softly chided the hysterically weeping girl.

  Touching her eyes with her wet handkerchief and a sour disposition on her face, Valerie answered, “The man has a horrible reputation!”

  When her cousin didn’t say anything, Valerie carried on. “He’s an absolute blackguard with a fleeting fortune and a wandering eye!”

  Tempest found it a little hard believing that. Hudson hadn’t been perfect the last time she saw him, but she didn’t think he was that bad. Could he possibly have changed? Had her rejection spurred him on a path of debauchery?

  She shook her head.

  Valerie grasped her hands tautly, her eyes desperate. “You’ve got to believe me, Tempest. I speak the truth. Rumour has it that he’s one step away from debtor’s prison. God’s truth.”

  The distressed young woman’s hands tightened on her cousin’s. “You have to understand that I can’t marry such a man. Why, I’ll have a lot of his mistresses to contend with. While I know it isn’t unusual for a married man to have a mistress or two outside marriage, this man could have dozens. I’ll be the laughing stock of the whole realm. Whenever I attend balls and soirees, I’m certain to be the object of gossip to women behind their fans.” She removed a hand from her cousin’s and placed it on her forehead as if she was about to swoon. “Oh, the whispering, oh, the snickering as I walk by! I might never be able to take a walk in the park again or have a picnic there. The stares might just be too much for me to handle!”

  Tempest remained silent. Her brain was moving like cartwheels as she was working on her plan while her cousin engaged in lamentations.

  “And Father is completely taken in by him. I swear he thinks he’s some angel come to rescue me from my life of spinsterhood.” More tears dripped down the rosy expanse of her cheeks. “Father seems to have forgotten that I’m only eighteen. He has sworn to disown me if I dare break off the match. And you know Father doesn’t make idle threats.” Her desperate eyes sought Tempest for understanding.

  Tempest nodded. Uncle Albert was a hard nut to crack. His word was law in his household, and no one dared defy him. When Valerie’s only brother had sought to do something against his wish, Uncle Albert had made him join the military and fight for their country.

  Therefore, Tempest knew, as well as Valerie, that her uncle meant his words of disowning his daughter if she didn’t marry Hudson.

  “He said he had given me a year to produce a husband; since I was dillydallying about it, he took matters into his own hands. He wants me out of his house as soon as possible. He fears I might continue choosing and be left on the shelf like …” Valerie trailed off and bit her lip. She withdrew her hand from Tempest’s and stared across the room.

  Tempest hid a smile. She wasn’t surprised that her uncle thought she was an old maid. He and her father had discussed at length how to go about getting her to accept offers from men to no avail. She appreciated his concern for her and his daughter, but he was wrong to force his daughter into a union she didn’t want.

  Recalling her tears, Valerie sniffed and exhaled loudly, sagging her shoulders. “As if that wasn’t bad enough, Hudson demanded we get married posthaste. He can’t wait to get his hands on my dowry. I believe debtors are on his neck.” She sighed. “I have it on good authority that he has squandered his little inheritance on gambling, and now, he’s looking for a rich bride to settle his debts; hence his decision to marry me without delay.”

  “Did you tell your father all this?” Tempest finally asked when Valerie took a minute to catch her breath from her incessant tirade.

  Valerie’s lips formed a pout. “You speak as if you don’t know Father. He called it total gibberish, said I was only looking for a way to get out of the betrothal. That was when he warned me not to even think about it, or he’d throw me out on my … er … my nether region.”

  Tempest cleared her throat to hide her giggle. That was putting it politely. She knew Uncle Albert had no control. He said exactly what came into his mind. She wouldn’t be surprised if he used a vulgar term on his daughter.

  Silence descended in the room for some minutes. Tempest, smiling smugly because her plan was now firmly in place, bestowed her cousin with a fond gaze.

  “Dry your eyes, Valerie. You won’t marry Hudson Danvers. Not if I can help it,” she promised her cousin.

  There was no way she would allow Valerie to marry such a man. She was appalled that Hudson had turned out to be an utter cad. Pity for him and relief that she hadn’t married him warred inside her. The feeling that she might have led him to such a life couldn’t be shaken off.

  In any case, all that was in the past. Her utmost concern now was the happiness of her cousin. It was unfortunate that Hudson was no longer the kind, considerate, and honourable lad she had grown up with. He would just have to find another way to settle his debts. H
er loyalty lay with Valerie, not him.

  Knowing Uncle Albert, she had a plan that would force him to break the betrothal contract between Hudson and his daughter. Tempest knew it was going to work; she almost rubbed her palms with glee in an unladylike manner.

  “What?” Valerie sniffed, twirling her body in Tempest’s direction.

  “I have a plan that will get your father, not only swearing off the marriage but also warning your intended to stay away from you henceforth,” she smugly told the girl whose eyes widened.

  In a matter of seconds, Valerie’s wet eyes dried up as she drew closer to the older woman on the sofa.

  “You do?”

  Tempest nodded, refusing to say more. Valerie could be such a talker sometimes; she wasn’t sure she could keep the plan to herself. The silly chit might just use it to gloat to her father or worse, Hudson.

  Tempest read the eagerness in the girl’s eyes and shook her head. “It’s best you don’t know the details, Valerie, so you won’t have to account for anything. I’ll shoulder the blame if things go awry.”

  Valerie clasped her hands, optimism lifting her eyes. “I do so hope it works. I’d be eternally grateful to you. Thank you, Tempest.”

  She threw herself on the smiling woman just as the door opened to admit Tempest’s father. Both ladies rose to curtsy.

  ***

  The baron, dressed in morning clothes, curtly nodded in acknowledgement of their greetings. The tall man with greying hair and stocky features strode across the carpet and established himself on a stuffed chair by the window. He regarded both women keenly from his position.

  “Valerie,” he stiffly called, “I understand congratulations are in order.”

  Try as he could, George Haddington, the 9th Baron Haversham couldn’t bring himself to dredge up any joy for his niece’s good news. He wished to God that it were his daughter getting married to the young chap.

  “You’re very fortunate. Hudson is a fine man. There was a time I—”

  “Papa!” Tempest cleared her throat. Hot pink stained her cheeks.

  The baron intuitively knew that Valerie had no idea that Hudson was to have become Tempest’s husband had the chit agreed to the match.

  Valerie started sniffing and soon gave in to tears. Tempest put her arms around her, comforting her.

  “Don’t you worry, Valerie. Everything will be alright. I’ll handle it. I promise.”

  “Handle what?” George Haddington asked, eyeing his daughter with narrowed eyes. That the silly girl was crying for a reason he didn’t know wasn’t any of his concern. What disturbed him were his daughter’s words and the tone with which she said them.

  When his daughter didn’t reply but continued to soothe her cousin, the man’s lips thinned.

  “Haven’t you caused enough trouble already, Tempest?”

  Tempest feigned innocence, widening her eyes as if in surprise. “Why, Papa, what are you talking about?”

  “Don’t be coy with me, young woman,” he snapped angrily, “I warn you not to meddle in affairs that are none of your business.”

  Tempest shrugged, patting Valerie’s arm. “I still don’t know what you mean.”

  “You have been nothing but trouble since the night you were born. I still don’t know what got into me for me to agree to your mother naming you Tempest in acknowledgement of the storm on the night you were born. You have been nothing but a tempest in my life.”

  The baron’s mouth curled with disdain when he saw his daughter trying to hide a smile. He itched to walk up to her, grab her by the shoulders, and shake her until her teeth rattled. Several times he had asked her why she was so different from other women her age.

  Mayhaps he was to be blamed for how she had been brought up. Waddling in sorrow at the loss of his dear wife, he had abdicated taking care of her and handed her over to her mother’s spinster sister.

  The retired opera singer had taken his daughter under her wing and taught her all the nonsense she sprouted daily. The woman had made matters worse by giving Tempest a generous inheritance, citing she was her favourite and was the one who would handle it well.

  Unfortunately, his daughter had allowed it to get to her head and decided she didn’t need a man, after all. He would have had a son-in-law in the person of Hudson Danvers or any other fine man out there, as well as grandchildren. But no, Tempest, unlike her mates, didn’t want to get married.

  She adored children; he knew that. So it always caused a twinge of pain in his chest when he recalled that she had resolved not to have any of her own.

  A sigh escaped his lips. Perhaps he should be grateful for that. He wouldn’t put it past the wench to try to get one without a husband and cause herself everlasting ruin. The ton would tear her apart. He would not be able to go to his clubs and gaming parlours without someone saying it to his hearing.

  Not a day passed that he didn’t wish his wife, sweet Margaret wasn’t alive. She would have put control over his daughter’s excesses. There was only so much he could do without looking like a wicked father.

  He went hungry himself the days Tempest went on hunger strikes to press home her grievances. It was unheard of for him to love his daughter so, but what was he supposed to do in the circumstance? Had she been a lad, it would have been socially acceptable.

  She was his only child, and despite the fact that she was one strong-willed woman, he loved her dearly. Maybe that was the reason he gave in when she decided to be stubborn. Right from the time she was little when her eyes glistened with tears, he would move heaven and earth to see her smile again.

  Little wonder the little chit had wrapped him around her little finger. Granted, she allowed him to win sometimes, but his victories were few and far between. None had, however, been won concerning the topic of marriage.

  He should have been more like Albert. His younger brother didn’t give a hoot about his children’s feelings. The man commandeered his home as if he were still in the military.

  If he tried that approach with Tempest, he feared that she might run away, and he would never see her again. She had threatened to do so on many occasions in the past, which had caused him to lock her in her room and position servants to watch her.

  He sighed heavily again. Whatever was he going to do with such an onerous daughter?

  “Heed my warning, Tempest, and mind your business. You’ve caused enough trouble in the past. You ought to be happy for your cousin. She has snagged one of the eligible bachelors in town. I know some girls her age would be envious of her. Not you, obviously.”

  Tempest clicked her tongue but didn’t say a word. Her silence would have been taken as acquiescence, but her father knew better. Had someone else remained silent, he would have appreciated that the person had decided to listen to him. However, he knew his daughter. Silence meant mute disregard of his words.

  Dear God, what had he done in his past life to be saddled with such a woman for a daughter? It went beyond reasoning that mild-mannered though he was, his head was filled with grey hair due to his daughter’s stubbornness.

  “Mark my words, Tempest. This is one meddling that might turn around to bite you if you dare dabble in it.”

  His daughter merely shrugged and looked away. George Haddington sighed again.

  Chapter 6

  “I’m off to the White’s,” Tempest’s father announced to his daughter who was seated, reading a book a few days later.

  Tempest raised her head from the book she was pretending to read and simply nodded.

  “What is the ton betting on these days?” she questioned uninterestedly.

  Baron Haversham let out a low chuckle. “It’s the Dukes’ betting season. The Duke of Albemarle has bet the Duke of Albany that he would sire a son before him, who would win the Queen’s race … er … the rest need not concern you, moppet.”