A Bright Particular Star (3 page)

Looking
down
into her dirt-streaked
face
, Theo
was
dismayed to see her eyes
swimming
with
tears
.
Feminine tears had always stir
red him
and this lady
’s
seemed to be
having a more profound
effect
than usual.
As t
eardrop
s
glistened on the end of those preposterous
lashes,
he felt his
resolution waver
.
She was genuinely
upset and
alarmed at the thought
of going back
and
,
to his amazement
,
he was
c
onsidering helping her.
But he knew nothing about Miss Sophie
Devereux
other than
what she had told him.
Offering his assistance would be high
ly improper and he didn
’t
want
to become embroiled in her family difficulties.
His plans did not include carrying this madcap little baggage into Bath
,
whatever her circumstances.

Y
et
there
was something about her
that was
hard to resist.
He was not immune to the plea
he sa
w in
her
eyes
, or her distress
.
A
stray
leaf
still
nestled in her hair
and, c
ompelled by impulse, he
stripped off one of his
gloves and reached out
to remove it.
Sunbeams
pic
ked out copper
y
highl
ights among the silken tresses, which slid
through
his fingers
like
a
molten
living
liquid
.
Imp
ersonal though his touch was,
t
he sensation
sent heat pulsing
through his veins.

As he
contemplated her
vivid little countenance
, a
curious sense of
detachment
settled on him
.
The rest of the world retreated until it
seemed
only
the two of them existed, c
ocooned in this
sunli
t glade with
the breeze
rustling
the
canopy of leaves
overhead
.
Th
e
memory of her
pressed again
st him rose
again
in his mind as
her
delicate
scent
swirled about
him
.
Gardenias
, was it
?
Wh
atever i
t was, it was
enticing
.
H
e
found himself
str
u
ggling
with his reaction to her,
a combi
nation of annoyance,
sympathy
and attraction.

Attraction?

H
e
thrust the
notion
aside
impatiently
.
He must have a touch of heatstroke
!
She had unsettled h
im by falling into his carriage,
that was all.
H
e
should b
e furiou
s with her.
He ought to
be unmoved by her pleadings.
H
e should demand
she get
down
from
his c
arriage
at once
.

I
nstead
,
as
her
imploring
gaze
held him transfixed
, he
agonised over what to do next
.
It was madness to
hel
p
and
yet
he
could not find it in him to
refuse
.
She was determined
to escape
and
there was no way of getting her back to the house,
short
of taking her
there
by force.
If
he l
eft her here,
she would seek
another way of getting to Bath and perhaps find herself at the mercy of a man with
fewer
scruples
than he
.

Deuce take it
.

He
could not
abandon
her to that
fat
e
and
at least she would
be
safe
if he escorted
her
.

The shrill cry of
a
blackbird
nearby
recalled him t
o the present
.
Reco
llecting their situation
,
he flushed and
repla
ce
d his glove, saying
,
“
Very well, Miss
Devereux
.
I will take you as far as Bath on one condition.
”

“
Which is?
”
she asked,
hope flaring in her eyes.

“
Y
ou satisfy my curiosity. I want to know what has prompted you to run away and what your intentions are.
”

She blew her nose on her handkerchief, a grateful smile on her lips,
“
Y
es, indeed!
Thank you!
I will be happy to explain as we g
o.
”

Sudde
nly, she went still
,
staring
ahead with
an arrested look on her face.
Then, in
a flurry of activity
, she
shook out
the
carriage
blanket
and laid
it across his knees.

“
Now
what are y
ou doing?
”
began Theo
,
“
I’m
not an invalid
—
”

He broke off, watching
in bewilderment
as she
scramble
d under
the blanket
and curl
ed
up beneath his legs.
Her
muffled
reply reached him
through the
thick
cloth
.

“
I can see that
!
Look towards the gates
—
the gate
keeper
is coming out
.
Act normally and Petheridge won
’t
notice anything
amiss
.
He
’s
absent-minded
as well as being
as
short—
sighted as bat
.
”

“
I suppose I should be grateful
.
A
t least he won
’t
call me out for abduction
!
”

She giggled.
“
You are very
kind,
Mr
Cavanagh
.
Y
ou will not regret this.
”

Seeing the
elderly
Petheridge h
ad indeed shuffled out of
the
lodge cottage
and was looking in their direction, shielding his eyes from the sun with one gnarled hand
,
Theo
urge
d
his horses forward.
“
I’ll
res
erve judg
ement on that for now
,
”
he
replied
in a low voice
.
“
I have an inkling this
could lead to more than either of us anticipate.

****

Only when they were a mile aw
ay from Ludstone did
Sophie
’s
heart stop thumping against her ribs and
s
ome of the tension ease from
her
body.
It had been a calculated risk t
o enlist
Mr
Cavanagh
’s
help.
Despite her bravado,
she
felt
nervous
and
terribly
guilty
about
in
volving
him
,
but there had been no other way
.

If
she
had
tried to reach Bath by begging a li
ft on a farmer
’s
cart
, she might have
been overtaken by Perry in his
vulgar ne
w carriage
.
I
t was an eyesore,
but there was no denying it was fast.
Perry had boasted of the speeds he had achieved with it on the Bath Road
and how he had given
mail coaches the go-by.

She
stole several
gla
nces at the man sitting next to her
as she rubbed at h
er
face with her sleeve and secured her hair as neatly as she
could.
He had not yet asked
fur
ther questions, but had
concentrated
on his
driving
.
They had overtaken slower
vehicles
which had required great skill.
Sophie had held her breath and shut her eyes at one point, waiting for the inevitable cras
h, but she had opened them
to see clear road ahead and the post chaise they had passe
d
behind them
.

Theodore Cavanagh was an excellent driver, far better than Perry, an observation which afforded Sophie sa
tisfaction.
Her cousin boasted constantly
of his driving prowess.
He was convinced he was one of the best drivers in England and Aunt Eudo
ra encouraged him
.
But Perry could not hold a candle to
Mr
Cavana
gh and Sophie gleefully imagined
her cousin
’s
sulky expression should he ever witness Theo
’s
skill.
Fortunately, this was unlikely
.
Sophie hoped she had seen the last of Peregrine.

Mr
Cavanagh was, she acknowledged, a
handsome man
who commanded attention but u
nlike her cousin
,
there was nothing of the dandy in his clothes or his manner.
H
e
apparently
preferred to enter his coat without t
he assistance of a valet and did not
indulge in gaudy waistcoats or
high shirt points
.
His top boots
were ser
viceable and not polished to an
impractical mirror-like shine.
A few whip points rather than a nosegay were thrust through his buttonhole.

His physique suggested he was a ma
n who enjoyed sporting pursuits.
H
is drivin
g coat emphasised
the breadth of his
chest and
shoulders
, and toned, muscular thighs strained against the soft buckskin of his breeches.
He was tall
—
gracious
,
she had not realised how
tall
—
and
lithe, moving
with surprising
agility for a large man
.
When Sophie had observed his arrival from an upstairs window, she had seen him jump down from his curricle and stride to
the front door with the
flui
d movements of a
big
cat.
His dark hair
was longer than considered fashionable and not brushed into a fixed
, artificial
style.
She noted
how
he
raked his
fingers through it
when it fell over his brow.

His demeanour was
one of restless energy kept in
check, but his face was
open and amia
ble
, suggesting he was us
ually good humoured.
His
eyes
,
the deep rich brown of
a fine cognac
,
could
hold an engaging twinkle.
Sophie had witnessed this when they had passed a coach and he had acknowledged the appreciative cheers of the roof passengers with a wave of his hand and a laugh. He must have a kind heart, too, for agreeing to take her into Bath when he knew so little of her situation.

Notwithstanding these attributes, there was a hint
of steel in the
line of his jaw and
in
his expression
.
Sophie found this comb
ination of amiability and
resolve intriguing and thought it a pity she would not be long in his company
—
she would have enjoyed discovering
more about Theo Cavanagh.
H
e addressed her directly
then
,
and
she j
umped.
Engrossed
in her study
of him
, she had not noticed they h
ad passed the Horse and Jockey
I
nn and were already descending Kingsdown Hill.

“
Perhaps you will tell me now why you are running away,
”
he said.

“
Very well.
It is because I do not wish to marry my
cousin Peregrine, whom I dislike
.
”

Theo glanced down at her.
“
I see,
”
he said, after a pause.
”
T
hat explains your flight in the face of a betrothal party.
But surely you can
’t
be forced into a marriage you find di
stasteful?
A gothic notion in these times, I would have thought
.
”

“
You don
’t
know my aunt,
”
she replied bitterly
, tucking a stray lock of hair behind he
r ear
.
“
Perhaps I should tell you something
about my life in recent
years,
Mr
Cavanagh
,
not to engage your sympathy, but so you can understand why le
aving now was my only option.
Life at Ludstone has not been completely wretched, but it has been difficult
and miserable
.
I have never had a London season
because
my aunt refused to pay for one
and when I came out in society, assemblies and concerts in Bath were the limit of my experience.
Still, having seen
so
little of the world, I was glad of the opportunity to attend these, even in the company of Aunt Eudora and Perry.
It was not long before
gentlemen began to show an interest in me
—
”

“
Hardly surprising,
”
he interjected
.

Sophie
blushed
and gave him a grateful smile
, but observed
in a matter-of-fact voice
,
“
But it
was
surprising.
I’m
not pretty
.
Aunt Eudora is always
telling me
that
I’m
not
,
and
I’m
too imp
ulsive
and outspoken
.
”

Theo raised his brows.
“
Aunt Eudora is
a woman without sense.
I didn
’t
like her much when I met h
er and, having heard your description
of her character, she grows
m
ore unappealing by the minute,
”
he said, deftly avoiding
a Tilbury which had pul
led out in front of them
.
“
Pray continue, Miss
Devereux
.
”

“
Well,
I may not be
beautiful,
but
I’m
not bracket-faced yet
either
so
I found it puzzling that
,
after a time
, any gentleman who evinced mild
interest would drift
away without a word
of explanation.
”
Soph
i
e
gave a
faint
, wistful
sigh.
“
I am not a vain person
, nor was I
attached to any of them
but in each case, their
change of attitude was marked and
sudden. F
or a
young girl just
out in society it was
mortify
ing.
Everyone noticed and I fell
prey to vicious gossip.
It was
difficult to bear, but
slowly
I grew convinced their behaviour
was not caused by anything I had said or done, and s
o it proved.
Aunt Eudora had
been warning them
away
.
Annoyed, I raised
the issue
with her
,
but she was evasive
and m
y concern grew
.
S
he had always been overbearing
and interfering, but I had not imagined
she would
go to such lengths
.
F
rom that moment
on
I
determined to leave
, but it was not
possible
straight away
.
I had a reason
for staying at Ludstone a little longer.
Then, last autumn
, Eudora began to suggest I should marry Peregrine.
”

Sophie shuddered, adding,
“
At first, I could not believe she
meant it.
I treated it
as a joke until I was forced
to acknowledge
she was serious.
I argued
with her
, but she would not listen.
She said she knew what was best and her m
ind was set upon the marriage
.
She
has been
persecuting me into accepting the match and
making pla
ns for it
ever since
,
hence the betrothal party
, and
it is only a matter of time before an announ
cement appears in the newspaper
.
I could bear it no longer and was
worried she might find a way of holding the ceremony against my will.
”

”T
his sounds
dramatic,
”
said Theo, frowning.
”D
o you think she would go to such lengths?
”

”S
he will do what is necessary to ensure Perry receives m
y inheritance.
You see, I will be twenty-one soon
and
,
under the terms of my father
’s
will,
Aunt Eudora will no longer be my guardian.
She is determined the marriage will take place before then.
”

“
Has you
r
cousin anything to say in the matter?
Surely he makes a stand against his mother and her behaviour?
But then, perhaps he cares for you—
”

“
Bah
!
”
She dismissed
this notion with a
n airy
wave of her hand
.
“
Perry is on
ly
interested in himself
.
H
e do
esn
’t
care for me
!
He is content to let his mother dictate
plans
and he
has told me that
,
as
he
does not wish to marry anyone in particular, he may as well marry me to oblige his mother and to get his hands on my inheritance.
”