Mesalliance (38 page)

Mr Horton did
know and it was the very reason he had hoped to continue
threatening his niece. He was not particularly well-acquainted with
Rockliffe but he had a feeling that he was not the man to submit
tamely to being squeezed – and that therefore, once he knew what
was afoot, the game would indeed be up. Richard did not consider
himself a fool and he was perfectly well aware that there was
little point in proceeding once his bluff was called – for
Rockliffe’s credit with the world was great enough to withstand a
twenty-year-old scandal. His own – and that of his family, on the
other hand – was not; and it was he and Miriam and Diana who would
suffer most from disclosure. Adeline, luckily, had been too shaken
too realise that … but Rockliffe would see it immediately. And Mr
Horton had no desire to measure blades with one who was generally
held to be an expert.

He smiled and
said composedly, ‘Very well. I take your point. But the price of
what you want is still two thousand.’

Jack thought
quickly, debating the odds and reluctantly coming to the conclusion
that time was not on his side. He said, ‘A thousand. And that’s my
last word. Take it or leave it.’

‘I’ll take it,’
came the unruffled reply. ‘Naturally. And you can tell Adeline that
I hope she spends the rest of her life wondering. Because unless
she finds Joanna, she’ll never know.’

‘Hold your
tongue and write,’ snapped Jack. ‘Or I may forget you are Thea’s
uncle and lay hands on you myself.’

Mr Horton’s
eyes sneered but he had no intention of risking his person. Pulling
Joanna’s letter from his pocket, he tossed it on the table. Then,
crossing languidly to the bureau, he sat down and began to write at
Mr Ingram’s brisk dictation.

Silent and
unseen behind the partly open door, Diana flexed her cramped
muscles and smiled to herself. It had been a surprisingly
interesting half-hour and what she had learned was undoubtedly
valuable. The only question now, was how best to use it.

*

On learning
that Nell and Adeline had resolved upon a quiet evening at home in
order to conserve their energies for the morrow, Rockliffe stated
his intention of dining at White’s and left the house. He drank a
couple of glasses of wine, played a hand of cards with Charles Fox
and ate a meal he didn’t enjoy. And all the time, his mind was on
Adeline.

‘
I hate this
as much as you do
,’ she’d said. And it was evident in the
bleak, almost despairing look in her eyes and the emerging shadows
beneath them, lying stark against the flat pallor of her face. He
thought,
Am I responsible for that? Because if I am … or if, as
I suspect, something is frightening her – why am I not
doing
something about it
instead of making it worse
?

The business
with Harry and Nell had made him angry – and justifiably so. But he
ought to have been able to put it behind him before now - and the
fact that he’d come back from Paris with a ring in his pocket and
the hope that, this time, he would be able to tell Adeline that he
loved her, was no excuse. It was becoming obvious that neither of
them could stand much more of this … and if he didn’t do something
about it soon, there would be nothing left to salvage.

Which left him
with what? The only thing he hadn’t tried yet because he’d hoped he
wouldn’t need to. Unfortunately, it was also the only thing that he
could be fairly sure would work. Pushing aside his wine glass, he
rose from the table, bade Mr Fox a pleasant, if brief, goodnight …
and went home to seduce his wife.

*

Back in St
James’ Square, Adeline had spent two hours trying to listen to
Nell’s prattle without fidgeting unduly. Then, as the clock struck
ten, salvation appeared in the unlikely guise of the butler.

‘Mr Ingram has
called, your Grace,’ announced Symonds with the merest hint of
disapproval. ‘Do you wish me to admit him?’

‘Why not?’
Adeline came smartly to her feet. ‘Show him in.’

Nell’s brows
rose but she waited for the butler to withdraw before saying, ‘Now
what on earth can Jack want at this hour?’

‘It – it’s a
family matter,’ responded Adeline desperately. ‘And private.’

‘I see.’ The
dark eyes examined her speculatively for a moment and then Nell
also rose. ‘Then it’s fortunate that I was about to retire, isn’t
it? But you’d best take care what you’re about, Adeline. Rock’s
behaving very oddly these days.’ And on this worldly-wise, if
cryptic note, she walked out of the room.

Thirty seconds
later, Jack entered it and said, by way of greeting, ‘What’s the
matter with Nell? She just passed me without so much as a word -
but smiling most peculiarly.’

‘She’s being
discreet,’ said Adeline. ‘Forget Nell. Just sit down and tell me.
Have you seen Richard?’

‘Yes.’ He drew
two papers from his pocket and handed them to her. ‘And you can
stop worrying. It’s over.’

Adeline scanned
both sheets and then sat down rather abruptly.

‘Thank God –
thank God. But
how
, Jack? How did you do it?’

So he told her
and, by the time he had finished, she did not know if she was
laughing or crying.

‘I don’t know
what to say. I’d begun to think I’d never be free of him – never.
And now you tell me it’s over and even the
relief
is more
than I can bear.’ She fought for control for a moment and then,
rising, held out her hands to him. ‘I’ll pay you back as soon as I
can, of course … but I doubt I’ll ever be able to thank you
sufficiently. You – you can’t know what it means to me.’

Smiling into
the over-bright eyes, he took her hands into a comforting clasp and
said, ‘Oh I think I do. And you’ve no need to thank me. I’m happy
to have been of service – and, also, I’m grateful. But for you I’d
not have known precisely what a blackguard Richard Horton is … and
that’s important.’ He grimaced ruefully. ‘The sooner I have Thea
safe, the better. It seems to me that house is a veritable vipers’
nest.’

‘It is. And
Thea has never belonged there.’

‘I know it. And
neither, my dear, did you.’

Her mouth
curled and she gave a small, husky laugh.

‘There’s a
difference.
I
could hold my own.’

‘And can you
still?’ He released her hands and grinned quizzically. ‘With Rock,
for example?’

‘No. But that’s
an entirely different matter.’

‘Yes.’ He
paused and then said, ‘You love him very much, don’t you?’

‘Yes. Very
much. And now, thanks to you, I can tell him.’ Placing her hands on
his shoulders, she reached up to kiss his cheek. ‘So thank you with
all my heart.’

‘This,’
remarked his Grace of Rockliffe icily from the doorway, ‘is
becoming a habit – and one, moreover, which does not commend itself
to me. No – pray don’t trouble to explain.’ This as Jack would have
spoken. ‘I have absolutely no desire to tax your powers of
invention for a second time. And really … one way and another … I
believe I have heard enough.’

He turned on
his heel and was gone.

‘Hell!’
breathed Mr Ingram.

‘And
damnation,’ agreed Adeline, the colour draining from her face. ‘Go
home, Jack. There’s nothing to be done tonight and it would be a
mistake to try. But as soon as this wretched ball is over tomorrow,
I’ll put everything right. I promise.’

‘Forgive my
asking,’ he said wryly, ‘but do you think you can?’

‘I don’t know.
I hope so – for you, at any rate.’ She met his gaze with bitter
candour. ‘As for myself … well, we’ll see. I’ll tell Tracy
everything and hope he listens. If I’m lucky, he may even
understand – though I suppose I shouldn’t count on it. For the last
two months, I’ve been dogged by nothing less than total
disaster.’

There was no
denying, thought Adeline, as she examined herself critically in the
glass, that the shimmering, shot-silk gown was a triumph. The blue
of a peacock’s throat, it changed to violet when she moved … and
the bodice was trimmed only with entwined ribbons of those two
shades. The sweeping neckline clung to the points of her shoulders,
the narrow sleeves ended at the elbow in a clever overlay of silk
petals and the slyly whispering skirt was drawn back over a
petticoat that echoed the dress but in reverse ... violet to
peacock. The only difficulty was in deciding which of her jewels
would best compliment the shifting, vibrant shade. Tracy, of
course, would have known instantly … but he hadn’t attended her
toilette
for so long that it was stupid to hope he might do
so now. Especially after last night.

Sighing, she
told Jeanne to bring her the Wynstanton diamonds. She had never
worn them before but the occasion seemed to warrant full armour
and, after what had happened last time, she couldn’t bring herself
to wear the aquamarine set.

By the time
Nell sailed into the room, she was ready … diamonds at her throat
and on her wrists, and her hair piled in loose curls with feathers
fastened by a diamond clip nestling behind her left ear. Nell
stopped dead and stared.

‘Oh!’ she
breathed. ‘Adeline, you look beautiful. That gown is …
amazing
.’

‘Thank you –
and yes. It is, isn’t it?’ She smiled and absorbed the glory of
Nell’s gold net over white satin. ‘You look rather splendid
yourself. Harry will be dazzled.’

‘That was the
idea,’ confided Nell. ‘He’s here, by the way. I asked Symonds to
let me know the instant he arrived. I didn’t want to go down before
he came, you see.’

‘Naturally not.
If you can’t make a Grand Entrance tonight, when can you?’

‘That’s what I
thought.’ She dimpled mischievously. ‘So let’s go and do it
together – and see if we can’t render
both
of our gentlemen
speechless.’

‘That,’
observed Adeline dryly, ‘will be the day. But I suppose it’s worth
a try.’

Descending to
the turn of the stair, they paused to look down on the hall below
where his lordship was engaging Rockliffe in desultory
conversation. By prior consultation with Nell, Harry wore a coat of
dull gold brocade and had chosen, for this one special evening, to
leave his fair head unpowdered. He had never looked more handsome
and Nell glowed with pride. Adeline, however, had eyes only for her
husband … elegantly saturnine in silver-laced black with the Order
of the Garter displayed upon his chest and diamonds winking on his
fingers and in his cravat. As always, his hair was confined at the
nape in long sable ribbons – to which, tonight, was added a narrow
diamond clasp; and as had been his habit again in recent weeks, it
was thickly powdered. Adeline sighed.

Then the
night-dark eyes were upon her, causing the now familiar dissolving
of her bones and he said with only a hint of mockery, ‘Behold,
Harry. We are meant, I believe, to be dumbstruck.’

Fortunately,
Harry was - and while he was gallantly presenting Nell with a
corsage of yellow roses, Adeline took the opportunity to say as
quickly and quietly as she could, ‘Tracy – I know you’re annoyed
but -- ’

Annoyed
?
he thought.
Darling, you have no idea
! But said blandly,
‘Now why should you suppose that?’

‘You know why.
And you can say whatever you like to me later. But don’t … please
don’t let it spoil Nell’s evening.’

‘I doubt very
much if anything can spoil Nell’s evening,’ he drawled. ‘On the
other hand, if you insist on slipping away to kiss my friends, it
may very well spoil mine.’ He surveyed her appraisingly and then
offered his arm. ‘You look exquisite, by the way. The diamonds suit
you. Shall we go?’

To which, of
course, there was no answer whatsoever.

Queensberry
House was already bidding fair to become crowded when they arrived
and Harry and Nell were instantly besieged by well-wishers and
affectionate teasing.

‘I do think you
might have
told
me,’ said Cassie Delahaye in mock-dudgeon.
‘It was quite monstrous of you to leave me to read it in the
Morning Chronicle
. Indeed, if I wasn’t so very pleased for
you both, I’d probably not speak to you at all.’

‘Well, I did
want to tell you,’ owned Nell, ‘but Harry said that if I once
began, there’d be no stopping me – and he was right, of course!’
She paused and looked doubtfully at her friend. ‘Are you
sure
you’re not just a little cross with me?’

‘You mean,’
grinned Cassie, ‘am I jealous? Yes – absolutely
green
. But
only on account of your luck, you silly creature. Harry’s a darling
… but I never had an eye to him myself. And much good it would have
done me if I had – for it was always plain as anything that you and
he belonged together.’

Having
congratulated Harry and left him talking to Rosalind, the Marquis
of Amberley directed a thoughtful gaze at his Grace and said,
‘Well, Rock? Are you pleased?’

‘I believe so,’
came the languid reply. ‘I had thought better of Harry’s
intelligence, of course … but there’s no accounting for taste, I
suppose. And, oddly enough, he appears well able to cope with
her.’

‘That must be a
comfort to you. But it’s a good match - and universally popular by
the look of things.’ He paused. ‘At the risk of receiving another
rebuff, am I allowed to ask if you and Adeline have … resolved your
difficulties?’

Rockliffe
looked at him. ‘You can ask. I’m no more inclined to talk about my
marriage now than I was a week ago. I do, however, apologise for my
lack of manners.’

‘Oh – well,
that’s all right then!’ retorted the Marquis with rare sarcasm. And
then, sighing, ‘I sometimes despair of you, Rock. But if
you’re
not going to dance with your wife, I trust you won’t
mind if
I
do.’