Read Simply Carnal Online

Authors: Kate Pearce

Simply Carnal (23 page)

BOOK: Simply Carnal
9.39Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads
20
“M
r. Delornay? Mr. Ross and his guest are here,” Ambrose said.
Christian sat up straight and adjusted his cravat. “Please send him in, Ambrose, and find Mrs. Smith and ask her to join us.”
“Yes, Mr. Delornay.”
Christian stood as the door opened and Richard came through followed by a shorter, dark-haired man dressed in the height of fashion.
“Good morning, Mr. Delornay. May I present the Comte de Saint-Brieuc?”
Christian bowed and the other man followed suit.
“
Monsieur,
I believe I have to thank you for taking such good care of my late, lamented cousin’s wife.”
“I’ve done my best,” Christian replied, his gaze fixed on the man Elizabeth had been frightened enough of to run away from. He was younger than Christian had anticipated and quite unremarkable in any way. “She is an extraordinary woman.”
“Indeed, she is.” Armand sighed. “Although I fear my cousin’s demise upset the balance of her mind more than any of us realized.”
“Indeed?” Christian took his seat, and the other two men followed suit.
Armand shrugged. “Why else would she run away?”
“That is a very good question, sir, and one I hope you are able to answer for us.”
“It is a little complicated.” Armand spread his hands. “I fear she did not understand the legalities of the situation and became agitated as women are prone to do.”
There was a knock at the door and Ambrose ushered Elizabeth in. Christian had plenty of time to both judge her shock at facing Armand and ignore the accusing glance she shot him.
“Elizabeth!” Armand leaped to his feet and hurried toward her. “I am so glad to see that you are well. We have all been so worried about you, the children particularly.”
“Children?”
At first Christian didn’t even realize he was the one who had spoken.
Armand turned back to him, a glint in his eye. “Indeed, a boy and a girl.” He lowered his voice. “As I said, Elizabeth must have been momentarily crazed to abandon her children like that.”
Christian felt like someone had punched him in the gut. He ignored Armand and fixed his gaze on Elizabeth, who was as pale as the paper on his desk.
“You have children.”
She swallowed convulsively. “I—”
“Don’t worry about that, my sweet. That is all behind us now that you are to be restored to the bosom of your family.” Armand patted her arm and she flinched away from him.
Christian couldn’t take his gaze off Elizabeth as she sank down onto the nearest chair. He forced himself to gather his wits.
“It hasn’t yet been decided whether the dowager Comtesse de Saint-Brieuc wishes to return home.”
Armand placed his hand on his heart. “Of course she wishes to come home. What kind of mother would abandon her own offspring?”
“She’s hardly abandoned them, sir,” Richard said quietly. “I assume they are quite safe and well cared for at the château.”
“But a mother’s love,” Armand exclaimed. “Monsieur Delornay, I appeal to you.”
Christian forced a smile. “I’m not the best judge of that, sir.” Elizabeth brought a hand up to her mouth and closed her eyes. She looked completely defeated.
“Perhaps I should just go with Armand.”
Christian fought for his usual detachment but found it impossible to maintain. “You’ll stay here until this matter is decided properly,
madame
.”
Armand cleared his throat. “As Elizabeth’s closest male relative and future husband, I believe I am the one who should make that decision.”
“Are you certain you are her closest relative?” Christian countered. “I believe there might be others here in England who hold a higher claim than you do.”
Richard stood up and came between the two men, but he addressed his remarks to a now red-faced Armand. “Perhaps it would be better to wait until we have all the facts before us, sir.” He turned to Christian. “When do you think you will hear from Madame’s family?”
“Fairly soon, Mr. Ross.”
“What exactly does that mean?” Armand asked fretfully. “I have to get back to France. I have a position to maintain.”
From the corner of his eye, Christian noticed that Elizabeth looked as if she might faint. He was hardly surprised. Being exposed as a mother who had abandoned her children would be hard on anyone. He couldn’t help but recall his own mother’s appalled expression when he and Lisette had barged into this very room all those years ago.
“I’m expecting to hear within the next week. Are you willing to wait that long?” Christian asked.
“If I must,” Armand sniffed.
“In the meantime, Madame will remain here where she is safe.”
“What do you mean?” Armand raised his eyebrows.
Christian met his gaze head-on. “We would hate for there to be any more accidents to her person.”
Armand shrugged. “I assume you are referring to Gaston’s attempt to coax Elizabeth back to us. He can be a little impetuous at times, but it is just because he is so loyal to our family.”
“Impetuous?”
Armand had nothing to say to that and offered instead a typically Gallic shrug of his shoulders.
“One other thing, sir,” Christian interjected smoothly. “Do you perhaps have copies of the late Comte’s will? If Madame’s English family does join us, I’m sure her solicitors will be eager to make sure she is adequately provided for.”
Armand frowned. “Elizabeth is going to marry me. There is no reason for her lawyers to see anything.”
Christian couldn’t bring himself to look directly at Elizabeth, but he raised his voice a fraction. “Madame, do you intend to marry Armand?”
“No, Mr. Delornay, I do not.”
Christian smiled at the now-seething Frenchman. “Well it seems nothing is quite settled after all. Perhaps we would be wise to wait until all the legalities are over and let
Madame
decide exactly where she wants to live and with whom.” Christian nodded at Richard. “I’ll send you a message when my solicitors receive an answer to my letter. Perhaps you would be willing to bring the comte back with you in a few days? I’m sure we will be able to resolve this to everyone’s satisfaction.”
He went to the door and caught Richard’s eye as he went past him. He kept his voice low. “I need you to find out everything you can about the Saint-Brieucs, particularly about the last holder of the title and his will.”
“I’ll do my best,” Richard murmured.
Christian waited a second until Richard and Armand disappeared before turning back to Ambrose. “Go to my solicitors, tell them that matters have now become urgent and find out if they have any information for us.”
“Yes, Mr. Delornay.” Ambrose hesitated. “Do you want me to escort Elizabeth upstairs?”
“I’ll handle Mrs. Smith,” Christian said. “Go on. I’m not going to tear her limb from limb.”
Ambrose reluctantly started down the hallway, his gaze worried, and Christian turned back to his office, where Elizabeth awaited him. He went in and closed the door softly behind him, then crossed the room to sit at his desk. He needed a physical barrier between him and Elizabeth; he knew that.
“Well, Mrs. Smith. Or should I say, Madame la Comtesse de Saint-Brieuc?”
“I’m still Elizabeth. That part at least was true.” She looked up at him and smiled, and he felt the falseness of it slam like a knife into his chest. So she was going to play her part through to the bitter end. Good, because by all that was holy, he needed the protection of the role already assigned to him.
“I apologize for bringing you face-to-face with your intended like that, but I thought it for the best.”
“I do not intend to marry Armand, Mr. Delornay.”
“Ah, that’s right.” He paused. “What exactly do you intend to do, then?”
She shrugged as though the matter was of very little importance. “I suppose if he understands that I will never marry him, I’ll go back to France.”
“I’m sure your children will be very relieved to hear that.” He hated the snap in his voice but couldn’t suppress it.
She glanced at him and then away. “I knew you would find that unforgiveable.”
“Abandoning your children?” He gave her a smile as false as her own. “Why on earth would you think that? I’m sure your arguments on this matter will echo those of my mother. She always insists that she didn’t abandon us—that she made sure she left us with every material comfort a child could desire.”
Pain flashed across her face but was gone so quickly that he wasn’t sure if he’d seen it or only hoped for it in his own fevered imagination.
“This is why I didn’t tell you the truth, Mr. Delornay. I knew it would enrage you.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Hardly that. It just confirms my opinion that not all women are suited to be mothers.”
“I ...”
For a moment he thought she was going to argue with him, but she closed her mouth and shook her head instead.
“Whatever the outcome, Madame, I suggest we wait until we hear from your English relatives before you decide to trot dutifully back with Armand to France.”
Her chin went up at that. “My, Mr. Delornay, you have been busy meddling in my affairs. I thought I told you my father’s family had no interest in me at all?”
He held her gaze, aware that, despite the coldness and sense of distance settling over him again, he wanted nothing more than to strike out at her and hurt her as much as she was hurting him. “You told me many things, Madame, most of them false. How was I supposed to know when you spoke the truth?”
She rose from her chair, one hand gripping the back of it as if she needed the support. “If you give me Armand’s direction, I can leave the pleasure house right now, sir.”
“I do not have it, and as I’ve already said, you will remain here until everything is sorted to my satisfaction.”
“But this isn’t your affair, Mr. Delornay. It is mine.”
“You are still employed here.”
“Then I’ll resign.”
“You’ll stay here, Madame la Comtesse. It is still the safest place for you.”
She met his hard gaze, and he realized she was close to tears. Despite everything, he wanted to go to her, enfold her in his arms, and tell her that everything would be all right.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Delornay.”
He bowed. “There is absolutely nothing to be sorry about, Madame. I’m delighted to have been of service to you in your time of need.”
“Don’t say that.” She took an impulsive step toward him and then faltered as if whatever she saw in his eyes frightened her. “You didn’t deserve to get caught up in all this.”
“It has been an interesting adventure, has it not?” He shrugged. “Almost as amusing as attending a badly written play. But all things must come to an end.”
Ah, that was better; he sounded almost like his old self again. “Perhaps next time you consider abandoning your home and your children, you’ll think about the consequences before you disrupt so many lives. It always amazes me how selfish beautiful women can be.”
She stiffened. “I knew you wouldn’t be able to resist comparing me to your mother.”
“I can hardly help it, can I?”
She took a sudden step toward him, her hands fisted at her sides. “Because we’re both willing to do anything to safeguard the future of our children?”
He stared down at her. “Don’t you dare tell me what I think. I understand my mother far better than you ever will.”
“I don’t think you do. You still view her as you did as a child.”
“And you think your opinion means anything to me?” He summoned a dismissive smile. “Like knows like, Madame. Of course you would defend my mother. You are just like her.”
The color left her face and she went still. All he could hear was the clock on the mantelpiece ticking and her harsh intake of breath.
She smiled and the beauty of it made him want to close his eyes. “Yes, Mr. Delornay. I am exactly like your mother, and I wouldn’t change that for
anything
. For once you are absolutely and completely right.”
 
Elizabeth managed to get to her bedchamber before she started to cry, but it was very close. She sank down onto the rug before the fire, pressed her hands to her eyes, and sobbed until she was shaking and gasping. Armand had made her look like a madwoman and just the sort of mother Christian would despise. And, God, with his history, he’d taken the bait perfectly. What defense did she have? Whatever the circumstances, he’d already judged and condemned her.
As she began to run out of tears, Elizabeth turned to the warm fire in the grate and stared into the flames. It didn’t change anything. She’d already known she would lose Christian whatever happened. No man would want to be burdened with a woman like her. She’d lied far too often and far too well to encourage anyone to trust or believe in her. She hadn’t expected Christian to withdraw his support from her so completely, though; she hadn’t realized how much she’d come to rely on him either... .
BOOK: Simply Carnal
9.39Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

Other books

Across the Mekong River by Elaine Russell
Project 17 by Laurie Faria Stolarz
The Salt Smugglers by Gerard de Nerval
Run Before the Wind by Stuart Woods
A Proper Scandal by Charis Michaels