Page 13 of Unmasking the Earl

He was too strong, too charismatic. Too…tempting. A man like him would consume her like a blazing inferno, until there was nothing left but a pitiful pile of ash.

Wycherley might be a rake, but at least a woman knew where she stood with him. With Ganstridge, she had no idea at all.

The sound of raised voices in the corridor outside flooded her with relief.

Wycherley and Becca.

Rescue!

Her hands were shaking too much to do up the ribbons of her bonnet, and she was only half inside her pelisse as she exploded through the door, exclaiming, “Ah, Becca, I’m so sorry to put you out! I’m much recovered now, thank you. No need for the salts! I just need to get home and rest, and then I’ll be perfectly well again.”

“My dear Miss Blythe,” Wycherley said, looking at her in some alarm, “you are definitely not recovered. Please, may I offer you some refreshment before you go? There is a cold ham, some wafers, and a bull’s tongue in aspic. I’m sure we have cheese, as well, and some excellent German sausage.”

Cassie’s stomach contracted at the thought of so much meat, and contracted again when she thought of how she had reacted to that disrespectfully bold Ganstridge. How would she ever find the courage to go through with her plan now? If it meant she had to see him again?

Chapter Seven

It took Cassie nearly a week to forget the indignities piled upon her by Wycherley’s insolent servant, not to mention rationalize the effect he had on her body, firing her imagination in a way she could only describe as wanton.

In the end, she told herself she’d simply been on edge due to the daring nature of her plan. So, she decided to make another attempt to carry it out. A note was penned to Wycherley, the butcher’s boy was bribed to deliver it discreetly, and by the time market day came round again, Cassie had once more embarked on a course of action that was highly improper and had the potential to ruin her reputation forever.

But to be united with Julian was surely worth the risk.

He was generous, thoughtful, and calm, and so very good-looking. There was rarely a cross word spoken between them, which would make for a splendid marriage. So many couples she knew seemed to fight all the time. They became tired of one another, took lovers or mistresses, embarrassed each other in public. Why, you only had to look at the travesty of a marriage that existed between the new king, soon to be crowned George IV, and Princess Caroline!

Thankfully, Cassie would not be forced into marriage for dynastic reasons. Nor did she need to marry for money, due to a handsome settlement due to her when she came of age. Papa was not the kind of man to impose those things. Indeed, he would be happy to see her wed to their close family friend.

But neither Papa nor Julian would be at all impressed by her current wicked enterprise. She would simply have to be very, very careful not to be caught.

As luck would have it, on the day she was to put her scheme into action, a bout of rain almost ruined everything.

Papa decided that their servant, Ella, should not go to the market until the weather had dried up a little and that Becca must accompany Cassie with a pair of umbrellas to get her to her French class. Becca could wait in Captain Wycherley’s kitchen with a book until the lesson was over, if no more suitable room for a lady was available.

By Juno! It was a sore test of Cassie’s frayed nerves. If she hated deceiving her relations, she hated still more the thought of her true enterprise being discovered.

Standing by her father’s window in an agony of indecision, she eventually said, “I’m sure Madame Dupont won’t mind if I’m a little en retard. I would hate to put you out unnecessarily, Becca, and I cannot vouch for the comforts of the Captain’s kitchen, or any of the other rooms in his house. From the amount of meat being offered to us the other day, the kitchen is probably knee-deep in animal carcasses and not a suitable place for any gentlewoman. Let’s wait a quarter of an hour before we decide what to do. The rain may ease off.”

She couldn’t bear the thought of her scheme being delayed, now that it was in motion. She’d been imagining the expression on Julian’s face when he finally saw her, truly saw her, and all that she had to offer him…

He would grasp her arm and spirit her off to a rose-garlanded summer house. There he would kneel before her, kiss her hand, and press it to his cheek amidst declarations of eternal adoration. Then he would chastise himself as a fool for wasting so much of the time they could have spent together if only he had not been so blind.

The vivid vision drifted in front of her. He would propose. Blushing charmingly, she would accept, and then he would stand, crush her to his chest, and press his heated lips upon hers.

“Cassandra, do be careful, please. You will quite ruin the look of the drape if you keep clutching at it like that. Poor Ella will have to take it down and iron it.”

Cassie’s cheeks flamed. “Oh no, Becca, I was merely trying to rub away a sooty mark.” She smoothed down the drape and made her way to the chair, where she could watch both the clock and the scudding clouds.

The delightful fantasy reclaimed her mind but…stalled. What would happen after that heated embrace, after that first impassioned kiss? She knew about animals, but surely humans didn’t rut in the same bestial fashion? She’d tried to imagine what she and Julian might share when they were married…but there were infuriating gaps in the picture, things she had no knowledge of.

Things too deliciously wicked even to contemplate.

Oh, but it must stop raining! If she couldn’t begin her illicit lessons right now, she would burst! Where would she find the courage again to risk everything? Would Wycherley even be interested next week? They’d agreed on a trial today but had not planned beyond that.

And what if the annoyingly intriguing Mr. Ganstridge answered the door? He had been so insolent, so rude to her, yet their argument had somehow excited her.

No, not excited. Diverted. He had tempted her with his strong hands and his powerful body, confused and appalled her with his lack of gallantry and finesse. She’d no idea what to make of him, or what to do about him.

What if Ganstridge spread gossip about her?