His Curious Imp Read online

  “If you want it, take it.” There was still an undercurrent of anger in his voice and Gabby walked toward the table near the fireplace and sat down.

  “If you think I’m coming toward that bed you’re bonkers.” She flicked an imaginary piece of lint off her skirts. It was the same thing he’d done the day before with his trousers.

  “Do you think we could get tea?”

  His lips turned up in an evil grin, and she grasped the arms of the chair in an effort to keep herself in place.

  For a moment he didn’t move, but then he rang for a servant and ordered tea to be served in the library.

  “After you.” He swept his hand toward her when the servant was gone.

  For a moment she thought it was a trick, that when she made for the door he would grab her and throw her on the bed.

  “If you’re planning on accosting me I can assure you that I don’t think of that as seduction.”

  To her surprise he threw back his head and laughed. “I promise you, Gabriella, I am not planning on forcing myself on you. I do think you need punishment, but I’ve decided to postpone it.”

  “Indefinitely, I hope,” she said. “I can assure you, once again, that I don’t consider that seduction, either.”

  “We’ll have a talk about seduction later,” he said. “But right now if we don’t get downstairs our tea will get cold, and if there’s one thing I detest, it’s cold tea.”

  Gabby glared at him, and then she backed out of the room, keeping her gaze locked on his. Once again he laughed.

  “Don’t trust me, Gabriella?”

  “Not as far as I can throw a farthing,” she said. She felt better when she was in the hallway, until she realized she didn’t know where she was going. She stopped at the top of the stairs and waited for him.

  He walked slowly, stopping several feet away from her. “The library is toward the back of the house, on the right.” He winked at her, and she wanted to throw something at him.

  “I’ll wait here while you go down, so you don’t think I’m going to throw you over my shoulder and carry you back to the bedroom.”

  She hated to admit that she rather liked that idea. It would make a rather large mark in the seduction column. Gabby squared her shoulders and marched down the stairs, ignoring the chuckle that followed her down.

  The library wasn’t hard to find, and when she touched the teapot she found it was still warm. She poured herself a cup of tea and doctored it with sugar and milk, and then sat down. When Fergus came in the room she took a small sip and watched as he looked around for his cup.

  “Knowing how you detest cold tea, I didn’t want to expose yours to the air any more than necessary,” she said with a smirk. She took another sip.

  Fergus didn’t say a word as he poured his tea—milk only—and then sat down.

  “Let’s discuss what happened today, shall we?” he asked.

  “I’m not used to answering to someone about my work,” she said, even though that wasn’t the truth. She answered to men all the time.

  “One toe in the wrong direction and those men would have been selling you to the body snatchers and you’d be on a surgeon’s table for experiments before the clock struck midnight.”

  Gabby shivered at the thought. “I admit I was a little, shall we say, reckless. But nothing came of it. You’re exaggerating.”

  “Will you be able to say the same thing if you go through with your little scheme for tonight?”

  She put down her teacup. “I’ve decided to wear men’s clothing. That way I can move faster. Plus, there is no chance the men would recognize me later, if I’m wearing trousers and a shirtwaist.”

  “Do you have trousers and a shirtwaist?” he asked.

  “Well…” She let the word drift off. “I can borrow those items.”

  He set down his own cup. “Out of the question. I won’t enable you to break the law.”

  “You won’t help me in my career?” Gabby let her lower lip tremble.

  “It’s a good thing you’re not on the stage,” he said after a few moments.

  Gabby flicked her tongue over her teeth. “Fine, things are not going well at the newspaper. If I don’t get this story I will most likely be sacked before the end of the week. Now, you can help me, or I will do it on my own.”

  “How do you think you will get away from me?” he asked.

  “Well, a good swift kick to your crotch will disable you,” she said. “I’ve had to use that movement before. It’s not pleasant, I know because I’ve seen the effects.”

  Fergus crossed his legs as if he were trying to protect what lay between them.

  “Please, Fergus, all I ask is to borrow a pair of trousers and a shirtwaist.”

  “Oh holy hell,” he said after a few moments. “Fine, I will loan you the clothing, but I am going with you.”

  “It will be easier if I go alone,” she said.

  “It will be safer if we go together,” he responded. “Say around ten?”

  “Oh no, midnight, the witching hour,” she said. “The boys will be out picking pockets. With any luck we will be able to sneak in and search things. The only problem is it will be so dark.”

  “We should wait for a starry night,” he said. “Or we can just take a candle and hope we’re not discovered.”

  “I don’t want to wait,” she said. “There is every chance they will move the items, and, of course, there is the fact that I could be without a job by Friday.” She hated to sound so vulnerable, but that’s exactly the way she felt right now.

  “Well, I think we should both take an afternoon nap to prepare for this evening.”

  She lifted her brows and said, “I told you, I won’t be a mistress.”

  “Sleep does not equal sex, Gabriella,” he said. “I’m offering you a place to lie down and sleep a little. You have great plans for tonight, but if they don’t go as planned we might be out until the wee hours of the morning. We both need our rest. If that is acceptable to you I will have a maid show you to a guest room. You may lock the door if you like.”

  “Trust me, I will,” she said.

  “Then we’ll have dinner, and we’ll set off on your little adventure.”

  “What about the statue you stole?” she asked.

  “I have a friend who works at the British Museum,” he said. “I would like to show it to him and see what he can tell us about it. But since you are so set upon breaking and entering then that is what we shall do. I’ll invite him for tea tomorrow.”

  Before she could object that he was making all the plans, he held up his finger. “If that is acceptable to you, that is. If not, we can discuss other options.”

  “Yes, because you have a say in these things,” she said, sarcastically.

  “I have little time to ply my suit,” he said. “I intend to use every moment available to me.”

  Gabby couldn’t help but grin. “Your days are getting shorter by the moment,” she said. “And I promise you, I will lock my door.”

  “I’m always up for a challenge,” he said. He winked at her and rang a bell. When the maid appeared he ordered her to take Gabby to the green room. The maid nodded and then stood as if she were waiting for Gabby to exit first.

  “I’m not used to servants,” she said, softly.

  He didn’t answer, and she wondered what he was thinking. “I’ll see you at dinner,” he finally said.

  Gabby followed the maid to the second floor. When the young woman opened the door to a room down the hallway from the place where she’d just been, Gabby stepped inside and managed, just barely, to keep her shock to herself. This room was beautiful, decorated in different shades of green that were beautifully accented by the cream colored wall paper with light yellow roses.

  “Shall I draw a bath for you, ma’am?” the maid asked.

  Gabby almost swooned. It had been years since she’d had someone treat her this way, and she couldn’t help but nod, even though she knew she shouldn’t take advantage of
the situation.

  “Give me a few moments,” the maid said. “There is fresh clothing in the wardrobe.”

  Gabby didn’t doubt that there was, and she was sure the outfits she found there far outshone the one she wore now. How many other women had slept in this bedroom, she wondered. While it was a thought that needed to be answered, right now all she really wanted was to sleep, to prepare for tonight.

  Half an hour later she was bathed and wrapped in a silky chemise, the likes of which she’d never worn before. Before she lay down in bed she did exactly what she’d told Fergus she would do.

  She locked the door.

  * * *

  Why she hadn’t thought about a connecting door she didn’t know. All she knew was that when she woke up several hours later, or at least she figured it was such because of the darkness that filled the room, Fergus sat in a chair opposite the bed.

  He sat with his chin propped on his linked hands. His eyes were closed, and his legs crossed.

  “You’re a liar,” she said.

  “How so?” he asked without opening his eyes.

  “You’re in my room,” she said. “You obviously picked one that had a connecting room. Tell me, do your lovers stay in here?”

  He opened his eyes, and even in the darkness she could see the desire that lit his face. “This is not a connecting room, Gabriella. But what you failed to take into account is that this is my house, and I have the keys.”

  “Damn you,” she said.

  “Don’t damn me yet,” he said. “If I meant to help myself to your favors I would be in bed with you instead of sitting next to you.”

  He had a point, but Gabby would not admit the fact that she hadn’t thought the situation through to this point.

  “Why are you here?”

  “I wanted to tell you that dinner is almost ready,” he said. He stood and walked to the end of the bed. “And I brought you these.”

  He held up a pair of trousers and a shirtwaist.

  Gabby sat up and reached for them. She realized too late that she wore the silky chemise that hid very little of her chest. Her gaze shifted from the clothing to his face. His gaze was fastened on her chest, and the desire that she’d seen before seemed to glow now.

  “Leave them and I’ll change,” she said. “Unless you object to me being dressed in men’s clothing for dinner.”

  “Not at all,” he said. “Of course, we could just stay here and have an indoor picnic. You wouldn’t have to change until after we’d eaten.”

  “While I am in your lover’s chemise?”

  He frowned, and said, “That is not my lover’s chemise, because I do not have a lover.”

  “Then whose is it?” she asked.

  “It belongs to my sister,” he said. “That thought rather puts a damper on things. So, I will leave and you can change your clothing and come to the dining room. Cook has prepared roast beef and vegetables, and there is always a good pudding for dessert.”

  “Trying to bribe me with food?”

  “Not until you get dressed.” He laughed. “I can’t believe I said that. Get on with you then. I’m hungry.” He took a step toward the door. “Can I help you dress? Or shall I send a maid?”

  “No thank you on both points,” she said. “I’m used to dressing myself.”

  “I’m out then before I lose control of myself.”

  Gabby held back a giggle as he shut the door behind himself. She was still trying to figure him out. He’d been so mad earlier, yet now he was back to wanting to seduce her. It seemed odd.

  She got up and, after a few false attempts, she found her way into the trousers and the shirtwaist. She braided her hair and wrapped it around her head. She would need to borrow a cap of some sort to hide it tonight. She was sure Fergus had some such thing around.

  Once downstairs she found him waiting at the dining room table, drumming his fingers against the wood.

  “You had a delivery while you were sleeping,” he said after he’d helped her into her chair.

  “Here?” she asked.

  “From Charlotte,” he said. “She sent over several dresses.”

  “For what?”

  He sat back and watched as the maid ladled soup into his bowl. After she’d done the same for Gabby he said, “It’s for her party.”

  “She’s still going on about that?” Gabby said before she took a taste of the soup. It was quite excellent and she ate a bit more before she spoke again. “I appreciate what she’s trying to do, but I don’t plan on going to any party.”

  He mumbled something and she said, “What?”

  “How’s the soup?” he answered.

  “Delicious.” She finished her bowl and refused the offer when the maid came back to refill the bowl.

  When she brought the fish course he said, “Not that I want to delve too deeply into your past, but I think it would be good if we knew a little more about each other.”

  “Fine.” She took a bite, chewed and swallowed. “You go first.”

  “I thought we’d do it as a sort of interview,” he said. “Show me your skills.”

  Gabby narrowed her eyes just a little. “Are you testing me?”

  “I’m curious, that’s all.” He took a drink from his wine. “And, I admit, I want to know more about you, and I don’t think it’s fair of me to question you and not give you the same opportunity.”

  “In other words you want to make sure I’m worthy?”

  “Not at all,” he replied. “I want to get to know you. You fascinate me, Gabriella. I don’t know many independent women, and I want to know if you’ve always been that way.”

  She finished her fish and the maid immediately took away the plate.

  The maid delivered the meat and vegetables. “I’m going to be as round as a pumpkin by the end of the night,” Gabby said.

  “We’ll eat slowly,” he said. “After all, it’s rude to talk with your mouth full, and we are going to be talking.”

  Gabby took a bite of meat, ate and then asked, “Please tell me how many brothers and sisters you have.”

  “I have four brothers and one sister.” He ate his own bite. “Rather a boring subject to start with, don’t you think?”

  Gabby waited a moment. When she realized that he wasn’t going to elaborate she smiled.

  “Are you the oldest?”

  “I am the second in command, so to speak,” he said. “I have a twin brother who is a few moments older than I am. His name is Ian.”

  Gabby couldn’t fathom the idea of there being two men so powerfully sexy in the world. “Identical?”

  “Yes,” he said. He took another drink of his wine.

  “And?”

  “And what?”

  She let out a sigh of exasperation. “Please tell me the ages of your other siblings. And their names.” She added the last part on quickly and he grinned.

  “Brice is twenty-eight, Stuart is twenty-six, Martin is twenty-two and Cecily is nineteen.”

  “And how old are you, Lord McIntyre?”

  “I am thirty-two, Gabriella.”

  “You have hobbies?”

  “I do.”

  She waited, and then realized that she should have asked what his hobbies were. She did so and he informed her that he enjoyed horseback riding, playing cards and spending time with his friends.

  “And seducing women.” Her voice was soft.

  “I have seduced my fair share.” He took another bite, and Gabby watched him.

  “Are you not going to elaborate?”

  “No, I am not,” he said. He sat back in his chair. “I believe a woman has the right to her privacy. I don’t think you’d want me telling others about our intimate details.”

  “There are none,” she said.

  “There will be,” he responded, his tone low and seductive.

  Gabby needed to change the subject, and she needed to do it quickly.

  “Tell me the most daring thing you did in your youth.”

  “
By daring you mean illegal?”

  Gabby had been lifting her fork to her mouth, and she paused before she took the bite. “Are you a criminal? If you are this could be a bigger story than the statues.”

  “Depends on your definition,” he said. “One night my brothers and I broke into a neighbor’s home when they were having a party and took a few bottles of wine. We went home and drank the lot, and spent the next day being violently ill.”

  He picked up his wine, then sniffed in disgust as if he were remembering the day. He set the wine back down.”

  “Does that answer your question?” he asked.

  “I suppose so,” she said with a laugh. “We’ve all had youthful indiscretions, so to speak. One night, on All Hallows’ Eve, when I was fifteen, my friends and I, including Charlotte, sneaked out and went to the graveyard to have a séance.”

  “Was it successful?” he asked.

  “At scaring the daylights out of us,” she said. “My father tanned my hide the next morning. That experience kept me from breaking my parents’ edicts until…”

  Her voice drifted off.

  “Until the night you and your fiancé were out?”

  “Yes.” She didn’t really want to talk about it, but she knew there was nothing for it.

  She took a drink of her wine, as if to fortify herself. “We were supposed to be married in two weeks’ time. He told me he loved me. I wonder now if he’d planned on backing out of the wedding and just wanted to be able to brag that he’d had me.”

  “And your parents?”

  “They found out the next day.” She cleared her throat. “They disowned me and forced me out of the house right after dark. They didn’t want the neighbors seeing me. They were too embarrassed.”

  “I’m so sorry.” For a moment she thought he would reach out and touch her, but she didn’t want him to. “I’d already packed for the wedding, which meant I had a valise full of clothing, and a bit of money I’d saved.”

  “Did you take the train to London?”

  “Oh no, they’d already run for the night,” she said. Memories filtered back. She didn’t want to think about what happened, about the pain she’d felt, the emptiness of her parents turning her out. “I went to the church. The vicar, being the good man that he was, threw me out as a whore. I spent that evening huddled under the church portal, wrapped in my cloak. I caught the train to London the first thing in the morning. I’ve been here ever since.”