Chapter 7 #2
“Because you are the traitor. No one in the Foreign Office could have known I was injured on my way here, much less left for dead. Did you order it or did Westling decide to act on his own?”
“Westling’s idea.” Meade emitted a deflated breath. “How long have you known about me?”
“It was mere suspicion until you wrote that letter asking to meet ‘the duke’s emissary’ here tonight. You knew I would never send an underling to meet you, and would come here myself. Who else is here with you?”
“Allenwood and Grimshaw. We are all three here on orders of the Foreign Office. Do they know I’m the one they’re after?”
He nodded. “Possibly. I don’t know how much Castlereagh has told them.”
“Lord Castlereagh’s not one to make accusations without solid proof.
I’ll wager it is only you who truly suspects me.
” Meade sighed. “The other two, Allenwood and Grimshaw, are busy watching Westling. They’ll be very disappointed when they find you dead, and those secret documents planted on you.
Sorry to besmirch your sterling reputation, but you’ve left me no choice. ”
“Stop dreaming, Meade. It is over. Castlereagh will never believe I was the inside man. Plant whatever you like on me, plant a bloody garden on me, but it will do you no good. Castlereagh will never let you or Westling get away.” James felt a deep sorrow wash over him.
“If you needed funds, you could have come to me. I would have given you whatever you asked.”
“And have me be forever indebted to you? Knowing I could never pay you back?” He raised his pistol and aimed it at James’s chest. “My mother always adored you. How do you think that made me feel when I was her blood son?”
“She was a good woman and loved us both. She opened her heart to me, just as my father opened his heart to you. They were good and decent people.”
Meade shrugged. “I grew to hate them.”
“And me, too, apparently.”
“Actually, I like and admire you very much. I’m sorry it has come to this, James.
Brother against brother. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
If anyone is to take the fall, it will be you.
All I need is a minute or two to plant the evidence and make it point to you.
I’ll take my chances with Castlereagh. I can be convincing when I put my mind to it. ”
“You’ll never get away with this, Meade. Put down your pistol and we’ll work it out.”
“No, too late for that. Westling’s usefulness is also at an end. I’ve told him to join us out here. He should be along shortly.”
“I see. You’re going to kill him, too.”
Meade nodded. “He’s going to take the blame for shooting you. And then I will conveniently shoot him before he can confess anything to Allenwood or Grimshaw.”
“I would rethink that plan,” a sweet, feminine voice called out from the shadows behind Meade. “I have a pistol trained at your head, sir.”
Florence.
James growled in frustration.
Why choose now to use that blasted pistol when she never even wanted to carry it in her reticule?
What did she plan to do next? Fire the pistol?
And then what was she going to do when she missed Meade, as James knew she would because this girl did not have the killer instinct? “Florence, get out of here.”
“No. And by the way, two very formidable-looking men have just joined me. I believe they must be the gentlemen, Allenwood and Grimshaw, you mentioned. They are pointing pistols at you, Lord Meade. They’ve heard most of your admission.
So, please put your weapon down and let your brother do whatever he can to save you from the gallows. ”
“Westling has also been taken into custody, Your Grace,” Allenwood said, stepping forward to address James. “Lord Castlereagh appreciated your cooperation and apologizes for taking so long to set up this plan. We’ll next be rounding up the Westling underlings who attacked you.”
Grimshaw stepped forward to disarm Meade, who offered no resistance. “Will you be returning to London with us now, Your Grace?”
“Yes, Your Grace,” Florence said, her ache evident. “Do let us know your intentions.”
He sighed. “Florence, I can explain.”
“Do not bother. I’d rather hear no more lies from you. In fact, I would rather never hear from you again. Lord Allenwood can give my grandfather and me a report once the matter is concluded.”
“Ignore her, Allenwood,” James said. “I shall deal with Lady Florence and her grandfather.”
“But I do not wish to deal with you, Your Grace,” she retorted. “Or should I still refer to you as Captain Ryder? Why give me any of your time when there must be hundreds of elegant bosoms awaiting you in London?” She huffed, obviously still overset, and stormed back toward the house.
Allenwood and Grimshaw chuckled.
Even Meade was amused. “Worth being caught just to see you taken down a peg, James.”
He frowned. “Whose bright idea was it to involve Lady Florence?”
Allenwood cleared his throat. “She took it upon herself, hoping to stall your brother while one of Somerville’s footmen brought us her urgent message. Do not be angry with her, Your Grace. It was our fault for losing sight of Lord Meade. She saved your life with her quick thinking.”
“Assuming my brother would have shot me,” he said, still hurting over Meade’s downfall.
“Sorry, James. I would have done it,” Meade replied with a careless shrug.
James was not certain he believed him, for Meade had plenty of chances to do so before Florence arrived to save him, and even afterward because she was obviously not a trained agent and had no idea about defensive protocols. “Do you have further need of me, Allenwood?”
“No, Your Grace. Grimshaw and I are here with a team of agents. We’ll get your brother and Westling back to London.”
“Good, then I’ll return to Swann Hall and see you in London next week.” He strode off in search of Florence and caught up to her as she was about to enter the ballroom from the terrace.
He took her by the hand and dragged her back into the garden. “Do not struggle. My ribs are killing me.”
“Too bad, Your Grace. Did you not think it important to tell me who you really were?” she asked, sounding obviously overset.
“But then, you were only amusing yourself. How convenient to court me as Captain James Ryder, only to disappear forever once you were healed and the game no longer held any interest for you.”
“Florence, you were never a game for me.” He drew her into his arms, wanting to soothe her because perhaps he should not have waited so long to reveal his identity to her.
But the Foreign Office matter was sensitive and delicate.
Surely, she had to understand that discretion was necessary.
He breathed a little easier when he felt her soften against him.
“I will admit to being at fault for keeping the truth from you, but I only did it to keep you out of this intrigue.”
“I was involved from the moment I rescued you,” she countered. “That’s twice I’ve saved your life, if you count last week and tonight.”
Now, it was his turn to frown at her. “Why in hell were you hiding in the bushes tonight? Have you ever shot a pistol? Do not bother to answer, I know you haven’t. For future reference, if you are going to shoot someone, aim for the body, not the head. The body’s a bigger target and easier to hit.”
“I only meant to distract him, not actually fire a weapon.”
“Even worse, for he could have turned and shot you. Can you not see that you placed yourself in greatest danger? This is the last thing I ever wished you to do.”
“Why should you care? You were only playing with my affections.”
“You know it is not true. The only reason I withheld my identity is that I did not want word getting around and placing you in danger, something you managed to do tonight anyway despite my best efforts. I’m the one responsible to protect you, not the other way around.”
“That is ridiculous. You are my James, even if you lied about being a duke. I had to save you. Why did you tell my grandfather and not me?”
“I did not tell him. He guessed the truth, so I swore him to secrecy. Glad to know he is a man of honor and never let on to you.”
“We are both honorable and trustworthy. You could have revealed yourself to me, as well.”
He laughed. “I did reveal too much of myself by spending three days naked in your bed before I finally got back my clothes.”
“It was a guest bed. Not mine.”
“Then I hope to soon be in your bed, sharing quarters and sharing a lifetime with you as my wife and duchess. Florence, I am in love with you. I knew it the moment I set eyes on you?and do not make a face at me,” he said with a chuckle, for he loved her big eyes and dimples, too.
“I am not a fool. I know what I have been missing in my life and in my heart. You. Do not make me beg for your forgiveness when I never meant to hurt you, only keep you safe. And I am willing to honor and protect you until death do us part.”
Her eyes widened as she stared at him.
“Marry me, my angel. Say you will.”
“What about my grandfather? How can I abandon him?”
“You would break his heart if you gave up your happiness for his own. Nor do I wish to see either of you hurt. Have him come live with us.”
She swallowed hard, still staring at him. “James, he will never leave Swann Hall.”
“Then visit him as often as you like. I am not trying to take you away from him, just asking for a space in your heart for me. I cannot move down here when I must spend so much time between London and my estates up north. Florence, we will work it out because I do not want to be without you. I cannot be without you. What do you say, love?”
“I don’t know. I am still on the fence about you.” But her lips twitched, so he knew she was struggling to suppress a smile. “Will you kiss me, James?”
“Here and now?” At her nod, he crushed his mouth down on hers and kissed her with all the depth of promise in his heart.
“I’ll kiss you every blessed day of our lives, Florence.
I’ll kiss you and love you, and I’ll always be true.
I’m so sorry I did not tell you I was Wellbourne.
Perhaps I was too cynical, and perhaps I liked the way you saw me and not my title.
I wanted us to get to know each other better without any trappings to blind us.
If it is any consolation, I quickly saw that I could trust you. ”
“Yet, you still did not tell me.”
“Because I enjoyed being James to you and watching you fall in love with me, as I was falling in love with you. But I also needed to concentrate on bringing this matter of the Foreign Office traitor to a close, and did not want to be distracted any more than I already was. The traitor is now discovered, and my greatest fear has come to pass. I wanted so much to be wrong about Meade.”
“I’m so sorry,” she said with sincerity.
“In worrying about him, I’ve hurt you. For that, I am the one who owes you the apology. My duties with the Foreign Office are now at an end and I am all yours.”
She said nothing for a long moment, and then smiled. “Your kiss was nice.”
He let out a breath. “Will that sway your decision about marrying me?”
She shrugged. “It might.”
“Close your eyes, Florence.”
She laughed. “Why?”
“Because I think you need a little more convincing. I love you, Florence.” He kissed her again and again. “Be my wife.”
She cast him a dimpled smile when he ended the kiss. “Yes, James. I’ll marry you. I love you, too.”
“Hallelujah,” he muttered and kissed her breathless.
THE END
* * *
A Duke In Peril is a stand-alone novella written for the Bluestocking Belles’ latest anthology, Love’s Perilous Road.
If you enjoy Meara’s humorous historical romances, then read her Silver Dukes series, Farthingales series, or Book of Love series.
For a more heartwarming read, there’s her Moonstone Landing series, and if you love dragons and epic battles between Fae warriors and Dragon Lords who rule the underworld, then try her Dark Gardens series.