More Than a Rogue Page 2
The voices grew louder, though they could only be described as whispers. And although Griffin could not discern what was being said, he knew everything he needed to know the moment he saw Miss Howard in Mr. Bale’s arms, his face moving closer to hers until…
“What do you think you’re doing?” Griffin asked in his most authoritative voice.
Mr. Bale leapt away from Miss Howard and spun toward Griffin. His eyes were as wide as his mouth. “I, um…I…that is…” he sputtered.
Miss Howard’s hands fisted and Griffin saw she was glaring at him with extreme displeasure. “I think it’s perfectly obvious,” she told him.
Mr. Bale cleared his throat. “Miss Howard and I—”
“Are not affianced, as far as I know,” Griffin murmured. He could not explain why the possibility they might be grated as much as it did, but there was something about Miss Howard…something that tempted him beyond reason. He cleared his throat. “If that situation has recently changed, then I sincerely apologize for the intrusion.”
Mr. Bale stared at him. He then glanced at Miss Howard, who sighed as if she had no doubt of how he would answer. “It has not.” There was a pause, and then, “I was just—”
“Leaving,” Griffin bit out.
Mr. Bale stared back at him for a brief moment as if considering whether or not it was wise to argue. Don’t. As if hearing him, Mr. Bale turned and gave Miss Howard a curt bow. “Forgive me.” He strode off with an apologetic glance at Griffin.
“I’ve a good mind to hit you right now,” Miss Howard announced as soon as they were alone. “You were horribly rude to Mr. Bale, who was merely trying to be helpful’.”
“Helpful?” Ha! “He was certainly trying to help himself to something, I’ll grant you that. And you were not protesting.” He considered the sharp look in her eyes and the way her jaw tightened in response to his words. For some inexplicable reason he needed to know what her intention had been, so he took a step closer and gazed down into her upturned face. “Were you?”
“Of course not.” She averted her gaze, and he imagined that if it hadn’t been dark, he would have seen her blush.
Still, her blasé response shocked him. “Of course not,” he repeated in a low murmur.
She sighed. “Mr. Bale and I are friends. Nothing more.”
The relief he experienced in response to that statement caught him completely off guard. He had no romantic interest in Miss Howard himself. To suppose such a thing would suggest he was open to marriage. Which he wasn’t. Not anymore. Not after Clara had broken his heart.
The keen humiliation he felt whenever he thought back on how she had fooled him still smarted. He fought the urge to tug on his cravat as the air in his lungs grew hot, and forced his attention back to Miss Howard. A dalliance with his sister-in-law’s friend could only lead to the altar, and that was a destination he meant to avoid at all cost.
He tried to keep his voice steady so he wouldn’t sound too accusatory. “And yet I caught you embracing him as if you meant to—”
“My earring is caught.”
Griffin stared back at her, confused. “What?”
She turned the left side of her head toward him and raised her hand to point at the strands of hair tangled in a dangling collection of diamonds. “Mr. Bale noticed and offered to put me to rights.”
“But…” Griffin’s thought process stumbled as he considered her words. He’d seen her standing inappropriately close to Mr. Bale, so he’d made an assumption. But it was also dark. So dark, in fact, he could not discern her features very clearly. Which meant it was possible he’d imagined something that had not been there.
He inhaled deeply and accepted that he had been wrong. “I’m sorry.” His gaze slid to the asymmetrical mess at the side of her head. “If you will permit, I would be happy to offer my assistance. ’Tis the least I can do at this point.”
She shook her head. “Thank you, but it would probably be best if I returned inside before someone else mistakes your assistance for something it isn’t.”
She stepped around him, moving so close he managed to catch a hint of the sweetest perfume. Honeysuckle perhaps? Or peonies? He wasn’t quite sure, but there was no mistaking the heady effect it had on him or how it beckoned for him to pull her close and press his nose to her skin.
He quashed that foolish idea as immediately as it had formed.
“I shall ask Mama or Laura for help,” she said as she started strolling away.
He followed behind while wondering how he could make her stay. Which was silly since there was no point in furthering their acquaintance when he would depart for Vienna soon. Nothing good could come of it. If anything, the longer they stayed out here together alone, the greater the risk of others imagining they’d had an assignation. But he found he regretted their rendezvous ending so quickly. And with him having ruined what would probably have been an enjoyable walk for her and Mr. Bale.
“Can you forgive me for thinking the worst?” he asked.
She drew to a halt and turned to him, her face more visible now that they were nearer the light from the terrace. A polite smile captured her lips. “Of course. It was an understandable mistake.”
“You’re not upset?”
“No.”
He registered the mistruth because of how bluntly it was delivered. “Are you sure?” She’d always seemed honest and forthright, so it bothered him that he’d somehow caused her to put up a barrier between them now. “I am not so sensitive that I can’t handle a set down.” Or at the very least an honest response.
Her chin rose and she crossed her arms, affecting the pose of a woman who was rapidly reaching the end of her patience. Griffin braced himself in anticipation of what she would say. Her words, however, where most unexpected. “You ought to know me well enough by now to realize that I am not the sort of woman who would ever invite a man to ravish her at a social event where anyone might happen to see.” Her eyes were almost black, shimmering fiercely in the moonlight. “The fact that you did so is a testament to your opinion of me, which is frighteningly low.”
“I did not think you’d let Mr. Bale go quite so far as to ravish you, Miss Howard.” And now that she’d put that picture in his head, he was having a damned hard time dislodging it again. Which added a terse element to his voice that she did not deserve.
She marched forward, closing the distance between them “Nor would I throw away a kiss so easily, without a thought or a care in the world.”
* * *
Griffin did his best to come to terms with her statement. There was something in what she had said. Something meaningful just beyond his grasp. “I take it the men you have kissed in the past were important to you, then?”
A sudden dislike for these men swept through him, and his desire to learn their names and discover who he would have to avoid in the future was particularly unsettling.
She stared back at him for a long, hard second and eventually snorted. “No such man exists, Lord Griffin, which is rather the point, don’t you think?” Spinning about, she started toward the terrace once more. Griffin blinked, the relief easing the tension within so soothing, it took him a second to respond. He hastened after her without even thinking and grabbed her wrist before she reached the stairs. She turned, eyes wide with surprise and wonder.
“Kisses are overrated,” he murmured, his voice almost breathless. What was it about her that made him so desperate to keep her out here with him and away from the ballroom? He did not know and wasn’t even sure it mattered. But the fact that she’d never been kissed…that was important. And yet, the only thing he could think to say, most likely in an effort to make her feel better, was, “You have not missed much.”
A soft little scoff conveyed her derision. “What a comforting sentiment from someone who’s likely enjoyed the experience a dozen times by now.”
Griffin raised an eyebrow and watched her surprise sink deeper. “Two dozen times?” His lips quirked. “Three dozen?”
She rolled her eyes. “Oh, for heaven’s sake.” Her gaze found his and he was surprised to find humor there. “I suppose you’re just as roguish as all the ladies claim then?”
He knit his brow. “I was not aware such a rumor existed.”
“I’m sure it arose because of your scar,” she said as if this was so evident that his not knowing it surprised her.
“My scar,” Griffin echoed flatly. He’d allowed himself to forget about that while they’d been talking, to forget the way it slashed his left cheek in an ugly red line. It was thick and uneven, puckering his skin in a way that was most unappealing.
“There are those who find such things attractive.”
What about you? he wanted to ask.
He dropped his gaze to her lips and wondered if she would retreat if he made an advance. “We should probably go back inside.” Anything else would be a mistake. He meant to return to Vienna, to live a peaceful life there without the complications of marriage. The last thing he needed was to kiss Miss Emily Howard out in the open where anyone might see.
And yet, Griffin desperately wanted to chase away all the anger and pain her comment had stirred by distracting himself in the simplest way possible. She wants her first kiss to matter. You cannot take that from her. But when she licked her lips and whispered, “Yes,” his restraint took off like an army fleeing a battle. Because the truth was he’d wanted to kiss her since the first time he’d seen her at Clearview. So he did the only reasonable thing he could do when she was standing right there, stunning and utterly tempting.
He leaned in closer and pressed his mouth to hers.
Emily couldn’t move, most likely because she was in a bizarre state of shock and dismay. Lord Griffin’s lips were pressed against hers in a soft and perfect caress. She wasn’t sure why he was doing it. After all, they’d been discussing his scar. Finding a logical transition between that and kissing was something of a challenge at the moment.
A distant warning bell echoed in her head, but she was too caught up in this new experience to heed it.
Especially since this was the man she’d dreamed of kissing since he’d walked into Clearview House with a hint of mischief in his eyes and a bit of a crooked smile. She’d liked him right from the start and had never felt that his scar detracted from his handsome features. If anything, she’d always thought it added an appealing element of danger to his overall appearance.
Beware.
Of what, she could not recall. What reason could there possibly be to end this glorious moment?
She inhaled through her nose, acknowledging a spicy scent of sandalwood, bergamot, and a hint of cloves. He smelled incredible. And now his arm was around her, his hand pressing into her back, and Emily could no longer think of anything at all. Except perhaps to consider the problem this business of kissing posed on breathing. That part of the whole experience was rather awkward and prevented her from enjoying the feel of him as much as she would have liked.
Perhaps if—
A squeal pierced the air, and before Emily could fully realize where the sound had come from, she heard a distinct voice say, “Oh, how wonderful! You are finally to be married!”
A breeze swept across Emily’s shoulders, and she opened her eyes as if from a dream. She saw Lord Griffin, but he wasn’t looking at her with the same kind of pleasure she’d felt in each cell of her body just seconds before. Instead he was staring to the side, his brow furrowed in a deep frown of pure irritation.
Emily turned and it was as if the world started to fold itself in on her, for there stood her mother, her sister, and her Aunt Julia, the Baroness of Hoff. All stared at her and Lord Griffin in a way that made Emily feel like she’d just walked into a cage and they’d locked the gate behind her. She glanced at Lord Griffin again and saw that he was about to speak, which prompted her to pull away from him quickly and walk toward the three women. Because the last thing she wanted was for him to confirm or deny anything. Doing so would either involve him sacrificing his future for her or breaking her heart.
“Lord Griffin has not proposed,” Emily said, “nor should he feel compelled to do so because of a mere kiss.” She glanced over her shoulder and saw that he was frowning more than before, if such a thing were possible.
“A mere kiss?” her mother squeaked while Laura and Aunt Julia raised their eyebrows into four pointy arches. “You were embracing and…” She waved her hands as if to form an image of what she had witnessed.
Emily tried to stay calm even though she knew the situation was spiraling out of control. It had in fact been doing so since Lord Griffin’s lips had touched hers. “I am not a debutante,” she began. “And besides, Lord Griffin was merely doing me the courtesy of sating my curiosity.”
The gentleman in question snorted from somewhere behind her right shoulder while Emily’s mother gasped as if this were more outrageous than the actual kiss itself. Which it might well have been.
But then her mother stepped forward to hiss in Emily’s ear. “You must accept his offer of marriage if he asks. What happened here could ruin your sister’s prospects.”
And there it was. The warning she had ignored in pursuit of her own selfishness.
“There is no need for anyone else to discover what transpired here.” Emily’s voice shook when she spoke to her aunt and her sister next. “Can I count on you to keep this incident to yourselves?”
Laura responded with an immediate nod, but Aunt Julia hesitated. “I am not sure that would be the best course,” she eventually said, causing panic to wrap its way firmly around Emily’s limbs. It tightened until she could scarcely breathe.
“Please.” God help her, she could feel tears starting to prick at her eyes. How could she have been so thoughtless? So foolish?
“Lord Griffin has compromised you, my dear,” Aunt Julia said without any hint of sympathy whatsoever. “Marrying him does seem like the best course of action.”
“I would be honored to offer for Miss Howard’s hand,” Lord Griffin said bleakly. Judging from his tone he might as well have been saying he’d fall on his own sword in order to save her.
And just like that, Emily’s heart shattered, destroying the illusion the kiss had somehow managed to create, of him wanting her just as much as she wanted him.
“If you do, I shall refuse,” she said, forcing the words past the knot in her throat. Somehow, she managed to stand still even though her legs shook beneath her silk gown. Before he could say anything further, Emily told her aunt plainly, “Keep this between us and I shall retreat to Clearview forever.”
Aunt Julia raised her chin a notch. She’d always been the one who disapproved most of Emily’s broken engagement, convinced that all blame lay on her shoulders. Since Emily’s return to London, she’d made it clear that she viewed her as a blemish on the family that would be better off tucked away in obscurity.
“Marrying a duke’s brother could perhaps restore your reputation,” Aunt Julia answered slowly.
Emily’s heart beat fast. “No. I will not wreck Lord Griffin’s life over this.” A smile tugged at Aunt Julia’s lips, and for the first time in her life, Emily imagined there might be a hint of respect in her eyes. It bolstered her courage and made her path clear. She turned to her mother. “I shall leave at once.”
Georgina’s eyes widened. “Emily, you cannot—”
But Emily no longer wanted to listen. She only wished to escape Society’s foolish rules and her own stupidity. Returning to London had been a mistake. She ought to have stayed away.
“Miss Howard. Please wait.”
Lord Griffin was on her heels, but Emily wouldn’t have it. Quickening her pace, Emily entered the ballroom and hastened through it. On her way, her gaze collided with Mr. Bale’s. He moved toward her as if intent on assisting her somehow. She shook her head, signaling for him to refrain as she hurried toward the foyer.
Mary entered the hallway from the music room, took one look at her, and frowned. “Are you all right?”
“Not exactly,” Emily said with a swift glance toward the ballroom. Lord Griffin was there, making his way through the crowd, still determined to catch her. She gave her friend a quick hug. “I am returning to Clearview.”
“But—”
“I don’t have time to explain.” Pulling away from Mary, Emily hurried out into the street. She could not delay any longer. Not if she was to avoid arguing with Lord Griffin over a matter that she refused to concede to. So she ran toward a parked hackney and ordered the driver to take her to the nearest coaching inn. Hopefully the coins in her reticule would be enough to pay for a ticket.
2
“Did she tell you what happened?” Griffin asked Mary when he finally reached the front door, through which Emily had made her escape moments earlier. If a few startled guests would only have refrained from stepping into his path for a better look at the runaway lady, he would have stopped her by now.
“No.”
Griffin stared down at his sister-in-law. His nerves were tightly strung, his muscles tense not only because of the drama that had begun to unfold as soon as he and Miss Howard had been discovered but because of the kiss.
Christ, they’d scarcely gotten started – he’d only just managed to gauge the shape and feel of her lips when they’d been interrupted, but it was enough to compel him to chase her wherever she went. Because damn it all, he wanted more.
“You should not have let her leave.” His voice was clipped, hovering somewhere between anger and fear.