“Lady Lindley has been given her choice between the earl of Glenkirk and the marquis. She prefers the earl, for they have a past history, Mary. It is he who has custody of the little duke of Lundy. Piers St.Denis may woo Jasmine Lindley until the cows come home, but he will not win her hand, although he believes himself to be quite irresistible.”
“But if the king were to believe that the marquis will be offended by Lady Lindley’s choosing the earl, he might want to give him a consolation of sorts, and custody of this little duke would surely be a fine prize. However, you might convince His Majesty that by giving the lad to a third, and neutral, party, he would be less likely to offend anyone; and of course, the marquis would have to have something, perhaps Summerfield, which he has sought all along?”
The earl of Bartram thought for several long moments. His wife’s idea was a very clever one indeed. The boy, of course, would have an income of his own, which by rights would come to his guardian.Other than ordinary expenses,Richard Stokes thought,I could return the balance of his income into the king’s treasury, thereby offsetting the loss of Summerfield. In fact, the sum coming from the duke of Lundy would probably be far greater than that which came from Summerfield. And if the boy were raised in my house, the earl considered, I might influence the child toward the truer faith, and away from the Anglican Church.But that would come later, and he would have to be cautious in that endeavor.
“My dear,” he told his wife, “certainly God has spoken through you this day, and while Lady Lindley may object to the loss of her child, I shall point out to the king her unsuitability as a guardian for his grandson. Her previously unchaste life as Prince Henry’s mistress, and her mixed blood, not to mention her own bastard birth, are more than enough to render her unfit despite her wealth and her powerful connections. The king can be made to see reason, I am sure. First, however, I must reassure him that I have put a stop to your ignorance and beg forgiveness for your misbehavior. Then, when Lady Lindley has made her choice known publicly, I shall make my move to gain custody of the duke. It will be good to have a child in the house again, will it not, my dear? He will keep you very busy, I have not a doubt.” The earl chuckled. “I well remember Edward as a lad.”
“Then I am forgiven?” she asked him.
“Aye, you are forgiven, Mary,” he reassured her, his mind already moving ahead to consider the advantages guardianship of the royal bastard would bring him. He must continue, however, to remain in the background as he always had, for that was where his strength lay. In his discretion. He chuckled to himself, considering the obvious endeavor at revenge themarquis had attempted today. He hoped Summerfield would be enough to soothe the vain poppinjay when he lost the lady, her fortune, and the duke of Lundy. The earl of Bartram intended to see it was all he got, and, on Piers St.Denis’s death, the property would revert to the crown. Richard Stokes would make certain of that.
As he chortled softly to himself, his antagonist was also considering his next move. He had already put the earl of Bartram from his mind, for he had more important matters to attend to, and little time in which to pursue his interests. Jasmine was proving to be a recalcitrant conquest. While he had succeeded in removing James Leslie from her house, that was all he had managed to do. She took great delight in appearing with the earl of Glenkirk each day at court; and while she allowed him to court her publicly, privately she avoided him. He could make no headway with her at all, and it was beginning to drive him to rashness.
At first he had sought her for her wealth, her royal bastard, her influential relations. The more he was with her, however, the more he realized that he desired her. He had never known such lust as he felt for Jasmine Lindley. She intoxicated him with her lush form, the direct look she always gave him with those startling turquoise eyes, her creamy skin with its hint of palest gold. He dreamed of possessing her; and he would have her as no man ever had. His mind went to the hidden chamber he had in both his town house and his country home. He imagined her chained between the whipping posts, whimpering for mercy, as he thrashed her into submission. Would she respond best to the wide leather tawse, the thin bunch of birches, a whippy hazel switch, or his firm riding crop? Kipp, of course, would be there to help him, but he would not share Jasmine with his half brother. At least not until he tired of her if he ever did.
He considered that Jasmine, being a strong-minded woman, might also enjoy giving punishment as well as receiving it. If she did, he would teach her how to use the tawse and the rod. There was a definite art to it. One did not simply hack away at one’s victim. The art of domination should be done with a mixture of sternness and tenderness. There was, the marquis of Hartsfield had discovered, pleasure in pain, although he knew that not everyone saw it his way. There were those who considered such things taboo and wicked. He licked his lips in anticipation of his conquest, and of hers.
But now that she had gotten over the shock of being told she had another suitor, Jasmine found the situation extremely amusing, especially as Jemmie had been forced to move in with her Uncle Robin. She would not even allow him to sneak back through the adjoining gardens at night to share her bed. “Only if I may entertain Piers St.Denis in the same manner,” she teased the earl of Glenkirk.
But Glenkirk was not to be baited. “If you would like,” he told her mischievously. “It will be the last opportunity you have to take a lover, madame, for once we are married, I shall serve all your needs quite well, I promise you. You will have no need for another man in your life, except for our sons.” He took her hand in his, and turning the palm over raised it to his lips to kiss.
“Do not tempt me, Jemmie,” she murmured, withdrawing her hand.
“Are you tempted?” he demanded, feeling a slight sting of jealousy. Surely she wouldn’t! They had pledged themselves!
“Wellll,” Jasmine considered, “he is outrageously handsome. I cannot help being curious as to what lies behind the charm.”
“I have heard some rather unsavory rumors,” the earl of Glenkirk replied stiffly. “From former lovers of St.Denis.”
“Ohhhh? What kind of rumors?” Jasmine was fascinated.
“They are not the kind of things I want to repeat to you,” he told her. “Let us just say he is deviant in his passion, Jasmine.”
“Glenkirk,” she said laughing, “I am twice married, not some swooning virgin. Does he enjoy entering a woman’s portal of Sodom, or is he one of those pitiful creatures who must give pain in order to feel passion? Tell me this instant, or I shall ask him myself.”
“You would!” he accused, and he laughed all the more. “Oh, very well, you vixen, it is the latter. He likes to whip his lovers, and he shares them with that villainous half brother of his.”
“I thought him more self-assured than that,” Jasmine replied thoughtfully, her laughter stilled for the moment. “How sad that he cannot obtain pleasure except by giving pain.”
“Then you will continue to keep him at bay, madame,” the earl said. “Perhaps we should end this charade pretense and tell the king we intend to keep our wedding day as we planned in France.”
“Nay, not yet, Jemmie. The king must believe that I have given his marquis the benefit of the doubt, and that having done so, I prefer the choice he so wisely made for me two years ago. The queen is on our side and will manage the king nicely if I ask her, and so, I believe, is Villiers, although I think his attempt at friendship stems from the fact he considers my family connections useful to himself.”
“You are brutally honest in your assessment of Villiers,” the earl noted. “Have you no illusions left, darling Jasmine?”
She laughed again. “Few,” she told him, “but understand that I hold no grudge against George Villiers for his behavior. He but seeks to advance himself, and there is nothing wrong that really, is there, Jemmie? We all seek something from the people with whom we come in contact in our lives. Youth is filled with enthusiasm, and Villiers is just a trifle obvious. He is not, however, as ingenuous as he would like everyone to believe.There is a calculating intelligence in those soulful dark eyes of his that he is not always able to conceal.”
Now it was Glenkirk’s turn to laugh. “You speak as if you were an ancient crone, yet Villiers is little younger than you,” he teased her. “He would, I think, be most distressed to learn you have seen through the carefully constructed facade he has erected and that even the king has not pierced.”
“We shall not tell him then,” Jasmine said.
“And the marquis of Hartsfield?” he persisted.
“What about him?” Her look was deceptively docile.
“You have not promised me you will keep him at bay,” James Leslie reminded her.
“Nay, I have not,” Jasmine told him, “and I will not. I am not your wife yet, Jemmie, and even when I am, I am quite competent to guide my own behavior, my lord, without your aid.”
