He did not break stride but continued until he was standing beside the couple and could not be ignored. ‘Rutland,’ he said in a jovial tone guaranteed to annoy.
Rutland started and jumped away from his quarry, leaving her panting and blinking in the moonlight.
‘And Miss Fisk, as well,’ Sebastian said, smiling as if this was no different than a ballroom meeting. ‘What a surprise to find you here.’
‘Go away, Westbridge,’ Rutland said in a warning tone. ‘You are not welcome here.’
Not welcome to him, perhaps. But by the desperate look in Cassie’s eyes, he was exactly where he needed to be.
He stared at Rutland and pulled the weight of generations of breeding around him like a cloak, remembering that, while Rutland might be a tower of muscle, he was merely a secondson. As such, he was dust beneath Sebastian’s boots. ‘I believe the correct term of address is “Your Grace”,’ he drawled still smiling. ‘We are not on informal terms, are we?’ He let the last words drip with condescension, a reminder that they were not friends and never would be.
Rutland flushed at the insult, then tried to shake it off. ‘You seriously want to argue about this now?’ Did he think Sebastian might show mercy, and spare him from looking weak in front of a woman he was trying to impress?
‘While the matter is fresh in my mind, yes, I think I do,’ Sebastian replied, enjoying the moment. ‘I should hate for this to become a difficulty between us. But I must insist that you apologize.’ He dropped his smile and allowed his true feelings through. The annoyance. The disgust. The desire to pound Rutland with fists and title until nothing remained of him.
His manner changed as he turned back to Cassie. ‘I might let it pass if we were alone. But Miss Fisk has witnessed your knavish treatment of me.’ He shook his head as if amazed. ‘The man does not recognize my rank. He speaks to me as if we are equals. Outrageous!’ He gave Cassie a significant look.
It took a second before she recognized her cue to speak. Then she said, ‘Indeed, Your Grace,’ in a dutiful voice. But he noticed she was leaning back into the hedge behind her as if she needed its springy branches to hold her upright.
‘Now, see here,’ Rutland said looking around as if he feared that someone might see him being less than gallant.
‘See here, Your Grace,’ Sebastian prompted, puffing out his chest to display his injured dignity. He felt ridiculous, but it worked.
‘Your Grace,’ the man said in a whispered surrender. He seemed to shrink before he spoke again. ‘It is a delightful evening. Let us not ruin it with an argument.’
‘Of course not, old fellow,’ Sebastian said, giving the other man a clap on the back that nearly sent him to his knees. ‘Now that the matter is settled, you had best run along and find the centre of the maze. It defeats the point of the thing to hang about in a corner like this.’
Rutland looked confused for a moment, as if he was not quite sure how he’d come to being dismissed from a liaison that he’d arranged. Then he held out his arm to Cassie, ready to escort her.
‘Ah.’ Sebastian held up a finger of warning. ‘I think Miss Fisk might need help finding the exit again. The poor girl looks quite pale. Perhaps she has taken a chill.’ He turned to Cassie. ‘Which would you prefer—onward with Rutland, or a return to start?’
‘I have had enough fun for the evening,’ she said inching closer to him. ‘Perhaps we could go and find my brother.’
‘Very well,’ Sebastian said and made a shooing gesture to Rutland. ‘Run along, then. Don’t let us keep you.’
With a final, frustrated grimace, Rutland turned on his heel and walked back down the pathway, disappearing around a turn in the hedge.
As Andrew walked away, Cassie released her held breath and stared after him afraid to turn to her rescuer. What must he think of her? After the incident in his bedroom and now this, she must look like the sort of girl who gave kisses freely to anyone who asked. If the news of tonight’s encounter was spread around London, her reputation would not survive. That such ruin would force her into marriage with Rutland made it all the more painful.
She turned back to Westbridge, unsure of what to say.
He stared back at her, his expression softening. ‘You needn’t worry. All I will say, should anyone ask was that Miss Fiskarrived on the scene and found us arguing. She could not possibly have been here earlier, for she is a virtuous young lady not prone to wandering in secluded spots with men.’
Was he teasing her? He was looking at her with the same bland expression he had used when harassing Andrew, as if he truly believed nothing had been going on. But it had been so much worse than that. She was so relieved and so grateful and had been so frightened. And now it was over. How would she ever thank him?
Without a word, she threw her arms around him, hoping he could understand.
For a moment, he seemed confused, barely responding to her assault. Then, his arms came up to hold her, gingerly at first and then in a gentle, brotherly way that was totally unlike the passion he’d shown in his bedroom a year ago.
‘Did he hurt you?’ He said it softly, into her ear, in a tone that was quite different than the playful one he had used only moments before. He sounded hard, resolved and dangerous.
She shook her head, still unable to express what she was feeling. Andrew hadn’t done anything so very bad. But there had been the feeling when they were alone that he had wanted to. And that he was quite willing to take advantage of a situation to do anything he wanted, to her or anyone else.
‘You are trembling.’ He held her tighter, one hand sliding up to cup the back of her neck. ‘Do not worry. You will get no trouble from me. You are perfectly safe.’
‘I know,’ she whispered and took a breath struggling to regain control of herself. ‘How will I face him again? What shall I say to Julian and Portia?’
‘You will not see him again.’ He said in that firm, quiet voice that cut through the last of the panic in her head. ‘And as for your brother?’ She felt him shrug. ‘Reality is what you say it is. You do not have to tell him anything, if you do not wish to.’
