Prologue
Annette
May, 1817 London
Aladydidnottake a chaperone into a shadowed alleyway of London, for everyone knew that such a place was reserved for underhanded dealings or, in my case, secret rendezvous. Chaperones approved of neither.
After a quick glance up and down the street to ensure no one paid me any heed, I tucked myself into the darkness, disappearing from view so that gossips would not take note of me or who I intended to meet. The last thing I needed was to cause a scandal, thereby chaining my name tohimindefinitely.
My nose wrinkled, both at the thought and the smell of the alley. It was empty but for a few crates, most of which were cracked or deteriorating, but the air stung my nose with a pungent mix of alcohol and what I feared was human excrement. They mingled together to form the most fetid scent, and I wanted nothing more than to rush to the nearest hot house and rub rose blooms beneath my nose.
I pressed my back against the wall and ran my gloved fingers over the roughness of the bricks, my breath shallow to avoid inhaling as much of the stench as possible. If the lieutenant did not show up post-haste…
Well, I would likely do something foolish in my irritation.
Mother always said I was far too brash, but I had done my very best to behave over the last several weeks. I had made my parents a promise and kept it with perfection. So long as one did not include my snappy retorts to Lieutenant Paget, that is.
I could hardly be blamed for it, though. The man found joy in teasing me. Taunting me. I was willing to bet ten pounds that he woke up each morning with a firm determination to spoil my day. In fact, he frequently went out of his way to do so.
Wretched man.
And now he was forcing me to wait for him in this disgusting alley.
Never mind that I had been the one to request this location. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Close enough to my family’s townhome that I could escape without notice, I had thought the deserted space might afford us the privacy we needed.
Something told me this conversation would not be taken well.
I ignored the guilt that swelled in my chest. The lieutenant and I had an agreement, but surely he would not fault me for breaking it, given the circumstances?
My fingers tapped against the brick wall. No, if I had learned anything during my fake courtship with Edward Paget, it was that he would not let this go without a fight. He needed me, and I had needed him. I would not have considered our arrangement otherwise. Engagements and courtships were the furthest things from what I wanted, and our temporary ruse had been a means to an end.
That end had come for me. We were to return home to Kenwick Castle, where my father could rest, which meant I no longer had need of a faux suitor.
“Enjoying the scenery?”
My eyes flew toward the deep voice of the most obnoxious man in all of England. Having spent a great deal of time with him, I could give him the title with confidence. He stood right in front of me, close enough that if I reached forward, my hand would brush down the burgundy and white-patterned waistcoat he presently wore.
Not that I had any desire to run my hands along his chest, no matter how masculine it happened to be. I was still a woman and, objectively speaking, would admit that the lieutenant was a handsome man with his dark-as-night hair and matching dark eyes. Even the shadows couldn’t hide that particular truth.
My eyes trailed up his chest and neck until they met his gaze. His lips were quirked in that mischievous grin he always seemed to wear.
At least around me.
He cocked his head to one side, his grin turning smug. “Ah, you are certainly enjoying the scenery now that I’m here. Not that I blame you.”
I scoffed, though heat crept into my cheeks. “Do not flatter yourself. I would much rather stare at these crates or even the rats I’m certain are living in them.”
“And smell them, too, no doubt.”
“As opposed to what? Smelling you? I can think of little else that would be so repulsive.”
It was the wrong thing to say, sparking a challenge. Lieutenant Paget stepped closer, and to my dismay, I sucked in a breath—a breath full of his cologne. It was warm, like foreign spices, and somehow carried the salty scent of the sea. Over the past three weeks, I’d been close enough to this man on enough occasions that I’d recognize that smell anywhere. But what was worse, I did not find it repulsive in the slightest. It invited me closer, intriguing and adventurous, like a boat ready to set sail to some far-off land.
He took another step forward. The tip of my nose almost brushed his coat, and the proximity set my pulse to pounding. The lieutenant leaned forward, his mouth at my ear and his breath teasing the loose hair at my neck. “Are you certain you find me repulsive?”
The word croaked out of me. “Yes.”
“Hard to believe, Miss Apsley. You requested to meet me in a dark alley. In private. But I won’t succumb to your seductive ways.”
