“We rarely have the chance to converse in privacy,” he said once they’d gone several paces. It was true. Since the other young ladies and their chaperones had departed, Rose was keeping a much more vigilant eye on her daughter. “And I wanted to ask if you’ve had any more…” he seemed to search for the right word and finally settled on “…encounters.”
Angelica shook her head. “No. Not since the dream I mentioned.” She’d woken from it in a cool sweat and with deep anxiety due to its tangibility.
“I know this may not be what you wish to hear,” she added, “but I’ve been thinking back on everything I felt during that dream and after – on what I saw and how I reacted. How your wife reacted.” Randolph’s arm stiffened beneath her hand. Angelica took a deep breath and then ploughed ahead. “Lady Sterling’s head wasn’t clear and finding Marcus there with her was more than surprising. It made no logical sense.”
“She had a few glasses of wine with dinner the evening before. It affected her more than usual, and she eventually claimed a headache, though the truth is she was intoxicated by the time she retired.” He cursed beneath his breath, offered a hasty apology and said, “Mrs. Essex later confided that she’d seen my wife and Marcus conversing several days prior in what she described as an inappropriately intimate manner.”
Angelica leaned into Randolph’s strength and carefully asked, “Why did Mrs. Essex not mention this to you sooner?”
“She chose to approach Katrina instead in an effort to stop any wrongful behavior before it went too far. Her hope was that in doing so, no harm would be done. But it seems Katrina ignored her.”
“Even so, I find it unlikely that Marcus would risk his position like that.”
Randolph snorted. “He was a groom who caught the eye of a viscountess. As her lover, he probably received all sorts of benefits. And even if he did not, you’ve seen Katrina’s portrait. She was beautiful beyond compare and more than capable of luring any man to her bed.”
His words gave Angelica pause. Insight washed over her like ice water. She tugged on her arm and pulled away. “That’s why you chose us, isn’t it?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“It didn’t make sense, your reason for inviting the six most unmarriageable women to your home with the prospect of making one of us your wife.” Good lord, she couldn’t believe it was only occurring to her now. Most likely because her mind had been too consumed with everything else to give Randolph’s reasoning behind his selection much thought. “You want a wife who will not appeal to other men – a woman who has in effect been labeled undesirable.”
“Angelica, I can assure you I—”
“Do you deny it?” She knew she was being unreasonable, but the knowledge pricked at her pride.
Having stopped his progress, he turned to look at her so his back was to the house and the spot where Rose still sat.
“No.”
His eyes drilled into hers, adding a sense of finality to the blunt word.
“Then I am no more than the best option among the worst.”
“Not to me.” He suddenly gripped her arm. His mouth became a hard line. A crease appeared on his forehead. “You are the most desirable woman I’ve ever known and I cannot…” He stared down at her and it seemed he struggled to breathe. “I cannot stand the thought of you possibly walking away in another few days.”
“Why not?”
“Surely the kisses we’ve shared offer some indication.”
“I, um…” If only she hadn’t taken their conversation in this awkward direction. She gulped a breath and hastily told him, “My experience with such things is limited.”
“As well it should be,” he practically growled.
“What I mean,” she went on, determined to get her point across before her courage failed her, “is that, given your resolve to convince me to marry you, you could have used the kisses as a ploy with me being none the wiser.”
His eyes widened. “Do you honestly think me capable of such trickery?”
“I do not know what to think.” Unsure of herself, she forced the words out before she could change her mind. “But I am certain that had we met in London at some grand ball, you would not have looked at me twice.”
Randolph muttered something she’d never thought any gentleman would ever dare say in the presence of a lady. He loosened his grip on her arm and slid his hand down to hers. “All things considered, you have every right to be suspicious.”
When she kept quiet, he filled the silence while twining his fingers with hers. “My sole purpose was to procure a wife who would give me the heir I require without besmirching my name. So yes, I chose ladies no one else seemed to want because that felt like the safest option. Picking a wife I find attractive was not even something I let myself hope for until you entered the parlor that very first evening and captured my interest.”
He raised her hand to his lips for a tender caress. “Since then, you have proven yourself to be more than I ever dreamed possible – a woman whose company I crave with ever increasing intensity.”
It wasn’t a declaration of love, but it was enough to appease Angelica’s concerns and give her some hope. “I feared I might be the only one who was smitten.”
The smile that slid into place on his face made his eyes glow like moonlight. “Then I am to understand that you return my regard?”
