Mod Gift for Mizzy2K - 2014 Leverage Secret Santa Exchange
Title: Hearts Denied
Author: telaryn
Mod gift for: mizzy2k
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairing: Nate, Father Paul, Maggie, Sterling, Parker, Jimmy Ford, assorted OMCs and OFCs. Nate/Maggie, Nate/Parker, Maggie/Sterling
Word Count: 4312
Spoilers: None.
Warnings: None.
Disclaimer: Only own the effort involved.
Summary: Regency AU - As the Earl's son and heir, Nathan knows his duty. But when the celebration of his engagement to the daughter of a local nobleman is disrupted by the most unusual highwayman anyone has ever imagined, for a moment the most honorable of sons considers abandoning everyone and everything about the life he has been raised to.
Author's Notes: My bestest and most beloved Mizzy - I'm pretty willing to bet this isn't the prompt you assumed I'd jump for, so hopefully at least one thing about this Exchange turned out to be a surprise for you. *g* Thank you as always for your support and enthusiastic participation.
It was to be the social event of the season - the engagement of Margaret Collinswood to Nathan, the second son of the Earl and Countess of Aisleford. Three days of social gatherings had been planned to celebrate the match, culminating in a masked ball on the third evening to celebrate the engagement itself.
It was overcast and cold when Nathan and his family arrived at Collinswood, mid-afternoon on the day before the festivities were scheduled to begin. His mother Katherine, father James and little sister Cora rode in the family carriage, with two wagons of luggage following behind. Nathan, his older brother Paul and his best friend James Stirling rode escort with three of the family’s retainers.
“Damned highwaymen!” Earl James roared by way of greeting as they rolled to a stop. “What in the blue hells are we paying taxes for?” The countryside between the two estates had been plagued for months by a bandit more fearless than any the nobility had ever seen. Thousands of pounds in jewels and coin had been lost, and the law no closer to apprehending the thief than they were when he first struck.
“Peace, father,” Paul said, swinging down from his gelding and moving swiftly to help the earl to the ground. Earl James had a tendency to drink more when circumstances required him to travel in the carriage, and the last thing any of them wanted was the sight of their father greeting Nathan’s new in-laws by falling flat on his face in the mud.
“You weren’t attacked, were you?” asked Lord Collinswood.
Steadying his father, Paul hastened to reassure the other nobleman. “We were not bothered, but signs of this villain’s work are increasing. Have you set regular patrols?”
On the far side of the carriage, Jim kneed his horse closer to Nathan’s roan. “I still don’t understand why Paul went into the clergy. He would have made a fortune in politics.”
Privately Nathan agreed. Out loud all he said was, “I suppose I should join them.”
“You get your mother, I’ll help Cora,” Jim said. “Make you look good to your fiancé.”
“I’m not betrothed yet,” Nathan muttered, but he followed Jim down from his horse. Guilt twisted through his gut at the slip, but if he had any thoughts on the matter, James didn’t offer them up.
Even though he was the heir, with Paul sworn to God, Nathan had always known he was never going to be allowed to marry for love. He’d known that since he was small. Catching sight of the woman he’d been promised to though, he had to admit that his parents had done better by him than he had a right to hope. “She’s too good for you,” Jim snarked as they handed their mounts off and came around the front of the carriage. “You know that, right?”
His mother was already extending her hand to him, which saved Nathan from having to reply. Giving the countess his best smile, he helped her down. “That’s my good boy,” she purred, curling her arm around his and pulling him in close to her side. “Time to be charming.” She patted his hand, steering them over to Lady Collinswood, who had brought her eldest daughter forward from the crowd gathered at the gate.
“Lady Jocelyn,” Nathan’s mother gushed, taking the woman in hand and kissing her cheek. “You are so lovely to be hosting us like this.” She turned slightly, taking in Margaret who dropped a proper curtsey to the countess. “My dear, I wouldn’t think it possible, but you are even more lovely than the last time I laid eyes on you. Isn’t she lovely Nathan?”
Trying not to imagine how red his skin had flushed, Nathan dutifully took Margaret’s hand and bowed over it. “You are a vision, my lady.” Eyes demurely lowered, Margaret dropped another curtsey.
Before he could come up with anything else appropriate to say, a shriek of laughter distracted them. Jim had swung eight year old Cora down from the carriage and up onto his shoulders. Nathan caught a spark in Margaret’s expression as everyone turned to laugh at the pair’s antics - the hint of a smile on her beautiful lips.
“Peg dear,” Lady Jocelyn said, “why don’t you show your guest around the house? We have more than enough hands to get everyone settled here.”
Tensing, Nathan began to protest. “I should really take care of…” but his mother was already prepared for him.
“James can get Whisky settled for you my dear. Go spend some time with Margaret - you two will have little enough privacy over the next few days as it is.”
*************************
‘You don’t enjoy art?”
Nathan tried to pretend he didn’t hear the note of disappointment in Margaret’s voice. “I don’t dislike it,” he said truthfully. “I honestly had never considered it,” he admitted. “I recognize that the world would be poorer for the absence of pieces like this.” He gestured at a small statue of a woman gazing at a flower. “It just doesn’t have the weight or resonance for me that the real world does.”
Margaret picked up the statue, turning it over in her hands. “Horses and hunting?” she asked, a slight sniff of derision to her tone.
“Architecture actually,” he said, smiling slightly. “Engineering. Some minor tinkering with inventions. My interest in horses is purely recreational.”
That got him a genuine smile - the first he would have bet Margaret had given him in all the years they’ known each other. “You know what they say about architecture, don’t you?” she asked.
Sensing something amusing in the offing, Nathan schooled his expression into something as neutral and indulgent as he could manage. “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure.”
There was a mischievous twinkle in her eyes that Nathan found completely irresistible. “Architecture is just art that we live in.”
It was clever, pointed, and gently tweaked him. “Tell me about that piece,” he said, seeing an opening to meet her at least partway.
Startled, Margaret hastily replaced the statue on its plinth. “It’s nothing,” she said, but Nathan saw a faint blush stain her cheeks. “A student piece.”
She started to turn away, but Nathan caught her hand. “I think it’s lovely. And I believe the artist must be very talented to create something that speaks to a Neanderthal like me.”
***************************
What little good humor Nathan had managed to breed in his afternoon walk with Margaret was quickly burned out by tea with both families in attendance. Jim was his anchor, staying dutifully at his side as he was introduced to all the Collinswood children and cousins - Margaret was the eldest of six girls, all of whom seemed willing to do everything just short of checking his teeth to vet his suitability as a husband for their sister.
“Remember last fall when we were talking about running away to join the army?” James murmured, capturing them fresh drinks just as Nathan managed to extract himself from an awkward conversation with Lord Collinswood about his “intentions”.
“Fondly,” Nathan said, draining his cup in a single swallow and trying to ignore his increasing craving for something stronger.
The final straw came as the plates and service were being cleared. Nathan’s mother drew him into the solarium for a private word. “Could you at least pretend to agree with this arrangement?” Her voice was pleasant enough, but despite being regarded as his mother’s favorite, Nathan understood that the countess was very angry.
“Mother,” he said, choosing his words with extra care, “for circumstances I literally had no say in crafting, I believe I have been entirely agreeable. I have gone where I was told, done everything I was told without a word of complaint. If you can suggest any course of action I have overlooked, I would be grateful.”
“Do you not like the girl?” Countess Katherine asked.
Nathan threw up his hands. “I don’t know the girl! In the brief hour I’ve spent in conversation with her since learning I was marrying her, she seems pleasant enough. She’s certainly beautiful.”
“And educated,” Katherine pointed out. “You may thank me for that - you know how little your father cares for such things.”
Nathan was forced to concede that his mother had a point. Margaret was well-read, well-spoken, and if her interests and opinions were too far afield from his own, at least she had some that he might become curious about. He tried to imagine spending the rest of his life married to a woman whose only goal in life was to be a mirror for him and actually shuddered.
His mother nodded, her expression shrewd and knowing. “You see? For all that you push at these events like a small child, you have to know that I did the best by you that I was able.”
“And I thank you for that,” Nathan acknowledged, leaning in to kiss his mother on the cheek. “As for the rest, please be patient with me. I am doing the best I can.”
Before the countess could say anything more, Paul came into the glass enclosure. “Father just promised Lord Collinswood that we would ride out to meet the party coming in from Ravens Aerie. Apparently Lord Thomas is beginning to regret starting as late as he did without a full complement of guards.”
“That will be Lady Grania’s doing,” Katherine said. “Go, both of you. Do your mother a kindness and be safe.”
Paul and Nathan hurried to the stables; James met them there, carrying a pistol for each of them. “Father wants this bandit alive if we can manage it,” Paul told the younger two. “He’s caused enough unrest in the district that the nobles are clamoring for a public trial.”
“Followed by an even more public hanging,” James muttered, holstering his own weapon.
“This Parker steals for the fun of it,” Paul said disapprovingly. “And the profit. He made his choice, and when we catch him he will suffer the consequences of those choices.”
Two grooms brought their horses forward. Nathan went immediately to his roan, offering the horse a lump of sugar from his pocket. Whisky took the treat, and then butted his owner in the chest affectionately. “You try defying her ladyship,” Nathan said, stroking the animal’s soft nose. “See how far you get.”
“She leave you enough of your manhood to get through this?” James asked, swinging himself into the saddle.
“Go easy,” Paul said, before Nathan could rise to the bait. “Mother worries that Nathan’s honesty will get the better of him before the match is finalized.”
“I know my duty,” Nathan protested, embarrassed to realize that if Paul had been motivated to say something, he had been showing more of his true face than was probably wise. “And as mother says,” he continued, mounting Whisky and settling himself, “at least the girl is well educated. I shudder to think what it would have been like being married off to a dullard.”
The three of them set off on the main road, Paul in the lead. Nathan let his mind wander as the miles disappeared beneath their horse’s hooves, enjoying the simplicity and freedom of the ride. James is right, he thought, remembering his friend’s earlier comment. We should have run away when we had the chance.
Eight miles from the estate, the sound of carriage wheels reached their ears. Banishing his traitorous thoughts, Nathan began scanning either side of the road - looking for signs of ambush. Each of Parker’s victims had reported a different style of assault. He creates his attack plans once he sees what he is up against, Nate realized, slowing Whisky to a trot, then a walk. It spoke to a highly intelligent mind, versed in strategy and battlefield tactics.
“Up there,” James said, pulling his horse to a stop and drawing his pistol. Nathan and Paul followed suit; as Whisky fought his tightened hold, Nathan spotted a flash of gold hair in one of the trees lining the causeway.
Paul moved forward, his own pistol aimed and ready. “Drop any weapons you have,” he ordered. “I will shoot if you do not comply.”
Nothing moved for a long moment - none of them dared even breathe. Then an ancient dueling pistol came spinning out of the branches, slamming into Paul’s forehead. The trees began to rustle violently, signaling someone on the move very quickly.
“Well, he didn’t say where to aim it,” James noted. Nathan slid off Whisky, launching himself across the ditch edging the road and scrambling up into the woods. His ears caught a sharp exhalation of breath, and the sound of a body hitting the twig and leaf-strewn ground.
Nathan’s mind went blissfully blank as he continued his pursuit. His quarry was good at moving silently, but the ground was too cluttered and the trees too close together to make the thief’s passage perfectly quiet.
The chase continued until he drew close enough to hear his quarry breathing. Dodging around a particularly large tree that had appeared in his path, he was searching for a glimpse of the thief when his entire world exploded with pain. Throwing himself forward over the tree branch that had been swung into his middle, he managed to catch hold of the thief’s hair and pull him back and down. The two of them collapsed to the forest floor tangled up together.
Gold hair that was suddenly much longer than it should have been spilled across Nate’s hands and arms. As he scrambled to improve his hold on his prisoner, it was impossible to tell who was more surprised - the thief at the idea of being caught, or Nathan when he realized that the person struggling to get away from him was not, in fact, a man.
“Wait!” he called as Parker turned to look directly at him. If she had been wearing a mask, it had come off in her flight. She was young, and heart-stoppingly beautiful. “I’m not going to hurt you,” he said, now that he had her attention. “You have my word.”
The girl actually looked disappointed. “And here I thought you would be smarter than the others.” Before Nathan could react, she had balled up a fist and struck him solidly across the jaw. On top of the still-roiling pain in his gut, the blow was more than enough to convince his muscles to release their grip. The girl rolled free, and before Nathan could find his voice she was on her feet and vanishing into the night.
***************************
Even though Nathan and Paul were both hurt and their prey lost, there was still the matter of tracking the party from Ravens Aerie and providing them with a proper escort to Collinswood. Lord Thomas and Lady Grania spoke very highly of their efforts, calling the young men their “saviors” enough times that Nathan was embarrassed. He and Paul being wounded bought them extra sympathy and attention from the women in general, but Nathan in particular imagined he could feel the full weight of his father’s displeasure every time he was in the same room as the earl.
He did not tell them they were looking for a woman instead of a man. He lay awake most of the night wrestling with whether or not the information was relevant, finally deciding that since the likelihood of Parker striking again so soon after such a close call was minimal, he would confess his knowledge after the festivities were over and their lives had returned to something resembling normal.
Ironically Margaret was the first one to ask if he was all right. “I know you said you weren’t badly hurt,” she told him as they waited to be summoned for lunch, “but you seem…I don’t know, withdrawn?”
“It’s not you,” he assured her. “Or any of this, or the engagement.”
He was surprised when she took no comfort from his statement. “I merely wondered if there was something I could do to help,” she said, her tone bitter.
Exhaling softly, he took her hand - keeping her with him when she would have pulled away. “I misunderstood then. Please forgive me. And sadly no, there is nothing anyone can do for me until I work this problem through and decide what I need to do.”
She accepted his apology graciously enough, but Nate realized that he was going to have to tread carefully in the future. His bride-to-be was not like any of the other women he’d known.
Recognizing another layer to Margaret helped settle him, and gradually Nathan came to enjoy the activities Lord and Lady Collinswood had planned, if not the heightened attention that came along with them.
Finally they reached the third night, and the masked ball. “Don’t you think all black is a little grim for the occasion?” James asked, eyeing Nathan’s choice of costume. He’d gone for a swashbuckling, pirate look, including a cape fastened at one shoulder. A small black domino mask covered his eyes and did virtually nothing to conceal his identity.
“Not to mention in bad taste,” Paul added. He was dressed in his full clerical robes, with a sun mask covering his entire face.
Nathan smiled at his brother. “The whole point of a masked ball is to dress as something you aren’t, Paul. Are you trying to send us a message?”
He was teasing - the three of them knew that Paul had official duties that night. Nathan and Margaret’s engagement would begin the night’s celebration. “Are you certain you’re ready for this?” James asked him as they headed down to the ballroom.
“Do you remember telling me that she was too good for me?” Nathan asked, trying to ignore the acid twisting up his stomach. When James nodded he said, “The more I learn about her, the more I suspect you are correct in your assessment.”
The ceremony solemnizing their engagement was mercifully brief, after which Nathan and Margaret led the first dance. One dance became a second, then a third, during which Nathan learned that his fiancé was a talented dancer, who seemed to enjoy the art. Social obligations then quickly drew them apart as they each received congratulations from guests and granted requests for dances.
An hour or more into the evening, Nathan was cornered by his future mother-in-law. “Have you seen Peg?” Lady Collinswood asked. “Her father wishes to toast you both, and I can’t seem to locate her anywhere.”
Privately wishing that he had been alert enough to stage an escape of his own, Nathan agreed and left the party. A search of the surrounding rooms and corridors yielded nothing but a chance encounter with his little sister. “Mother sent me to help find Margaret,” Cora told him.
Kissing her on the cheek, Nathan said, “Go back to the party, monkey. I will find her and be back before you can miss us.”
When he was alone again, Nathan resumed his search - moving further and further out until he caught the sound of voices coming from the hallway leading to the conservatory. Rounding a corner, he froze - momentarily stunned by the sight that greeted him. Margaret was turned away from him, holding hands with none other than his best friend. James’ eyes were closed, and the two of them were kissing. How did I miss this? he wondered, pulling back to the shadows just in time to avoid being seen. James had never been overtly in favor of the marriage, but Nathan had assumed he was reacting to his friend’s own ambivalent feelings.
I’m such an ass.
When he looked again, the two of them were talking in low, soft tones. James leaned forward - intending to kiss her again - but Margaret ducked her head, flinching back. “James, we mustn’t. He’s your best friend.”
Now that he could see his face more clearly, Nathan could clearly see his friend’s torment. “And I will never be able to give you the life he can. I know, Peg, and I thought I could be a gentleman about this, but it is killing me by inches watching you slip away.” Catching her hands in his, he brought them to his lips and kissed them with such passion Nathan suddenly realized just how much he was intruding on their moment.
“I won’t betray him, James. He’s a good man - he deserves an honorable wife.”
His friend’s expression was so fierce and desperate, Nathan almost announced his presence just to put an end to things. Instead he remained where he was as James said, “Tell me you don’t love me, Peg. Put me out of my misery and I swear I will be the perfect gentleman you both need me to be.”
His fiancé was silent long enough that when she spoke Nathan fully expected to hear a true declaration of her feelings. Instead she pulled her hands free, setting into the tight, perfect posture expected of a lady of her station. “I do not love you, James. I will never love you, not the way you deserve. Now you and I are going back to the party and we are going to do right by him, do you understand me?”
Head spinning, Nathan withdrew at last, determined to return to the party before either of them realized he had been sent searching.
You can’t marry her. She doesn’t love you. It was the obvious solution to the problem, except that love had never been part of the equation between him and Margaret, and James’ family wasn’t near powerful enough to survive what a scandal like this would do to them.
The color, noise and light of the ball enfolded him again - Nathan found himself nodding greetings automatically to people he only barely recognized as he moved deeper into the crowd. There has to be a solution. Margaret didn’t love him, but despite her pronouncements she did love James. There had to be some way to resolve this mess honorably for all three of them.
“You know, you’re engaged now.” Nathan turned to see his brother had come up behind him. “If you and Margaret want to sneak out for a little alone time in the garden, there is no need for the two of you to return by separate routes.” Paul nodded across the room where a masked blond was just rejoining the party.
I need to tell her, Nathan thought. No matter what else happens, I can’t pretend I don’t know how they really feel about each other. “Your mask looks ridiculous,” he snarked at Paul, before heading off after his fiancé.
He was nearly across the dance floor before he caught her attention, and Nathan was immediately brought up short when her first reaction on seeing him wasn’t pleasure, indifference or even guilt…but fear. “Margaret, wait!” he called, pulling off his mask and letting her see him clearly.
She turned and ran from the room. Startled…and inexplicably intrigued…Nathan gave chase.
Something isn’t right. The further they drew away from the ballroom, the more suspicious Nathan became. Margaret Collinswood was fit, but the woman he was chasing was more athletic than he would have credited her with being. Still, he finally managed to catch up with her in a corridor outside the family library - steps from a rear door into the gardens.
When he reached out and caught her arm, spinning her back towards him, Nathan realized that even though she seemed familiar, the woman he had been chasing wasn’t his fiancé. The height was similar, but her hair was a richer gold than could be explained by the glow of the candles, and her eyes…”Who are you?” he breathed, reaching up to remove her mask. “I know you…”
Just as his fingertips brushed the lace trim, she surged forward - pushing him into the wall. Then her lips were on his, kissing him with a wild abandon. Nathan’s left arm went automatically around her waist, pulling her in close to him. Images filled his mind…the two of them stumbling together into an empty room…clothing pushed hastily aside…his hands exploring smooth, warm skin…
He caught the end of one of the ribbons tying her mask in place and pulled. She stiffened in his grasp as it fell between them, but he tightened his hold, deepening the kiss until she relaxed into him again, moaning softly as her hand curled possessively around the back of his neck.
“Come with me,” she murmured, lifting her head at last and letting him see the face he’d last glimpsed in the darkened forest outside Collinswood. “I’ve been watching you. You don’t belong here, with these people…with her.”
Memory of the chaste kiss he’d seen James and Margaret share flashed into Nathan’s mind, the feelings they’d shared, and for a moment he was tempted to take the thief up on her offer. No one would miss you. His conscience quickly got the better of him though, and he reluctantly shook his head. “I can’t,” he said - tightening his grip when she tried to pull away. “You’re a thief. You’ve stolen millions of pounds from my friends, my neighbors…”
His voice trailed off as he felt the point of a knife press into his stomach. “At this angle, any wound is going to be fatal.” Looking into her eyes, Nathan saw regret, but determination. He released her immediately, raising his hands in surrender.
“We would have been amazing together,” she said, stepping back from him. A small derringer appeared in her other hand, as if by magic, to further discourage him from giving chase.
“I am not a thief,” Nathan protested.
The girl’s expression lit with a dazzling smile. “Not now, of course. But as you go forward into your respectable life, with your perfect bride, I predict you will often think about how much fun I could have had teaching you.”
Author: telaryn
Mod gift for: mizzy2k
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairing: Nate, Father Paul, Maggie, Sterling, Parker, Jimmy Ford, assorted OMCs and OFCs. Nate/Maggie, Nate/Parker, Maggie/Sterling
Word Count: 4312
Spoilers: None.
Warnings: None.
Disclaimer: Only own the effort involved.
Summary: Regency AU - As the Earl's son and heir, Nathan knows his duty. But when the celebration of his engagement to the daughter of a local nobleman is disrupted by the most unusual highwayman anyone has ever imagined, for a moment the most honorable of sons considers abandoning everyone and everything about the life he has been raised to.
Author's Notes: My bestest and most beloved Mizzy - I'm pretty willing to bet this isn't the prompt you assumed I'd jump for, so hopefully at least one thing about this Exchange turned out to be a surprise for you. *g* Thank you as always for your support and enthusiastic participation.
It was to be the social event of the season - the engagement of Margaret Collinswood to Nathan, the second son of the Earl and Countess of Aisleford. Three days of social gatherings had been planned to celebrate the match, culminating in a masked ball on the third evening to celebrate the engagement itself.
It was overcast and cold when Nathan and his family arrived at Collinswood, mid-afternoon on the day before the festivities were scheduled to begin. His mother Katherine, father James and little sister Cora rode in the family carriage, with two wagons of luggage following behind. Nathan, his older brother Paul and his best friend James Stirling rode escort with three of the family’s retainers.
“Damned highwaymen!” Earl James roared by way of greeting as they rolled to a stop. “What in the blue hells are we paying taxes for?” The countryside between the two estates had been plagued for months by a bandit more fearless than any the nobility had ever seen. Thousands of pounds in jewels and coin had been lost, and the law no closer to apprehending the thief than they were when he first struck.
“Peace, father,” Paul said, swinging down from his gelding and moving swiftly to help the earl to the ground. Earl James had a tendency to drink more when circumstances required him to travel in the carriage, and the last thing any of them wanted was the sight of their father greeting Nathan’s new in-laws by falling flat on his face in the mud.
“You weren’t attacked, were you?” asked Lord Collinswood.
Steadying his father, Paul hastened to reassure the other nobleman. “We were not bothered, but signs of this villain’s work are increasing. Have you set regular patrols?”
On the far side of the carriage, Jim kneed his horse closer to Nathan’s roan. “I still don’t understand why Paul went into the clergy. He would have made a fortune in politics.”
Privately Nathan agreed. Out loud all he said was, “I suppose I should join them.”
“You get your mother, I’ll help Cora,” Jim said. “Make you look good to your fiancé.”
“I’m not betrothed yet,” Nathan muttered, but he followed Jim down from his horse. Guilt twisted through his gut at the slip, but if he had any thoughts on the matter, James didn’t offer them up.
Even though he was the heir, with Paul sworn to God, Nathan had always known he was never going to be allowed to marry for love. He’d known that since he was small. Catching sight of the woman he’d been promised to though, he had to admit that his parents had done better by him than he had a right to hope. “She’s too good for you,” Jim snarked as they handed their mounts off and came around the front of the carriage. “You know that, right?”
His mother was already extending her hand to him, which saved Nathan from having to reply. Giving the countess his best smile, he helped her down. “That’s my good boy,” she purred, curling her arm around his and pulling him in close to her side. “Time to be charming.” She patted his hand, steering them over to Lady Collinswood, who had brought her eldest daughter forward from the crowd gathered at the gate.
“Lady Jocelyn,” Nathan’s mother gushed, taking the woman in hand and kissing her cheek. “You are so lovely to be hosting us like this.” She turned slightly, taking in Margaret who dropped a proper curtsey to the countess. “My dear, I wouldn’t think it possible, but you are even more lovely than the last time I laid eyes on you. Isn’t she lovely Nathan?”
Trying not to imagine how red his skin had flushed, Nathan dutifully took Margaret’s hand and bowed over it. “You are a vision, my lady.” Eyes demurely lowered, Margaret dropped another curtsey.
Before he could come up with anything else appropriate to say, a shriek of laughter distracted them. Jim had swung eight year old Cora down from the carriage and up onto his shoulders. Nathan caught a spark in Margaret’s expression as everyone turned to laugh at the pair’s antics - the hint of a smile on her beautiful lips.
“Peg dear,” Lady Jocelyn said, “why don’t you show your guest around the house? We have more than enough hands to get everyone settled here.”
Tensing, Nathan began to protest. “I should really take care of…” but his mother was already prepared for him.
“James can get Whisky settled for you my dear. Go spend some time with Margaret - you two will have little enough privacy over the next few days as it is.”
*************************
‘You don’t enjoy art?”
Nathan tried to pretend he didn’t hear the note of disappointment in Margaret’s voice. “I don’t dislike it,” he said truthfully. “I honestly had never considered it,” he admitted. “I recognize that the world would be poorer for the absence of pieces like this.” He gestured at a small statue of a woman gazing at a flower. “It just doesn’t have the weight or resonance for me that the real world does.”
Margaret picked up the statue, turning it over in her hands. “Horses and hunting?” she asked, a slight sniff of derision to her tone.
“Architecture actually,” he said, smiling slightly. “Engineering. Some minor tinkering with inventions. My interest in horses is purely recreational.”
That got him a genuine smile - the first he would have bet Margaret had given him in all the years they’ known each other. “You know what they say about architecture, don’t you?” she asked.
Sensing something amusing in the offing, Nathan schooled his expression into something as neutral and indulgent as he could manage. “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure.”
There was a mischievous twinkle in her eyes that Nathan found completely irresistible. “Architecture is just art that we live in.”
It was clever, pointed, and gently tweaked him. “Tell me about that piece,” he said, seeing an opening to meet her at least partway.
Startled, Margaret hastily replaced the statue on its plinth. “It’s nothing,” she said, but Nathan saw a faint blush stain her cheeks. “A student piece.”
She started to turn away, but Nathan caught her hand. “I think it’s lovely. And I believe the artist must be very talented to create something that speaks to a Neanderthal like me.”
***************************
What little good humor Nathan had managed to breed in his afternoon walk with Margaret was quickly burned out by tea with both families in attendance. Jim was his anchor, staying dutifully at his side as he was introduced to all the Collinswood children and cousins - Margaret was the eldest of six girls, all of whom seemed willing to do everything just short of checking his teeth to vet his suitability as a husband for their sister.
“Remember last fall when we were talking about running away to join the army?” James murmured, capturing them fresh drinks just as Nathan managed to extract himself from an awkward conversation with Lord Collinswood about his “intentions”.
“Fondly,” Nathan said, draining his cup in a single swallow and trying to ignore his increasing craving for something stronger.
The final straw came as the plates and service were being cleared. Nathan’s mother drew him into the solarium for a private word. “Could you at least pretend to agree with this arrangement?” Her voice was pleasant enough, but despite being regarded as his mother’s favorite, Nathan understood that the countess was very angry.
“Mother,” he said, choosing his words with extra care, “for circumstances I literally had no say in crafting, I believe I have been entirely agreeable. I have gone where I was told, done everything I was told without a word of complaint. If you can suggest any course of action I have overlooked, I would be grateful.”
“Do you not like the girl?” Countess Katherine asked.
Nathan threw up his hands. “I don’t know the girl! In the brief hour I’ve spent in conversation with her since learning I was marrying her, she seems pleasant enough. She’s certainly beautiful.”
“And educated,” Katherine pointed out. “You may thank me for that - you know how little your father cares for such things.”
Nathan was forced to concede that his mother had a point. Margaret was well-read, well-spoken, and if her interests and opinions were too far afield from his own, at least she had some that he might become curious about. He tried to imagine spending the rest of his life married to a woman whose only goal in life was to be a mirror for him and actually shuddered.
His mother nodded, her expression shrewd and knowing. “You see? For all that you push at these events like a small child, you have to know that I did the best by you that I was able.”
“And I thank you for that,” Nathan acknowledged, leaning in to kiss his mother on the cheek. “As for the rest, please be patient with me. I am doing the best I can.”
Before the countess could say anything more, Paul came into the glass enclosure. “Father just promised Lord Collinswood that we would ride out to meet the party coming in from Ravens Aerie. Apparently Lord Thomas is beginning to regret starting as late as he did without a full complement of guards.”
“That will be Lady Grania’s doing,” Katherine said. “Go, both of you. Do your mother a kindness and be safe.”
Paul and Nathan hurried to the stables; James met them there, carrying a pistol for each of them. “Father wants this bandit alive if we can manage it,” Paul told the younger two. “He’s caused enough unrest in the district that the nobles are clamoring for a public trial.”
“Followed by an even more public hanging,” James muttered, holstering his own weapon.
“This Parker steals for the fun of it,” Paul said disapprovingly. “And the profit. He made his choice, and when we catch him he will suffer the consequences of those choices.”
Two grooms brought their horses forward. Nathan went immediately to his roan, offering the horse a lump of sugar from his pocket. Whisky took the treat, and then butted his owner in the chest affectionately. “You try defying her ladyship,” Nathan said, stroking the animal’s soft nose. “See how far you get.”
“She leave you enough of your manhood to get through this?” James asked, swinging himself into the saddle.
“Go easy,” Paul said, before Nathan could rise to the bait. “Mother worries that Nathan’s honesty will get the better of him before the match is finalized.”
“I know my duty,” Nathan protested, embarrassed to realize that if Paul had been motivated to say something, he had been showing more of his true face than was probably wise. “And as mother says,” he continued, mounting Whisky and settling himself, “at least the girl is well educated. I shudder to think what it would have been like being married off to a dullard.”
The three of them set off on the main road, Paul in the lead. Nathan let his mind wander as the miles disappeared beneath their horse’s hooves, enjoying the simplicity and freedom of the ride. James is right, he thought, remembering his friend’s earlier comment. We should have run away when we had the chance.
Eight miles from the estate, the sound of carriage wheels reached their ears. Banishing his traitorous thoughts, Nathan began scanning either side of the road - looking for signs of ambush. Each of Parker’s victims had reported a different style of assault. He creates his attack plans once he sees what he is up against, Nate realized, slowing Whisky to a trot, then a walk. It spoke to a highly intelligent mind, versed in strategy and battlefield tactics.
“Up there,” James said, pulling his horse to a stop and drawing his pistol. Nathan and Paul followed suit; as Whisky fought his tightened hold, Nathan spotted a flash of gold hair in one of the trees lining the causeway.
Paul moved forward, his own pistol aimed and ready. “Drop any weapons you have,” he ordered. “I will shoot if you do not comply.”
Nothing moved for a long moment - none of them dared even breathe. Then an ancient dueling pistol came spinning out of the branches, slamming into Paul’s forehead. The trees began to rustle violently, signaling someone on the move very quickly.
“Well, he didn’t say where to aim it,” James noted. Nathan slid off Whisky, launching himself across the ditch edging the road and scrambling up into the woods. His ears caught a sharp exhalation of breath, and the sound of a body hitting the twig and leaf-strewn ground.
Nathan’s mind went blissfully blank as he continued his pursuit. His quarry was good at moving silently, but the ground was too cluttered and the trees too close together to make the thief’s passage perfectly quiet.
The chase continued until he drew close enough to hear his quarry breathing. Dodging around a particularly large tree that had appeared in his path, he was searching for a glimpse of the thief when his entire world exploded with pain. Throwing himself forward over the tree branch that had been swung into his middle, he managed to catch hold of the thief’s hair and pull him back and down. The two of them collapsed to the forest floor tangled up together.
Gold hair that was suddenly much longer than it should have been spilled across Nate’s hands and arms. As he scrambled to improve his hold on his prisoner, it was impossible to tell who was more surprised - the thief at the idea of being caught, or Nathan when he realized that the person struggling to get away from him was not, in fact, a man.
“Wait!” he called as Parker turned to look directly at him. If she had been wearing a mask, it had come off in her flight. She was young, and heart-stoppingly beautiful. “I’m not going to hurt you,” he said, now that he had her attention. “You have my word.”
The girl actually looked disappointed. “And here I thought you would be smarter than the others.” Before Nathan could react, she had balled up a fist and struck him solidly across the jaw. On top of the still-roiling pain in his gut, the blow was more than enough to convince his muscles to release their grip. The girl rolled free, and before Nathan could find his voice she was on her feet and vanishing into the night.
***************************
Even though Nathan and Paul were both hurt and their prey lost, there was still the matter of tracking the party from Ravens Aerie and providing them with a proper escort to Collinswood. Lord Thomas and Lady Grania spoke very highly of their efforts, calling the young men their “saviors” enough times that Nathan was embarrassed. He and Paul being wounded bought them extra sympathy and attention from the women in general, but Nathan in particular imagined he could feel the full weight of his father’s displeasure every time he was in the same room as the earl.
He did not tell them they were looking for a woman instead of a man. He lay awake most of the night wrestling with whether or not the information was relevant, finally deciding that since the likelihood of Parker striking again so soon after such a close call was minimal, he would confess his knowledge after the festivities were over and their lives had returned to something resembling normal.
Ironically Margaret was the first one to ask if he was all right. “I know you said you weren’t badly hurt,” she told him as they waited to be summoned for lunch, “but you seem…I don’t know, withdrawn?”
“It’s not you,” he assured her. “Or any of this, or the engagement.”
He was surprised when she took no comfort from his statement. “I merely wondered if there was something I could do to help,” she said, her tone bitter.
Exhaling softly, he took her hand - keeping her with him when she would have pulled away. “I misunderstood then. Please forgive me. And sadly no, there is nothing anyone can do for me until I work this problem through and decide what I need to do.”
She accepted his apology graciously enough, but Nate realized that he was going to have to tread carefully in the future. His bride-to-be was not like any of the other women he’d known.
Recognizing another layer to Margaret helped settle him, and gradually Nathan came to enjoy the activities Lord and Lady Collinswood had planned, if not the heightened attention that came along with them.
Finally they reached the third night, and the masked ball. “Don’t you think all black is a little grim for the occasion?” James asked, eyeing Nathan’s choice of costume. He’d gone for a swashbuckling, pirate look, including a cape fastened at one shoulder. A small black domino mask covered his eyes and did virtually nothing to conceal his identity.
“Not to mention in bad taste,” Paul added. He was dressed in his full clerical robes, with a sun mask covering his entire face.
Nathan smiled at his brother. “The whole point of a masked ball is to dress as something you aren’t, Paul. Are you trying to send us a message?”
He was teasing - the three of them knew that Paul had official duties that night. Nathan and Margaret’s engagement would begin the night’s celebration. “Are you certain you’re ready for this?” James asked him as they headed down to the ballroom.
“Do you remember telling me that she was too good for me?” Nathan asked, trying to ignore the acid twisting up his stomach. When James nodded he said, “The more I learn about her, the more I suspect you are correct in your assessment.”
The ceremony solemnizing their engagement was mercifully brief, after which Nathan and Margaret led the first dance. One dance became a second, then a third, during which Nathan learned that his fiancé was a talented dancer, who seemed to enjoy the art. Social obligations then quickly drew them apart as they each received congratulations from guests and granted requests for dances.
An hour or more into the evening, Nathan was cornered by his future mother-in-law. “Have you seen Peg?” Lady Collinswood asked. “Her father wishes to toast you both, and I can’t seem to locate her anywhere.”
Privately wishing that he had been alert enough to stage an escape of his own, Nathan agreed and left the party. A search of the surrounding rooms and corridors yielded nothing but a chance encounter with his little sister. “Mother sent me to help find Margaret,” Cora told him.
Kissing her on the cheek, Nathan said, “Go back to the party, monkey. I will find her and be back before you can miss us.”
When he was alone again, Nathan resumed his search - moving further and further out until he caught the sound of voices coming from the hallway leading to the conservatory. Rounding a corner, he froze - momentarily stunned by the sight that greeted him. Margaret was turned away from him, holding hands with none other than his best friend. James’ eyes were closed, and the two of them were kissing. How did I miss this? he wondered, pulling back to the shadows just in time to avoid being seen. James had never been overtly in favor of the marriage, but Nathan had assumed he was reacting to his friend’s own ambivalent feelings.
I’m such an ass.
When he looked again, the two of them were talking in low, soft tones. James leaned forward - intending to kiss her again - but Margaret ducked her head, flinching back. “James, we mustn’t. He’s your best friend.”
Now that he could see his face more clearly, Nathan could clearly see his friend’s torment. “And I will never be able to give you the life he can. I know, Peg, and I thought I could be a gentleman about this, but it is killing me by inches watching you slip away.” Catching her hands in his, he brought them to his lips and kissed them with such passion Nathan suddenly realized just how much he was intruding on their moment.
“I won’t betray him, James. He’s a good man - he deserves an honorable wife.”
His friend’s expression was so fierce and desperate, Nathan almost announced his presence just to put an end to things. Instead he remained where he was as James said, “Tell me you don’t love me, Peg. Put me out of my misery and I swear I will be the perfect gentleman you both need me to be.”
His fiancé was silent long enough that when she spoke Nathan fully expected to hear a true declaration of her feelings. Instead she pulled her hands free, setting into the tight, perfect posture expected of a lady of her station. “I do not love you, James. I will never love you, not the way you deserve. Now you and I are going back to the party and we are going to do right by him, do you understand me?”
Head spinning, Nathan withdrew at last, determined to return to the party before either of them realized he had been sent searching.
You can’t marry her. She doesn’t love you. It was the obvious solution to the problem, except that love had never been part of the equation between him and Margaret, and James’ family wasn’t near powerful enough to survive what a scandal like this would do to them.
The color, noise and light of the ball enfolded him again - Nathan found himself nodding greetings automatically to people he only barely recognized as he moved deeper into the crowd. There has to be a solution. Margaret didn’t love him, but despite her pronouncements she did love James. There had to be some way to resolve this mess honorably for all three of them.
“You know, you’re engaged now.” Nathan turned to see his brother had come up behind him. “If you and Margaret want to sneak out for a little alone time in the garden, there is no need for the two of you to return by separate routes.” Paul nodded across the room where a masked blond was just rejoining the party.
I need to tell her, Nathan thought. No matter what else happens, I can’t pretend I don’t know how they really feel about each other. “Your mask looks ridiculous,” he snarked at Paul, before heading off after his fiancé.
He was nearly across the dance floor before he caught her attention, and Nathan was immediately brought up short when her first reaction on seeing him wasn’t pleasure, indifference or even guilt…but fear. “Margaret, wait!” he called, pulling off his mask and letting her see him clearly.
She turned and ran from the room. Startled…and inexplicably intrigued…Nathan gave chase.
Something isn’t right. The further they drew away from the ballroom, the more suspicious Nathan became. Margaret Collinswood was fit, but the woman he was chasing was more athletic than he would have credited her with being. Still, he finally managed to catch up with her in a corridor outside the family library - steps from a rear door into the gardens.
When he reached out and caught her arm, spinning her back towards him, Nathan realized that even though she seemed familiar, the woman he had been chasing wasn’t his fiancé. The height was similar, but her hair was a richer gold than could be explained by the glow of the candles, and her eyes…”Who are you?” he breathed, reaching up to remove her mask. “I know you…”
Just as his fingertips brushed the lace trim, she surged forward - pushing him into the wall. Then her lips were on his, kissing him with a wild abandon. Nathan’s left arm went automatically around her waist, pulling her in close to him. Images filled his mind…the two of them stumbling together into an empty room…clothing pushed hastily aside…his hands exploring smooth, warm skin…
He caught the end of one of the ribbons tying her mask in place and pulled. She stiffened in his grasp as it fell between them, but he tightened his hold, deepening the kiss until she relaxed into him again, moaning softly as her hand curled possessively around the back of his neck.
“Come with me,” she murmured, lifting her head at last and letting him see the face he’d last glimpsed in the darkened forest outside Collinswood. “I’ve been watching you. You don’t belong here, with these people…with her.”
Memory of the chaste kiss he’d seen James and Margaret share flashed into Nathan’s mind, the feelings they’d shared, and for a moment he was tempted to take the thief up on her offer. No one would miss you. His conscience quickly got the better of him though, and he reluctantly shook his head. “I can’t,” he said - tightening his grip when she tried to pull away. “You’re a thief. You’ve stolen millions of pounds from my friends, my neighbors…”
His voice trailed off as he felt the point of a knife press into his stomach. “At this angle, any wound is going to be fatal.” Looking into her eyes, Nathan saw regret, but determination. He released her immediately, raising his hands in surrender.
“We would have been amazing together,” she said, stepping back from him. A small derringer appeared in her other hand, as if by magic, to further discourage him from giving chase.
“I am not a thief,” Nathan protested.
The girl’s expression lit with a dazzling smile. “Not now, of course. But as you go forward into your respectable life, with your perfect bride, I predict you will often think about how much fun I could have had teaching you.”