She had not noticed Matthew come up behind her. Amazingly, she had not noticed. But he was there. She felt his presence as soon as she had finished playing and his grace got to his feet.

But her only friend suddenly became her greatest enemy. Lord Thomas Kent, completely misunderstanding the situation, thinking to do her a kindness, was hinting that she be allowed to escape from the drawing room with her acquaintance, Matthew.

And her grace was agreeing with him and rescinding her command of that afternoon that Fleur hand her resignation to Mr. Houghton the next morning.

And so she had been maneuvered into something that was inevitable anyway. But she could have wished that it were not quite so late at night, that she did not feel quite so weary and hopeless. She could have wished for time.

But time had run out.

Two footmen were lighting some of the candles in their wall sconces the length of the long gallery.

aTake my arm, Isabella,a Matthew said. aIf we are to stroll, let us do it in a civilized manner.a The footmen closed the doors behind them when they left.

aWhy is it that you succeed in looking beautiful even when dressed so plainly?a he asked.

She slid her arm from his. aWhat do you want, Matthew?a she asked. aIf we are not to leave immediately, if you are not to drag me off to prison, what do you want? Do you want me to lie with you here at Willoughby, become your mistress here? I will not.a He sighed. aYou make me appear so very uncivilized, Isabella,a he said. aThose were your suggestions, not mine.a aTell me, then,a she said, aand stop playing games with me.a aI want you,a he said. aI have for a long, long time. Is that so reprehensible?a aAnd for a long, long time I have told you that I am not interested in your protestations,a she said. aIf you had loved me, as you always claimed to do, Matthew, you would have respected my feelings. You would not have interfered between me and Daniel.a aDaniel Booth,a he said scornfully. aA smiling, gentle maid. He could not have made you happy, Isabella.a aPerhaps not,a she said. aBut the choice should have been mine. Why did you arrange things so?a aSo?a He raised his eyebrows in inquiry.

aYour mother and Amelia going away to London,a she said impatiently, aand leaving me alone with you. It was so very improper, and they must have known it, and would have done something about it too if they had had any feeling for me whatsoever. And then refusing to let me go to Danielas sister to stay when she asked me, and refusing to let me marry Daniel by special license. You planned it so, didnat you? So that with no options open to me and no reputation left, I would have no choice but to become your mistress. So that you would have the chance to overpower me even if I refused.a He stopped and took her hands in his even though she tried to pull them away.

aIt was more than time for Amelia to go to town for her come-out,a he said. aAnd of course my mother wished to go with her. It would have seemed cruel to send you with them, Isabella. The three of you could never agree.a aIt is hard to agree or disagree with someone when you are almost totally ignored from the age of eight,a she said bitterly, aexcept when you are being criticized and scorned.a aHowever it was,a he said, aI thought it kinder to keep you at home where you belonged, Isabella. And it was never my idea to be your guardian, you know. It was your fatheras will and my fatheras death that did thata"until your marriage or until the age of twenty-five. I did not make those terms.a aUntil my marriage!a she said. aI could have been married to Daniel. You could have been free of such a burdensome responsibility.a aIt was not burdensome,a he said. aBut I could not in all conscience consent to your marrying such a milksop, Isabella.a aIt was better to make me your mistress,a she said.

aYou are the only one who has ever used that word,a he said.

She laughed. aI suppose you wanted to marry me,a she said.

aWrong tense,a he said, holding her hands more tightly. aYou are a lady. Isabella, daughter of a baron. How can you suggest that I was out to ruin you?a She laughed again. aStrange that you never thought to mention the honorable nature of your intentions before,a she said. aHow delighted your mother would be, Matthew. And I suppose the seduction that evening was to put the stamp of your possession on me before the ceremony.a aSeduction?a he said.

aI was leaving the house,a she said, adespite the lateness of the hour and the coldness of the evening. My trunk was in the gig. Miriam was waiting for me at the rectory. But you would not let me leave and berated me for my disobedience. And you were not about to send me to my room, Matthew. You were about to take me to yours. Or perhaps not even that. Hobson was to hold me, wasnat he, right there in the library, while you raped me.a He released one of her hands in order to pass a hand over his forehead. aWhat strange notions you have, Isabella,a he said. aYou were screaming at me and fighting like a demented creature because I would not allow you to elope with a man I had refused quite lawfully to allow you to marry. Hobson stepped up behind you to prevent you from tripping over the hearthstone and hurting yourself. And you turned and lashed out at him too and caught him off-balance. It was a crime of passion pure and simple.a aYes,a she said, aI suppose a judge would see it that waya"once you had explained it to him.a aIt is a pity that the jewels made it seem all rather premeditated,a he said. aThough doubtless I was your intended victim.a aThe jewels?a She had gone very still.

aThose too costly for my mother to take to London,a he said. aThey were found in your trunk after you had run away in a panic.a She stared at him. aFound by someone other than you, I gather,a she said at last.

aBy your maid,a he said.

She smiled at him.

aBut it must all have been done impulsively,a he said. aIt must have been hard for you, Isabella, to lose your parents at a young age, to see my father and us come to the house and take over the property and possessions that you had grown to believe were yours. But they can be yours again, and your childrenas.a aOur childrenas,a she said. aAre you really serious about marrying me, then, Matthew?a aI love you,a he said. aYou cannot imagine how I have suffered in the last two and a half months, Isabella, not knowing if I would ever see you again. You must marry me.a aMust being the key word, I take it,a she said.

aI would never have forced you,a he said. aYou must know that you were wrong about that.a aMy answer is no,a she said.

aYou will change your mind,a he said.

aNo, I will not.a She smiled at him. aWhen you leave here, you will leave alone, Matthew.a He raised his hands and set them loosely about her neck. He lifted them to her chin, tightened them slightly, and jerked upward.

aI have heard that very skilled hangmen can do their job in such a way that death is instantaneous and painless,a he said. aUnfortunately, not all are skilled.a Her smile faded. aThank you,a she said. aI have finally had my answer. I marry you, then, Matthew, or I hang. How long do I have to decide?a But he had no chance to answer. The doors at the end of the long gallery opened to admit the Duke of Ridgeway.

aYou are still here,a he said. aIt is easy to lose track of time amid so many paintings, is it not? But my daughteras governess needs her sleep, Brocklehurst. Perhaps you can continue the viewing some other time. You may return to your room, Miss Hamilton.a But Matthew walked along the gallery with her so that all three of them soon stood in the doorway. And the duke looked assessingly at Matthew and held out his arm to her.

aI will escort you upstairs,a he said.

She placed her hand on his arm and did not look back to see what Matthew did. She removed her hand as soon as they had passed through the archway to the staircase. She ascended the stairs as close to the inside wall as possible.

He did not turn back at the top of the stairs as she had expected, but walked along the corridor to her room. And he set his hand on the doorknob. She watched it, the long-fingered, beautiful hand that she so feared.

aIam sorry, Miss Hamilton,a he said quietly.

aSorry?a She raised her eyes to his face, dark, harsh, and angular in the dim light of the hallway.

aFor all this,a he said. aFor getting you from your bed. For allowing you to be made into a pawn. I will not let it happen again.a She would not lower her eyes from his.

aDid he hurt you?a he asked. aOr harass you in any way?a aHe is not the one who hurt me,a she said.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, and closed it again. He looked at her with set lips and tightly clenched jaw. And she wondered, too weary to feel instant terror, if he would open the door soon, usher her inside, and order her to remove her clothes again.

And she wondered if she would obey.

aIam sorry,a he said again, and she watched in horror and fascination as his eyes dropped to her lips and his head drew closer.

He opened the door suddenly and motioned her inside.

aNo!a She stood where she was and shook her head slowly from side to side. aNo. Please, no. Ah, please, no.a aMy God!a He stepped into the doorway and took both her shoulders in a bruising grip. aWhat do you think of me? Did you think I intended to come inside with you? Did you imagine that I could apologize to you in one breath and seduce you with the next?a She bit down on her lip and stared at him.

aFleur.a His hands gentled. aFleur, I did not take you against your will that one time. I would never take you against your will. And I would never again take you with your will, either. I am a married man who has had one lapse in fidelity in five and a half years of marriage. I will not have you afraid for your safety with me.a She was drawing blood from the inside of her upper lip.

He looked into her face, into her tense, horror-filled eyes, made an impatient sound, and drew her into his arms. He held her hard against him until she stopped shuddering and sagged forward. And she turned her head and set it against his steadily beating heart, and closed her eyes.

aYou must not fear for your safety with me.a His voice was low against her ear. Those fingers were stroking lightly over the back of her neck. aYou are the very last person on this earth whom I would want to hurt, Fleur. My God, tell me you no longer believe what you just believed.a aI donat.a She pushed wearily away from him. Had the day really been quite as long as it had seemed?

aWell, then.a He released his hold on her and took a step to one side, looking down at her uncertainly. aGood night.a aGood night, your grace.a She stepped inside her room and closed the door. She set her forehead against it and took several deep, steadying breaths. She had nothing to fear. He had been alone with her and could have taken her with ease. He could have muffled her screams so that even Mrs. Clement would not have heard. He had not taken her.

He would never do so against her will, he had said, or even with her will.

She had nothing to fear. Yet she could feel his arms straining her against his hard-muscled body. And she could feel his fingers against the back of her neck. She could hear his heart beating, and she could feel herself sagging against him, surrendering to his warmth and his strength. To the illusion of comfort.

She thought very deliberately about who he was and what he had done to hera"about his powerful male body and his scars. About his hands.

And she felt fear. Fear because when he had finally touched her, she had forgotten her repulsiona"as she had when she had waltzed with him and when she had ridden with him.

HIS MASTER WAS IN A BAD MOOD AGAIN, PETER Houghton noticed as he entered his office the following morninga"five minutes late, as ill fortune would have it. The duke was standing looking out of the window, his bearing military, one hand drumming a tattoo on the sill.

It must be true, then, what was being said belowstairs about her grace and Lord Thomas, though everyone knew that all was not right with his graceas marriage anyway. And then, of course, there was that report about the dukeas ladybird strolling in the long gallery with Lord Brocklehurst after midnight the night before.

Though Houghton had wondered since his return to Willoughby Hall if the governess was after all his masteras ladybird. He liked the woman, despite a predisposition not to do so. She was always quietly courteous belowstairs and did not put on airs at Mrs. Laycockas table, even though every word and gesture marked her as a lady born and bred.

aWhere the devil have you been?a his grace said, confirming his secretaryas suspicions.

aHelping Mrs. Laycock with a small problem in balancing her housekeeping books, your grace,a he said.

aHow would you welcome a holiday?a the duke asked.

Houghton looked at him suspiciously. Was he about to be handed a permanent holiday? For being five minutes late at his desk?

aYou are to go into Wiltshire for me,a the duke said. aTo Heron House. I am not sure quite where it is. You will, no doubt, find out.a aTo Lord Brocklehurstas, your grace?a His secretary frowned.

aThe same,a his grace said. aI want whatever you can find out about an Isabella who lived there until quite recently.a aIsabella?a Houghton looked inquiringly. aLast name, your grace?a aUnknown,a the duke said. aAnd you are to be invisible and mute while finding the answers. Do you understand?a aJust Isabella, your grace?a Houghton said. aDo you have no other description?a aLet us say she looks remarkably like Miss Hamilton,a his grace said.

Peter Houghton stared at him.

aI can rely on your discretion, Houghton?a his grace asked. aYou are going on a long-overdue and well-earned holiday?a aTo visit my cousin Tom,a his secretary said, his face impassive, aand his wife, whom I have not yet met. And their new son, to whom I am to be godfather.a aI donat need a family history,a the duke said curtly. aYou had better leave today, Houghton, or you may miss the christening.a aI am much obliged to you, your grace,a Houghton said as his master turned to stride from the room. aI will not forget this favor you have done me.a aYou will see about that other matter before you leave?a the duke said, looking back from the doorway. aI gave instructions that she was to go into Wollaston this morning.a aIt will be taken care of, your grace,a Houghton said briskly.

Well, he thought, the master must be far more discreet than her grace. There had not been a whisper of a scandal belowstairs about his relationship with the governessa"the London whore. Though of course there had been the groomsa claim that the two of them had gone riding alone together for a whole hour the morning beforea"a claim that seemed to be borne out by the fact that he had been instructed to see that the governess was fitted out for a riding habit and boots.

So she was his ladybird after all. And his grace must be smitten indeed if he was about to pry into the poor girlas past. She was living under a false name, was she?

But then, one could hardly blame his grace when the duchess was doing nothing to hide her preference for Lord Thomas.

THE MORNING WAS WET. There was not even the chance of a brief stroll outside after her music practice, Fleur found with regret. And no chance that there would be another riding lesson for Lady Pamela.

But the regret she felt over that fact was tempered by memories of her ride the morning before and the way it had developed. And memories of the night before and of the terror that had led her to make a most embarrassing assumption. And the memory of his arms about her and his heart beating against her ear and the smell of his cologne.

She was glad after all that it was raining.

As she watched Lady Pamela print rows of letters and later told her a story from history while they both embroidered, she began to hope that perhaps his grace would not come to the schoolroom that morning. And she listened for him, every sound startling her.

They were examining the globe again when he came. But instead of taking a seat in one corner as he usually did after kissing his daughter and bidding them both a good morning, he stayed on his feet and handed Fleur a letter.

aIt came this morning,a he said, atogether with one for me in the same hand. You have my permission, Miss Hamilton, to accept the invitation. And I do believe Houghton is waiting belowstairs in his office for you. Have you forgotten your errand for this morning?a Fleur had not. But she had thought it very likely that he had forgotten, and had not liked to mention the matter to Mr. Houghton at breakfast.

aI will have a carriage brought around for you in half an houras time,a he said. aPamela, you and I will play with Tiny for a while until it is time for me to join some of the gentlemen. This afternoon you may come with Mama and me to the rectory. Some of our guests wish to see the church. You may play with the children while we do so.a aYe-es.a Lady Pamela jumped up and down on the spot.

aCome along, then,a he said, reaching out a hand for hers. aGood day to you, Miss Hamilton.a Mr. Chamberlain was inviting her to join him and his sister and Sir Cecil Hayward for dinner and a visit to the theater in Wollaston that evening. A traveling company of players was to appear there.

She folded the paper and lifted it to her mouth. And she felt an enormous regret for the life that might have been hers at Willoughby. She had work that she was beginning to find quite pleasant, enough social life to keep her active and interested, and the friendship of an attractive gentleman to make her feel like a woman.

She could never have taken that relationship beyond friendship, of course. She had known that and accepted it. She had not asked for mucha"merely life as it had been for the first two weeks after her arrival.

If only the Duke of Ridgeway had stayed away from home. And if only Matthew had not tracked her there.

The carriage was to be waiting for her in half an houras time, his grace had said. She hurried to her room to get ready and to pen an acceptance of her invitation.

Peter Houghton gave her a letter to present at Wollaston so that the bills for her riding clothes could be sent to the house. He also paid her her first monthas salary, though she had not been there for quite a month, explaining that he was to leave within the hour for the christening of his cousinas son and might not be back for a week or more.

Fleur enjoyed the next few hours. After her experiences of just a couple of months ago, it was a delightful feeling to be dressed respectably, to ride in a smart carriage, to be treated with deference because the carriage bore the crest of the Duke of Ridgeway, to have a little money to spend on silk stockings, which strictly speaking she did not need, to choose rich velvet fabric for a riding habit and soft leather for boots.

And returning to Willoughby Hall felt like coming home again, she thought later, despite the rain and the heavy clouds. The carriage rumbled over the bridge and she turned her eyes to the house and felt a great churning of love for it. And a great sadness that it would not be her home for much longer.

She smiled at the coachman as he helped her down from the carriage, and would have hurried through the doors to the servantsa quarters beneath the horseshoe steps if someone had not hailed her by name. Matthew was hurrying from the direction of the stables.

aI came upstairs after luncheon to visit you,a he said as the carriage drew away again. aThe childas nurse told me you had gone into Wollaston. Alone, Isabella? Why did you not let me know? I would have come with you.a She stood in the rain and looked at him.

aI shall be leaving on this infernal visit to a Norman church soon,a he said. aBut I must see you this evening. Where? Your room? Or downstairs somewhere?a aI have other plans for this evening,a she said.

aWhat?a He frowned at her. Water was falling in a steady stream from the brim of his hat.

aI have been invited out to dinner and the theater,a she said. aBy neighbors.a aWho is he?a he asked. aYou had better not encourage him, Isabella. I would not like it at all.a aCan you not conceive of a relationship of pure friendliness, Matthew?a she asked. Cold water was finding its way in a trickle down her back inside her cloak.

aNot where you are concerned,a he said. aNot with your looks, Isabella. We will stay here for a few weeks. But I expect a good portion of your free time. And I do not expect to have to deal with opposition. And that includes the duke. I hope he did not stay with you last night. For your sake I hope it.a aI am wet and cold through to the bone, Matthew,a she said. aI am going indoors, if you will excuse me.a He sketched her a bow and turned to run up the marble steps.

Fleur shivered as she let herself in through the servantsa doors. Yes, there was always thata"the ultimate choice that she was going to have to make: either to marry Matthew, if indeed he did mean marriage, or to stand trial for murder and theft when the only witness was Matthew himself.

MR. CHAMBERLAINaS CARRIAGE CAME for Fleur early in the evening. She looked down in some regret at her blue muslin dress and wished that she had had something else to wear. But she would not let anything spoil her evening. She was going to enjoy herself, she had decided earlier, especially after her talk with Matthew. If she had not had this invitation to honor, she would have been forced to spend the evening with him. Of course, there were tomorrow evening and the evening after that, but she would think of that when the time came.

Sir Cecil Hayward, a gentleman Fleur remembered seeing at the ball, appeared to have no conversation but what related to horses and hounds and hunting. But both Miss Chamberlain and her brother were lively conversationalists, and Fleur found herself very well entertained during dinner.

She had never in her life attended the theater, a fact that amused Mr. Chamberlain.

aYou have never been near a theater, Miss Hamilton?a he said. aAmazing! How would the Shakespeares of our world survive if people were all like you?a aBut I did not say I had stayed away out of inclination, sir,a she said, laughinga"and remembering a time when she had indeed been near a theater.

aThis will be like taking the children out, Emily,a he said, smiling at his sister. aI suppose we can expect Miss Hamilton to be all agog and jumping up and down in her excitement.a aI promise at least,a Fleur said, anot to shriek and squeal, sir.a aAh, then,a he said, aI suppose we can proceed on our way. You are willing to dispense with the port for tonight, Hayward?a The theater was far smaller than Fleur had expected, the relationship between audience and players far more intimate. The audience hissed a singer who sang slightly off-key, whistled every time one actress with a particularly fine bosom appeared on the stage, cheered the villain, jeered the hero when he was abject with unrequited love, and applauded and catcalled through the final love scene.

Fleur loved every moment of it, action and audience both.

aPhilistines all,a Mr. Chamberlain said into her ear. aThey came here not to be entertained, but to entertain themselves. Of course, it must be admitted that there are more skilled actors somewhere in this country. I hope this experience will not give you a permanent disgust of the theater, Miss Hamilton.a aAbsolutely not,a she said. aIt has been a lovely evening.a Miss Chamberlain apparently did not agree. The heat and constant noise of the theater had given her a headache. And so after letting down Sir Cecil at his home close to Wollaston, the carriage took Miss Chamberlain home before proceeding to Willoughby Hall. Mr. Chamberlain insisted on accompanying Fleur there at such a late hour.

aAdam was not annoyed at my taking you from the house for a whole evening?a he asked.

aHe told me that I might accept the invitation,a she said.

aSome people seem to think that their employees are their personal possessions and are not entitled to any free time,a he said, alet alonea"heaven forbida"some social life. I might have known, of course, that Adam would be more enlightened. I have never known anyone who has succeeded in luring away any of his servants, though I have known those who have tried. Apparently he treats them more like family than employees.a aHe is always kind,a Fleur said.

aThere was universal rejoicing in this part of the world when he came home so unexpectedly a year after being reported dead,a he said. aThomas was probably the only one who was disappointed to find that he was no longer duke.a aAnd yet,a Fleur said, ahe is a very pleasant gentleman.a aOh, yes,a he said, smiling at her in the darkness of the carriage. aGranted. You are coming to Timmyas birthday party?a They conversed easily for a while before lapsing into a comfortable silence.

Mr. Chamberlain turned to her as his carriage crossed the bridge at the end of the lime grove. aI will kick myself for a coward and an imbecile and a slowtop if I do not at least try to kiss you before this carriage stops,a he said. aMay I, Miss Hamilton?a What could one say to such a request? No, she supposed, if one disliked the gentleman. She did not dislike Mr. Chamberlain.

aI see that my audacity has silenced you,a he said. aAnd I suppose it is difficult to say a polite aYes, sir,a to such a question. I hope it would not be so hard to say aNo, sir,a if that is what you wish to say.a She saw him smile in the darkness before setting one arm about her shoulders, lifting her chin with his free hand, and lowering his mouth to hers.

It was warm, firm, pleasant. He did not prolong the embrace.

aI wait meekly for a stinging slap on the cheek,a he said, withdrawing his arm and hand and sitting upright again. aNone? I hope I have not offended you. Have I?a aNo,a she said.

aI shall look forward to seeing you in a few daysa time,a he said. aPerhaps we will even be able to exchange a few words above the shrieking of the children. Birthdays always cause more noise than any two other occasions combined. Have you noticed?a He waited for his coachman to put down the steps before descending to the wet terrace in order to hand her out. He escorted her up the steps to the main doors, rapped on them, and bowed over her hand, raising it to his lips, before turning to leave.

aThank you for your company, Miss Hamilton,a he said. aI have enjoyed the evening more than I can say.a aSo have I,a she said. aGood night, sir.a She looked about her as the door closed, half-expecting Matthew or the duke to step out of the shadows. But there was no one except the lone footman who had opened the door.

She ran up the stairs and along to her room. She undressed quickly and climbed into bed, pulling the blankets up about her ears.

She would think only of the evening. At least for one night she would go to sleep happy. She thought about Mr. Chamberlain and his friendly humor. And about his kiss. And she wished that life could have started a little less than a month ago. She wished that there were no Matthew and no Hobsonas body lying under the ground somewhere close to Heron House. She wished there had been no London, no necessity of remaining alive there. No Duke of Ridgeway. She even wished in some strange way that there had been no Daniel.

She wished there had been only Willoughby Hall and Mr. Chamberlain.