Princess Charming (Legendary Lovers 1)

Nothing at all was settled, Maura knew, but she didn’t have the willpower to argue. And in any event, protesting would be pointless. The Marquis of Beaufort was accustomed to getting his own way, and he was a Wilde to boot, meaning that he arranged the world to his own liking and expected everyone else to fall in line.

Letting Beaufort accompany her was a dreadful idea, Maura told herself, yet she didn’t know how she could have stopped him.

They watered the horses in silence, then quietly left the livery. Only when they were on the road did he speak. “Now tell me where we are we going.”

“To Scotland,” Maura answered. “The Highlands, to be exact.”

Beaufort gave her a sharp glance. “That is quite a distance.”

“I know, but Gandy has friends there who will hide Emperor and care for him.” When Beaufort didn’t reply, Maura explained her plan. “Deering will likely search the main thoroughfares first, so we will need to reach Scotland by a circuitous route, traveling cross-country. I thought to head west toward Reading tonight and then veer north to Oxford. And for the first few days at least, I planned to ride at night and hide out during the day.”

“Do you have a fixed destination in mind for tonight?”

“Yes. A country farm, which we should reach before dawn. But after that, I have no other resting stops in mind.”

“So you will have to improvise,” Beaufort said in resignation.

“Yes. But I did not count on your escort. How will I explain your presence?” Maura asked, surveying his elegant attire. His superbly tailored coat and waistcoat, spotless white cravat, buckskin breeches, shining Hessian boots, and tall beaver hat fairly shouted wealth and refinement. “If I am supposed to be a peddler, what am I doing in the company of a fancy toff like you?”

Beaufort thought for a moment before offering an impressive array of ideas. “There are any number of excuses we could give out. We could say I’m an eccentric and that I followed you on a lark. Or that when you recently received word that your poor dear papa kicked the bucket, I took pity on you and decided to escort you home. Or possibly I won a wager and claimed your store of worldly goods for myself, and I am making you cart them to my country estate. Or you could even be my groom.” His gaze swept down her own attire. “You do resemble a lad in that getup. What have you done to your breasts?”

In the darkness, Maura felt herself flush at his brazen query. “I bound them, if you must know.”

“That must be uncomfortable.”

“Not much more uncomfortable than wearing corsets,” she said, although that was a lie. The length of linen she had wrapped around her chest was already chafing her skin in several places.

“I don’t believe any of those excuses will suffice,” she pronounced, returning to the less intimate subject. “We look much too different in class and will call undue attention to ourselves.”

“If you insist, I’ll buy some coarse clothing at the first village we come to, but I refuse to give up my prime blood to ride a nag.”

She smiled. “No, I suppose that sacrifice would be too great for your lordship. Until you find something more suitable to wear, however, we should not be seen together. In fact,” Maura said after more consideration, “there is no reason for you to change your appearance at all. You won’t be with me for more than a few days. You can help me reach Oxford and then return home.”

“Oh, no,” Beaufort responded genially. “You are not getting rid of me so easily.” He cast her a sideways glance. “I have to admire your gumption, but if you wanted a career as a horse thief, you should have mentioned it sooner. I’m acquainted with all manner of people who might have assisted you, including a few felons. Have you ever stolen anything before?”

“Nothing of consequence.”

“What does that mean?”

“I once stole the headmistress’s bedroom slippers on a dare. Katharine challenged me, and I couldn’t leave my honor undefended.”

“So you do have practice as a thief,” he commented, amused. “And here I thought you were a relative innocent compared to my madcap sister.”

“I was never as madcap as your sister,” Maura assured him. “You should have seen the pranks Katharine pulled at school.”

“Pray, don’t tell me,” he said dryly. “I became her guardian the instant I reached my majority, since our Uncle Cornelius no longer wanted the responsibility, so I was supposed to be looking out for her.”

“I must say, you did not do a very good job in supervising her,” Maura said, still smiling. “Skye was almost as bad as Kate, but from what I hear, they were merely following in your footsteps. They both adore you and think that you can do no wrong, but you set them an atrocious example as the most scandalous member of the Wilde clan.”

“I could say you deserve some of the blame as well, my lovely hellion. It sounds as if you were quite a threesome.”

“We were,” she admitted.

He shook his head in consternation, then laughed. “You are going to cause me a lot of trouble, aren’t you?”

“I told you not to come with me,” Maura pointed out.

Beaufort shrugged. “I am trying to view this journey as an adventure.”