But clearly he had more discipline than she did. After a lingering moment, he raised his head. “Sleep well, princess, for we start our newest adventure in the morning.”
When he turned away, Maura entered her room and shut the door behind her, smiling softly. For although she would sleep alone tonight, she wasn’t alone at all.
Maura had barely risen the next morning when Katharine swept into her room carrying a breakfast tray.
“Good, you are awake,” Katharine said brightly, setting the tray down on the dressing table. “No doubt you were exhausted after all your travels, Maura, so I hope you slept well, for we have a great deal to do today. Why don’t you eat your breakfast while I tell you what has transpired this morning?”
When Maura obeyed, Katharine recounted the events thus far. “First, Ash dispatched a footman to our Aunt Isabella’s London residence and learned that she is on her way home from Cornwall and is expected here sometime tonight. She has houses in London and Cornwall and on a Mediterranean island off the coast of Spain, courtesy of her three husbands.”
“Three husbands?” Maura remarked curiously.
“Yes, three. She has been widowed since my Uncle Henry Wilde passed away five years ago. She is actually half Spanish—her father was a Spanish count and distinguished diplomat. You will love Bella, I am certain, Maura. She is so lively and such fun, even if she is only a Wilde by marriage. I have no doubt she will be happy to come stay with us to act as your chaperone and lend an air of propriety to your visit.”
Without pausing, Kate continued ticking items off her fingers. “Second, Ash wrote a notice of your engagement for the newspapers. Third, I sent to Suffolk for more of your clothing, and in the meantime, you will share mine. And fourth, I have called a family council for ten o’clock this morning to discuss how to give that blackguard Deering his comeuppance. Skye is eager to help, and we shall bring Jack and Quinn and Uncle Cornelius into the deliberations as well.”
“You have been busy, I see,” Maura murmured, torn between amusement and chagrin that her problems were being forced on all of Katharine’s relatives. “But Kate, I dislike putting your entire family to all this trouble—”
“Oh, pah. Ash told me you would resist accepting our assistance, but everyone needs a little support now and then. And you know you cannot defeat Deering alone. You needn’t even try, Maura, since we will all relish helping you. No, don’t you dare argue with me. I’ve always been extremely fortunate to have my family to call upon in times of trouble. You have had no one—but that will change right this instant.”
Thus it was that during her first day in residence at the Beaufort mansion, Maura found herself swept up in the Wilde family consultations. When she had finished breakfast and dressed, she accompanied Katharine downstairs to the library, where, according to Kate, many of their councils took place.
“Ash is typically in charge of our meetings,” she confided. “He holds the reins of our family since as the eldest, he had the most responsibility when our parents died. But we usually listen to him and trust him to lead us.”
Ash was already waiting in the library when Maura entered. As he rose to greet her, the warm light in his eyes reminded her vividly of last night’s sensual kiss.
His uncle’s greeting was more formal, but still genuinely welcoming, as he had known Maura since her first visit to Beauvoir as a schoolgirl. Lord Cornelius Wilde was a classics scholar of some repute and looked the part, with his silvering hair and heavy eyebrows, although his refined bone structure and tall, lean build lent him an unmistakable aristocratic elegance.
Lord Cornelius, Maura knew, possessed a powerful intelligence, but was uncomfortable in most social settings, so she wasn’t surprised when he politely asked to be excused from the discussion. Then retreating to a comfortable chair near the hearth, he donned his spectacles and opened a leather-bound tome.
Ash had just seated Maura and Katharine at a large table near the window overlooking the gardens when his handsome half brother, Lord Jack Wilde, strode in. Lord Jack’s overlong raven hair and unshaven jaw gave him a rakish air, while his amused, irreverent manner was a frequent source of exasperation for Kate, Maura knew.
Lord Jack clapped Ash on the shoulder before expressing amazement at his engagement. “You shocked the devil out of us, brother, agreeing to be leg-shackled. I never thought you would do it, despite the obvious temptation of so lovely a lady.…” So saying, he turned to Maura and bent to kiss her cheek. “Welcome to the notorious Wilde clan, Miss Collyer. I will be delighted to have you as a sister, but I trust you know what you are letting yourself in for, aligning yourself with
my libertine of a brother.”
Maura found herself blushing at Lord Jack’s charming flattery even as she shot Ash a questioning look. “You did tell him that our betrothal is only temporary?”
“Yes, he knows,” Ash answered dryly, just as Skye and her elder brother Quinn, the Earl of Traherne, arrived.
Skye embraced Maura joyously and Traherne bowed over her hand.
Like Maura, they were fair-haired, but Skye’s tresses were a lighter shade of gold than her brother’s. They both had deep blue eyes, unlike Ash and Kate’s vivid green color and Lord Jack’s dark brown. Additionally, Lord Traherne shared his uncle’s aristocratic elegance and keen intelligence, but possessed a dry, biting wit and a zest for adventure that the older gentleman completely lacked.
When they were all settled around the table, Ash explained how he and Maura had been occupied for the past several days, recounting their efforts to spirit the stallion away from London and their subsequent decision to return and confront Deering’s malevolent lies about her late father. Maura was quite glad that Ash gave not even a hint about their physical intimacy, yet they couldn’t escape questions about their betrothal.
When Lord Jack ribbed her about being his brother’s “Cinderella” though, Skye came to her rescue. “Stop teasing Maura, Jack,” Skye said sweetly, “or I swear I will make your life miserable.”
He gave a mock look of terror before insisting with an amused drawl, “She will have to endure a great deal of ribbing if she means to spend any time with us. But I own I would go easier on her if she would allow me to purchase one of her famous stallion’s offspring.”
Maura couldn’t help smiling at his broad hint, but before she could reply, Lord Traherne commended her influence on his sister. “I recall you play a mean game of cricket, Miss Collyer, but more crucially, you managed to correct Skye’s horsemanship when I failed for years.”
She had learned to play the rough-and-tumble, very male sport of cricket from Katharine and Skye, who had been taught by their brothers when they were short on team members, and in turn, Maura had improved both young ladies’ riding seats.
Skye laughingly objected to his criticism, however, which resulted in an argument about his teaching abilities versus her equestrian talents, but Maura could clearly see their fondness for one another.
As if sharing her reflection, Katharine took the opportunity to lean closer and whisper in Maura’s ear. “We may quarrel and bait each other unmercifully, but we would fight to the death if any one of us was threatened. So there are advantages to having a loving family, even if they are forever provoking you and prying into your affairs.”
Advantages, indeed, Maura thought wistfully. She had always wanted a close-knit, loving family, although Priscilla had made that impossible from the very beginning, insisting that Maura be sent off to boarding school alone, away from her beloved father and friends.