Led Astray by a Rake (The Husband Hunters Club 1)

She left the pond and began making her way down the long walk toward the ruin of the old castle wall. Over by the rose garden she could see a woman in a black dress and bonnet, stooping to inspect the denuded stems. Lady Lacey was about, and Olivia didn’t want to run into her and have to explain, so at the end of the walk she turned to her left, quickening her pace as she followed the old wall, intending to return to the house the long way.

Nic stepped around a perennial border and stood in her path. He was still twenty yards away but there was nowhere for her to go apart from back the way she’d come. She glanced behind her. Lady Lacey was strolling up from the rose garden, heading in her direction. Olivia turned back to Nic.

He looked dangerous, and intent on capturing her. His smiling mouth was a hard line, and his dark eyes were narrowed and fixed on hers.

“Olivia, come here,” he said, and it was an order.

Olivia had no intention of coming willingly to a treacherous man who had betrayed her and lied to her and made her life a misery. She turned again, this time toward the wall, and looked up at the top of it. There were some flowering vines growing along and through the old stones, and there were plenty of hand and toe holds, for anyone crazy enough to want to climb it.

“Olivia!”

Too late, she thought triumphantly. Nic himself had told her about the times he and his father climbed this wall. If he could do it, then so could she. She put her hand up and gripped the age-smoothed corner of one of the blocks and, dragging her skirts out of the way, stuck her slipper into a gap between two smaller stones. She began to haul herself up, concentrating on getting high enough, so that by the time Nic reached her, he wouldn’t be able to pull her back down again.

“What the devil…Olivia, come down at once!”

Nic’s shout was loud enough to be heard in Bassingthorpe itself, but again Olivia ignored him

. Her skirts tangled about her legs and she reached down with one hand to pull them out of the way, allowing herself free movement as she climbed. A quick glance at the wall stretching above her showed she’d made surprisingly good progress—of course, climbing like this was a dangerous thing to do, but she couldn’t think about that now.

She just wanted to get away from him.

“Olivia, what on earth do you think you’re doing?” It was Lady Lacey, her haughty tones as rich as plum pudding. “Dominic, get her down at once.”

“I would if I could, Mother,” Nic said between gritted teeth.

Olivia ignored them, searching with her hands and fingers for the next ledge, stepping up with her abused slippers. Another step up, another ledge. It wasn’t so difficult, she told herself, and made the mistake of glancing down.

Her head spun dizzily as she saw how far she had now come. Lady Lacey’s pale face gazed up at her, fear in her eyes, while Nic was glowering as if he’d like to strangle her. Olivia gulped and pressed her body hard to the wall, wishing she could squeeze inside it. Her fingers and knuckles were already bleeding, but she didn’t care. She felt light-headed from the height and the need to escape Nic, but Olivia knew she had no choice but to go on.

Slowly, heart in her mouth, Olivia began to climb once more.

Nic wanted to curse her and stamp about, but he knew that although that might help him to feel better it wouldn’t achieve anything. Besides, his mother was there now, and if he remembered rightly she didn’t appreciate bad behavior.

But when he saw her begin climbing the wall he thought his heart might stop, so afraid was he she’d fall, but as she climbed higher he saw how nimble and quick she was. Not that she couldn’t still fall. He needed to get her down.

“Olivia!” he shouted, looking up at her bright skirts and white petticoats, her legs and arms outstretched as she clung on.

“Why is she doing this?” his mother wailed—he’d never heard her wail before. “She knows you fell from this wall? That was how you broke your leg, Dominic.”

“She knows,” he said grimly.

“Then why…? I don’t understand.”

“Olivia!” he roared.

She stopped and glanced down. Her face looked pale but he couldn’t really see her expression. She released one hand and tucked her hair out of her eyes. “Please don’t distract me,” she called down primly.

“Distract you!” he blazed. “What the devil do you think you’re doing?”

“I want to see the view,” she said blithely. “You said it was magnificent.”

For a moment he was speechless. “You’re risking your life for the view?” he choked.

“Why not?” she said. “What else should I do? I suppose I could sit and wring my hands.”

“Don’t be so bloody melodramatic!” he growled.

“You lied to me,” she replied, her voice like ice.