Regency High Society Vol 3: Beloved Virago / Lord Trenchard's Choice / The Unruly Chaperon / Colonel Ancroft's Love

For a moment it was as much as Daniel could do to stare down at her in open-mouthed astonishment. ‘Not be able to …?’ Words failed him, but not for very long. ‘I’ve been unfortunate enough to come across several harebrained females in my time, Katherine Fairchild O’Malley, but without doubt you reign supreme! You’ve a head of hair on you like a flaming hayrick, girl! You stand out like a beacon!’

If there was one subject guaranteed to stir her own uncertain temper, then it was someone passing a disparaging remark about her hair. ‘I didn’t ask to be cursed with auburn locks, Major Ross!’ she flared. ‘And might I remind you that had you permitted me the few seconds it would have taken to collect my bonnet, instead of dragging me away in that odiously cavalier fashion, I might have been in a position to keep my cursed tresses well hidden!’

She watched the anger fading from those dark, masculine eyes as he cast them over her hair, which she had managed during her brief venture alone through the French countryside to confine neatly at the nape of her neck by means of a further strip torn from her underskirt.

‘I considered that I had a sound reason for wandering off on my own.’ From beneath her cloak, she drew out a loaf of bread and a goodly wedge of cheese. ‘Though why I bothered to bring them back here to share with you, I cannot imagine,’ she added, feeling quite out of charity with him now.

Daniel sat down beside her and, relieving her of the round loaf, proceeded to tear it in half. ‘Where did you manage to lay your hands on this delicious fare, may I ask?’ he enquired, secretly impressed by this display of self-reliance on her part. ‘Is there some village nearby?’

Katherine shook her head. ‘Didn’t see one. There’s a farm in the valley, though, just beyond the wood. The rear door to the main building was wide open. I didn’t see anyone about, so I slipped inside and removed these from the kitchen table.’

He bent a look of mock severity upon her. ‘That was stealing, my girl. Many in Wellington’s army were hanged for less.’

‘As I left some coins on the kitchen table, I do not consider I was stealing,’ she responded, winning herself a faint smile of approval.

‘In that case, I’ll forgive you this time. But you’re not to go wandering off again by yourself, understand? I can appreciate that there will be occasions when you’ll desire a—er—little privacy,’ he added delicately. ‘As long as I can see the top of your head at all times, I shan’t object.’

Katherine didn’t pretend to misunderstand and glowered at him, the picture of indignant outrage. ‘I’ll take leave to inform you, Major, that you’re an exceedingly vulgar man. Top of my head, indeed! I’ve never heard the like before!’

Although he found it impossible to suppress a smile, Daniel managed not to add to her obvious annoyance by laughing outright. ‘One tends to forget the social niceties after years of hard campaigning out in the Peninsula, Kate.’

‘Then it’s high time you began to re-acquire a few, Major. And you can begin by paying me the common courtesy of remembering not to call me Kate.’

Clearly he was not prepared to begin his retraining quite yet, for he merely applied himself to the bread and cheese for several minutes, and then surprised her by remarking, ‘For someone who places such store by correct behaviour, I’m rather surprised that you lent yourself to this outrageous scheme.’ He studied her in silence for a moment, his gaze penetrating, but not unduly censorious. ‘Why did you agree to aid that crafty old reprobate, Sir Giles Osborne?’

Katherine returned that searching gaze, reflecting as she did so that, had he asked her such a thing just twenty-four hours before, she wouldn’t have hesitated to tell him to mind his own business. Now, for some obscure reason, she didn’t object to his knowing in the least.

She transferred her gaze to the stream a few yards away, which put her forcibly in mind of the one that had rippled its way across her father’s Irish acres. ‘There were several reasons,’ she admitted truthfully. ‘The main one, I suppose, was because I wished to avenge in some part the death of Liam Patrick O’Malley.’

‘Your father?’

‘Yes, Daniel, my father. Had I been a boy I would have been granted the opportunity to do so by enlisting in the army. That, however, was denied me. Sir Giles offered me the opportunity to rectify this … and I didn’t need to think twice about it.’

‘How did your father die, Katherine?’ he asked gently, as he detected the shadow of sadness flickering over the delicate features. ‘Was he a soldier?’

She shook her head. ‘My father owned a stud in Ireland. I doubt there has ever been—or ever will be, come to that—a man who has known more about horses than my father. His expertise was renowned, and his horses were much coveted. He was approached by someone attached to the War Office, I know not who, to acquire animals for the army, and to travel to Portugal in order to take care of them on the journey.

‘He left Dublin with his prized cargo in the summer of ‘08 and joined up with two other vessels, carrying much-needed supplies, which had set sail from Bristol, I believe. The small convoy was supposed to receive protection from our Navy. No escort appeared; the captain in charge of the expedition decided to press on in the hope, I suppose, that before too long some naval frigate consigned to escort them would appear. It did not. The French, however, did. They were lying in wait off the Bay of Biscay.’

Katherine was silent for a moment, but her voice when she spoke again was as coolly controlled as before, betraying none of the searing heartache she continued to experience when recalling that time in her life when she had waited daily for the father who was destined never to return. ‘There were no survivors. I did not discover until recently that the French were well prepared. They had received details from someone connected with the War Office.’

‘And Sir Giles told you this?’ Daniel was clearly more angered than anything else by what he had learned. ‘He ought never to have disclosed such details. Damn his eyes!’

Evidently Major Ross was a man of strong emotions. Moreover, he was not reticent about voicing staunch disapproval if he felt inclined to do so. Katherine saw nothing amiss with this, for she herself was not above giving vent to her own feelings on occasions. She was faintly surprised, all the same, by this display of ill humour, and didn’t hesitate to come to Sir Giles’s defence. ‘He didn’t attempt to convince me that the traitor he is determined to uncover now is indeed the one responsible for my father’s death,’ she hurriedly assured him. ‘In fact, he took great pains to inform me that it’s highly unlikely it is the same person.’

How very magnanimous of him! Daniel thought, totally unimpressed, and more than moderately annoyed by the baronet’s devious methods.

He at least was under no illusion about Sir Giles Os-borne’s true character. Although the baronet seemed to epitomise the perfect English gentleman, suave and dignified, he wasn’t above preying on a person’s vulnerability in order to attain his ends, and could be as ruthless in his methods to achieve his objectives as those he was determined to root out and bring to book for their treachery.

Daniel clearly remembered that his and the baronet’s paths had crossed for the very first time in London, just prior to his setting sail for the Peninsula, when he himself had been at a very low ebb. Learning of his father’s death whilst he had been out in India had been a bitter blow, and discovering, on his return to England, the heartless betrayal of the woman he had once wished to marry had added considerably to his distress. It was hard to imagine, now, that at the age of three-and-twenty he had been a very vulnerable young man, disillusioned and heart-weary. A grim smile curled his lips. Oh, yes, he had certainly been a highly prized fruit, just ripe for the picking! And Sir Giles had not hesitated to take full advantage of the young captain who, badly bruised in spirit, had betrayed scant concern for his own safety.

Daniel didn’t doubt for a moment that it had been Osborne who had suggested that he be chosen so often for those perilous missions behind enemy lines in Spain and Portugal. His command of the French tongue, coupled with a complete disregard for his own safety, had made him a prime choice.

He knew for certain that it had been at Sir Giles’s request that he had been sent back to England to effect Louise Baron’s escape. He hadn’t wished to desert the men under his command, but he’d been given little choice in the matter. The verbal order to do so had come from Wellington himself. His army days were now over, of course, and he wasn’t obliged to take orders from anyone. So what the deuce was he doing here now, stuck in the heart of France, once again involved in that unscrupulous baronet’s fiendish stratagems?

Daniel glanced briefly at the lovely young woman sitting beside him, who was daintily eating her way through the chunk of crusty bread and portion of cheese. Although his years out in the Peninsula had undoubtedly changed him from a vulnerable young man into a self-possessed, if faintly cynical, ex-army Major, he couldn’t find it within himself to be in the least bit sorry that he had allowed that foxy old baronet to persuade him to take part in one last venture for his country, for he was beginning to feel increasingly that it would turn out to be the best decision he had ever taken in his life.

By the time evening had arrived Daniel judged that they had covered a good twenty miles. More importantly, he had discovered a deal more about his delightful companion and the idyllic life she had enjoyed in Ireland. If she had had one fault to find with her childhood, then it had been the lack of companionship of girls her own age. Which, undoubtedly, was the reason why, after suffering the loss of both parents in quick succession, and removing to England to live with her grandfather, she had swiftly struck up such a close friendship with Helen Rushton.

Little wonder the foolish little darling had convinced herself that she was some sort of curse, Daniel reflected, as he at last saw signs of what appeared to be a sizeable habitation just up ahead. It was utter nonsense, of course—a fact that he had every intention of making perfectly plain at the earliest opportunity. The underlying reason for this foolish notion had become increasingly clear to him too—she was determined never to form a deep attachment to another living soul, simply because she was desperate to avoid suffering the searing heartache she had all too frequently experienced in the past.

Sadly it was all so very understandable. Still, it was no way to live one’s life. It might take some time, but he would eventually peel away those protective layers in which she had shrouded herself, he thought determinedly, little realising that he had already begun to do so.

As Daniel, ever alert, paused for a moment to cast his eyes up the main street of the small market town they had just entered, Katherine stared up at him, her eyes resting for a moment on the square, powerful jaw, before studying the other strong contours of a face that was certainly not handsome, but full of character and ruggedly attractive. At least she found his physiognomy extremely appealing and, more surprisingly still, she was beginning to find his nature very engaging too.

Strong willed and determined, Daniel certainly possessed the power to annoy her from time to time by uttering some blunt remark. Yet beneath the brusque, no-nonsense manner was a wealth of tenderness, which manifested itself in quite touching displays of gentlemanly consideration.

More than once throughout the day he had kindly offered a helping hand to clamber over some gate or stile, and on one occasion, much to her intense annoyance, he had gone so far as to toss her over one brawny shoulder, as though she weighed no more than a sack of grain, and had carried her across a wide stream to save her feet and clothing from becoming sodden.

Although still faintly aggrieved at having been manhandled in such an odious fashion, Katherine couldn’t deny that, against all the odds, she was genuinely beginning to like and admire this occasionally infuriating man.

‘I don’t know about you, my little Amazon,’ Daniel announced, resorting to one of those many colourful epithets by which he was wont to address her, ‘but I’m feeling decidedly weary and in desperate need of sustenance. Are you willing to risk paying a visit to the inn up yonder?’

She didn’t need to take even a moment to consider the matter. Not a morsel of food, or a drop of liquid, had passed her lips since the morning, and she wasn’t in the least doubtful that she could do full justice to a substantial meal.

‘Very well,’ he added, after she had given several vigorous nods of assent, ‘but you must remain on your guard. And do not forget you’re supposed to be a native of this country. So for the Lord’s sake don’t relapse into English!’

Thus adjured, Katherine was quite content, as they entered the inn, to leave it entirely to Daniel to order their food, and left him to do precisely that whilst she seated herself at the vacant table in the corner of the room, well away from the other patrons who just might overhear her and guess her true nationality.

Fortunately the same would never be suspected of Daniel. She had discovered during the day that he had learned to speak the language fluently from his maternal grandmother, a Frenchwoman of immense character, according to Daniel, whom he had absolutely adored and then missed dreadfully after she had passed away shortly before he had embarked for India.

Apart from these few snippets Katherine had learned next to nothing about him. It wasn’t that she had gained the impression that he was disinclined to talk about himself, and therefore out of common courtesy she had not attempted to pry; it was simply that he had seemed interested to learn about her, and she had found herself quite surprisingly divulging far more about her past to Daniel than she had to another living soul.

What an enigma the man was turning out to be! she reflected, gazing across at the spot where he stood deep in conversation with mine host. How she wished now that she had paid more attention to what her aunt Lavinia had disclosed about him, when she had stayed in Hampshire for those two weeks. She frowned in an effort to remember, and vaguely recalled her aunt mentioning something about his returning from India to discover the woman he had loved riveted to his cousin.

Katherine surprisingly found herself experiencing a deal of animosity towards this unknown female. How heartless she must be to have dealt such a crushing blow! Yet, to be fair, the young woman whom Daniel had hoped to marry had hardly been in a position to inform him that she had experienced a change of heart, Katherine reminded herself. A letter would have taken months and months to reach him out there in India. Yet it was all so very sad. Daniel wasn’t in the least light-minded, and must have cared for the woman deeply to have wished to marry her. It went without saying that her betrayal must have been a bitter blow. Perhaps, Katherine mused, that was why he had never married, though it had to be said that he didn’t appear to be suffering now from the pain of unrequited love. Nevertheless, she didn’t suppose for a moment that he was the kind of man to wear his heart on his sleeve.

Although she was keen to discover much more about the man whom, against all the odds, she had begun to regard in a very favourable light, Katherine was aware that this was neither the time nor the place to satisfy her curiosity. Her command of the language was not sufficiently good to conduct an inquisition in French. Besides which, she didn’t suppose that Daniel would wish to satisfy her curiosity at a time when his prime concern was to satisfy his hunger. So she merely asked, when he eventually joined her at the table, what had taken him so long and whether the landlord had been unwilling to supply them with a wholesome meal.

Daniel cast her a mocking glance as he handed her a glass of wine and slid into the seat opposite. ‘Have you ever known a landlord turn away custom? No, he was more than happy to oblige, once he’d seen the colour of my money. Which reminds me … How much have you about you?’

Katherine delved into the pocket of her cloak, which she had removed and placed on the settle beside her, and without hesitation handed him the bulging purse.

Daniel tossed it in his hand, gauging its contents. ‘We’ve done well today, my little darling,’ he remarked, consigning the purse to the safety of his own pocket. ‘But we’re going to need to cover more miles if we stand the remotest chance of keeping one step ahead of those rogues out searching for us.’

Something in his tone put her immediately on her guard, and Katherine instinctively stared beyond his broad shoulders, taking swift stock of the other patrons. ‘Would I be correct in thinking that you do not care for that ill-favoured rascal sitting alone at the corner table?’

Daniel didn’t attempt to deny it. ‘He appeared to be taking an uncommon interest in you when we first arrived, certainly,’ he admitted, casting a frowning glance over her curls. ‘Let me know if he leaves, or if someone joins him,’ he added, before turning his attention to the innkeeper’s wife, who arrived at the table bearing a tray laden with several dishes which exuded the most mouthwatering aromas.