Surrender Amanda Quick Read online

  the course of an evening, can one?"

  Victoria snapped her closed fan against

  the table. I knew it. This is blackmail."

  A nasty word for it, but, yes, I suppose

  in a manner of speaking, it is blackmail."

  Fortune hunter. That was the only

  explanation. She had never before encountered

  one quite so bold and aggressive. The

  type generally tended to be extremely well

  mannered and gracious, at least initially.

  But Victoria trusted her instincts. She

  locked eyes with stone vale for an instant,

  fascinated by the waiting, expectant gleam

  in his hard, gray gaze. When she started

  to rise from the card table, the earl got to

  his feet to assist her.

  I shall look forward to seeing you later

  this evening," he murmured in her ear as

  she rose.

  If you are fishing for a fortune, my

  lord," Victoria drawled, cast your lures

  elsewhere. You are wasting your time with

  me. I will grant that your technique is a

  novel one, but I do not find it at all

  attractive. I assure you, I have resisted far

  more agreeable bait."

  So I have been told."

  He paced beside her as they moved into

  the glittering, crowded ballroom. Victoria

  became aware again, as she had earlier, of

  stone vale's curiously balanced, but uneven

  stride. The elegant black evening clothes,

  finely tied cravat, close-fitting breeches,

  and polished boots did not disguise the

  limp that marred the movement of his

  left leg.

  What, precisely, have you been told, my

  lord?" Victoria demanded.

  He shrugged. It is said you have little

  interest in marriage, Miss Huntington."

  Your sources are wrong." She smiled

  thinly. I do not have even a little interest

  in the married state. I have absolutely no

  interest in it, whatsoever."

  stone vale slanted her a considering

  glance. A pity. Perhaps if you had a

  husband and a family to occupy your time

  in the evenings, you would not be obliged

  to amuse yourself with risky adventures

  such as the one you have planned for

  tonight."

  Victoria's smile widened. I am certain

  that the sort of adventure I have planned for

  this evening will be vastly more entertaining

  than the evening duties of a wife."

  What makes you so certain of that?"

  Personal history, my lord. My mother

  was married for her fortune and it

  destroyed her. My dear aunt was also

  married for her money. Fortunately for her

  my uncle had the grace to die early on in a

  hunting accident. But since I cannot count

  on similar good fortune, I have chosen not

  to take the risk of marriage."

  You do not fear that you might be

  missing an important part of a woman's

  life?" he ventured.

  Not in the least. I have seen nothing

  of marriage to recommend it." Victoria

  opened her gilded fan to conceal a shudder.

  Memories of her stepfather's casual little

  cruelties and drunken acts of violence

  toward her mother were never far below

  the surface. Even the bright lights of the

  ballroom could not entirely banish them.

  She fanned herself languidly once or

  twice, hoping stone vale would gain the

  impression that she was acutely bored with

  the direction of the conversation. Now, if

  you will excuse me, my lord, I see a friend

  I must speak to."

  He followed her glance. Ah, yes, the

  intrepid Annabella Lyndwood. She is no

  doubt anxious to discuss the evening's

  plans, too. It appears, since you are

  determined not to be cooperative, that I

  shall be left to discover the details on my

  own. But never fear, I am very good at

  games of strategy." stone vale inclined his

  head briefly over Victoria's hand. Until

  later, Miss Huntington."

  I shall pray you find something more

  entertaining to do with your time tonight

  than to accompany us."

  Not likely." The earl's faint smile flared

  into a brief, wicked grin that momentarily

  displayed his strong white teeth.

  Victoria turned away from him with

  an elegant swirl of her golden yellow

  silk skirts, refusing to give the man the

  satisfaction of a backward glance. This

  man was not only potentially dangerous,

  he was insufferable.

  Victoria stifled a small groan as she

  swept through the crowd. She ought to

  have known better than to have allowed

  the earl to entice her into the card room

  tonight. It was, after all, not quite the

  thing for a lady to play cards with a man

  at an affair such as this. But she'd always

  had a hard time resisting adventure and

  the damnable man had seemed to sense

  that almost at once. Sensed it and used the

  weakness. She must remember that.

  It was not as if she'd had any warning.

  stone vale had, after all, been properly

  introduced to her by Jessica Atherton,

  no less.

  Everyone knew Lady Atherton was

  entirely above reproach, a paragon, in

  fact. Slender, dark-haired, and blue-eyed,

  the viscountess was not only young,

  delicate, and quite lovely, she was also

  becomingly modest, unfailingly gracious,

  eminently respectable, and a stickler for

  the proprieties. In other words, she would

  certainly never have introduced a known

  rake or fortune hunter to one of her

  guests.

  Vicky, I've been looking everywhere for

  you." Annabella Lyndwood hurried over to

  her friend's side. She flicked open her fan

  and proceeded to use it to shield her lips as

  she spoke in a whisper. Were you actually

  playing cards with stone vale? How very

  naughty of you. Who won?"

  Victoria sighed. I did, for all the good

  it did me."

  Did he tell you Bertie has invited him

  to accompany us tonight? I was furious

  about that, but Bertie insists we should

  have another man along for protection."

  So I was given to understand."

  Oh, dear, you are angry. I am so sorry,

  truly I am, Vicky, but there was no help for

  it. Bertie promised he would say nothing

  about our plans, but apparently stone vale

  tricked him into revealing all."

  Yes, I can see how that might happen.

  Probably poured hock down Bertie's throat

  until the truth emerged. It is certainly a

  pity your brother could not keep his mouth

  shut, but don't fret, Bella. I am determined

  we shall enjoy ourselves regardless."

  Annabella's sky blue eyes gleamed in

  obvious relief Her fair curls bounced

  enticingly as she nodded her head and

  smiled. Annabella Lyndwood was held
r />   by certain high sticklers to be just the

  slightest bit too well rounded for fashion.

  But that tendency toward a full figure had

  certainly not put off her many suitors.

  She had recently turned twenty-one and

  had confided to Victoria that she would

  undoubtedly be obliged to accept one

  of the several offers she had received

  this Season. Annabella had gotten a late

  start in the marriage mart because of the

  untimely death of her father, but she had

  proven enormously popular when she had

  finally made her appearance in London.

  What do you know of him, Bella?"

  Victoria asked quietly.

  Who? stone vale? Not much, to be

  perfectly truthful. Bertie says he's respected

  in the clubs. He just recently acceded to

  the title, I believe. The previous earl was

  a distant relative of some sort. An uncle

  or something. Bertie mentioned estates in

  Yorkshire."

  Did Bertie have anything else to say

  about him?"

  Let me think. According to Bertie, the

  family line has almost died out. It came

  close to dying out entirely, I gather, when

  Lucas Colebrook was badly wounded on

  the Peninsula a year or so ago."

  Victoria felt her stomach tighten in an

  odd manner. The limp?"

  Yes. It was the end of his career in the

  military, apparently. Still, that career would

  have ended regardless once he inherited.

  His first duty is to his title and estates

  now, of course."

  Of course." Victoria did not want to ask

  the next question, but she could not resist.

  How did it happen?"

  The injury to his leg? I don't know the

  details. Bertie says stone vale never talks

  about it. But according to my brother,

  Wellington, himself, mentioned the earl

  in several of the dispatches. The story is

  that during the battle in which he was

  wounded, stone vale managed to stay in

  the saddle and lead his men on to take

  their objective before he collapsed and was

  left for dead on the field."

  Left for dead. Victoria felt sick. She

  pushed the queasy sensation aside, remind

  ing herself that Lucas Colebrook was not

  the sort of man for whom she could afford

  pity. Furthermore, she seriously doubted

  that he would welcome it. Unless, of

  course, he could figure out some way to

  use it to his advantage.

  It occurred to her to wonder if stone vale

  had suggested the card game earlier so that

  he would not be obliged to endure a set of

  country dances. The limp probably kept

  him off the floor.

  What do you think of him, Vicky? I

  have seen the Perfect Miss Pilkington

  eyeing him all evening and so have several

  other ladies in the room. Not to mention

  their mamas. Nothing like a little fresh

  blood on the scene to whet the appetite,

  is there?" Annabella teased lightly.

  What a perfectly disgusting image." But

  Victoria laughed in spite of herself. I

  wonder if stone vale knows he's being

  looked over like a prize stallion?"

  I don't know, but thus far you are the

  only one he is looking over in return. No

  one could help but notice that it was you

  he coaxed into the card room."

  I suppose he's hanging out for a

  fortune," Victoria said.

  Really, Vicky, you always believe men

  are after your inheritance. You are positively

  single-minded to the point of idiocy

  on the subject. Is it not possible that some

  of your admirers are seriously interested in

  you, not your money?"

  Bella, I'm nearly twenty-five years old.

  We are both aware that men of the ton do

  not make offers to women of my advanced

  years unless they are lured by practical

  reasons. My fortune is a very practical

  reason."

  You speak as if you are on the shelf,

  and that is simply not true."

  Of course it's true, and to be honest, I

  prefer it that way," Victoria said evenly.

  Annabella shook her head. But, why?"

  It makes everything so much simpler,"

  Victoria explained vaguely, unconsciously

  scanning the crowd in search of stone vale.

  She spotted him at last talking to his

  hostess near the door that opened onto

  the vast Atherton gardens. She studied

  the intimate manner in which he stood

  towering over the angelic Lady Atherton,

  who was a vision in pink.

  If it makes you feel any better, Bertie

  has said absolutely nothing to imply that

  stone vale is a fortune hunter," Annabella

  said. Quite the contrary. It's rumored the

  old earl was an eccentric who hoarded his

  wealth until the day he died. Now it all

  belongs to our new earl. And you know

  Bertie. He would not dream of inviting

  anyone to accompany us tonight unless

  he approved of him."

  That much was true, Victoria conceded.

  Lord Lyndwood, only two years older

  than his sister, took the duties of his

  recently inherited title quite seriously. He

  was highly protective of his flirtatious,

  exuberant sibling and he was always

  pleasant to Victoria. He would not expose

  either woman to a man whose background

  or reputation was questionable. Perhaps

  Annabella was right, Victoria thought,

  perhaps she was a bit overanxious on

  the subject of wily fortune hunters.

  Then she recalled stone vale's eyes. Even

  if he were not a fortune hunter, he was

  still more dangerous than any man she

  had ever met with the possible exception

  of her stepfather.

  Victoria sucked in her breath at the

  thought and then discarded it angrily. No,

  she told herself with sudden fierceness,

  regardless of how dangerous stone vale

  might be in his own right, she would

  not put him into the same category as

  the brutal man who had married her

  mother. Something deep within her was

  very certain the two men were not of the

  same mold.

  Well, congratulations, Victoria, my dear.

  I see you have captured the attention of

  our new earl. stone vale is an interesting

  specimen, is he not?"

  Startled out of her thoughts by the

  familiar, throaty voice, Victoria glanced

  to her left and saw Isabel Rycott standing

  nearby. She forced herself to smile. The

  truth was, she did not particularly care for

  the woman, but she did feel a trace of envy

  when she was around her.

  Isabel Rycott always reminded Victoria

  of an exotic jewel. She was in her early

  thirties and had about her an air of

  lush, feminine mystery that seemed to

  attract men the way honey enticed bees.

  The sens
e of exoticism was enhanced by

  Isabel's catlike grace, her sleek black hair,

  and faintly slanted eyes. She was one

  of a handful of other women in the

  room besides Victoria who had defied

  the current style by wearing a strong

  color rather than demure white or pastel

  tonight. Her riveting deep emerald green

  gown shimmered brilliantly in the light of

  the ballroom.

  But it was not Isabel's unusual looks that

  made Victoria regard her with a certain

  wistful envy. It was the freedom conferred

  upon her by her age and her status as a

  widow that Victoria secretly admired. A

  woman in Lady Rycott's position was far

  less subject to the close scrutiny of the ton

  than Victoria was. Lady Rycott was even

  free to indulge in discreet affairs.

  Victoria had never met a man with

  whom she had wanted to have an affair,

  but she would have liked very much to

  have had the freedom to do so if she

  chose.

  Good evening. Lady Rycott." Victoria

  looked down at the woman who stood

  several inches shorter than she. Are you

  acquainted with the earl?"

  Isabel shook her exquisitely shaped

  head. We have not yet been introduced,

  unfortunately. He has only recently entered

  Society, although I hear he has been active

  at the gaming tables in the clubs for some

  time now.

  I heard the same thing," Annabella

  said. Bertie says the man is an excellent

  gamester. Very coolheaded."

  Really?" Isabel glanced across the room

  to where the earl was still standing with

  Lady Atherton. He's not at all in the way

  of being handsome, is he? Still, there is

  something quite intriguing about him."

  Handsome? Victoria could have laughed

  aloud at the notion of using such an

  insipid word to describe stone vale. No,

  he was not handsome. His face was strong,

  harsh even, with a sharp blade of a nose,

  an aggressive jaw, and an unrelenting

  awareness in those gray eyes. His hair

  was the color of a moonless night sky, shot

  with silver at the temples, but none of it

  added up to handsome. When one looked

  at stone vale, one saw quiet, controlled,

  masculine power, not a fine dandy.

  You must admit," Annabella said, that

  he certainly wears his clothes well."

  Yes," Isabel agreed softly. He wears his

  clothes exceedingly well."

  Victoria did not like the assessing look

  Isabel was employing as she surveyed

  the earl, but there was no denying that

  stone vale was one of those rare men who

  was not dominated by the elegant tailoring