Thunderstruck, Theo watched as the woman he knew as Aunt Barbara enfolded Alexandra in a warm embrace. As all the ramifications of the situation struck him, he almost reeled back in shock. God, could a situation be any more convoluted? His aunt and uncle weren’t married?
As his father and uncle’s estates ran side-by-side, he’d known his uncle all his life. While Theo was with the 13th at Albuera, his parents had died in a carriage accident. Devastated, he’d had no inclination to return to England for some time. His uncle had managed both estates while he was away, and on his return, he’d assumed that his uncle had married in his absence. He thoroughly approved of his uncle’s choice. Aunt Barbara was just the sort of wife he hoped to find for himself one day.
What a tangled web! No wonder he’d received such a tirade from Colin Tallis when he’d written to explain that no more investors were required for the canal project. It must have been like a red rag to a bull when the man had seen the name ‘Crombie’ on the prospectus. And it wasn’t that Theo had been blackballing Tallis. The canal construction was well under way and the present investors preferred to keep the venture among themselves. They were savvy, experienced investors who knew that if a few men each contributed larger than usual amounts of capital, the results were profits way above the average investment. So far canals had never failed to produce excellent returns.
However there were many other opportunities pending and Theo had intended to discuss those with Tallis. Or he had.
He watched as Aunt Barbara brushed back the hood of Alexandra’s cloak to see her face more clearly. “Dearest Lexie,” his aunt murmured, examining her daughter’s face. “You don’t understand. I long every day to see you both, but I must keep my distance.”
Alexandra stared into the beautiful violet eyes. “Why, Mama?”
Aunt Barbara cast Theo a hunted look, but he could not help her. He was a businessman, unused to such intricate conundrums. Business was cut and dried. He either won or lost. Occasionally he compromised. But this situation required a lot more than compromise.
One thing he did intend to do, however, was have a stern word with Murdoch. How long had Murdoch known the family secret? Murdoch was supposed to work for him.
Then he thought of Colin Tallis and shuddered. God, he could practically feel the impact of the lead ball in his chest. Because that was what would happen when Colin Tallis discovered who was hoping to court his daughter.
* * * *
Alexandra and her mother sat side by side on an elegant little sofa.
“Sweet child, to associate with me is to invite social disaster. I would not have it thus. I love you too much for that. You must not be seen in my company.”
Alexandra’s stomach churned. “Is it because you are living with Mr. Crombie?”
Mama nodded and her confirmation smashed Alexandra’s last little hope.
“Not this Mr. Crombie!” Theo’s gruff voice interrupted. “She means my uncle, Alan Crombie. Alexandra, surely you cannot have thought I would bring you here if I was living with your mother?”
Over Mama’s shoulder, Alexandra saw that her Mr. Crombie’s face was set in lines of hurt and disbelief.
She rushed into speech. “I did not want to think it. I wondered if perchance there were two Mr. Crombies. That is why I came here today—”
“And I thought you came to find me,” Mama intervened, pretending to be offended.
“Mama, you know I am thrilled to find you!” Alexandra jiggled a little in excitement and Mr. Crombie’s eyes fastened themselves on her front before he averted them. She pretended not to notice, but she smiled a secret smile.
“Now you must go, my darling girl. We have to be very careful that nobody sees you leave this house.”
“I don’t care,” Alexandra said stubbornly. If she were any younger she might have stamped her foot. Her mother looked both devastated and happy at the same time. Somehow she must find a way around Mama’s determination to shut them out of her life. “Mama, it is wonderful to see you again after all these years.” Mama looked just as Alexandra remembered her, or was that her memory playing tricks? Her mother’s skin was still unlined and her glossy brown hair showed only a little grey.
Alexandra took a calming breath as she wrestled with the newness of it all. The newness of having a man like darling Mr. Crombie interested in her, not Emmaline, and the newness of finding Mama and wondering how to circumvent her reluctance to let them into her life. She peeped at her Mr. Crombie and he gave her a half-smile of encouragement. Her stomach contracted.
Mama took her hand. “Sweetling, if anyone in Town discovers I am not married to Alan, the kindest name they call me will be ‘harlot.’” Here, Mama faltered and winced. “In Horsham St. Faith we escape censure because we have only a few close friends and well...everyone knows our situation. Here in London, Alan and I are nobodies. That is the way we want it. But Theo is well known for his investment enterprises and we are determined not to ruin his business.” Mama stroked Alexandra’s hand. “I am so sorry this has happened, but once I learned that Aunt Broadwood was to be your chaperone, I had to come to Town to make sure you were all right. There’s nothing wrong with Josephine Broadwood but she loathes your Papa and I was concerned that she would not watch my girls properly. So I sent poor Alan, who has no taste for London company, to keep an eye on you both. The dear man has attended all manner of balls and improving lectures.” She sighed and smiled. “He is such an angel.”
Which answered one of Alexandra’s questions. Alan Crombie was not merely a kind man who had perforce taken her mother in. He was Mama’s husband in all but name. “Mama, would he be a tall gentleman in his forties who wears shiny cravats?”
“Ah, yes. That is Alan. The sweet thing has no dress sense.”
Alexandra grinned. Those shiny cravats were terrible. What a relief! Alexandra had been thinking the poor man was nutty on Emmaline.
“Lexie, we must not let the taint of my reputation rub off on you girls. London gentlefolk and members of the ton are full of hypocrisy and would snub you if they found out you were the daughters of a—a harlot.”
“Do not call yourself that, Mama. I care not for those people. It is true that until recently I, too, worried about the conventions. But none of that matters now. You see, Grandmama died and left me her money so Emmaline and I no longer have to curry favour with anyone. I believe that to the ton, money gilds the lily. So now our reputations are spotless!” She spread wide her arms and Theo grinned appreciatively.
There was a short, incredulous silence, then Mama gave an unladylike hoot of laughter. “Sweetheart! Anne Tallis left you her money? How angry Colin must be.” She turned to Theo. “Theo, would you fetch Alan please? We must sit down and work out a plan of action. This changes things.”
“Before we do that, Aunt Barbara, I want to talk to Alexandra. Alone,” Theo said firmly.
Alexandra looked down at her feet. Poor Theo. First Davy had shot him; then he’d broken his toe. Then Alexandra had treated him badly at the Clements’ ball. Now he’d unexpectedly gained a woman of doubtful reputation as his ‘aunt.’ However he didn’t looked particularly shaken. In fact he looked totally in command and rather dashing as he stood, holding the door open for Mama. Mama left the room, glancing back to quirk her eyebrows at Alexandra. He closed the door and leaned back against it. “This is all wrong. This was not how I planned it.”
She looked up at him and almost melted with love. A worried frown contracted his forehead and he rubbed his wound absentmindedly.
“Does it hurt?” she asked.
He glanced down. “Not much.”
Stoic to the end. She sighed.
“Forget my wound. Miss Tallis—Alexandra—this business with your mother and my uncle complicates things so much that I cannot see a way out of this coil right now. I had planned to—never mind.”
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. She licked her dry lips and whispered, “What had you planned, Mr. Crombie?”
He breathed out a sigh. “Sweet Alexandra, I had hoped to court you in the usual manner. I had visions of us trying to elude your chaperone as we attended the Adelphi or strolled along the Rope-Walk or ate at Grillons…or any of a dozen things. What would you have said to that?”
Alexandra looked at the wall. Then the parquet floor. “I would have said yes,” she whispered.
He pushed himself away from the door and came towards her. Her skin tingled in anticipation of his touch, but he stood a few inches away and just looked at her. “I want you,” he said softly. “I want you in my bed. I want to come home and find you waiting there for me. I want you as the mother of my children. I’ve wanted you from the moment you leaned against me to untie those ropes, and I’ve loved you from the moment you said, ‘What shall we do now?’ I’d never before met a young woman who tried so valiantly to deal with such a difficult situation. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.”
Her head bowed, Alexandra admitted, “I, too, have done nothing but think of you even though…”
He took another step toward her. “Whatever the circumstances, I will have you, Alexandra.”
Yes, he would. And she would have him. She raised her head as he reached for her. “Alexandra,” he breathed, then his mouth came down on hers with a warm, seeking pressure as he tugged her against himself. Her reticule dropped to the floor with a quiet plop as she stretched her arms around him. He was soft and hard at the same time. Delicious.
“Are you two coming—sorry.” The door banged shut.
“Oh!” Alexandra pulled away, flushed and flustered.
“That was Uncle Alan.” Theo grinned. “Your Mama will rush in next to ascertain my intentions. We’d better go and talk to them.”
He took her hand and led her, pattens clacking, across the foyer and into a small drawing-room where her mama was seated next to ‘Uncle Alan’ on a settle. They had their heads together and Alexandra thought how companionable they looked, as if they had been husband and wife forever. That was how she and Theo would look in ten years—if they got the chance.
“Darling, take off those pattens,” her mother admonished her. “Sit here and meet Alan.”
Alexandra smiled and bobbed a curtsy in Alan Crombie’s direction. He grinned back, and yes, he was wearing a rather shiny cravat.
“Sorry, Mama. Things happened so fast I forgot I had my pattens on.” She perched on the edge of a chair to unfasten the pattens, but before she could bend down, Theo was there. He removed the pattens, taking a very long time to do so. First his long fingers massaged her ankles, then the palms of his hands stroked her feet. A wave of heat washed beneath her skin when Uncle Alan said, “Behave yourself, boy.” Embarrassed, she stole a look at Alan Crombie, but Theo’s uncle had a silly grin on his face and she knew he wasn’t really annoyed with Theo.
“So what will our plan of action be?” Mama asked when the butler and Murdoch had left the room. Theo’s manservant still looked uncomfortable about the turn of events, but as Theo whispered to Alexandra, “I’m not happy with him. He has been my manservant for many years, yet when your mother crooked her finger, he gave his loyalty to her, rather than me.”
“The poor man was caught between the devil and the deep blue sea,” Alexandra whispered back. “He could hardly disobey her.”
“Hmmph,” was all Theo said.
“Theo—you had an idea I believe,” his uncle prompted him.
“Yes. When Tallis applied to join the consortium, I looked into his background as I always do.”
Alexandra blinked. “You investigated Papa’s business dealings? Ohhh, he’d hate that.”
“He’d hate it even more if he knew what I discovered,” Theo said grimly.
Alexandra waited but Theo said no more. She stared into the lambent brown eyes mutely.
“Oh, very well,” he muttered. “I can see I am going to be like wet clay in your hands when we are wed. Your father hasn’t done anything illegal, but he has made some very stupid investments and, I imagine, lost a tremendous amount of money. For example, his name is on the list of investors for the Sarawai Diamond Mine.”
Uncle Alan sucked in his breath and began to laugh.
The women were mystified. “Where on earth is Sarawai?” Alexandra asked.
“You may well ask,” Theo explained. “It doesn’t exist.”
“Oh dear.” Alexandra wondered how many other schemes her father had wasted his blunt on. “It is sad, really. All he has are his investments. I can see why he is obsessed with them. He must be desperate to recoup his losses.”
“Like a card player,” Theo said. “He gambles. He doesn’t research the prospectuses carefully, just jumps in, eager for the bottom line. There are a lot of men like that.”
Uncle Alan nodded. “Theo has guided a lot of investors away from certain companies set up simply for the purposes of fleecing people.”
Alexandra eyed her soon-to-be-husband. “I expect you’ve made a few enemies along the way.”
Theo grinned. “Are you frightened of finding yourself unpopular, my love? Never fear. Making money for people who do not want to bother with the sordid details has gained me more friends than enemies.”
“So how will you deal with Colin?” Alexandra’s mama asked. “I can’t imagine how you’ll even get an audience with him in the first place.”
Theo shrugged. “Since he won’t admit me to his house, I shall bail him up at his club. I shall use the fact that we are in public as a lever. He prefers Boodles, doesn’t he?”
Alexandra nodded. Her mind boggled when she envisaged Theo walking calmly up to her father and saying, “I’m Theo Crombie. Shall we discuss investments?” What with Mama, Emmaline and herself all being so frightened of Papa, it was strange to listen to Theo confidently predict how he would handle Papa.
Theo walked over to the window and looked out. “I’d feel happier if he returned to Norwich. Since he doesn’t know you are in Town, Aunt Barbara, that’s the way I want to keep it.”
“Nobody knows I’m here in Town,” Barbara Tallis said sadly.
Alan Crombie took her hand and held it.
Poor Mama. It was a pity Papa would not countenance the prospect of a divorce but even if he did, it would not save Mama’s reputation. She would always be known as the woman who left her husband to live with another man. Nobody would care about extenuating circumstances so long as lascivious tales were passed around. London gossips never let the facts stand in the way of a good story. At least in Norwich the neighbours were aware of the circumstances, so their condemnation was more muted.
Barbara Tallis looked at Theo. “Nothing can be done,” she explained. “Several years ago our solicitors approached him to discuss a divorce but at the idea of appearing in the Crim. Con. Court he flew into a rage and tore up the papers. Alan even offered to pay his expenses.” She shrugged. “We manage.”
Alan nodded in agreement but Alexandra saw the pain behind his eyes and pitied him. He had given up a lot for her mother. It was possible he’d always loved her mother, but it was also possible that one act of chivalry had cost him his reputation.
Theo came to stand beside Alexandra. He rested his hand on her shoulder. “As Tallis is my future father-in-law, I shall have to proceed carefully.”
“Oh my dears!” Mama jumped up from the settle and kissed Alexandra’s cheek. She stretched out a hand to Theo. “I am so glad. To think I was here when you made your announcement!”
Alexandra laid her hand over Theo’s for a moment and felt another of those warm glows she kept getting whenever he was near. The flush usually started in her face and neck, then it spread south and tingled, just as in the dream her father had wakened her from that dreadful morning two weeks ago. She drew in a breath. If only Theo could persuade Papa to accept their marriage. Certainly she was of age now, but things would go more smoothly if her father could be brought to approve, rather than fight them all the way.
Then she remembered Emmaline and her heart plummeted. “What shall we do about Emmaline?”
“Oh, I’m sure Emmaline will want to stay in Town, don’t you think?” Theo said. Looking rather grim-faced he added, “She had better stay with us where she will be properly chaperoned. None of this running around London with strange characters when she should be tucked up in bed. I’ll wager that after a few weeks in our care, she’ll probably yearn for your father’s household.”
Everyone except Barbara Tallis laughed. “Oh no. What has she been up to, Lexie?”
“Never mind, Mama. She owes both Theo and I a debt of gratitude, so I intend to keep reminding her of it. The person who abetted her in one of her silly schemes is now behind bars, so we shan’t have to worry about him.”
“What did Davy do this time?” Theo asked.
“We found out yesterday from his poor mama that he and another man were taken up by the Watch for breaking and entering the butcher’s premises in Tresco Lane.” Alexandra pulled a face. “I think that was always to be Davy’s destiny.”
Theo shrugged. He did not look the least bit concerned that the man who’d put a bullet in his shoulder had received his just desserts. “Aunt Barbara, if all goes well, I might be able to mention the possibility of a divorce to Tallis. I shall do my best. There is another course open to you, Uncle Alan. Why don’t I return the favour you did me when I was with the army? I could manage your estate together with my own. Some years ago you expressed a wish to travel. If Tallis will not countenance a divorce, you can at least have some peace away from all the tattle mongers. A year in Greece or Italy would be pleasant.”
Barbara Tallis drew in a breath. “We could do that, Alan. Now that my girls are safe, we are free to do as we wish. Although I will be separated from the girls, I know they are in good hands.” She smiled at Theo.
“Provided Tallis will allow us to chaperone Emmaline,” Theo said. “And by appealing to his baser nature, I think I can do that.”