Page 29 of Her Wicked Highwayman
Three weeks had passed since her abduction, and in that time she’d had her monthly courses come and go, leaving her disappointed. No child was to come after all. That seemed only to heighten her secret longing to find Tyburn again, even knowing how impossible and dangerous such a thing would be. He’d probably want to strangle her for taking his money. But that didn’t stop her from missing his touch... his kiss.
Her fingertips touched her lips as she drew up that now-sacred memory of the highwayman’s kiss. How his lips had moved over hers, how his hands had roved over her body, and how it had felt to lie beneath his muscled form and feel the strength of him beneath her fingertips. His body had held the heat of the sun, and it had unfurled her deeper, sweeter dreams, the way flowers opened beneath sunlight.
She could still hear his shuddering breath in her ear as he came and remembered how her body had lit up as she’d scaled that beautiful mountain, and how a vast universe of pleasure had exploded through her.
With a sigh, Diana rolled onto her side and gazed at the empty spot in the bed beside her. Two words echoed bittersweetly in her chest.
If only . . .
Diana sat backon her heels at the edge of the back gardens, where she was pulling out weeds from the once-pristine tended lawns. The gardens would never be as perfect as her mother had once had them, but if she could keep them free of weeds, she would be satisfied enough. Of course, if they were ever able to afford a team of gardeners again, she might just manage to make them as beautiful as they once were. Lost in fanciful thoughts of what she’d do with all of the extra help she could hire, she didn’t hear her butler speak until he cleared his throat.
“There’s a rider coming down the road, my lady,” Peele announced as he approached her, stepping around a box of gardening tools she’d left on the path.
“Oh?” She wasn’t sure if this was something to worry about or not.
“It appears to be Miss Merton,” Peele added.
A delighted grin curved her lips as she removed her gardening gloves and straightened her soil-stained apron that protected her sensible lilac-colored day gown. “Rachel?”
“Yes, Miss Diana. Judging by her speed, it would seem she’s anxious to see you.” Peele collected her gloves and garden trowel from her as they returned to the house together.
She came in through the back terrace and heard Rachel’s voice echoing through the halls. It was a most welcome sound. She found her dear friend deep in conversation with Mrs. Ripley just inside the entryway.
Rachel Merton was a brilliantly beautiful dark-haired woman with stunning brown eyes that radiated the warmth of her very soul. They had known each other since they were six, andeveryone who spoke to her felt they were welcomed into the woman’s confidence, and that extended to the servants as well. Mr. Peele and Mrs. Ripley both thought of Rachel Merton in the highest regard.
Rachel turned to see Diana and almost gasped. “Heavens, Di, is that dirt upon your cheeks? What on earth have you been up to?” There was delight rather than censure in the question.
Diana beamed at her friend. “Digging to China, what else?” It was an old joke between them. When they’d first met, Diana had been beneath the base of a large old cypress tree, carving a path around the vast system of roots. She’d been covered in dirt and completely forgotten by the adults watching her. Then along came Rachel in her perfect little dress, eyes bright, and she’d knelt right down beside Diana to join in the dig without a care in the world except aiding Diana in her goal to reach the Far East by way of a tunnel through the center of the earth.
“Truly? May I come with you?” Rachel swept the train of her dark-blue gown out of her way and came over to take Diana’s arm, unbothered by the bits of garden debris clinging to Diana’s sleeve.
“Of course you shall come! What would I do without my second-in-command?” Diana teased.
“Well then, what will my duties be in the depths of these tunnels?” Rachel giggled, a sound that always made Diana feel like dancing.
“You shall be chief of bucket emptying.” Diana said this with such a serious tone that Rachel burst out laughing. Diana’s heart leapt again with joy. She had deeply missed Rachel. Her friend had spent the last six months in London. Her mother and father were still trying to see her married off, even though she was three and twenty, just like Diana, and past the age when most men would take her as a serious candidate for courtship.
“Well, that sounds infinitely better than sitting in a stuffy drawing room waiting to see if some gentleman will come calling. I only had a few callers who held any real interest this season. Mama kept praying I would receive even just one posy before some of the balls we attended. But alas, I received none.”
Rachel did not sound terribly upset about this, but Diana knew that Mrs. Merton wished desperately for grandchildren. Rachel was an only child, a radiant beauty, and quite the wealthy heiress, which should have drawn any number of gentlemen to her. But Rachel had a cunning way of putting men off with her quick wit and brilliant mind. Few men were interested in a wife who could not only talk but think circles around them. And Rachel was adamant not to settle for someone who would feel threatened by her.
“Such fools, these so-called gentlemen,” Diana declared, and gave Rachel’s arm a squeeze.
Rachel sighed dramatically. “Indeed. Now catch me up on all of the adventures I’ve missed since I left for London.”
“Well, as you can see, my gardening skills have not improved much,” Diana said as they entered the library. Matthew brought in a tray of tea and some cucumber sandwiches before he quietly withdrew.
“Dear, are wethatdull now? Have we nothing else to gossip about?” Rachel mused sorrowfully.
Diana almost told Rachel about her daring moonlight ride disguised as a highwayman, but the confession died upon her lips. Tyburn’s warning about hiding one’s identity came back to her, and it was echoed by Lord Caddington’s open threat. Rachel was her truest and dearest friend, but she could not endanger her life simply to have someone to talk to. There was no way she could risk telling her about her plans. But she could tell Rachel about her own robbery at Tyburn’s hands.
“Sadly, we must be that dull. I’ve done nothing but fret over money and work... and I was robbed by a highwayman.”
“What?” Rachel gasped. “When?” She took charge of the tea service and poured them each a cup as she waited for Diana to continue.
And just like that, she told her best friend everything that had happened, meeting Tyburn and even being abducted. She let out a deep breath and made her final confession.
“I . . . shared his bed, Rachel,” she whispered.
