Page 78 of Scandal’s Daughter

“Not that!” he exclaimed, waving the words away as if they were of no consequence whatsoever. “You said he’s blackmailing you?”

She nodded and her hand crept to her throat, an involuntary gesture that obviously betrayed her fear as the next moment, Beau was close beside her again and had taken her hand.

“Georgiana, love,” he said, his voice suddenly full of concern. “What did the bastard do? Tell me.”

She blinked away tears, the drama and the fear of the past day was becoming exhausting, her head ached, and she wanted to wish it all away, but that wasn’t going to happen.

“Baron Dalton, my uncle and my guardian. He wants control of my money and to keep the home he’s made his own. The home that I will inherit when I come of age, or I marry.”

“So, he wants you to marry a man who’s under his sway?” he replied, his voice dark with anger.

“Yes.” She nodded. “And yesterday he came to the house and Falmouth was gone and the servants were all occupied. I was alone and ...”

To her horror she found tears springing to her eyes and covered her mouth with her hands.

“Oh, Georgiana. Love, I’m so sorry.” He tried to pull her to him, but she pushed him away, angry all over again.

“Well, you’re not helping!” she snapped. “He’s going to ruin me unless I do as he says. He attacked me and cut my hair and he’s given a piece of it to every libertine he can share it with to spread the story that I’m a slut. And people will believe it because of the dreadful scandal of my mother and ... Oh!” she shouted, by now thoroughly enraged. “And I was going to tell Sebastian and now you’ve ruined everything.”

Beau snorted. “I assure you I’d have more luck in dealing with this than Sebastian. He’s too thoroughly decent to know the kind of people who could end a situation like this, given the right encouragement of course.”

She sniffed and looked up at him. “You think you could?”

He nodded, smiling at her. “I know I could. If I had the funds to finance such a scheme.”

Georgiana cursed and shook her head. They were back to square one. Unless ...

“Sebastian would give you the money you owe, you know he would.”

“I’d rather die.”

His voice was harsh, and when she looked up, she saw his face was troubled, beyond anything she had seen before.

“This isn’t just about the money is it, Beau?”

He stared out of the window, not looking at her, and not answering. She took a deep breath.

“You’re alone.”

He shrugged, a negligent gesture that betrayed the fact that it was anything but. “I’ve always been alone. Nothing new there.”

“You had Sebastian before. Before this began.”

“Yes,” he agreed, turning to face her. “He’s the only one who ever saw past the façade. The only one who realised it was a façade. I hadn’t even realised it myself,” he said softly. “But he made me see I wasn’t irredeemable. I even believed him for a while.”

“Beau, you’re not irredeemable. I can see that.”

He laughed and shook his head. “Nice try, sweet Eve. But you’re right. I’m tired of being alone and Sebastian will never forgive me. But we are friends, you and I, and you will forgive me, in time.”

Georgiana swallowed, she felt really afraid now. There was a determined note to his voice. He wasn’t going to change his mind.

“Where are you taking me?”

“Where do you think?” he asked, one eyebrow raised. “Not very original I’m afraid, but needs must when the devil drives.”

“Good God,” she replied in disgust. “An anvil wedding at Gretna Green. Of all the clichés to endure.”

He laughed at her indignation. “I know, Eve, I feel it just as you do. But I promise the wedding night will make up for it.”

“I’ll kill you first,” she hissed at him, but his eyes just glittered with amusement.

“We’ll see,” he replied, so obviously amused that she wanted to strike him.

“But surely we can’t go all the way to Gretna like this,” she replied, realising that there had been no valises or anything that might be required for such a long journey.

“We’ll stop off at Ware. I have arranged another carriage to await us there with such supplies as we’ll require.”

“Ware?” she repeated, as the name sounded familiar. “In Hertfordshire? But that’s your father’s seat! You’d dare?”

Beau laughed, his tone mocking.

“My darling girl, it’s the least of the dark deeds that have been witnessed under that roof, I assure you. Besides, I happen to know my esteemed father is in Brighton for the next six weeks and he’ll have shut the house up and taken most of the staff with him. So, you see, you need not fear meeting your dastardly father-in-law. I’m afraid he’s far blacker at heart than you could ever accuse me of being, so if you were hoping for a heroic saviour you’re far off the mark. This might actually be the one time in my life I do something that pleases him.”

There was such bitterness and disgust in his tone Georgiana didn’t have to puzzle any longer over who it was that he had hated for such a long time. Despite everything Beau was right, he was hard to hate. But if he found a way to force her to marry him, she’d give it a damned good try.

“I’ll not do it,” she said, her voice quiet but determined. “You can take me to Gretna and stand me before the blasted anvil, but I won’t say yes.”

“Yes, you will,” he replied, sounding weary and just as revolted as she felt. He turned and stared at her, those bright blue eyes glinting with sorrow in the moonlight. “You’ll have to, love. For what choice will you have? You’ll be beyond Sindalton’s reach. Even if he would bear the damage to his own name, I doubt you’d let him ruin himself and any offspring you may have. You’re too noble and brave a creature to do that to someone you love. So, you see ... I’ll be your only option.”