Page 12 of A Countess Never Tells

Was that the beginning of his flirtatious ploy? Kitty smiled as seductively as she could. “Oh, yes, my lord. This is everything I’ve dreamed of and more.”

“Then I am pleased I could give you your heart’s desire.”

Well, he hadn’t quite done that yet. “But there is so much more to see. You said last evening you would show me the sights and walks I haven’t seen.” She swayed closer to him. “I’m certain you know all the best attractions in Vauxhall.”

“I do, Miss Tate. Have you visited the Cascade yet?” Lord Ashwood offered his arm.

“That is the artificial waterfall, isn’t it?” Eagerly, she twined her arm through his. “My brother has described it to me, but I have not seen it before.”

“Very well, after supper we shall all walk down to see it.” He turned them to head back the way they had come.

“Don’t you wish to take me there now?” This seemed odd behavior for a rake. It was perhaps their one chance to be alone and he didn’t seem to want to take it.

“We promised to stay within sight of the party. I do not wish to antagonize your brother by doing otherwise.” Lord Ashwood glanced toward the structures just behind the Turkish Tent.

Kitty followed his gaze, and sure enough, John was staring straight at them, his view only a little obstructed by the trees. Well, they very well couldn’t do anything within sight of him. “Can we stroll this way to take us back to the party?” She indicated the way toward the Grand Walk. It was a well-lit walkway, but at least John couldn’t see them. “It’s so very pretty.”

He laughed and started them toward the supper-boxes. “I believe you are trying to tempt me to repent my reformation, Miss Tate.”

Well, she certainly hoped she could because Lord Ashwood was not acting at all as his reputation had indicated. “How would I do that, my lord?” She loosed her arm from his and stared defiantly at him. “Something like this, perhaps?”

Without another thought for what she was doing, Kitty set off at a run to the left of the Turkish Tent, not slowing until she had reached the Grand Walk. Panting and laughing, she turned to find Lord Ashwood at her heels, his face in a monstrous frown.

“Miss Tate, have you taken leave of your senses?” He grabbed her arm and wound it through his. “A young woman alone at Vauxhall is any unscrupulous man’s dream. You put yourself at dire risk, even on a lighted path.”

“But I have you to protect me, my lord.” She leaned against him playfully.

He pursed his lips—just the proper pose for a kiss—then shook his head. “Yes, you do, Miss Tate. But we truly must go back to the supper-box. Your brother will be incensed that we are now out of his sight.”

“My brother will be more incensed when he discovers you are Lord Ashwood and not Ashbrook.” Kitty was a fair way to being vexed herself. Why was Lord Ashwood not acting like a rake and pulling her down one of the infamous dark walks? “I suspect your other guests may have informed him of this already.”

“I’d be surprised if they have not.” He started them down the Grand Walk.

That would be that then. Once John learned who she was with, he’d demand they leave immediately. So much for her evening with a rake. And not a single kiss to show for all her subterfuge. Kitty sighed then raised her chin to discover they were no longer in a brightly lighted area. “Where are we going?”

“Just down the Walk, to the first turning…here.” They passed the line of supper-boxes and veered to the right. “We are now behind the supper-boxes, on the other side of the tree line. We can stroll down this way, and we’ll come out just where the rest of the party is waiting for their dinner. I thought I should make good on my promise for you to see more of the Gardens as we go back to them.”

That could be the truth, although Kitty hoped against hope it wasn’t. She wished she’d learned more about the behaviors of rakish gentlemen from Judith, though her sister-in-law might’ve become suspicious had she done so. She wanted to know how they usually acted and what they wanted, although Kitty was fairly certain she knew the answer to that latter question. The dark pathways of Vauxhall were infamous for just that reason.

But this pathway was wide, if not terribly well-lighted, and crowded with other ladies and gentlemen strolling along just as they were. She supposed there was no fear Lord Ashwood would take liberties with her in plain sight of so many people. Still, she might as well enjoy what she could of the evening.

“I’d begun to fear you wouldn’t come tonight, Miss Tate. As the hour grew later, my faith in you waned.” Lord Ashwood had slowed their pace to a trifle, for which Kitty was grateful. Her corset seemed tighter than usual, making it harder to breathe. “I was so happy to see you at last coming toward me I could’ve danced a jig.”

“That would’ve been a sight to behold, my lord, in the middle of Vauxhall.” Kitty laughed, gazing up at the gas lights hanging in the trees, looking like huge fireflies and making the night glow.

“We must participate in the dancing later, my dear. I know you love it so, and it is my personal goal to give you nothing but pleasure this evening.” The deep timbre of his voice when he said the word “pleasure” made Kitty’s stomach drop.

They’d come to a halt at the end of the walkway, in an area neither so wide nor well-lit. The pretty little lights had disappeared. She cast a glance back over her shoulder to find the last lights almost two hundred paces behind her.

She and Lord Ashwood were now in the dark—and quite alone.

Kitty let go of his arm, her heart racing as though it would burst out of her chest and take flight. She pulled her new shawl up over her shoulders, as if that could shield her from a rake on a dark night in the Pleasure Gardens. Cautiously, she raised her gaze to his, and the breath rushed out of her lungs.

His eyes burned with a hunger she’d never seen from a man before. Frightening and thrilling all at once. With a gentle hand, he raised her chin until her mouth was almost in line with his perfectly formed, sensual lips.

“Well, here we are, Miss Tate. Exactly where you wanted us to be.” He stepped toward her, and Kitty found she couldn’t move an inch. “We are in the perfect position.”

“For what, my lord?” she whispered, although she knew. Oh, yes, she knew quite well where this was going.