But that didn’t mean he was prepared to take the enormous step of marrying Maura, or ready to risk turning his heart over to her.
On the other hand, his desire for her was increasing by the minute, and having Maura living in his house only a few corridors away would prove a grave challenge to his honor and, even more, to his sorely strained willpower.
Deering was not at home when Ash called, so he continued on to White’s Club for Gentlemen where the viscount sometimes lunched. He found his quarry relaxing on a comfortable couch, perusing The Racing Chronicle.
“Ah, just the man I was looking for,” Ash said easily. Upon settling in an adjacent chair, Ash proceeded to reveal the stallion’s current whereabouts.
He had to give the viscount credit: Deering hid his anger tolerably well, responding merely with a cold stare. “I wondered how that she-devil managed to outwit my stablehands,” he muttered. “I should have known she had an accomplice.”
“Oh, no, the theft was my doing entirely,” Ash claimed. “I had no difficulty at all seizing the horse from your stables. You really should have taken better care of your property, my friend.”
His thinly veiled taunt had the desired effect, for Deering’s countenance darkened.
“I advise you to let the matter rest now,” Ash suggested. “It looks better for you if I claim to have acquired the stallion as payment for a gaming debt than if the ton thinks you were bested by a mere young lady who was only reclaiming her rightful property. And did I mention,” he added with a pleasant smile, “that the she-devil, as you call her, has promised to be my wife?”
He received enormous satisfaction when the viscount’s expression slowly turned livid.
Even so, Deering sat in rigid silence for a long moment before finally gritting out, “It was unwise of you to ally yourself with her in this matter, Beaufort. You do not want to make an enemy of me.”
“I could say the same of you,” Ash replied lightly. “In fact, allow me to be plain. Any action you take against my future bride I will consider to be a direct strike against me. And that extends to her young stepsisters as well. Do I make my meaning clear?”
Deering’s fingers clenched on his newspaper so tightly that the page tore in two places.
Content for now to leave his warning vague, Ash rose and sketched a casual bow before turning and striding away.
He had not made an outright declaration of war, but he had no objection to employing all-out warfare if necessary. For he had every intention of forcing Deering to recant his previous lies in order to give Maura back her late father’s reputation.
Although Maura had formed no precise expectations when she came to live with Ash, she learned in short order what it meant to be embraced by the Wilde family, who never did anything by half-measures. All his relations rallied around her and claimed her as one of their own, beginning that very evening. The cousins appeared en masse at two select ton functions, where the Marquis of Beaufort treated the cream of society to a firsthand display of his startling betrothal and his evident devotion to his lovely, if somewhat disgraced, fiancée.
Naturally, rumors of Miss Collyer’s battle with Lord Deering simmered beneath the surface, but for the most part, she was absolved in the court of public opinion of committing any felony regarding her stallion’s sudden disappearance from the viscount’s stables.
The cousins’ aunt by marriage, Lady Isabella Wilde, also joined in the campaign to close ranks around Maura. Late that night, only moments after the family returned to Ash’s home and gathered in the drawing room to discuss their next plans, the strikingly handsome raven-haired widow arrived like a fresh breeze and proved just as lively as Katharine had claimed.
Lord Cornelius had fallen asleep again in one corner of the room, but Lady Isabella, upon hearing the rudimentary details about Maura’s plight and Ash’s objectives, roused her brother-in-law and insisted that he partake in the discussions.
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Jointly the Wildes decided to attend several more entertainments the following evening and over the next few days, so as to be seen about town. Isabella even prevailed upon Cornelius to accompany them, since constantly burying his nose in a book was not good for him.
Thus it was that during the succeeding week, the entire clan set out to conquer the ton on Maura’s behalf and embarked upon a full-blown charm offensive—an endeavor at which she could only marvel. The delightfully infamous Wildes might be known for their amorous scandals, but it was fascinating to watch them win over their detractors with their bewitching appeal.
Maura’s stepsisters also benefited hugely from their attentions. When Skye asked what challenges the girls faced in finding husbands, Maura answered honestly. “Given our tarnished family honor, it will be difficult without the added enticements of significant fortune or beauty. But Hannah has a voice like an angel, and Lucy plays the pianoforte with real artistry.”
“Then we shall hold a musical evening,” Skye declared, “to showcase their talents and make them appear in the best possible light. Kate and I will invite some potential suitors, and demand that our brothers encourage their unattached friends to attend. And since the girls need to shine, I will have my dressmaker make them new gowns.”
When Maura automatically protested, Skye sweetly cut her off. “Trust me, Maura, bringing Hannah and Lucy into favor will be the most effective way to protect them from Lord Deering.”
Additionally, Skye arranged a shopping expedition to Bond Street to buy new accessories, with Ash footing the bill. Maura felt uncomfortable accepting such largesse, but her objections were swiftly overridden.
“Nonsense, you can settle finances later,” Skye insisted, slipping her arm in Maura’s. “By now you should realize that our family sticks together. It has long been the Wildes against the world, and you are now an indispensable member of our clan.”
Maura wasn’t as certain that she deserved such distinction, at least until the first evening after Isabella’s arrival, when the cousins met for dinner at Grosvenor Square before attending a gala event.
They assembled in the drawing room first, and when they went in to dinner, Maura found herself seated on Ash’s right. Naturally, she felt a trifle nervous at the formal family gathering, yet she needn’t have worried, for she fit right in.
She even managed to win Jack’s devotion when she agreed to privately sell him a yearling sired by Emperor, thus bypassing Tattersalls, where the premiere stock in England was bought and sold.
Theatrically, Jack placed his hand over his heart while warning Ash. “I am in love with your betrothed already. If you don’t marry her, I will.”