battles’ images and the loss of his friends had left their scars. It was going to be no easy matter settling down to life as a civilian. He had every-thing—breeding, looks and wealth—and however much he would regret its passing, his military career and the manner of Delphine’s death and the guilt that would hound him all the days of his life, had made him world weary, restrained and guarded.
The voluptuous French redhead in the bed stirred and lifted herself upon an elbow, her body stiff and aching deliciously from her companion’s prolonged and energetic love-making. She studied the darkly handsome man, his brooding looks marred by cynicism. He was standing with his shoulder propped against the window frame, looking out. Gazing with admiration and a fresh stirring of desire at the lean, hard lines of his body, her eyes roving down past the rigid muscles of his chest and flat stomach, every inch of him positively radiated raw power and unleashed sensuality.
His latent animal sensuality swept over her. ‘Come back to bed,’ she murmured huskily, aching for ful fil ment, hoping he would, but Lance Bingham seemed not to hear. ‘Please,’ she persisted, slowly, languidly, running her hands through her hair.
He turned and looked at her dispassionately. ‘Get dressed and go.’
‘What? Did I not satisfy you, my lord?’ She smiled seductively, letting the sheet slip to reveal her swelling orbs, hoping the sight of them would entice him back into her arms. ‘You enjoyed yourself, didn’t you?’
The voice was lazy and full of promise. A soft smile played about her mouth, inviting him to her, but he remained unmoved. He hated loose women, but she exuded a rich aura of passion and the full, ripe figure and smouldering eyes promised an obvious knowledge of the art of exciting men. Last night he had invited her to his room and she had come gladly. Now the mere sight of her sickened him and he was coldly telling her to get out.
‘That was last night. I was drunk and now I’m sober and not bored enough to want to sleep with you again.’
The woman scowled at him. ‘You don’t have a very high opinion of women, do you?’
‘No. I do not believe in the inherent goodness in anyone—including myself. If you don’t mind, I would like you to go.’
The woman’s eyes narrowed and anger kindled in their depths. ‘Why—you—you bastard,’ she hissed.
The look he gave her was one of mild cynicism. ‘If calling me names makes you feel better, I’ll let it go. For my part I apologise if I’ve given you grief. I could put it down to your being an attractive woman and me being a long way from home and pretty damn lonely. Whatever it was, it’s over. Now get out.’
About to argue, the look on his face made the woman afraid of him for the first time since she had come to his room. Strange and explosive emotions lurked in the hard eyes glittering in the dim light of the room and rendered her speechless. Last night under the effects of drink and full of lust, she had thought him completely malleable, but she now read a hardness of purpose and coldness of manner beyond any previous experience.
Paying no more attention to her, Lance turned away to watch the teeming mass of humanity scurrying along the wide, rainswept boulevards. The woman threw back the covers and reached for her clothes. Even before she had flounced out of the room he had put her from his mind as if she had never been.
Having sat for what seemed to be hours before her dressing-table mirror, watching as Daisy had painstakingly arranged her heavy hair into an elegant coiffure, deftly twisting it into elaborate curls and teasing soft tendrils over her ears, Belle now fingered the diamonds Daisy had just fastened around her throat—drop diamonds that danced in her lobes and a double row of diamonds with a single, enormous oval-shaped diamond pendant that rested just above her breasts. They were hard and cold and absolutely exquisite in their beauty. They belonged to her grandmother and were famous for their chequered history, and had not been worn for fifty years.
Belle smiled at her reflection in the mirror, a mischievous, calculating smile, a smile those who knew Isabelle Ainsley would know to be wary of.
‘Shall I take them off now, miss?’ Daisy asked. The countess had agreed to her granddaughter looking at the famed jewels. After handing them over to Miss Belle, the countess had been called away, telling her to put them back in the box and return them to her before they left for the Prince Regent’s party at Carlton House.
‘No, Daisy.’ Belle’s eyes were sparkling with defiance, her concentration unbroken as she continued to finger the diamonds. ‘I think I shall wear them for the party tonight. After all, what is the point of having beautiful things if they are to be kept hidden away? A necklace of such beauty should be seen and appreciated, and tonight is such a grand occasion, don’t you agree?’
‘Oh, yes, miss. But your grandmother … Oh, miss,’ she said, shaking her mob-capped head, ‘she’ll have my hide if I don’t take them back—and her with one of her heads coming on.’
The anxiety in the maid’s voice broke Belle’s reverie, and she looked at the terrified girl as she wrung her hands nervously. ‘And you will, Daisy. I can promise you that. But not until after the banquet at Carlton House—and if Grandmother is suffering one of her headaches, then she may be so preoccupied that she won’t notice.’
‘But she will see them when it is time for you to leave. She will never allow—’
‘What my grandmother sees and what she will allow is neither here nor there, Daisy,’ Belle said sharply, standing up, the transparency of the material of her chemise making no pretence of hiding the softly veiled peaks of her firm breasts. ‘The necklace will be concealed beneath my cloak, and not until we reach Carlton House will she see them. By which time it will be too late to do anything about it.’ Seeing Daisy’s anxiety, she smiled confidently. ‘Trust me, Daisy. Everything will be all right.’
She looked at the bed where the gown she was to wear had been carefully spread to await its donning, thinking how the vibrant turquoise silk would enhance the jewels and bring out the lights in her rich, mahogany-coloured hair. ‘Now, please help me into my gown.’
With the gown setting off her figure to perfection, Belle turned this way and that in front of the dressing mirror to survey her reflection. ‘There, what do you think, Daisy? Will I do?’
Daisy stood back, taking pride in her handiwork—although Miss Belle was already beautiful. She looked positively breathtaking, daring, elegant and special. ‘Indeed you will, Miss Belle. Any man, even one in his dotage, who sees you tonight, looking as you do, will surely find his heart going into its final palpitations—as will Prince George himself.’
Belle laughed happily. ‘I don’t think so, Daisy. The Prince has so many ladies buzzing about him, he will fail to notice an unknown American girl.’
‘Don’t be too sure about that, miss. Prince George may not be as handsome as he once was—his gargantuan appetite has seen to that—but he cuts a fine figure in his military uniforms and the sumptuous clothes he wears. He is still charming and amusing and has an eye for a pretty face.’
The preparations complete, when the summons came from her grandmother and Daisy had carefully folded her velvet cloak about her shoulders, concealing the necklace, Belle proceeded down the stairs where her grandmother awaited her.
Belle was excited about going to Carlton House and meeting English royalty. Prince George was a splendid host, at his happiest when entertaining on a grand scale. The whole of society aspired to be invited to his fêtes. According to Belle’s grandmother, the banquets were always glittering occasions, the point of the proceedings to admire, for the Prince, who spent weeks planning the setting of his next event, liked to show off his aesthetic taste and imagination.
Feeling decidedly gay and definitely light-hearted, Belle had been looking forward to the party for days, and she intended to enjoy every minute of it.
Having arrived early and trying to work up some enthusiasm to attend Prince George’s banquet, which he imagined would be tedious and infinitely dull, Lord Lance Bingham lounged in the shade against the wall to await