Lady Kathryn had ignored Zac nearly all night. She had been polite and charming enough when the conversation required her to be, but she had made it clear that she wanted nothing to do with him. If he had felt affronted and embarrassed by her ability to unnerve him on the street earlier, it was nothing compared to how he felt being ignored in his own house. True, she had never liked him. That was no secret at all. But when they had met as simply themselves, and not their titles, the dynamic had been different. Zac didn’t see why she had to pretend as though that wasn’t true.
Then again, Zac had to wonder if she had recognized him. Had she known it was the former object of her taunting all along? He feared that he needed to know, but would hate the answer.
He was a bit dismayed to learn that their guests were spending the night; a part of him would have rather put Lady Kathryn out of his mind once and for all. But she had gotten under his skin, and knowing that she would be sleeping under the same roof meant that he wouldn’t be able to ignore her or ignore his need to get under her skin as well.
So he drank a bit more than he should have, leaving him pleasantly buzzing by the time everyone parted ways and headed to their accommodations for the night. Lady Kathryn and Lady Natalie were sharing the room next to Jessica and Avery, only a few doors down from Zac’s. It wasn’t perfect, but Zac trusted that Natalie would keep her mouth shut. After all, she hadn’t betrayed Taylor’s confidences after all these years. Once he had been helped out of his dinner jacket and was sure that all the younger, prying eyes were asleep, Zac padded down the hallway toward the Avalon room where he knew he would find the woman who had been plaguing his thoughts all night.
He ducked around a corner when he spotted that one lady’s maid, he thought her name was Leona Something-or-other, leaving the room. With her ginger hair and big eyes, she was nearly as intriguing to him as Lady Kathryn, but it wasn’t the right time to think about that. Once her back was to him and he was sure he hadn’t been seen, he let out a sigh of relief. At least he knew Kathryn and Natalie were alone. He stole down the hall to their door and turned the knob as quietly as he could, assured that he wouldn’t catch them in a state of undress since the maid was gone.
“Leona, did you forget–” Natalie asked, her words dying as she spun around and saw Zac. She rushed to pull her dressing gown tighter around her body, but Zac hardly noticed her at all. Zac’s attention was focused entirely on Kathryn, who sat on her bed in a cloud of pale pink lace.
“I came to speak with Katie,” he said, spitting out her nickname as though it were poison.
Natalie gave Kathryn a look that seemed to imply that Kathryn was under no obligation to do what Zac said. Obviously Taylor had told his little confidant about Zac’s reputation. Well, he supposed, Kathryn would learn about it one way or another, if she didn’t already know.
Somewhat to his surprise, Kathryn waved a hand dismissively. “It’s fine. We’ll speak outside.”
Zac would have preferred to stay in the room, but he would take what he could get. He followed Lady Kathryn into the hallway, enraptured by the way her dressing gown seemed to both float around her body and hug her subtle curves at the same time.
“I hope you’ll make this brief,” she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.
“I should have recognized you right away, you know,” Zac said. “Although I suppose I had hoped you would grow into a lady and stop being such a… such a…”
“Such a what?” Kathryn asked. “Cat got your tongue? I’ve never known you to hold back before. You certainly never did when you told me I was lucky I’d been paired up with Isaac, since no one else would want a lady who looked like a monkey.”
In spite of himself, Zac laughed aloud. He clamped a hand over his mouth to silence the sound before it brought anyone out of the nearby bedrooms.
“I’m not asking for an apology for any of that,” Kathryn continued. “If you honestly think your opinion matters to me now, then you’re even more conceited than I gave you credit for. I could care less what the Lothario third son of an earl thinks of my appearance.”
“You seemed to care this morning,” Zac shot back. “Talking to a strange man in the street without a parent in sight. That sends a certain sort of message, Katie.”
“It certainly does,” Kathryn replied. “The message that I recognized your pathetic, drunken self and knew you were, if annoying, relatively harmless.”
With that she gathered up her dressing gown and pushed past him.
“Oh, we’ll see about harmless,” Zac said, though he was talking to nothing more than her bedroom door, which had just slammed shut in his face. “We shall see.”
The door opened just a crack and Lady Kathryn poked her head through. “Keep dreaming, Captain Hanson.”
“Oh, I shall,” Zac replied. “I’ll be dreaming of you, Lady Kathryn. Every night.”
Lady Kathryn gave an exaggerated shiver. “That’s a genuinely horrifying thought. I think I’ll need an extra bath tomorrow just to scrub away the disgust.”
“Now, that’s not fair at all,” Zac replied, stepping in closer to her. “Because now all I’m going to think about is you in the bath. I’m sure that wasn’t your intention at all, but I felt it best to let you know. Wouldn’t want you to misspeak like that again and give a guy the wrong impression.”
“No, we wouldn’t,” Kathryn replied, the tiniest hint of a smirk appearing and disappearing from her lips so quickly that Zac almost missed it. Almost. “I can’t thank you enough for showing me the error of my ways.”
“I’m sure it’s not the only thing I could teach you,” Zac countered.
“I imagine not,” Kathryn replied. “I’m sure you have a wealth of ill-gained knowledge just ripe for the sharing. But, again, I’m afraid I’ll have to decline. You might have mistaken me for something else this morning, but I think we know where we stand with each other now.”
“Yes,” Zac replied, taking a step back. “I think we do. Goodnight, Lady Kathryn. And sweet dreams.”
“I’m sure I could say the same to you,” she replied, flashing him a devious smile before vanishing behind the door.
As Zac backed away from the door, he had to shake his head. In truth, he had no idea where he stood with Lady Kathryn at all. Even her words contradicted themselves, and her near constant smirk told yet another story.
All that he knew for sure was that she was a challenge. And he loved a challenge.
Taylor didn’t linger long at Beasley Hall the next morning. Few of the guests were in the dining room when he wandered in to breakfast, and that was fine by him. He feared what he might do the next time he saw the marquess, especially if the two of them were alone. Of course, no one else would think anything of it; two young men alone was nothing unusual, and surely no one of the marquees’s standing could share Taylor’s proclivities.
Or could he?
Taylor wasn’t so sure. There had seemed to be a certain undertone to their conversation the night before, but it was difficult to say. It had been easier at university, where no one really cared what title Taylor did or didn’t have, and there were any number of underground clubs catering to his needs. Now, though, back in the world of country gentry, one had to be more careful. To stay safe, Taylor had abstained entirely. He could only hope it was like riding a horse, and it would all come back to him with practice.
Being careful that morning meant leaving the manor early and almost unnoticed, citing some pressing matters at the office. It was a lie, of course, but he could still always find something in his mess of an office to keep himself occupied well into the afternoon. That day was no exception, and he hardly even noticed that luncheon had approached until his stomach began to growl. He leaned back in his desk chair and contemplated his options. He could go back to the manor, where no doubt a nice luncheon had been laid to impress the guests. But that would mean potentially seeing Natalie and the marquess. That wouldn’t do. Perhaps a walk into town to get lunch at the pub Zac frequented. It wasn’t Taylor’s typical haunt, but the food was good enough.
“Excuse me, is this the office of the Honorable Taylor Hanson?” A soft, smooth voice asked, causing Taylor to nearly fall out of his chair at the sound. With a wry smirk, the marquess, who had suddenly appeared at the door, added, “Ah, yes, there’s his grace.”
“My Lord,” Taylor breathed out, the phrase both a courtesy and an exclamation, considering the circumstances. Gathering himself a bit, Taylor added, “I mean, Nicholas. I hadn’t expected to see you—not here, anyway.”
Somewhat sheepishly, Nicholas held up the picnic basket that Taylor hadn’t even noticed in his hand. “I had the cook make this up for you, since I didn’t think it likely you’d make it back to the manor in time to lunch with the rest of us.”
“No, I—I got a bit caught up here,” Taylor replied.
“I can see that,” Nicholas said, taking a few steps into the room. “Shall we take this outside, then? That is, if you’d like a bit of company.”
“That sounds perfect,” Taylor replied, hoping that the blush he felt creeping up his entire body wasn’t visible above his collar.
He brushed aside the paperwork he had been vaguely occupied with and followed Nicholas out of the office, shamelessly staying a few steps behind so that he could watch the subtle sway in the marquess’s steps. It was official, then, Taylor decided. He was a completely lost cause. Still, he made note of the fact that Nicholas choose a very secluded copse next to the old churchyard to set their picnic. Somehow, Taylor didn’t think that was a coincidence; it was a very deliberate move.
The two sat down on a blanket, neatly spread by the marquess, and Taylor wondered how often Nicholas had call to lay his own lunch at the castle as he did now. He thought better of commenting on that, and instead took a seat and watched happily as his superior laid out a meal of lemonade and light sandwiches for the two of them to share.
“Your humble servant,” Nicholas said, smirking and making a show of bowing his head.
“It’s a good thing we’re alone,” Taylor remarked, taking a dainty sip of his lemonade. “We’re already treading on thin ice by dispensing with the titles and pleasantry. We shouldn’t make a mockery of it all together.”
“Shouldn’t we?” Nicholas asked. “What could be more worthy of mockery than someone like me, confirmed bachelor of barely twenty-four, suddenly becoming lord of a castle?”
“I hadn’t realized we were the same age,” Taylor chocked out, not daring to address Nicholas’s other descriptor.
Nicholas eyed him, his sky blue eyes going cloudy. “As I said last night, I think you and I have quite a lot in common. It’s a wonder we haven’t met before.”
“I’m not often in Leeds,” Taylor replied dully.
“That may be,” Nicholas said, a hint of amusement in his tone. “Only I’m sure we must frequent some of the same clubs in London. I can tell we have similar tastes.”
“Can you?” Taylor asked, hoping his tone was appropriately flirty. Although Nicholas was being annoyingly coy, Taylor was sure now that he was not reading too much into his words.
“Or shall I say, I have similar tastes to my dear cousin Natalie? If it’s not too bold to admit, I didn’t think you could live up to her descriptions, but indeed, you exceed them.” Nicholas inched closer to Taylor, leaving absolutely no question as to his meaning. “If I’ve misjudged you, now would be the time to speak up.”
“You haven’t,” Taylor breathed out, his vision blurring and doubling as Nicholas inched further closer to him.
He was even more beautiful in such close range, Taylor thought dully. All thought ceased entirely as Nicholas closed the gap between them, pressing his lips firmly against Taylor’s. Only their lips touched, no doubt leaving Taylor room to push him away if he had so wished. But he didn’t wish to do anything of the sort. Instead, he reached a hand up and rested it gently on the back of Nicholas’s neck, hoping to encourage him to deepen the kiss.
The encouragement worked, and Taylor soon felt Nicholas’s tongue sliding along his lips, its touch like warm velvet. He parted his lips to allow Nicholas entrance, trying as best he could to stifle the moan that wanted to escape when their tongues met. It had been far too long, but still Taylor couldn’t think of a kiss that had ever felt so good.
So brief, too. All too quickly, Nicholas pulled away, his lips looking pleasantly bee stung, and his cheeks bright red. He stared at Taylor for a moment, saying nothing but breathing heavily.
“Well,” Taylor finally breathed out. “I’m not sure we’re close enough to the churchyard for that to be strictly blasphemous, but I’d say it’s close enough.”
“Would it be too bold to admit it’s not the only blasphemous thing I’d like to do with you?”
“With me or to me?” Taylor asked, feeling momentarily bold and more than a bit lovedrunk.
Nicholas chuckled, leaning in so that their foreheads touched briefly. “Yes, I knew we had a few things in common.”
“Two peas in a pod,” Taylor remarked.
Nicholas laughed loudly, and the sound was infectious. Taylor found himself giggling unashamedly, no longer worried that the marquess wouldn’t be interested in him. He wasn’t the marquess anymore. He was simply Nicholas, a man that Taylor could see himself quickly falling in love with.
“We really shouldn’t keep neglecting our picnic, though,” Taylor said, exaggerating the hint of regret in his voice.
“There will be time for plenty more picnics,” Nicholas countered.
“Only this is our very first. Call me sentimental, I suppose. But I do also fear that if I don’t distract myself, I’ll forget about the meal entirely.”
“Am I a distraction, then?” Nicholas asked, clearly amused.
Taylor grinned. “Amongst other things.”
Nicholas laughed loudly again, the sound infectious. Taylor hardly even cared if it carried through the whole valley and gained them an audience. That wasn’t wholly true, though. He knew what they did was dangerous, but it was dangerously addictive, too. Just one taste of Nicholas would never be enough for him, but he saw the prudence in abstaining at least until their luncheon was finished.
After that, though, Taylor couldn’t say. His willpower was only so strong, after all.