Page 27 of The Virgin in the Rake's Bed
But in all of this, Catherine had been caught off guard by her own feelings, feelings which grew stronger by the day, and which she could not help but find alluring. She had fallen in love with Ian, their games in seduction no longer a ruse but very real. She found herself thinking of him in idle moments, longing to be in his company, and imagining what their next encounter might hold. Now she tossed her napkin aside and scowled at Rickard, who held her gaze angrily.
“I will marry whom I so choose,” she exclaimed, and before either Rickard or her father could reply, Catherine had fled the room.
Chapter Fifteen
“Straight from the horse’s mouth,” Rebecca said, offering Catherine a Madeline, as they took tea together later that morning.
“He actually said he was in love with me?” Catherine asked, glancing at Samantha, who clasped her hands together in delight.
“How could he not fall in love with you, Catherine?” she said, but Catherine was skeptical.
“You met him in the park, and he simply told you he was in love with me?” she asked. Rebecca had been recounting the tale of her and Nicholas’ encounter with Ian and Plotinus, and Catherine had listened in astonishment to the revelation now offered.
“Not exactly. I pressed him on the matter. I told him you were in love with him and…” Rebecca began, but Catherine gave a cry of horror.
“You told him I am in love with him?” she exclaimed, and Rebecca looked surprised.
“But you are in love with him, are you not? You told me so yourself just the other day,” she said, and Catherine sighed.
“Yes, but I was not about to tell him that. If he knows I am in love with him then it will quite change our relationship. He cannot know that I am in love with him,” she said, and Rebecca and Samantha glanced at one another with bemused expressions.
“But if you are in love with him and he is in love with you…” Samantha began.
“But surely he was only saying that for affect. He had to say it. How could he possibly say anything else when confronted with such a question?” she asked. It seemed astonishing to think that Ian would say such a thing. He was not in love with her, surely he could not be, and it embarrassed her to think of Rebecca – though entirely innocently – suggesting that Catherine was in love with Ian.
“I suppose so, but his tone was sincere,” Rebecca replied, taking a sip of tea.
“And why is it so surprising if he is? You have already shared so much together, why not allow those feelings to develop? Would you not wish to marry him, Catherine?” Samantha asked.
Catherine had not allowed herself to think so far ahead, not in her more reasonable moments, at least. Ian had been a friend to her, a man who had gone above and beyond to ensure that their ruse was a successful one. He played the part of her betrothed with great skill, but it was an act nonetheless, surely it was so.
“I… well, it is not a possibility. He is teaching me the art of seduction, in the hope that I will then find a man to marry in place of the Earl of Westwood. The ruse is the perfect cover,” Catherine said, but both Rebecca and Samantha laughed.
“But it is known across the ton that you are betrothed to Ian Bennet. What man will make his own intentions known when he possesses the certainty that you are beyond his reach. You cannot have the public face of betrothal whilst also engaged in the art of seduction,” Rebecca said.
Catherine knew she had a point. She had rather assumed that a man might easily be found, one that could play into her hands as she followed Ian’s instructions. But she had not counted on her own feelings in the matter, feelings which had quite swept her away and made her realize that love was not as simple as personal choice – sometimes the heart chose for you.
“But if become more popular then perhaps a suitor might approach me?” she said, and Rebecca shrugged.
“Perhaps, yes,” she replied.
“Otherwise… I am not sure,” she admitted, glancing from one to the other, and shaking her head.
“Then why not accept your feelings for Ian as sincere,” Samantha said, and Rebecca nodded
“He is a rake, but a rake who loves you, that much is clear,” she said, offering Catherine another cup of tea.
“But I do not know if what he says is sincere,” Catherine replied.
“Then you must use all your talents at seduction to discover if they are,” Samantha replied, looking pointedly at Catherine, who realized she was right.
* * *
“You cannot necessarily know if a man is interested in you without a little risk,” Ian said, when later he and Catherine were sitting in the library at Westwick Manor.
Catherine had evaded Rickard and slipped out of the Somerset residence by the servant’s entrance, taking a carriage to Westwick Manor, filled with some trepidation as to what she now knew of Ian’s feelings for her. It had surprised her to hear Rebecca’s words, and though she did not doubt that Ian had uttered them, she remained uncertain as to their sincerity, after all, the ruse was meant to be complete, and she had no doubt that Ian was playing his part well.
“You mean the sort of risk I took in the library on the night of the ball?” she asked, and he smiled.
