Everything Has a Price (closed for cgraven)

[heartofcourage]

English Countryside, 1810



Lady Katherine Dawes looked at her reflection once more in the mirror and tried to decide if she had the courage to do what she was thinking about doing. She sighed deeply as she stared into her own tired hazel eyes. At 21 she was still in the height of her beauty, her skin still pale and her auburn hair glossy, but she also felt so old.

She was a few seasons removed from her debut in society and with no marriage offers she was resigning herself to the life of a spinster. Now, everything just seemed to be collapsing around her. Morningbrooke, her home since childhood, was in danger of being sold.

She couldn’t really blame her father for the state of affairs that he had left his estate upon his death. She knew he loved to drink and have a good time. There were gambling debts to be paid and a bad season in the fields had left his only child with a heavy burden to bear. Kitty, as she’d been called since she was a young girl, had started by dismissing servants. When that hadn’t been enough, she sold furniture, artwork, even her mother’s prized jewelry collection to make ends meet. Now she lived in a mostly empty house with a cook and a stable boy. The bustling home was now reduced to a shadow of its former self.

“You can bring it all back, Kitty. You can do this.” She cheered on her reflection as she tied on a bonnet over her curls, making sure that there wasn’t a hair out of place. She adjusted the one string of pearls that she’d managed to keep and found herself wishing that she’d kept the earrings. That had gone to pay the final salary for most of the servants.

Taking a deep breath, she smoothed out the wrinkles in her white linen dress. It was a bit tight on her, but there had been no money to buy a new one. She frowned at the fabric and decided to add a coat to her ensemble, if only to hide how tight the fabric was over her chest.

She called to the stable boy to ready her horse as she stepped out of her manor. She was traveling to meet with a man she’d only seen a few times. He was a duke who did business with her father. If she was successful in her meeting with him she might just be able to bring Morningbrooke back to the glory it once had enjoyed. The boy helped her into the saddle and she smiled at him briefly before she started off on her journey.

[cgraven]

Sir Thomas Dracut Viscount of Jersey, Duke Of Chichester was deeply entranced in his daily Journal as he read the latest reports from the Peninsular Campaign. It seemed that young strapping lad Wellington was making some noted progress against the French in Spain. Yet that seemed to be the only place that His Majesties forces were making any progress.

The French his fists knotted as he thought back to 1775, the Colonies in North America. The exhilaration of being mention in dispatches for his valor at The battle of Quebec to the despondency of his wound before the fall of Yorktown that ended his military career before it had started. He had been a young hopeful Captain of twenty-two then, now he was a stern tacit man of the world who took his pleasure where he found it. The illusions of his youth shattered by a French musket ball and a faithless fiancée who distained the idea of being the wife of, what she saw as, a cripple.

With a derogatory snort he laid his journal aside muttering Wellington. Denied the glory of a military career Sir Thomas Dracut had become a man of business much to the chagrin of his peers who saw business only suited to tradesmen of the lower classes. Yet now with their fortunes in ruins as yet another war with France ragged, who were they coming to for the monies to support their grand views of who they were and who their families were?

Sir Thomas Dracut Viscount of Jersey, Duke Of Chichester sat behind his magnificent Louis XIV desk his fingers tented before his face waiting to receive his last appointment of the Morning the Master of Morningbrooke a fine estate that had been badly mismanaged by Dawes a man who had been a gambler, a wrack , and a drunkard. The Man who had married Dracut’s faithless fiancée. Sir Thomas Dracut was looking forward to their meeting and the price he would extract from Dawes.

[heartofcourage]

The rolling hills in spring were always beautiful. It was still chilly outside, but Kitty could see the promise of a good harvest already growing as she rode down the lane. It gave her hope of a good year. She needed a good year after the dreadful fall and winter she’d had.

Her father had died shortly after the Christmas season, leaving her to sort through his affairs with the help of a rather incompetent lawyer. She understood that the man had been her father’s friend and her father was loyal to his friends, but she could have probably done a sight better on her own. It was then she learned of the gambling, the unseemly sales to make ends meet, the missing fleet from his ill fated shipping company, and his profiteering on the war in the Peninsula. Combining that with a bad season and it all but destroyed what little she’d had to begin with.

Cresting the top of a hill, she shook herself from her melancholy thoughts and took in the impressive manor house of the Duke of Chichester. It was certainly bigger than Morningbrooke and a sight to behold. She knew little of the Duke except that he had made his fortune through hard work. Perhaps he would respect the work that she was trying to do.

Kicking her horse into a gallop, she made her way into the courtyard of the manor, allowing the stable boy to help her down. Handing her reigns to him, she stared nervously up at the stone face of the home and she could feel her nerves beginning to rise.

“Calm down, Kitty. You can do this.” She murmured to herself as a man appeared at the door. She stepped towards the opened portal and stepped into the manor, allowing him to take her coat and bonnet. “Would you be so kind as to tell Sir Dracut that I have arrived please? The Lady Dawes.” She murmured quietly, watching as the man retreated into the dark interior of the house.

The home was as beautiful inside as it was outside and it made her ache for the days that she remembered at Morningbrooke. She spied a mirror hanging in the entry where she waited and frowned at her reflection. What had been perfection when she left was now covered in dust from the road, her hair escaping the pins she’d carefully placed that morning. She quickly tried to fix her appearance but there was no time as the man who had greeted her reappeared and bade her to follow him.

She took a deep breath to steady her nerves and followed him through the hallways until they stopped at a solid door. Opening the portal he ushered her into an office and closed the door behind her. She glanced over her shoulder for a moment at the now closed entrance before she turned and gave a quick glance around the office. Her eyes then landed on the man she was there to meet and suddenly all the words she’d so carefully rehearsed left her head.

[cgraven]

Lady Katherine Dawes to see you your Lordship.”

The flat response and the slight French accent of his French man servant Corbeau could not hide the man’s amusement at the Look of shocked surprise on His Lordship’s face.

“ Lady Katherine Dawes Corbeau?”

The Man’s insolence silence was all the conformation that Sir Thomas Dracut Viscount of Jersey, Duke of Chichester need as a wicked smiled bowed his lips.

“ Do show Lady Katherine Dawes in Corbeau”

What gods, what fates had delivered the daughter of his most hated rival and his faithless fiancée into his hands. He sat their behind his ornate Louis the XIV desk surrounded by the rich mahogany and bookcases of his study and Library finger’s tented before his face waiting for her arrival. He did not have long to wait before Corbeau ushered the young beauty into his presence.

Lady Katherine Dawes your Lordship.

“Lady Dawes how can I be of service?”

His voice was dark rich and at the moment as sweet as honey. There had been no chair provided for her as Thomas Dracut preferred to keep those who had come to ask for money standing as if they were nothing more than a servant, and given who she was it was a double pleasure to heap this little humiliation on her. His eyes while never seeming to look directly at her took in everything about the young beauty in and instant . Her riding ensemble though dusty was well kept, yet not of the latest fashion and though the fabric was rich and costly it obviously had been made for her when she was younger indicating that she had fallen upon hard times. Her trim figure was quite pleasing and her flashing hazel eyes where in mark contrast to his cool, almost cold grey eyes. Dracut wondered if the tawny copper highlights of her shimmering auburn hair reflected a firry spirit beneath her pale cool creamy ivory skin.

[heartofcourage]

She stood in silence for a few moments, her mouth suddenly dry as she twisted her fingers together with nervous energy. She absently realized that she’d forgotten her gloves that morning, leaving them on the hall table at Morningbrooke. Morningbrooke, yes that was why she was here…

“Your Lordship, thank you for meeting with me.” She began in a voice that was unlike her own. She sounded nervous and scared. For all of her false bravado she was terrified. “As my missive last week said, I have come to ask for a favor.”

She absently looked for a chair to sit upon as her legs trembled. Seeing none but the one that Sir Dracut was sitting upon, she frowned slightly before she turned her attention back to him. She had heard her father mention him in passing, a man he had done business with on occasion. Her father called him a fool, but seeing him today, a shrewd look on his face, she knew that he was anything but a fool.

“My home is in danger. As you might have heard, my father passed at Christmas, and it’s been a hard season since. I’ve come to ask if you might see it in you to contribute funds to the continued operation of Morningbrooke. I could pay your loan back within a year, with interest, of course.”

Kitty knew she was lying to him. She didn’t believe she could pay him back within a year but she had hope that she could. She was a horrible liar, but she hoped that she schooled her features enough to hide the telltale signs. She had learned that from her mother, the late Lady Arabella, a woman who many said she greatly resembled. It was one of the few things she remembered of her mother, a woman who had died giving birth to her father’s heir, a son who died shortly after his mother.

[cgraven]

“Your Lordship, thank you for meeting with me.”

Dracut found the girl’s timid little angelic voice quite enchanting as well as her calmly figure. Her father may have been a gambler, a wrack , and a drunkard and her mother a faithless wench yet he had to admit that he had sired a stunning young beauty for a daughter.

“As my missive last week said, I have come to ask for a favor……..


He paid little attention to what she was saying for he had heard these entries for him to save the family estates on countless occasions. How old was she he idly wondered. Certainly not a blushing girl of sixteen or seventeen otherwise she would be looking to make a financially adventitious match to save her beloved Morningbrooke . No she had to be older twenty or twenty-two otherwise she would not be here now.

“My home is in danger. As you might have heard, my father passed at Christmas, and it’s been a hard season since. I’ve come to ask if you might see it in you to contribute funds to the continued operation of Morningbrooke. I could pay your loan back within a year, with interest, of course.”

It was a lie of course and he knew it not only from his own research but also form the hitch in Miss Katherine Dawes’ voice and the maidenly blush that kissed her cheeks and the way her eyes could not meet his.

“Morningbrooke a fine estate that has been badly mismanaged by your late father who was a gambler, a wrack , and a drunkard Lady Dawes. As I am sure you are aware of he squandered the revenues of the estate let the best fields lay fallow, convert from grains to dairy and it is wheat and rye the nation most needs at this time. I think we both now that it will take more than a year for Morningbrooke to turn a profit and enable you to repay your debt.”

Dracut intently studied the young beauty standing before him. Would she falter in her suit now that she knew he knew the truth about Morningbrooke or did she have the spirit to press her suit still?

[heartofcourage]

It pained her to hear someone talk about her father in such distasteful terms, but she knew that it was all true. He always took pains to take good care of her though. Maybe too great of care sometimes, but he made sure that she lacked for nothing. She thought of all the money spent on her debut into society, the height of season in London, and she wished most fervently that she had that money back now.

She felt her blood run cold as Lord Dracut began talking about her land most intimately and she thought for a moment that all was lost. If she gave up now, Morningbrooke would be gone and she had nowhere else to go. She could beg or she could be the proud lady of a proud estate.

“With all due respect, sir, the men who tend to those lands are willing to help in any way possible.” That was a lie.

“We’ve already discussed turning the fields back to grain.” She had no idea what that meant having never run a farm.

“I can offer as collateral a townhouse in London and my mother’s estate house in the country. I have no use for them now.” Her mother’s estate house was a musty old manor that they never visited, even when her mother had been alive. It was the only inheritance she had received from her father, a Baron, upon his death. The townhouse in London was a sight to behold, in the middle of the most fashionable part of the city, but it was still caught up in the legalities involved with her father’s death and wasn’t really her rightful property yet.

She thought briefly about the pearls around her neck, the only personal item she had left of value. She reached behind her neck and pulled the lace that held them on. The necklace slid from her throat and she offered them to him. “Or these. It’s all I have left.”

[cgraven]

Dracut’s face remained unreadable behind his tented fingers as Lady Katherine Dawes continued her impassioned suit.

“With all due respect, sir, the men who tend to those lands are willing to help in any way possible. We’ve already discussed turning the fields back to grain.”

That of course was a lie for he already knew that most of the tenets had already left Morningbrooke and though this stunning young auburn haired beauty may know here way about the dance floor and the parlors and salons of London she certainly was no estate manager or farmer.

“I can offer as collateral a townhouse in London and my mother’s estate house in the country and The townhouse in London it is in the middle of the most fashionable part of the city.”

Finally the impassioned young beauty removed the pearls from around her slender neck and held them out to Dracut.

“Or these. It’s all I have left.”

“The properties you have mentioned Lady Dawes are encumbered in probate court at present and until inland revenues receives the crown’s share they are not true yours My Lady. And your pearls though lovely………………”

Dracut’s voice trailed off and he dropped his tented fingers from his weathered ruddy face. His cold grey eyes critically assessing the young beauty standing before him.

“I am afraid you’re not a very good financial risk Lady Dawes.”

Dracut came out from behind his desk and slowly began to circle the desperate young beauty. His movements fluid and graceful. His eyes cold and dark as he blatantly appraised her figure.

“Yet for certain considerations Lady Dawes I might see my way clear to aiding you in your time of need.”

His hot moist breath washed over the nape of Kitty’s neck, hair at the nape of her neck danced with every word he spoke. His body so close to hers that she could feel his heat through her clothing.

[heartofcourage]

She grew nervous yet again as he stood from behind his desk and moved towards her. He cut an imposing figure and she found herself wanting to take a step back, to flee from this place and forget that she’d ever asked him for help. He moved with a grace that belied his large stature, his steps almost silent as she could feel his eyes rake over her. She blushed deeply at the attention and lowered her head, tucking her chin against her chest in an effort to feel more secure. He’s a wealthy Lord, Kitty, she told herself. He’s upstanding and hard working. She wished she could believe that last statement.

She shivered as she felt his breath on the nape of her neck. Gooseflesh broke out over her arms at his nearness. She twisted the pearls in her hands as she heard him speak, her heart thudding so painfully loud in her chest that she feared he could hear it in the quiet space.

“Certain considerations, milord?” She asked as she suddenly found her voice and dared to take a step away from him. Nearer to the desk, she turned and stared at him with wide eyes. His eyes were cold, his voice soft. He was a man of contradictions and it made her want to run like a frightened filly. “Forgive me, milord. I…I believe I’ve asked too much of you. If you don’t mind, I would take my leave now.”

[cgraven]

What a scared little filly she was as Kitty stepped back from Dracut and neatly trapped herself between his desk and the man himself. He loved the way her gorgeous young body shivered as his breathed played across the nape of the girl’s neck. Those stunning hazel eyes so wide with her growing fear. The way her life force pulsed madly at the hollow of her neck just below her pale silken skin thrilled him.

“Certain considerations, milord?”

The little gasped trimmer in her angelic voice was so adorable as the meaning of his bold words struck home.

“Forgive me, milord. I…I believe I’ve asked too much of you. If you don’t mind, I would take my leave now.”

With a lightening speed he grabbed the wrist of the hands that held Kitty’s pearls.

“The choice is yours Lady Dawes but when you return my dear,……….and you will return. I shall require a more precious treasure of yours then these pretty little pearls.”


His free arms encircled her little wasp waist as he drew Kitty into a scandalous kiss. Then with a boisterous laugh he set the stunning little filly free to bolt from his study.

“Till we meet again Lady Dawes!”

He called after the spirit young beauty.

[heartofcourage]

She gasped aloud as strong hands grabbed her wrists, her fingers tightening over the necklace. His words were sure and made her shiver, her cheeks burning brightly in embarrassment as he made mention of something she never dared speak aloud. When his arm circled her waist and drew her against him, she let out a squeak of fear until his lips crashed down on hers and stopped her coherent thoughts. Her eyes were wide as she felt the warmth of his body pressed against her so intimately. She pushed against his chest with her trapped hands, her pearls dropping to the ground, ignored as he released her as she hurried to leave his office.

His taste stayed on her lips as she hurried down the stairs of the manor, her chest heaving as she struggled to comprehend what had just happened. The Frenchman who had met her at the door when she arrived stood waiting patiently with her coat and her bonnet, but she found herself looking up at the stairs as she heard the faint sound of laughter from the direction from which she’d escaped. Tears pricked her eyes at her mortification. No one had ever treated her like that before.

The Frenchman cleared his throat and offered her things to her. Kitty watched him for a moment as she felt her anger rising to the surface. Her temper rarely showed itself but when it did, it was like a violent storm. This man had offended her sensibilities and she simply couldn’t let it rest.

She was storming back up the stairs, her body shaking in anger this time as the Frenchman called after her to come back. She wasn’t going to listen. Not until she told the Duke exactly what she thought. Barging into his office once more, she glared at him with narrowed hazel eyes, her boot kicking aside her forgotten necklace as she stared at the object of her anger.

“You, sir, are a rake and a rouge. You think to call my father such names when it’s really you who deserves the title. How dare you treat a lady such as myself with such distain. It’s no wonder that you live in this manor alone because I can’t fathom what kind of woman could ever stand you!” Such vile and venom spewing from her mouth was rare and as she said the words, she could feel her anger begin to fade and the cold reality of her situation return. Shut up, Kitty, her brain yelled as she continued her tirade. “You are a bully of the worst kind.”

[cgraven]

Lord Thomas Dracut was casually sitting on the corner edge of his desk when Kitty stormed back into his study and library in herself righteous indignation.

“You, sir, are a rake and a rouge. You think to call my father such names when it’s really you who deserves the title. How dare you treat a lady such as myself with such distain. It’s no wonder that you live in this manor alone because I can’t fathom what kind of woman could ever stand you!”

A wry smile tugged at the corners of his mouth which he made no effort to hide from the firry little wild cat that now stood before him. Those stunning hazel eyes now so stringing as they burned with a deep emerald fire.

“You are a bully of the worst kind.”


“Lady Dawes I am a business man and I know only to well what the English aristocracy thinks of Trades men. I shall grant you from your point of view I am bully of the worst kind yet it is not I who is desperate to save the family estate. And it is not I who have purged myself by telling bold faced lies to save Morningbrooke

Dracut’s voice was even measured and showed no the slightest hint of rancor or anger at Kitty’s damning accusations. He held those firry hazel eyes and their emerald fire in the cold gaze of his unblinking grey eyes.


“As for being a rake and a rouge Lady Dawes I willingly and gladly acknowledge that I am both. I am as they say a man of the world and I take my pleasure when and were I can. Though my house may be empty of feminine company, my bed seldom is Lady Dawes.”

For the first time sense their interview had begun there was just the slightest hint of merriment in those dark cold grey eyes.

“ I am sure such a pious and self righteous young Lady as yourself will find all the aid and charity she desires at the local Chapel. Now if that is all Lady Dawes?”

An impish smiled bowed Dracut’s lips.

[heartofcourage]

He was enjoying this! She couldn’t believe the smile that was appearing on his face or the light shining in his eyes. She curled her hands into fists, her nails biting into her palms as she tried to reign in her anger. It wouldn’t do her any good.

Now he mentioned the aid of the local church. It was where beggars went for the charity they needed. She couldn’t go there. Her mother and father had never been particularly religious and there was always rumor that they were not welcome at the local parish. She never knew why and knew better not to ask.

“Can you really be so heartless, sir? Morningbrooke is my home. I know nothing about running a farm or keeping tenants. Is that the truth you want to hear? I simply want to save my home.” She was begging and Kitty hated the way that her voice quivered as she implored this man. “Is it the land you want? They border yours and you can have them if it means I may keep my house. Please tell me what I must do.” There it was again. That quiver of uncertainty that had marked every day since her father’s passing.

[cgraven]

What a proud little beauty she was her firry temper, matched the firry copper highlights of her silken auburn tresses. That sweet angelic voice , the way it quivered with her passion for her Morningbrooke as the girl desperately fought to control her righteous anger.

“Can you really be so heartless, sir? Morningbrooke is my home. ……….

One look at those cold unblinking eyes answered Kitty’s question more eloquently than any words could. How bitter it must be for her stand before him and beg like some common street urchin.

“Is it the land you want? They border yours and you can have them if it means I may keep my house. Please tell me what I must do.”

“What you must do Lady Dawes?”

their was a dry bitter sarcasm to his voice as his cold eyes held hers soft now tear shimmering eyes as the serpent holds the sparrow captive in its gaze before it strikes.

“ As you so pointedly observed my house at present is empty Lady Dawes, as is my bed Katherine.”


He paused for a moment as he watched and gauged the young beauty’s reaction.

“ Everything has a Price Katherine! You are a bright and intelligent young woman………………………”

He left it unsaid and yet the knowledge of the price for his aid was now quite clear.

[heartofcourage]

Certainly she wasn’t a stupid girl. No one in high society was immune to the gossip and scenes that were evident in the shadows of many gatherings. She knew what went on between men and women but the very thought with this man made a shiver run down her spin. It was like all her blood had been replaced with ice and she suddenly felt very cold. A tear escaped her lashes as she stared at Sir Dracut but she felt too numb to wipe it away as it trailed down her cheek.

“You wish for me to warm your bed.” She whispered to him in the softest of voices as a startling warmth came to her cheeks. Her cheeks were blazing red as all of her courage left her and she felt weak and broken inside. Was she even really considering what this man was offering? Once she had wished for a husband that could show her passion, but after years with no offers, she had been resigned to a life alone.

“Sir, I’ve never…I mean, I can’t…” She stammered through lips that felt numb. Her eyes were shining with many more tears that had yet to fall as she tilted her chin up at a haughty angle. “I am not a whore.” She finally said, her voice catching on the final word.

[cgraven]

Kitty’s cheeks went deathly pale and a single crystalline tear slowly trickled down her flawless cheek.

“You wish for me to warm your bed.” She whispered to him in the softest of voices

How adorable Kitty look as her big luminous hazel eyes grew ever wider at his outrageous proposal and she blushed crimson leaving her cheeks the most delightful shade of deep pink.

“Sir, I’ve never…I mean, I can’t………..

How precious her little shocked gasp as she stammered those few words. Kitty’s crimson blush turned to scarlet as she gasped

“I am not a whore.”

She had been hardly able to say the word as if its mere utterance might indeed condemn her to that fate. Kitty’s eyes shimmered with as yet unshed tears as Dracut cupped her chin in the palm of his hand, his thumb wiping the solitary tear from her cheek.

“ A Whore! Certainly not Lady Katherine. A concubine or a courtesan if you wish as we exchange favors to obtain what we both desire my dear.”

He made his most outrageous suggestion as if it was the most natural thing in the world for Kitty to exchange her virtue to keep her beloved Morningbrooke.

“ Shall I have Corbeau fetch you coat and bonnet Lady Dawes or do we discuss terms?”

[heartofcourage]

His touch on her skin burned her flesh and she fought the urge to jerk herself away as he wiped away the tear that had escaped despite her best efforts. She bit her lower lip as she considered his proposal in silence, her eyes pulling away from his as she could no longer stand his intense gaze.

A concubine. A courtesan. A whore. To her they were all one in the same, just different names. Could she really do what he was asking to save her home? It was just a home. Walls of stone and mortar. It meant nothing to anyone else but her. Still, if she were to lose it, she would be on the streets and those that claimed to be her friends were less than kind to those in need.

Her hazel eyes turned back to the Duke, a shuttering breath leaving her lips after a brief pause. “What are your terms, sir?” She asked through trembling lips.

[cgraven]

“What are your terms, sir?” She asked through trembling lips. With those few words Dracut could see that for the first time Lady Katherine Dawes was seriously if not reluctantly considering his demandable proposal.

“Quite simply Katherine your body and your agile little mind my dear.”

He continued to sit on the corner of his desk. He did have the good grace not to ask if she was still a virgin as he let his last statement sink home.

“I do not desire some whimpering little Miss but a woman of spirit and that you are Katherine. You will meet all my sexual desires you will use your agile mind to please me as well.”


A lecherous smiled bowed Dracut’s lips.

“ I could demand to inspect the goods now Katherine…..but I think it prudent that you return to your beloved Morningbrooke and take your time before accepting or rejecting my offer.”

He slowly rose and ushered the stunned young beauty to the door of his study.

“Corbeau lady Dawes’ bonnet and coat.”

Then once more turning to the stunning auburn haired beauty he smiled .

“ This evening at ten Katherine if you accept.”

Lady Katherine Dawes interview had come to an end

[heartofcourage]

She wanted to say something to Sir Dracut but she found herself dismissed like a servant, ushered out of the study and towards the door as if the interaction that had occurred never happened. She continued to flush scarlet, her teeth chewing on her lower lip as the Frenchman helped her into her coat and pressed her bonnet into numb hands. She looked over her shoulder at the Duke, a lecherous smile on his lips and she stepped out of the house to escape the intensity of his gaze.

Tying her bonnet beneath her chin, she allowed the stable boy to help her mount her house and she kicked the beast into a trot as she began her journey home. Her mind spun with what had happened and she wasn’t sure what she should do. She could do the…unseemly things that he surely wanted and save her home. Or she could remain alone with her virtue and face an uncertain future. She let the tears she’d held back flow down her face as she rode, deep wracking sobs at her loss and the prospect of her future tearing through her small frame. She mourned the life she’d once known.

When she returned to Morningbrooke, she had stopped her tears and wiped her face on the shoulder of her riding habit. Her stable boy helped her dismount and took her horse into the stable to brush down. She entered the silent home and was bombarded with questions from the cook.

“Were you successful? What did he say?” The old woman asked, looking at Kitty with an expectant look.

“His lordship needs time to think.” She lied to the woman as she pushed past her and retired to her sparsely decorated room.

Her body and mind were weary and she wanted nothing more to throw herself upon the bed and never wake again, but she found she could not stop thinking about what Sir Dracut had said. Could she possibly do it? Could she ensure his secrecy? The shadows were growing long as the afternoon wore on. Before she knew it, there was a call to dinner from the cook and she sated her hunger with a meager meal of bread and dried meat. Her stomach rolled with nerves as she waited for her two staff members to retire for the evening before she began to dress for the evening.

At ten, she could hear the rattle of a carriage turning into the drive of Morningbrooke, and when she looked out her window, she saw the Duke’s crest on the outside. With a deep breath, she stepped out of her manor dressed in a gown she hadn’t worn since her premier in society. The deep lavender color was always becoming against her skin. She had also taken great care with her hair, pinning each curl into a becoming style and brushing it until it gleamed in the light. The only thing missing were the pearls that still lay forgotten on the floor of the Duke’s study.

She made her way to the carriage as it sat patiently waiting, her hand trembling as she allowed the driver to help her into it. As it pulled away from Morningbrooke, she knew her life would never be the same from that moment on.

[cgraven]

Sir Thomas Dracut Viscount of Jersey, Duke Of Chichester directed his Man servant Corbeau to dispatch a livered coach to collect Lady Katherine Dawes if she had decided to accept his terms of her sacrifice for Morningbrooke’s salvation. He watched from the windows of his study as Corbeau extended a hand to help Lady Katherine Dawes from the coach and usher her into his grand house.

He was setting once more behind his desk his fingers once more tented before his face.

“Good evening Katherine.”

“Corbeau a glass of champagne for Lady Dawes.”

Dracut took the opportunity to study the young beauty more carefully as she was handed a flute of the bubbly French treat. Her gown was quite fetching and a little daring in its cut. Yet like the gown she had worn earlier it was dated hardly the cutting edge of fashion. The soft deep lavender color was in mark contrast to the auburn beauty’s pale creamy ivory skin.

“ Have you had supper Katherine or is it time for desert?”

There was a wicked gleam in his eye as he emphasized the word Desert

[heartofcourage]

From the coach, she was escorted straight back into Sir Dracut’s study, the man sitting behind his desk as he’d done that morning when she’d first met him. Only this time, he looked more like a predator than a businessman. The appraising look he gave her reminded her of a hungry dog. She shivered under his gaze, lowering hers to the carpet beneath her slippers.

“Thank you.” She said softly to the Frenchman who handed her a glass of champagne. She would need it to steel her nerves, she thought as her heart thudded painfully once more in her chest. She brought the flute to her mouth, the bubbles tickling her nose and making her wrinkle her face as she took a deep sip.

She was startled that he asked about supper. She frowned at him for a moment, wondering if he truly had it in him to care about her wellbeing. That illusion was shattered as she heard him ask about desert and the wicked gleam that came to his eye as he spoke.

“I don’t think I could eat a bite, sir.” She answered in all honesty, her stomach knotted tight with nerves.

[cgraven]

Sir Thomas Dracut watched as Kitty took the offered Champagne from Corbeau and softly whispered.

Thank you.

As the man , like any good servant seemed to simply step back and disappear. Dracut could see how skittish the young auburn hair beauty was. The way her soft hazel eyes demurely averted his dark gaze. The little weary surprise when he had inquired about her desire for supper and then the shocked panic look that flashed in their clear depth when he sensually alluded to desert. How like a scared little filly Miss Katherine Dawes was as she stood on the cusp of her new life.

“I don’t think I could eat a bite, sir.”

Kitty softly replied as she kept her eyes on the dainty little slippers that she had first worn at her Debutant Ball when she was sixteen. The tip of Dracut’s tongue slowly slid across the bow of his lips this young filly may not be hunger but he certainly was, hungry for her sweet charms.

“Very well Katherine………..”

His voice now husky now with his lust for her, and his eyes boldly caressing the sensual curves of her magnificent young body.

“…………….But I am Katherine!”

He slowly dropped his tented fingers from before his face and his once cold grey eyes burned with and unholy desire for her as he slowly rose to once more to take a casual seat on the corner of his desk.

“ …………………Do you require assistance in removing your gown Katherine?”

As he spoke he lifted her chin with a single finger his dark smoldering gaze meeting her tear shimmering hazel eyes. The moment of truth had arrived, could she really sacrifice her virtue to save the home she so loved.

[heartofcourage]

She wanted very much for the grown to swallow her whole in the moment that he asked about removing her gown. He lifted her chin to look into his eyes and she saw a wealth of a foreign emotion in those cold grey eyes. It made a shiver coarse down her spine. He watched her as if he were waiting for something, and suddenly it dawned on her. He wanted her to strip there and then!

Her eyes went wide as she pulled her chin away from him and looked towards the door. The Frenchman that had been there moments before was now seemingly gone but that didn’t mean he couldn’t return.

“You want me to remove my gown here? In your study?” She asked as she turned her shocked eyes back towards Sir Dracut. “S..Someone might see.” She protested, a little voice in the back of her head telling her to be quiet. The Duke had been very clear on his terms and any disobedience by her might very well render their agreement void.

She sighed deeply, a tear coursing down her cheek as she took a final draw from the glass of champagne. Her neck stretched upwards as she drained it of the last of the liquid and gently placed it on his desk. She then reached behind her back with shaking fingers and began to undo the number of hooks and laces that held the gown together.

When at last she was done, she gently pulled the fabric away from her, stepped out of it and held it against her chest for protection. Not that she really needed the protection as she was just as clothed with her undergarments on as she was with the gown, but she wasn’t ready to let him see anything.

[cgraven]

“You want me to remove my gown here? In your study?”

Her stunning hazel eyes were as big as saucers as the truth of what he was demanding of her slowly dawned. He was not taking her to his bed chamber , but, but here where any one could walk in on them and discover the shameful bargain , the Devil’s own bargain that she had made to save her beloved Morningbrooke

Taking advantage of the Dutch Courage that the Champagne offered Kitty drained her glass and then with trembling fingers slowly loosed the eyes and hooks, and the little pearl buttons that held her gown together. Dracut watched as it slid down her supple young body and stepped out of it’s concealing folds. he smiled as she clutched the material of it to her bosom as if it were a shield that would protect her virtue.

“Put out you had palm up Katherine.!”

When she had done as he commanded he placed her forgotten string of pearls in her up turned palm.

“Put them on Miss!”

He smiled when they once more graced her slender neck.

“Now Katherine remove all of your clothing except for your Pearls!”

[heartofcourage]

When the pearls were placed in her hand, she clenched her fingers around them tightly. They were once a treasured item that she held dear, left to her by her late mother. Now the just felt cold and lifeless. She looked at Sir Dracut and let out a defeated sigh as she let her gown drop to the floor and she carefully laced the pearls back around her throat.

She stepped out of her slippers, pushing the shoes into the pile of clothing that was rapidly growing. Next came her pantaloons and her petticoat, leaving her still covered by her shift and corset. She didn’t know if she could continue. Her hands were shaking too much. She looked at the Duke with a beseeching expression and she was met by those cool grey eyes. She gulped and began to undo the stays that kept her bound. The corset soon came loose and she wriggled out of it, leaving her standing in the middle of his study in nothing but her shift and her stockings.

“Please, might I ask that we lock the door?” She asked him, her hands moving to cover the hint of her breasts that could be seen through the thin shift. They weren’t large, a little more than a handful, but they were firm and sleek like the rest of her body.