Charles baited his hook and cast it far out into the lake. Once his hook and lure sank below the water, he glanced around for the boats. The one carrying James and Gillian had drifted behind the sweeping protective curtain of an ancient willow tree close to the left side of the lake. The other, the one with Audrey and Jonathan, was drifting along in the middle of the lake. Audrey was reeling in a fish, and Jonathan rushed to help her. Moments later they fell deep into the boat and vanished from view.

Charles sighed. “So much for spending time alone without the ladies.” He knew a black cloud had to be forming over his head when he idly wondered whether the dandies back inside the house would be preferable company.

He was glad that both of his friends were well on their way to winning the hearts of their women, but it didn’t help his own situation. The sinking feeling that all of his friends were leaving him as they married was almost too much to bear. He stared at the rippling surface of the lake, watching the light play upon the water. Most days he didn’t think about the past, but whenever he was alone and it was quiet, the memories always crept back upon him. Memories that had left scars on his heart.

The river Cam at Cambridge, while not a lake, was so glassy smooth and slow that punting boats coasted on its surface with ease. It reminded him of this very lake. He shivered. The memory of the lead weights wrapped around his ankles was something he could never forget. Charles closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. He wasn’t sinking underwater. He was fine, just fine. Plenty of air to fill his lungs.

“My lord?” Tom Linley’s voice startled him. He opened his eyes to see the young man watching him with open concern. He smiled, trying to relax a little.

“Have a seat and dip your toes in the water, lad.” He patted the wood planks of the dock beside him.

“I really shouldn’t,” the young man said.

“Linley, sit,” Charles ordered.

Tom plopped down on the planks, frowning.

“Boots and stockings off, and feet in the water.” Charles faced him with an imposing stare.

Linley resisted for a moment before blowing out a deeply frustrated breath. Then he slipped off his boots and stockings. He dipped his toes in the water warily, as if it might bite him.

“Christ, lad, it’s only water.”

“’Tis cold water,” Linley huffed.

Charles laughed. “Can you swim? Be honest with me.”

“Yes, quite well, actually.” Linley raised his chin with pride, and well he should. Most men couldn’t.

“Good.” Charles reached over and gave Linley a hard shove.

“Ack!” The young man flailed his arms as he plummeted off the dock and into the water with a splash. When he came back up sputtering outrage, Charles hooted with laughter. Linley had lost his cap, and his blonde hair was plastered to his face.

“My lord!” Linley snapped. “You shouldn’t have done that.”

“You’re far too tense, lad. You think I haven’t noticed? You deserve some fun.” Charles curled his arm around one of the wood pillars of the dock and leaned forward to peer down at his all too serious servant.

Linley swam up to the dock and gripped the nearest post for support. Without warning, he grabbed Charles’s ankle and yanked. Charles tried to grab the wood pillar, but it was too late. He plunged into the cold depths of the pond.

For an instant he panicked. He saw the light shimmer on the surface above him and felt the momentum of the fall drag his body down…down. But no. There were no weights. No rope. He was fine. He kicked hard and clawed his way up from the depths, and the panic dissipated. In fact, he reveled in the fact that he was not powerless. He had his freedom.

“Not so fast, lad.” He tugged the young man under the water again, with a triumphant cry of, “Revenge!”

Linley struggled but came up laughing. Charles grinned. Tom reminded him so much of his little brother Graham and how they used to play. That had been before… Now he and Graham rarely spoke, something that made the holidays quite awkward for their mother and sister.

Linley splashed him, laughing as Charles shook his head, sending water spraying around them. Charles held up his hands in surrender.

“You’ve done me in, lad. I need to rest.” He swam along the dock and reached the bank. Then, squishing his wet clothes to remove excess water, he walked back down the dock and held out his hands to Linley.

“My lord, you don’t need to—”

“Nonsense. Take my hands.” Linley’s eyes were wide, but the innocence he saw there harbored shadows of pain.

He’s still afraid to trust me, even after all this time. I haven’t hurt him the way his previous master did. I wonder when he will learn to trust again?

Linley’s secrets still caused him pain, but Charles couldn’t help the boy if the he would not open up to him. And it wasn’t as if Charles himself spoke easily about his past. Not the moments that haunted him, anyway.

“Very well. I was only trying to help.” He turned away, but the young man surprised him by grasping his hand firmly. Charles turned back and hoisted a dripping wet Linley out of the water.

“Look at us, like a pair of drowned mice.” Charles laughed and twisted the loose part of his shirt and dripped the water onto the dock. Linley crossed his arms over his chest and shivered.

“Let’s get you inside before you rattle your bones.” Charles slapped Linley’s shoulder, and the pair headed back to the house.

It was only as they reached Rochester Hall that Charles realized that this was one of the rare times that he had seen Linley smile, even laugh. He wasn’t sure why, but the fact that he had given the boy some small joy filled Charles with a peace he hadn’t felt since his father had died.

“Are you ready?” Jonathan asked.

Audrey danced forward a step, fists raised. It was the fifth day of the house party, and she and Jonathan had managed to successfully train in the leisure room whenever there was a lull in the activities.

“I’m ready.” Wearing her breeches she had so much more agility, and she had grown to love the time she spent training with Jonathan. This time she hadn’t even worn a corset and couldn’t believe how easily she could breathe without the confining press of whalebone against her chest.

“Remember, you must evade first, disable second.” Jonathan’s green eyes were serious, and she liked that. Whenever they sparred, he didn’t patronize her or attempt to seduce her, which he easily could have done. In the last week, she had grown far too used to his kisses during the day and spending each night in his bed and in his arms.

He kept to his agreement to sleep and nothing more, which Audrey was of two minds about. She enjoyed being close to him, but she feared that if she fully gave herself to him she would never be able to handle it when he decided he wanted to leave her alone and stop their lessons. She tried not to think about his sudden sweetness and what it meant. She wasn’t sure she could trust this more open side to him. There was always the chance it was simply the final move in whatever game he might be playing.

Jonathan lunged for her. She ducked and darted around him, keeping her arms up. As he turned, he swung a fist, a little more slowly than a real attacker might, but still fast enough that she had to hastily parry the blow. First she had to commit the moves to memory, and then they could speed things up. He gave her no time to recover; he tried to sweep her legs, and she jumped, narrowly averting being knocked flat on her back.

“Good,” he said. “Very good.” He nodded and lowered his hands. Audrey did the same, beaming in delight. He lunged again, grabbing her by the hair. The hold didn’t hurt, but it startled her enough that she cried out. He pulled her back against him, and his other hand gripped her throat. She was trapped, her back pressed against his chest.

“You must never for a moment trust that you have safely outmaneuvered your opponent,” Jonathan said in a silky whisper by her ear.

“But we were finished.”

“Were we? When a man attacks, he may pretend to yield and wait for a better moment to strike. You must always think like a predator in order to protect yourself. These men see themselves as the foxes and you are the rabbit. You must learn to be the fox. Now, try to get free.” Jonathan repositioned them so she was pressed up against the wall with her body caged in by his from behind.

Audrey pushed, her muscles straining. She had been sore and fatigued each night, but she hadn’t asked Jonathan for any breaks in their lessons. Now she wished she had because she felt too weak to move.

“Don’t push back. You’re wasting precious strength. Your attacker will wear you down, and when you can’t fight, he will jerk up your skirts from behind and take you. Do you want that?”

Audrey knew his words were designed to provoke fear of an unwanted attack, but she was aroused by picturing him as the man doing that. If she had skirts on and he pulled them up now, she would have no desire to resist. Even though she knew that would be a mistake, it didn’t stop her from wanting it. That gave her an idea.

She stopped resisting and arched her back, rubbing her bottom against his groin. She let out a breathless moan as his erection pressed against the front of his trousers. She feigned another light struggle but then reached behind herself and grabbed his hip, pulling him tighter against her. His grip on her hair tightened.

“I thought I told you to fight back.” His voice grew rough.

“I tried, but now…I need…” She allowed a genuine huskiness to fill her voice as she rolled her hips. “Please, just a little something…” It was a code between them, a little something but not fully something. He let out a frustrated breath against her neck and then started kissing her shoulder and nibbling at her ear. His hand on her throat moved to the front of her breeches. He slipped his hand below her waist beneath the trousers and cupped her bare sex, sliding one finger into her.

She purred in pleasure as he gently thrust into her with that finger over and over, owning her. Her legs shook as the climax built hard and fast, and then she exploded apart.

“Now you,” she said as he withdrew his hand.

“Yes.” He let her go, and she turned around and swiftly brought her knee up into his groin, hard enough that he doubled over in shock. She shoved him flat on his back and rushed to grab a fencing foil from a rack against the wall and point it at his throat.

Jonathan lay on his back, breathing hard for several seconds before he started to laugh.

“Did you see that? I gave you a promise, and you fell for it.”

“I did. And it will work with most men. The idea of a willing woman is usually preferred, but…” He lifted his head. “You must be prepared for those men who thrive on a woman’s pain and humiliation as well. They won’t fall for your tricks. It might even make them angrier, and you don’t want that.”

Audrey nodded. Her legs were still a bit unsteady from the climax he’d given her, and she collapsed down beside him as he moved into a sitting position on top of her.

“Remember, if you are pinned, use your elbows. Dig into the ribs and kick back with your feet.”

Audrey nodded.

“Ready to go again?” he asked.

The thought of another round of sparring made her body shake. She was exhausted. Thankfully the door to the leisure room opened, saving her from having to admit defeat.

“Ah, so here you two are.” Lucien stood in the doorway, a bemused look on his face.

“Good morning,” Audrey greeted brother-in-law.

“You’re lucky Cedric isn’t here to stumble upon you,” Lucien said. “Though I would enjoy hearing you two try to explain yourselves to him.”

Jonathan was quick to get to his feet and help Audrey to hers.

“How are Horatia and little Evan?” Audrey asked.

“Good. Both are getting stronger every day. That’s actually why I’m here. She wishes to see you.”

“Oh?”

“She’s in her bedchamber with Evan.” Lucien stepped back to allow Audrey to pass by. She glanced back at Jonathan as she headed for the stairs. His look of disappointment that their training session was over left her with a tiny swelling of hope in her heart.

He likes spending time with me, at least a little. For now, it’s enough.