Instead, he felt sick to his stomach.
"Thank you, Colonel. That's extremely good news. However, I was wondering if it might be possible for me to remain in London until the investigation is concluded. As you know, my knowledge of the case is extensive. I feel I might be more valuable here than—"
"I'm sorry. I understand you may have come to feel personally involved in this, but orders are orders." The colonel came to his feet behind the desk. "Do not despair, Captain Tanner. Continue as you have been, and you will go far in this army."
Caleb forced himself to smile. "I hope so, sir."
"Enjoy your brief time off. Give my best to your father and at the end of your leave, report back here to me. I'll have transport arranged for your return to Spain and subsequent reunion with Wellesley. Till that time, you are dismissed, Captain Tanner."
Caleb made a smart salute, left the office, and returned to his father's Mayfair town house. He would be leaving London far sooner than he had expected. He had hoped to have more time with Lee, time to consider his options. Now he knew that wasn't going to happen.
As he stepped inside the imposing brick residence in Berkeley Square, crossed the entry and headed down the hall, the house felt cold and empty as it never had before. When he reached the study, he walked over to a sideboard and poured himself a drink. Carrying the brandy glass over to the desk, he sank into the deep leather chair, filled with an unexpected despair.
The question he had pondered all afternoon returned with relentless force. What to do about Lee?
Lee slept for a while, then spent the balance of the day wandering around the suite waiting for Caleb. The later it got, the more her irritation grew. She wasn't the sort to sit there doing nothing, at the beck and call of her lover.
Surely Aunt Gabby hadn't done that. Had she?
Surely Caleb didn't expect her to. Did he?
Then again, she wasn't sure what Caleb expected. She was Vermillion Durant. It was Vermillion who had agreed to become his mistress. The notion bothered her more than it should have.
It was evening and still she hadn't heard from him. The longer she waited, the more her agitation swelled. By the time his second note arrived, telling her he wouldn't be there till nearly midnight, she was furious.
He wanted a mistress? Well, fine—she would give him one!
Storming into the bedchamber, she dragged out the satchel she had brought with her from Parklands. There wasn't much inside, but among the few items was the sheer, lavender silk nightgown her aunt had given her for her birthday. The sleeveless gown had a vee of lavender lace in front that ran clear to her navel. Lee rang for a chambermaid, who brought her scissors, thread, and a needle; cut out the lace; then cut off the ankle-length sweep of silk and hemmed it up. When she put it on, it exposed all but her nipples and barely covered the cheeks of her bottom.
Perfect.
She hadn't brought any face paint. The rice powder she could do without, but the kohl… In a moment of inspiration, she knelt in front of the hearth and swept a bit of coal dust into an empty glass. Carrying it over to the dresser, she sat down in front of the mirror and went to work, darkening the burnished color of her lashes, feathering the black dust carefully around her eyes. Though it made them look huge and blue-green, she still didn't look enough like Vermillion.
What to do… ?
A second inspiration struck. Tugging on the bell cord to ring for a servant, she ordered a bowl of fresh berries brought up from the kitchen. They were bright red and delicious, she discovered as she dipped them, one by one, into a little silver bowl of clotted cream and popped them into her mouth.
It was the juice she wanted and she found more than enough in the bottom of the bowl. As soon as she finished the fruit, she used the juice to darken her lips then watered it a little and used it to color her cheeks. Her bravado growing by the moment, she dabbed the last of the juice onto each of her nipples, rouging them as she knew a number of Cyprians often did.
Satisfied at last, she ran a brush through her hair, fanning the dark red curls out around her shoulders. Carefully surveying her handiwork, she grinned at the wild, seductive creature staring back at her in the mirror.
Caleb wanted a mistress. He was going to get one!
It was late, nearly midnight, before she heard the tread of his boots on the stairs. She was dressed and ready, pacing the floor in wait for him. At the light knock on the door, she took a steadying breath and pasted on her practiced smile. Turning the handle on the door, she jerked it open and invited him in.
He wasn't wearing his uniform, she saw, just a pair of fawn-colored breeches and a dark brown broadcloth tailcoat. His eyes briefly touched hers where she stood in the open doorway and for an instant he smiled. Then his gaze took in her kohl-darkened eyes, rouged lips and cheeks, and the smile disappeared.
Caleb frowned. "What the hell is this?"
Her lips curved even more. "Welcome home, darling. There's cold meat and cheese on the table beside the hearth. There's a nice claret to go with it, and brandy, of course. Why don't you sit down and relax? I'll fix you a plate and pour you a drink."
She turned to walk away, giving him a glimpse of her bottom. She hadn't got more than a couple of steps when Caleb caught her arm and spun her around to face him.
"Whatever game you're playing, you may end it right now. I don't think it is the least bit funny."
She battered her long, sooty lashes. "Why, darling, whatever do you mean? I am hardly playing a game. You are paying for this room, are you not? For the food we're about to eat, for the… entertainment afterward. I merely want to make certain you get your money's worth."
Caleb caught the tops of her arms and hauled her closer. "Stop it. Stop this right now." He shook her, not gently. "This whole thing was your idea, not mine. I never expected you to behave like a trollop. We both know you aren't one and you never have been."
Her smiled slipped a little. "But I will be, won't I, Caleb? After you're gone? And you did pledge to my aunt you would teach me all I need to know to continue in the role I will be playing."
His eyes darkened to nearly black. "I went to your aunt because I was hoping she might help me persuade you. I would have promised her anything in order to have you." The edge of his mouth barely curved. "But I have always been a man of my word. If it's a lesson you want, sweeting, I'll be more than happy to oblige."
Jerking her hard against him, Caleb kissed her. There was none of the gentleness, none of the care he'd shown her before. It was a fierce, demanding kiss, the kind a man claimed from the mistress he had bought and paid for.
And yet she felt the heat stirring to life inside her, burning between them, scorching like a fire in her blood.
She trembled, tried to draw away, but Caleb wouldn't have it. Instead he slid the gown off her shoulders, paused for an instant at the sight of her berry-stained nipples, then lowered his head and took the crest of one into his mouth. He laved the tip, suckled and tasted, then turned to her other breast and began to feast again. Each tug sent liquid fire pouring through her, drew damp heat into her core.
Her knees trembled. She tangled her fingers in his thick brown hair and fought to stay on her feet.
Caleb raised his head and the edges of his lips barely curved. "You want me to show you what a man expects from his mistress?"
She had pushed him too far. She could see it in the muscle flexing in his cheek, the hard set of his jaw. She had meant to goad him, but now he seemed like another man entirely and she was a little afraid.
She swallowed. "That is… that is what I am, is it not?"
Caleb didn't answer. Instead, he swept her up in his arms and strode into the bedchamber, tossed her down in the middle of the bed and began to unbutton his shirt.