reached him. Snagging Stephen’s sleeve, she led him to a corner, which provided a modicum of privacy.
“Where is Derek?” Despite that bland expression, her eyes burned with fury.
“I haven’t seen him since he left the choir loft,” Stephen replied. He’d bet his inheritance his cousin was long gone, leaving it to others to clean up his latest mess. His aunt must have reached that conclusion, too.
“There are a dozen reporters and photographers, most of them tabloid, hanging around outside, waiting for a shot of the new Mrs. Danbury. I want Catherine out of here. Now.”
Her first concern, as always, was herself. The young woman who would have become her daughter-in-law was now merely a liability to be dealt with.
“I’m sure her parents will take her home.”
“See that they do.”
It was not a request but a command. Marguerite never asked Stephen for anything. She made demands and expected her demands to be met without question or complaint. Stephen acceded to her wishes, even though he thought Catherine might have had enough of the Danburys for one day. Still, he’d rather she had to face him than his aunt.
He heard Catherine’s voice as he approached the bride’s room. The emotion he’d detected earlier, when he’d overheard her conversation with Derek, had been carefully edited out. “I’m fine, Mother, really.”
“It’s too bad about the wedding,” her younger sister Felicity said. “You look stunning in that dress.”
Stephen rapped his knuckles on the semi-open door. “Excuse me,” he said. “May I come in?”
Catherine glanced over at him and he witnessed for a brief instant the strain she otherwise hid so well. She smiled, revealing an odd little dimple just to the left of her chin, a small bit of imperfection that somehow only enhanced the beauty of her classical Grace Kelly features.
“Of course.”
He stepped into the room, closing the door.
“Stephen, dear, I was just telling Catherine not to let this little indiscretion ruin things,” her mother said. “She and Derek can put this behind them.”
In their social sphere, he knew, infidelity was often brushed under the rug. Wives weren’t supposed to make waves, at least not publicly, and husbands were supposed to be discreet in their dalliances. Times might have changed, but obviously that was the pabulum still being force-fed to each new batch of old-money debs.
“I hope she doesn’t share your opinion,” he said, his gaze never leaving Catherine’s.
“Well, I do,” Felicity said. “I’d marry him, and keep this incident as leverage.”
Catherine’s sister was eighteen years old, and though he’d only met her on a couple of occasions just before the wedding, she appeared to be as spoiled as she was outspoken.
Catherine sent Stephen a bemused smile, but said nothing as her sister and mother continued to chatter on about the mistake she was making.
“My aunt sent me to tell you there is a limousine outside when you are ready to leave. The tabloid photographers are lining up, and surely more are on the way.”
“Oh, dear,” her mother said, fanning her face. “This is such an embarrassment.”
Catherine looked embarrassed, all right, but Stephen didn’t think it had anything to do with Derek at that moment. She reached up, as if to take off her veil.
“I wouldn’t take the time to change,” Stephen advised, knowing full well that a woman in shorts and a tank top could require half an hour. Who knew how long a woman in full wedding regalia would need to undress?
“He’s right, Catherine. Gather up your things. You can change at the house. Felicity, go find your father.”
“The house?” A pair of finely arched brows shot up in question. “I’d like to go back to my apartment, Mother. I hope you don’t mind, but I’d like to be alone.”
“Nonsense. You’ll come to the house.”
It was if she hadn’t spoken at all, Stephen thought. Worse, it was as if she were a child, rather than a grown woman of twenty-eight. He watched as she turned and began to gather up her belongings, but then she dumped them back onto the vanity and marched to the door.
“Where are you going?” Deirdra Canton called.
Catherine’s gaze never strayed from Stephen’s. “I’m leaving. Now. I’ll call you in the morning.”
Stephen didn’t say a word. He simply opened the door, took Catherine by the arm and led her away.
“Thank you,” she said a moment later. “That’s twice you’ve come to my rescue today.”
He shrugged off her appreciation. “Don’t thank me yet. We still have to outwit the paparazzi.”
He hustled her out the rectory door, but the photographers, as if scenting blood, were already there. Stephen blocked as much of their view of her as possible, holding her close and hovering around her like a bodyguard.
“Get in the limo,” he said, all but pushing her inside the door he’d already opened. Behind them flashes popped and people shouted out their names.
Inside, even with the tinted windows, she huddled low on the seat opposite his, looking shell-shocked and shaken.
“I never dreamed this would be how I left the church on my wedding day. I feel like some hideous car crash, gawked at and then gossiped over.”
“Hideous” was hardly the word that came to his mind as he looked at her lovely oval face, with its finely arched eyebrows and dark-fringed eyes the color of sapphires. A man could drown in those eyes. He glanced away. Perhaps Derek had, and that was why he’d considered trading in bachelorhood for permanent couple status when monogamy had never been his strong suit.
“Don’t worry. It won’t last forever. Next week some major star will go into rehab and that pack of vultures will be waiting outside the Betty Ford.”
She let out a startled laugh. “Is that supposed to be the bright side?”
“Only if you’re a desperate optimist. Where do you want to go? I don’t suggest returning to your apartment for a while.”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m open to ideas.”
To the chauffeur he said, “Drive around for a while, but start heading toward the Belmont Yacht Club.”
“The yacht club?”
“Trust me.”
“Why not? What else have I got to do this evening?” she said, her tone dry, her eyes suddenly starting to mist.
He fished a white handkerchief from one of his pockets and handed it to her. “Here.”
“I’m not crying,” she said,
