Mary stood, and Esther followed suit. “Since dinner is only the four of us tonight, we will make it a bit casual. Edward and our guest will meet us in the dining room.”
Esther nodded, and followed her sister out of the room, across the hall, and into the open dining room.
“Please, have a seat,” Mary said, gesturing to a chair. It was refreshing to feel a bit of freedom from typical dining customs.
Just as Esther was about to sit down, she looked up and saw Edward. She gasped. Standing next to him was Allan. He had a wide smile on his face, and he was looking directly at her.
“Esther,” he said, walking towards her. “It is a pleasure to see you.”
Esther didn’t know if she should be happy by his presence or upset. There was a part of her that couldn’t believe he would show his face after fathering a bastard child, but there was another part of her that was so happy to see him. It was immediately obvious that she still had feelings for him.
“Allan,” she said. “What…what are you doing here?”
“Everything will be explained, Esther,” Edward said. “Please, everyone sit.”
Allan was sitting directly across from her, so Esther could see his shining green eyes and neat, ginger hair. He still looked just as handsome as she remembered.
The footmen were already serving the soup, but Esther wasn’t paying attention. She was only looking at Allan.
“Now Esther,” Edward said. “We need to discuss your situation.”
“Yes,” she said, nodding. She was starting to put things together and was understanding that Allan was the benefactor who was going to help her.
“However, first we have some other news,” Edward explained. “And you are part of this, too.”
“Oh?” she replied.
“I know that Mary informed you about Allan’s situation with Miss Bridget Crampton,” Edward said.
“Yes, she did.” Esther said, feeling saddened.
“And I know that it has hurt you greatly,” Edward continued.
Esther just nodded, making sure that she wasn’t making eye contact with Allan.
“I am pleased to inform you that Miss Crampton has admitted that she has lied about the parentage of her child,” Edward said with a smile.
“What?” Esther’s heart skipped a beat. She turned to Allan. “So, you are not…”
He shook his head. “No, Esther,” he said. “I am not a father.”
A warm feeling filled her body, and she couldn’t help but smile. She looked at Allan, and he was smiling, too. She turned towards Edward, who was absolutely beaming, and when she turned to Mary, she saw her wipe away a tear.
“So, does this mean—?” Esther uttered.
“It means that I would like to continue to court you, Esther,” Allan said.
She just nodded, feeling a lump forming in her throat. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been this happy, and she struggled to stop herself from crying.
“Now,” said Edward, taking a sip of wine. “Since we have that over with, let’s fill Esther in on the plan to get Julia back.”
Chapter 24
Esther, Allan, Mary, and Edward were all sitting in the drawing room following dinner. Esther couldn’t believe the turn of luck she had this evening. Not only was there a plan in place to save Julia, but she and Allan were officially courting again.
“Allan,” Edward said, “I think you and I should contact Mr. Smith about Julia. Then, when he agrees to let her go, Mary and Esther should be waiting in the carriage to collect her.”
“I agree,” said Allan, briefly smiling at Esther as he spoke. She couldn’t stop staring at the movement of his body under his clothing. She remembered what had happened after the ball, and she couldn’t help but feel a tingling between her legs.
“Once we get this taken care of, what will we do for her?” Mary asked.
“She is only five,” Esther said. “So we should try to find a good placement. I hate knowing that she has to go back to an orphanage, but I don’t know of any other options. She doesn’t have family.”
“We will deal with that when the time comes,” Allan replied. “For now, I think the most important thing is to contact Mr. Smith and tell him our intentions.”
“I agree,” Edward said. “We will do that first, and then await his reply.” He took a final sip of his Scotch, looked at Mary, and said “I think it’s time to retire to bed, my Dear.”
Mary smiled and nodded. “I agree.” She turned to Esther. “I hope you don’t mind if we retire for the evening?”
“Not at all,” she replied. “I can have Rose come down to sit with us.” Esther looked at Allan and smiled. Though she would love to sit with him alone, she knew that would not be appropriate.
“I would love to sit up for a bit longer, if that’s all right,” Allan said. “We have a lot to catch up on.”
Mary then turned to a footman and said, “Andrew, would you ask Rose to join us?”
“Yes, Your Grace,” the footman said before leaving the room.
Mary then said, “We will wait for Rose, and then retire.” She turned towards Esther. “I know you are leaving in the morning, but I hope you will come back soon. We have a few weeks before Ruth’s wedding, but I hope to see you before then. We should try to get Julia as soon as possible, and hopefully before the wedding.”
“Yes, I agree,” Esther replied. “The faster we can get her, the better I will feel.”
“Me, too,” Allan said. Esther looked at him and smiled. She was fully enamored with him, not only because she was most certainly in love with him, but also because of what he was doing for Julia.
Allan smiled back, and it was like a shock to her heart. Esther could feel herself blush and felt butterflies in her stomach. No man had ever made her feel this way. She was not only attracted to his mind, his actions, and his personality, she was also extraordinarily attracted to his physique. She felt things in her own body when near him that she had not felt around other men before. Right now, for instance, the tingling between her legs was becoming more pronounced and she felt a very pleasurable sensation every time her body shifted.
“Your Grace, Miss Rose has arrived.”
“Thank you so much for coming in, Rose,” Esther said. “Lord Wiltshire and I are going to sit up and talk, while my sister and her husband retire for the evening.”
“Very well, My Lady,” Rose replied. She walked around the outskirts of the room and sat in a chair against the wall.
“Now that Rose is here, we are going to say good night,” Mary said as she rose from her chair. Esther stood and hugged her sister, and then turned to Edward to say good night.
“We will see you in the morning,” Edward said, and took Mary by the arm to lead her out. Esther watched as they left the room, and then turned to Allan.
“I have to admit something to you,” she said to him. “When I saw you tonight, I didn’t know if I should be happy to see you or angry.”
Allan nodded and said, “I never want you to be angry with me, Esther. I will do everything I can to make sure that never happens.”
She smiled at him. “I will promise you the same.”
“Esther,” he said, “I want to make my intentions clear. But, before I do, I want you to know that I have never been so sad as I was the day Bridget accused me of fathering her child. I knew, when you found out, that you would never want to see me again.”
Esther nodded, and then said, “Honestly, you are correct. I was extremely upset when I heard the news, and I knew I could never accept that.”
“I figured that was the case,” Allan said. “I’m happy that it worked out differently.”
Esther beamed. “So am I.” She took a sip of her wine and then said, “You said you wanted me to know your intentions?”
“Yes,” Allan said, “Of course. Isn’t it clear?” He smiled. “I want to marry you.”
Esther was immediately overjoyed and filled with a warmth and happiness that she
had never experienced before. She wanted to jump into his arms and feel his body next to hers. She wanted to scream and shout. She wanted to cry tears of joy. She wanted to be in bed with him and feel his body inside of her own.
The tears were welling up in her eyes, and she looked at Allan and said, “That is what I want, too, and so much more.”
Allan smiled widely. “Then we must come up with a plan. I will, of course, call upon your father to share this with him and ask his permission for your hand.”
“Oh, Allan,” Esther said. “I am so happy right now.”
Suddenly, Esther had a realization. She didn’t know if her father had enough money for two dowries, and Ruth would get hers first. After hearing about the estate’s dire straits, Esther knew this would be tricky.
“Allan,” Esther said quietly. “I need to tell you something”
“What, Esther?” Allan replied. “You can tell me anything.”
“I don’t know all of the details,” Esther explained. “But my father had has just paid Mary’s dowry not too long ago, and now he must pay Ruth’s. I’m not sure how he will react when you ask for one, too.”
Allan nodded. “I appreciate you telling me this, Esther,” he said. “I will keep that in mind, but I still intend on making an appointment with him.”
Esther smiled. “I was hoping that would be your answer.”
“Absolutely,” he said. “I’m sure we can work something out.”
Esther smiled at him again. Not only was he such a nice gentleman, he was extremely attractive, and she became quite stimulated when she imagined what it would be like to be intimate with him. Again, her loins began to ache as she allowed thoughts of what it might feel like to have their bodies come together.
Esther finished her glass of wine, and now tired and filled with scandalous thoughts about Allan, she felt she should go to sleep, too, before she got caught up in the moment.
“I hate to say this,” Esther said, still thinking about what he might look like unclothed. “But I must retire for the evening.”
Allan nodded. “It is getting late. I won’t be far behind you.”
Esther stood. “I’m so happy, Allan,” she said smiling widely. “I can’t wait for the morning just so I can see you again.”
“I feel the same,” he replied.
Esther remembered the episode that occurred after the ball between the two of them, and she yearned for it to happen again. She had a fleeting thought about how she could do something…anything…get him to touch her in some way in the most intimate of places...she just longed for him to touch her there.
However, Esther knew without a doubt that Rose would never let her out of her sight with no other woman around, and it was probably best that she not put herself into that situation.
“Good night, Allan,” she said.
“Good night, Esther,” he replied. “I love you.”
She smiled. “I love you, too, Allan” she said, and then turned and walked out of the room. She would certainly have sweet dreams, tonight.
* * *
Allan had slept like a baby. Once Esther had left, he finished his drink, Harley helped him undress, and then dress for bed, and he fell into it without any care in the world.
Now, he was sitting in the dining room with Edward enjoying some toast and jam with tea.
“You will let me know when you hear from Mr. Smith, right?” Edward asked him.
“Of course,” Allan replied. He would send a letter as soon as he got back home. “The moment I get a reply, I will send word to you.”
“Excellent,” Edward said before taking a sip of tea. “We can, hopefully, make this go smoothly.”
There was a moment of silence between the cousins, and then Allan said, “Edward?”
“Yes?” Edward replied.
“I am going to send another letter today, too.” Allan said.
“Oh? To whom?” Edward asked.
“To Esther’s father,” Allan replied. “I intend to ask for her hand.”
Edward beamed. “Allan!” he said. “I am so overjoyed for you!”
Allan smiled. “Thank you,” he said. “I have had nothing but her on my mind these past weeks, and I know that she is the right person for me.”
“I cannot imagine a better pairing,” Edward said. “And I know that her father will be thrilled.”
“I hope so,” Allan said with a chuckle.
“Well, look at it this way,” Edward said with a smile. “The other option was Harry.”
Allan smiled, appreciating Edward’s joke. “Funny, I haven’t seen Harry at all since I have been here, and I am leaving tomorrow.”
Edward’s expression got more serious. “Yes, I’m not surprised. He has been making himself scarce recently. As I told you yesterday when you arrived…he has been acting very strangely. I haven’t seen him, either.”
“Very odd, indeed.” Allan said, taking another sip of tea. “I wonder if he even knows I am here.”
“He does.”
Allan whipped around and saw Harry walking into the dining room.
“You will have to excuse my tardiness at greeting you,” Harry said. “Though I hear you are leaving, shortly, so perhaps I will say hello and good-bye at the same time.”
This is very strange.
“It is nice to see you, Harry,” Allan said.
“Yes, I have had some pressing tasks to deal with,” Harry replied. Allan watched as he took a piece of toast and slathered it with orange marmalade. It was quite obvious that he was angry or upset. Allan looked up and saw that Edward was noticing his behavior, too.
“Harry,” Edward asked. “Is everything all right?”
“Perfect,” Harry said looking directly at Edward. Allan could see that his jaw was clenched and tight.
“I see,” said Edward. “Then you will be happy to know that our cousin has some news to share with you.”
“Oh, really?” Harry asked, now leaning back in his chair holding a cup of tea. “Is it news of his impeding engagement?”
Allan swallowed hard. Harry’s behavior made sense now.
“Yes, it is,” Allan said. “I hope that you can be happy for me. Esther and I are very much in love and I am going to ask her father for permission to marry her.”
“Good luck,” Harry said nonchalantly. “I take it you have told her about your scars? You don’t want to frighten her on your wedding night.”
Allan’s mouth fell open. He couldn’t believe that Harry would say such a thing, especially at the breakfast table.
The truth was, Allan had not thought about his body at all when he had been with Esther, and now, Harry’s comments made him worry. What if Esther found him to be repulsive?
Harry must have noticed that his comment bothered Allan. “Ah,” Harry said, “I take it you haven’t told her.” He smirked.
“Harry,” Edward said loudly. “That is totally inappropriate. Esther chose Allan, not you. It’s not fair for you to take out your feelings on him. He has done nothing wrong.”
“Nothing wrong?” Harry stood and shouted, pointing at Allan. “He stole Esther from me. All I ever wanted was her, and he took her.” Harry then tossed his toast onto the table and started to walk out of the north door of the dining room.
Harry then turned towards Allan. “When she sees your scars, she will run from you and realize that she chose a broken man.”
Allan stared in disbelief as Harry stormed out, and then his heart fell. Standing in the doorway that Harry had just left were Mary and Esther, and based on their expressions, they had heard the entire conversation.
* * *
“Broken man?”
Esther looked at Mary.
“What does that mean?” she asked her younger sister.
Mary looked at her with a sympathetic face. “Let’s go to the drawing room.”
Mary grabbed Esther’s arm and led her away from the dining room and towards the drawing room. “I will explain in a moment.”
&
nbsp; Esther was so confused, and now she felt a sense of dread about what her future with Allan would be if he really was broken.
The footman standing near the door opened it for them, and the sisters walked in. Mary turned towards one of them and said, “Could we have some toast, marmalade, and tea in here?”
“Yes, Your Grace,” the footman responded before rushing away.
Lusting For The Broken Earl (Steamy Historical Regency) Page 22