“No,” Edward replied. “We have to get home. I need Mary’s help with something pressing…a household issue. But we will see you soon.”
Chapter 28
Allan and Julia were waiting in the carriage. He didn’t know what to say to her, and he was a bit upset that he could not go into the house to see Esther. However, he knew that if they were going to pull this plan off, that he would have to keep Julia hidden until the right time came.
He could see Edward and Mary making their way through the main doorway of the home and she did not look happy. Allan was hoping that Edward hadn’t told her that they had Julia, and this was her response.
The coachman came around to open the door for Mary, and she leaned down and came into the carriage. She saw him, and her mouth fell agape. She then saw Julia. Edward came into the carriage quickly behind her and the door was shut.
“Allan!” Mary said frantically. “What are you doing here? Why didn’t you go see Esther? Who is this child?” She then turned to Edward. “I demand to know what is going on!”
“Dearest, please,” Edward said with a smile. “Everything is fine. This sweet child is Julia, the orphan who Esther cared for.”
Mary gasped, and then leaned towards the child. Allan could tell that she was shocked by her appearance, and immediately, he saw Mary filled with compassion and caring for the little girl.
“Oh, little lamb,” Mary said softly to Julia. “I am Lady Esther’s sister. You are safe.” Allan looked at the girl who was clutching her bag tightly. She still looked very frightened, but he could tell that she was a bit more at ease with Mary in the carriage.
Edward turned towards his wife and said, “Mary, I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you. We didn’t want you nor Esther involved. It was a dangerous scheme and we couldn’t bear to put either of you in danger.”
Mary nodded, never taking her eyes off of the pitiful girl.
Edward continued. “After much discussion, Allan has decided to take on Julia as his ward, and she will be raised in his home with Esther, and with Allan as her guardian. We will settle it all with the Court of Chancery.”
“I cannot believe that the two of you did this,” Mary said, now looking at them both. “Though I am so happy that you did. Esther will be ecstatic.”
Allan nodded, and said, “I hope so. I did this all for her. We will spare you the details, but just know that Julia nor Esther, will ever want for anything as long as I have a say in it.”
Mary smiled, and then she turned towards Edward. “What is the plan, now?”
“We will take Julia back to our estate. Allan will come, too, of course,” Edward explained. “We will then bring our lawyers out and get all of this legally sound. We know it is an unusual situation, but with the help of our legal advisors, your father, and Allan’s friend Oliver, we should have no major problems.”
“You have really thought of everything.” Mary exclaimed.
“I think we have,” Edward said with a chuckle. “We can, however, declare that Julia, here, is safe with us.”
Mary reached over and gently touched Edward’s arm. She then looked at Allan.
She said, “I always thought that Esther loved you more than anyone could love another…but after she learns of this, I think she will certainly love you more than she did before.”
Allan nodded. “I just want to make our life together one that counts.”
“It will count,” said Mary. “It will count more than you could ever believe.”
* * *
Esther and Ruth were once again in a carriage pulling up in front of Mary and Edward’s estate. It had been a week since she had seen Allan, and it would only be one week more before they were married.
“This might be the last ride we take together as unmarried ladies,” Ruth exclaimed with happiness. “I simply have a hard time believing that we will both be married soon. It seems like only yesterday that we were coming here for the first time. So much has changed, hasn’t it, Esther?”
Esther nodded. So much had changed in her life over the past several months. She had seen her younger sister Mary become married, she had learned that her youngest sister, Ruth, was engaged, and she had skirted through Harry’s affections and ended up engaged herself to a gentleman she could only dream of. Now, their wedding was fast approaching.
“So much has changed, Ruth,” Esther said, as they pulled closer to the door of the estate. “Not all of it was good, of course,” she said. “But it all ended up perfect in the end.”
“Yes,” Ruth said. “You almost lost him, and I am so thankful you didn’t. I still don’t fully understand the issues with Miss Bridget Crampton, but I daresay we will get the truth at some point.”
“Of course,” Esther said. “We know that someone was involved there, and though she has never mentioned who it was, all of that will come out.”
“I just hope I am there when it does,” Ruth said with a laugh.
The carriage was slowing as it came to the door, and it eventually stopped. Esther looked out and saw Edward, Mary, and Allan, all standing and waiting for them. Allan looked exceptionally handsome, and she couldn’t believe that he would be her husband in only a matter of days.
The door opened and the coachman’s hand helped her out. Esther began to walk towards her sister, brother-in-law, and future husband. She knew that she should greet Edward, first, but all she wanted was to be with Allan.
She noticed Edward looking at her, and when their eyes met, he smiled widely and cocked his head towards Allan. That was enough for her. She nodded at Edward, and then at Mary, and walked quickly towards Allan.
He was smiling, and his green eyes were shining, just as they looked in her dreams each night. Allan reached out for her and held Esther by the arms. He looked deeply into her eyes, and said, “I have missed you.”
She nodded, and said, “I have missed you, too, Allan.” It took all that she had to not immediately fall into his arms, and if Mary, Edward, and Ruth were not here, she shuddered at the thought of what she might be willing to do with him.
“Now that you have seen your fiancé,” Mary said, “Are you going to greet your sister?”
They all laughed, and Esther and Mary embraced. “We have a lot to do over the next couple of days,” Mary said. “So I suggest that you and Ruth go settle in, and we can all meet in the drawing room in an hour’s time.”
Esther nodded. With the wedding happening very soon, she knew that this was true. Bolt, their butler, came to collect Esther and Ruth, and as they always did, they followed him through the hallways and up into their usual rooms.
Chapter 29
Allan was trying to relax. Not only were his nerves on edge due to the wedding coming up, but he was also nervous about what Esther would think about Julia.
So far, Julia had settled in well. Mary had taken her under her wing, and they had even hired a governess for her, who had been working with her for a couple of days now. They had informed her that Esther would be arriving, soon, but they wanted to make sure the moment was right when they were reunited.
He had not been home since returning from collecting Julia, but that was fine. He knew that this was the best place for her, considering Mary was there, and when they returned home, Esther would be there. As a gentleman, Allan didn’t have much experience dealing with young girls, so he was very happy for the help.
Allan walked into the empty drawing room, and though he didn’t ask, the footman brought him a Scotch. He took a heavy drink, and then sat down on the sofa. He hoped that Esther would sit next to him, and that he could feel at least part of her body next to his. He had to admit that it was getting more difficult than he thought it would be to keep his urges for her contained. Even today, when he saw her, he fought to keep his manhood from becoming too firm and noticeable. The Scotch will help.
Sitting in this room reminded him of his childhood. He had been at the house for several days already, and he had barely seen his cousin, Harry. Their relationship
had never been worse, even though Allan had tried his best to repair it.
The first couple of times he had seen Harry, Allan had tried to talk to him, but Harry had either made an excuse as to why he couldn’t engage in conversation or simply ignored him. The last time he had seen him, yesterday afternoon, Harry walked away from him. For now, Allan thought that it was best to let the wedding happen, and then deal with Harry over time.
“My Lord?”
Allan looked up. One of the footmen was addressing him.
“Yes?”
“His Grace will be with you shortly,” the footman replied. “He asked me to tell you that he would be a bit later than he thought.”
“Oh,” Allan said, “All right.”
The footman turned around and whispered with someone in the hallway. He then turned back to Allan. “Lady Esther Nott and Lady Ruth Nott are here.”
Allan’s heart jumped at the sound of Esther’s name. He stood. “Please send them in.”
“Yes, My Lord,” the footman said.
Esther and Ruth walked in, and Allan couldn’t contain his smile at seeing his beloved. As always, she looked quite stunning, and he was almost happy that Ruth and the other staff were around, because he wanted to simply devour her body with his.
“You both look lovely,” he said with a bow.
“Thank you,” Ruth said. This was followed by, “So do you,” from Esther.
“Edward and Mary will join us shortly,” he said. “I’m happy that the two of you could join me.”
He watched as both Esther and Ruth took glasses of wine and drank. As Esther swallowed, he felt another jolt to his manhood. He didn’t want to get a full erection, so he took another sip of Scotch.
“Ruth, we know how our wedding plans are going, how are yours?” Allan asked in an attempt to keep his mind off of Esther’s body.
“Oh, very well, indeed.” Ruth said. “We have pushed our plans back a bit to accommodate Esther’s wedding, but we are happy to do it.”
“Well, we appreciate it,” Allan said, smiling at his future sister-in-law. He then looked at Esther. “Dear, have you gotten everything in order thus far?”
“Oh yes,” Esther replied. “At least as much as I can. I only want a simple ceremony, as you know, so there isn’t much more to do.”
“Excellent,” Allan said. “I am certainly looking forward to being married.” He smiled at Esther and Ruth, and then saw a commotion near the door.
“Are you though?”
It was Harry, and he looked wild and disheveled. “Are you looking forward to it, Cousin?” Harry asked. He was obviously three sheets to the wind and he was walking right towards Allan.
“No,” Harry said loudly. “You are no cousin of mine.”
Allan watched as Harry then turned to Esther and Ruth. “I’m sorry, ladies. Am I interrupting your fun night?” Allan could see the shock on their faces.
“Harry,” he said loudly and boldly. “I think you should leave.”
“Oh, you do?” Harry said, mockingly. “Good thing I don’t care what you think. The only thing I care about is exposing you for what you are. A coward.” As Harry said those last two words he pointed at Allan, and then stumbled.
“What?” Allan asked. “Why would you call me a coward?”
“Because that is exactly what you are,” Harry said. He turned to Esther. “Good luck dealing with his endless nightmares. Good luck wiping his tears away when he cries like a little babe.”
Allan quickly looked at Esther. She now looked puzzled.
“Did he tell you that he was spending time with Bridget Crampton, alone, while he was spending time with you?” Harry spat, and continued to address Esther while moving closer to her.
“My cousin…or former cousin, in my book…is a weak, broken man who was doing unspeakable things with Bridget Crampton while trying to show you that he was a perfect gentleman. This is a lie!” Harry yelled.
“NO,” came a booming voice from the doorway. “Harry, stand back…NOW.” It was Edward, and Allan wasn’t sure he had ever seen his cousin so angry. His face was as red as blood and his eyes as dark as coal.
Harry stepped back and slowly turned towards Edward with a sneer on his face. “Welcome, Brother,” he said. “You are just in time to hear the truth about Allan.”
Edward stepped towards Harry. “I don’t know who you think you are, or what you think you know, but this is wholly inappropriate.”
Harry laughed. “Inappropriate? Exposing a lie is inappropriate?”
“Enough!” Edward said. Allan noticed that Mary had now joined her sisters. All three of them were totally shocked by what was happening. “Harry, if you have something to say, say it with civility. I forbid you, as your Duke, from acting like this.”
Harry’s eyes got wide, and then Allan watched as a big, snarling smile spread across his face. “You forbid me?” Harry laughed. “That’s quite funny.”
“Harry, I am giving you a chance to say what you want to say, but this is my home, this is my land, and if you continue to act like this, you can leave.”
Allan really couldn’t believe what he was seeing or hearing. It seemed as if time had slowed. He again turned to look at Harry, who seemed to be thinking about his next move. He then laughed maniacally.
“Ahhh,” Harry said. “This is exactly what you two wanted, isn’t it?” He pointed at Allan and Edward. “To make me leave…you have always wanted it, haven’t you?”
“I don’t know what you are talking about, Harry,” Edward said. “But you are acting like a fool right now, and if you don’t stop, you must leave.”
“Oh, I will leave,” Harry said. “But first, I have a bit of an announcement for Esther.” Allan watched as Harry turned towards her. “Allan, your beloved, has been lying to you.”
Allan quickly looked at Esther and saw her face fall. He couldn’t think of anything that he had been lying about, nor had he ever lied to her.
“Harry!” Edward shouted. “If you are going to make these accusations, we must do it the right way. Let us all have a seat, we will get a drink, and you can have the floor.”
Allan was shocked. Was Edward against him, too? Allan turned towards his older cousin, and Edward winked at him. Thank goodness. Edward has a plan.
Allan took a deep breath and sat in a chair. Beside him, Ruth and Esther sat on the sofa, and across from them, Mary and Edward had taken their seats. Harry was standing in the middle of the them all.
“Now, Harry,” Edward said, “As I said, you can speak. We will all listen. However, if these accusations prove to be false, you must consent to leaving the home, immediately. I can’t have someone here who is throwing out falsities. Do you agree to this?”
Harry chuckled. “Of course,” he said. “It’s all true.”
“Then speak.” Edward said loudly.
Harry took the final sip of Scotch from his glass, and then turned to Esther. “Now, the first accusation I have about your dear Allan is what I have already said. He was courting Miss Bridget Crampton at the same time that he was courting you.”
Allan could see Esther’s expression change once again. She looked as if she were trying to figure all of this out, and he had to admit to himself that he had no idea what Harry was talking about. He certainly did not court Bridget at all unless taking a walk, with a chaperone, was considered full-blown courting.
“My second accusation?” Harry looked at Allan and smiled an evil grin, “It is that Allan has a daughter.”
Allan breathed a sigh of relief. Obviously, Harry had simply heard the rumor that Allan was the father of Bridget’s child.
Edward stood and addressed Harry. “Are those the only accusations?”
Harry nodded. “Yes,” he said. “Though we all also know that Allan is just a weak man who cries himself to sleep every night. I don’t think that’s an accusation that I have to make public.”
“Very well,” Edward said. “Please, sit down. Now that you have accused Allan of
this, it is only right that he can respond, correct?”
Harry nodded and smirked, and then sat down in a chair next to Mary.
Edward turned to Allan. “Now, Allan, you have heard Harry’s accusations against you. First, he claims that you were courting a Miss Bridget Crampton whilst concurrently courting Esther. Is this correct?”
“No,” Allan said firmly.
“Liar!” Harry said loudly as he held his glass out for a refill of Scotch.
“Harry!” Edward said. “Let him speak.”
“That is not true,” Allan said. “I have only ever courted Esther. No one else, ever.”
Lusting For The Broken Earl (Steamy Historical Regency) Page 26