by Amanda Davis
“Shall we?” her brother asked. She looked to him as he extended his arm for her to take but suddenly, Emmeline had no desire to see her father at all.
“No,” she replied, turning away before Charlton could see her. “Tell Father you could not find me.”
“Emmy!”
“I will seek him out later,” she promised, rushing toward the staircase, almost falling over the hem of her skirts, but before she could vanish onto the second floor, Charlton Balfour’s voice rang out.
“No,” he boomed. “You will see me now.”
Begrudgingly, Emmeline turned back and looked at him, grinding her teeth together.
“You cannot disrupt this hotel at your convenience, Emmeline,” Charlton told her in a low tone. “Enter at once.”
For a brief, defiant moment, she considered fleeing, but to what end? Eventually, she would have to face her father and deal with the facts of her engagement.
You are using Elias Compton as a distraction, she told herself, shuffling back down the stairs to meet her family. Put him out of your mind before you do something foolish.
Chapter Four
She is to be engaged.
The information left Elias stunned well after Emmeline had disappeared with her brother to the lower levels of the hotel. He knew he should not care, that the proprietor’s daughter had no bearing on his life. Or so he would continue to tell himself.
Your business here is to find your own wife, he reminded himself. You need not concern yourself with the affairs of another’s betrothal.
Elias wondered then, why he could not shake the growing jealousy inside him.
“Have you not matters to attend to, Elias?”
Antoinette’s sharp tone brought him back to the present and he lowered his eyes shamefully.
“Yes, madam,” he replied, pushing the tea cart forward. “I merely had something in my eye.”
“If your disposition is so weak that you cannot forge through a simple dust mote, you may have to rethink your employment here,” the head housekeeper snapped. “Do not let me catch you being idle again.”
“Yes, Mrs. Baxter.”
He hurried past her, carefully avoiding her withering stare as he did.
You have caused too much of a stir on your first day. You must do better, be stealthier.
Elias considered what he had told Joshua earlier about his true reasons for being at the hotel and he wondered if he had made a mistake. It was too late for regret but Elias was aware of his blunder.
I do hope that Joshua can be trusted.
He paused to knock at the door of room 303.
“Who is there?” a gruff voice called out and Elias cleared his throat.
“Lunch, Mr. Greene, as per your request.”
Abruptly, the door flew inward and Elias was faced with a remarkably plain-looking man, dumpy in stature with a pock-marked face.
“How long does it take one to fetch a stew?” he snarled, spinning away from the door to saunter inside, his short legs thumping across the floor toward the sitting room.
“Forgive the delay, Mr. Greene,” Elias replied, examining the man through his peripheral vision. He was not what Elias had expected.
Could this be the same Mr. Greene who is to marry Emmeline? If so, I can certainly understand her reluctance. The man is sour-faced and beau-nasty in appearance. Even with his fine clothing, he is unkempt.
“Will you take all day?” Mr. Greene demanded. “I would like to eat before I perish of hunger.”
Elias could see there was little fear of any such occurrence, what with Mr. Greene’s portly belly nearly bursting from his black waistcoat.
“Yes, sir.”
Elias set the tray evenly in the middle of the heavy carpeted room and removed the silver lids from the plates before moving aside to wait for the older man’s approval.
“That will do,” Walter Greene barked. “Off with you now.”
Elias bowed his head and backed out of the room without another word but not without casting the man another covert look.
The idea that the dainty and delicate Emmeline Balfour could wed such a brute was inconceivable. Despite Walter Greene’s expensive dress, there was an edge of cant in his speech as though he had not been reared in wealth.
Who is this man and why would Charlton Balfour accept him as family when his daughter could easily be wed to royalty with her standing and grace?
He made his way back down through the hotel to return to his post before the bells.
Joshua was no longer there but he did encounter Honor Wesley.
“Have you found your way?” the maître d’ asked.
“I have, Mr. Wesley, thank you.”
“Tell me, Elias, are you related to Christiana Compton?”
His face paled at the question and he gaped at his superior, uncertain if he should lie.
“Did Joshua speak with you?” Elias asked, realizing that was what must have transpired. To his chagrin, Honor’s eyes darkened.
“Joshua knows of this?” he demanded and Elias stifled a wince of regret.
“You must not fault him, Mr. Wesley. I have not come here with mal intent,” Elias told him quietly, his teal eyes darting about nervously. “I only wish to know what happened to my wife.”
“Your wife?” Honor echoed, his eyes growing wide with alarm. “She was married?”
A prickle of apprehension slid through Elias.
“She is wed to me, yes,” he replied slowly. “Has she not mentioned it?”
“I do not associate with the chambermaids, Elias. All I know for certain is that she is no longer here. If your only reason for coming is to find your wife, I suggest you pack your belongings and leave at once.”
“I will not leave until I know what became of Christiana,” Elias told him firmly. “I will do my job but I cannot simply go without answers, Mr. Wesley.”
Honor’s eyes narrowed.
“And what do you suppose Mr. Balfour will say when he discovers that there is a spy on staff?”
“A spy?” Elias repeated. “What bearing does my presence have on such an important man?”
“You cannot stay,” Honor told him flatly. “I will not have you disrupt the hotel with your theories.”
Confusion swept through Elias.
“What theories?” he demanded. “All I know is that I have not heard from Christiana in months and she would not simply disappear.”
“Perhaps you do not know her as well as you think.”
Elias was growing weary at being told the same thing but he held the protest on his tongue.
“Mr. Wesley, please. Do give me a week to learn where she might have gone and I assure you, I will cause no disruption to the hotel. You cannot afford to lose a waiter so close to the yule season and it will take you as long to find a replacement for me. Please.”
“No.”
The flatness in his tone was unnerving.
“Do not make me escort your from the property, Mr. Compton. Gather you belongings and leave at once.”
Honor did not grant him the opportunity to respond and spun away but Elias did not move from his place.
There was nothing he could do but leave as instructed and he was no closer to solving the mystery of his missing wife than he had been upon his arrival.
Oh Christiana, what have you done now? He thought mournfully. Why must I spend my life protecting you?
It was not the first time he had been enacted to care for his wife and Elias had long since accepted that it was the life to which he had committed but it did not grow any less tiresome with the years.
He had been vehemently opposed to Christiana leaving Peterborough to work at the Balfour Hotel but like all else in her life, she did whatever she pleased, packing her belongings in the night and leaving when Elias had been asleep.
Of course she had written him to let her husband know she was safe and employed, promising to send money which of course never came. It was not as though Elias wanted a sing
le pence from her, but he did long for Christiana to return home where he could watch her, lest she find herself in peril—once more.
It was inevitable that he was forced to come look for her. In his heart, Elias knew that she would invariably find some way to endanger herself and there he was, chasing ghosts.
Sighing, Elias knew he had no choice but to leave the hotel.
Unless I find somewhere to hide…
He loathed that it had come to this, that his existence had been centered around the frivolous whims of Christiana but Elias also realized that until he saw her with his own eyes, he could not simply return to Peterborough.
“Elias, the bell to the office has been tolling for almost a minute,” Joshua grunted. “What in God’s name are you doing?”
He moved his eyes toward the younger man and frowned.
“I have been relieved of my position,” he informed Joshua. “I fear you will need to tend to whatever it is Mr. Balfour requires.”
“Relieved?” Joshua echoed, his complexion waning. “By Miss Balfour?”
“Why would Miss Balfour…oh…” Disappointment filled Elias’ gut and he nodded slowly. “You told her who I was.”
“Forgive me, Elias! My loyalty has always been to this hotel and the Balfours. You seem to be a decent fellow but if something were to happen—”
Elias held up his hand and shook his head.
“You need not explain,” he told the boy. “I should not have put you in such a position. I am the only one to blame, thinking my ploy could succeed. I am merely at my wit’s end, Josh.”
Joshua made a commiserating noise and looked nervously toward the bell which continued to chime.
“When must you leave?” he asked.
“Immediately. Do not allow me to keep you. You need not be terminated also,” Elias urged him. “Thank you for being kind to me.”
Elias turned away but Joshua called out to him.
“Wait!”
“What is it?”
“You may stay in my chambers until my shift is done. I will help you find Christiana.”
Elias’ jaw slackened slightly and he began to shake his head.
“I cannot ask that of you, Josh. You are already conflicted about this.”
“I made a mistake revealing your secret to Miss Balfour. I can see that you are a good man, merely looking for your wife.”
Oh…did he tell Emmeline Balfour that I was married?
The notion filled him with bile, even if it was the truth.
You have truly made a mess of your affairs when you agreed to this life with Christiana.
“I have put you in a terrible circumstance, choosing between a stranger and your home,” Elias told him. “If you are caught—”
“I will not be,” Joshua assured him quickly. “I have my own quarters and I know the schedule of the staff well. Wait there for me and we will discuss this more later. But please, go now before we are both discovered. I will not be of any use to you if I, too, am thrown out of the hotel.”
Joshua smiled disarmingly to take the seriousness from his words and scampered toward the office.
He is truly your only ally here and I do not believe he meant any harm by telling Miss Balfour your affairs.
Elias hurried toward the staff quarters, keeping his head low as he moved.
I wonder why Miss Balfour did not speak to me about my presence, he thought but he remembered the conversation he had overheard between her and her brother.
It was clear to see that Emmeline had more pressing matters on her mind and rightfully so.
Will she truly marry that beast of a man, Walter Greene?
Elias prayed to God that the answer was no even though he fully knew there was no future of his own with the beautiful blonde heiress.
That does not mean that she does not deserve happiness, Elias told himself firmly. He wondered if there was a way he could ensure that Emmeline received it.
Chapter Five
“Where is this blasted waiter?” Xavier mumbled, pacing about the office. Emmeline wished he would sit. His moving about only fueled her apprehension beneath her father’s scathing stare.
“Sit down, Xavier,” Charlton snapped. “Your scotch will keep.”
Reluctantly, Xavier joined his father and sister at the desk and sank into the seat but not before ringing the service bell one last time.
“The staff in this hotel is growing lazy,” Xavier grumbled and Emmeline could not help but wonder if one of the new waiters was coming.
Perhaps Elias Compton.
Shamed that she was thinking about the handsome serving boy when her future hung in the balance, Emmeline dropped her head.
“What cause did you have for upsetting your mother this morning, Emmy?” Charlton demanded. “If you have a matter, you know better than to alarm your mother.”
“You were otherwise engaged,” Emmeline replied evenly. “I did come to you first.”
“Then you wait until I will see you. What did you hope to accomplish by complaining to your mother about your betrothal?”
“What betrothal?” Emmeline barked back. “I knew nothing of this! Forgive my shock to learn I would be blindsided at the ball tomorrow but how would you expect me to react, Father?”
“With the decorum of a Balfour as your breeding dictates!” Charlton snarled back. “Certainly not by upsetting your mother in her fragile condition.”
Emmeline chewed on her tongue to keep from asking when being a drunk was considered fragility.
“What is the issue, daughter? I have promised you to a man of good standing, one who will provide for you and this hotel as I see fit.”
“Walter Greene, Father? The man is hardly…”
Charlton’s eyes narrowed.
“Hardly what, Emmeline? He has been beneficial in ways that I do not need explain to you. You will do as you are told and I will not hear another word on the matter.”
Emmeline tried to hold the anger from her face but she knew it shone through with clarity.
Mother was right after all.
“I suppose the matter is settled then,” she replied stiffly, rising from her chair. “I imagine you have work to attend to.”
There was a gentle knock at the door and Joshua appeared.
“You rang, sir?”
“I rang, Josh but I believe our interview has concluded,” Xavier said quickly as Emmeline glided out of the office, blinking the indignation from her eyes.
Walter Greene. He may be wealthy but his reputation as a rogue and a scoundrel precedes him. I know nothing of the man on a personal level but the idea of marrying such a hideous, amoral man…
She shuddered but before she made her way to the stairwell, Joshua reached her side.
“Miss Balfour,” he murmured. “May I speak with you privately?”
Emmeline stifled a sigh and peered at him. She was in no mood to speak to anyone, but the pleading in his face made her pause.
“Of course,” she agreed, forcing a smile. “What is it?”
He nodded toward the corner of the lobby and they moved into a discrete area.
“Elias Compton has been let go of his position,” Joshua told her quietly. “Did you order this?”
Shame flooded his face and he looked away as if the words said aloud humiliated him.
“Of course,” he rushed on. “It is within your right and I dare not question your authority.”
Emmeline felt a pang of surprise.
“Certainly not!” she replied. “I had nothing to do with his termination. Where is he now?”
“He has been ordered from the hotel,” Joshua explained and a panic fluttered through her.
“By whom? Why?” she cried. The idea that she might not see him again troubled her a great deal more than she could comprehend.
I do not know him and yet…
“I…Miss, I asked him to wait in my chambers until we could speak privately. I only wished to ensure that you did not have him expelled from the
hotel on my account.”
“Your chambers?” she repeated. “I will speak to him myself. Now.”
She gathered her skirts to turn and retreat, but spun back around, pausing as she stared at her father’s office.
Father fired Christiana Compton. I will speak to him first.
“Please, Miss Balfour,” Joshua called out in a loud whisper. “I know I have broken the rules but he seems genuinely concerned for his wife’s welfare.”
A wave of ice slid over Emmeline and she pivoted to look into Joshua’s face.
“His wife?” she echoed. “Christiana is his wife?”
A perplexed look crossed over Joshua’s face and he nodded slowly.
“Did I not mention that previously?”
“You did not.”
“Oh…well, yes…does that much matter?”
Emmeline regained her composure and shook her regal head quickly.
“Of course not,” she replied crisply. “I will tend to this matter at once, Josh. You need not mention this to another soul.”
“I will not,” Joshua agreed, breathing audibly in relief. “Thank you, Miss Balfour.”
Swallowing the lump growing in her windpipe, Emmeline walked slowly toward her father’s office where Xavier still remained with Charlton.
“…Greene, Father? Truly? She is worthy of no less than a duke,” Emmeline heard her brother growl. “You know as well as I do that Walter Greene has an unsavory reputation.”
“His reputation is the least of my concerns,” Charlton barked. “I will not have you question my decisions in this hotel. When I die, you may run the Balfour Hotel any way you deem fit. Until then—”
“By then it will be too late to save my sister from marriage to a despicable scoundrel!”
Emmeline waited, her heart hammering. She ignored Matthew who stared at her with disapproval as she listened.
“When you are manager of this hotel, Xavier, you will realize that there are many choices to be made, most of which are unpleasant. You and your sister have been fortunate enough to escape the dirt and grime involved with running such an operation but I cannot shield you forever.”
“What does that mean, Father?” Xavier snapped. “What has Walter Greene done for you that you owe him your best asset in appreciation?”