Emme nodded and opened her new parasol, then stepped onto the grass beside him. “Does this mean you’ve given up your quest to take to wife a bonny English lass with golden locks?”
He glanced at her. “It does, though that’s no reflection on your efforts in the matter. I’ve decided that perhaps the timing is wrong, after all. Or perhaps it’s just England. You know, I once considered throwing myself into the Bay of Biscay just to avoid returning. Perhaps I made a mistake in deciding against it.”
“I had quite the same thought as my aunt and I waited for the wayward captain to escort us onto the SS Lizette. I’m sorry to hear of your aversion to English life, though. It must be difficult.”
They’d stopped by a table laden with wine and glasses. Emme shook her head at the servant who offered her some.
Daniel took a deep breath and stared out at the rose garden. “Difficult enough to lead me to a difficult decision.” He turned to face her. “I’m leaving, Emme. I’ve retrieved my late father’s title, worked morning to night getting the affairs of the estate in order, appointed executors to oversee that the improvements in my factories continue in my absence. I’m putting off the pursuit of a wife and leaving England.”
“I see,” she said again. She twirled her parasol and glanced sideways at him. “Off to take up with more harem girls, I suppose.”
He grinned. The sight of it delighted her.
“At this point, I’m quite ruined for both blondes and harem girls. And for England. Unless...”
Her heart tripped. She hoped that meant what she hoped. “Unless?”
He shrugged but didn’t answer her.
“As Lord Fairbank said, congratulations to the Marquess of Edensbridge are in order,” she said. “And a thank you, as well. Don’t try to deny it. I know very well who established the trust so I can continue my work. Truly, Daniel, that’s the most wonderful, thoughtful thing you ever could have done for me.”
“It lightens my heart to hear it. I didn’t do it for the recognition, or in lieu of an apology, which is something I owe you. I should have told you I’d bought the storefront building and why.” He stared down at their feet, seeming to take in the distance between them.
Emme could have told him the measure was too great.
“And I’m sorry for that moment of panic when you told me the rest of your secret,” he continued. “It was ridiculous of me. It’s just that I’d spent so many years with my mother’s voice in my head, with—”
She touched his hand. “There’s no need to explain. All I ask is that you tell me why you gave me the money to run my cooperative, if not for the recognition or by way of an apology.”
He raised his eyebrows. “To see you happy, of course. And to give you what you’ve wanted most—your freedom. Your chance to live your life as you see fit, as a spinster.”
She smiled and twirled her parasol again. “That’s just as I thought. It’s so kind of you. Thank you.” She forced a grave look onto her face. “I must tell you, though, I’ve changed my mind about that. I’m not going to remain a spinster, after all.”
He took a step back. “You’re going to marry the vicar’s son? Oh, Emme—”
She shook her head. “Never. He’s a bit too…hmm…pious for my tastes. I prefer someone who’s more of a—what was the word the duke used?—a reprobate. That was it. And not just any reprobate. I think I shall look for one with a title.”
Daniel stood frozen. Just the reaction she’d hoped to see.
He finally found his voice. “A reprobate. With a title. I see. And what would one do to make himself a reprobate suitable to your cause?”
Emme rolled forward on her toes. “Oh, something disreputable, no doubt. It could be any number of things. I’m sure the reprobate—whomever he might be—will think of something.” She hesitated. This was the one part of her plan that worried her. “There is always the possibility that in marrying me, the reprobate could sully the reputation he just restored.”
“That would be a shame, if that were important to said reprobate,” he said. “But if he has half a brain in his head, I trust he’ll make the right choice.”
The tight knot in her belly untied. She glanced past his shoulder at the small gathering of her family and friends chatting under the oak trees hung with faerie lights. It was a place where magic could happen.
“If you’ll, excuse me, Lord Edensbridge, I’m being summoned by the duchess. I’m sure she wants to admire my dress.”
“Yes, of course.” He hardly seemed to be listening. “It is such a lovely, lovely dress. Brings out your eyes.”
Emme dropped the slightest curtsey. “Thank you. And do be sure not to leave without saying goodbye one last time.”
She twirled her new parasol again as she stepped past him, and wondered if she’d be able to count much past ten before he followed.
* * *
Daniel took a steadying breath and silently counted to ten to stop himself from running after Emme. Had she really just told him she was prepared to marry him? Weeks after thinking his cause lost and just a day after handing her the key to her freedom, he could hardly believe it to be true.
But she wanted to marry him now, that was clear.
His spirits rallied instantly. Suddenly the endless and unendurably cloudy sky took on the glow of shining silver. He had a taste on his lips for all things English, none more than the kiss of his auburn-haired English lady. His lady, and as soon as he could manage it, his marchioness.
Throwing back his shoulders, he strode across the lawn. Though silent, his progress drew the attention of each cluster of the duchess’s guests as he passed them. Let them stare. Let them all bear witness to him becoming the reprobate, the cad, the disreputable Marquess of Edensbridge the lady desired.
As he moved across the lawn, Swimmer and Fairbank started toward the duchess and her court, picking up their pace as they watched him. Fairbank looked horrified—could the man now read minds, too?—but Swimmer gave a nod of approval. Granville grinned. Even Meriden looked resigned.
Emme had her back to Daniel as she stood speaking to the duchess. He touched her shoulder and she whirled around to face him. They stood just inches apart while he paid his respects to the ladies. Even a reprobate had need of manners, after all.
“Your Grace, as always, it’s an honor.” He inclined his head to the gray-haired mavens and Emme’s aunt. “Ladies, I bid you good afternoon.” He then bowed to Emme’s mother. “Countess, I beg your forgiveness.”
He turned back to Emme, laid a hand on each side of her face, and kissed her as though he might never have the chance to kiss her again. Hell, if he didn’t get this right, he might not. He poured his heart and hopes and pent-up longing from the weeks spent away from her into that kiss. As her lips pressed back into his, her parasol clattered to the ground and she slid her hands up his arms and grasped his shoulders.
He forgot the existence of everyone else on the planet for some amount of time, but when he ended the kiss and stepped back from Emme, the gasps from the ladies reminded him of their audience.
“Not to worry, ladies,” he said without breaking Emme’s gaze, “I’m going to marry this stubborn woman the minute I can lay my hands on a special license.”
That drew a gasp from Fairbank and Meriden. But it drew a raucous cheer from his other old friends who were there to witness the decline of his barely-restored reputation.
“That is, if she’ll have me this time.” He dropped to one knee, realizing that for all the audacity of this proposal, it was by far the most respectable one he’d made so far. “Lady Emmeline Radcliffe, for the third time, will you please do me the great honor of being my love, my challenge, my wife.”
She grinned at him. “Well, of course!”
He jumped to his feet and kissed her again. This time, their more modest exhibition drew applause from the crowd that had gathered around them.
“I thought you’d never ask,” Emme whispered to him. “I’d counted to fif
teen by the time you followed me.”
“Then you counted too fast. And didn’t I make it up to you by suggesting the special license?” He picked up her parasol and handed it to her.
She chastely laid her hand in the crook of his elbow, but even that caused a spark to travel up his spine. “Yes, that was a nice touch. The ton will be still be gossiping about it a week from now.”
“Given the kiss that preceded it, I fully expect we’ll still be the talk of the town when we return from our honeymoon.” He sighed, but couldn’t make it sound as though he were the least bit disappointed.
As they walked toward the veranda, she leaned close to him. “Once we’re wed, it will be much more difficult to find ways sully our reputations.”
The now reprobate marquess grinned as the fickle English sun shone through the silver clouds. He was thankful he’d abandoned his plan to plunge into the Bay of Biscay and had returned home after all.
“I’m sure we’ll think of something, kitten. We always do.”
20 May, in the Year of Our Lord 1870
To Daniel Hallsworth, the Marquess of Edensbridge:
At our meeting on 10 May 1870, at which time the Committee granted your petition to reinstate the Marquessate of Edensbridge, with all the rights and privileges accorded thereof, the honorable members of the Committee shared their displeasure at your purchase of a mercantile shop for women of questionable character. They impressed upon you the importance of taking more care with your reputation.
Since that time, it has come to the attention of the Committee that you have engaged in more activities unbecoming a peer, including: Engaging in lewd behavior with the daughter of the Earl of Limely in front of dozens of peers and several impressionable young ladies; procuring a special license to marry Lady Emmeline Radcliffe without a suitable courting period; and allowing union organizers to speak to the longshoremen employed by Grayhall Shipping at the Royal Victoria Dock. This is hardly the behavior the Committee for Privileges anticipated when they agreed to restore to you the title of Marquess of Edensbridge.
It is the sincere hope of the Committee that you will remember the responsibility that comes with being a peer of the realm and you will modify your future behavior accordingly.
Respectfully yours,
The Hon. Mr. Charles Alby
Clerk of the Committee for Privileges
House of Lords
London, England
P.S. Speaking for myself and expressly not for the Committee for Privileges, allow me to say it has been a pleasure watching your auspicious return from distant shores and your contributions to improving the lot of your countrymen. I congratulate you on your recent marriage and wish you and the new Marchioness of Edensbridge every happiness.
Yours,
Charles Alby
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Nancy
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Acknowledgments
Thank you for spending time with Daniel and Emme, the reunited lovers in One Kiss from Ruin. A writer only begins a story. A reader completes it by bringing her unique perspective to it, so thank you for helping me complete this book.
Special thanks to my many writing tribes, including my real-life besties, the Eight Ladies Writing, and my Author Accelerator family. You each teach me new things about story, the writing life, and life beyond writing (yes, there is such a thing!) every day. I am forever in your debt. And once again, thank you to my editors, Mary Theresa Hussey and Justine Covington.
And as always, all my love and gratitude to my wonderful family. You make it all worthwhile.
About the Author
Nancy spent her early years longing to be an English countryside vet thanks to James Herriot’s All Creatures Great and Small series, and dreaming of being an adventurist archaeologist like George Lucas’s Indiana Jones character. After studying veterinary pre-med and earning an anthropology degree, she realized her true passion is story in all its forms.
When Nancy's not writing, reading, or binge-watching story, she's often pursuing a physical challenge like studying Krav Maga or aspiring to achieve the perfect crow pose. She also spends her time drinking too much coffee, not enough red wine, and just the right amount of Bourbon. She lives in Maryland with her fabulous family, which includes some very spoiled rescue cats.
To learn more about Nancy, the Harrow’s Finest Five series, and other upcoming books, stop by her website at nancyyeagerbooks.com.
Copyright © 2019 by Nancy Yeager
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. Any references to actual places, institutions, events, or people are used fictitiously. All other elements of this story are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to real places, institutions, events, or people, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Published by Nyb Publishing, Inc., Boston, MA
e-ISBN: 978-1-946574-02-2
One Kiss From Ruin: Harrow’s Finest Five Book 1 Page 23