When Two Rivers Meet (Regency Romance)

by Deborah M. Hathaway

  He unfolded the paper, handing it to Lilyanna. It crinkled noisily as she retrieved it from Elijah's hand, and she stared with confusion at the likeness she had drawn of herself. "How did you come upon this?"

  She looked up from the drawing, smiling instantly when she saw how sheepish the handsome man looked, his forehead slightly reddening.

  "As I followed you out of your parlor one morning," Elijah explained, "this drawing fell out of your sketchbook. I retrieved it from the floor and was about to return it to you when I saw how the paper held the perfect likeness of your beautiful face."

  Lilyanna blushed and looked down at the paper, thinking of how she had not been pleased with the drawing when she had first drawn it. However, looking at it then, she saw it in a new light.

  "I am sorry for keeping it," he said. "I know I should not have, especially in secrecy."

  Lilyanna shook her head. "Well, you need not feel guilty any longer. I find your actions quite flattering."

  She smiled, refolding the paper and handing it back to him. "You may keep it, should you like to."

  "Very much so," Elijah said, retrieving the paper and tucking it back in his waistcoat.

  He took a step closer to Lilyanna, taking her right hand to hold in both of his hands. "The past weeks, whenever finding myself alone, I would take the drawing out and study your face for hours. It helped me feel closer to you when I became frustrated with our situation. And I always imagined you thinking of me in those moments, too."

  He brought her hand up to his lips and pressed a lingering kiss to the back of it.

  "The past few weeks, as I said before, have been terrible, for I cannot be happy without you by my side."

  Lilyanna's heart soared, though she forced herself to remain silent to let Elijah finish his words.

  "Over the past months, I have discovered my sorrow in being away from you and my joy in being with you. And the weeks without you, I have discovered what I long for most."

  He paused and looked deep into her eyes. "There is nothing more I desire in this world than to have you think of me, my dear Lilyanna, as often as I think of you. *There is nothing more I desire," he paused, placing a gentle hand against her cheek and saying in a whisper, "than winning your love and affection."

  Lilyanna felt tears fill her eyes at his tender words, at the love she felt billowing in her heart for the man standing before her.

  "I never thought I would fall in love, especially after the incidents of my past," Elijah continued. "However, I must say, I am filled with joy to realize there is not a soul I love on earth more than you, Lilyanna. I only hope and pray I have earned your love in return."

  Lilyanna smiled, reaching up to press her fingertips lightly against Elijah's firm jaw. She could feel the day's growth of facial hair beneath her gloveless hands as she stroked his rough skin.

  "You have, indeed, earned all my love in return, Elijah," she responded in a whisper. "I love you a great deal."

  The relief on Elijah's face caused Lilyanna to giggle with joy.

  "In that case, my beautiful, darling Lilyanna," Elijah said, "you would certainly make me the happiest man in the world if you chose to be with me forever, faults and all. Will you marry me?"

  Lilyanna nodded, her tears flowing freely down her cheeks. "Yes," she said. "Yes!"

  They wrapped their arms around each other in a tender embrace, sharing a kiss Lilyanna had never before experienced, one filled with joy and complete, pure love.

  Elijah felt weightless as he held Lilyanna in his arms, her soft lips pressed against his own, the love she had for him evident in the way she kissed him.

  He could not believe the relief, the happiness he felt knowing Lilyanna shared his love, knowing they would marry. His heart beat even more fiercely within his chest at the prospect of spending the rest of his life with such a kind and caring woman, a woman he knew he could no longer live without.

  He opened his eyes for a brief moment to stare at the beauty before him as they kissed. He could see her dark lashes resting on her cheeks, her blond hair accentuated by the glowing, orange sun behind her, and his heart skipped a beat when she sighed blissfully.

  As the moments passed by, their arms still wrapped around each other, Elijah knew they would be happy together, no matter what challenges inevitably stood in their way.

  When their kiss slowly ended, he pulled her closer to him, kissing her cheek and whispering in her ear, "I love you."

  "I love you, too," she whispered in return, and Elijah knew she meant it as her arms tightened around him.

  Lilyanna held onto Elijah until she felt his grip loosen, and they pulled back to look into each other's eyes. She tried to hide the impending doom she felt, but as Elijah's smile faded, she knew he noticed her sudden change.

  "What is it?" he asked gently.

  "Nothing," she lied.

  "Please, tell me, Lilyanna."

  She only shook her head. "I do not wish to ruin this joyful moment."

  "Because you are thinking of your mother."

  Lilyanna looked to the sun as it quickly disappeared, and she nodded, returning her gaze to her betrothed.

  Elijah smiled encouragingly, taking her hand in his. "Come," he said, putting on his top hat and leading the horse behind them, "I shall walk you back to Heatherhill while I confess something to you."

  "What is it?" she asked as she looked quizzically up at him, his profile silhouetted by the sun.

  "You see," he began, looking straight ahead, "I have already written your father for permission to marry you."

  Lilyanna smiled, her heart skipping a beat. "And has he replied?"

  "No," Elijah said. "I have only posted it today. I attended the wedding ceremony this morning of one of our footmen, and the entirety of my time there, I could only think of you and how I longed to be with you forever. I returned home as soon as I could manage, scribbled a quick letter to your father, and went straight out again to post it.

  "As the day wore on, my desire to see you, to ask if you returned my affections, overcame me, so I borrowed Mr. Godfrey's horse, as mine was excessively tired from our travels, and made straight for your house with the clear intention of standing up to your mother and demanding to see you. Fortunately, to avoid what could have been quite the improper scuffle, I discovered you on the roadside."

  Lilyanna smiled at the idea of Elijah standing up to her mother for her, but she nodded, knowing it was better for Mrs. Crosgrove and Elijah to stay parted for the time being.

  "At any rate," Elijah continued, "I suspect your father shall receive the letter soon, and with any luck, he shall respond efficiently."

  "And…" Lilyanna began after a short pause, "what if Mother has already spoken to him about you? What if she has already convinced him into denying your request?"

  "Then we shall do what we must," he said, "which is wait until you are of age and can, according to the law, speak on your own behalf."

  "But, Elijah," Lilyanna said, looking to the soft grass beneath her feet, "that is another two years away. I can hardly be parted from you for a week. How would we ever manage living in such a way for two years?"

  Elijah stopped walking and gave Lilyanna's hand a gentle squeeze.

  "We shall simply have to try, darling," he said. "As for myself, I will do whatever is required to be with you for the rest of my life, even if it means two more years of complete torment being away from you."

  Lilyanna tried to swallow the lump forming in her throat as they continued on foot, Heatherhill looming ever closer.

  When they reached the borders of the trees surrounding Heatherhill, they paused, sharing a sweet kiss until Elijah leaned back and raised her chin with a crooked finger.

  "Do cheer up, darling," he said, "for soon, we shall never have to part again."

  She looked deep into his brown eyes. "Do you promise me?" she asked, for fear threatened to overpower her will to go on.

  Elijah stared intently at her. "I do."

 
; They shared another embrace until Lilyanna turned around with a heavy heart, scuttling to Heatherhill's front doors by the time what little light was left had vanished altogether.

  Elijah watched as Lilyanna's dark figure disappeared within Heatherhill, feeling an empty pit in his stomach when the doors eventually closed.

  He mounted the horse and slowly made his way back to the main road, praying Captain Crosgrove would consider Lilyanna's feelings before rushing in and accepting Mrs. Crosgrove's word as truth.

  The darkness outside enveloped him, and he looked up to the glowing stars above, thanking the heavens for having won the love of such an incredible woman. He smiled, thinking of how happy he and Lilyanna had been in those moments, how happy they would be together and married, and his smile only continued to grow as he imagined finally being able to tell his mother there had, indeed, been some progression with his and Lilyanna's relationship, and some progression it had turned out to be.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Days slowly turned to weeks, and both Lilyanna and Elijah struggled with being apart. They exchanged letters whenever possible, both hoping the other would share something to improve their situation, but their unfortunate circumstances never lessened. Captain Crosgrove had not responded to Elijah's request, and Mrs. Crosgrove had not lessened in her disapproval of the Bainbridges.

  Lilyanna had decided to stay cooped up inside for as long as possible, for the thought of happening upon her betrothed in public and being unable to acknowledge him made her heart ache.

  When June finally arrived, nearly a fortnight since they had last met, Lilyanna and Elijah arrived at their meeting place near the two rivers, embracing and informing the other of any possible news occurring since their last correspondence.

  "And my father," Lilyanna began, her tone optimistic, "have you received any reply from him?"

  "No," Elijah said, shaking his head as his eyes clouded over, "nor do I think I will."

  "I fear my mother may have something to do with his lack of response," Lilyanna said.

  "It would not surprise me," he responded gloomily.

  They remained silent as Lilyanna stared into Elijah's cheerless eyes, and she was taken aback to see what the past weeks had done to him. Dark circles underlined his eyes, no doubt caused from many a sleepless night, and a prickly growth of facial hair framed his jaw.

  "Elijah," she started, her heart going out to the gentleman, "I do not want to wait two years."

  He reached up to stroke her cheek gently. "Nor do I, my darling."

  "What if…" Lilyanna hesitated, "what if Father eventually responds but only to disapprove of our union? We will have no other choice but to wait then."

  She watched Elijah pull a leaf off a nearby limb and fiddle with it.

  "What are you thinking?" she asked.

  He simply shook his head.

  "Please, Elijah, if there is something you have thought of to better our situation, do not keep me in suspense."

  Elijah dropped the leaf and looked back to Lilyanna. "I only thought," he began carefully, "if your parents say no, and we do not want to wait the two years, we have another option…"

  Lilyanna's heart beat unpleasantly in her chest as Elijah finished his thought.

  "Gretna Green."

  Her mouth felt dry when he spoke the words, and she swallowed hard.

  Gretna Green? she thought. How can I possibly run away to Gretna Green?

  Elijah regretted his words the instant they left his mouth. He had been thinking about eloping for weeks, spurred on by his own inability to be parted from Lilyanna, but how could he have been so foolish as to voice such reckless, ungentlemanly thoughts to the woman he loved?

  She, no doubt, had been planning since her childhood the sort of wedding she wanted and deserved, a wedding in a church filled with her family and friends, not a blacksmith shop with no recognizable face but her husband-to-be.

  "Forgive me," Elijah said hurriedly, shaking his head. "I should never have mentioned it. I could never ask you to do such a thing."

  He saw her forced smile and rushed on, desperate to have her forget his suggestion.

  "Please, my darling, put it from your mind. I was simply letting my impatience speak for me. You must know I will wait as long as needs be. You will turn twenty-one in two years, and though the time may seem far from now, it will seem like nothing compared to the rest of our lives we shall have to spend together."

  Lilyanna nodded, keeping the forced smile plastered on her face, though her thoughts only muddled her mind even more.

  She longed for the carefree, joyful moments she had spent with Elijah before everything had become complicated. She knew he had tried desperately to take back his words, but she did not blame him for voicing his impatience, for she had felt the same way.

  Hearing his suggestion voiced aloud, however, scared her to the core. The thought of running away from her family, her home, to marry in some unfamiliar place was not what she had envisioned for a wedding at all.

  Her stomach churned and her head began to spin, so she closed her eyes briefly, placing a hand to her temple. "Do forgive me," she said, "but I must be on my way now."

  "Lilyanna, please, wait," Elijah said as she started backing up. "Let us talk about this. You should sit down. You do not look well."

  "I assure you, I am fine," Lilyanna said, hoping he would forgive her fibbing. "I promised Mother I would not be gone for long. I must get back or she will become suspicious."

  She did not wait for Elijah to respond as she turned around and walked briskly back to Heatherhill, feeling an ache in her heart and a churning in her stomach as she pictured Elijah's worried eyes and panicked expression.

  Her heart told her to stay with him, to tell him her feelings, but her mind, her fear, convinced her feet to continue walking away.

  She heard him calling after her again, so she tried to ignore the pain in her heart by focusing on her swirling stomach, telling herself she was making the right decision to return home.

  Within minutes, Lilyanna had walked through Heatherhill's doors and was halfway up the stairs when her mother's voice behind her made her pause.

  "There you are, Lilyanna," Mrs. Crosgrove said. "Change into something fit for receiving calls. Mr. Quigley will be arriving shortly."

  Her stomach ceased its churning as another feeling entered her heart, one of utter frustration, and she turned to face Mrs. Crosgrove.

  "Mr. Quigley is calling again?" she asked.

  "Do not act as if you are surprised, dear," Mrs. Crosgrove said. "You cannot expect to get to know a gentleman better without spending time with him first."

  "Mother, I have already told you," she said, irritation boiling within her, fueled by her regret for leaving Elijah for Mr. Quigley, "I do not wish to see Mr. Quigley any longer. I know him more than I already would like, and what I see in him is extremely disagreeable."

  "Nonsense, child," Mrs. Crosgrove said, moving to return to the parlor.

  "I am speaking in earnest, Mother!" Lilyanna exclaimed, quickly making her way down the steps.

  "Then you change your mind," Mrs. Crosgrove snapped as she turned to face her daughter, "and you had better do it quickly."

  "Why?" she asked slowly, feeling a sudden sense of foreboding in her heart.

  She watched as Mrs. Crosgrove's chin raised until she looked down her nose at Lilyanna.

  "Why, Mother?" she repeated.

  "Because I have accepted his offer of marriage on your behalf."

  "What?" Lilyanna asked, her queasiness returning tenfold.

  "Must I repeat myself?"

  Lilyanna shook her head as she tried to remain calm. "You have made a terrible mistake, Mother."

  "I do not believe so," Mrs. Crosgrove said, a wry smile upon her lips, "for I have accepted his proposal on your behalf, and you will do as I say, for you shall not make me out to be a liar."

  "And what does Father have to say about all this?"

  "Your father
does not have the good fortune to have an opinion on the matter, for he is not here."

  Lilyanna heard the bitterness in Mrs. Crosgrove's tone, and a sudden compassion filled her for her mother's way of life.

  "Mother," she began carefully with a soft voice, approaching her until she stood directly in front of her, "I have tried to follow you the entirety of my life. I have tried to do as you have wished, for I know you have only wanted what is best for me. But do I not deserve a single say in the matter of my husband, as it is concerning my life and my future?"

  She maintained eye contact with her mother's blue eyes, pleading silently to break through her hardened heart.

  "All right, Lilyanna," Mrs. Crosgrove said calmly, though Lilyanna knew it took her great restraint, "you insist upon having a voice, so tell me, what is your opinion?"

  She ignored the veiled sarcasm in her mother's voice and again looked pleadingly toward her, praying for strength from above that she would be able to say the right things in order to change her mother's mind.

  "I do not love Mr. Quigley," Lilyanna said, simply, "therefore, I cannot marry him."

  Mrs. Crosgrove's nostrils flared, but Lilyanna continued, knowing she could hide her secrets no longer.

  "But there is a reason far more than that," she continued. "I cannot marry him, for I love another, and I have already accepted that gentleman's offer of marriage."

  As the words finally left her mouth, Lilyanna felt as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She breathed deeply for the first time in what seemed like weeks, and she straightened her back, preparing for her mother's rage.

  "Please, do not tell me you are still going on about that blackguard, Mr. Bainbridge," Mrs. Crosgrove said, her face contorting with anger.

  "He is not a blackguard, Mother," Lilyanna said, trying to remain calm, "and yes, Mr. Bainbridge is the gentleman I speak of."

  "If he has made an offer to you," Mrs. Crosgrove said, her face red, "this means you have been communicating with him, even after I told you not to, is that correct?"