3
Unexpected Encounter
George heard his footman shout out a warning and then a sickening thud and he knew that they had hit someone. The carriage stopped abruptly and if he hadn’t been holding on to the window bar, would have been flung to the opposite wall.
“Billy, what did you do?” He quickly got out of the carriage and ran to the figure that lay still on the ground. It was a woman and he put a hand to her forehead. “Why didn’t you avoid hitting this poor young woman?”
“Your lordship, she just stepped off the kerb and into the path of the carriage. I couldn’t avoid hitting her.” The young man looked really shaken and George pitied him. Street urchins were scrambling for the scattered groceries he knew belonged to the woman lying on the ground and though he tried to chase them away, it was useless. They soon disappeared and everything the young woman had been carrying went with them.
“Don’t worry, Billy. This will be our own secret and my father doesn’t have to find out.”
Billy bowed and when he looked up, George saw the grateful look in his eyes. Even the servants were terrified of his father and he wondered how long this could go on. Life at the manor wasn’t the same, not for five years now.
“What shall we do, my lord?”
“Take the young lady home and have Dr. Smithson come and take a look at her. She’s unconscious and we need to find out if she has other injuries. Those street brats made off with everything she had,” he shook his head. He bent down and lifted the still unconscious woman in his arms and placed her gently on the carriage seat, before getting in and holding her so she wouldn’t fall off. “Take us back to the manor and then go and get Dr. Smithson.”
“Your lordship, what about the meeting you were to have with Lady Claire? She will be waiting for you.”
“This is an emergency, Billy and I know Lady Claire will understand when she finds out the reason that I didn’t make our meeting this evening.”
To tell the truth, even though knocking down the poor woman was a tragedy, George was grateful to have a reason not to have to meet with his intended. His father had insisted that he and Claire get engaged before the season was over and even though he was all for the idea of keeping everything quiet, Claire insisted on letting all her friends and the ton of London know that she was engaged.
They were actually supposed to meet so as to decide on the best date for their wedding and George dreaded it all. He looked down at the injured woman, who moaned softly and he found himself feeling protective of her.
Mary his sister stared at him as though he had gone mad when he carried the unconscious woman into his mother’s bedroom, which was the only other unoccupied room in the manor that was still habitable. The rest of the guest rooms were musty and since it was a large house and they had few servants, not all the rooms could be maintained to the standards they used to be while their mother was alive.
“Have you gone mad, George?” Mary followed him up the stairs and into the bedroom. “You know that papa doesn’t like anyone coming into this room. He has kept it the same way as when mother was alive.”
“Papa has turned this room into a shrine, and besides, who will tell him that I brought a guest home?”
“Who is this woman, and do you think Claire will be pleased when she finds out that you have brought another woman to the house? And especially to mama’s chambers? Remember that our father promised that she would take over this room when she becomes the next duchess.”
“Mary, stop fretting. This poor young lady was crossing the road when we knocked her down and since I don’t know where her home is or who she is, I had to bring her here. Or did you want me to leave her lying injured in the streets?”
Mary shook her head. “Brother, I didn’t say that. You could put her in my bedroom then if she really must be here.”
“Your bedroom belongs to you, Mary. This is an empty room that no one ever uses and yet it’s in very good condition. Besides, after the doctor has been to see her and she regains consciousness, we’ll know where she is from and then make arrangements for her to return home. That should be in one or two days’ time. Thank goodness papa is in Scotland.”
“I have a bad feeling about this,” Mary said as she watched her brother placing the woman gently on the bed. “You need to leave so I can help her for it isn’t proper for you to be found in a woman’s bedchamber and she isn’t your wife. Billy can still take you to meet with Lady Claire and I’ll look after our unwanted guest.”
“With that attitude I don’t know if I can trust you Mary. You might just turn the poor woman out in the cold because you don’t want papa to get angry that we have used mama’s room.”
“I’m not that cruel, George. I’ll help where I can and if anyone should ask, I’ll say this lady is my friend and I was the one who insisted that she be brought home. Billy’s discretion can be counted on so there’s no fear there.”
George looked at his sister and then nodded. “Thank you, Mary. I’m really grateful for your assistance. Let me go downstairs and wait for the doctor to come.”
“Like I said, you can still make it to meet with Lady Claire.”
George shook his head. “You know how Claire is, if someone is more than five minutes late, she won’t grant them an audience. I’m too tired to stand at her father’s doorstep begging to be allowed in. Let her be angry with me but at least I’ll be spared the humiliation of looking like a beggar.”
“You should have left earlier, then you wouldn’t have run into this person and created a problem.”
“Mary are you going to start again? You know that I went hunting this morning because I wanted to clear my head after that farce of an engagement papa insisted on.” He sighed. “I didn’t want to be around the house and have people coming to congratulate me.”
“You just have to accept that you and Claire will soon be getting married. That’s the reason I’m willing to protect you by saying this woman is my friend. We don’t want any scandals attached to you now that we’re all set for the wedding of the season.”
“Please, don’t make me feel worse than I already am. It’s going to take some getting used to. At least let me have a few days of respite before papa returns and begins the race towards my wedding.”
There was a soft moan from the bed and they both turned to look at the patient. “Where am I?” She whispered huskily, looking like a cornered animal. “What happened?”
George drew closer to the bed and looked down into one of the most beautiful faces he had ever seen and he felt himself flushing. Her brown eyes were clouded with pain. It was Mary who answered her.
“You were hurt by our carriage and my brother brought you here so the doctor can attend to you.”
“Where am I?’
“At Pembington Estate just outside London.”
The woman gasped and put a hand to her lips. She now looked very frightened and George sought to reassure her. “You’re safe,” he told her, careful not to touch her for fear of terrifying her even more. “No one will harm you here. What’s your name?”
“Nancy,” she cleared her throat. “Nancy Cromwell.”
4
Unwelcome Guest
Nancy had never been so terrified in her life as she was at that particular moment when she discovered that she was in the Duke of Pembington’s residence. She had only heard about the duke and his two handsome sons as well as his beautiful daughter but since they were worlds apart socially, she never bothered much about them.
Just a few days ago she had read about the eldest son’s engagement to one of London’s socialites, also a duke’s only daughter. Apart from a fleeting glance at the story, Nancy hadn’t wasted much time indulging in London’s gossip columns. They lived in their own world and she in hers and the two were not destined to ever cross. Yet here she was now lying in a beautiful soft bed with the duke’s son and daughter staring down at her.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, wishing she was anywhere else
but here. This wasn’t her world and she needed to get away and back to familiar grounds. She made as if to rise up from the bed but Mary restrained her.
“Don’t get up yet, you’re still weak and the doctor needs to take a look at you. My brother sent for him and he should be here soon.”
“I’m fine,” once again she tried to sit up but this time it was George who gently pressed her shoulders back down.
“Miss Cromwell, I hear the carriage returning which means my man has brought the doctor back to see how badly hurt you are.”
Her head ached as well as her hip which had been hit by the carriage, but she wasn’t about to tell them that. All she wanted was to go home to her mother, who must be really worried by now. “Please, I’m alright. I just want to go home.”
“And you will, as soon as the doctor sees you and says you can go home. In fact, I will personally deliver you back to your family. Just lie still.”
There was a soft knock at the door and whoever was on the other side was bid to enter, George frowned. “Where’s Dr. Smithson? I asked him to come and check on my patient.”
The young man who stepped in carrying a doctor’s bag chuckled softly not taking offence at George’s unwelcome tone. “Dr. Smithson has been called away to attend to some other patients and your man came in just as he was leaving. Since I had called on him for some medical advice, he asked me to come in his place.” He bowed slightly. “Dr. Paul Newton at your service, your lordship.” He turned to Nancy. “So, is this the patient I need to attend to?”
“Yes, Dr. Newton.”
“Young lady, what’s your name?”
“She’s Nancy Cromwell. My man Billy and I were on our way to town when our carriage knocked her down. She doesn’t seem to be bleeding but we thought you should look at her and find out if there’s any damage or injuries that aren’t visible.”
“I’ll ask you to leave the room, but let the other lady stay for propriety’s sake.” He motioned to Mary, who nodded. “Your lordship, I’ll let you know what my findings are once I’m done examining Miss Cromwell.”
George was reluctant to leave the room, but Mary pushed him out of the door and shut it firmly in his face. He stood outside for a while, then realised that if any of the servants came by and found him standing there, they might talk and it would most definitely get back to his father. He walked down to the drawing room where his brother was just coming in.
“What’s this I hear about you bringing a young lady home? And putting her in mama’s room of all the places.” Mark had a scowl on his face. “What on earth were you thinking?”
“I got enough of that from Mary, please don’t start.”
“Shouldn’t you be with Lady Claire right now?”
“Yes I should, but we knocked the young woman down and there was no way I could have left her lying unconscious and hurt on the street. Or is that what you would have wanted me to do?”
Mark threw a hand impatiently in the air. “You’ve become too sensitive, brother dear. All I was doing is finding out what is going on and warning you how our father won’t take kindly to you bringing a strange young woman home, when you’re engaged to Lady Claire.”
“I only did what I thought was right. Where else would I have taken her?”
Mark didn’t have an answer and when George opened his mouth to speak again, he was stopped by the sound of people coming down the stairs. A few moments later Dr. Newton and Mary entered the drawing room.
“Miss Cromwell has bruising on her left hip and a slight concussion, but she should be fine in a day or two. The young lady seems to be very worried about her mother and getting home. I would advise that you find a way of keeping her here for a day or two so she can properly recover.”
“Yes, doctor,” George said. “Did she tell you where she lives, so someone can go and inform her family that she is fine?”
“Not really, but she was too tired and we let her rest.” He picked his bag up again. “Well, I’ll be leaving now and if you need me, your man Billy knows where to find me, or Dr. Smithson for that matter.”
“Thank you, Dr. Newton.”
“My pleasure,” Mark showed the doctor out and George knew his sister and brother were about to bring the issue of the injured woman upstairs up again, and he wasn’t wrong.
“My great fear is that Lady Claire will find out that you brought another woman home and put her in our mother’s room when papa clearly told her that it would belong to her,” Mark said while Mary nodded. “You’ve got to find a way of getting that lady out of the house before father returns.”
“She won’t be here long, you heard what the doctor said. One day or two at most. Besides, who will tell Claire about Nancy?”
“Servants talk,” Mary interjected. “How will you stop that from happening?”
“Let them say whatever they want to, but I did what I knew was right and I have no regrets nor do I owe anyone an apology for being a Good Samaritan.”
Nancy opened her eyes and looked around the room, glad that she was alone. She had had to pretend a lot of times that she was asleep, because Lord George Murray kept coming to the bedroom and standing over the bed looking down at her. She had no idea what he wanted but she wasn’t going to stay and find out.
Lady Mary had also come into the room on more than one occasion and once she found her awake. She had observed her without saying a word and then just left, and Nancy knew that she didn’t approve of her.
Testing her feet on the ground, she stood up, swayed a little and then sat down again. The dizziness had all gone and the pain in her hip was a dull throb that she could live with. Looking around the room, she spotted her clothes and stood up once again, forcing herself to stand strong and walk to the chair on which they lay.
She met no one along the corridors, nor as she walked down the stairs to the front door. She could hear sounds and soft laughter coming from somewhere within the house and prayed that no one would come and stop her.
Nancy didn’t know how she was going to get back home but as soon as she stepped out of the house, she saw a carriage just pulling in. Mary stepped out and walked towards her.
“I’d like to go home please, and I’m sorry for the trouble I’ve caused your family,” Nancy said in a quiet voice. “Could you please ask your footman to take me home? He doesn’t have to take me the whole way.”
“It’s no trouble at all,” Mary said and without wasting time, instructed Billy to take Nancy home.
5
The Unhappy Fiancé
George was livid when he returned to the manor and found that Nancy had gone. “Who allowed her to leave?” He demanded from his sister, eyes blazing. “It was clear that Nancy was still weak, yet you allowed her to leave just like that. What if she falls in the street and gets hurt once again?”
Mary snorted, holding up a gloved hand for she had been on her way out when her brother arrived. “George, apart from bruising there was nothing wrong with Miss Cromwell. Besides, she insisted on leaving so I asked Billy to take her home.”
“And where is Billy?”
“He’s just about to drive me to the park as I’m meeting with friends of mine. Calm down, George, one would think the woman meant more to you than just someone you knocked down,” she looked at her brother, brow furrowed and then gasped. “You do have feelings for Miss Cromwell. Oh this is just interesting.”
“It’s nothing like that,” he said, turning away so his sister wouldn’t see his red face. “I’m just concerned about Miss Cromwell, that’s all.”
“Indeed,” her tone was full of sarcasm. “Miss Cromwell is not of your class, George. You’re a duke and she is obviously a commoner.”
“How did you deduce that?”
“From the way she was dressed. Come on brother, anyone could see that she is from the lower class and shouldn’t be mixing with us.”
“You can really say that and yet you’re a young girl?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You’ll one day fall in love and what makes you think it will be with someone of your own class?”
Mary raised her nose in the air. “That would never happen. There’s no way that I can ever marry beneath me, dowry or not. Nobility and commoners don’t mix and where you see that happening, it is most likely that the commoner is a gold digger just out to grab whatever they can from the nobles.”
George threw his head back and laughed. “You really amuse me, my dear little sister. What do we have that can be grabbed by anyone? See how dilapidated this house is, even though it is supposed to be a duchy. We don’t throw balls and parties because we can’t afford to entertain anyone not even the lowest baron. What wealth would a commoner grab from me? I’m not even the duke or anything.”
“But you’re a marquis by virtue of our father being a duke. Titles are important and many people like to be associated with titled people.”
George shook his head, “We won’t agree on anything, but I’d like to see Billy. Where did you say he was?”
“Don’t go harassing the poor man. He says Miss Cromwell asked him to put her down at the farmers’ market because she needed to purchase some things.”
George frowned. “That poor woman lost everything when our carriage knocked her down, so where could she have gotten the money from, or did you offer her some?”
Mary looked quite indignant. “What do you take me for, George? That was obviously a ploy so Billy wouldn’t know where she lives. I bet it is in one of those run down shacks near the docks, or else why would Miss Cromwell lie?”
“In any case, she’s gone now.” He walked out of the room, leaving his sister staring at his back with a troubled look in her eyes.
A True Love Forbidden (Married to the Murrays Book 1) Page 2