George was really disturbed. He had met Nancy Cromwell just two days ago and she’d been unconscious or asleep for most of the time she was at the manor, yet something about her had touched him deeply. He found himself wanting to be in the room with her all the time, even though it wasn’t proper for him to do that. His feet took him back to his mother’s room where he found that the bed had been neatly made. He was sure it was Nancy who had done it because their servants dared not enter this room, unless given permission to.
He walked to the bed and sat down, touching the pillow where Nancy had laid her head. How was it that in just two days he had met a woman and fallen in love with her? She wasn’t of his social class but he couldn’t help it. He’d never felt this way about anyone before and he wished he had been around when Nancy left. He would definitely have followed her home so he could find out where she lived.
“You seem preoccupied this evening, or isn’t my company pleasant enough for you?” Lady Claire Hemingway turned blue frosty eyes to George. “It’s disrespectful of you to be with me and yet be thinking about other females.”
George didn’t bother to deny it because it was true, he had been thinking about Nancy Cromwell. He wanted to go home and end this charade of having a wonderful time at one of the many balls of the season that Claire dragged him to. She didn’t seem to understand that all he wanted was to stay at home and have pleasant talk, instead she accepted all the invitations that were sent to her and which often included him now that it was official that they were engaged.
“Felicitations on your upcoming nuptials,” a deep voice hailed George and he turned around to see his long-time friend Lord Arthur Beacon, whose father had died in winter and was now the Duke of Arlington. “I’ve been waiting for this day,” he took Claire’s hand and placed a soft kiss on the back of it. “My lady, you look absolutely charming this evening.”
Claire curtsied and smiled at Arthur. “I’m grateful for your kind words, my lord.” She turned to George. “Would you please get me some water to drink, I’d like to have a word with his lordship.”
Short of appearing rude, George nodded slightly and went to do as bid. He took his time because as he passed on his way to get Claire water, he was congratulated by a number of his peers and acquaintances. By the time he returned, Arthur was alone and Claire was nowhere to be seen.
“Where is Lady Claire?”
“She needed to powder her nose as these lovely females like to do from time to time.” Arthur was slightly shorter than George but stocky and he liked to dress like a dandy, since he could well afford it. His estate was vast and his father had left him very wealthy. “You don’t seem like the happy soon to be groom.”
“Arthur, you know that I’ve never pretended to love Claire. Yet I have to marry her because her dowry will help put things right.”
“Sad really, that so much of our happiness lies in pleasing our parents or society. In any case, she is a handsome young woman and will be a good wife.”
George nodded though his face was filled with sadness. “I feel like I’m doing an injustice to myself and Claire because I can never love her. She knows it and puts on a brave face about it, but I know that once we’re married, she will get the chance to let me know about her displeasure.”
“You really are against marrying Claire. Why don’t you tell your father and also break the engagement off?”
“I wish it was that simple, Arthur. I’ve given Claire my word and the engagement is now public. Yet sometimes I wish that we were still at war with Napoleon so I could enlist and disappear for years in France.”
“That’s a very horrible thought, George.”
“I’m sorry. But I feel so helpless and wish that I had a way out of all this.” He ran a shaky hand through his hair. “It’s like being in a nightmare from which I’m not waking up at all.”
“You clearly need to get out of here,” Arthur looked around. The whole place was filling up and the noise was deafening.
“I can’t do that, remember I’m here with Claire.”
Arthur chuckled softly, “Leave Lady Claire to me,” he turned around as the lady in question approached them. He stepped aside and gently led Claire away, ignoring her frantic motions to George. Arthur was back after a few minutes. “That’s all taken care of, now we can leave.”
“What did you do with Claire?”
“I took her to my delightful mother, who was very happy to have her company for the rest of the evening. I simply told the beautiful lady that I needed your services this evening.”
“She’ll never forgive me for this.”
Arthur looked at his friend long and hard and sighed inwardly. He’d never seen a more miserable groom to be. “Let’s go and let my mother worry about Claire for now. A few hours with my parent will have your fiancée in good spirits.”
“I really owe you one, Arthur. Thank you for all this.”
“Let’s go to a less crowded place so we can talk.”
In the end, Arthur decided to take his friend home. A glass of port in his hand, Arthur leaned back in his chair and pointed a finger at George. “Okay, who is she?”
“Who is who?”
“The woman who is making you miserable.”
“You mean Lady Claire?”
Arthur made an impatient sound. “That’s not what I mean, and you know it. Until a few days ago, you were prepared to go into this marriage like a lamb to the slaughter. But something’s changed and I’m almost one hundred percent sure that it has to do with another woman and it’s very obvious that you have strong feelings for this mysterious lady.”
George’s lips tightened. “You’re too perceptive for your own good Arthur, no wonder that the Regent has you as one of his advisors.”
“Indeed, so are you going to tell me who she is or not?”
“Her name is Nancy Cromwell, that’s all I know. I think she’s about twenty two or so.”
Arthur had a thoughtful look on his face. “Where is she from?”
George shook his head. “I have no idea. About a week ago, Billy was taking me to meet Claire when we knocked her down. She just stepped off the kerb and into the path of the carriage and was injured. So I brought her back home and she was there for two days.”
“And in two days’ time this woman made a great impression on you?”
George nodded. “I can’t help what I feel for Nancy, but she’s gone and I have no way of finding out who or where she is. Billy our footman dropped her off at the farmers’ market for it was obvious she didn’t want him to know where her home is.”
“Mmh!” Arthur rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Do you realise that you’re walking a dangerous path here, my friend? You announced your engagement to one of London’s top ladies and here you are in love with another. Do you realise the implications of that? Your family name could be ruined if word gets out that you’re already acting unfaithful to Lady Claire. That will in turn affect your brother and not to mention Mary. You need to think this through.”
“I know that I have to marry Claire, but I don’t think we’re going to have a happy marriage. I’ve spent many sleepless nights wondering if I should just go ahead and look for Nancy Cromwell which will disappoint my father and get me shunned from society, but live happily ever after. Or just ignore my heart and follow society’s norms and marry a woman whose wealth will get my family out of trouble, and live unhappily ever after. I don’t know which is the lesser evil.”
Arthur leaned forward and placed his glass on a coaster on the table. “Weigh your family against this mystery woman and see who comes out on top. Mama usually says that when faced with a tough situation which requires you to make a decision, sleep on it for three days and things will soon be clear.”
6
Strange Coincidence
George felt like he was at a crossroads and whichever path he chose would end up adversely affecting someone’s life. His family, his fiancée and his own life were bound to end up in a mess all be
cause of a twenty something year old woman that he couldn’t find. He had walked the length and breadth of the farmers’ market hoping to catch a glimpse of Nancy Cromwell but no one seemed to know her at all. Or if they did, they chose to act ignorant about it and he could tell that many were suspicious of his questions. He soon discovered that the commoners protected their own.
He sighed softly, wondering if he wasn’t being a fool dreaming about a woman he had only met briefly and yet had changed his life so drastically. He was barely eating and spent many nights tossing and turning in his bed thinking about Nancy. The woman was in his thoughts day and night and he didn’t know how he was going to continue pretending that he wasn’t affected by her at all.
He heard the family coach pulling up outside and then someone running up the front steps as if they were in a hurry. Mary burst into the drawing room and he stood up quickly. She looked very upset.
“Mary, what’s happened?”
“I just came back from Claire’s house. We had gone riding and she collapsed in the saddle and had to be carried home.”
“What? Did she complain of feeling ill before you went riding?”
Mary shook her head. “Though she looked a little pale and when I asked her what it was, she said she could feel a cold coming on.”
“Has the doctor been sent for?”
Mary nodded, “Her father had sent for Dr. Smithson by the time I came to find you. You need to go and be with her right now.”
“Yes, indeed. Where is Mark?”
“I don’t know. Earlier before I left, he mentioned that he would be going to visit some friends and would be there until late, but he didn’t tell me who.”
“Then we’ll leave a note for him and father so they know where we are.”
Nancy sighed as she cleaned the doctor’s instruments and put them away. Why couldn’t she forget George Murray? He was out of her league and their worlds would never meet, yet her heart refused to cooperate with her head that was telling her that she was being foolish to be in love with someone who could never be hers. He was engaged to be married to someone else and that alone was sufficient deterrent.
She couldn’t forget the two times he had come to the bedroom when he thought she was asleep, bent down and kissed her forehead. Even now she wondered what all that had been about because it wasn’t likely that he felt anything more than pity for her. Yet some small part of her heart wanted to believe that a handsome and titled man like Lord George Murray could be attracted to a nonentity like her. “Ah well,” she sighed inwardly, putting away the last flat metal spatula. “Foolish dreams by a foolish woman,” she chided herself.
She heard Dr. Smithson greeting the few patients who were in the waiting room as he came in. He opened the door and smiled at her.
“There you are, my dear.” He put his bag down. “I’ve just come from Lord Hemingway’s house, his daughter is seriously ill and will require round the clock care.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that, what is wrong with her?”
“She has severe diarrhea, bloody stool, very high fever and terrible abdominal cramps. I suspect dysentery and have told anyone who has recently come in contact with her to make sure they get treatment as soon as they feel the slightest discomfort.”
“I hope Lady Claire Hemmingway feels better,” and she really meant it. She had attended to a few patients who had suffered from dysentery and knew how painful and discomfiting it could be.
“Well, you have to make sure that she will be alright since I’m assigning you to take care of her. I will find someone to relieve you every few hours of the day, but Lady Claire’s intensive care will be your responsibility.”
“But ….” Nancy felt dread welling up within her. Since Claire Hemmingway was engaged to George Murray, her fiancé would probably be coming to the house to visit her. Being in his presence would be a terrible thing because she was bound to let her feelings show and be thoroughly humiliated.
“Now, now, now, Nurse Cromwell, you’re a good caregiver and Miss Hemmingway needs your services. Of all my nurses, you’re the only one I know who is able to provide twenty four hour care for our patient since you have no little children who require your attention like Nurse Sarah and Nurse Gladwell, nor a nagging husband,” he chuckled at his own joke.
Since Nancy didn’t want to have to explain her reluctance about being Claire Hemmingway’s personal nurse, she accepted to go and take care of the sick woman. In her heart though, she was praying that Lord George Murray wouldn’t be there, or that he would visit when she was taking her break.
7
Facing Harsh Reality
Nancy’s prayers weren’t answered, for the first person she saw as she entered Lord Phillip Hemmingway’s large house right behind Dr. Smithson, was Lord George Murray himself. His eyes lit up but then he seemed to recall where he was and turned away from her.
“Lord Hemmingway, this is the nurse I was telling you about. Her name is Nancy Cromwell and she’s here to take care of your daughter.”
Nancy curtsied.
“Miss Cromwell, this is Lord Hemmingway, Lady Claire’s father and this is Lord George Murray, her fiancé.”
Nancy wished she could be anywhere but here. Lord Hemmingway looked very shaken and she felt compassion welling up within her. Claire was his only child and clearly he doted on her. She didn’t want to imagine what the elderly man must be feeling and she purposed to do her best for her patient.
“My lords, I promise to take good care of Lady Claire.”
“If you need anything at all, please let me know,” George said and Lord Hemmingway nodded. “Claire is very dear to us and we hope this will soon be over so she can be back on her feet again.”
Nancy wanted to scream at the unfairness of it all. How could fate play such a cruel trick as this one on her? It was strange that she would be taking care of the woman who would soon be the wife of the man she was in love with. But she decided to put her personal feelings aside and attend to the matters at hand.
Mercifully, Dr. Smithson didn’t let her dwell for long in the presence of the two men and immediately took her upstairs to the second floor bedroom where Claire Hemmingway was. The woman looked really pale and shrunken against the beddings and Nancy soon forgot all about her own woes.
Claire was in a lot of pain and no matter how much laudanum Dr. Smithson administered, it soon wore off and she was back to moaning and clutching her abdomen. Her condition didn’t seem to be getting any better and Nancy was really worried.
The first two days that she spent the night with her patient were the worst and she didn’t get any sleep at all. Claire started coughing up blood and then just as abruptly as it had started, the coughing stopped.
Keeping Claire hydrated was her most important chore but as soon as she took in some water, she brought it out again.
On the third day, Nancy was exhausted because the person who was supposed to relieve her refused to turn up. The woman said she was afraid of contracting the disease and she had young children. That meant that Nancy was up on her feet for almost twenty four hours, wiping her patient to bring her temperature down, emptying the two chamber pots which meant making endless trips to the outhouse and cleaning up every mess she made. But not once did she complain or murmur, for she felt so much compassion for her patient.
The only problem she had was with George Murray, who sought any kind of excuse to come to the room.
She had just finished settling Claire down for her morning nap when there was a soft knock at the door. Thinking that it was one of the servants, Nancy bid the person enter and gasped softly when George entered the room.
“How is Lady Claire?” He asked as he approached the bed and looked down at the sleeping woman. “She look so frail and pale.”
“Lady Claire is trying her best to get better,” Nancy answered in a soft voice, wishing he would leave. Her heart was beating so hard and she suddenly felt quite breathless. This man had a very strong effect on her and s
he prayed no one would ever find out the deep feelings that she harboured for him.
George turned his gaze upon her and frowned. “You look exhausted, I’ll have to ask Dr. Smithson to bring someone to relieve you. This can’t go on, or else you’ll also end up falling ill.”
“I’m alright,” Nancy stepped back when George drew closer. She didn’t want him stirring up trouble of any kind. “I usually have my rest in the afternoons when one of the servants comes to sit with Lady Claire.”
“Still, the late nights are taking their toll on you. You can go and lie down for a short while, I’ll sit with Lady Claire and if she needs you, I’ll send someone to come and get you.”
Nancy hesitated, wondering what her patient’s father would think if she left her in the care of her fiancé. “I don’t think it’s right for you to do that,” she protested.
“Miss Cromwell, Lady Claire is my fiancée and it’s alright for me to sit with her.”
“It’s not proper for you to be in the bedchamber alone with my patient. It’s alright, Lord George, I’ll take care of Lady Claire myself.”
George sat down on the chair that she normally used and she felt her heart sinking. It was clear that he intended to stay and she couldn’t bear that anyone would find them both. The tension between them was thick and anyone walking in would immediately tell that things weren’t normal between them.
As he watched the different emotions on her face, George realised that his presence was affecting Nancy as much as hers was doing to him. It made his heart glad, but he was aware of the repercussions of their being found alone together. Lady Claire was no chaperone and it would look very odd for her fiancé and nurse to be spending time together.
“Nancy, this cannot go on,” he said with a deep sigh. “I just have to tell you how I feel about you.”
A True Love Forbidden (Married to the Murrays Book 1) Page 3