Beneath Spring's Rain (Ashton Brides Book 1)
Page 30
“Bravo, Uncle!” Daniel gave his uncle an answering slap on the back.
Eliza walked up to Mrs. Harlow and held out her hand. “I am happy to meet you, Mrs. Harlow. Congratulations on your marriage.”
Mrs. Harlow looked around, a furrow of confusion on her brow. Uncle Harlow mimed putting out his hand. She followed his lead and held out her hand in response to Eliza.
Eliza pressed her hand to hers and gave her a welcoming smile. “It is good to have you in the family.”
The marchioness composed her expression into her customary graciousness and added her words of welcome as well. “And we would be happy to have you both for dinner this evening, if you are available.”
Florentia bounced. “This is exciting!”
“We welcome you to the family.” Frederick gave a bow.
Uncle Harlow gave a hearty grin around. “Since you all are taking this so well, I want to invite you to stay with us in Brighton this summer!”
After dinner and much discussion about Brighton’s summer attractions, Uncle Harlow pulled Daniel aside.
“A real lady you have there, Danny-boy, a real gentlewoman. Her welcome was the best thing anyone could do for my Yamini.”
Daniel smiled. “My wife is the apple of my eye and the light of my life.”
“Your brother claimed as much, but until I saw it today, I didn’t believe it. I’ve been thinking. I may never have wised up and married my Yamini if this thing with your wife hadn’t happened. And I’ve got plenty of money for what I have plans for, and more money-making schemes afoot besides. I can afford to give away the two hundred thousand I was planning to give you on my death. So I’ll do it. Let’s say, in eight installments, twenty-five thousand a quarter, yes? I can arrange that.” He gave a nod.
Daniel gaped.
“You’ll be independently wealthy, and able to set up your nursery and your bride in comfort.”
“I—you don’t have to do that.”
“Course I don’t! But I want to, so unless you refuse it, I’ll do it.”
“I will not refuse it. I thank you, Uncle.”
Harlow clapped him hard on the back. “I’ve done it! I’m the favorite rich uncle once again! I prefer it, I do. Excellent work for a night.”
* * *
Eliza played the pianoforte. Daniel sat beside her, ostensibly to turn pages, but they were alone in the music room, which Daniel took for an invitation to sneak kisses to her neck.
“You are most distracting.”
“Distracting you is the greatest joy of my life.”
A smile teased at her lips before she repressed it. She changed her playing to a solemn, doleful dirge.
Daniel gave a loud groan. “Oh, honestly, Eliza! If you are to ignore me for your music’s sake, make the music worth playing. Not that drudgery.”
She smiled. “What would you have me play?”
“A song of how much you love me.”
“Then this one will do,” she teased and played the first bars of the dirge again.
“What? Are you mourning my premature death?” he exclaimed.
“Oh, heavens, no. Perish the thought.” She continued the dirge, adding low, mournful bass notes, a smile lifting her lips.
“Then how is this a song of your love?”
“Every piece I play says how much I love you.”
“Now you must support that statement with logical arguments.”
She ended the piece with a much lighter flourish, then lifted her hands. “Merely that my love for you is a part of me, and so every piece I play holds that emotion.”
“That is the most poetical, illogical thing I think I’ve heard you say,” Daniel exclaimed, and he pulled her to face him. “I adore that you said it.”
He kissed her smiling mouth, and her giggles rose again.
“You make me happy,” he said. “Do I make you happy?” There was a note of insecurity in the question.
She looked at him with tender feelings running through her heart. “You do. You make me so happy.”
He stood, picked her up under her knees till he cradled her in his arms, cleared the pianoforte bench, and swung her around. She laughed.
He set her down, and with infinite tenderness, brought his lips to hers.
Outside the window, a soft rain fell.
* * *
Until the next Season.
* * *
I hope you’ve enjoyed Daniel and Eliza’s story! Next will be Lady Florentia Ashton’s adventure falling in love with an utterly unsuitable person in Through Summer’s Light, releasing soon.
To hear when it’s available, you are welcome to join my newsletter. Receive a free novella, The Darkest Hour, when you subscribe.
Author’s Historical Notes
The Magdalen Hospital for the Reception of Penitent Prostitutes was a real place, established in London in 1758. It was the first of its kind.
They didn’t accept into the Home women who were pregnant or visibly diseased (and they checked), so it wasn’t an emergency shelter in any way. Its intent was to be a safe place to train women to be skilled workers, including laundry, sewing, and cleaning. They also strived to reunite the women and teen girls they accepted with their estranged families.
Later institutions for helping prostitutes and ‘fallen women’ gained a reputation for harshness, but in my research into the original London Magdalen Hospital, despite its imperfections, I found evidence of caring and an earnestness to help. Because of this, I chose to portray the Home that way in my novel.
I want to respectfully acknowledge the real, historical people who were working with the Magdalen House in 1817 that I referenced in my story:
Reverend John Prince, chaplain and secretary (source, portrait)
Mrs. Wiggins, head matron (source)
President, the Earl of Radnor (source, wiki article)
Duke of Northumberland, a vice-president on the Board of Governors (source, wiki article)
Miss Dowding, the organist (source)
Mr. Bennett, the treasurer (source)
Lord Bishop of Gloucester who gave the sermon at the 59th Anniversary Meeting of the Governors (source, wiki article)
They are all used fictitiously—Miss Dowding the organist didn’t get the flu and have to convalesce for weeks so she could be replaced by my heroine, at least, as far as I know. ;)
For more information about the Magdalen House, see:
Wiki article on Magdalene Asylums
The Magdalen House in Regency London, blog article by Rachel Knowles of regencyhistory.net
The Magdalen hospital: the story of a great charity by H. F. B. Compston. Book published in 1917, available on archive.org
My Pinterest board of research
To hear the music Eliza plays during the course of the novel, check out my Spotify playlist for the novel, which also includes the modern music I found inspirational while writing.
Acknowledgements
I want to thank the wonderful ladies of my critique group, Madeline Komen and Karen Edwards Pierotti. They pushed me to make this novel better, and are such a blessing in my life. Thank you for your friendship.
Great thanks to my beta readers, who caught things and helped me make the story better and clearer. Thank you Ann Hunter for answering horse-related questions and thanks to editor Laura L. Walker for her excellent work.
Thanks to my wonderful husband who was there for me through all the frustrations of revising, of which there were many.
And to the readers. I hope this was a journey that helped and healed.
Other Regency Romances by Rebecca J. Greenwood
The Darkest Season Series
The Darkest Hour
The Darkest Summer
Once Upon a Regency Series
Beauty’s Rose
About the Author
Rebecca J. Greenwood is an artist and avid reader who decided in her thirties to try storytelling in prose rather than in drawings. She discovered she liked it.
She loves clean romance, especially Regency, and has grand plans for writing multiple books in multiple series.
Rebecca lives in Utah with her husband, where she listens to audiobooks, has an interest in alternative health, and constantly has a new project in mind. Visit rebeccajgreenwood.com to experience more of her art and projects.