by Sahara Kelly
She blinked, wondering also why she now had the oddest urge to giggle.
“Oh pshaw.” Emmeline made a rude noise, caught herself up, and then giggled as well. “Goodness, that sounded funny.”
Hecate smiled at both of them. “Girls, you have been quite clear about your situations, and first let me thank you for honoring me with your confidences. Sometimes you have to say words aloud to fully understand them.”
She turned to Emmeline. “You have fallen in love with Brent Rowdean, and you would happily be his wife. But you are concerned that he’ll believe it’s all a sham orchestrated by your mother. Am I correct?”
Emmeline nodded. “Exactly so.”
“And you, Prudence, you and Reid Chillendale are in the middle of a passionate affair and you know, although you don’t like to admit it, that you and he have passed beyond desire and into love. Also correct?”
Caught off-guard, Prudence nodded as well. “Oh God. Yes.”
“Well, dear girls, there is a simple answer to both your problems.”
“There is?” Emmeline tilted her head to one side. “You’re so pretty, by the way.”
“Thank you.” Hecate grinned
“So will you answer us the tell?” Prudence frowned. “Wait. That’s wrong. Will you tell us the question? Answer? Damnation, something’s wrong with my tongue.”
“There’s nothing wrong with either of you. Nothing a short relaxing nap won’t cure, and you are about to have one thanks to my special blend of tea. But before I make sure you’re comfortable, I want you to listen to me.”
She picked up one of her teacups and gently tapped her spoon on it, making it ring. The sound was sweet and fragile and captured Prudence’s attention completely.
“The human voice was made for communicating, one to another. Emmeline, you must talk to Brent.” Ding. “Really talk to him and tell him how you feel.” Ding. “And as for you, Prudence, you must talk to Reid. Not lie with him, and not while you’re both naked.” Ding. “You must talk to him about your feelings as well.” Ding.
Prudence’s eyelids grew heavy. “The tea,” she murmured.
“Quite. Nothing harmful, just a concoction of my own. Some sage and a few other herbs.” She took Prudence’s hand and led her to one of the couches in the room, then returned for Emmeline, leading her to the other.
“Rest, my dears. There is time for everything when you awaken. For now, let the troubles go and think of nothing but joy.”
“Thank you, Hecate…”
Prudence curled up amongst the cushions, watching the firelight dance on the beautiful ceiling…and tried to think clearly. But for some reason all she could see in her mind was Reid. And he made her smile…
Chapter Eleven
“Ma’am…my Lady…excuse me…”
A hand was shaking her arm, and Pru opened her eyes, ready to protest the treatment. To her surprise she found herself nose to nose with a servant from the Chillendale Inn.
“You’ve arrived, Ma’am. You and your companion.” He nodded to the other seat.
Emmeline snored away, tucked up into the corner.
“Good gracious.” Pru straightened herself. “I do apologize. We…we must have been quite tired.” She smiled at the lad, who blushed.
“’T’is quite all right. Would you like to step out now? Get inside out of the cold?”
“Indeed yes.”
She reached across to Emmeline, grabbing the girl’s knee and jiggling it. “Emmeline, wake up.”
She stirred and opened her eyes. “I was having such a nice dream.” She yawned, then blinked. “Where are we?”
“We’re at Chillendale Inn.”
“No, we were in Hecate’s house.”
“I know. But now we’re at the Inn.”
“But…what…how…”
“Let’s go inside, let this poor lad go back to his warm post, and talk about it then?” She added a quick squeeze, hoping Emmeline would read it as a hint to keep silent.
Fortunately, it worked. “Very well. That sounds like a good idea.”
The servant blushed again as Emmeline gave him her best smile. He was certainly having an interesting morning.
Prudence glanced at the carriage as she waited for Emmeline to alight. There was nothing distinguishing about it; no insignia or crest on the door, nor any kind of livery on the driver. It was just a simple country carriage-for-hire.
“Oh, brrr. Hurry Prudence. It’s cold.” Emmeline shivered and led the way into the Inn.
Prudence followed, flashing the servant a quick look of thanks. He blushed. Again.
But inside there was no blushing, just warmth—welcome to both women who found themselves chilled.
Emmeline put it best. “I’m shivering, but I don’t know if it is just the cold weather…” She rubbed her hands together as they stood in front of the fire.
“I understand. I feel the same. This is most mysterious, Emmeline. And I think we should keep it to ourselves until we’ve talked with Brent and Reid.”
“We did see Hecate, didn’t we? We had tea. That herbal stuff. And very nice scones.”
The slight tremor in her voice told Prudence that she was confused and more than a little scared.
“We did all that, yes. I know we did. And I’m guessing that after we fell asleep, she had her servants tuck us into that carriage and send us back here. Which was really quite nice of her.” Prudence attempted to calm Emmeline. And herself as well.
“Emmeline…” The yell echoed around the tap room and drew the attention of the few folks already in there. Luckily it seemed to be still morning, so it wasn’t too busy, but Brent’s mad dash across the room would have caused a ruckus if there had been a crowd.
“Oh Brent,” cried Emmeline, diving into his embrace. “Oh Brent.”
“Darling…” He hugged her and wrapped his arms around her, dropping kisses on the top of her head as she buried herself in his cloak. “Oh, hullo Pru.”
“Hullo Brent.” Prudence warmed herself at the fire and watched with interest.
“Where the hell have you two been?”
“Oh Brent,” Emmeline surfaced, looked at him, and snuggled back into his chest. “Pru will tell you.”
Pru rolled her eyes. “I will indeed, but I’d rather Reid be here at the same time so I don’t have to tell it twice. Because I’m ready to bet many guineas that the two of you have been looking for us.” She sighed. “I owe Reid an apology for that.”
“Yes, you do.” Her cousin shot her a meaningful look. “And me too. You both had us worried, and it’s not a pleasant experience.”
“Well I’m sorry. But where is Reid?”
“Still out looking for you, I suppose.” Brent cuddled Emmeline. “However, now that I’ve found you both, the worry is over. For me at least. Reid will return here at some point to check with me and then we can talk.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” Pru nodded. “Look, I’m sure you and Emmeline would like a little time together, so I’m going up to my room and freshen up. Shall we meet in the snug in half an hour?”
A shining smile peeped over Brent’s cloak as Emmeline extracted herself to look at Prudence. “That would be lovely. I’m going to take Hecate’s advice.”
Pru nodded. “Yes, I think I am too.”
“What? Who?”
Prudence patted his shoulder. “All in good time. You two take care of your business. I’ll be down soon.”
And with that, she left the couple, still enfolded in each other’s arms. She envied them that closeness, that obvious affection. They were indeed meant for each other, and it really wasn’t any kind of Christmas miracle, it was just being at the right place at the right time.
She sighed as she reached her door and slipped inside. Would that things could go as smoothly for her and Reid. But there were many impediments, not the least of which was her fear of marrying again.
She had a lot of thinking to do.
*~~*~~*
Reid was deeply concern
ed when he arrived back at the Inn.
He had covered every inch of the road Prudence would have walked and found nothing. He’d questioned every single person he’d met along the way, and still nothing. There had been very few people out and about early, he’d learned, but there were still cows to be milked and chickens to be fed. So it wasn’t a desolate and empty landscape.
If anything serious had happened, surely someone would have noticed.
Where the devil could she be? And where was Emmeline?
He walked in to the tap, headed for the fire, and stared into the flames as the warmth thawed his feet and restored some sort of normalcy to his hands and face.
“Reid. There you are, at last.” Brent hurried over. “They’re here. Both of them. Pru and Emmeline. And you’ll never guess…” He thumped his friend on the back, nearly knocking Reid over. “We’re engaged.”
“Really? Aren’t you taking a lot for granted? You never asked me.” He couldn’t resist. His heart was lifting at Brent’s words, but he refused to betray exactly how worried he was.
“Numbskull.” Brent hugged his friend with affection. “Listen, the ladies won’t talk about where they’ve been until we’re all together, so look sharp. Go and take off your wet cloak and meet us in the snug?”
“Is Pru there?”
“Yes. She just came downstairs.”
“Five minutes.” He was heading for the snug in four, which was quite fast for someone who shook out his cloak and found a hook for it, then rushed to the rear of the Inn to take advantage of the outhouse.
However, Reid was possessed with the crushing need to see Prudence, touch her and make sure she was all in one piece. That was more than enough to add an extra dash of speed to his actions.
Tidy, dry and comfortable, he strode to the snug, opened the door—and looked straight into her eyes.
“Oh God, Pru.” His heart turned over and his lungs expelled a sigh of relief.
“Reid…” She stood, her hand lifting toward him, her lips curving into a smile. “Reid, we’re all right.”
He went to her, took her hand and touched her hair. He couldn’t resist the impulse to reassure himself she was really there. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. Please sit down. I’m so sorry we worried you.”
“Worried? Me?” He took a breath. “Whatever makes you think that? I awoke to find you gone, but my horse was still there. So the first question I had to deal with was how did you leave? Did you walk? And then I get here to find you’d not arrived. So if you walked, had you fallen? Been abducted? Run away? Were you lying bleeding and helpless in a ditch somewhere?” He sucked in air. “God, no I wasn’t worried. I was bloody frantic, woman.”
“Um…” She blinked at him. “Sorry?”
“Grrrr…”
“Do stop, Reid.” Brent sighed. “They’re quite well. I want to know what happened every bit as much as you, and if you would please stop acting like a cross between an ass and your mother, perhaps we’ll hear the story.”
So with a narrow-eyed stare at Brent, Reid sat down next to Prudence. “Very well. Now what on earth happened?”
“I got a bit lost.” She grimaced. “I thought I knew the road back to the Inn, but I took a wrong turn somewhere, and then there was Emmeline, looking cold and miserable…”
Prudence began the tale, ably assisted by Emmeline who added details that Pru had missed.
Reid couldn’t help noticing how much Emmeline had changed since meeting Brent. Overnight she’d gone from being a nitwit to a charming young woman. She was obviously devoted to him and Brent? Completely besotted.
The story continued and he knew a frown was forming between his brows. “I don’t know any Hecate Ridlington. And if she’d arrived anywhere near here, the whole village would have known about it.”
“That’s what I thought too. But she was there…a large-ish cottage, nice little garden, or at least what I could see of it that wasn’t buried in snow, and some lovely and elegant furnishings.” Prudence shrugged. “I can only assume she prefers privacy, and if it’s the Hecate Ridlington I’m thinking of, I am not surprised.”
Emmeline looked at Prudence. “What do you know of her? You said you’d met, if I remember correctly.”
“Well, we were at the same event in London,” answered Pru. “I don’t think we were introduced, but it was around the time she became…let’s just say she was talked about quite a bit.”
“Why?” Brent looked intrigued. “I can’t remember hearing about her, although I think I’ve met a Baron Ridlington. Would they be related?”
“Yes, I think so.” Prudence scraped her memories of that time, pushing aside the less pleasant ones to focus on finding the information she knew had to be in her mind somewhere. “There are a lot of Ridlingtons, I heard. All children of Baron Ridlington. But Lady Hecate came to everyone’s attention when she attempted to elope with Dancey Miller-James.”
“Urgh.” Brent made a face. “Loathsome bounder.”
“Probably. I wouldn’t know,” said Prudence. “But whatever the situation, it came to a bad end. The carriage overturned and Miller-James was crushed to death. Hecate was seriously injured and not expected to survive, but then she recovered to everyone’s astonishment. Left her with a limp though.”
“Wasn’t there something about her not being found near the wreck? I believe I heard odd stories about an injured woman walking for several miles…” Brent frowned in thought.
“Gossip.” Pru snorted. “Nothing more, nothing less. A woman injured that badly certainly isn’t going to walk away on her own.”
“So this tea she gave you both…” Reid had a lot of questions, but this was top of his list.
“Yes, it was herbal. She said it was sage, I think.” Emmeline thought about it. “It tasted quite nice. I believe there was honey in it too.” She turned to Brent. “And the scones? Oh my goodness. The best I’ve ever had.”
He smiled. “Now I know you like scones. We have so much to learn about each other, Emmeline darling.”
Reid was about to make a somewhat sarcastic comment when a shoe thudded into his shin and made him gasp. Prudence shot him a very pointed look and a quick shake of her head.
“You already know me far too well,” he grinned.
“Yes,” she admitted. “Yes, I think I do. And that scares me.”
He opened his mouth, but she silenced him with a hand on his arm. “Not now. Later.”
He had no choice. “Very well. Later.”
The conversation continued, although the ladies had imparted just about every detail they could recall about their sojourn with Hecate Ridlington.
Eventually it was decided that they would enjoy a belated luncheon and then take the Inn’s carriage for a run past where Prudence believed Hecate’s house had been located.
Thus an hour or so later, all four of them set off to locate, and thank, Hecate Ridlington.
The driver knew the area quite well, so it wasn’t much later that they found themselves in the general area that both Emmeline and Prudence said looked quite familiar.
Disembarking from the carriage, they asked the driver to wait while they walked up one or two of the smaller lanes nearby. Not averse to taking instructions from Young Mr. Chillendale, who was known to be a generous man, the driver nodded, and pulled a pipe from an inside pocket.
The foursome took off on foot, with Prudence drawing on her memory to point out various landmarks—a tree with a fallen branch, and a strangely shaped root protruding into the lane.
Then, after about fifteen minutes or so, she grabbed Reid’s arm. “There. Look, there’s the entrance.”
“Yes, oh yes. That’s quite right. Well done, Prudence.” Emmeline beamed at her.
“Very well,” said Brent. “Time to go and thank the lady herself.”
They walked up to the small brick columns that marked the entrance to the drive and stopped dead.
There was a drive, but it was overgrown and m
uddy, sheltered as it was by the thick firs.
There was a house, but it was dark as night, and with the windows empty. It was, for all intents and purposes, deserted. And it looked as if it had been that way for many years.
“I-I…” Prudence was at a loss for words, her mouth open, her eyes wide.
“It’s not possible,” whispered Emmeline, clutching Brent’s hand.
“This is completely absurd,” he answered, but he too stared at the dark and shuttered house.
“It’s a mystery indeed,” said Reid. “Perhaps it’s a Christmas miracle? Or perhaps this is the wrong house?”
Prudence whirled on him. “Don’t be an ass, Reid. Both Emmeline and I remember those pillars.”
He grinned. “All right. So it’s magic. I don’t know what else to say. And you know something? I am so happy that we’re together again and that you’re not hurt or lying in a ditch, that I’m quite all right with that outlandish idea.”
It took a moment, but she relaxed and smiled at him. “I think that is the best way to look at this. Although some day I want to find out what really happened.”
“Perhaps we all will,” said Brent. “But for now, we have things to talk about. And I have a call to pay.” He gazed lovingly at Emmeline. “To your father.”
She beamed back at him. “I can’t wait, Brent. Truly. I can’t wait.”
Chapter Twelve
“Alone at last.” Reid closed the door of Prudence’s room, shutting the two of them inside. “Brent and Emmeline are an adorable couple. But I’m done with adorable.”
“Oh really?” Prudence glanced at him.
“Yes. I want magnificent. Come here.” He held out his hands, waiting for her.
“You’re very sure of yourself.” She put her palms in his and let him draw her close.
“I’m very sure of us,” he answered. And kissed her.
Oh how he kissed her. It was everything she’d ever dreamed of, ever imagined a kiss should be. It was passionate, loving and demanding, his lips taking her into their own private world where nothing and no one existed but them.
Turning, moving, touching and holding, Pru had no idea how long the kiss lasted, but by the time it was done and they drew apart, she was breathless, a little dizzy and shaking from head to foot.