“There is no dragon, my lord,” she replied, finding the words coming naturally now. “I fear if I was caught here alone with you, my name would be ruined.”
“I fear that, as well,” he said, “for if anyone knew what I did, the ridicule would be great. However, fear not! For you will not come here alone again.” Her breath caught as he took a step forward, only inches between them as he took her hand in his. “There is no dragon, nor any man, to keep you away from me. I will continue to seek your approval, to win your heart and mind, surely until my last breath. I want to be the gentleman you want, Isabel. Not to save you but rather to save myself.”
Isabel found breathing difficult, and her head began to spin, much like she had felt after drinking ale at the pub. This time, however, the feeling was pleasant rather than alarming. She considered her time in London thus far. Lies had come from her lips after she had accused him of lying. She had drunk ale in a pub. Like today, she had broken many rules of society. The words he had spoken worked their way into her heart, and she had learned that the man she thought was arrogant was not. He was kind and took great steps to show his eagerness to win her over.
She considered breaking one more rule. “You may…”
Before she completed the thought, he leaned in and kissed her. It was the most wondrous of all things—soft, sensual, and yet exhilarating, and she found herself wanting more. Much to her disappointment, however, the kiss ended and breath found its way back into her lungs.
“That was beautiful,” she whispered.
He nodded. “As are you. Come, we should leave and return you to your home before your parents wonder if I have kidnapped you.”
Though she wanted to stay, she knew the man was right. Then a sound made them turn, and Isabel saw Miss Miriam hurrying away. She should have been concerned for Daniel’s friend, yet Isabel was much too happy to give the woman a second thought. And as she stepped outside into the bright sunlight, her heart was happy because the gentleman she had been in search of for so long was at her side.
Chapter Fifteen
The carriage ride back through the London streets to the townhouse Isabel and her family had rented for the season was pleasant enough, and Daniel felt a lightheartedness he had not felt in a very long time. Except during his performing, that is. Beyond the stage, he found his life to be less bright—less real if that were possible—than when the play was in session. Now, however, he had met someone who could make those days gleam. Twice he thought he had lost Isabel, but now, through determination and insistence, they would be courting, and just thinking about it made him smile.
“Once I return to Shelford, I will call on you,” Daniel said. “I will give my notice first thing tomorrow so my alternate can assume my role.”
“If that is what you wish,” Isabel said.
“It is exactly what I wish. I want only to be with you.”
Miriam snorted in her corner of the seat but then covered it with a cough. However, Daniel had heard her clearly. Well, he would deal with her later. Right now, he only had eyes for the woman across from him: Miss Isabel St. Clair. And she was more beautiful than anything he had seen in his life.
“Here we are,” Daniel said as the carriage came to a stop in front of the townhouse. The driver jumped down and placed the step on the ground before opening the door. Daniel alighted first so he could help Isabel, for any chance to hold her hand was a wondrous opportunity indeed.
After speaking to her parents, Daniel bid Isabel a fond farewell, promising to see her again soon. It amazed him how much his life had changed, and so dramatically, and he knew many steps would need to be taken over the next few months until he was able to ask her father for her hand in marriage. The idea of having her for his wife excited him, but it felt more right than anything in life could ever be.
As the carriage pulled away and made its way back to his London home, Miriam stared out the window, giving no indication that she knew Daniel was in the carriage with her. She was talkative and engaging on most occasions, but the woman who had moved into the seat across from him was nothing like herself. What could be bothering her after such a wonderful afternoon was beyond him.
“I do not care what season it is,” he said in an attempt to begin a conversation, “the sun has never shone brighter than it has this day.”
Miriam sniffed derisively but said nothing as she continued to stare out the window.
“This has been a lesson of patience for me,” he continued. “I knew if I showed her what I do, she would understand.”
He was met with silence once again.
“Miriam, what is bothering you?”
Miriam turned to face him. “Nothing.”
He did not believe her, but he nodded. She would come around when she was ready. He rubbed his finger against his thumb. With things changing so rapidly, it was time to take the first step, and Miriam would not be happy with those changes.
“There are things we need to discuss,” he said. “Minor points, really.”
She laughed, a soft mocking sound that made him sit back in his seat. “Minor things?” she said. “I suspect you must write your mother and inform her that your voyage to India never took place.” She leaned forward, her eyes accusing. “Then you must explain who I am, your mysterious cousin, some unknown niece she never knew existed.” She snorted. “No, I suppose it cannot be done, can it? I will be forced to find other accommodations, because explaining why I am at your house simply cannot be done.”
He let out a sigh. “Miriam, we can arrange…”
“No,” she snapped as she leaned back into the seat and crossed her arms under her breasts. “There is nothing to arrange. All I ask is that you allow me to stay until our break next month. Then I will return home to allow you to pursue whatever it is you wish to pursue. I imagine my father will be happy to have me back so I can help tend the sheep and milk the cow as I did before I was free to pursue my dreams.”
“Perhaps you can remain at the house and I can stay at an inn. When I leave, you are welcome to remain there. The house will be vacant, besides the servants, and thus available.”
“And how will that look to others, Daniel? A spinster living in your home while you are away or staying at an inn? People will say that I am your mistress or some sort of kept woman. I did not come to London to be made of fool of, nor will I have people believing such horrible things about me.”
“Maybe no one will find out…”
She laughed again. “Surely when your mother speaks to Isabel’s parents, they will mention me. There is no way out of this; you do realize this, do you not?”
He sighed and shook his head. “I may not have a solution as of yet, but I will think of something. As for residing at the house, you know you are always welcome. The servants know of our arrangement and not once in all the time you have stayed have I heard then speak inappropriately about us. They would be as loyal to you as they are to me, so you needn’t worry about anyone believing poorly of you.”
She snickered. “You pay them well enough to keep their tongues from wagging, but you cannot guarantee they will continue to keep their silence once you are gone. Their loyalty lies in you, not me.”
“I’m sorry I have upset you,” he said. He cared for Miriam, for she was a dear friend, and the last thing he wanted to do was hurt her. No one knew him as well as Miriam did, and she kept his secret better than he would expect from anyone.
“You have upset me,” she replied, “but not only in the way you expect. I must ask you one thing.”
“Of course. Whatever you want.”
“You brought Miss St. Clair to the theater today to show her that which is your greatest passion, the one thing you love above all else; am I correct in saying so?”
He nodded. “You are. I did wish to show her what was important to me.”
“Yet, you are planning to give it up for her? That makes no sense to me. Do you not think you will be miserable doing so?”
He considered
her words as he thought about his future. Would he be happy to never take the stage again? Or would he find himself, as she said, miserable? Then his thoughts went to Isabel. As long as she was beside him, he would be happy, for that he was certain.
“No, I believe Isabel will make me happier than I have ever been, even happier than my time in the theater.”
“Then if that is so, I wish you the best. However, I must warn you; do not be surprised when things do not work out as you have planned.”
***
Daniel spent the following days highly occupied. He wrote to his mother to tell her the news of his courtship with Isabel. He also informed the theater troupe that he would be resigning his part in the play, which made his understudy very happy but saddened those with whom he had worked for so many years. He fretted over Miriam and what she would do until the season ended, but no solution beyond her remaining at his house came to mind. He still had not told Isabel who Miriam really was and that she was living in the same house as he, and after careful consideration, he realized it would be best if she did not learn of it. It would only spark anger and jealousy for a situation that did not exist.
“You have gone quiet,” Isabel said as she strolled beside him along the footpath. It was a bright Wednesday morning just before midday, and Mr. and Mrs. St. Clair walked a few paces behind them, close enough to escort but far enough away to allow them privacy to talk. Carriages rumbled across the cobblestone in the street as passersby hailed one another in greeting. The air held a heartiness that Daniel felt emanated from the woman beside him. Her smile could light up any darkness and heighten any downtroddenness that might come one’s way.
“I was thinking of the theater,” he replied to her question. “I plan on leaving it in a month’s time.”
She let out a small sigh. “I do not wish for you to leave if you would rather remain. It was never my intention; I hope you know this.”
He smiled, for he knew she did not lie. “No,” he said as they moved around an older couple who had stopped in the middle of the path. “It is best that I leave. Too many lies have wrapped around me while I was there, and I do not wish to live such a life any longer. Besides, I would not be able to cope with being alone in London for too long once you return to Eaton. And I do not want you left alone in there, available for any gentleman to come calling on you.”
She laughed, and he found the sound as beautiful as she. “If you are courting me, there is no reason for another gentleman to come calling,” she said. Then she stared off into the distance. “What are your thoughts of the future? Do you wish to remain in Shelford forever? What I mean to say is, I know your home is there, but…well, are there other plans you have for your life?”
“I believe I would not mind a quiet life in Shelford, unless someone wanted me to move elsewhere.”
Her cheeks turned a delectable shade of pink but she said nothing in response.
“My life will be filled with business matters,” he continued. “But I will always take time for leisure. And yourself? What do you wish for your life?”
They slowed their steps and she glanced down, seeming lost in her thoughts, her brow furrowed. Finally, she replied, “For a long time I wanted to travel, to see more of England, maybe even Scotland or other places in the world. As time progressed, my parents—well, that is my mother for the most part—reminded me that once I am married, I will serve my husband in his home, and that such notions of travel are childish flights of fancy.”
“One’s dreams are not childish,” he said, his heart swelling, “for dreams never are flights of fancy. My wife will travel with me, exploring wherever she wishes to go. I do not think I will be able to tell her no.”
“She will be fortunate indeed,” Isabel said, her blush deepening. “May I ask what she will look like?”
He laughed. “Well, of course, her beauty will be unmatched, with hair so red it will reflect the fire of passion that burns within her.”
Isabel stumbled for a moment and then righted herself. “A hole,” she explained.
He said nothing about the hole he could not see. “And you? What will you expect in a husband?”
She seemed to consider this for a moment and then said, “The gentleman I wed will be kind, eager to converse, and enjoy much of the same things as I, such as nature and reading. But most of all, he will have to love me as much as I love him. Yes, love must be the foundation of my marriage, that above all else.” She giggled. “I suppose I sound quite impractical.”
“Not at all,” he replied. “I have always thought that love existed. At least onstage, when I perform, it exists there.” He cursed himself inwardly; had he not kissed Miriam onstage? Bringing up such a contentious topic was not a prudent idea. He could not help but wonder if such an action caused jealousy. What did he truly know of love? “I’m sorry. I speak of something of which I know very little beyond the make-believe of the stage.”
Rather than being offended, she glanced over her shoulder at her parents and then turned back to him and smiled. “What you have said is true,” she whispered. “The love I have always wished for only existed either in books or within my own mind. Perhaps it can be found in the real world after all.”
He stopped beside the curb of the street. “I hope it can,” he whispered back as his carriage pulled up beside them. The driver jumped down from his seat and placed the step in front of the door as Mr. and Mrs. St. Clair walked up.
“Well, it has been a pleasant day, has it not, my lord?” Mr. St. Clair said.
Daniel smiled at Isabel. “That it has, St. Clair. That it has.”
Once the family was inside the carriage and the door was closed, Daniel watched the woman who had won his heart ride away. Yes, he believed he had found love with Isabel and he would do anything he could to make her love him. The steps he had already taken would help him achieve that goal, for he could not imagine his life without her.
Chapter Sixteen
The weeks passed quickly and the weather grew colder—the great chill of late February before spring arrived. Isabel had seen Daniel four times more over a three-week period, and at each meeting they were able to share more of their hearts—in hurried whispers of course so her parents would not overhear—topics of the past and those of the future. What they learned was that they both shared a love and hope for travel, even of distant places, and they grew closer each time they met.
In one more week, Daniel would say goodbye to the theater and return to Shelford. The man would not be alone, however, for she would be returning soon herself to Eaton. Isabel could not help but be happy about how well they got on. She was not certain it was love they shared, for she was not even sure what love actually was. However, if a longing and desire to see a man she found handsome constituted love, then that was surely with what she was inflicted.
Now, on a Saturday evening, Isabel sat in the parlor of Elizabeth’s London home. Elizabeth’s mother sat rigidly in her chair awaiting her husband before they were to leave for a dinner party. It had taken much argument on Elizabeth’s part to convince her parents that she did not need to attend such a gathering, as it was meant to be an opportunity for the men to discuss business while the women shared in the latest gossip or discussion of fashion.
“I do worry that you girls will be left alone here until tomorrow evening,” her mother said with a sigh. “Perhaps I should stay in this evening so you are not on your own.”
Isabel’s heart skipped a beat. She and Elizabeth had devised a plan, and if her mother remained at home, they would not be able to leave the house.
“Mother,” Elizabeth replied with a shake of her head, “there is no need to worry. Isabel and I will be discussing our eventual marriages, and more importantly, our weddings and who will be in attendance. There is no reason for you to stay behind simply to listen to any of that.” The lies rolled off the tongue for Elizabeth with such ease, Isabel almost laughed.
“Of course, you are right,” Lady Haddington said with anot
her sigh just as Elizabeth’s father entered the room. The woman stood and smoothed her dress, though it had no wrinkles. “I forget you two are no longer small children. I shall see you tomorrow.” She leaned in and kissed each of their cheeks. Lady Haddington had always treated Isabel as one of her own daughters just as Isabel’s mother treated Elizabeth the same.
After a final farewell and a wave, Elizabeth smiled once again, clearly forced if one were to take notice, before closing the front door of the house. When she turned around, she gave a heavy sigh and leaned against the door.
“Such miserable people,” she said and then walked back to the parlor and headed straight for the liquor cart. “This deserves a strong drink. Brandy? Yes, that is what we shall drink.”
“Yes, it does sound nice,” Isabel replied. It was strange that she was agreeing to such a thing as of late; what had happened to her sensibilities?
Elizabeth let out a giggle.
“And what do you find so funny?” Isabel asked with indignation.
Elizabeth shook her head as she handed the glass to Isabel. “It was only a month ago that I could not get you to slip away with me from a party to have drinks with my friends,” she said with a wide grin. “And now? You are wanting to leave the shelter of my house to go to the theater once again. My, what a lady of dubious morals you have become.”
For a moment, Isabel thought her friend to be serious with her words, but then the woman winked as she lifted her glass in a toast.
“To my friend Isabel, who, although she denies it, has fallen in love.”
“I am not in love,” Isabel argued before taking a sip of the strong drink. She coughed for several seconds before adding, “I find myself intrigued with the Baron is all.”
Elizabeth walked over to the fireplace, the wood crackling and the light shining brightly. “Intrigued, my left foot,” she said. “Does kissing a man in the shadows come about from simply being intrigued?”
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