A Timeless Romance Anthology: European Collection

by Annette Lyon

  Reviewing every word and every look that had passed between them in nearly a week’s time, she felt terribly used. How gullible he must have thought me! What a green girl I was to believe someone like him could have fallen head over heels for me! Likely the only reason for his desire to elope was that the bailiffs were camping on his doorstep. His debts must have been urgent indeed. But the worst thing by far is his acting as though he loved me— he was so tender, so passionate. As though I were the most desirable girl in the world.

  All day, she had blotted out these realizations with action and then exhaustion. But now they would not leave her. She was appalled by her naiveté. Indeed, it seemed she directed as much of her anger at herself as she did at Thomas. He probably thought she knew he was at his last prayers, financially. According to Donald, all of London knew. He probably thought she was so desperate to get out of her unwanted engagement that she would welcome his marrying her for her money. At last, she gave into tears of humiliation and cried herself to sleep.

  Chapter Four

  Lord Oaksey was enjoying the novel sensation of having more than a feather to fly with. He had been to Lord Kent’s man of business, obtained a draft for thirty-thousand pounds, and spent the better part of the morning staring at it, trying to take it in while waiting to see his bank manager. His days of poverty, of trying to maintain the stature expected of a gentleman, on a very thin stipend, were over. Bless Lady Melissa Aldridge, now his dear wife.

  Finally, he was called in to see Mr. Judd. Placing the bank draft on his desk, Oaksey said, “There you have it. I’m certain you never thought you would live to see the day that I repaid my overdraft.”

  Judd stared at the draft. “Thirty thousand pounds. You must have married money!”

  “And a very lovely young lady. Daughter of Lord Kent— Lady Melissa Aldridge. I thank you for your indulgence these many months.”

  “I don’t mind telling you it worried me tremendously, seeing your inheritance dwindle as you restored your estate. How anyone could live on the stipend you allowed yourself, I don’t know. Congratulations on your fortunate marriage.”

  Next, Oaksey went to White’s, where he wrote out drafts to those friends who had lent him money and probably never expected to see it again.

  Lord Russell said, “Congratulations, old man. That gel you ran off with had the dibs, eh?”

  “Lady Melissa. She is a lovely thing. I am indeed fortunate.”

  “Billiards?”

  He drew a long breath. No longer must he shun a gentleman’s pastimes. He could afford to wager now. “Yes.”

  As luck would have it, now that he was possessed of money, he won more often. That same luck extended to whist and faro.

  At dinner, he extended his hospitality the friends he had repaid that day. Four bottles of claret were consumed, toasts were made, songs were sung. It was very late by the time he made it back to the Kents’.

  Surely Melissa would understand; she had a father and a brother and knew that gentlemen didn’t spend their time hanging about hearth and home every night. For the better part of a week, he had spent all his time with her. Not that he regretted it. She was lovely and bright. Oaksey was very satisfied with his wife.

  He was therefore surprised upon his return to find that she was not in their bed in her bedroom. The household was asleep. Where on the earth could she be? Had she taken a bed in another room for some reason?

  Taking off his boots, he gingerly explored the hallway in the other direction from the Kents’ suite. In one room, he found Lord Donald lying across his bed in his evening clothes, sleeping off his drink. There were two more bedrooms, but both were empty.

  Where the devil has she got to?

  It was only then that he remembered Oaksey House and the key he had given her. Luckily, he had another. But Oaksey house had been shut up since his father’s time. Why would she choose to sleep there? It was a bit grim inside, to say the least.

  He went back downstairs and put his boots on, glad that he had learned to do without a valet, and walked out into the night. It was a brisk ten-minute walk to Oaksey House.

  Turning his key in the lock, he hardly knew what to expect. He had not been in the house in at least twenty years. Surely the last time had been when he was ten years old and the family had removed to London for the Season. Since inheriting, he had chosen to spend his money on much-needed repairs to his estate in Suffolk and had nothing to spare for this place.

  It smelled horribly musty. Groping about in the dark, he located a candlestick on the hall table. After lighting it, he found his way upstairs.

  There she was, asleep on the bed in the master suite. Melissa must not have been able to wait to be mistress of her own home, such as it was. He smiled to himself.

  By candlelight, her eyelashes looked like fans on her smooth cheeks. Her bright blonde hair was in a single long plait. Desire stirred within him, and he bent down to kiss her.

  Chapter Five

  Melissa was awakened only slightly by a kiss in the middle of a dream about Thomas. Too deeply asleep to remember the revelations of the day, she brought her arms around her husband’s neck and drew him to her for a lengthier, more satisfying embrace. The taste of wine on his breath gradually brought her to full consciousness. Breaking her clasp, she brought her hands down so they lay flat on his chest. She gave him a mighty shove.

  “Go back to your own rooms or to my parents’ house. You are not welcome here!”

  “Melissa! You have had a nightmare, darling. I am your husband. We are married, remember? This is my house.”

  “From this day, we are married in name only,” she said, pushing him again. “You are never to touch me again. Now, go!”

  Thomas stood by the bed, fully dressed. “What is this? Why are you behaving like a melodramatic schoolgirl? What has happened to upset you?”

  “I found out that you have deceived me most cruelly. Please leave. I do not wish to see you or speak to you.” Melissa rolled over so her back was to him. So she could not see his handsome face and athletic build looming over her. When she did not hear him move, she said into the darkness, “Leave me!”

  “I will not. You are behaving most foolishly. In what way have I deceived you?”

  Humiliated by the idea that he thought her unable to see through his actions, she refused to utter a word. Finally, she heard the floorboards squeak as he moved off. But sleep had deserted her. She had no idea of the time. None of the clocks in the house were wound. Aching freshly over Thomas’s deception, she lay on her back and stared through the darkness, her happy memories of the last week blotted out.

  Melissa kicked back her blankets in frustration. Going to sit in the window seat, she viewed the gray dawn. Thomas had been out very late. Drinking. Probably celebrating his escape from debtor’s prison.

  A step sounded on the bare floor. Melissa jumped.

  “You did not really think I would go away, did you? This is my house.”

  “I have chosen to live here,” she said, masking her fury with a low, calm voice. “Therefore, you must live elsewhere.”

  “Why?” There was a note in Thomas’s voice she had never heard before. He had never been anything but kind and loving, but now his voice was sharp.

  She gripped the seat where she sat and raised her chin. “Did you think I would not find out? My brother told me. How he went to you, told you about my dowry. You saw an opportunity to clear your debts. This was the reason you eloped with me.”

  “All of London knew of my debts. Of course that is why I married you.”

  His words cut clear through her. What she had expected, that he would deny it?

  Anger sent blood to her head, and she shook with fury. “I have more than paid for this house. You will dwell elsewhere. I care not where.”

  “I thought we dealt well together, Melissa. We can continue on that path, or we can part, if you are determined. I think you are turning your back on happiness because your pride is hurt.”


  His words so inflamed her, she could not reply. For several moments, Oaksey stood, brows drawn together over his eyes, his lips in a firm, thin line. “Very well. As you wish.” He turned and walked out of the room, his heels sounding loudly on the floor and the stairs. Even from the second floor, Melissa could hear the front door bang shut.

  Angry tears flooded her eyes and coursed down her cheeks, over her chin, and down her neck. Against all reason, she had hoped that he would convince her of his love. And now he was gone. She sat like a statue, feeling her heart break.

  Chapter Six

  Lying in his bed in Melissa’s parents’ house, Thomas was more than a little annoyed. He had thought her magnanimous not to have brought up his debts before this, but it turned out he had married a foolish creature, indeed. She truly had not known of his debts. How, he did not know. Her father did. Her brother did. But she had not? And to think he had thought he was falling in love with the girl! He certainly desired her, though.

  And now how was he to live? He would not stay in London and let her make him a laughingstock. No. He would go down to Oaksey Hall. Thomas loved his home, and now he had money to repair it. It was early enough in the season that he could still see to the planting.

  His mind was soon busy with the long-delayed projects that he could undertake— draining the south field, mending the worker’s cottages, experimenting with cross-breeding strains of wheat.

  He would not dwell on the false enchantment of his honeymoon. Yet even as he made this resolve, his thoughts wandered to his wife, and he found that his grand plans were not sufficient to overcome the ache in his heart.

  How could the woman go from loving him to despising him in so short a period? He had poured his limited means into saving Oaksey Hall with hopes that he and his wife would raise a family there. How ironic if he was to be forced to live there alone with all the money he needed but no family.

  Giving up on sleep, he climbed from bed, dressed, and began to make preparations for a journey. He saw neither Lord nor Lady Kent at the early hour. After eating a poor breakfast, his was on his way to Suffolk.

  Oaksey Hall was a hard day’s ride from London to North Suffolk. Taking his black stallion, Magic, the lone extravagance he had allowed himself, Thomas urged him to a gallop, looking to ride out at least some of his disappointment in Melissa’s declarations.

  The many colors of green in the landscape did not soothe him in the way they normally did. His thoughts were all of dashed hopes. Despite the fact that she had proven to be childish and stubborn, he longed for Melissa’s company. He had long dreamed of bringing a bride home to his estate. Family was the reason he had sacrificed almost everything to preserve his home.

  His own mother had died when he was fifteen and away at school. His father had followed her only a year later. Thomas never had siblings. Fortunate to have a devoted mother and father, his warm memories of childhood had informed his adulthood. Though he had been financially strapped and had sown his share of wild oats, he had always intended to settle down. In this desire, he was influenced by visions of his lovely mother.

  In the garden bower among the bees and butterflies, she had read stories of her own devising, of pirates and buccaneers, sultans and sheiks, duels and derring-do. Before he had gone away to Harrow when he was ten, she had been his teacher. A former governess, Mama had taught him in the cozy nursery below the eaves. He had learned to read, do sums, and explore the world through her inventive geography lessons. Thomas had even learned something of classical history and Latin, her favorite subjects.

  Always calm and unruffled, his mother had possessed an unusual beauty, which reminded him of gardenias. His father, of whom Thomas was the perfect image, had worshipped her. She was a vicar’s daughter and had brought no dowry. They had scarcely any servants, and the hall was literally falling down about them, but at ten, Thomas had not realized these things. His principal recollection was of listening to his father read to him in the evenings by the drawing room fire, or of the two of them listening to his mother play pianoforte. They were not social people. He had grown up in the circle of their contentment until a legacy from an uncle had given them the funds to send him to school.

  He had dreamed of home during those hurly-burly school years. Then the death of his parents had left him profoundly melancholy and alone. And so, from that time to this, he had always fantasized about reconstructing his little family and its cozy felicity. Those dreams were behind all he had done to reconstruct the physical foundations of Oaksey Hall with what was left of his uncle’s legacy.

  Unlike his father, he had married money. But he had not married just anyone. He had been captivated from the first by Melissa’s cheerful good humor and charm. Before he had even known the amount of her dowry, he thought he had seen the partner of his dreams.

  He had been wrong. Now approaching his home, he felt more alone than ever. The first few days, he tried to compose a letter to express his love. Every time he recalled his behavior that first day in town, the more hopeless he became of convincing her. How could he explain how elated he had felt about being out of debt after so long, without underscoring what he had said about the reason he had married her? Looking back, he realized that he had taken her love for granted. He had behaved in a manner most unfeeling.

  His acts nor his words spoke of a man in love, and no mere letter could convince her otherwise.

  Chapter Seven

  Melissa stayed awake after her husband had left. Still angry after the sun was fully up, she hoped to not see him again for a very long time.

  Not only did she not see him, but she heard nothing of him. She did not speak to her parents about the reason for her estrangement with his lordship, and Sophie had gone to Vienna with Frank on their honeymoon. Melissa had no one else to confide in, so she kept her own counsel. She stayed busy enough. Before six weeks had passed, she had her home completely in order.

  She tried to take comfort in the beautiful dark blue and gold theme carried through the downstairs, and in the handsome cherry-wood furniture that adorned the rooms. The upstairs featured lavenders, apple greens, and blush pinks. But when this project was completed, her lonely state was even more evident. She only shared this beautiful home with a handful of servants. Its emptiness echoed around her.

  Melissa knew that gossip about her and her estranged husband was fierce. Because she had never been one to ignore a challenge, she began to go about in Society. Whenever she paid a call, talk ceased the moment she walked into the room. A few seconds later, it resumed— louder than before.

  Her mother was constantly badgering her. “Melissa, where has your husband disappeared to? Now that he has your money, has he left you and gone off somewhere to enjoy it without you? You should hear what the gossips are saying! I can hardly hold up my head.”

  “Do not worry, Mama. They will soon have something else to talk of.”

  She was planning her first dinner party, with her brother playing host, when she began to feel ill. At first it was just a malaise, a dip in spirits. She could not stop her mind from returning to the scenes of her honeymoon. Melissa’s anger began finally to cool, and she wondered if she had made a terrible mistake in sending her husband away. Truth to tell, she had really never thought he would oblige her by staying away from Oaksey House. The fact that he had found her so easy to leave was another private grief.

  One day, she steeled herself to go to his rooms and leave him a note.

  Dear Thomas,

  I know I was very angry when last we spoke. I still do not feel that you behaved in an upright manner towards me, but I should like to see you, nevertheless. Will you please call upon me?

  Your wife,

  Melissa

  For days, she waited for him with increasing eagerness, but he did not come. It was then that the exceeding exhaustion began. And she felt nauseated at all hours of the day. Thinking she had some sort of rheumatism, she gave up on the idea of a dinner party and spent her days in her dressing room,
her low spirits and poor health combining to make her exceptionally cross.

  Her mother paid a call after missing her visits for several days. “My dear, have you gone into seclusion? We cannot have that. People will say you are pining for your husband! What is amiss?”

  “Oh, Mama, I am afraid I am indeed pining for Thomas. It is making me quite ill.

  I have no desire to do anything.”

  “Can you not make up your quarrel?” her mother asked.

  Lying on the daybed in her dressing room, Melissa brought up her forearm to cover her eyes and the tears that were starting. “I wrote him a note asking him to call, but he has not seen fit to do so.”

  “I shall have your father go see him.”

  “No, Mama. I do not want that. I desire him to come of his own accord.”

  “Are you never going to tell me what all this is about, Melissa, dear? You were so happy when you came home from Scotland. Even though I was very angry, I could still see that.”

  Melissa felt so emotional that she decided it would be a relief to finally confide in someone. “Donald told me the morning after we arrived that he had gone to Thomas. The elopement was Donald’s idea. He knew that Thomas had debts, ones so pressing that everyone in London knew. Except for me. Donald told him about my dowry. He did marry me for money.”

  After a silent moment, her mother said, “Well, dear, your father married me for mine.”

  Melissa stared at her mother. “He did?”

  “Indeed. And I must say, even though it was not a love match, he has treated me very well, and I have no regrets.”

  “I am glad you are content, but when you were young like me, did you not wish to have a love match?”

  “Of course. Every young girl does, no matter what she says. But I have seen that what starts out as a love match does not often endure past first attraction, though it be strong. I know you think me silly at times, but I do know a few things by virtue of my age. It takes more than desire to make a solid marriage, you know.”