You Never Forget Your First Earl

by Ella Quinn

  “Famous. If you tell me where you’re staying, I’ll send a message when we’re ready to offload your cattle and carriages.”

  “The Princess Henrietta,” Geoff said promptly. “I understand it is inside the city walls. Have you any idea how long it will be?”

  “Give me an hour or so to get your trunks out of the hold and these fellows”—he nodded to the soldiers—“into port, and I’ll be ready for you.”

  “Thank you. We’ll be ready.” Geoffrey led Elizabeth back to the companionway. “You were awake most of the night. Do you wish to rest when we get to the hotel?”

  The question took Elizabeth by surprise. She had honestly not expected him to notice. “I am tired, but I think I would like to see some of the town. And discuss where we go next.” She took in the wan look in his face. “But if you would like to rest? You were quite ill.”

  “No. I’m happy to stroll around Ostend.” She was about to mention their further travel when he said, “I sent a messenger to Sir Charles with the first boat that went in asking him for instructions.”

  “Will we wait here until they are received?” How long would that take? she wondered. It was already close to the middle of June. Lord Markham had assured Geoffrey that as long as they were on the Continent by the fifteenth, Sir Charles would be happy.

  “It is over one hundred miles to Brussels, and we will not be able to travel quickly. I would like to start out as soon as the horses are rested.”

  “That sounds like a good idea.” It also meant that he would be too busy to care about them sharing a bedchamber. Or so she hoped.

  Later that afternoon they were settled into their hotel, and the next morning, Captain Higgins sent a note round that the horses and carriage would be offloaded within the next two hours.

  Geoff and Elizabeth strolled down to the port to watch. One would have thought that the inhabitants of Ostend would be used to that type of thing, but despite that, a small crowd gathered in front of the pier. Even he had to admit that seeing the horses come out of the hold in a sling was impressive.

  “They do not appear frightened at all,” Elizabeth said in a tone of wonder. “I thought for sure my mare would be terrified.”

  “They’ve done well,” Geoff agreed.

  As soon as they were stabled, he’d inspect them himself.

  In a very short time, their grooms had the horses harnessed and a small procession started off to the hotel’s stables.

  Now that they were in Holland, Geoff was eager to be on his way, but the horses needed to rest, and until he heard from Sir Charles, he had no idea in which direction to travel. Fortunately, Geoff did not have to wait long.

  Early the following morning as they were breaking their fast, a message came for Geoffrey from Sir Charles. He shook open the missive and read it quickly. “We travel to Brussels.”

  “That is where I hoped we would go.” Elizabeth called for their senior staff to attend them.

  Reading the letter again, Geoffrey frowned. “Do you mind if I ride?”

  “No. Is something wrong?” He glanced from the letter with a look of chagrin. “I may have underestimated the number of outriders we require.”

  She twitched the letter from his fingers.

  I become concerned about the state of the roads. Rumors abound about Napoleon, but we still do not know which way he is going. I am certain he is on his way here. Some of our countrymen have already made arrangements to return home. Others are waiting to see what the duke will do. It is clear that many people have grown uneasy.

  “Elizabeth.” Geoffrey took her hand, enfolding it in his. “Do you wish to return to England? It might be safer.”

  “No. I will be fine.” It was a shame Lord John had already left, but she and Geoffrey could never hope to match their pace. How bad could it be? The battle had not begun yet and, as far as anyone knew, Napoleon was still in Paris. “Ask the landlord if he has any servants you can hire, and ensure all the coach pistols are loaded with extra balls and powder handy.”

  Once their servants were assembled, Elizabeth started issuing orders. “We depart within the hour. Mrs. Robins, Preston, Nettle, Molly, and Kenwood will ride in the baggage coach and leave as soon as the trunks have been packed. Vickers, you will accompany me. His lordship’s curricle will accompany the coach. His lordship will ride Hercules. We are arranging for some of the inn’s servants to act as outriders, but I want all our pistols and muskets to be loaded.” The servants exchanged glances. “We shall meet for luncheon. If, for any reason, you feel we should remain together, I wish to hear it now.”

  Riddle folded his lips. “We’ll see how it goes, my lady. We’ll stop at an inn if William Coachman and I feel we should.”

  “Very well. I shall leave it to you.” Elizabeth smiled at them. “The sooner we depart, the sooner we will arrive at our new home.”

  As their servants left the room, Geoff took her hand. “Well done, my dear.”

  “That is the reason you married me, is it not?” She quickly ate the last bites of bread and cheese. “I shall make sure Vickers has our trunks down to be loaded onto the coaches in short order. I do not wish to be too far behind the baggage coach.”

  He didn’t know how to answer her. Her ability to manage was not the only reason he’d wed her. He wanted her in his bed as well. But before he could begin to explain himself, the door closed behind her with a snap.

  I’ve lost another chance to find out what is wrong with her.

  Still, he wasn’t a stupid man. Obviously it had something to do with her abilities. Was he putting too much pressure on her?

  * * *

  By the time Elizabeth reached her bedchamber, she had her anger under control. She had wanted to rail at him. Tell him that if only he could look beyond her abilities he might be able to see the woman she was. One that needed her husband to love her the way she loved him.

  If only she could figure out a way to tell him what she wanted without an immediate and false declaration of love from him. Something had to change because she did not know how long she could keep up her pretense of not wanting him.

  She changed into a traveling gown and helped her maid pack what little they had removed from the trunks. “I think this is it.”

  “How dangerous will it be?” Vickers asked.

  “To be honest, we don’t know. That said, I plan on being prepared for anything.”

  A knock sounded on the door. Her maid opened it.

  “We’re here to take the trunks down, if you’re ready,” Kenton said.

  Elizabeth strolled into the inn yard as the last trunks were being loaded.

  A few moments later, Geoffrey joined her. “I can hire three men for a day.”

  She let out a frustrated breath. “That is better than nothing I suppose.” Not much. Everyone would have to remain vigilant. “At least we will have an idea of what we are up against.”

  For the first time since she had heard his conversation with his father, he pulled her into his arms. It was all she could do to keep her own arms by her side when she wanted so much to hold him as well. If only she had not heard what she had.

  But past was past and she could not change it.

  After a few moments he released her, and Elizabeth wished his arms were still around her.

  “It is time to depart.” He tilted his head, a sly grin forming on his lips, making her want to throw her arms around him and kiss him. “Tell me you know how to shoot a pistol.”

  “Well, I will tell you that.” She turned to walk away toward her coach, but looked back over her shoulder. “And I am accounted an excellent shot.”

  In three long strides, he was with her. She placed her hand on his arm, and stepped into the coach. “Be careful.”

  The one thing she did not want was for him to be murdered before he discovered he loved her.

  “I will.”

  The coach started forward and, for a time, she gazed at the flat countryside. “It is very different here than in England
.”

  “It is that, my lady,” Vickers responded. “Reminds me of The Fens in a way, but clouds are higher here, and I can’t see a marsh.”

  “I’ve never visited The Fens,” Elizabeth said. “What are they like?”

  “Flat like this, but with marsh everywhere. I always felt like the clouds were pushing on top of my head.”

  “That doesn’t sound particularly pleasant.” She was glad the clouds here weren’t low.

  “They’re not my favorite part of England, but a great many people love them.” Vickers glanced out the window. “I like it better here.”

  “I’ll like it immensely if we do not have any problems getting to Brussels.”

  Elizabeth placed her pistol in her lap and took out her book, but was unable to read it. The traffic was steady with farmers and a few carriages. Yet, nothing out of the ordinary appeared to be going on. Finally, she was lulled to sleep by the swaying of the coach.

  She woke when it was time to rest the horses.

  At luncheon, Riddle deemed the roads safe enough for the servants to go on ahead of Elizabeth and Geoffrey.

  That evening they stayed in a small town about ten miles outside of Ghent. The day had been pleasant, but, due to the number of times they’d had to rest the horses, it would take another two days to arrive in Brussels.

  And Elizabeth was no closer to knowing what she should do about Geoffrey, other than what she was already doing. If he continued to hold her, she would end up kissing him, and that would lead to other things, and before she knew it she’d be back in his bed without ever knowing if he could love her.

  She was, therefore, relieved to find that Nettle had once again arranged for separate bedchambers with an adjoining parlor.

  After they had washed and changed, she and Geoffrey took a walk in the town. Stores were still open, and no one seemed to be nervous about the coming battle. With luck, it would remain that way for the rest of their journey.

  By the time they had dined, all she wanted was her bed. Tomorrow would be another long day.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Geoff, Elizabeth, and their small household started early the next morning.

  He had hoped to get all the way to Ghent the previous day, but they were several miles short of their destination, and he’d decided not to push the horses any more than necessary even if it took them longer to arrive in Brussels.

  Throughout the day, the traffic grew heavier with people both on foot, by horse, farm wagon, and carriage.

  A few worried souls even tried to convince him to turn around, always with the same warning. “Napoleon will march north soon. They say his army is so large it will destroy Wellington’s forces.”

  Geoff thanked them for their advice, but shortly after noon, he began to grow concerned. At one point he rode up to the coach and asked Elizabeth if she was sure she did not wish to turn back. As expected, she told him to press on.

  Still he wavered back and forth between her immediate safety, and the possibility that they might become separated, putting her at more of a risk than she already was.

  He finally put the question to her in a slightly different way. “Would you like to go back to Ghent?”

  She narrowed her eyes at him and was silent for several moments before answering, “Why would I do that?”

  “You might be safer.” Even as he said the words he knew he could never let her go. No one would do as much to keep her from harm as he would.

  Her countenance relaxed. “No, I would rather continue on. At this point, by the time I could return to Ghent, we shall be in Brussels. I would rather make the journey only once.”

  That was true enough. “Very well.”

  She had thought to have a basket packed, and he ate a sandwich while riding. By dark, they had only made it as far as Asse, and Geoff called a halt for the night.

  Elizabeth climbed stiffly out of the coach. “Thank you for stopping. I know you wanted to reach Brussels this evening, but this way we will be able to send the servants to the house to make it ready before we arrive.”

  “It amazes me how you always find the good side of situations.” He tucked her hand in his arm to steady her.

  She shrugged. “There is no point in belaboring the bad points when there is nothing one can do to change them.” They strolled around the garden in back of the hotel while Nettle and Vickers saw to their rooms. “I would like to know what is going on. All we have heard is that Napoleon is coming north. Yet we have heard nothing of what Wellington is planning.”

  “Mayhap someone at the inn will know,” Geoff said to appease her. Although he doubted the innkeeper would know more than anyone else they’d come across today.

  His military friends had told him cannons and other weapons could be heard many miles away from the actual fighting. How many miles away he didn’t know. Thus far they had not heard anything indicating the armies were engaged. It would be a relief to reach Brussels where all their questions could be answered.

  Following the routine they had fallen into, they rose early. The previous day, Nettle consulted the landlord’s map of Brussels to find the address of the house Geoff’s father had rented for them.

  Unfortunately, the innkeeper was unable to tell Geoff where he might be able to find the English delegation in Brussels.

  Most of their servants left just before dawn, leaving him with his wife, her lady’s maid, a housemaid—no one had bothered to explain why the girl did not accompany the housekeeper—the grooms, and one footman.

  Just as their party reached the outskirts of Brussels they were met by news that the Corsican had taken Wellington by surprise and that Napoleon was marching north.

  Geoff galloped up to Elizabeth’s coach. “If you do not mind, I’m going to ride into the city. If anyone will know where I can find Sir Charles, it will be the Duchess of Richmond who is a friend of my mother’s. At least I know her address. It is not much farther. Do you feel comfortable traveling the rest of the way or would you like to find a place to wait until I return?”

  “I shall be fine,” Elizabeth replied with the aplomb he was coming to expect from her. “I am quite sure that if this fight was over, we would be seeing British troops coming this way.”

  “I’ll see you later then.” He wanted to hold her, and kiss her, and tell her she was the bravest woman he knew. Instead, he rode off, sticking to the sides of the roads to avoid the exodus of people now filling the road.

  Once he arrived at the duchess’s house, she had, indeed, been able to direct Geoff to Sir Charles’s residence. Yet, when Geoff arrived there, he was directed to Wellington’s headquarters on rue Royale. Luckily, Sir Charles was just coming down the steps as Geoff road up to the building.

  “Good day, Sir Charles,” Geoff said, holding out his hand.

  “Lord Harrington, well met. I’m glad you’ve arrived.” The older man clasped his hand warmly. “Come walk with me, and I shall tell you what has been going on. Do you have a place to live?”

  “Yes, sir. My father arranged it. I rode ahead of my wife to see you, but our servants should have been there a few hours ago. It’s on rue Zinner.”

  “Yes, yes.” Sir Charles nodded. “Good location. Across the park from here and on a small street. How was your crossing?”

  “As well as could be expected. For the past two days we’ve seen a steady stream of people headed for Ostend and Antwerp.”

  “No matter that nothing has yet occurred there are always those who will panic.” The older man shook his head. “I look forward to meeting Lady Harrington. In the meantime, there is a great deal to be done. I congratulate you on having the forethought to send your servants ahead.”

  Obviously, Geoff was not going to be able to spend a great deal of time with Elizabeth or at his new home. “I look forward to getting started.”

  He spent the next several hours making notes, copying reports, and writing letters, all the time wondering if Elizabeth was safe. By five o’clock, he began to worry. He sh
ould have heard something by now.

  One of Sir Charles’s servants was acting as a messenger. If Geoff didn’t hear something soon, he’d send a message to the house.

  * * *

  Elizabeth watched as Geoffrey cantered toward Brussels. At this point, she wished they could all ride the rest of the way. It would be easier than picking their way through the sea of people, carriages, carts, and wagons.

  Some of the vehicles had been abandoned along the way as if their owners took what they could carry and fled. An hour later, she ordered his phaeton to drive ahead. The carriage could get through the traffic more quickly than her large traveling coach.

  Three hours later, after making very little distance, Elizabeth was tired of riding in the coach. There were some shops in the area, and her people needed to eat.

  Banging on the roof she called, “Stop the coach.” As it came to a halt, she glanced at her maid and the housemaid, Molly. The poor girl had been left with them because she had not been feeling well, and the baggage coach would be traveling as quickly as it could. “I am going to that bakery across the road. If I had imagined we would run into this type of traffic, I would have had the landlady make us a basket. Vickers, please go to the cheese store next to it and buy what you can to put in the rolls. Molly, come with me.” Once Kenton, her footman, helped Elizabeth down from the coach, she shook out her skirts. “I am not quite sure what is going on, but keep a good watch on our coach and horses. If anyone gets too close, warn them off. Use a pistol if you have to.”

  Crossing the street, Elizabeth entered the bakery and greeted the shop girl. The aroma of freshly baked breads and rolls was heavenly. It also caused her stomach to protest its fairly empty status.

  She was in the process of ordering enough rolls to keep her party fed until they reached the house when Molly screeched, “My lady, there’s a man trying to take our horses!”

  Elizabeth whirled around. Who in God’s name would do something so evil?