“No,” he said gravely. “I love you too much to ask such a sacrifice.”
“Do not ask me to give you up,” she cried passionately. “Now that we have found each other, we must always be together.”
“And we will,” he promised. “There has to be a way. Trust me, my darling.”
“I will follow you to the ends of the earth,” she vowed. “I do not care that you do not have a title. To me you are a Lord. Lord of my heart. And you always will be.”
*
She managed to return to her room without being seen. Once there she threw herself onto the bed, luxuriating in her love.
‘He is everything I have ever dreamed of in a man,’ she told herself. ‘And I shall love him for ever and ever.’
But then the thought of Lord Westbridge seemed to fall like a shadow over her joy. She remembered how angry he had been and how even her parents seemed afraid of him.
He would not give her up without a fight. The path of true love was strewn with pitfalls.
Who could tell what the future held?
CHAPTER SIX
Next morning Lady Hatton was in ecstasies over the diamond necklace.
“It’s practically a declaration in itself,” she sighed.
“Yes it is,” Louisa retorted. “And that is why I don’t want it. I tried to refuse it, Mama. Why didn’t you help me?”
There was a passing look of unease on her mother’s face before she recovered her poise enough to declare,
“Because I have your best interests at heart, my dear. I will not allow you to throw away your future on a moment’s weakness. Now run back upstairs and dress properly.”
“I am going riding, Mama.”
“You are not. Lord Westbridge will almost certainly call this morning to make you a formal offer and you will be here to receive him.”
“But Mama, I have already refused him.”
“What!”
“Last night I told him I would not marry him. He cannot have misunderstood me.”
“But you accepted his diamond necklace.”
“I did not,” Louisa replied desperately. “He forced it on me and I could not take it off before we left the house.
“If he calls this morning, please Mama, give it back to him and tell him I will not agree to be his wife. Say you refuse your consent.”
“Your Papa and I have already given our consent.”
“Without asking me?”
“You are too young to know what you want. We are doing only what is best for you.”
In despair Louisa ran upstairs, where Arabelle helped her to dress in a morning gown of trimmed silk. Together they walked downstairs to await the dreaded arrival of Lord Westbridge.
Arabelle could not declare her true opinion in front of Lady Hatton, but secretly she sent Louisa many looks of secret sympathy.
As the morning wore on with no sign of Lord Westbridge, Lady Hatton grew increasingly edgy. Then she announced that he would certainly come in the afternoon and sent Louisa to change her clothes again.
But even this failed to produce the desired effect.
Lord Westbridge did not appear and by the end of the day both Louisa’s parents were giving her dark looks.
“This is all your fault,” her mother accused her. “Your behaviour last night disgusted him.”
“If only I could believe that to be true, I would rejoice,” Louisa cried rebelliously. “Now we can send the necklace back?”
“We shall do no such thing,” Lady Hatton declared loftily. “We shall wait for him tomorrow. Where are you going?”
“To the stables. I haven’t seen Firefly all day.”
“You will remain here. I still have much to say to you.”
Seeing that the others were too preoccupied to notice her, Arabelle slipped discreetly away. A moment later she was creeping into the stables.
“The house is in uproar,” she said when she saw Roderick. “They have been expecting Lord Westbridge all day, but he did not come. Louisa tried to escape to see you but they watch her like hawks.”
“Thank you for telling me, miss. I don’t think Westbridge will trouble us for a few days.”
“Why, do you know something?”
“I have been in the village and there are plenty of rumours. A plain coach left Cranford Manor at first light with all the blinds pulled down.”
“Would that man travel in a plain coach?” Arabelle mused.
“He would if he was hiding from the folk who had laughed at him. And rumour says his valet accompanied him.”
“If only he may have gone forever!”
“That is too much to hope for. But it will be a few days at least before he can show his face in this district again.”
“He was covered in cobwebs and dust,” Arabelle said, laughing. “Everybody enjoyed it, for of all the people who were there last night, eating his food, drinking his drink, accepting his gifts, I don’t believe there was one who actually likes him.”
“He prefers to be feared than liked,” Roderick said gravely. “How is Lou– Miss Hatton.”
“It’s all right, she has confided in me. She hates this man and will be overjoyed to know that she is safe for a while. Can I give her a message from you?”
“Just tell her that I love her. And here –” he took an envelope from his inner jacket. “This is for you. Mr Simon Lightly gave it to me.”
“Oh, thank you, thank you!” Arabelle kissed the letter in ecstasy and fled back to the house to share the good news with Louisa, who was so relieved that she managed to be quite cheerful over dinner.
Her parents congratulated themselves that she must be seeing sense at last.
*
Everyone was full of preparations for Christmas. People’s faces wore smiles as the happy time approached and they found new warmth and charity in their hearts.
A huge Christmas tree was set up on the village green and hung with nuts and berries for the birds who found it so hard to scratch for food in winter.
From inside the Church, the choir could be constantly heard practising for the Carol service that would take place on Christmas Eve.
Like many ladies Louisa was eagerly helping to arrange the party for the poor children. There would be tea, cakes and jellies. A magician would perform tricks and every child would receive a gift.
As the days passed with no sign of Lord Westbridge’s return, her spirits soared. Now she could briefly allow herself to forget that he threatened her happiness and indulge the luxury of her love.
Sometimes she and Roderick could snatch a sweet moment alone, but not too often, because he would not risk exposing her to gossip. So they had to make the most of occasions when they could be together in public. Luckily the Christmas preparations gave them several of these, not only for them but also for Arabelle and Simon.
One afternoon Roderick drove her and Arabelle into the village in a carriage piled high with presents for the party. Together they bore them into the hall and piled them around the tree.
The Vicar’s wife was there with her family of daughters. They all laughed and chattered as they unpacked hampers of food.
They had baked a huge Christmas cake and they set it up in pride of place, surrounded by bowls of nuts and fruit, jellies and creams.
Then the doors were opened and the children poured in. Their faces were alight with excitement. Some of their parents were very poor and this party would be their only real Christmas pleasure.
At the height of the jollity, Santa appeared and boomed “Ho-Ho-Ho!” Louisa noticed that Roderick had vanished. A moment later her suspicions were confirmed when Santa winked at her.
She was moved almost to tears as she handed out gifts and saw the wonder in the children’s eyes. There were dolls, teddy bears, wooden trains, boats, picture books. The air was loud with “oohs” and “aahs!”
When the gifts were all given out, Santa waved goodbye and vanished. A few moments later Roderick appeared.
“I am so g
lad you did that,” Louisa whispered.
“Why, what happened while I was away?” he asked innocently.
They laughed together.
‘Please,’ she thought, ‘let it always be like this, loving each other, happy just to be together.’
When every child had eaten his or her fill, the lights were dimmed until only a soft glow remained. The children gathered around the tree and began to sing carols.
Louisa was deeply affected as she heard the sweet young voices raised in celebration of the loveliest story in the world. A child, born in poverty, but destined to rule the world through love. In the first flush of her own true love, Louisa felt her heart swell with joy.
As she watched the innocent faces lifted to Heaven, she felt that anything was possible. Surely God would show the way for her and Roderick to be together!
When the party was over the children streamed out into the darkness, clutching their presents and chattering eagerly.
Roderick and Louisa slipped away to steal a few precious moments alone.
“I am so happy,” she confided. “I never dreamed that love could feel so wonderful.”
“Nor I. You are the first woman who has ever possessed my heart and you will be the last.”
“I want to tell my parents. They will be shocked at first, but they will understand when they know that we mean everything to each other.”
“Would you really marry a poor man and live without all the comforts you are used to?” he asked tenderly.
“If he was the man I loved, I would never be poor.”
He seemed profoundly moved by her words. “And do you really love me as much as that?”
“I love you,” she whispered, “as much as that.”
He took her hand and pressed it against his cheek.
“I have something important to tell you, my dearest. I hope you will forgive me for deceiving you.”
“You? Deceive me? I don’t believe it.”
“I am not who I pretend to be. My name is not Roderick Blake. It is Roderick Cranford. The old Earl, who used to own Cranford Manor, was my grandfather.”
Louisa gasped in astonishment,
“Then you are the black sheep?”
“Yes, I am the black sheep,” Roderick said, with a slight grin. “That day we met in the grounds at Cranford, I was there visiting my grandfather.
“As a boy I led such a riotous life that I was packed off into the Army. I liked being a soldier, but it meant I was far away, serving in India, when the old man needed help. I like to believe that I could have protected him from Lord Westbridge.”
“Lord Westbridge? I don’t understand.”
“He ruined Grandfather. He cheated him out of every penny he had. When I heard the news I immediately resigned my commission and came home. I arrived in time to be with him at the end. He spent his last days living on the charity of friends and died a broken man.”
“Then you – ?”
“Yes, I am the Earl of Cranford.” He looked down ruefully at his rustic clothes. “The penniless Earl of Cranford, unless I can recover my inheritance. As my grandfather lay dying, I promised him that I would bring Westbridge to justice.
“I believe that promise gave him some comfort in his last moments. I intend to keep it. Westbridge has to be stopped. He has left a trail of ruin and despair wherever he has gone.”
“It is as though a monster has come amongst us,” Louisa said.
“Yes, he is a monster. He is insanely greedy and ambitious. He has always wanted a more important title. Being a mere Baron is not enough for him. He wants an Earldom at least.
“When he failed in that quest, he set himself to amass money by any means that he could, no matter how cruel or dishonest. His path is littered with broken lives.”
“Oh, if only you can defeat him!” Louisa breathed.
“It is vital that I do. Only then can we be together.”
“And we must be together for I will never love anyone but you.”
“That is all I want to hear,” he told her tenderly. “If only you knew what it has been like, pretending to be a servant and having to remain humbly in the background.
“I learned to endure it, but the worst torture was watching the woman I love hounded by that satyr, and being unable to do very much to protect her.”
“Am I truly the woman you love?” she asked. “Let me hear you say it again.”
“You are the woman I love and to whom I belong. One day – and please God it will be soon, I will say it to you every hour of every day, until you tire of hearing it!”
“You will wait until eternity for me to tire of your love,” she responded tenderly. “Oh, my love – wait!”
“What is it?”
“I have just remembered what old Sal prophesied many years ago. I told you she said that when I first met my husband he would be wearing a mask.
“And you were. An Earl pretending to be a groom. That was your mask. And it means that everything is going to be all right.”
“Yes, my darling. If we trust in God, everything will be all right.”
All the way home Louisa was in a happy dream. Roderick loved her and somehow their marriage must be possible. When she told her parents the truth all obstacles would be removed.
But when she entered the house she received a terrible shock.
Her parents were waiting for her in the library. And so was Lord Westbridge.
He rose to his feet as she entered. His face was dark with annoyance.
“My darling, Lord Westbridge has been waiting for you,” Lady Hatton twittered anxiously.
“Waiting for a very long time,” Lord Westbridge said grimly.
“I have been helping with the children’s party in the village.”
“Which has been long finished. Your gardener’s little girl returned home some time ago,” Lord Westbridge countered.
“I am sorry. I did not know you were here.”
“Lord Westbridge wishes to speak to you alone,” her father said.
“No, please wait, Papa,” Louisa answered quickly. “He can have nothing to say to me that you cannot hear.”
“Your parents know what I have to say to you and have given their consent,” Lord Westbridge intervened.
He made a slight jerk of his head towards the door. Lord and Lady Hatton departed at once.
Louisa gasped angrily. How dared this man order her parents about in their own home?
Just before he left, Lord Hatton took his daughter’s arm and murmured,
“I do hope you will be reasonable.” He slipped out of the room before she could reply.
Louisa faced Lord Westbridge, her head up.
“It is time to set our wedding day,” he declared. “The sooner the better.”
“I have not agreed to marry you,” she retorted indignantly.
“Oh, you will marry me all right. That was decided as soon as I saw you. I can take my pick of the girls in this County or any other. Wealth does bring its own advantages.”
“Then take your pick of them, my Lord, and leave me alone.”
“I have already told you, I want you. You please me. Your spirit pleases me.” He smiled nastily and added, “and breaking it will please me even more.”
There was something intimidating in his brutal assurance. It took all of Louisa’s courage to assert,
“You are wasting your time, my Lord. I will not marry you.”
She turned and walked out of the room. She was outwardly calm and dignified, but her heart was beating wildly.
She saw her parents standing in the door of the morning room. They had been waiting anxiously to hear what had happened. They read the truth in her pale, tense face.
“You have refused him,” Lady Hatton moaned.
Louisa hurried into the morning room and spoke softly.
“Yes, I have refused him. I hate him. And Mama, Papa, I must tell you that I love another man.”
“Nonsense,” her father said. “You cannot t
hrow away such a catch because of a piece of girlish nonsense.”
“I have refused him,” Louisa maintained, more firmly than she felt. “And that is the end of it.”
To her alarm, her father turned pale and sat down heavily.
“My God, I am ruined,” he wailed.
“No,” Lady Hatton cried. “Louisa you must listen to your mother. Our fate lies in your hands.”
“What do you mean, Mama? How are we ruined?”
“It was just an innocent little game of cards –” her father stammered.
At those words a chill of fear started in Louisa’s stomach and rose, spreading all over her body. She tried to ignore it.
It was impossible – it must be impossible –
“But Papa – you gave up gambling.” She could hardly speak.
“Your father has been gambling for many years,” Lady Hatton stated bitterly. “Sometimes he lost, sometimes he won. But when he played with Lord Westbridge he always lost.”
“Somehow it all mounted up,” her father groaned.
“How much do you owe him?” Louisa asked, shaking.
“He can claim everything we own.”
It was all becoming clear now – the dismissal of the stable hands, the sale of the horses. Above all she understood why she had been brought home early. Her parents had planned to sell her to Lord Westbridge!
She felt sick with horror.
“Mama,” Louisa cried desperately, “please listen. I am in love with another man.”
“But you don’t know any other men,” Lady Hatton said firmly.
“I love Roderick Blake,” she proclaimed proudly.
“The groom?” Lady Hatton screamed.
“He isn’t really a groom. He only pretends to be, because – he is really the Earl of Cranford.”
“Don’t be absurd,” said Lady Hatton. “The Earl is an old man.”
“No, he died. Roderick is his grandson. Lord Westbridge cheated him out of his inheritance, just as he cheated you, Papa.”
“I recall he had the devil’s own luck with cards,” her father growled. “I thought it was uncanny at the time.”
“You were certainly a poor loser,” came Lord Westbridge’s hated voice.
They all turned sharply. His Lordship had quietly entered the room. How long had he been standing there, listening?
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