by Laura Landon
“I’m going to hold you to that, Lady Elyssa. I’m going to make sure I’m the only man to whom you ever give yourself.”
Elly brushed the hair back from his forehead. Then she traced a finger over one eyebrow and down the side of his face to where the sharp line of his jaw angled to his chin. He had remarkable features, features that guaranteed very handsome children, were she foolish enough to risk having them.
“And I’ll leave you so satisfied every time we make love,” he continued, “that you’ll tell me I’m remarkably perfect even when we’re old and gray.”
Elly’s heart skipped a beat.
As if he felt her hesitation, he rolled away from her to sit on the side of the bed.
“What?” he asked, looking at her.
“We can’t do this again.” She kept her gaze locked with his to make sure he understood. “I can’t risk bringing a child into the world who has no father.”
“Every child has a father.”
“You know what I mean.”
He stood and Elly pulled the covers beneath her chin when he looked down on her.
“Do you think I’d make love to you without already having decided to make you mine?”
He reached for his shirt and pulled it over his head. “Do you think I don’t realize there’s the possibility that I’ve already planted a child inside you?”
Elly heard the anger in his voice and knew that anger was directed at her.
He sat on the chair beside her bed and pulled on his boots. “Do you think I would make love to you then leave you, knowing I’d spoiled your chances to marry another man?”
He thrust his arms into the sleeves of his jacket. “Do you think I’m so indiscriminate about the women I take to bed that I’d sleep with you if I hadn’t already decided to marry you?”
A feeling of dread washed over her. He didn’t understand why marrying him was impossible. She couldn’t let him think it was. “We can’t marry, Brent. It’s not possible.”
“Are you saying that because you’re the daughter of a duke and I’m only an earl, you won’t marry someone beneath you?”
“Don’t be ridiculous! That has no bearing on my reasons and you know it.”
“Oh.” He dropped his hands to his sides and assumed a battle-ready stance. “It’s my reputation, isn’t it? You’re afraid you can’t trust me.”
“It’s not you! It’s—”
“I promise you,” he said, interrupting her before she could get that last word out, “I will never be unfaithful to you. If you want my pledge in writing, you may have it.”
“It’s not you,” she repeated. “It’s—”
He stopped her last word by interrupting again. “Knowing what I’ve told you of my parents’ marriage, and my reason for not marrying before now, do you think I’d be foolish enough to repeat their mistake if I truly didn’t believe our marriage would be different?”
He paced the floor at the foot of the bed. “I’ll be a good husband, Elly. I love you. I’ll take care of you and provide whatever you need. There’s nothing I won’t do for you. All you need do is ask.”
The blood drained from her head and she was lightheaded. He was serious. He actually thought she would consider marrying him. He actually thought she would fit into his world. That she’d find the courage to go to London. That she’d be successful in playing the role of a Society wife. That she’d be brave enough to lumber clumsily on the arm of one of the most handsome men in Europe and not die of mortification. That she could ignore the stares and comments. That she could overlook Society’s speculation as to how a man so perfect could marry someone so flawed.
She swallowed past the lump in her throat.
Perfect.
That’s the word that described him best. Brent was perfect. And she was...
Not.
“What are you thinking? I don’t like it when you have that look in your eyes.”
“I was thinking that I’d like to wash now.” She pulled the crumpled sheets closer beneath her chin. “I’d like to get dressed.”
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“Because you’re a skeptic?”
He propped his fists on his hips and narrowed his gaze. “I’ve put my stamp on you, Elly. Whether you like it or not, you’re mine.”
She broke out in a cold sweat. She couldn’t let him leave the room thinking she would marry him. But she couldn’t have the serious discussion she had to have without any clothes.
“Please, give me time to dress, then we’ll talk. I can’t let you think I’ll—”
There was a loud knock and the door flew open. Elly stopped mid-sentence.
“Mistress! Oh!” Genny spun around to face Brent. “My Lord, you have to leave!”
“What is it, Genny?”
Elly thought of ducking beneath the covers but Genny was so excited Elly doubted if she’d notice if Elly got out of bed and stood naked in the middle of the room.
“They’re here!”
“Who’s here?”
“His Grace! Her Grace!”
“Father? Mother?”
Elly jerked her gaze to where Brent stood on the other side of the room. If the situation weren’t so tragic she might be able to find some humor in the way his face lost every hint of color.
“Brent?” she said because she couldn’t think of anything else to say.
“Yes, my lady. If you’ll excuse me. It might be best if my first meeting with your parents weren’t in your bedroom.”
Elly clutched the sheet to her breasts as she watched him leave the room.
“Genny, help me dress! Then ask one of the footmen to come up to help me downstairs.”
“You can’t be on your foot, Miss.”
Elly kept a sheet around her as she slid to the edge of the bed, “What I can’t allow is for Lord Charfield to face my parents alone.”
Chapter 24
Brent walked down the hall at a clip he hoped wouldn’t seem like a run if anyone saw him. He took the stairs even faster. He’d have a bloody hard time explaining what he was doing in the wing opposite where his room was located.
He breathed a sigh of relief when he reached the bottom. He stepped across the marble-tiled foyer and willed his thundering heart to slow.
“Oh, there you are, Charfield.”
He turned as Fellingsdown walked toward him.
“I just sent a footman to your room to get you.”
“I...uh...was—”
“It doesn’t matter. Mother and Father have arrived.”
Brent tried to look pleasantly surprised and felt like the worst actor to ever attempt a part.
“Come, meet them.”
“It would be my pleasure.” Brent followed Fellingsdown across the foyer and down the hallway to a more private area of the manor home.
“A servant came with a message not an hour after you’d left with Elly. Mother and Father wanted us to know they were on their way. I came as soon as I could. Cassie will follow tomorrow. With Andrew.”
As they neared the study, Brent instinctively straightened his jacket and tried to appear as presentable as possible. He wanted to seem as if he were composed and perfectly in control, but his conscience refused to allow any sense of calm to settle inside him.
When they reached the room, Fellingsdown opened the door and Brent entered behind him. His gaze found Elly’s parents immediately.
Elly’s mother was seated on a rose-colored velvet settee, her poise the picture of a duchess.
Her coloring wasn’t at all like Elly’s, but the same as Elly’s twin sisters. Her hair was a golden blonde and her eyes a warm shade of blue. There was a glimmer in her eyes that indicated her intelligence and keen sense of humor. This she’d passed on to her oldest daughter, for Elly had that same sharpness about her.
She smiled and the room lit up the same as it did every time Elly smiled.
His Grace stood beside the fireplace, the massive stone hearth a perfect backdrop to his tall, m
uscular frame. He was as impressive a figure as Brent had imagined him to be.
He straightened to greet his guest.
“Father. Mother. May I present the Earl of Charfield? Charfield, my father and mother, the Duke and Duchess of Sheridan.”
“Your Grace,” Brent said, bowing low over the Duchess of Sheridan’s proffered hand. “Your Grace,” he said, bowing again to Elly’s father.
“Charfield, I can’t tell you what a pleasure it is to meet you,” the duchess said. “Harrison informed us of the travesty that endangered Elly and the risks you took to save her. Her father and I want to personally thank you.”
“Yes, thank you,” His Grace offered. “I’m not sure how the duchess and I would have handled it if anything had happened to Elly.”
Brent became serious. “No one would have found it easy to cope with the idea of Lady Elyssa being injured. Everyone is very fond of your daughter.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sheridan shared a look and a smile.
His Grace pointed to a circle of chairs. “Why don’t we sit down? Harrison, would you get us each a glass of brandy and a glass of wine for your mother?”
“Of course.” Fellingsdown went to a small cupboard and opened a levered door. He took the stopper from one of the crystal decanters and filled three glasses, then placed a deep red liquid from another decanter into a fourth glass.
The duke motioned for Brent to take a chair opposite the duchess, then sat on the settee next to his wife. After Fellingsdown handed them each a glass, he sat in a chair next to Brent.
“Now, Harrison,” the duchess said, “why don’t you explain what prompted you to host a party at The Down.”
“I’m not sure why you think it so odd for us to want to have a party here. It is, after all, the perfect place to—”
The duchess raised her hand and Fellingsdown stopped his explanation.
“You can dispense with your attempts to camouflage whatever it is you’re trying to hide. You forget, your father and I know you better than anyone.”
The duke set his glass on the table next to his wife’s and leaned back against the cushions. “You might as well tell your mother the entire tale,” he said crossing his arms over his chest. “She won’t give up until she knows every detail.”
Fellingsdown took another sip of his brandy then sat back in his chair. “Several months ago the twins—”
“I might have known the girls would be the cause of this,” the duchess said, rolling her eyes heavenward.
“What have those two done this time?” the duke asked.
“They were only trying to do Elly a kindness,” Fellingsdown began when the duchess sat forward on the settee.
“What have they done to Elly? They know how—”
“Nothing, Mother,” Fellingsdown said. “Elly’s fine. She doesn’t have a clue as to what they did.”
Brent couldn’t help but smile. He tried to bring his glass up to his lips before anyone noticed, but he wasn’t sure he was successful. The Duke of Sheridan gave him a look that said he might not have been quick enough. His words confirmed it.
“You know how impossible it is to get anything past Elly,” the duke said. “Isn’t that true, Charfield?”
“Um...Yes. Quite.”
“Go on though, Harrison. What mischief have the twins caused now?”
“Well, to make a long story short—”
“That will be the day,” His Grace said beneath his voice.
“...the twins decided Elly needed a romance.”
“A romance!” The Duke and Duchess of Sheridan spoke at the same time. From the surprise in their voices it was obvious they found the idea as preposterous as her other siblings had.
“Yes. A romance. So they made up a fictitious suitor.”
“Who?”
“It doesn’t matter, Father. Elly’s fictitious suitor didn’t have to make an appearance.”
“Then what was your reason for having a party?”
“Because Elly asked to see her secret admirer. She wanted to meet him. And there was no one for her to meet.”
“But you understood her real motive for asking to meet him, didn’t you?” the duchess asked.
“Of course I did, Mother. It meant that Elly had formed a serious attraction to this fictitious person.”
There was a short silence before the duchess answered. “No, Harrison. That’s not what it meant.”
“What did it mean then?” Fellingsdown asked, obviously confused.
“Oh, men,” Her Grace sighed. “They understand us so little.”
Fellingsdown shifted his gaze to his father, obviously hoping he’d enlighten him. His Grace just shrugged his shoulders.
“It means, son,” the duchess said with a sigh of frustration, “that your sister saw through the twins’ scheme. She knew there was no secret admirer. Isn’t that right, Lord Charfield?”
Brent couldn’t hide this smile beneath his glass any longer and faced the duchess. “I believe Lady Elyssa did mention that she thought her sisters might have invented some scheme to give her an adventure.”
“What a nice way of saying that she saw through what they’d done,” the duchess said. “Go on, Harrison. What did you do?”
“Well, the six of us planned this party. We thought if Elly discovered what Patience and Lilly had done she’d be terribly hurt and we didn’t want that. So I came up with the idea to host a party and include several guests, plus, of course, Aunt Gussie and Aunt Esther.”
“Your aunts were in on this?” Her Grace asked.
“No, they didn’t know anything about it. We invited them to make sure there wouldn’t be any improper rumors that might circulate after our party was over.”
“Well,” the duke said, “that was at least one wise decision you made.”
“All we wanted to do was give Elly a grand time. And maybe the twins were correct. Maybe Elly did need a romance.”
The frown on Her Grace’s forehead deepened. “Playing matchmaker is a very dangerous game, Harrison. It can backfire on you as easily as it can be a success.”
Fellingsdown smiled for the first time. “I think I can assure you that my first attempt at playing matchmaker has been quite successful. Do you remember how you always told us that the wish you made every year on your birthday was that at least one of your sons would give you a daughter-in-law that year?”
“Yes.” The duchess sat forward with a bright expression on her face.
“I think you might receive several years’ wishes quite soon.”
“Oh!” The duchess clasped her hands over her mouth. “Who? Which one? Did you say several? More than one of you? Who?”
“I’m not sure, of course. But perhaps all of us.”
“All!” both parents exclaimed in unison.
Tears of joy ran down the Duchess of Sheridan’s cheeks and a broad smile covered the Duke of Sheridan’s face.
“Who have the boys chosen?” Her Grace asked. “Will they make them happy?”
Brent sat back in his chair and listened while Fellingsdown revealed the choices each one of his brothers had made. The duke and duchess were acquainted with the girls and seemed enormously pleased with their sons’ choices for wives. Especially their eldest son’s choice when Fellingsdown explained Lady Lathamton’s situation and what had happened four years ago to destroy their dream of happiness.
What Brent noticed, however, was that not once did the Duke or Duchess of Sheridan mention Elly, or inquire if she might have developed a fondness for anyone. It was as if the idea of her falling in love – or anyone falling in love with her – was beyond the realm of possibility.
“What part did you play in my children’s scheme, Charfield?” the Duke of Sheridan asked.
His question pulled Brent out of his wool-gathering. He thought back to the meeting he’d had when Fellingsdown offered him the prize he’d always wanted if he’d attend a summer party and play escort to his sister. He thought how all he’d ever wanted wa
s a colt sired by the magnificent El Solidar.
Now he’d pass up a thousand colts from every magnificent Arabian Fellingsdown had at The Down if acquiring them meant giving up Elly. He realized how lucky he was to have met the woman of his dreams, how he’d finally been given a gift more precious than anything he could imagine.
“I—”
“Charfield did us a favor,” Fellingsdown began before Brent could finish his sentence.
“Why do I think I’m not going to like this?” the duchess said with a skeptical look on her face.
“Don’t worry, Mother. I made a bargain with Lord Charfield that would benefit everyone.”
“Even Elly?”
“Especially Elly. We hired Charfield to attend our party and play escort to Elly. We wanted someone to shift Elly’s affection away from her secret admirer.”
“You hired Lord Charfield?” Her Grace asked. There was a tone of concern in the Duchess of Sheridan’s voice as well as a look of horror on her face. “Tell me that’s not what you said.”
“Are you saying that you paid Charfield money to pretend to be fond of your sister?” the duke said in a voice that sounded close to an angry growl.
Brent tried to interrupt. He tried to explain that it wasn’t like that at all. The bargain was how their plan started, but not the way it ended.
He needed to tell them that he loved Elly. That he wanted to marry her.
He knew he should talk to Elly first, but this whole conversation was getting out of hand. They made it sound as if their initial bargain was something vulgar and ill-mannered. As if they’d deliberately played a malicious joke on Elly.
He couldn’t allow her parents to think he’d intentionally done something cruel to her.
Or, worse yet, that her siblings had given her a romance because they pitied her.
It was important that they understood his intentions before they thought the worst of him. He needed to assure them that he wasn’t ashamed to be seen with their daughter; that he loved her; that he couldn’t live the rest of his life without her; that he intended to marry her and he wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“Have you lost your mind?” His Grace bellowed at Harrison. “Do you know what it will do to your sister if she ever discovers what you did?”