The Earl's Stolen Bride (Marriage by Deceit Book 4)

by Ruth Ann Nordin

  ***

  “You’re working on this?” Chloe’s father asked Orlando, pointing to the canvas resting on the easel.

  Orlando finished pouring brandy in their glasses and approached him. “Actually, it’s Chloe’s.”

  “Chloe’s?” Her father accepted the glass, and his gaze went back to the horseshoe she’d started painting. “I didn’t realize she liked to paint.”

  “She hasn’t made up her mind on whether she enjoys it or not.”

  His eyebrows rose. “She hasn’t?”

  Orlando shook his head. “I told her she might have to do a couple of paintings before she makes the decision.” He motioned to the inkwell resting on his desk. “She mentioned an interest in painting it, so I brought it back to London with me. I thought if she painted something she was interested in, she might enjoy it. Only time will tell if I’m right.”

  Her father sipped the brandy, his gaze still on the canvas. “It’s not bad.”

  “No, it’s not.” Orlando thought it was the best thing he’d ever seen, but he realized he had a bias when it came to Chloe. She could probably paint horribly, and it’d be perfect to him.

  After a long moment, her father finally faced him. “You love her.”

  “Yes, I do. Very much so, in fact.”

  “I can see the depth of your feelings by the way you talk about her. Lord Hawkins didn’t talk about her the way you do. He didn’t look at her with the same tenderness you do either.” Letting out a long sigh, he added, “And if I’m honest with myself, he never had any real interest in her. He was only interested in what she could do for him. She was a respectable young lady who was a virgin, and she knew how to please others. She could have probably married anyone she wished, and I think that appealed to him most of all.” He set the glass on the table and touched the canvas. “I didn’t realize that, as her father, my main concern should’ve been on giving her a husband who could appreciate her as she is. Who knows? She might develop a love for painting and go on to create something beautiful.”

  “She might. And if she doesn’t care for it, I’m sure there will be something else she’ll enjoy.”

  Her father nodded. “It would be nice to find out what that is. I’m sorry to say I don’t have the slightest idea what that might be.”

  “She told me how many children you have. I’m sure it’s not easy finding out everyone’s interests while you’re busy earning a living.”

  “That’s kind of you to say, but it’s a feeble excuse. She’s my child. I should’ve taken more time to learn who she was. I don’t mind saying that the older I get, the more I realize time is fleeting. You blink, and half your life is over.”

  “Oh, surely, you have more than half your life left.”

  “Maybe. Or maybe not. Lord Hawkins was twenty-three. When someone that young dies so suddenly it makes you question your own mortality. We’re only here for a short time when you consider how long eternity is.” He cleared his throat and added, “In the end, what really matters are the people in a person’s life. It took Chloe running out of the carriage the night everyone learned about the scandal for me to realize that. My first thought was that she might not ever talk to her mother or me again, that maybe we had pushed her too far. All along we were so concerned about Alexander. We didn’t stop to consider how we might be hurting her.”

  “She was willing to keep our marriage a secret,” Orlando said. “We were going to spend most of the year at Edmonstone. We just didn’t think about preventing a pregnancy until after we returned to London.”

  “There was no reason why you would have thought of it. You didn’t know her mother and I would ask you both to keep the marriage a secret.”

  “And you and her mother didn’t know I’d whisk her off to Gretna Green to marry her.”

  Her father grinned. “To be fair, you didn’t have much of a choice if you wanted to be with her, and considering how much you love her, I’d say you did the right thing.” His expression turned serious. “I apologize for my behavior the day we met.”

  “You were upset. I couldn’t blame you. If some gentleman does the same thing to my daughter, I don’t think I’ll be all that excited about meeting him either.”

  “If I’m still alive when something like that happens, I’ll be the first one to tell you to give the poor bridegroom a reprieve.”

  Orlando laughed. “I hope you do.”

  Her father joined in and laughed, too, and in that moment, Orlando knew everything was going to be all right. Despite their shaky beginning, they’d found a common ground. It was a relief to learn he’d misjudged her father. Her father, as it turned out, was an admirable and caring gentleman, and he had no doubt they would enjoy many conversations in the years to come.

  ***

  Dr. Westward leaned toward Alexander and studied him with a critical eye. Chloe glanced from Orlando to her mother. They all stood around Dr. Westward and her brother in her mother’s drawing room.

  Already Chloe couldn’t help but think the physician was an odd gentleman. As soon as he’d entered the room, he went straight over to the boy and inspected him, as if he could tell everything that had ever been wrong with Alexander just by walking around him. From time to time, he murmured an “um hum” while stroking his clean-shaven jaw.

  Then, with great flourish, he gave them all a bow, introduced himself as their humble physician and turned his attention back to her brother. Had Chloe not been so startled by his odd mannerisms, she might have said something before now. Her mother and Orlando chose to remain quiet as well.

  “Hmm…” Dr. Westward finally said as he turned to them. “I’ve noted one problem with this poor lad already.”

  “Oh?” her mother asked. “What’s that?”

  “He’s carrying way too much money,” he replied, his tone solemn.

  “He’s what?” Chloe asked, wondering if she’d heard him right.

  “Money. Let me demonstrate.” He reached behind Alexander’s ear and pulled out a coin. “That’s just one. The lad is full of them.” He proceeded to reach behind his other ear, then under his arm, behind his neck, and on the top of his head, producing a new coin each time. “He’s a bank!”

  Alexander gasped. “I had all of those in me?”

  Chloe, Orlando, and her mother chuckled. The trick had come so unexpectedly, and he had done a marvelous job hiding exactly how he was able to produce so many coins all at once.

  “Indeed, you did,” he said. “Your pocket is a much better place for them, don’t you think?” He handed the coins to her brother then patted him on the shoulder. “I can’t promise it’ll do much for that chronic cough of yours, though.”

  “How did you know he has a cough?” her mother asked. “You only looked at him.”

  “I heard his breathing. It’s a bit raspy,” he explained. “Does he have trouble sleeping?”

  “On occasion.”

  “I will see if I can get some medicine to help him for it, but,” he looked at the boy, “it should only be taken when you can’t stop coughing, all right? There’s some sugar in it to improve the taste. Unfortunately, this makes it so sweet one of my patients uses it even when he doesn’t need it.” To her mother, he whispered, “No need to tell the lad this is a forty-year-old gentleman who should know better.”

  Her mother put her hand up to her mouth and giggled.

  “What is it, Mother?” Alexander asked. “What did he say?”

  “If you listen to your mother and only take the medicine when necessary, I’ll tell you,” he told the boy. “But not unless you’re good. So my lips are sealed until I see you next time.”

  “I’ll be good!”

  He chuckled. “I have a feeling you’ll keep that promise. You can go back to your brothers and sisters unless,” he glanced at Chloe’s mother, “your mother has anything else she’d like me to check while I’m here?”

  Her mother shook her head. “No, I don’t.”

  After Alexander left, Dr. Westward
turned to her mother. “Am I right in assuming he’s had the croup, and it fluctuates from better to worse without warning?”

  “Yes,” her mother replied, not hiding her surprise. “In fact, he had a convulsion at the time we got Dr. Harvey to tend to him. How did you know it was the croup? You hardly even looked at him.”

  “Unfortunately, I’ve seen other children with it. The breathing, the slight hoarseness in his voice… I could tell almost as soon as he talked to me what was going on. He needs a stronger prescription than what he’s been getting. The apothecary I recommend makes use of herbs others are reluctant to touch because they haven’t been tested enough, but I have noticed a great improvement in my other patients when they try it. Would you like to try it for Alexander?”

  Her mother looked over at Chloe, the question in her eyes asking if Chloe trusted him. Since Melissa had recommended him, Chloe saw no reason not to take the prescription. Melissa wouldn’t suggest someone she wouldn’t be comfortable using. Chloe nodded.

  Her mother turned back to Dr. Westward. “I’ll take the prescription, Doctor.”

  As he wrote it down, Chloe noticed fourteen-year-old Bethany and seven-year-old Gretchen peeking into the room. Amused at their curiosity, she went to her sisters and guided them back into the hallway.

  “It’s not nice to eavesdrop, and you know it,” she told them.

  “I heard he took his shirt off at a ball,” Bethany whispered. “Is that true?”

  “Where did you hear that?” Chloe whispered in return, deciding it best to move them further away from the drawing room lest the physician hear her.

  “Mother told Father about it,” she replied.

  “Bethany, you’re much too curious for your own good. Why can’t you mind your own business? And why are you getting poor Gretchen involved in all of this?” She gestured to their youngest sister.

  “We have nothing to do.”

  “Well, go find something to do.” She shooed them toward the stairs. “Go to your rooms and read a book. Do something useful with your time.”

  Though they grumbled, they hurried up the stairs.

  “You can’t fault them for being curious,” Orlando said from behind her.

  Turning around, she eyed her husband. “Now you’re the one eavesdropping?”

  He laughed and walked over to her. Giving her a kiss, he said, “They’re children. Anything they’re not supposed to hear is interesting.”

  She sighed. “There’s no reasoning with any of you.”

  As she expected, he only laughed again.

  Dr. Westward left the drawing room, followed by her mother. “If his condition gets worse, send for me.”

  “I will. Thank you, Doctor,” she said.

  He said good-bye to Chloe and Orlando then went with the footman to the front door.

  Chloe looked expectantly at her mother once he was gone. “What do you think?”

  “For the scandalous sort, he seems to know what he’s doing,” she replied.

  “He’s rather attractive, too,” Bethany called out from the top of the stairs. “Is he married?”

  Chloe glared at the two giggling girls. “I told you to go to your rooms.”

  The two scampered down the hall to their rooms, and Chloe shook her head in exasperation, more from Orlando’s soft chuckling than from Bethany’s comment.

  “If the medicine works as well as Dr. Westward claims, I’ll say our association with him will be worth it,” her mother said. “It’d be nice if we didn’t have to worry about Alexander so much.”

  “Yes, it would.”

  “Thank you for being here,” she told Chloe and Orlando.

  “It’s the least we could do since we’re the reason Dr. Harvey won’t see Alexander anymore.”

  Her mother hugged her and whispered, “The scandal was worth it, Chloe. It’s good to see you happy.”

  She could hardly find her voice. Her mother had actually said a scandal was worthwhile? “Thank you, Mother,” she finally managed once her shock wore off.

  “You two go on and enjoy the rest of the day. I have to go to the apothecary.”

  “You don’t want us to come with you?”

  “No. You need to spend the rest of your day together. I’m just glad you were willing to be here when Dr. Westward came to see Alexander. Given his reputation, I had no idea what to expect. Fortunately, he’s better than I expected.”

  “I think he’ll be good for Alexander.”

  “I do, too. Now, go on. I want to change before I go.”

  Smiling at her mother, Chloe joined Orlando and left the house.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chloe was painting the horseshoe inkwell when Orlando came into the den the next afternoon, shutting the door behind him.

  “I thought you went to White’s,” she said, glancing his way as she dipped her brush in the water.

  “I did, but Toby wasn’t there. I walked over to his townhouse and found out he’s getting ready to leave for his estate. He said he’d planned to send word to me tomorrow.”

  “When is he leaving?”

  “In two days. He wanted to go sooner, but his mother-in-law insists on having one more dinner with him and Regina first.” He chuckled and came over to her. “He’s tempted to leave tonight, but Regina won’t have it.”

  “It’s too bad her mother isn’t more like mine. Mine has turned out to be surprisingly easy to deal with after that dinner at Dr. Harvey’s. She hasn’t bothered me about meeting influential people ever since then.”

  “I think she realized her daughter means more to her than Lady Cadwalader does.”

  “I had no idea she felt that way.” Chloe wiped the tears from her eyes. “It’s so silly. I’ve been crying at the slightest thing ever since I found out I’m expecting a baby.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with crying when you’re happy.”

  Then, before she could reply, he scooped her up in his arms and gave her a kiss.

  Giggling, she said, “I almost dropped these.” She held up the small board she’d been using to mix the paints on.

  “Oh, my apologies.”

  She thought he was going to put her back in the chair, but he sat on it first and settled her on his lap. The only reason this worked was because the chair she’d chosen had no arms. Otherwise, it would have been very uncomfortable. On impulse, she set the small board on the table next to them and wrapped her arms around his neck then gave him a kiss.

  “What was that for?” he asked.

  She shrugged. “Nothing really. I just felt like doing it.”

  “That was nice of you.”

  “I thought so,” she teased.

  “Will you give me another one?”

  With a grin, she leaned forward and kissed him again. He pulled her closer to him and returned her kiss, letting his lips linger on hers for a few seconds before he ended it.

  “I have a wonderful idea,” he said.

  “What is it?”

  “I should paint you in this room.”

  “But you already have a painting of me.”

  “This one will be of you without any clothes on.” He nodded toward the settee. “I think over there will be the perfect place. I can do it late in the evening where I can use the candlelight to bring out your best features.”

  “No.”

  His eyes widened. “No?”

  Laughing, she said, “No.”

  “That’s what you said last time.”

  “And it’s what I’m saying this time.”

  “But you have the kind of body that should be enjoyed by your husband.”

  Chloe let out an exasperated sigh as she turned so she was straddling him, adjusting the skirt of her dress so she could be comfortable. “No. I’m not going to pose for you without any clothes on. I’d die of embarrassment if anyone ever saw that kind of painting.”

  “But you’re so beautiful.”

  “And that beauty should only be for you.”

  “I wo
n’t have anyone look at it. It’ll only be for me, and I’ll keep it well hidden.” When she shook her head, he added, “Isn’t there anything I can do or say to change your mind?”

  “No, Orlando. I love you. I enjoy the fact that you take such pleasure in my beauty, but I can’t risk anyone else looking at it.”

  He let out a mournful sigh. She suspected he was going to press the issue, so she brought her mouth to his and silenced him with a kiss. Fortunately, distracting him was easy, and soon, he was kissing her back, his tongue sparring with hers. She deepened the kiss and wrapped her legs around his waist, pressing intimately against him. His male hardness alerted her to the fact that his thoughts had quickly gone from painting her to lovemaking.

  His brought his hands up to her breasts and caressed them, his thumbs teasing her nipples through the fabric of her dress. She moved over his arousal to encourage him to keep going. If he didn’t stop…if he didn’t think about what they were doing, he just might make love to her right here. Then he’d no longer be afraid he’d hurt her, and if that happened, he’d take her anywhere he wanted. She couldn’t help but think of the different positions they could enjoy as her tongue continued interlacing with his.

  A low moan rose up in his throat, and he brought his hands to the back of her dress where he unfastened the buttons. Good. This was definitely a good sign. She helped him lower the top of the dress so her breasts were exposed to him.

  His mouth left hers, and he sprinkled a trail of kisses from her chin, down her neck, and finally settled on her breasts. Groaning, she tightened her hold on his shoulders as she wiggled against his erection. He was so hard. So wonderfully, exquisitely hard. So hard, in fact, her body responded to him, the familiar heated wetness pooling between her legs. But his buttons were in the way, and that was going to be a problem.

  Lifting the skirt of her dress, she quickly found his buttons and unfastened them, first working the ones on his trousers then his drawers. Slipping her hand inside his clothes, she took his penis out. Since he moaned in pleasure, she traced the tip of it then let her fingers travel down the length of him. She proceeded to angle it at her entrance and lifted her hips. But even with this accomplished, she wouldn’t be able to take him into her. His clothes were still too confining.