A Duke For Lady Eve (Belles 0f Christmas Book 5)

by Kasey Stockton

  Alverton opened his mouth to correct the man’s mistaken form of address, but shut it again. What did it matter if the butler had wrongly addressed a duke? There was a bloody, injured child in his arms.

  The butler led them to a library just down the hall and Alverton swept inside, crossing to a long, leather sofa on the far side of the room. Bending down, he laid his small bundle there, gazing into Harry’s frightened eyes and willing the child not to look at his leg.

  The steady clicking of a woman’s footsteps could be heard coming toward the room and Alverton turned to find an aged, white-haired woman in a voluminous gown and satin turban sweep into the room.

  He knew her at once, and her calculating gaze took in the occupants of the room and settled on Harry. It was Lady Eve’s aunt.

  “Mrs. Chadwick,” Alverton said, rising and delivering a bow. “Harry has fallen from a tree and injured his leg somehow, likely on his way down. We’ve sent Jack for Dr. Cooper and they should be here quickly if the man was found at home and available.”

  Alverton rather doubted the doctor was available, the way he seemed to be all over the town at all times of day, but he thought it prudent to keep that particular thought to himself. Besides, even he could begrudgingly admit that the man was doing a service to the town of Derham to be so wholly at their disposal. Dr. Cooper certainly was not shirking his duties as the town doctor. He likely was not poor because of it, either.

  “Very good,” Mrs. Chadwick snapped. She crossed the room and tugged at the rope, causing a servant to enter moments later. “Fetch Hubert.”

  “He is away from home, ma’am,” the maid said.

  Mrs. Chadwick turned sharply toward the maid. “What do you mean he’s away? He is never away.”

  “He has gone into Derham, ma’am. He took the carriage just an hour ago.”

  Mrs. Chadwick’s face pinched, the apples of her cheeks glowing red. “Well, fetch Ev—”

  “What is it? What happened?” Lady Eve burst through the doorway, not bothering to cast her glance upon anyone other than the small child on the sofa. She knelt on the floor, picking up Harry’s hand within both of hers and squeezing it as though in prayer, her elbows bent and resting Harry’s hand under her chin. “Harry, do speak to me.”

  “It is nothing,” Harry said, his voice weak and small. “I needed to get into the branch to chase away the pirates.”

  “I told you I would be your damsel, but you were to give me one hour to read first while you fetched the branches for decorating. Why couldn’t you have waited one hour, Harry?”

  “We did wait,” he argued. “But the pirates came anyway, and we had to fight them off.”

  Lady Eve looked annoyed. “But you decide when the pirates come. Could they not have come in an hour’s time?”

  “Pirates don’t wait for Lady Eve,” Harry said. “They wait for no man.”

  Chapter 9

  Evelyn’s face flushed hot and she pierced Harry with her gaze. She allowed the boys to call her Lady Eve when they played, for they were in agreement that surely a pirate would be far more interested in capturing a lady than they would a plain woman. But she had not anticipated Harry using the name outside of Sanders Grove.

  She certainly did not expect to hear him say such a name before the duke and Lord Sanders, or Aunt Edith. But she could not deny her relief, either. She could only hope Aunt Edith hadn’t noticed.

  The front door slammed, and deliberate footsteps rang through the corridor followed by a pattering of lighter ones. Dr. Cooper stepped into the library with Jack on his heels and cut across the room unceremoniously to stand before the sofa.

  “Harry,” he said, smiling down at the boy. “Have you gotten yourself into some trouble, young man?”

  “Yes, Dr. Cooper,” Harry said, his voice soft and small. “It hurts something fierce.”

  “Where does it hurt?” Dr. Cooper asked, but even as he said the words his gaze traveled to the blood seeping from Harry’s leg. Turning toward Evelyn, he said, “Will you call for rags and boiling water?”

  She stood at once, and a hand came to rest on her shoulder. She did not need to turn to know that the large, strong hand which gripped her belonged to the duke. Alverton released her, pulling his hand back as he said, “Stay. I will go.”

  Evelyn nodded as Alverton spun away, Jack following behind him like a faithful hound, and she turned back to see Dr. Cooper pull a pair of shears from his black leather bag and begin to cut at Harry’s trousers.

  “What can I do?” she asked.

  Dr. Cooper did not remove his gaze from his patient’s leg. “Are you squeamish at the sight of blood?”

  “I don’t believe so,” she said. She’d seen her father’s hunting dog receive a wound from an angry fox just last winter and the blood which the hound had gotten all over the library rug had not bothered her in the least.

  “Then come up here by Harry’s head and distract him,” he said in a low voice, indicating the other side of the couch. He turned and addressed Lord Sanders as Evelyn crossed behind him. “Will you escort Mrs. Chadwick away, my lord?”

  Sanders nodded, offering his arm to Aunt Edith and leading her to a set of chairs on the far side of the room.

  Taking hold of Harry’s hand once again, Evelyn looked down at his sorrowful eyes and did her best to remain strong. “Will you tell me how this occurred?” she asked.

  “I fell from a high branch,” he said. “My leg scraped something on the way down, but I don’t know exactly what happened. It was all so quick.”

  “I am sure Dr. Cooper will discover the depth of your injury right away and take care of everything. You may squeeze my hand as much as you please.”

  Heavy footsteps brought Alverton back into the room, Jack on his heels once again. Evelyn glanced over her shoulder, catching the duke’s eye. His brows were drawn together, serious and concerned. He seemed to speak to her through the depth of his gaze, but she hadn’t the slightest inclination what he was trying to convey. He crossed the floor and she watched his sure, steady stride as he flung the drapes further open and allowed more light into the room.

  Dr. Cooper glanced up. “Thank you, your grace. That is much better.”

  Alverton grunted, his boy-shadow remaining close beside him.

  Harry cried out and Evelyn squeezed his hand on impulse. A whimper caught her attention and she looked up to find Jack’s terrified, sorrowful gaze. She wished at once that the boy was far away, and she there to comfort him. But she could not be two places at once.

  Alverton must have sensed the urgency in her expression, for he said, “Do not worry, my lady.”

  Dr. Cooper halted, casting Evelyn a curious glance before returning to his work. A maid entered the room with the requested supplies and set them near the surgeon as Alverton led Jack to the area on the far side of the room, seating him beside Aunt Edith at an angle where he would be unable to watch Dr. Cooper as he worked.

  Alverton must have realized, as Evelyn knew, that Jack would only leave the room at this point if he was dragged forcefully away.

  She glanced to Aunt Edith, but the woman was likely out of earshot, her attention focused on Lord Sanders. Perhaps Aunt Edith was too far away to hear clearly, or too distracted, for she did not appear to have noticed the duke’s use of her false name.

  “My lady?” Dr. Cooper asked softly as he began to clean around Harry’s wound.

  “Shhh,” Evelyn said quietly, bringing her attention back to her brother. She spoke softly through her teeth, though the murmuring of voices behind her indicated that the others were not paying attention anyway. “It is nothing. He is misinformed.”

  Dr. Cooper shot her another quick glance. “By whom?”

  “That is not relevant at present.”

  Quiet settled between them for a length of time as Dr. Cooper wiped the blood from Harry’s leg and then prepared the alcohol for cleaning the wound. “This shall hurt,” Dr. Cooper said. “I would advise that you squeeze your sister�
�s hand as hard as you can.”

  Evelyn prepared herself, firmly gripping Harry’s small hands in her own. Dr. Cooper began pouring the liquid over the gash in Harry’s leg and the boy screamed loudly, squeezing Evelyn’s hand with all of his might. His hand went slack and she panicked. “I think he has fainted.”

  Dr. Cooper leaned over her, lifting Harry’s eyelids. He sat back on his heels, confirming her fear. “It is not uncommon,” he soothed. “And it will make this next part easier for him.”

  Evelyn caught sight of the needle Dr. Cooper intended to use to close Harry’s injury and she shut her eyes.

  “Miss Trainor—”

  “Shhh!” Evelyn said, shushing the surgeon. “Why must you use my name right now?”

  “Good heavens,” he whispered back. “What else am I to call you?”

  She grunted, looking to Dr. Cooper and widening her eyes. “It is not the ideal moment to hold this conversation.”

  “I beg to differ,” he said. “You are in an ideal situation to explain this nonsense to me while the rest of the party is distracted.”

  He prepared to stitch Harry’s leg closed and Evelyn squeezed her brother’s hand, though he was likely unaware of her presence. “I met the duke at a masquerade in London before coming home and told him my name was Lady Eve.”

  “Good heavens, Evelyn. Why would you do such a thing?”

  Dr. Cooper’s shock was not comforting. She sighed. “Because I wanted to pretend it was real, I suppose. And I was absolutely convinced I would never see the man again or I wouldn’t have done such a foolish thing.”

  “It was foolish, indeed,” he scolded.

  “Well, how could I have known he was going to come to Lord Sanders’ estate?”

  “If you were honest, it wouldn’t have mattered,” Dr. Cooper countered.

  This she already knew, very well.

  Dr. Cooper continued, his voice low. “What do you plan to do?”

  She did not want to explain her actions to the duke, but it was evident she didn’t have a choice. “I merely need to speak to him and explain myself. But I’d rather do so without an audience.”

  “Understandable,” Dr. Cooper muttered. “Until then?”

  “His grace thinks I am secretly engaged,” she said, leaning slightly closer to the doctor. “And it is keeping him at bay.”

  She sensed Dr. Cooper freezing beside her. His hands returned to motion quickly but his face did not recover right away.

  His voice lowered even further. “And who is the man he believes you to be engaged to?”

  Evelyn shook her head. “It is a fictitious character. There is no one, Dr. Cooper, as you well know.”

  Understanding lit his eyes and he focused on completing his task. Soft murmuring sounded behind them and Evelyn picked out the deep, masculine timbre of Alverton’s voice among the group.

  It was a strange thing, having the duke in her father’s library. She was just grateful Father was out on an errand and not home. His lack of title would give away her lie at once, and she wanted to explain herself before the duke found out on his own.

  She blew out a breath of air. For such a horrible event, things seemed to be well in hand. Aunt Edith was not falling into hysterics, as Evelyn would have thought she would have done. But then again, she was being comforted by an earl and a duke—what more could the woman desire?

  If only Evelyn knew the nature of Father’s errand in town. He had been so secretive when Evelyn caught him outside and asked what the business was about. It was within his rights to keep personal matters to himself, of course, but she could not help but feel that he was hiding something.

  She had hoped he was seeing the doctor. But with Dr. Cooper kneeling on the rug beside her, that was clearly not the case.

  “What shall you do if your aunt refers to you by your name?”

  Evelyn startled, her mind having been off on a different path entirely. “I suppose I must hope that she does not.”

  Evelyn’s knees ached from her prolonged kneeling on the floor beside the doctor, but when Harry began to stir, she was excessively glad she hadn’t risen to stretch her limbs.

  “What is it?” Harry asked, his grumbled voice sleepy as his eyes began to blink open.

  “You fell out of the tree, Harry,” Evelyn replied softly. She sensed someone approaching, the soft thud of boots stopping just behind her. “Do you recall it? The pirates were infiltrating your ship and you had to escape on the planks. Or something of that nature. But you must have slipped and fallen. Dr. Cooper is here doing his best to mend your injury.”

  “And you shall be perfectly capable of fighting the pirates in just a weeks’ time, Harry. A fortnight, perhaps, but no longer,” Dr. Cooper said, his voice gentle.

  Harry looked between them. His squinting eyes were understanding, but dulled—no doubt from the pain. “I was chasing the pirates, not the other way around.”

  “Of course you were,” Evelyn agreed. “Now, should you like to remain here, Harry? Or can I call someone to carry you to your chamber?”

  He swallowed once, anchoring his hands beside himself before pushing up to a seated position. The movement shifted his leg, however, and he cried out like a new kitten: soft, muted, but pained.

  “I would be happy to move the boy,” Alverton said, forcing the skin on Evelyn’s neck to prickle.

  She looked over her shoulder and was struck by the compassion in his eyes—something which had been missing when they saw to the Taylor family earlier. He nodded once, subtly, and Evelyn got to her feet, moving out of the way for Alverton to step closer.

  Harry looked awed by the large man and allowed the duke to lift him carefully.

  Evelyn turned, saying, “Jack, please show Alverton to the correct chamber.”

  Jack jumped into action, crossing the room quickly, his sorrowful eyes flicking between his brother and the duke. They left the room swiftly and Evelyn sank onto the sofa, still warm from her brother’s tiny body.

  Aunt Edith crossed the room to pull the bell.

  “How might I be of service?” Lord Sanders asked, startling Evelyn. She glanced up and found his serious face watching her from across the room. She’d forgotten he was there.

  Dr. Cooper cleared his throat, tossing the last of his implements into his bag. “I believe that is all, Lord Sanders. There is nothing to do at this point but wait for the boy to be back to climbing trees.”

  “But how did he cut his leg so?” Lord Sanders asked.

  A small gasp escaped Aunt Edith, her eyes widening. She did not appreciate the vulgar talk, no doubt. Fortunately, a maid entered the room then and Aunt Edith was able to find distraction in directing her to remove the bowl and rags and to clean the area.

  Lord Sanders crossed the room, coming to pause just before Evelyn. “Small boys tend to recover quickly,” he said. “I only wish I could have been of some assistance. Alverton carried the boy all the way from the grove. I’ve done little more than shout for assistance.”

  He’d carried Harry all that way? “Thank you for your support, my lord,” Evelyn said, rising from the couch. Aunt Edith shot Evelyn a telling glance before leaving the room. She chose not to read into the pointed look, for she hadn’t the slightest inclination what the woman meant by it.

  “Everything is well in hand here,” Dr. Cooper cut in, coming to stand beside the earl. “You are welcome to return home to your visitors, sir. Harry’s injury bled quite a lot, but it is not so deep as to incite panic at this point.”

  “My only visitor is with me,” Lord Sanders replied.

  “Forgive me,” Dr. Cooper said. “There was a fine carriage turning toward Chesford Hall and I only assumed you were receiving more visitors just in time for Christmas.”

  Lord Sanders froze. “Did you not recognize the carriage?” he asked, hopefully.

  Dr. Cooper shook his head. “I did not.”

  Alverton entered the room. “Jack has remained with his brother upstairs. Sanders and I shall rem
ove ourselves at once.” He lifted his sleeve and Evelyn caught sight of the blood which covered a large part of the forearm of his coat.

  Lord Sanders scrubbed a hand over his face. “That is wise. Evidently, we have visitors.”

  Alverton’s eyebrows rose. “Who?”

  Shrugging, the earl gestured to the doctor. “Dr. Cooper saw a fine carriage traveling to Chesford.”

  Ominously, the men exchanged glances. Evelyn longed to inquire about the depth of their disappointment, but refrained.

  Lord Sanders bowed to Evelyn, saying, “My lady,” and turned to go. She glanced up, sweeping the room at once and was grateful to find Aunt Edith still absent.

  Alverton approached, his countenance grim as his gaze flicked between Dr. Cooper and Evelyn. “Please keep us apprised of master Harry’s condition.”

  “Of course, your grace,” Evelyn said.

  Dr. Cooper bowed. “Thank you for your assistance, your grace. I am sure the family is quite grateful.”

  “Indeed, we are,” Evelyn added. She could not believe a man so top-lofty and elite had carried her brother such a distance. Her eyes trailed his arms, his well-cut coat defining muscles she previously hadn’t noticed.

  But above the strength and stamina required for the action, Evelyn respected the strength of his character even more.

  “It was nothing,” Alverton replied. He reached for Evelyn’s hand and she gave it to him readily, her breath catching as he placed a light kiss on the back of her knuckles.

  Alverton held her gaze as he lifted his head, not sparing a glance for the doctor who stood beside her. She could feel the shift in the energy of the room at once and her breath came in shallow, quick draws. Her hand burned from the duke’s touch and he released it. A cool chill swept her person as he stepped back and she dipped into a curtsy.

  Dr. Cooper and the duke exchanged farewells and Alverton left the room in long, sure strides. A quiet fell over Dr. Cooper and Evelyn as they listened to the Peers’ retreating footsteps.

  “Who do you think has come to visit the earl?” Evelyn inquired, her gaze fixed on the open door.