What the Stubborn Viscount Desires

by Sandra Sookoo

  Also, as a favor, do not tell my father any of the contents in this missive. I will visit him once I’m in London. Some things must be done in person.

  Regards,

  Trewellain

  With haste, Jonathan removed his signet ring from his pinky finger, melted some of the black sealing wax, closed the letter and pressed the ring into the glob of sticky, cooling wax. Then he handed the note to the earl. “To the duke and no other. Do not leave until he’s read it. Understand?”

  “I do.” The other man nodded and then tucked the letter into a pocket of his greatcoat. “Good luck on the remainder of your mission, for I assume you are on one?”

  “Yes.” He said nothing else. “Go. Do not miss that coach.”

  As Carlisle loped from the inn, Jonathan sighed. Godspeed, Rathesborne.

  April 15, 1822

  Paris, France

  As evenings in Paris went, it was perfect for many things.

  Jonathan and Sophia strolled along the Seine, and when they gained the grand bridge that led to the even grander Palais-Royal, he drew her to a halt at the stone railing midway across.

  “This is the very place where I almost lost my life with Lady Archewyne.” The pink and purple shadows of twilight gathered around them. Couples walked with leisure past them. The low ebb of laughter and conversation filled the spring air. Along the banks, trees and flowers had started to bloom and the world erupted with color and new life.

  Yes, this was the most suitable place, and it was past time to tell Sophia how he felt.

  “I’m sorry to hear that, but happy you wished to share such a place with me.” She glanced out over the river and the faint breeze ruffled a baby-fine tendril of her hair beneath a smart bonnet whose yellow ribbons fluttered. The jonquil gown she wore added to the scene of springtime, it’s gold and crystal beads winked in the dying light.

  “Sophia.” He took her hands in his, and when she trained those indigo eyes upon him, he sighed. “We need to talk.”

  “Yes. We do. It has been brewing for quite some time, hasn’t it?” Though she gave him a small smile, anxiety lined her face and she stifled a sneeze.

  Could she be any more endearing? He grinned even his chest tightened and anticipation mixed with apprehension in his gut. For the first time in a long while, he was happy, and it unnerved him a bit. “When I went into the water here, I wanted to die, to join Lavinia in death, so great was my grief.” Speaking the words didn’t bring the morass of sadness or guilt he’d become accustomed to.

  “It’s understandable.” She squeezed his fingers in encouragement.

  “Perhaps, but I was furious at Mr. Herrick for pulling me and Lady Archewyne to safety.”

  Sophia gasped. “You wished for her to die as well?”

  He was mucking the whole thing up. “No, but she and I were bound together, so…” He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter now. Suffice it to say, I wasn’t proud of those thoughts. Regardless, Herrick showed his true worth as a man. I suppose I should call him Litton now since he is the duke.”

  “You are going off track, my lord,” she murmured in a gentle voice as her eyes twinkled.

  “Yes, I am.” He nodded. “In any event, after that, I existed out of protest. Became bitter over everything. The Hawkins family insisted I spend copious amounts of time with them in an effort to make me live again. I… consider them my family.” His throat constricted. Damnation but he’d grown into a maudlin arse since meeting Sophia. “Better than my own, but then I’ve already told you this.”

  “You have.”

  “Yes, well.” This was easily the most difficult thing he’d set out to do. “They were my closest supporters, and then I met you, became friends with you, shared things with you no one else knew.” His heart constricted the longer he stared at her. “And we did… things together. I took liberties—”

  “I gave you permission and teased you into them,” she interrupted in a quiet voice while taking one of his hands and threading their gloved fingers together.

  He nodded. Her every touched distracted him, sent heated need coursing through his veins. “In that knowing and spending time together, I’ve… I’ve…” He peered deep into her eyes, searched her upturned face and hoped she understood what he tried to say so he wouldn’t have to put it into precise words.

  “You will need to do better than that, Trewellain.” Sophia cocked an eyebrow and planted her hands on her hips. He immediately regretted the loss of their connection. “I almost died in Spain. You owe me more than unfinished thoughts and sentences.”

  To see her grin again, he would spend the rest of his life in the pursuit of making her smile, to keep her happy. Finally, he nodded. “As always, you are in the right of it.” He paused as he searched his mind for the exact words he should say. When nothing erudite or enlightening came to him, he sighed, and despite the people milling about them, he sank to his good knee before her. “You, my dear, are a continuous pain in my arse, a thorn in my paw as it were and a constant voice in my head, but then Archewyne always says the best women will bedevil a man and drive him to distraction. I’m there, Sophia, and have been for some time. I finally understand what Miles meant, damn his eyes.”

  She sucked in a breath as her eyes rounded. “What exactly are you trying to say?”

  What indeed? Just say it, Trewellain. This is no time for cowardice. He laughed from the sheer absurdity of life. “It was all so simple. I’ve been a nodcock not to see it sooner.”

  “Have you gone mad?” At her look of concern, he laughed again, and it felt so good, so freeing to do so, he continued and no doubt appeared escaped from Bedlam to her.

  “No, I haven’t, but I am in the grip of strong emotion and couldn’t be happier about it.” He took possession of one of her hands. “Sophia Wickham, I love you. Completely, wholly, I’m infatuated with you beyond everything. You are the reason I live and breathe. You’ve changed me from the inside out. You’ve shined your light into all my dark places and expelled the demons who lived in my shadows.” Is this what every man felt like when confessing his love for the woman who’d won him? He laughed again. “Once we reach England, I would very much appreciate it if you… Would you want to be with me for the rest of my life?”

  She narrowed her eyes even as she tightened her hold on his hand. “And?”

  Ah, she wouldn’t be the keeper of his heart if she didn’t demand the best from him. He grinned. “Will you marry me? Not because I won your hand in some bloody game of cards with your father, but because you wish to. I love you for you, want you for all that you are.”

  Her chin quivered and her eyes filled with tears.

  Jonathan shot to his feet. He cupped her cheek, ran his gloved thumb along her bottom lip. How he longed to kiss her, truly embrace her, but he quelled the urge. Not yet. Once he did, he wouldn’t be able to stop until he’d laid claim to all of her, to seal the deal as it were. When she still didn’t answer, doubt seeped in to steal a portion of his joy. Had he disappointed her after all? “Sophia? Please say something, even if it’s to reject my suit. I’ve tried hard this last month to court you properly, to give you the respect you deserve—”

  “That’s why you’ve treated me with kid gloves, and why you haven’t even once attempted to cajole me into your bed?” Incredulity rang in her voice.

  The abrupt change in subject jolted him into confusion. “Yes, I thought I might try something different and—”

  “Well, don’t do that anymore,” she interrupted as she yanked her hand from his. “I don’t appreciate that, not after everything we’ve been through. It’s not how we operate together. You near broke me. I thought you were being nice, playing the gentleman to ease the pain of parting with you once we reached England. I was furious and sad all at once, but you were so nice and noble, that I couldn’t stay angry, but I didn’t like it.” She even went so far as to stamp a foot as she sneezed. “That is not the man I want, not the man I need.” She glared. “The man you’ve grow
n to be is exactly who I desire.”

  “Lesson learned.” He nodded and couldn’t help his grin. “Does that mean—”

  A wide smile curved her highly kissable lips. Emotion twinkled in her eyes, and he read it as clearly as if she’d shouted it from the rooftops. “Oh, Jonathan, yes. Of course I’ll marry you. I’ve been in love with you since Madrid but had lost hope. You hadn’t said anything or declared yourself and I—”

  He cut her off with a victorious shout followed by a long, drugging kiss that saw him as breathless as she once he broke their connection. “I have waited a long time to do that, and to hear those words.”

  “You could have saved yourself much trouble had you chosen to speak sooner.” Her smile gave light to the twilit shadows around them. “I’ll marry you on one condition.”

  “Just one?” he asked and tugged on an escaped tendril of her hair.

  “Yes, just one.” She nodded and held his gaze. “Make peace with your father. It’s only right.”

  With her by his side, he’d never go astray again. Neither would he know a moment’s peace. “My dear, we are going to have such fun together.” Then another slew of doubts beset him. “But I’m a king’s agent. Nothing will change that. There will be constant danger and wondering—”

  “I am not one to waste time with worrying. The risk will always be there, Jonathan. The trick is to live for today. Love will help,” she interrupted with such a calm demeanor he nearly kissed her again.

  “You do not care that I’m not a whole man?”

  She blew out a breath of frustration. “Have I acted in such a way during our intimacy together that you feel this will be a sudden cause for concern?”

  Heat rose up his nape. “No, but I—”

  “Trewellain.” Sophia fisted her hands into his lapels and pulled him close. “You are perfect for me. That is all you need to know.”

  “Indeed it is.” Despite the fact they were in public and the subject of interest for many prying eyes, he embraced her and spent the next several minutes reacquainting himself with the glory of her lips and the sweet taste of her.

  April 19, 1822

  London, England

  Jonathan’s whole body tensed with apprehension as he stared at the closed door that led into his father’s study. He hadn’t seen his parent for years, didn’t think he needed that familial connection again, and now that he was truly in the duke’s townhouse, old fears and insecurities surfaced. Despite all of that, the constant pressure of Sophia’s fingers in his kept the urge to run at bay. He squeezed her hand, felt the ridge of the oval sapphire ring surrounded with smaller diamonds—part of the jewelry his mother had gifted him with upon her death—he’d given her as his promise, and he sighed. For the good of their future, he would do this. He lifted his free hand and rapped smartly on the oaken panel with his knuckles.

  Several agonizing seconds went by and then his father, the Duke of Werthsbury, bid him enter in strong, authoritative tones.

  Swallowing the ball of fear that sat in his throat, Jonathan pressed the door handle and pushed the panel open. “Father, I’m here to tell you that I am going to marry Squire Wickham’s daughter, just as you ordered me to do nearly three years ago.” He rushed on before his father, who’d risen from his chair behind a massive cherrywood desk could answer. “I’ve secured a special license this morning, and she’s not the frying pan-faced girl you assumed.” He sucked in a breath and gained strength from the pressure of Sophia’s hand in his. “We’ve had quite the adventure together. I would love to tell you about it… and her.”

  “Boy, is this true?” His father gawked, and when told it was, he waved him onward. “I have been waiting a long time for you to figure out what you wanted from this life.”

  Now I truly have. Jonathan glanced at Sophia, the woman who held his heart and who would be his wife by breakfast tomorrow, and he smiled. He pulled her into the office with him and firmly closed the door behind them. “Father, this is Miss Sophia Wickham…”

  The End

  Other Regency-era stories by Sandra Sookoo

  Scandal in Surrey series

  Lady Parker’s Grand Affair

  The Bride’s Gambit

  Misfortune’s Lady

  Miss Bennett’s Naughty Secret

  Scandalous Shorts (tie-ins to Scandal in Surrey series)

  Library Tryst

  Bedroom Assignation

  Staircase Encounter

  Garden Affair

  Darrington family series

  Marriage Minded Lord

  To Bed or To Wed

  The Bridal Contract

  Thieves of the Ton series

  Captivated by an Adventurous Lady

  Engaged to a Scandalous Earl

  Married on a Wicked Morning

  Intrigued by an Ancient Pedigree

  Beguiled on a Christmas Morning

  Caught with a Stolen Diamond

  Tortured by a Horrible Secret (coming August 2018)

  Delighted on a Summer’s Evening (coming October 2018)

  Lords of the Night

  Devil Take the Duke (coming November 2018)

  Author Bio

  Sandra Sookoo is a USA Today bestselling author who firmly believes every person deserves acceptance and a happy ending. Most days you can find her creating scandal and mischief in the Regency-era, serendipity and happenstance in Victorian America or snarky, sweet humor in the contemporary world. Most recently she’s moved into infusing her books with mystery and intrigue. Reading is a lot like eating fine chocolates—you can’t just have one. Good thing books don’t have calories!

  When she’s not wearing out computer keyboards, Sandra spends time with her real life Prince Charming in central Indiana where she’s been known to goof off and make moments count because the key to life is laughter. A Disney fan since the age of ten, when her soul gets bogged down and her imagination flags, a trip to Walt Disney World is in order. Nothing fuels her dreams more than the land of eternal happy endings, hope and love stories.

  Stay in Touch

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  Tortured by a Horrible Secret

  (Thieves of the Ton #6) Coming August 2018

  Will the bonds of love prove stronger than a man back from the dead and bent on revenge?

  Miles Lawrence Hawkins, the fifth Earl of Archewyne, is determined to retire from life as a king’s man. Working clandestine cases for the Crown might be in his blood, but keeping his family safe is a more paramount concern. When he and his beloved wife are kidnapped, the chances of escaping slip away, especially when the man behind the insane plan is his brother, Nigel, who has been assumed dead for years.

  A mysterious note arrives following the unexpected death of her father blaming her husband for that event, and the Countess of Archewyne wonders what game is afoot. Doubts and fears add to growing ennui regarding life when Emmaline lands in a world of pain and confusion as she and the earl are taken. A masked captor makes hideous demands unless she and the earl provide classified information. Through it all, she clings to her love for her husband and her secret hope for the future while biding her time.

  Physical and emotional torture continues until the reason is finally revealed—to lure the Duke of Rathesborne into the web to answer for his alleged crimes against Nigel. Emmaline manages a daring escape even though it means leavin
g Miles behind with the mad man, while the earl struggles with what family truly means. As their world spins out of control, she fights to mount a rescue and he battles to survive. Nothing short of a miracle can put their lives back together again or repair the damage gained in captivity.

  It Must be Magic (as part of the Romantically Enchanted boxed set) coming in September 2018

  The most powerful form of magic is freewill.

  Averell Woode is a huntsman’s daughter, hidden away in an enchanted tree from the evils of the world. Though she’s skilled in all things forest-related, she yearns for life beyond the trees. A chance meeting with a stranger seems the perfect opportunity to stretch her wings, and she falls for the charm he oozes. And now, an exciting adventure has come to her very doorstep.

  Devon James Quinn Lansdowne, the spare prince of Annanvale, is trying to avoid anything that smacks of palace life. He’s not into intrigue or politics and much prefers running free through forested areas especially while in wolf form. Cursed to shift into the beast each night, he’s not looking for romance, but when fate puts him into the path of a woman who draws an arrow on him, he’s only too glad to change his mind.