Regency Romance: Fallen Duchess (A Historical Victorian Murder Mystery Love Regency Romance)

by Tracey D Morgan

  Esther sighed, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. “I’ve been feeling the same way. I’ve been just too terrified to admit that I felt like I was meant to marry Caleb. He’s just so … he’s everything I need to keep me sane out here,” she said as she looked around.

  Hannah smiled and tucked some hair behind her sister’s ear. “I think Aaron would keep me grounded. Given my situation, I think he’s the person I need.”

  Esther sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “Well, it feels nice to finally say it and get it off my chest,” she said softly, glancing at her sister. “But how do we switch husbands?”

  Hannah grinned, and Esther and took her hand. “You know Valentine’s Day is right around the corner,” she said softly.

  Esther glanced over at her sister. “What are you suggesting?”

  “Maybe you should ask Caleb to be your Valentine, and I’ll ask Aaron to be mine,” she suggested with a small shrug.

  It wasn’t the worst idea Esther ever heard. After a moment of thought, she offered her sister a smile a and nod.

  “All right, I suppose it’s worth a try, isn’t it? This way neither of us looks like we’re trying to steal the other’s husband,” Esther said.

  Hannah offered Esther a playful look and shook her head. “You are always worrying about stuff like that.”

  “One of us has to.”

  With that their conversation turned to much lighter subjects. For the first time in a long time, Esther felt at peace—even a little excited at the prospect of their little swap.

  Chapter Four

  Valentine’s Day was a time of celebration for the people of Dickson, Wyoming. It was a town full of people who often worked themselves to the bone. There was no rest except for Sunday and holidays, and Valentine’s Day seemed as much a day for rest as any.

  Wyoming was a brutal place to live, and people didn’t often get to see the gentler sides of their sweethearts. Romance was a thing that didn’t happen often, so people took advantage if it when they could.

  Many of the marriages in Dickson were the result of either an arranged marriage or a mail-order bride situation. There were few women in the West , so men often sent East for wives. It gave women a chance to explore the West in relative safety and escape poverty and war back East. It was exactly what people like Hannah and Esther needed.

  Considering few relationships were built on love, Valentine’s Day was something that everyone looked forward to. It allowed people who’d gotten married without much of a courtship to pretend, for at least a day, that they’d fallen in love like anyone else.

  For Hannah and Esther, it was a way to fix what they considered a mix-up. They’d gone into town a few days before Valentine’s Day and gotten what they needed to craft their own Valentines. It was still very cold out, and snow littered the ground almost three feet deep, so they were locked inside the house most of the time.

  They spent their extra time decorating their Valentines and writing heartfelt messages for the men they each adored. Neither knew what was going to come of this situation, but they could only hope that Aaron and Caleb would understand and accept them.

  The morning of Valentine’s Day, Esther and Hannah snuck out of the bedrooms they shared with their husbands and left their little pink-and-white cards on their husband’s boots. They weren’t expected to get to work that day, but the sisters knew that their husbands would put their boots on to go check on the horses. They crawled back into their respective beds silently, smiling secretly in the dark.

  Esther fell back asleep, but Hannah was far too excited to sleep. She closed her eyes but was fully awake when her husband slipped from the bed. She held her breath, her eyes squeezed tight as she tried to listen to what the men were saying. She could hear soft mumbling, but she couldn’t make out what was actually being said.

  Hours seemed to pass, and Hannah was starting to feel her heart sink. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea, she though. Panic began to rise in her throat as she scolded herself for wanting more than what she’d been given. She should have been happy to find a husband as kind and caring as Caleb. It was selfish and greedy to wish for more. It should have been enough for her to find a husband who was willing to support her. Love was a faraway wish for girls who had options.

  Just as the tears started to prick her eyes, she felt a weight settle on the bed. Her eyes snapped open. She sat up quickly, but was caught by Aaron’s strong arms. He held her close and pulled her to his chest..

  “Good morning.”

  She blushed and looked down, biting her lip. “Good morning,” she repeated, her cheeks hot with embarrassment.

  Aaron just chuckled and rubbed her shoulders. “Are you all right?”

  She nodded slowly and tucked her hair behind her ear. “I’m just surprised to see you here.”

  Aaron glanced at the door and then back at her. “Why are you surprised? Did you leave the Valentine letters?”

  “I didn’t really think it would work. I was starting to worry that you’d send us away.”

  Aaron just shook his head and smiled, leaning down to stroke her cheek gently. “We thought the same thing, you know,” he said softly, running his fingers through her hair.

  The gentle touches felt so good. She couldn’t help but lean into them, sighing and smiling. After a moment, she pulled away and looked up at Aaron, a slow smile coming to her lips.

  “Is Caleb with Esther?”

  “He is,” he said with a nod.

  “Good. I think she’ll relax a little with him,” she said. “He’s going to be good for her.”

  “Am I good for you?” he asked softly, cocking his head to the side.

  She smiled and nodded, touching his cheek and running her rough finger along his cheek. “I think so.”

  “Why?”

  “Because you … you’ll keep me grounded. You are responsible, like Esther. I need someone like you in my life and I just …When I saw you, my stomach did so many flip-flops,” she said with a laugh, looking away.

  He cupped her cheek and guided her into a tender kiss, brushing his finger over her lower lip. She accepted the kiss gratefully and leaned into Aaron, practically melting into him. When they pulled away, he pressed his forehead to hers and smiled.

  “Thank you,” he whispered.

  “For what?”

  “For being brave. There aren’t many women who would have done that, you know,” H=he said softly, kissing her cheek.

  She giggled, hardly able to help the sound that pushed forth from her chest. Hannah felt like she was flying. She couldn’t have expected this plan to go better.

  “We both admitted that we weren’t happy. Well, we were happy, but we knew we could be happier.”

  “I’m glad you took a risk,” he said, offering her another kiss, though this one was a bit longer. Ittook her breath away.

  “The moment I saw you, I knew I wanted you to be my wife,” he whispered.

  Hannah smiled and wrapped her arms around his strong shoulders. “I wanted it, too.”

  They spent the rest of the morning wrapped in each other’s arms, kissing and touching each other’s faces, thanking God for bringing them into each other’s lives and giving the sisters the confidence and bravery to voice their opinions.

  Chapter Five

  It was the best Valentine’s Day that any of them could remember. They spent the day cradled in their beloved’s arms and dancing in the soft white snow. It was perfect. They were happy, and they were in love. As the days passed, it became more and more evident that they’d made the right choice. Aaron and Hannah were a perfect match and so were Caleb and Esther.

  The town didn’t seem to bat an eye at the switch Everyone seemed to agree that it was the right thing to do. There was no need for a second marriage. They were just going to live their lives happily. Everything was slowly falling into place, though the more peaceful things got, the more jittery Esther seemed to become. There was still a secret between the sister’s and their hu
sbands--a secret that might very well tear their lives apart.

  Esther was in the barn with Caleb staring out into the soft, powdery snowfall. Winter was nearing an end, but the snow was still falling in blankets. Caleb came up behind Esther and puta hand on her shoulder,leaning in to kiss her cheek. She made a soft, surprised noise and turned back to look at her husband with big eyes.

  “Esther, what in the world is wrong?” he asked, wrapping his arms around her.

  She couldn’t resist the strength and safety that those strong arms offered, and she sank into them, her eyes fluttering closed.

  “I’m just worried,” she said softly, staring out into the barren fields.

  “You are always worried,” he pointed out, spinning her around so that they were face to face. He wrapped his arms around her and led her in a slow, silent dance.

  She relaxed a little. Esther put her head to Caleb’s chest, closed her eyes and listened to his heart beat. It calmed her more than she could explain. As they danced in the barn, holding onto each other and offering tender, chaste kisses, Esther felt her chest tighten and tears come to her eyes.

  Caleb pulled away and cupped her cheeks, frowning and watching her closely. “Esther, are you all right? Don’t cry,” he said gently, kissing her cheeks where the tears began to fall.

  “I can’t hold it in anymore. I can’t ignore it and pretend it’s nothing,” she sobbed, burying her face in his chest again.

  Caleb seemed shocked but wrapped his arms around her and rocked her slowly. “Esther, what is it?” he asked softly, kissing her hair and trying to gently urge the truth from her.

  Her head snapped up, and she gripped his shirt, dragging him into a kiss as she sobbed. “Please don’t send us away,” she pleaded into the kiss. “Please, please don’t send us away.”

  Caleb pushed her away enough that he could understand her, cupping her cheeks. “I’m not going to send you away, Esther. It’s going to be OK, but I need you to tell me what’s going on. It is part of a husband’s job to bear the weight of his wife’s burdens,” he said calmly, brushing tears from her cheek.

  She stared up at her, her eyes wide with terror and her lips shaking. Her teeth began to chatter, but she somehow forced the words out.

  “Hannah is with child.”

  Caleb just stared at her for a moment and smiled gently, kissing her temple. “Is that all?” he asked, swaying back and forth with her. “Aaron will be thrilled. He’s always wanted to be a father.”

  She shook her head and swallowed. “You don’t understand. It’s not … it’s not his baby.”

  As soon as the words left her mouth, Caleb stopped moving all together and gently pushed her away, looking down at her with a shocked expression.

  “What?”

  “She’s pregnant with her first husband’s child,” she whispered, wiping her eyes.

  A feeling of dread was starting to fill her. She felt as if she’d single-handedly torn their little family apart. They could recover from the husband swap, but there was no recovering from this. They were going to be sent back to North Carolina where they would surely die.

  “I know I shouldn’t have said anything, but I just can’t keep lying. I’ve always been the responsible one, the one who’s always bared the weight of the burden. It’s always been my job to protect my sister and care for her, but I just can’t do it anymore. I feel as if the entire weight of the world is on my shoulders, and I can’t keep being the one who has to bear it all.”

  Caleb held her close and rubbed her arms, shaking his head. “You don’t have to. You don’t have to bear that weight on your own anymore. That’s what love is,” he said softly.

  “Are you … are you saying you love me?” she whispered, eyes wide even as tears fell down them.

  “I am. I’ve loved you from the moment I saw you,” he whispered, cupping her cheek.

  She forced a weak smile and wrapped her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder. “I don’t know what to do, Caleb.”

  He was quiet for a long moment before he let out a heavy sigh. “We have to tell him,” he finally said.

  Esther looked up at him and then away. “Will he still care for her?”

  “I don’t know. I hope so. I pray that God will give us the strength to get through this trying time.”

  “Me, too. I’ve been praying for so long,” she whispered, wiping the tears from her eyes.

  “It’s in His hands now. We need to have faith, and even if things go south, we still have each other, right?”

  She looked up at him and smiled sadly, nodding her head. “Right.”

  Chapter Six

  Caleb and Esther knew they couldn’t wait much longer to tell Aaron the truth. Hannah was getting bigger by the day and only managed to hide her secret because it was winter, and she was often wearing several layers of clothing. The bump was still small and would have gone completely unnoticed to those who weren’t privy to the fact that she was pregnant, but it wasn’t going to stay that way for long.

  The snow was finally starting to melt. Although it stopped snowing, the rains were coming, and they all but flooded the little farm house. Caleb and Aaron were locking down the barn and getting everything ready before the rain got any worse. Other farmers were much worse off because the floods would destroy their crops. Esther could only be thankful that their livelihood did not depend on the weather the way other’s did. She was also thankful that the bad weather would make it impossible for her sister to run away.

  They were settled at the dinner table, sipping tea and watching the rain come down hard. Esther was silent for most of the day, and Hannah was beginning to wonder about her again.

  “Sister, are you all right?” she asked softly, reaching across the table and touching Esther’s hand.

  Esther turned her hand over, gripping Hannah’s delicate, pale fingers. She smiled sadly and looked over at her, squeezing her hand.

  “We have to tell him, Hannah.”

  For a moment, Hannah seemed confused, but then the words settled in, and she realized what her sister was asking of her. She paled and shook her head back and forth slowly.

  “I can’t,” she whispered.

  Esther closed her eyes and took a breath, knowing she needed to be stern. She hated seeing her sister so scared and upset, but she knew she needed to do this if things were going to get better. She knew that things would only get worse the longer they waited. After a moment, she opened her eyes and nodded her head.

  “You can do this, and you have to,” esther said gently.

  Tears began to spill over Hannah’s cheeks, and she stared at her sister. “How long have we been searching for happiness? How much have we gone through? These men … they’re God’s gift to us. What if he walks away from me?”

  “If he walks away from you, then it wasn’t God’s intention for him love you.” Esther took her sister’s shaking hand in hers and brought them to her lips, pressing a tender kiss to them. “You have to be strong, Hannah. You have to be strong, and you have to believe that God is going to show him how much you love him. We have to put our fate in His hands. It’s out of our control, and it’s always been out of our control. He’s gotten us this far. We need to let Him guide us to the end.”

  Hannah was still shaking, staring at the table as if it held the answers to all of her problems. She dropped her head and whimpered softly.

  “I’m not strong enough.”

  “Yes, you are! You’ve been through so much Hannah. More than I could ever imagine. People think I’m the strong one, but it’s you. You suffered in silence for so long. Now is your chance to be happy. He might reject you, but even if he does, you aren’t alone,” she said quickly, forcing her sister to look up into her eyes. “You are never alone. I’m here, and I always will be. I need you to know that and believe it,” Esther said pleadingly.

  All they’d ever had was each other. Their parents were aristocrats who were far more focused on their money and their estate than the
ir children. Esther and Hannah were raised by an army of nannies and never received much love or affection from anyone but each other. They’d been through thick and thin together, and Esther wanted to make sure that Hannah knew she would never be alone.

  “You have to tell him, Hannah.”

  Hannah opened her mouth to respond, but before she could even get the words out, Aaron stepped into the kitchen, staring at them with his brows knitted together.

  “What is it that you need to tell me, Hannah?”

  Chapter Seven

  Hannah stared up at Aaron for a long moment. Her mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. She was clearly terrified and on the verge of fainting. Esther’s stomach was turning over just as much as Hannah’s, but she forced herself to be strong. She stood up slowly, walking over to Hannah and wrapping her arms around her sister gently. She leaned down and kissed her forehead, sighing softly.

  “It’s OK, Hannah. Tell him.”

  Aaron watched Hannah expectantly, frowning and clearly concerned as to what was going on. “Hannah?”

  Her lips shook for a moment, but she stood slowly and walked over to him, looking up at him with tears in her eyes.

  “Before I tell you, I want you to know that I love you dearly.”

  “Of course, darling. I love you, too. Please tell me what has you so upset.”

  She hesitated for a moment and looked down at the floor, a few tears falling and splashing against the dark wooden panels.

  “I’m pregnant.”

  It broke Esther’s heart when the first emotion that came over Aaron’s face was happiness. It took him a moment to understand why Hannah would be so upset about being pregnant. When then the realization hit him, his face fell. Hannah was staring at the floor still, but Esther watched the full range of emotions that graced his features.

  At first his lips set in a thin line, and his eyes widened in anger. He clenched his fists at his side, his hands shaking as his teeth grit together. Soon enough the anger faded into sheer sadness and disappointment. He looked almost vulnerable and confused. He ran his hands through his hair, his finger’s tangling in the dark locks for a moment as he attempted to get control of himself.