by Wendy Vella
Patience sat up in his lap and adjusted the bodice of her dress, aware of his eyes following her every movement.
“You are a beautiful woman.”
Her hands stopped as she looked at him and saw the remnants of passion still lingering in his green eyes. She had never been desired, and to be so now, at her age, was going to take some getting used to.
“When will we—”
He cut her words off by lifting her off his lap as a knock sounded on the door. Patience sat in his chair and watched him stride across the room. For one so tall, he was a graceful man.
“Hello, Lucy. Please come in. You can be the first to congratulate us. Your sister has just agreed to become my wife.”
Mathew’s small smile told Patience he had not missed the fact that she was now seated behind his desk, leaving him to sit on the other side.
“He is just the man I have always wished for you, Sister!” Lucy clapped her hands.
Patience lifted an inquiring eyebrow at her sister’s passionate speech. “And what have you always wished for me, Lucy?”
“To find a man equal to the task of managing you.”
Mathew snorted, then coughed, as she shot him a withering look.
“Am I so unmanageable, then?”
“Oh, dear, did I say unmanageable?” Lucy’s eyes twinkled as she winked at Mathew. “What I meant was someone of equal intellect.”
“I am as aware of my faults as anyone, Lucy. However, I will say that I am not in the least unmanageable, and would go so far as to say that it is unjust of you to suggest otherwise.”
“Indeed? And there I was, thinking ‘unmanageable’ a far too subtle term for you. Demanding, perhaps? Unruly and obstinate, to be more accurate,” Mathew drawled.
His expression was unrepentant; in fact, his smile, grew wider, and suddenly Lucy remembered a pressing matter she must take up with her brother and hurried from the room with what seemed to her sister to be indecent haste.
Patience looked into Mathew’s wicked eyes and knew he was being deliberately provoking. Up came her chin as she glared at him.
“Really, my lord? Then I wonder how it is that you should offer for me when I am so obviously a sorry prospect.”
Grinding her teeth, Patience watched as he tilted his head to one side, as if he were studying her for further defects.
“Indeed, it will not be easy. But I feel that I more than anyone else am equal to the task,” Mathew said. “And as you are getting on in years, I feel it is my duty, considering our family connections, to—”
He ducked as she threw the paperweight at him, and it sailed over his head and hit the wall beyond.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The Allender family moved back into their town house as soon as the rain stopped, which happened to be the day after Mathew had told society that he and Patience were to wed. He then left London, as one of his estates had been damaged during the storm and he was needed there urgently, leaving her to fend off the continual parade of well-wishers and not-so-well-wishers who appeared in her parlor every day.
The betrothal of the Marquis of Belmont to Miss Patience Allender was the talk of the town, and Patience could not wait until someone else did something to move society’s focus away from her. Her hope that her upcoming nuptials would be fleeting fodder for the ravenous were soon dashed, and on the fifth day the Allender town house was still beseeched with morning callers. It had been the same every day since the announcement had appeared in the paper, and while Lucy was enjoying the attention, the eldest Allender sibling most certainly was not.
She was also missing Mathew, and could do nothing to ease the ache inside her every time she thought of him. He had infiltrated her heart once more, but this time it was worse; this time she could think of nothing else. She wanted his body pressed against hers as he sank deep inside her, wanted his laughter, or his teasing. He was a part of her now, and his leaving had made her realize that she could not live without him as she once had. This time only death would part them.
“Are you wanting something, Miss Allender?”
Patience looked at young Charlie, who was now one of her staff and judging from all she’d heard from the Toots family was fitting in well. Even after only a short time, his cheeks had filled out and his eyes looked less haunted; whenever she saw him, it only reinforced the value of what she had done that night. She still had nightmares about the water and perhaps she would continue to do so for some time, but seeing this boy made her realize the good that had come from the bad.
“No, Charlie, I am just hiding, as my parlor is once again filled with a gaggle of woman all twittering and gossiping about my upcoming marriage.”
She was hiding on the servants’ stairs, sitting about halfway down, hidden from everyone, she’d thought. She hadn’t planned to stay here for long, just a brief respite before Lucy found her.
“Shall I tell you when they’ve gone?”
Her sigh was loud. “No, in fact I should even now be beside my sister, fielding comments and veiled insults.”
His head tilted slightly as he rested a foot on the stair above her. “If they’re insulting you, you shouldn’t go in there.”
If only it were that simple, she thought. “Thank you. I shall definitely give that some thought.”
They were silent for a while and she knew he was wrestling with something that he wanted to say.
“Are you happy here, Charlie? Do you like the Toots family?”
His eyes lit as she mentioned her staff and the corner of his mouth tipped upwards, which she guessed constituted a smile for him.
“Yes, it’s the best place I’ve ever been, and the Tootses are the best people…besides you, Miss Allender.”
She felt humbled at his words. One simple sentence spoken in his gruff little voice, yet it meant so much to her to hear he was happy. It also made her realize that her problems compared to what his had been were pathetic and that her behavior in trying to avoid her morning callers was childish, when so many were suffering every day just to feed themselves.
“Thank you for saving me.”
The words were a whisper, but she heard them, and while she wanted to close the distance between them and take him in her arms, Patience stayed where she was, looking down on his bent head.
“Oh, no, Charlie. I may have helped, but you saved yourself by being the strong young man you are.”
“Really?” He lifted his head and looked at her with his big brown eyes.
“Really. And it’s my hope that you’ll stay here with us and the Toots family for many years to come, even when we all go to live with Lord Belmont.”
He nodded, and the small smile appeared again. Suddenly, he was the boy he had probably never had a chance to be.
“I want that, to stay with you and the Tootses, and Lord Belmont.”
“You like Lord Belmont?”
“Yes. He told me I was to come to him if ever I needed anything, or any trouble came calling from my past.”
Tears began to spill from her eyes. “He is a good man.” And I miss him so much.
The boy nodded, then with a bow—which Lenny had told her he practiced for hours—he left her alone once more with her thoughts, although now they were no longer filled with self-pity but disgust.
She was sitting here avoiding those women, when in all honesty they could do nothing to hurt her. A few well-placed words could cause her no pain; she was stronger than that now, stronger than the innocent girl she had once been. She loved Mathew, and he loved her, and Charlie had just reinforced for her why she would marry him, because he was a good, kind man, as well as a devilishly good kisser. Not many of his rank and birth would take the time to speak with a young, scared boy and offer his support should the boy need it.
Climbing to her feet, she brushed the tears from her cheeks. She was to be Lady Belmont, and she was strong enough to face a few gossiping women, especially when most of those women would give anything to have their daughters or indeed th
emselves married to Mathew. He was hers, every wonderful inch of him, and she would make sure everyone knew it.
When she returned to the parlor, Claire had arrived, and soon managed to insult everyone in such a way that no one realized it. Patience was torn between laughter and horror, until finally every guest had left, leaving the now giggling Allender sisters and Lady Kelkirk.
“You’re terribly good at insulting people, Claire, without their knowledge.”
“Years of practice, Lucy. And now we are going shopping, as you both need new dresses to make the men in your lives drool.”
“Yes!” Lucy clapped her hands. “James already loves me, but inflaming his passions further cannot hurt.”
“He does?” Patience looked at her sister.
“Of course. I have declared my love also, Patience. All that is left now is for James to ask for my hand.”
Unaware that Patience’s responses were less than enthusiastic, Lucy ran for the door, eager to collect her things and prepare for the outing.
“For what it is worth, Patience, Mr. Stanhope is a well respected man. He will make your sister a wonderful husband, and she a wonderful wife for him.”
Claire had regained her feet and was now standing before her. Patience struggled to collect her thoughts. “Yes,” Patience said softly. “I know you are right, Claire. It is just that for so long there was only the three of us, and I am very protective of my siblings.”
“As you should be, my dear sister-in-law-to-be. But now it is time to share your burden, and to let your sister know you are aware she has grown up, and that she has your blessing to wed Mr. Stanhope.”
“Must I?” Patience knew she sounded pathetic, and it annoyed her even more that she wanted Mathew here so she could discuss this issue with him.
“Yes, you must.” Claire kissed her cheek. “And I want to say thank you for talking to him about Anthony, convincing him to hang the portrait where it belongs once again. I believe my brother now walks with a lighter step, as if bringing Anthony back into his life has freed him in some way.”
“He needed to grieve for Anthony, and do so with his family around him.”
“Yes,” Claire sighed. “It is wonderful to talk openly about our brother now.”
“I am so pleased for you all,” Patience said.
“And I’m pleased you have come back into our lives, Patience Allender, because you have saved my brother, and for that alone I can never thank you enough.”
They talked and laughed as Claire’s carriage carried them through London to the boutique she had declared the very thing for what they needed. Charlie was spending the day with Louis, and unlike she once would have been, Patience was not at all anxious that he was away from the house. Everything was changing around her, and she realized that it would take some time to come to terms with those changes. She would be marrying a man she loved; her sister would likely wed someone she was sure was a good man; and her brother could now live a complete life, doing what other boys his age were doing. Two of those things she had always hoped for, and she could not be happier for her siblings; the third she had given up wishing for seven years ago.
“I have not seen that smile for a while, Sister.”
Patience acknowledged her sister’s words with a nod, but said nothing further. The thought of marrying Mathew made her tingle all over.
“I am so pleased for Louis to have a new friend in your brother,” Claire said, interrupting her thoughts.
“As are we, Claire. Charlie had no friends before, due to our cousin, and it is time for him to find some. Yesterday he was discussing which school he wishes to attend with Patience and me, and it was wonderful to see his enthusiasm.”
“I am happy it is behind you all, and sad only that you suffered for so long.”
“It’s all right, Claire.” Patience touched her arm as she saw the glimmer of tears.
“I cry a great deal now,” she sniffed. “It is the baby, so I am told.”
“Well, as the carriage has stopped, you had better compose yourself,” Lucy said, reaching for the door.
The boutique had a blue and gold canopy over the elegantly dressed front window, with the words Madame Alexander’s written across it.
“Is this a new boutique, Claire?” Patience looked through the doors at the woman already inside. “I do not believe I have ever heard its name mentioned before.”
“It has been open a while. It is rumored that the owners are nobility, yet no one can substantiate that.”
Patience took Claire’s arm and helped her up the steps and into the boutique.
“Nobility,” Lucy said. “How scandalous!”
“Their styles are wonderful, and their designers have such flair.”
They looked around the shop briefly before a woman came toward them with a genuine smile on her face.
“Always so elegant, Lady Kelkirk, even in your delicate condition.”
“It is your clothes, Madame Allard. They hide that I am now the size of a small building. But enough about me. You have work to do, Madame. Before you are my dearest, dearest friends, both of whom have men to impress, one of which is my brother, so dress them accordingly, if you please.”
“I really don’t think I need a new dress,” Patience said. “Perhaps one for Lucy—”
“Ignore her, Madame Allard. She has the soul of a puritan. I assure you, I know best!” Claire cried from her seat. “For Miss Allender, lower necklines and less material, I think, plus an overskirt in something soft and floaty. Light colors for Miss Lucy Allender, and I think a very small train at the back.”
Patience was only stuck with a pin once, and managed not to yelp too loudly. She was measured, draped and asked to twirl, and laughed so much her sides were aching. It was fun, she had to admit that. Some time ago, she had visited a seamstress fleetingly and had vowed never to repeat the experience, but Claire made this entire visit an adventure.
“I need fresh air,” Patience declared when Madame Allard had finished with her. “I will step outside for a few minutes while Lucy is being fitted, as I’m sure you do not need my help.”
“No, indeed.” Claire waved her away. “You would put your sister in something ill-fitting, made of coarse fabrics, if we let you.”
“That is harsh. Surely I would have chosen a wheat sack, at the very least.”
Leaving her friend laughing, she made for the door and stepped outside. The aroma of roasting chestnuts made her stomach rumble, so she headed across the street to the vendor and procured a bag. Popping one in her mouth, she found a seat across from the shop and settled there.
People walked by, some acknowledging her, others not, and Patience was quite happy eating her nuts and watching the goings-on around her. She had nothing greater to tax her mine than her forthcoming marriage and Lucy’s forthcoming betrothal. There was no danger lying in wait, and for the first time in many years she felt peace in her soul.
“Miss Allender!”
She turned to see Mr. Whitty approaching. His face was red and he was breathing hard.
“Mr. Whitty, are you all right?”
“Indeed. Thank you for your concern.” He pulled out his white handkerchief and mopped his glistening brow. “I was just about to call upon you, so it is fortuitous that I have found you seated here.”
“Perhaps you could sit here and tell me what is bothering you.” Patience patted the space beside her as the man had still not caught his breath.
“If it is not too much of an inconvenience for me to do so.”
“No inconvenience, I assure you.”
He took the seat, leaving a sizable gap between them, and settled his hat on his lap. Patience gave him a few moments to gather his breath before asking why he needed to speak with her.
“After you sent word that your cousin had been dealt with, I was about to close your case, but then I received news of an alarming nature.”
“Please do not tell me that Brantley Winston has escaped.” Patience felt the
lump of dread that had so recently eased settle again inside her chest.
“No, indeed. He is on his way to America. There is nothing to fear there, Miss Allender.”
“Then what is the problem, Mr. Whitty?”
“I was able to gather information that your uncle, Mr. Winston’s father, had a son born out of wedlock.”
“Are you sure?”
Mr. Whitty nodded. “Yes, I am. I have many contacts, and the one I asked to delve into the Winston family was able to collect that information.”
“But surely this has no bearing on my family.” Please let it have no bearing, Patience silently begged.
The private investigator looked down at his hat briefly, which told her what his words had not. This did have a bearing on her family.
“It seems that your cousin and his half-brother have connected. I am not sure in what way this will impact you and your family, but my fear is that Brantley Winston has left his brother instructions to finish what he started, and if he does, then your cousin will return as head of the family.”
Patience could not take all of this in. She fell back on the seat as the chestnuts she had eaten suddenly began to make her feel nauseus. “But you cannot be sure of this?”
“No, I cannot, but with your permission I shall start investigating the half-brother, and when I uncover his name I shall see if he is a threat to you and your family.”
“I would be grateful to you, if you could. I shall tell my fiancé when he returns, and once again alert my family to the danger that may still be present.”
Mr. Whitty regained his feet and bowed, then he was once again walking, this time away from her. Patience watched him until he disappeared, wondering how she ought to tell Charlie that he could still be in danger. Should she wait to hear more details? This cousin might not even be a threat. Yet something inside her told Patience he was, an instinct that had her rising and hurrying back across the street to the boutique. She was scared, but this time she had Mathew to help protect her family.