An Earl for her Hopeless Heart: A True Clean & Sweet Historical Regency Romance Novel

by Finch, Fanny

  She set the tray down and backed out, leaving her eyes on Leander for a prolonged period of time before giggling as she went back down to the kitchen.

  Leander and the Earl of Nottingham exchanged looks. “I believe Thelma has been told the reason for your visit.”

  “It would seem so.”

  Both men chuckled.

  “I want to be sure you are aware of what will happen if you tie yourself to my family.”

  Leander shook his head. “Lord Stalwood, you must not worry yourself about what my family thinks or what the ton says. I see no reason why you cannot recover from your current financial status. I am perfectly willing to help you.”

  “I have never been the kind of man who would accept help, suggestions, or recommendations.” The Earl of Nottingham gave him a direct look. “Perhaps now I should change that.”

  “It may behoove you to do so, sir.” Leander gave him a smile.

  “You must also realize that Hestia is a headstrong and stubborn young woman. She took the position of companion because she wanted to secure a future for herself. I asked my friend, the Viscount of Culross, to watch after her and treat her with the respect her position is due. We may not have as much wealth but as an earl, I hold a higher place in society than he.”

  “Yes, sir,” Leander said politely.

  “It appears he has disrespected Hestia and our family for some time now. I believe the rumors of our financial situation were spread by him. It is disappointing to say the least.”

  “Yes, Lord Stalwood.”

  The Earl of Nottingham placed one hand over his mouth and stared at Leander.

  “The actions that caused Hestia to make the decision to become a companion are mine to bear. I have not been wise in many of my decisions. Hestia has a firm disposition and she will not hesitate to put you in your place, if need be. Are you prepared to handle the consequences of choosing her and taking on that burden?”

  Leander listened closely to the older man and took a moment to think about the question before answering. It did not take him long before he knew what he wanted to say.

  “Lord Stalwood, I have not been able to think of anything other than your daughter since first meeting her some weeks ago. She bumped into me quite by accident and I was smitten from the first moment. My father, when he was willing to talk to me as an equal, spoke of the need for patience and that love sometimes has to grow.”

  Leander sat back, swallowing. His mouth was dry and his nerves were on edge.

  “It has only been a few weeks but in that time, my interest in your daughter has only grown. I do not want to waste the opportunity that I feel has been placed before me.”

  “You know that your mother and Miss Drusilla Sirey visited today. You left with them.”

  “Yes, Lord Stalwood.”

  “Do you know why they were here?”

  “I believe they were here to inform you that my father made an arrangement with her father for Miss Drusilla and I to be married.”

  The Earl of Nottingham nodded. “Yes, that is correct. But I have a feeling I was not being told the truth about the situation. They made a mistake.”

  “What mistake was that, sir?”

  His voice deepened. “They said my daughter was flaunting herself in front of you and threatened to destroy my name further if I did not stop all contact between you.” He shook his head. “I did not appreciate the threat. I am a man who makes mistakes. But I will not be disrespected or have my family disrespected that way.”

  Leander did not know how to respond to the Earl of Nottingham. He had never met the man before today but he was sure the look on the older man’s face was one of sorrow and longing. Leander felt sorry for him.

  “You do not need to worry about any of this, Lord Stalwood,” he said with compassion. “I will care for your daughter with great respect and will tolerate no one who gives her less than she deserves. I will help you build up your financial empire so that you will be restored to good standing in society. If that is what you desire. But know this…”

  Leander sat forward once more and made sure to make eye contact with the Earl of Nottingham. “I will not give up on my quest to have your daughter’s hand in marriage. I am not betrothed to Miss Drusilla Sirey. If we were courting, she has broken off all contact today. She has given me the freedom I desired to marry who I wish.”

  “You will do this in spite of your father’s wishes?”

  “I do not want to go against my father in this, Lord Stalwood. I do respect my father a great deal. But I cannot do this for him. It is my life and I am determined to be happy. This means I must marry a woman I love.”

  “Do you love my daughter?”

  Leander smiled. “Yes, Lord Stalwood. I do love her.”

  “I would ask one favor of you then, before I give my blessing.”

  Leander’s heart skipped a beat and then began to race. That had gone much easier than he had thought it would.

  “Tell me what it is, please.”

  “You must promise me that in the face of your parents, you will protect my daughter’s sensitivity. I fear she will be hurt by the words and actions of others. It was something I thought about a lot while she was gone. I often wondered if she was happy or sad. I thought of her as happy as often as I could. I do not want her sad.”

  Leander’s smile was gentle. “I will do my best to make her happy. I do promise you that. And I will defend her honor before all others, regardless of who it is I am confronting. My parents will not hurt her with words or actions, Lord Stalwood. I will not let them.”

  “Do you think it is something that might happen?”

  Leander heard a smidgen of alarm in the Earl of Nottingham’s voice. He shook his head. “No, I do not think they will confront Hestia. If they confront anyone, it will be me and I know how to handle them.”

  He felt an uncomfortable twinge, the thought of his mother’s lies making him frown.

  “I hope they will not behave in a manner unbecoming to their station. We shall set up a meeting then. They will be invited here for a celebratory dinner. Let us set this up for two days from now.”

  “I do not know their schedule but I will be glad to ask.”

  “Thank you. I will bring Hestia in so that you may speak with her. I will bend the ear of Lady Eugenia. Poor girl often finds herself in the company of the older folk.”

  “I did not realize you knew Lady Eugenia well, Lord Stalwood,” Leander said with a bit of surprise.

  The Earl of Nottingham laughed. “I have watched the girl grow over the years but have not been a presence in her life. The Viscount of Culross, as I said, has been my friend for some time.”

  With that, he stood up and went to the wall, where a long cord was hanging from the wall near the ceiling where the other end disappeared through a hole.

  He looked back at Leander.

  “Welcome to my family, Lord Price.”

  Chapter 40

  Hestia felt like she was walking on clouds, her feet were so light. She clasped her hands in front of her and lifted her shoulders, tensing up in a brief self-hug.

  Leander walked along next to her. Neither of them had spoken for a few minutes.

  They were both enjoying the beautiful evening air along with Lady Eugenia, the Countess of Nottingham and the Earl of Nottingham. Hestia’s youngest sister, Lillian, had joined them and was talking excitedly to Lady Eugenia, whom Lillian titled “the most beautiful girl in the world”.

  “I do not know about you, Lady Hestia,” Leander said, leaning down slightly to speak in a low voice. “But I do believe I am already walking next to the most beautiful girl in the world.”

  Hestia giggled. “Oh Lord Price, you are so flattering. Thank you for the compliment.”

  “I do hope to make you happy. It is all I want to do.”

  “It is what I want, too.”

  Hestia noticed when Lillian turned around and cast a bright smile in her direction. She sensed she was being talked about
.

  “Excuse me, sister dear,” she said in a loud but amused voice. “Do I detect my name being spoken?”

  Lillian giggled, putting one hand over her mouth. “I did say your name, Hestia. I did!”

  “And what might you have to say about me?”

  “I said you are going to be the most beautiful bride in the world.”

  Hestia felt her heart melt for her sister. “That is very sweet, Lillian. Thank you.”

  Hestia scanned her mother and father, who walked with their arms linked together. She could not remember the last time she had seen them walking so comfortably together, talking as if they were the best of friends again.

  It was the kind of relationship she wanted with her husband. Looking up at Leander’s strong, handsome profile, she felt that was what she was getting. He caught her looking and turned his eyes to meet hers.

  “What are you thinking about, my dear?” he asked.

  “I was thinking about you. I was thinking how I want to be your friend and work beside you to make our family prosper. It is all I have wanted in a husband. Someone to share my life with. I did not feel I would have that opportunity. I thought God was against me. Punishing me. But now I find He was not punishing me. He was blessing me with strength.”

  “You are truly blessed with strength, Lady Hestia. I admire it and hope that you never lose it. Your father asked me if I would love you despite your headstrong nature. But I do not love you despite it. I love you because of it. I would not want you to change.”

  “I do not think I could,” Hestia replied with a laugh. “I have always been this way, leading my sisters into the fray, playing wild boy-type games. They never really wanted to play. I did not understand why.”

  “Shall we sit for a spell?”

  Leander stopped at a bench near an opening into the pathway through the flower arrangements. It was designed so that people out for a stroll would experience as many different colors and scents as possible without it being overwhelming.

  From the bench, they were able to see many of the different flowers and smell a comforting mixture of scents from those nearby.

  In front of her, Lady Eugenia and Lillian stopped walking and studied the garden around them intently. Hestia could not help giggling at their obvious attempts at not paying attention to Leander and Hestia when they were supposed to.

  Hestia felt a tingle run through her when Leander sat back and put his arm along the back of the bench. He looked around the garden, squinting his eyes.

  Hestia could tell how comfortable he was. Her heart was racing a mile a minute. She wondered if he was feeling nervous at all. She thought her heart might come out of her chest at one point and instinctively pressed one hand against it, taking in a deep breath.

  Leander looked at her. “Are you all right?”

  Hestia fell into giggles. All she could think was how funny it would be to tell him that she was having heart palpitations because she was sitting so close to him. There was no chance she would say such a thing to him.

  Even if it was true.

  “I will be fine. Just feeling a bit short of breath.”

  Leander nodded. “Me too. I feel it is a symptom of being so close to the one you love.”

  Hestia‘s heart pounded hard in her chest. She lifted one hand and pressed it against the hammering on the other side of her ribs. . He was feeling exactly the same way she was. Love for him washed over her like a warm tidal wave.

  He sat up so that he was directly next to her. “Hestia, I am nervous. May I confess something to you?”

  Hestia nodded, looking in his eyes, drinking in the love she saw reflected there. “Yes, please do,” she whispered.

  She saw him clench his jaw and swallow. He looked anxious so she reached out and placed one hand on his cheek. His eyes widened in surprise.

  “You must calm yourself, Lord Price. You will give yourself a heart attack.”

  “I would not want that. I would like to live a long and full life with you.”

  “What is it you wish to confess?” She tried to bring the topic back to where it started. She wanted him to be completely open with her.

  “I confess that I… I am not… I am an emotional man. I do not hide my feelings well. I know that you are stubborn, as your father says. But if you will be gentle with me, I promise I will hide nothing from you.”

  He grinned. “I have worked for years to gain control of my emotions but I have been unsuccessful. My efforts were all in vain.”

  “I am sure you gained better control once you became an adult. If you were striving early, you are probably stronger than many others in character.”

  “I do like the way you look at life, Hestia. I feel I will learn a great deal from you.”

  Hestia’s slender cheeks flushed and she dropped her head. “You feel you will learn from me?”

  Leander nodded. “I do not know why you are surprised. You teach so many just by your example. I will be so proud to be your husband.”

  “I will be happy that you are my husband. I was… I have a confession for you. I was not happy with the situation with Miss Drusilla. What will you do to resolve that?”

  “It has been resolved for us.” The smile on his face beamed, making him glow with happiness.

  Hestia sighed. He was so handsome in the light of the lamps that surrounded them and the light left over from the day. “Please tell me how. I do not know.”

  “I paid a visit here… that is I saw my mother and Miss Drusilla earlier in the day. It was this morning actually. I spoke with Miss Drusilla and we both agreed that we are not a good match.”

  Hestia’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh? What brought her to that conclusion?”

  “Several things. She is not as dense as I had taken her for. She was only playing because she was so immensely unhappy with the way her life was going. She has fallen for another and only wished to be free of our bondage.”

  “What did you do?”

  Leander grinned wide. “I told her she was free to marry whomever she chooses. And I told Mother that was my decision. I assume she told Father. I have not been home since to find out what the aftermath will be.”

  He turned his torso toward her, giving her a stern look. “I want to warn you, Hestia, if they begin to act disrespectfully, they are not to do that. You will be my wife and they will need to accept this.”

  “I love hearing you say that,” Hestia whispered, leaning slightly toward him. He took one of her hands and kissed it, holding it against his lips afterward.

  “My wife. You will be my wife.” He chuckled, kissing her hand again.

  She gazed at him, wishing he would kiss her lips and hold her in his arms. She sat still, feeling her body pulse with desire. She could feel heat coming from his lips as his breath came and went.

  “Oh Lord Price. I am so deeply in love with you,” she finally managed to say. Her eyes were soft when she looked at him.

  He leaned closer to her, tilting his head slightly. Her heart raced. She thought it might explode when his lips touched hers and prepared herself for the inevitable.

  But her heart did not explode when he pressed his lips against hers. It raced, her blood flooding through her body, passion spilling out in her kiss.

  She did not want the kiss to end.

  Though it was thought impolite, he did not stop kissing her right away. It was prolonged to the point where Leander reached around and pushed his fingers through her hair.

  The pressure of his kiss was sending waves of excitement through Hestia. She put her hands up on his chest, her right hand seeking his heart beat.

  When they finally broke apart, they continued to look at each other, drowning in the eyes of the other.

  A low giggle coming from a few feet away drew Hestia’s attention. Lillian was watching them with wide eyes. Lady Eugenia had attempted to cover the young girl’s eyes but she was not much taller than the 13-year-old and Lillian had easily removed Lady Eugenia’s hands from her eyes so she co
uld watch the two in their embrace.

  “Lillian, you do not need to watch me every minute of the day,” Hestia scolded with a smile to lighten the blow of her words. “I am not a baby or an animal.”

  Lillian shook her head. “I told Mother and Father I would watch you and that is what I have done.”

  “You do not wish to get me in trouble, do you?”

  Again Lillian chuckled, throwing her head back and laughing with glee. “Oh, Hestia! You would not get in trouble. I would not tell anyone anyway. I do not wish trouble for you.”

  “I am glad to hear that, Lillian. I would not know what to do without at least one of my sisters by my side.”

  Lillian and Lady Eugenia joined them, standing in front of the bench.

  “You will have to learn, I am afraid,” Lillian said, shaking her head and looking serious. “You will be without us soon.”

  “But then you will have children of your own and a husband to love,” Lady Eugenia put in with a great deal of vigor. “You will not be alone.”

  “I have not been alone,” Hestia said, reaching up to take her friend’s hand. “You have been my friend through this year of separation from my family. And now I have new families. I am very blessed.”

  “God has cared for us both, Hestia,” Leander said in a low voice. “I have made mistakes and been forgiven by the ones who matter most. You have made decisions that led you to me and I have made decisions that led me to you.”

  “It is His plan.”

  “I do hope so,” Leander replied with a grin. “If not, we are not doing what he wants us to do.”

  “You and I are right together, my darling. There is no doubt of this.”

  Leander nodded. “Yes, Hestia. I do believe that.”

  “Well, now that we have established that you two love each other, which we all knew already, shall we have another walk round the circle in the garden?”

  Leander and Hestia got to their feet, smiling at Lady Eugenia.

  Hestia was overjoyed. She had her best friend on one side and the love of her life on the other. Soon she would add to the bunch and have a baby to love.

  Someday.

  And that someday was coming soon.