“—but to take an innocent young lady with you is unforgiveable,” Benedict accused harshly.
“I was the one who begged him to take me with him,” Chloe defended when the younger man’s cheeks became flushed. “At the time, I was so angry with you, I could see no reason to remain in Surrey.”
Benedict’s brows rose. “And now?”
Now, Chloe just wanted to throw herself into Benedict’s arms, beg his forgiveness, and ask if he would take her back to his home with him. Perhaps have him introduce her to his sister, and the two women might even become friends. Chloe had not had a close friend since before her parents died.
“I am so sorry, Benedict.” Tears stung her eyes. “I have nowhere else to go and so should not have left at all, but certainly not without talking to you first.”
“No, you should not.” His voice gentled, and he moved close enough that he could place an arm about her shoulders and pull her gently against his side. “I am not angry with you, Chloe—”
Jimmy’s snort interrupted him. “He’s reserving that emotion for me!”
“I am not angry with either of you,” Benedict insisted softly. “If I am angry with anyone, it is myself. For my arrogance and high-handedness.” He winced at the sound of Jimmy’s humorless chuckle. “I know I owe you both an apology. Which I now give, most wholeheartedly and sincerely.”
Chloe could see that Jimmy—James—was as surprised by this as she was. After all, they were the ones who had behaved with ingratitude and worried Benedict to the point that he had chased after them into the night on horseback.
“Might I suggest,” Julius Soames appeared in the open doorway, “that we continue this conversation once we reach Winter House? It’s damned cold out here, and I can see the coachmen are anxious to finish their journey so that they can return to their homes for the night.”
“Damn, what the… Very well,” Benedict agreed tersely after receiving a reproving glance from Julius. “The two of us will follow the coach back to London, at which time I will give the coachmen a full purse if they return you to Winter House rather than the coach station. Once there, I shall see that the two of you are supplied with hot food to warm and sustain you. Does that plan suit both of you?”
“Now you decide to consult with us?” Jimmy mocked. “Careful, my lord, or I might make the mistake of thinking you have learned some manners during these hours since last we spoke.”
“I believe there was more shouting involved than speech during that meeting. And be careful yourself, James,” Benedict added pointedly. “Or I might make the mistake of thinking there is so much more to you than young Jimmy from the slums of London.”
“Finkin’ so won’t cost ya nuffin’, guvna,” Jimmy taunted in the Cockney cant.
Benedict not only appreciated but understood the challenge in the younger man’s tone. For whatever reason, for many years Jimmy had needed to live on his wits alone, and he had done so by merging himself into the slums and street gangs of London, to such a degree he had become the head of one of them. But his was a gang of young men that protected and cared for those less fortunate than themselves, making Jimmy a modern-day Robin Hood, as Benedict had once heard Gabriel refer to the younger man.
Benedict bent over as he stood to cross the carriage and step down onto the road outside before turning to give the young man a respectful bow. “We will talk again once we reach London, my Lord James Charles Malcolm Metford, the rightful Earl of Ipswich.”
Chloe could see Jimmy was struck dumb at Benedict’s use of the name she had only just learned was Jimmy’s true one. No doubt Benedict had learned the same truth from Julius Soames.
She wondered what else the earl had been able to relate to Benedict as a result of his investigations.
Chapter Thirteen
“Feeling warmer?”
Chloe was feeling much better after sitting at the table in the small dining room at Winter House to eat the hot food Benedict had promised her and Jimmy once they arrived back in London. She had been surprised when Benedict and Julius Soames had sat down and joined them for the heartening meal of beef stew and lovely doughy dumplings.
As evidence the two gentlemen had not eaten their dinner before leaving the Winter estate earlier?
Considering the two men had caught up with the carriage within sight of London, Chloe realized they could not have had time to eat dinner before following them.
She smiled at Benedict. “Much, thank you.”
Jimmy’s expression was affable from having a full belly as he leaned back in his chair. “I’m going to miss the delicious meals prepared by your cooks, both here and in Surrey.”
“Is my cook’s ability in the kitchen the only thing you will miss about Surrey?” Benedict prompted gently.
Color stained Jimmy’s cheeks. “I obviously also regret not being able to make my farewells to Lady Beatrix before leaving,” he acknowledged gruffly.
Benedict nodded. “I am sure my sister will understand, once you have explained yourself.”
The younger man’s jaw tightened. “I will not be returning to Surrey, so there will be no opportunity for me to explain myself.”
“Oh, I think there will,” Benedict drawled. “I confess to not always being aware of the emotions of others.” He gave Julius and Jimmy a scowling glance after they had both snorted their tacit agreement with this statement. “But I believe,” he continued firmly, “that I am able to tell when my own sister’s emotions have become engaged. And when that regard is returned,” he added with a pointed glance toward Jimmy.
Jimmy pushed his chair back noisily as he rose to his feet. “Then you also know that such feelings are impossible in my present circumstances.”
“Do I?” Benedict regarded him. “If it transpires that the two of you do have serious feelings for each other, then I do not believe I would object to the match even if you were to choose to remain as Jimmy Brown. Fortuitously, my estate manager will be retiring in six months, enough time for him to train you into taking over that role, if you wished to do so.”
Jimmy stared at him as if he were insane. “You would give your sister’s hand in marriage to a mere estate manager?”
“If that estate manager was you, yes,” Benedict confirmed without hesitation. “Because you are not a mere anything. Whatever guise you choose, you have proven yourself to be loyal and true in both of them, not just to me, but to those in the slums who rely on you, and also to Gabriel and Victory. Men like you are rare, James Brown. I do not make friends easily, but I would be honored if you now allowed me to name you as one of them.”
Jimmy gave a stiff bow. “As long as the honor is reciprocated.”
Benedict nodded. “It is.”
Chloe could see that Jimmy was visibly moved by Benedict’s warm declaration of friendship. Moreover, Benedict had given his approval to a match between his sister and the younger man, whether he be James Brown or Lord James Metford, the Earl of Ipswich. If that was indeed where Jimmy’s emotions lay, and his reactions to Benedict’s comment seemed to confirm they did.
“The two of you can discuss this matter again later,” Julius Soames dismissed. “At which time I also fully intend to discuss with Mr. Brown the reason why he has not assumed his inherited title. But for now, we have a more urgent situation to settle.”
Chloe’s cheeks flamed with color as all three gentlemen turned their gazes upon her.
Lord Soames smiled at her kindly. “Lord Henry Gordon is your step-uncle.”
“I am only too aware of that,” she choked out.
“But he is not your guardian.”
Chloe’s eyes widened. “But— Of course he is,” she said shakily. “He was the only one to step forward and claim that connection after my parents were killed, and it is cruel of you to imply otherwise.”
The earl’s expression softened even further. “Because as far as the rest of your relations are concerned, you perished in the accident alongside your parents.”
Chlo
e was now the one to rise noisily to her feet. “I— You— But how can that possibly be?”
“The accident in which your parents died occurred in Wales, and as your father’s closest relative, Lord Gordon was the first to be notified of the death of his stepbrother and step-sister-in-law, and to travel there to confirm that was indeed who they were. You were injured in that same accident and so were unable to even attend the funerals, which also took place in Wales, on your step-uncle’s instruction.”
A lump had lodged in Chloe’s throat, making it impossible for her to speak. She nodded instead, having been told after the event how things had gone in Wales. Because Lord Gordon had insisted on returning to London immediately once Chloe was well enough to travel, she had not even been able to visit her parents’ graves.
Julius Soames resumed talking. “The reading of your father’s will took place in London several weeks later. At no time during that meeting did Lord Henry Gordon reveal that you were still living and were, in fact, resident in his London home.”
“But why would he do such a thing?” Chloe beseeched, the heat of tears blurring her vision, her hands trembling.
Lord Soames shrugged. “For one thing, the death of your parents and you made him your father’s beneficiary.”
“They were not wealthy.”
“No, they were not,” the earl agreed. “But your maternal Irish grandparents were, and they had left a sizeable fortune to be given to you when you came of age. With all of you supposedly dead, Lord Gordon could and did claim that fortune as his own.”
“He was always so cruel to me,” she said emotionally.
Andover nodded. “That side of Lord Gordon was driven by the fact that he was once in love with your mother. He went so far as to make an offer of marriage to her parents, and was rejected. Worse, the moment Niamh saw his much younger stepbrother, she fell in love with him instead.”
“What?” Chloe staggered back merely from thinking of the rotund and elderly Lord Gordon, with his flushed and bloated face that was always scowling, with her young, beautiful, and golden-haired mother, always with a smile upon her lips and love glowing in her eyes for her husband and daughter.
“You, I am reliably informed, look exactly like her,” the earl praised.
“My father always said so.” The tears fell unchecked down Chloe’s cheeks. “My mother could never have loved a monster such as Lord Gordon. Never!” she repeated vehemently.
“Enough for now, Julius.” Benedict quickly rose to his feet to take Chloe into his arms. “I shall never allow Lord Gordon to harm you again,” he promised her.
Chloe’s fingers clung to his waistcoat. “Once I am returned to him, you will have no way of stopping him, and I believe that the next time he beats me, he might succeed in killing me!”
“That will not happen!” Benedict assured heatedly. “We have the weight of the truth and the law on our side.”
“The law?”
“As Julius has said, he discovered that Lord Gordon was not named as your guardian in your father’s will. Your Aunt and Uncle Bayliss were. She is your mother’s sister, I believe?”
“They are my Aunt Sophie and Uncle Gerald, yes,” Chloe confirmed. “But Lord Gordon said they did not—did not wish to see me again after my parents died. We… My parents and I were only in Wales because I wished to visit an old school friend there. Lord Gordon said that because of that my aunt and uncle held me responsible for my parents’ deaths and no longer wished to have anything to do with me.”
“I will kill the bastard!” Benedict grated furiously.
“Calm down, old friend.” Julius’s hand came to rest briefly on one of Benedict’s rigid shoulders. He turned to Chloe. “You should, by rights, be a very independently wealthy young lady.”
“I cannot believe anyone could be so deliberately deceptive and cruel to another!” Chloe pulled away from Benedict to turn away and bury her face in her hands as she sobbed in earnest.
“Benedict, James and I will go into the sitting room and leave the two of you alone to talk further,” Julius said softly. “We can discuss the best way of dealing with Lord Gordon once emotions are calmer and the situation can be looked at logically.”
Benedict waited until he heard the click of the door closing behind the two men before speaking again. “Chloe, look at me please?” he encouraged gently.
Her lids remained closed, her lashes feather soft against her cheeks. “I am shocked, most of all that Lord Gordon could have lied about my death to my parents’ solicitor and to me in regard to my aunt and uncle no longer wishing to have anything to do with me,” she admitted shakily. “It was doubly cruel of him, when I had only just lost my parents.”
“Chloe, look at me,” he instructed in a firmer tone, waiting until she had done so before speaking again. “Your aunt and uncle love you and have, I understand from Julius, grieved for all of you these past two years. Your parents obviously loved you deeply and had expected that your aunt and uncle would be here to take care of you if or when they could not be here to do so. I—I care for you too, Chloe,” he admitted huskily.
She gave a shaky smile. “You have, as I previously stated, been nothing but kind to me. When I left Surrey without saying so much as a thank-you or goodbye to you, I behaved abominably toward you. I beg you to please forgive me, Benedict.” The tears continued to fall unchecked down the pallor of her cheeks even after he had nodded and smiled that forgiveness. “I believe I acted that way because I wished not to be present if your friend the earl had discovered and then told you of the circumstances of my parents’ deaths and the part I played in that. I could not—could not bear to see your face once you realized my selfishness was responsible for them having died in the carriage accident.”
Benedict was unsure how he felt about Chloe not responding to his announcement that he cared for her.
Or whether her having ignored the declaration meant she did not care for him in the same way? Or if he had not been clear enough as to the depths of his feelings for her.
That is because telling Chloe I care for her is not the declaration of love it should have been, a voice mocked inside his head.
Benedict had never told any woman he loved her, other than his sister, Beatrix, and a fraternal affection was not the same type of love that he now felt toward Chloe.
This was an all-consuming love. One which made him want to hold Chloe close to his heart and never let her out of his sight ever again.
This was also, Benedict acknowledged heavily, not the time to tell her of those feelings. He very much doubted that right now, she would see such a declaration as anything more than pity and a desire on his part to keep her safe and out of Lord Gordon’s clutches.
Coward.
Perhaps it was cowardly of him not to press his point, Benedict conceded self-disgustedly, but for the moment, he truly believed he served Chloe better by being her friend rather than her lover.
Chloe’s heart had skipped several beats when Benedict told her he cared for her, but as he did not follow it up with a deeper declaration, she could only assume he meant to reassure her of his continued friendship, no matter what other revelations his friend the earl should make.
To have Benedict continue to be her friend was more than she could ever have hoped for.
Especially so when she knew she loved him with every particle of her being.
Chapter Fourteen
“No!” Benedict protested loudly, his scowl encompassing Chloe as well as the other two gentlemen in the room. “I forbid it,” he added in case any of them should doubt the strength of his opposition. “A talk with Chloe’s parents’ solicitor should set matters straight regarding her still being very much alive.”
The four of them had agreed the evening before that they were tired and should all sleep on the problem at Winter House, and talk of matters again in the morning, when they were feeling less fatigued. They were currently discussing how best to confront Lord Henry Gordon with his theft of Chloe’
s inheritance, as well as his cruel treatment of her in the two years since her parents died.
Jimmy had suggested a way in which they might confront Lord Gordon in front of witnesses, and Chloe had been quick to agree with his plan. Benedict was less than happy with Jimmy’s idea. In fact, he was vehemently opposed to it.
“Lord Gordon is guilty of beating me and treating me with extreme cruelty, as well as having lied about my death and subsequently stealing from me.” She gave a shake of her head. “Simply accusing him of doing those things without proof is not enough. Yes, I am obviously very much alive, but Lord Gordon could deny all knowledge of how that came to be when no one has known of, nor will confirm, my presence in his household these past two years.” Lord Gordon’s household staff, with the exception of Mrs. Tailor, were almost as afraid of him as Chloe was. “Without anyone to confirm his cruelty to me, there is always the possibility that he might be able to talk himself out of being charged with those crimes. I believe the element of surprise in Jimmy’s plan could result in Lord Gordon confessing, in front of witnesses, to things that he might otherwise not.”
“I am very sure there will be an element of surprise,” Benedict echoed her words disgustedly. “I should think the old bastard would have a heart attack at seeing you in a place like Club Venus. I know I am in danger of it just from thinking about it!”
“But this club is owned and run by a friend of yours, is it not?”
Benedict’s scowl deepened at the deliberate innocence of her expression. “It is still a place where gentlemen go to purchase and enjoy the…the attentions of young ladies.”
Chloe almost laughed at the manner in which Benedict was attempting to avoid revealing Club Venus as the high-class brothel Jimmy had already told her it was. “You frequent the place yourself, do you not?” She couldn’t resist teasing him.
“In a professional capacity only,” he refuted indignantly before turning his narrowed gaze to Jimmy. “Do I have you to thank for Chloe being privy to this—this inappropriate information?”
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