“I had no idea the depths you would stoop to trap me into marriage.”
The breath left his lungs. “What?”
“Your ownership of the property was contingent upon our wedding taking place.”
“Yes, my father insisted. What can that have to do with anything?”
“It provides me with your motivation, Philip. Lady Lovejoy unwittingly gave the game away at the wedding breakfast. I’m given to understand you told Miss Haver of our secret and she took it directly to one of the most influential women in society.”
Her accusation sent him reeling. “Kitty, I swear I did no such thing!”
“It was a marvelous scheme, really. Your pretense about wishing to remain a bachelor was well played. And it’s not difficult to imagine why you assisted Lord Kirkham in eloping with Prudence. The both of you have so much to gain in different ways.”
A numbness crept across Philip’s face and down his chest, making it difficult to speak. “Why would you convict me without even listening to what I have to say? I’m in love with you.”
“You feel some regard for me, I understand, but you knew I would never marry a man so entirely beneath me unless I was obliged to do so. Miss Haver said you were a fortune hunter, but I ignored her warning.”
Philip’s world was crashing in on him, but something perverse in his nature made him laugh. Deep down, he’d always known Kitty thought him beneath her, but to hear her voice the truth ripped his very soul to shreds. Furthermore, she couldn’t care for him at all if she’d judged him on the slimmest of evidence. Apparently his beloved wife was trapped in marriage to a man she didn’t respect, and the only noble course of action would be to free her as much as possible—no matter what it cost him personally.
As if he were playing a role in a melodrama, he replied in the coolest tone possible. “Well, Kitty, you’ve found me out. Clever girl.”
His movements felt wooden as he crossed to the closet, extricated his valise, and threw his things inside. He remembered to slip the contract on top before he closed the clasp with a snap.
“Where are you going?” She answered her own question. “To seek a warm wedding night welcome in East End, no doubt.”
Philip bit back an angry retort. “Let us understand one another going forward. Since you consider me a villain of the highest order, I release you from any obligation you have as my wife. We’re legally married, true, but you may do as you like without any interference from me. The only thing I ask is that you not bring another man’s child into the world while I’m alive.”
She gasped. “How dare you!”
“Forgive me if I’ve given any offense.” He departed quickly, before she could see the tears of regret and pain in his eyes. Downstairs, he stopped in the empty drawing room and downed a half glass of whisky. Thus fortified, he left Trestlebury House, hailed a cab, and drove to his gentleman’s club on Pall Mall. Although it wasn’t too late to catch a train to Grovebrook, he was in no mood to travel. He intended to spend the night in one of the private rooms, get stinking drunk, and leave London the following morning.
After Philip obtained a room key at the desk, he bumped into an acquaintance, an older man whose name escaped his memory.
“Oh, excuse me, sir. I didn’t see you standing there.”
“Lord Philip Butler?” The man peered at him. “Why, isn’t it your wedding night, lad?”
Blood rushed to Philip’s face and turned the tips of his ears into twin flames of embarrassment. “Er…yes. Sort of.”
The man chuckled, patted him on the shoulder, and leaned closer to whisper.
“Trust me, I completely understand. On our wedding night, my wife cried and locked me out of the bedroom. Don’t worry, it’s only nerves, and more common than you’d think. The lady will come around.”
“Th-Thanks.”
As Philip walked down the hall toward his room, jaw was clenched so tightly he thought his teeth might crack. He barely managed to maintain his composure until he closed the door behind him. Then, when he was alone, it was as if he would never be happy again.
For a full ten minutes after Philip disappeared, Kitty was too stunned and angry to do anything but fume. Her husband had admitted his culpability without a qualm and then thrown off the yoke of matrimony as if it had meant nothing at all! How dare he admit he was heading to an East End brothel, or suggest she was free to commit adultery herself? The horror was beyond imagining. Perhaps she could get the marriage annulled…although she’d heard annulments were notoriously difficult to obtain. Truly, her situation was unbearable. Not only did Philip have Grovebrook, but he had her dowry as well!
One thing was certain, she was not going to spend the night in a bridal bed for one. Kitty rang for her maid.
“Lord Philip and I have had a change of plans. Please pack my trunk. I’m going back to my parents’ house.”
“Yes, milady.”
While the maid worked, Kitty sat at the desk and wrote her new cousins and in-laws a letter of explanation for her departure:
Forgive me for not conveying my sentiments in person, but I don’t wish to intrude any further upon your privacy in a time of crisis. My plans with Philip have changed, and I find I must return to the bosom of my family for a little while. Please accept my heartfelt thanks for the lovely wedding breakfast. I could not have imagined a more beautiful event. I shall write again when I understand more fully how the future will unfold.
With Love,
Kitty
After sealing the envelope, Kitty went downstairs and left it on the vestibule table. She asked the butler to hail a cab, but then she was too restless to wait.
“I’m going on ahead. Bridget is packing my things. Could you send someone upstairs to bring my trunk down when she’s finished?”
“Yes, Lady Philip.”
Kitty set off down the street on foot. A block later, her pace slowed and a crushing sense of loneliness descended. She fancied herself in love with Philip. No, it was more than a fancy. She was absolutely in love with him. His touch had turned her insides molten, and his kisses had made her hunger for more. Philip had shown himself to be a swine, so why couldn’t she turn off her feelings like a water tap?
A blister began to form on the back of her heel as she trudged along in the late afternoon heat, and a trickle of sweat ran down her spine. How could a person soar to the heights of ecstasy and into the depths of despair in the space of a few hours? Her lower lip trembled, but she was determined to remain stoic in front of her family. How humiliating; I must confess to being an idiotic fool taken for everything by a fortune-hunting bounder! Her dignity gone, the only thing she’d kept intact that day was her virtue—now utterly and completely useless for all intents and purposes. Her grandmother, at least, would be relieved.
The butler managed to keep his countenance when she arrived home, somewhat bedraggled.
“Lady Philip! My most hearty felicitations on your wedding today.” He peered over her shoulder. “Will Lord Philip be arriving soon?”
“No, but my trunk and Bridget will be coming by cab momentarily. Is my father at home?”
“Yes, milady.”
“Will you tell him I’ve come, please?”
Kitty entered the drawing room, where Juliet, her mother, and Ivy were sitting. Her sister squeaked with surprise.
“What are you doing here?”
“I need to speak with Papa.” She sank onto a sofa and removed her hat. “You’ll be interested to know Lady Prudence eloped during the wedding breakfast with a young man by the name of Lord Kirkham.”
“So that’s why she disappeared?” Juliet asked. “Merciful heavens!”
Beaucroft hastened into the room, his face etched with concern. “Is everything all right, child?”
“No. I’ve left Philip.”
“He hurt you, didn’t he?” Ivy’s question sounded more like a statement.
“No, Grandmama. Not physically at any rate. Philip admitted he was responsible for d
isclosing our secret to Violet Haver, counting on her to gossip about it. He knew if our ruse was common knowledge, I would be forced into marriage to save my reputation. The sale of his property was contingent upon our marriage, you see. After I confronted him with what I’d learned, he gave me my freedom and left. He’s a fortune hunter, Papa.”
“That makes no sense at all.” Beaucroft’s face crinkled up in bewilderment. “Didn’t he tell you about your dowry?”
“Tell me what?”
“At the wedding breakfast, he directed me to put the dowry in your name. I argued with him about it, but he said under the circumstances, he felt quite strongly you should be financially independent.”
“What? He can’t have done, Papa. No man would ever refuse a dowry.”
“I can assure you, it’s no mistake.”
“Oh, Kitty, this is all my fault.” Juliet’s voice sounded strangled. “Philip didn’t tell Violet anything about the ruse. I did.”
“It couldn’t have been you!”
“She goaded me into saying something I shouldn’t have at Lady Lovejoy’s ball. It was an accident, and I was too ashamed of myself to tell you afterward. If Violet said she had her information from Philip, it was a poisonous lie. I’m so awfully sorry!”
The roaring in Kitty’s ears drowned out anything else anyone said after that, and the magnitude of her mistake hit her like an Arctic blast from a winter storm. By any measure, the things she’d said to her husband were unforgivable, and she’d thrown away any chance they’d had of happiness…without thinking twice. She dropped her face in her hands and began to sob. Oh, Philip, what have I done to you?
Chapter Nine
Grovebrook
PHILIP GAZED THROUGH THE WINDOW as the train headed north, more to avoid making conversation with the passengers in his compartment than out of any real interest in the view. The weather was overcast and drizzly, which served to underscore his black mood. He knew it was far too early to gain any sort of perspective on the prior day’s tragedy, but his alcohol-soaked brain couldn’t stop obsessing about it anyway. Why Kitty had been so eager to believe the worst of him was unclear. She’d taken bits and pieces of information and woven them together in a damning case without giving him the benefit of the doubt.
To be sure, they’d had only a few scant weeks together—far too short a time to build a solid foundation of trust and respect. We simply didn’t know each other well enough to marry. Perhaps after the euphoria of the wedding and subsequent celebration had ebbed, the reality of Kitty’s situation had finally sunk in. When faced with the prospect of being wed to the lowly Lord Philip Butler, she’d spurned him. It was all completely understandable to an outside observer, but to Philip, however, the rejection had been a crushing blow. Every doubt and insecurity he possessed was magnified a thousandfold, until even the act of getting out of bed that morning had been arduous.
His argument with Augustus hadn’t helped. In fact, Philip suspected he would have been far more persuasive with Kitty if he hadn’t allowed his elder brother to get under his skin. Unfortunately, there’d been more than a kernel of truth in Augustus’ accusations. It seemed he was always getting into scrapes because of his interference with things which were none of his concern. He found it difficult to let injustices pass when it was in his power to address them. Had he been a lesser man, he would have walked away from Gryphon’s assault of Kitty at the Trestlebury ball. I could have avoided a great deal of trouble by doing so, but I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself. Well, as a result of trying to do the right thing, he was now completely alone and married to a woman who wanted nothing to do with him. It was ironic, but hardly amusing.
He was weary and dispirited by the time he reached his destination—a train station in a small town a few miles from Grovebrook. Since he hadn’t consumed anything all day, he ate a light meal at a small tavern across the street and then rented a horse at the stable. Fortunately, he had only his valise to carry, so he tied it onto the saddle and set off down the road. No rain had moistened the ground here, and the late afternoon sun was at his back. As he drew closer to Grovebrook, the more rutted and uneven the dirt road became. Philip was obliged to slow his horse’s pace lest the beast break a leg. Annoyed, he wondered why his father’s man of business—his man of business now—had allowed the road to fall into such disrepair. His first task would be to take Mr. Pratt to task.
The signpost for Grovebrook was so faded and obscured by bushes, he nearly overlooked it. As he entered the town, he had difficulty squaring the idyllic memory in his mind’s eye with the appalling reality spread out before him. What was once a charming and quaint village was now a run-down and neglected ghost of its former self. Shops were vacant, with not so much as a For Let sign in their windows. Shingles were missing from rooftops, and one of the buildings had been obviously destroyed by fire somewhat recently. The faint scent of ash lingered in the air, and the ruins had been left to collect rain, mold, and mosquitos. Philip was so astonished, he reined in his horse to take it all in. For the first time that day, he was grateful Kitty wasn’t there. He would have been utterly humiliated to present her with such a miserable wedding present. It’s obvious why Father received no offers to purchase Grovebrook, and what I agreed to pay was far too generous by half.
He made his way to Mr. Pratt’s address, a two-story cottage located at the far end of town. After he lifted the door knocker for the third time, however, he realized no one was going to respond. It was odd, to say the least, since it was nearing the dinner hour. In addition, although Mr. Pratt and his wife—if he had one—might be out, one of the servants should have at least opened the door to take his calling card. He circled around back, but the cottage was locked up. A peek through one of the windows revealed sheets over the furniture. The cottage was vacant.
Movement in a small orchard to one side of the house caught his eye. A young lad was gathering apples and stuffing them into a knapsack. Philip waved and shouted.
“Hullo there!”
The boy gasped and bolted. In his haste, he fell flat on his face, spilling his bounty on the ground. Philip strode over to help him to his feet.
“Are you all right?”
“Yeah.” He hung his head. “Are you going to tell me mum I was scrumping?”
“No, but I have a question for you. Do you know where Mr. Pratt has gone?”
“Moved into the manor house.”
“Did he?” His temper flared at the news, but he was careful to keep his countenance. Mr. Pratt was no more entitled to occupy the Grovebrook manor house than Philip was free to occupy Buckingham Palace. “When did that happen?”
“Been ’bout a year now, I reckon. Living all high and mighty he is, but these apples won’t pick themselves.”
“Then you’re doing the owner of this property a favor, aren’t you?”
“That would be Lord Marbles, innit? He owns everything around here.”
A chuckle. “Lord Moregate, you mean. No, the town’s been sold, just yesterday, to Lord Philip Butler. That’s me.” As he spoke, he felt a surge of pride. Grovebrook might not be much, but it’s mine.
The boy’s eyes opened so wide with surprise, Philip had to laugh. “What’s your name, lad?”
“Pig.”
“What?”
“Well, my real name’s Nelson, but everyone calls me Pig.”
“I hope you don’t mind if I call you Nelson? You look more like a boy than a pig to me.”
“You can call me anything you want so long as you don’t tell me mum about the apples.”
“Don’t worry, Nelson. In fact, I’m appointing you my unofficial groundskeeper for this orchard until I hire myself a new man of business to occupy this cottage.”
“Are you sacking Mr. Pratt?”
“Most definitely.”
“Good. Me mum says he’s a lazy, no-good, conniving scoundrel.”
“Your mother sounds quite intelligent. Who’s the constable around here?”
/> The freckled skin on Nelson’s face turned pink underneath the dirt. “That would be me father.”
“Lead me to him, will you? I’ve a scoundrel to evict.”
Philip helped the boy retrieve his spilled apples, and was rewarded by an irrepressible grin. “I’m glad you’ve come, milord.”
“Thank you. And tell your mother things will get better around Grovebrook in short order, I promise.”
Augustus called on the Beaucrofts, but the butler informed him the family wasn’t receiving visitors. Just as he was turning away from the door, he heard Miss Juliet’s voice.
“Is that Lord Elbourne? Please show him in.”
As he entered the drawing room, he could see Juliet was under a strain.
“I’m sorry no one else is available to receive you. It’s as if we’re all in mourning.”
“It’s the same at Trestlebury House, although no one has covered the mirrors,” Augustus said. “Prudence is married and living in Scotland for the time being. Trestlebury is in high dudgeon.” He paused. “How is Kitty?”
“She’s shut herself up in her room and won’t come out. We’re all worried about her. How is Philip?”
“He wrote Father to say he was in Grovebrook, but nothing else. We’re worried about him, too.” He paused. “Truth be told, I feel some responsibility for whatever happened between him and Kitty. After the wedding breakfast, Philip and I argued. He’d assisted Prudence and Kirkham with their elopement, you see, and I was quite angry with him about it. Under the circumstances, I probably should have held my tongue. Whenever we quarreled as children, he always took it very badly.”
“Oh, Augustus—I mean Lord Elbourne—it’s all my fault!”
Tears began to fall faster than she could brush them away, and he offered her his handkerchief and an encouraging smile.
“Please do call me Augustus. I’m your brother-in-law, after all.”
“You won’t want to speak with me after you hear what I have to say. I was the one who exposed the ruse. I didn’t mean to, but I did. Then Kitty mistakenly blamed Philip for it and he left! I can never forgive myself!”
Ruse & Romance (The Beaucroft Girls Book 1) Page 11