Discover Time For Love (Forward in Time, Book Two): Time Travel Romance Anthology

by Louise Clark

  He was rewarded when Daniel burst out, “Why you—”

  “Dad, he’s teasing,” Faith said. She shook her finger at Andrew. “Behave.”

  “But he is so easy to raise to anger,” Andrew murmured wickedly.

  Cody picked up two glasses, came over to stand close to Faith, and handed her one. As he sipped, he looked at Andrew over his glass. “Since you didn’t know that we were having a family introduction and wedding planning session tonight, is there any particular reason you decided to visit?”

  He couldn’t lie to Cody, whom he admired. “It is Mary Elizabeth.”

  “Ah,” said Cody.

  “Chloe has already told you too much!” Daniel grumbled.

  “I have not,” Chloe retorted indignantly.

  “Did you not tell him about his marriage last time he was here?”

  That had been the day George Strand had rejected his request for Mary Elizabeth’s hand and had set his henchmen to assault him. He had come forward to seek sanctuary, unaware that Faith had planned an intimate evening for two with Cody. His arrival filled Faith’s house with family members, all determined to add their input on how he should proceed in his quest for Mary Elizabeth’s hand. The quiet dinner Faith had planned became a riotous evening of family squabbles and, eventually, delight, as Cody proved his love to Faith.

  It was while Faith and Cody had stolen away for a few minutes of privacy that Chloe provided Andrew with a few clues about his future with Mary Elizabeth. To Andrew’s mind they were far from enough, tantalizing, not definitive.

  Chloe must have thought the same way for she tightened her lips at her ex-husband’s taunt, and shot him a fulminating look.

  Daniel pressed harder, forcing her to answer. “Didn’t you?”

  “Well, maybe,” she hedged.

  “That’s a yes,” Daniel said, looking pleased.

  If he didn’t wrest the conversation back to his reason for being here this evening, Daniel would continue to complain about the Beacon and all that it entailed until Master Cody’s family arrived. “Mary Elizabeth’s father is keeping her prisoner in her bedchamber and allowing her only rations of bread and water,” he said. That statement produced the effect he wanted. Conversation stopped. All eyes focused on him. As he continued, anger had his voice rising, but he didn’t care. “He has found a suitor for her, but she refuses to accept the fellow’s offer of marriage. Strand wishes to starve her into obedience.”

  “That’s terrible!” Liz said.

  Cody sipped his wine and watched him over the edge of his glass. Faith opened the oven door and pulled out a cooking tray.

  Andrew sniffed and focused on the contents. Sausage rolls. His favorite.

  “You can’t tell him anything,” Daniel said, mainly to Chloe, but also to the room at large.

  Leaving the sausage rolls to cool a moment, Faith turned back to Andrew. “Unfortunately, Dad is right. The less you know about your future, the better.”

  Andrew glared at Daniel, who returned the look with a sneer of his own.

  Chloe sighed. “Though it pains me to do it, I must agree with Daniel. Things will play out as they are supposed to. You have to be patient, Andrew.”

  “Patient! How can I be patient when the lady I love, a gentle kind lady who has done nothing wrong, is being abused by one who should be her steadfast protector?”

  There was silence for a moment. It was Cody who broke it. His tone thoughtful, he said, “I suspect the answer is less than you desire, Andrew, and more than you would allow, Daniel.”

  Faith slid the sausage rolls onto a platter, then held it out to Andrew. He took one and popped it into his mouth. The ease of food preparation was one of the best things about the twenty-first century, he reflected, along with vehicles that moved swiftly along paved roadways and information machines that contained all the knowledge of the universe. “Let me use your computer, Faith.”

  “No,” she said, and passed the platter to Cody.

  Cody plucked a roll from the tray, “What is it you want to know, Andrew?” he asked, taking a bite

  “The date of my wedding.”

  “You already know it’s in New York City,” Chloe said. “Why do you need to know the exact date?”

  “New York City is far distant and the man Strand intends for his daughter is a colonel in the dragoons—”

  “Jonathan Bradley,” Chloe said, thoughtfully. “He becomes a viscount.”

  “Really?” Liz said, sounding intrigued. “I didn’t know that!”

  “Mom!” Faith said.

  “He’s to be a lord?” This was getting worse and worse. “No wonder her brute of a father is so determined to force her into wedlock. I will have to steal Mary Elizabeth away, but to get her to New York without being captured by Bradley and his mounted soldiers is well nigh impossible!”

  “I’ve wondered about that,” Cody said. He wandered over to the table where Faith had deposited the platter and helped himself to another sausage roll.

  “If I know the date it will help me decide if I should try to spirit her away by sea or try the longer, slower overland route,” Andrew said. “I will also know when we must escape her father’s clutches.” He looked around, deliberately making eye contact with each of them, including Daniel. “Don’t you see? Everything hinges on that date. Everything.”

  Chapter 7

  “My dear, come and sit beside me.” Lady Elizabeth patted the empty spot beside her on the rustic wooden bench.

  After days locked in her room, Mary Elizabeth wanted to run through the gardens like a hoyden, not sit demurely beside her mother. The day was perfect, the blue sky cloudless, a light breeze offering a cooling contrast to the warmth of the mid-morning sun. Everything about the day raised Mary Elizabeth’s spirits and urged her to move, to celebrate her brief freedom.

  Her mother patted the seat again. Mary Elizabeth reluctantly gave up the notion of stretching her legs. Instead, she glided over to the bench, perching on the edge of the seat at an angle so that her mother was able to see her face as they spoke. She knew she looked and acted like a proper lady. A good thing, since she thought there was as very good chance that if she behaved in an ill-bred way, she’d be banished back .to her room immediately.

  “Thank you for allowing me to spend some time in the garden today, Mama.” She was careful to arrange the wide skirts of her pretty gown so that the fabric was not bunched up, creating wrinkles. The moss-green linen overskirt paired with a white underskirt embroidered with pale yellow roses was a favorite of hers. She’d chosen it this morning to buoy up her spirits. Her incarceration was beginning to seem endless and she knew she had to do something to keep her resolve not to bow to her father’s demand that she wed Colonel Bradley.

  Lady Elizabeth smiled. “You have been in that stuffy room for almost a week, Mary Elizabeth.” She tapped her daughter’s wrist with her fan in a teasing way that nonetheless conveyed a warning. “I thought an hour or so in the fresh air would do wonders for your attitude.”

  Mary Elizabeth looked away from her mother’s gaze. She’d been allowed this respite so she would understand all that she was giving up by refusing to accept Colonel Bradley’s proposal. “You are most kind, Mama.” The simple joy of being in the outdoors was a seductive enticement indeed, compared to sitting in a locked room for hours on end with no pleasures to look forward to.

  “Darling, I am so glad we have this opportunity to spend some time together.” Lady Elizabeth beamed at her. “We’ll have a lovely chat and I shall try to make you smile. Perhaps I shall even coax a laugh from you.”

  “I do not think that will be possible, Mama.” Now she was here, in the garden, with the sunshine bathing the gravel walks, and lush flower beds perfuming the air, Mary Elizabeth was prepared to do what she could to prolong the reprieve, but laugher? There was no laughter in her heart when the purpose of her incarceration was to separate her from her beloved Andrew and force her into wedlock with a man she hardly knew.

&n
bsp; “Darling.” Lady Elizabeth sighed. “You must look at this from your papa’s point of view…and mine.”

  Mary Elizabeth raised her brows—and bit her tongue.

  “We both care for you greatly, daughter. You know that.”

  Did they? Her mother perhaps, but her father? She was nothing but a pawn in whatever game he was playing to advance his future prospects.

  Lady Elizabeth cocked her head. “The young man you met here in Lexington is charming in manner and very pretty to look at, but what do you know of him?”

  “You wish me to list his virtues, Mama? That is most kind of you, for I believe we will be some hours in the detailing.”

  Lady Elizabeth pursed her lips in annoyance. “Come now, daughter. He cannot be such a paragon as that.”

  Mary Elizabeth looked out into the garden and sighed. “He is not. He is, as you say charming, having a delightful manner about him that is impossible not to like. More than that, though, he makes me feel needed, but also safe, when I am with him. He makes me smile, too.” Unconsciously her mouth turned up at the corners, as her eyes grew dreamy. “And sometimes we laugh at the most absurd things. He is passionate in his beliefs…”

  Lady Elizabeth drew in a breath to interrupt. Mary Elizabeth held up her hand to still her. “Yes, I know. He is one of those who believe that America should govern itself, which is something Papa deplores, but—”

  “Your father does condemn those who indulge in rebellious behavior, Mary Elizabeth. There is no way around it. Consider this. If you were to marry your American charmer, you would be cutting yourself off from your family, for Papa would disown you.”

  “What about you, Mama? Would you disown me?”

  Lady Elizabeth hesitated for a moment. “Yes.”

  Her mother’s response caused her to suck in her breath. “Surely not, Mama!”

  “I would have to,” Lady Elizabeth said. Her voice was low, almost melancholy.

  Mary Elizabeth’s hand crept up to her throat, signaling her vulnerability.

  “Your father is my husband, Mary Elizabeth. I must obey him in all things.” She watched her daughter as she added with careful deliberation, “As you must.”

  “Mama, I do not dislike Colonel Bradley, but with him I do not feel the same wonderful emotions I feel when I am with Mr. Byrne. Marriage is for a lifetime. My lifetime. How can I spend it with a man who is a stranger to me? One I care nothing for?”

  Lady Elizabeth studied her for a minute, then she once more tapped Mary Elizabeth’s hand with the fan. “Very easily, daughter. The passionate feelings Mr. Byrne has roused in you will fade with time as the troubles and problems of life pull you apart. Those troubles will make you realize that you and Mr. Byrne come from very different backgrounds and have interests that do not coincide. Colonel Bradley, however, is a man of our world. His family and mine have long been intertwined. You will have common expectations of life and how it should be lived.”

  “What if we do not?”

  “It is up to you to ensure that you do.”

  “Ensuring the marriage works is my responsibility alone?”

  “Of course not.” Her mother eyed her critically. “But you must expect your husband to be focused on life outside the home. Colonel Bradley will have his career in the military, then later, he is pledged to embrace a political career. Your father expects him to become a powerful force within the government.” She smiled at her daughter and reached for her hand. “You would be an excellent political wife, Mary Elizabeth. You are bright and your manner is charming…when you are not being difficult, that is.”

  Mary Elizabeth eyed her mother dubiously. Being labeled as charming when not being difficult was faint praise indeed.

  “You will live in London, of course, with all of the social events that coincide with the parliamentary sessions,” Lady Elizabeth continued. “Colonel Bradley has agreed to bestow a substantial sum on you upon your marriage. The amount indicates how wealthy his family is and how much they value him, as a second son who may or may not inherit. You would become a leader of the beau monde. Your influence would be great.”

  Mary Elizabeth had the distinct feeling that her mother was itemizing a future she had wished for herself. It certainly wasn’t one Mary Elizabeth wanted. During her one season, when she’d travelled back to England with her mother, she’d felt out of place at the dozens of balls they’d attended. There had been snide comments from the other young women, mocking her for being a mere colonial. As for dancing, Mary Elizabeth had spent most of the time sitting in one of the chairs lined up against the wall, with all the other wallflowers.

  She’d hated everything about her season and the though of making her way to the forefront of London society was not a dream, but her own personal nightmare. She knew her mother wouldn’t understand, however. “But what if I wish to remain here, in America, Mama?”

  Lady Elizabeth raised her delicate eyebrows. She tapped her fan on Mary Elizabeth’s wrist. “La, girl. What nonsense. Of course, you want to return to England. It is where your home is. Your family.”

  “We have lived in America eight years, Mama. I was a child when we sailed into Boston harbor. I grew to womanhood here. This is my home. My friends live here.” She drew a deep breath. “The man I wish to marry lives here.”

  That statement hung heavily in the silence that followed. Her unrepentant gaze clashed with her mother’s disappointed one, but she refused to look away.

  It was Lady Elizabeth whose gaze shifted first. She stared out at the garden, rich with the vivid colors of late spring. There was frustration along with sadness in her voice as she said, “Marriage to that man is out of the question.”

  “Why, Mama?”

  She turned then, to look at Mary Elizabeth, her brows arched. “I have explained. It is your father’s wish. No, his decree. There will be no alliance between our family and Mr. Byrne’s.”

  “Alliance! I love Mr. Byrne, Mama. I do not wish to marry him for his connections or the money he might bestow upon me.”

  Lady Elizabeth looked away again. “That is not the way society works, daughter.” She drew a deep breath and when she looked at Mary Elizabeth again she smiled brightly, as if she were determined to seek and find the best of the situation. “An arranged marriage, such as the one your father has made with Colonel Bradley, is often the most satisfactory of partnerships. Neither party is blinded by strong emotions and they are able to work together in mutual respect.”

  Such a marriage sounded awful. Though Mary Elizabeth didn’t say the words, the thought must have shown on her face for her mother rose from the bench with a look of finality on her face. “Marriage to Mr. Byrne is out of the question. I am sorry, Mary Elizabeth.”

  Mary Elizabeth rose too. “I cannot marry Colonel Bradley, Mama. Not when my heart belongs to Mr. Byrne.”

  “Think carefully, dearest.” She cupped Mary Elizabeth’s cheek. “There are many advantages to a marriage with Colonel Bradley. It is more than likely he will inherit his brother’s title. He will be wealthy, a man of power. You would be pampered, your every need attended to.”

  “I cannot, Mama.”

  Her mother shook her head, and heaved a deep sigh. “You must change your mind, or you will be far worse off. Return to your room, now, but think on my advice.”

  Mary Elizabeth swept her mother a deep curtsey, her head bowed in submission she didn’t feel. “As you wish, Mama.”

  As she turned away and headed for the house, she thought she heard her mother sigh and murmur, “Not as I wish.”

  She had been out in the garden less than an hour.

  Chapter 8

  On Sunday morning the maid who brought Mary Elizabeth a breakfast tray that consisted of the usual stale bread and a jug of water, told her that Mr. Strand and the Lady Elizabeth were expecting her to travel with them to church. She was to be in her mother’s sitting room in precisely one hour.

  Mary Elizabeth was both surprised and not surprised. As all member
s of the congregation attended the weekly church service, unless they were ill, her absence would be noticed. Questions would be asked. However, her father cared little for the good opinion of the citizens of Lexington. He was an expert at dampening pretentions and avoiding questions. If anyone inquired about her absence, he would simply raise a brow and shoot a disdainful look at the person who had the temerity to ask.

  It must have been her mother who made the decision, she decided as she ate her meager rations. The food would ensure she didn’t starve, but it wasn’t enough to fill her belly. Nor did it lighten her mood as she considered what to wear. She knew that whatever she chose would be critiqued, but she couldn’t bring herself to pick one of the gowns that featured bright colors, or a joyous riot of flowers embroidered into the cloth. Instead she picked a dun-colored gown that she paired with a leaf green underskirt. The dress was designed to be worn with narrow panniers. Her mother would know that she had chosen clothes more in keeping with a sensible countrywoman than the daughter of a man of influence, one who had the ear of the royal governor, but she hoped her father would not remark upon it. As the bodice was square and cut low, she added a fichu of the finest linen to fill it in and cover her respectably.

  When she reached her mother’s sitting room she discovered both her parents were waiting for her. That was curious. The room was small and boasted only a daybed for reclining and two armless chairs, along with an elegantly simple lady’s writing desk. This was her mother’s personal space, the place where she retired when she wanted to read quietly, or work on letters. Occasionally she invited Mary Elizabeth to join her. Then they would talk about practical things, like running a household or what attributes to look for when hiring new staff. They would also share thoughts about their neighbors, the social events they had participated in, and those that were upcoming. Until the issue with Colonel Bradley had occurred, Mary Elizabeth had believed that her mother enjoyed living in Lexington and valued the friends she’d made amongst the residents.