A knock on the door startled her from her sad musings. Hastily Rose wiped away her tears with the lace handkerchief monogrammed with her initials. She hated being caught feeling melancholy.
Alice Bellwether entered the room carrying a tray of food that she would insist that Rose eat and Rose wouldn’t. Alice determinedly set the tray upon the table and then turned to face her.
“Mr. Briggs has arrived, my lady. Should I show him in?”
“Yes, of course. My lunch can wait.” Rose waved away the tray. As if she could eat anything now.
“Let me fix you up a bit first,” Alice suggested. With efficient movements she straightened the blanket that covered Rose’s legs and adjusted the shawl that covered her shoulders and smoothed Rose’s brown hair. “A lady must always look the part,” she said with a cheery smile.
“Thank you, Alice,” Rose said, grateful for Alice’s loyal care during all these years. Alice’s devotion to her had been a godsend. Rose would be lost without her.
Alice bustled out of the room and returned a few minutes later with Bailey Briggs. Once he was settled in a chair, and Alice poured him some tea, he got right down to business.
“Well, she’s spent some time visiting an aunt in Galway and now she’s back home at Cashelmore Manor. From what I’ve gathered, her parents are in London and no one at the manor is quite sure why she came or how long she is planning to stay,” he informed them.
“So we still don’t know why she’s come here?” Rose was fascinated by every aspect of Mara’s life. “Except to visit an aunt?”
“So it would seem,” Briggs continued. “I’ve discovered that her mother died in a fire when Mara was a little girl. The aunt she was visiting was her mother’s sister.”
This gave Rose pause. So little Miss Perfect hadn’t had a perfectly charmed life after all. Mara Reeves had lost her mother as a child. Still, Rose had lost far more than that. In fact, Rose had often wished her mother had died. Her life might have been happier without her.
“But I have more interesting news than that,” Briggs announced with a triumphant smile.
“Well, what is it?” Rose demanded.
“Your husband has arrived, my lady.”
Foster had come for Mara.
Rose was stunned. She hadn’t expected that.
Briggs continued, unaware of her surprise. “Lord Sterling arrived in Dublin this morning and he is on his way to Cashelmore Manor now. I have one of my men following him, while I came here right away to let you know.”
A deep hurt roiled within her. He had come for her. Foster followed Mara across the sea, because he couldn’t be without her. For the second time that day, Rose could not stop the tears and she did not care that Alice looked aghast and Briggs looked mortified.
Foster had come after the woman he loved.
No one had ever come for Rose.
22
Explanations
The carriage that Foster Sheridan hired when he arrived in Dublin jounced along the long, white gravel driveway leading to Cashelmore Manor. The sun was just setting as he caught his first glimpse of the estate. It was quite an impressive sight. Surrounded by rolling green fields, the stately manor house was a massive limestone and granite building hosting a towering portico with arcades on either side and supporting a pair of square towers topped with carved pinnacles. The residence spread out on either side of the main entrance in graceful symmetry, with Tuscan colonnades leading to the stable courts. The Earl of Cashelmore possessed a grand and beautiful home but the estate rivaled that of Sterling Hall.
Foster’s sense of urgency to see Mara had not lessened since he left London. Had Rose contacted Mara or harassed her in any way? He still didn’t know where his wife was, let alone what she had been up to. But the last thing he wanted was Rose’s interference, which could spook an already uneasy Mara.
Foster needed to convince her to marry him and he didn’t need Rose to persuade her to do otherwise.
He needed to talk some sense into her as well. By the time he left Cashelmore Manor he vowed to have Mara agree to be his wife just as soon as he was free.
But he also had to prepare himself to meet Mara’s parents, which would require some delicate rationalizing. Hopefully her father wouldn’t try to kill him before he could explain the extenuating circumstances. He also didn’t know how Mara would receive him. They hadn’t parted on the best of terms after coming to an impasse on their future together. But all that mattered to him now was seeing Mara again, convincing her to marry him, and making certain Rose hadn’t been bothering her.
After the carriage came to a stop in the main courtyard, Foster made his way to the main house. The butler, who introduced himself as Collins, ushered Foster into an elegant parlor. The interior of Cashelmore Manor was just as impressive as the exterior. Yet for such a massive structure, the home was quite warm and inviting. He could easily picture Mara growing up in this atmosphere.
Suddenly Mara came flying into the room, her pretty face awash with surprise. She halted at the doorway. Wearing a simple blue gown that accentuated the gray in her eyes, she stood staring at him in disbelief. “Foster!” she cried. “I couldn’t believe it when Collins told me you were here!”
Relief flooded him at the sight of her. She was happy to see him! And she was even more beautiful than the last time he saw her. How he had missed her! He longed to wrap his arms around her, but he hesitated and stayed where he was.
“Hello, Mara.”
“What on earth are you doing here, Foster? Are you staying for dinner? Of course you are! I’ve only just arrived from Galway by train. I shall let Collins know to set a place for you. I suppose you will be staying the night as well? I’ll have them prepare one of the guest rooms.”
Rather excited at his presence, Mara answered her own questions and pulled the tasseled bell cord, which rang in the servants’ quarters.
Pleased that she was happy enough to see him that she wanted him to stay, Foster couldn’t help but smile.
The butler arrived immediately and Mara instructed him. “Lord Sterling will be joining me for dinner, as well as staying the night, so please have his things brought to the ivory guest room.”
“Yes, my lady.” Collins left the parlor.
Alone in the room, they both still stood there, staring at each other.
She smiled shyly, and again she asked, “What are you doing here?”
“I came for you.”
At that, Mara rushed into his arms. Foster held her close, her head resting against his chest, his arms wrapped around her. It felt so wonderful to hold her like that again. He breathed deeply of her lily-of-the-valley scent and marveled again at how perfectly right she felt in his embrace. Suddenly, he realized that Mara was shaking.
“Mara?” he asked, worried. He looked down at her. “Are you crying?”
She peered up at him, her eyes wet with tears, and withdrew from his embrace. “Yes.”
“Why are you crying? I thought you were happy to see me.”
“I’m overjoyed to see you,” she said, wiping at her eyes with a handkerchief. “It’s just that I’m stunned that you are here. You came all this way just to see me?”
“Of course I came to see you.” He gave her a teasing smile. “I certainly didn’t come for the scenery.”
“But that’s what I don’t understand. Why would you come after me, when I was so horrid to you when we last parted? I left London without telling you I was coming to Ireland. How did you even know I was here?” Her delicate brows were drawn in confusion.
Foster smiled enigmatically. “I have my ways, Lady Mara.”
“Really, Foster.” She smiled in spite of herself. “How did you learn I had come to Cashelmore?”
He hesitated, knowing she wouldn’t like his answer. “I spoke with your cousin Phillip Sinclair . . .”
Mara’s joyful expression disappeared and her face turned ashen. “You spoke to my cousin about me? About us?” She took a step back from
him.
“Yes, and I’m glad I did. I don’t regret it at all.”
Horrified, she looked about to cry again. “Phillip knows about us now? He knows it was you, then?”
“He does at that.” Foster moved toward her, reaching out his hand. She refused it. “Mara, it’s for the best that he knows about us. I don’t wish for us to be a secret any longer.”
“What did he say?” She looked quite ill. “How did he react?”
“Please don’t be upset. Everything is fine. Phillip was more understanding than I would have hoped him to be. Aside from threatening me with bodily harm from time to time, which was to be expected, he was quite supportive of . . . our . . . situation.” Foster moved toward her again. This time she allowed him to put his arm around her. He guided her to the small sofa.
“Are you telling me he approves of our affair?” she asked in disbelief as she sat beside him.
“Well, approve is a rather strong word. I think tolerated is a better description,” he said with a rueful smile. “However, he was sympathetic when presented with all the facts.”
She relaxed for a moment before suddenly exclaiming, “Good heavens! Do my parents know about us then?”
Foster was confused. “How would I know that?”
“Well, I’m guessing Phillip would have said something to them by now. This is awful. They must know.” She bit her lip.
“I’m not sure how Phillip would have told them, and wouldn’t they have said something to you? In any case, Mara, I’m here with you. I would like to speak with your mother and father myself. We can talk to them together tonight at dinner.”
Now it was Mara’s turn to look confused. “My parents are in London.”
“They’re not here with you?” Foster had utterly lost sight of this conversation. “I’m quite sure that Phillip told me you came home to Cashelmore to see your parents.”
“Well, yes, I did,” she explained, “but they apparently were coming to London to surprise me, while I was coming here to surprise them. We completely missed each other.”
“Well, that is something.” Foster laughed. He was oddly let down that her parents weren’t at home. He’d been anxious to have all this out in the open and to prove to them that his intentions were honest.
“I suppose it is.” Mara smiled. “But you still haven’t explained to me why you are here.”
“I already told you.” He looked into her gray-green eyes. “I wanted to see you, Mara. I feel terrible about the way we parted, not only because you were so upset, but because I didn’t want to part with you at all.”
She remained quiet.
“If you recall, you were the one who turned down my offer of marriage.”
“Because you are not free to make such an offer,” she pointed out.
“Not yet. But I will be free before too long. But that was not the reason you told me that you didn’t wish to marry me. Was it?”
She glanced away, her eyes downcast. Foster cupped her chin, forcing her to look up. “Look at me, Mara.”
She raised her eyes to his. “Yes?”
“That was the answer I was looking for when I asked you to marry me.” He gazed at her. “But you didn’t give it then. And you wouldn’t give me a logical reason for turning me down.”
Mara gave him a helpless look and a regretful smile. “Perhaps I’ve changed my mind.”
“Do you mean it?” His heart leapt with happiness at her words. “You will marry me as soon as I’m free?”
“Yes,” she whispered as she leaned closer to him. “I’ll marry you, Foster.”
Joy flooded him. Pulling her closer to him, Foster kissed her deeply. She had agreed to be his wife! He would be able to spend his life with this wonderful and beautiful woman at his side.
As their kiss grew more passionate, her arms found their way around his neck and she kissed him hungrily. They clung to each other after having been apart. A familiar heat grew between them, and a wonderful thought occurred to Foster. He broke from their kiss and stared at Mara.
“If your parents are in London,” he asked with a wicked grin, “then you are here at Cashelmore Manor alone?”
Mara sat up and smoothed her dress. She gave him a shy look. “Aside from the servants, yes . . .”
“You know what this means?” he asked. They would have the night together. The entire night.
“I won’t have to leave in the middle of the night,” she whispered as she fell back into his embrace.
They kissed again.
* * *
Later that evening after supper, Foster silently made his way down the dimly lit corridor to Mara’s room. They had to be careful of the servants, but the two of them were not about to pass up the unexpected opportunity to be alone together. He followed the directions she had given him, and when he counted the third door on the right, he slowly turned the doorknob.
She was waiting for him, standing before the fire dressed only in a nightgown of the finest white silk. Her soft hair hung loose around her shoulders, glistening in the firelight. He could see the outline of her lithe little body silhouetted against the light. Looking like a silvery angel, she was truly stunning. And she belonged to him, just as he belonged to her.
Closing the door behind him and turning the key in the lock, he moved with quick purpose toward her.
“I’ve missed you so much,” she whispered as she reached for him.
“Not half as much as I have missed you.” He brought his mouth down over hers in a searing kiss. Then he lifted her in his arms and carried her to the bed. He lay down beside her and they kissed each other hungrily.
To Foster it felt like forever since they had been together. His passion for her only increased during their time apart, as did his love for this enchanting woman. He didn’t know if he could ever get enough of her.
As that familiar heat grew between them, he broke from their kiss and began to slide her nightgown slowly up her thighs, admiring her smooth skin as he did so. Without needing to say a word, she raised her arms over her head so he could remove the garment from her body completely. Naked before him, her beauty awed him, as did her loving heart. With a swift motion he removed the robe he’d been wearing, revealing he had nothing on underneath.
Mara squealed in delight. “You naughty man! Walking down the corridor to my room practically naked!”
“It seemed the simplest solution,” he replied with a wicked smile, as he eased himself over her body and settled himself between her legs.
Her excitement at his nakedness aroused him even more, and when Mara wrapped her legs around his waist, he couldn’t wait any longer. This would not be a leisurely lovemaking session. There would be time for that later. No, this would be a fervent and fast coupling to ease both their needs. They both wanted each other too much. With a strangled groan he thrust himself inside her. She welcomed him, eagerly matching his thrusts with her hips.
He lost himself in her, moving faster and harder, wanting more and more of her. He loved her so completely that he could no longer imagine his life without her. They belonged together and nothing would keep them apart now. Absolutely nothing. He would get the annulment and Mara would be his wife. They would have a life together.
He felt the tension mount within her body and knew she was close. The thought of giving her pleasure excited him further, as it always did. Mara called out his name in a breathless gasp as pleasure washed over her. That pushed him over the edge and he found his release as well.
Afterward, Foster held her in his arms, where she belonged. He sighed with contentment. This woman brought him peace and happiness like he’d never known existed. The extent of his love for her astonished him. They lay in her bed, in the dimly lit room, wrapped in each other’s embrace.
Placing a loving kiss on the top of her head, he asked, “So will you please tell me now? Why did you come to Ireland, Mara? What was the true reason?”
She snuggled closer to him. “It’s a bit complicated, but I came
because I wanted to sort through some things. I needed to learn more about my mother.”
“Your mother?” Foster asked, confused. He knew her mother had died when Mara was a child.
“Yes. It’s a tangle, but it’s part of the reason I said I couldn’t marry you.”
“What on earth do you mean?” he asked.
“Throughout my childhood, I was under the impression that my mother was . . . insane,” Mara whispered into the darkness. “I feared, due to my visions, that I was going to go insane as well.”
Foster didn’t know how to respond to her, mostly because he wasn’t entirely sure what all of it meant, but he clearly knew she was troubled by it. “You didn’t wish to marry me because you believed you would eventually become unbalanced, as your mother was?”
Mara nodded against his chest. “Yes. I didn’t want to put you through the heartbreak of eventually watching me go insane and becoming a terrible burden to you. It’s the reason I always knew I could never marry anyone.”
“But you were worrying about something that might never happen,” he said. It was quite illogical to him. “There is no way to know for certain that you would become afflicted.”
“I was led to believe otherwise.” She sighed heavily. “Believing that my mother was mad, and the fact that I have been having premonitions my whole life, added up to the irrefutable truth that I too was mad. Or at least I was exhibiting the symptoms of becoming completely insane. It was to be my fate as well.”
“And so that is why you don’t want children,” Foster said as it all became clear to him. Mara had been afraid and had kept the burden of this worrisome secret to herself all these years. It confounded him.
“The thought of passing on my affliction to my children was the worst outcome I could possibly imagine. So there was no question of my ever having children of my own. I could never take that chance,” she said softly.
The Irish Heiress Page 23