'Twas the Night Before Scandal (The May Flowers Book 8)

by Merry Farmer

  “I just hope that John doesn’t cause too much trouble for himself where Diana is concerned,” Harrison said, still hovering protectively close to Bea.

  His grandmother laughed. “Young men are forever causing trouble for themselves where women are concerned. Particularly young men of title who are in love. Which brings me to you, my boy.”

  Harrison stiffened at Bea’s side as his grandmother narrowed her gaze at him. “What about me?” he asked.

  Bea found herself holding her breath as his grandmother said, “Your friend, Lord Whitlock, isn’t the only one who should be proposing right about now. After the conversation we had on Monday, I was expecting news regarding Lady Beatrice here.”

  Bea had the feeling Harrison’s grandmother had deliberately let out a secret. Her heart raced even faster than it had when the crackers went off.

  “Why isn’t my mother’s ring gracing this delightful young woman’s finger right now?” Harrison’s grandmother asked on. “I gave that ring to you on the understanding that it wouldn’t stay in your possession for long.”

  “Oh.” Bea sucked in a breath and pressed a hand over her racing heart. She glanced from Harrison’s grandmother to Harrison himself, expectation making her dizzy.

  Harrison let out a guilty breath, looking as though he’d rather be anywhere in England besides that room at that moment. “I did intend to propose,” he said, wincing and looking at Bea. “I wanted it to be a surprise. I had such grand plans for the perfect proposal.”

  “They why didn’t you make it?” his grandmother asked.

  The color in Harrison’s cheeks flushed deeper, and his guilty look seemed to spread to encompass him. “The fact is, Grandmama, I…I’m afraid I lost the ring.”

  “You lost it?” His grandmother flinched back, looking horrified, but not particularly surprised. A moment later, she shook her head and closed her eyes, pressing her fingertips to her forehead. “Oh, Harrison.”

  “I hoped that I could find it,” Harrison explained. “I lost it in this very room, the other day, when we were sorting donations for the orphanages. I put it on a table when I rushed to help Bea with decorations, and when I came back, the table had been cleared. The donations were taken to three separate orphanages, and John and I spent the next two days tracking them down and searching for the ring, but we had no luck.”

  A burst of hope that bordered on giddiness filled Bea’s chest. “And one of those orphanages was Mr. Siddel’s, wasn’t it?” she asked, turning to Harrison.

  Harrison blinked at her, then said, “Yes.”

  Bea couldn’t suppress her giggle as she reached into the reticule still tied to her wrist. Harrison had asked her to dance so soon after she entered the party that she hadn’t had a chance to put her reticule down. Now she was glad that she still had it as she drew out the small, linen sack Annie from Mr. Siddel’s orphanage, had given her. She hadn’t thought of it before, but its contents were the perfect size and shape to be a ring box.

  “That girl, Annie, from Mr. Siddel’s orphanage gave this to me the other day when she learned that you and I are friends,” she said, laughter in serious danger of getting the best of her. She handed the sack over to Harrison. “She said it was found in the donations and that she overheard Harrison saying he was searching for it. She gave it to me to give to you, which I intended to do this evening.”

  “Did you open it to see what it was?” Harrison asked, taking a velvet ring box from the sack.

  Bea caught her breath at the sight of it. “No. It wasn’t mine. I had no right to meddle with something that belonged to you.”

  “Honest and noble to a fault,” Harrison’s grandmother said with a pleased smile.

  Harrison opened the box and peeked at its contents, breaking into a relieved smile. He closed the box just as quickly, though, and lowered his hands.

  A tickling wave of disappointment filled Bea. “I’m surprised she knew it belonged to you,” she said, trying to mask her feelings over not receiving an instant proposal.

  Harrison glanced at the bottom of the ring box, then showed it to Bea. “The family coat of arms and name are stamped on the box,” he said.

  Sure enough, the Landsbury sigil was there, plain for all to see.

  “I’m glad that your heirloom was returned,” Bea said, suddenly anxious. She swayed on her spot, glancing around for her friends, uncertain what she should do next. “I suppose you’ll want to get on with the party now.”

  “What I would like,” Harrison said, a mischievous smile spreading across his face, “is to have a private word with you, if I might, Lady Beatrice.”

  Tears sprung instantly to Bea’s eyes, and for a moment she couldn’t breathe. Joy burst through her as loud as any of the crackers Burt had set off. She couldn’t speak, could only reply to Harrison’s request by nodding quickly and taking his hand when he offered it to her.

  With a final look for his grandmother—who nodded approvingly and beamed from ear to ear—Harrison escorted Bea across the room of Christmas revelers as the band finished a lively song and began to play one of Bea’s favorite, festive tunes. Harrison whisked her out of the crowded room, glanced around the building’s front hallway, then tugged her off to the side, to a wide staircase. He led her up a flight and a half of stairs until they came to a wide window that looked out over the cozy, frost-covered street. The night was clear, and bright moonlight shone down from the dark sky. Even the flickering lights of the other buildings on the street loaned a feeling of magic and promise to the moment.

  “Bea,” Harrison said, fiddling nervously with the ring box as he gazed at her. “I knew I wanted to marry you from the first moment I met you at that ball, years ago.”

  That was all it took for Bea to burst into tears of joy. She gulped for breath and tried to remain calm as Harrison went on.

  “I shouldn’t have hesitated, not for a second. I don’t even know why I did, except that I was having such a delightful time getting to know you and love you even more that I felt I didn’t have a spare moment for anything else. But I am certain beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with. I love you, Beatrice. I love you more than I thought my heart was capable of.”

  He took a step back, got down on one knee, and opened the ring box, presenting her with the diamond and emerald ring inside.

  “Say you’ll marry me, Bea,” he said, his voice hoarse with emotion. “Say you’ll be my wife.”

  Bea swallowed a sound of delight that came straight from the bottom of her soul and nodded so fast it made her dizzy. “Yes,” she managed to squeak out. “Yes, of course I’ll marry you.”

  Tears streamed down her face as Harrison got to his feet—crying a bit himself—and took the ring out of its box. He set the box on the windowsill before taking Bea’s hand and sliding the ring onto her finger.

  “Don’t forget about that,” Bea said through a sniffle, nodding to the discarded ring box on the windowsill. “We wouldn’t want to lose it.”

  “Of course not,” he said, sweeping her into his arms.

  A moment later, the ring box was forgotten entirely as Harrison slanted his mouth over hers. It was the most beautiful and perfect kiss Bea had ever received. It was passionate and tender, filling her with joy and desire from her head to her toes. But more than that, it was perfect because of what it meant. It meant that, at long last, she would be Harrison’s wife.

  Chapter 10

  

  The wedding day was everything Bea had ever imagined it would be and more. She and Harrison had seen no reason to wait after their engagement was finally official. Valentine’s Day was the perfect day for a wedding between two people who loved each other so much. And while that hadn’t left them much time to prepare for the day or to stage a wedding celebration to rival that of other aristocratic couples, Bea was perfectly fine with a small event.

  Of course, that small event turned into something far more elaborate when word spread through
the orphans that Bea and Harrison had worked so hard to help at Christmastime. Small gifts and cards wishing them well began to arrive weeks before the wedding, and when Bea had enough of them lining the mantle in her bedroom, she decided the only thing for it was to invite as many of the orphans as wanted to see what a society wedding was like to attend.

  The result was that the modest church in Mayfair, where the Landsbury family had worshiped for generations, was packed to the rafters with eager young faces. Their eyes were wide with wonder as Bea made her way down the aisle, dressed in a gown of white lace, her veil as long as her train, a bouquet of roses in her hands.

  “She looks like a princess,” one of the orphan girls whispered as she passed her pew.

  “No, she looks like an angel,” another said in awe.

  Bea grinned at their innocent joy. That grin became a smile of pure joy as she approached the altar, where Harrison stood, John at his side, serving as his best man. Diana was Bea’s bridesmaid, of course. She stood across from John, doing an admirable job of not looking as though she wanted to tear his eyes out. In fact, for a change, Diana seemed not even to care that John was mere yards away, smiling at her instead of the bride. It was icing on the cake of what was turning into the perfect day.

  All thoughts of her friends were cast aside as Bea stepped up to meet Harrison as the minister came forward. He was as handsome as she’d ever seen him, though that had less to do with his finely-tailored suit and everything to do with the joy that shone in his eyes. Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, and yet no time at all, there they were, facing each other in front of God and all of their friends and family.

  The ceremony passed in a blur. All Bea was certain she would remember about it was the bliss she felt and the love that radiated from Harrison. She hoped she said her vows correctly, but even that didn’t matter when the minister pronounced them man and wife. The happiness that filled Bea’s heart then was like nothing she’d ever known and brought tears to her eyes. Those tears vanished in an instant, though, the moment Harrison kissed her for the first time as her husband.

  The ceremony was lovely, but it was the reception afterwards that had Bea positively buzzing with joy.

  “And to think,” her father said, thumping Harrison on the back as he and Bea mingled with their guests. “I didn’t even have to implement the thumb-screws or lecture the man about his profligate ways to get him to the altar at last.”

  “Again, my lord, I am terribly sorry that I behaved inappropriately with your daughter before Christmas,” Harrison said, his face flushing. “You must know that I had only the most honorable intentions toward her.”

  “A little too honorable, if you ask me,” Bea’s father laughed. “Young people should be young and have a little fun. That’s what life and love are all about.”

  Bea laughed, certain her father was only expressing such progressive views now because she and Harrison were well and truly married at last. “Would you say the same about Evelyn?” she asked, teasing her father with a sly look.

  “I suppose I would,” her father said. “Today, I’m feeling rather magnanimous toward young people.”

  “Then I take it you don’t care that Evelyn is currently conversing with Lord Meadowbrook,” Bea said. She nodded across the room to where her sister was standing rather too close to one of London’s most notorious bounders. The two of them had their heads together as though discussing some of the finer points of Valentine’s Day entertainment.

  Her father lost his jolly smile. He cleared his throat as his expression settled into a frown, then tugged at the cuffs of his jacket, as if preparing to do battle, before striding across the room to have a word with Lord Meadowbrook and Evelyn.

  “Do you think your sister is in danger?” Harrison asked, bending close so he could speak quietly to her. In fact, Bea suspected that he bent close merely so that he could be closer to her and closer to a kiss.

  “Evelyn? No,” Bea laughed. “She’s far too sensible to fall for the charms of a man like Lord Meadowbrook. But Papa will have a delightful time frightening the man out of his wits all the same.”

  Harrison laughed at her quip, resting a hand on the small of her back as they glanced around the room at their guests. “It looks as though someone else is running the risk of being frightened out of their wits by someone’s parent,” he said, nodding toward John and Diana at the other end of the room.

  Diana had her back up, as usual, but that wasn’t stopping John from leaning in to her and whispering something in her ear. He went so far as to curl a tendril of Diana’s hair at the nape of her neck around his finger. Diana flinched, turning to him with a furious look. That look was heated in more ways than one, though. She leaned toward John, muttering something through a clenched jaw, fire in her eyes. Bea couldn’t hear what she was saying, but whatever it was, it must have been lively. Diana’s eyes were filled with fire.

  “Is she telling him off or preparing to kiss him?” Harrison asked, his mouth twitching as though he wasn’t sure whether he should laugh or not.

  “It could be either,” Bea said, just as amused. “It could be both.”

  “I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised,” Harrison said, giving up and laughing at last. “I also wouldn’t be surprised if we had another wedding to attend this spring.”

  “Do you think they’ll wait that long?” Bea asked with a wry look up at him.

  “Do you know, I’m not sure they will,” Harrison went on laughing. He nodded to Diana’s mother, Lady Pickwick, who was watching Diana and John as though she were a police inspector about to make an arrest. “I have a feeling that if those two aren’t exceptionally careful, they may find themselves in more hot water than they anticipated.”

  “Wouldn’t that be wonderful,” Bea said with an amused sigh. “It would put the rest of us out of our misery.”

  “Yes,” Harrison agreed, his gaze shifting to her and turning amorous. “There’s nothing more aggravating than watching two people who are obviously meant to be together dancing around each other and delaying the inevitable.”

  Bea’s heart fluttered, both at his words and at the hungry way he studied her. They had been perfect angels around each other ever since the engagement. Aside from a handful of times when no one else was around and they’d stolen a few kisses that were far from chaste. The heat in Harrison’s eyes spoke of something far more exciting now, something that was now not only allowed for them, but was expected. Bea had been dreaming of her wedding night for years, and now it had arrived.

  “Do you think anyone would mind if we quietly slipped away from the party and made our way upstairs?” she asked in a whisper, giving Harrison what she hoped was a suggestive look. Seduction was such a new art form to her, but if she didn’t start somewhere, she would never become an expert at it.

  “I don’t think they’d mind at all,” Harrison replied, arching one eyebrow invitingly. “In fact, if we snuck out of the room quietly, I don’t think they’d even notice.”

  A giggle caught in Bea’s throat as she pulled her eyes away from Harrison and glanced around the room, assessing who was there and how likely she and Harrison were to be able to cross the room, dash through the hall, and retreat upstairs without being noticed. She was certain that a hundred kinds of suspicion painted her face as Harrison took her hand and subtly glided across the room with her. Anyone who knew about those things was certain to see exactly what she and Harrison were up to as they avoided being drawn into conversations and made their way into the hall.

  Whether anyone noticed them leaving and simply chose to let them go or whether they truly were as sneaky as they thought they were, they made it to the stairs without being ambushed by any guests and fled to the quiet security of the family quarters. Bea’s things had all been moved to Landsbury House earlier in the week, and Harrison had moved from his old, bachelor’s bedroom at the near end of the hall to one of the larger suites at the back of the hall.

  “I think we pulled t
hat off with grace and aplomb,” he said breathlessly as they slipped into their new bedroom and shut the door behind them.

  “Yes, we did,” Bea answered, shivering inside over what came next.

  There was no need to lock the door or care what the servants would think. The power of marriage was enough to afford them all the privacy they needed, something Bea appreciated in the fullest as Harrison swept her into his arms.

  “I love you, my perfect wife,” he breathed before slanting his mouth over hers.

  With all the practice she’d had in the last few weeks, Bea was still blown over by the deliciousness of Harrison’s kiss. Her mouth felt as though it were made to meld with his. She loved the way he teased her lips with his own and with his teeth and tongue. She circled her arms around his back, holding on to what she loved most, as he slipped his tongue along hers, exploring her fully. There was so much beauty and so much power in something as simple as a kiss. It swirled through her, making her bold.

  She brought her hands around to the front of his jacket, surprising herself with her dexterity as she worked open the buttons of his jacket and waistcoat. Once they were undone, she tugged his silky-smooth shirt out from the waist of his trousers.

  Harrison made a sound of surprise and delight before breaking their kiss. “I had no idea my wife would be so eager,” he said, his lips forming a smile as he tried to continue kissing her and talking at the same time.

  “I’ve waited long enough.” She laughed deep in her throat, then glanced up at him with a coquettish grin. “I’m not all sweetness and light, you know.”

  “I daresay you are quite a bit more,” he said, his voice rough with desire, shrugging out of his jacket and letting it drop to the side. “And I cannot wait to explore it all.”

  He reached his hands around her, tracing the line of buttons along her back. At the same time, he pulled her closer, kissing her with surprising levels of passion.

  A moment later, he stepped back, amusement in his eyes. “Good Lord. How many buttons does this dress have anyhow?”