Lachlan jumped up and began pacing. “Why are ye confessing all now? Tae ease yer conscience?”
Teagan didn’t blame her brother for his anger. Deep down she was angry as well. Angry at circumstances that kept two people who loved each other from being together and happy. Angry that her mother was dead. Angry that Bradbury had not been the father who raised her.
“No. I’m telling you because it’s time you knew the truth.”
“The truth?” Lachlan yelled as he stood looking down at Bradbury. “Ye left my mother tae marry a monster who hated us. Made our lives miserable for what? Money?”
“Lachlan,” Teagan warned. “Calm down, please.”
He spun her way. “Calm down? Calm down? He has no idea what our life was like or Maw’s.”
“I bed to differ,” Bradbury interjected. “Your mother and I corresponded regularly.”
Lachlan spun his way. “And that is supposed tae make me feel better?”
“No. I deserve your anger and more. All I’m asking is a chance to make it up to you both. To keep you safe.”
A gentle knock on the door had Lachlan calling out, “Come in.”
“Excuse me,” Bella said as she stepped inside the room dressed splendidly in deep blue silk. “Sebastian asked me to check on you. Is everything fine?”
“Lady Northborough.” Bradbury stood and bowed. “A pleasure to see you again. I believe the three of us are done with our conversation for the time being. If you wouldn’t mind paying my respects to Northborough, I will take my leave.”
“Lady Teagan, Lord Lachlan.” Bradbury bowed. “Until we speak again.”
“What was that about?” Bella asked, looking shocked at Bradbury’s abrupt departure.
“Nothing,” Lachlan said as he too quit the room.
“Well,” Bella said. “Shall we rejoin the others?”
“Oh, Bella,” Teagan said as tears pooled in her eyes. “Ah’m afraid ah cannae possibly make pleasant conversation and pretend everything is fine even if ‘tis my first ball. Ah think ah would like tae go home.”
***
As the carriage took Teagan, Lachlan, and Sebastian back to Wentworth Manor, Sebastian wondered not for the first time what had transpired between Bradbury, Teagan, and Lachlan. Teagan had wanted him to stay at the ball and dance, but he couldn’t when he knew she was hurting.
Perhaps when they arrived home, one of them would confide in him. For all that he didn’t really know Bradbury, he’d never heard anything remotely scandalous about him. After the death of his wife many years ago, he became something of a recluse. Albeit a recluse in London. Occasionally, he would attend a social function and then disappear for another year before he would surface again.
People attributed it to his heartbreak from his wife and infant son’s deaths. Perhaps that wasn’t it at all. Sebastian was determined to find out the connection between Bradbury and his carriage companions. Could he be their real father?
The silence didn’t end as they entered Wentworth Manor and handed over their greatcoats, hats, and pelisse to the doorman.
“Can I have a private word with you Lachlan?” Sebastian asked.
“Nae tonight. Perhaps tomorrow,” Lachlan answered as he climbed the staircase, looking like the world rested on his shoulders.
“Teagan.” He placed a hand on her arm as she too started up the stairs. “Please. I’m worried and my mind is hunting up all sorts of scenarios. Have pity on me.”
“Bradbury is our real paw.” With that declaration she tugged her arm from within his grasp and slowly walked up the stairs, head down, her slippers dragging on the stairs.
When he could no longer see her, he went into the closest drawing room, poured a hefty amount of brandy into a glass and downed it in one swallow. Refilling it, he took a seat facing the hearth which had burned down to cold embers.
“Their father,” he said out loud. “Their father. Damn, what a mess.”
The rest of his family came back several hours later and he still sat, drink in hand and facing a cold hearth. He didn’t seem to be able to get up and go to his bedchamber no matter how exhausted he was. Or how bad his leg, arm, and ribs throbbed. All he could think about was poor Teagan and what she must be going through.
Finally as the sun began making its way into a new day, he took his weary body up the staircase and down the hall to pause outside her chamber door.
He hadn’t made a conscious thought to go there, his body moved on its own accord. Now that he stood outside her door, he knocked, waited, and listened for an answer. When none came, he turned the knob and his pulse accelerated when the door opened and he came face to face with a teary eyed Teagan clothed in her dressing gown.
He opened his arms and without hesitation she stepped into them, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head upon his breaking heart.
“I was worried. I should’ve come sooner.” His hands soothingly caressed circles on her back. Her whole body trembled against his.
“Ah’m glad ye’r here with me now. Ah’m sorry ah was rude tae ye last night. Shock at meeting my real paw and hearing the words spoken out loud unsettled me. Ah only wish my maw was here. Ah can tell Bradbury loved her verra much as ah ken she did him as weel.”
“I’m sorry for everything and wish I could make things better. But unfortunately I can’t bring back the past or the dead. Give Bradbury a chance. Besides Lachlan, he is all the family you have left, unless you want to continue having the duke and Ian part of your family.”
“Nay. If ye dinnae mind, ah think ah will go back tae bed. Ah didnae sleep at all last night.”
“Rest.” He kissed her briefly and left, hoping sleep would make her see things clearly.
***
Later that morning Wentworth sent word that he received a message from Smythe. Sebastian found himself in his brother’s study along with Lachlan, Bridgeton, and Myles all anxiously awaiting his brother to share the contents of the letter.
“Some of what I have to say may shock you Lachlan, but please forgive me in advance,” Wentworth said as he held the parchment in his hands. Hands that to Sebastian looked to be shaking.
“Smythe made it to Murray Castle and found the duke dead and Ian gone. According to several witnesses, they quarreled and Ian attacked him. When Smythe sent this letter, Ian was nowhere to be found.” Wentworth placed the missive on his desk and looked at the faces of everyone in the room. “You are now the Duke of Tremont.”
Silence settled around the room. Sebastian waited for Lachlan to say something, anything, but since he didn’t speak a word, Sebastian did. “Lachlan, you must go home.”
“Ah ken. Ah just dinnae ken what tae feel about what has happened. Ah never wanted Paw...the duke...tae die. Ah just prayed he could become a better mon. Ah need tae go home and make things right. Ah have much atoning tae do on his behalf. And ah need tae see Ian pay for what he did.”
“I wish I could travel with you,” Wentworth said. “But with Emma expecting I don’t want to leave her again, and I must stay for Penelope as well. Sebastian will go with you as I suspect he is not ready to say good-bye to Teagan. Also, and please keep an open mind, Bradbury has requested he accompany you as well. He confided in me he hopes to get to know you and Teagan during the trip. His country estate is in Northumberland, and he will leave you then to see to his lands.”
Lachlan’s eyes turned to Sebastian and the uncertainty and need he saw in them moved him. Sebastian owed him his life and would do what he could to help him acclimate to being the duke. Sebastian knew firsthand what a task it would be in the coming months. He’d seen Wentworth live through it. Their father had left a mess and Sebastian had a feeling Lachlan’s father left an even larger disaster to straighten out. The man didn’t sound like he had a heart, and Sebastian wondered how the crofters on Murray lands survived with a tyrant as their duke.
“Should I ask Smythe to accompany you as well?” Wentworth addressed Lachlan directly. “Do you expect any
resistance when you arrive at Murray Castle?”
Lachlan paled, then shook his head. “Ah dinnae believe ah need yer mon tae travel with us. My paw was nae a fair mon and a terrible duke. Ah should be a welcome sight. And if ah receive resistance, ah will send word, but ah truly believe the residents in the castle and surrounding lands will breathe a sigh of relief when ah arrive. As for my brother, ah dinnae believe he will set foot on Murray lands. Nae if he wants tae live. And if he disputes the legality of my inheriting, he has nae proof. Just his word against mine. And ah will die and take him with me before ah let him become the duke.”
“Good. We have much to prepare because you should leave first thing tomorrow morning. And traveling by coach, my personal coach, will increase your travel time. I was going to suggest a maid travel to assist Teagan, but with Bradbury going as well, the coach will be crowded and I don’t believe you want to travel with two as it will only take longer.”
Wentworth turned his serious blue eyes on Sebastian, and he swallowed hard. Did he think he would compromise Teagan on the long journey ahead? How did he not know he already hadn’t?
When neither he nor Lachlan spoke, his brother continued. “Then it’s settled. If you’ll excuse me, I have much estate business to catch up on.”
Sebastian stayed once everyone else left. He closed the door and turned to his brother. “Thank you for offering me to travel with them so I didn’t have to insist.”
“You’re welcome. She is your future and you belong with her. Just don’t be a stranger. And never forget who you are and where you come from.”
“Who said I wasn’t coming back?”
“My gut. Which is seldom wrong.”
Chapter Sixteen
Good-byes the next morning were hard for all. Sebastian’s sisters didn’t want Teagan to leave, and poor Penelope stood to the back looking uncertain. His mother had tears in her eyes and hugged him close.
“Safe travels. Teagan is lovely and I’m happy for you.”
“Mother,” he whispered in her ear. “Aren’t you getting ahead of yourself? I haven’t even asked Teagan to marry me.”
“You will. I know love when I see it.”
“Yes, I do love her and her me, but this may not be the best time for her.”
“Nonsense. You marry her quickly, even if your family is not there. We will visit and celebrate another time.”
“Thank you.” Sebastian swallowed the lump in his throat and fervently hoped he didn’t cry in front of his entire family. Two days ago he never would have contemplated living in Scotland, but if that’s where Teagan wanted to live, he would as well. They never discussed it, though, so he could be wrong. She could want to live in London for all he knew. Only he doubted she would leave her only brother. At least until he was married and settled. Sebastian had been away from his family for two years while in America. If he survived that when he’d left on bad terms, he would survive this. Even enjoy it. Scotland. Who ever thought?
He hugged each of his sisters, including Penelope and Emma, and each had tears in their eyes. “I’m not dying. Just traveling to Scotland. You would think I was moving halfway around the world.”
When Wentworth pulled him in for a quick, hard hug, he thought he would finally succumb to tears. But he cleared his throat at the same time as his brother, who looked to be emotional as well.
“Godspeed,” his brother mumbled.
As they made their way down the streets of Mayfair, Sebastian’s eyes were riveted to his surroundings. All was quiet as they traveled for several miles, and he could feel the tension inside the coach. Was it because they were leaving London? Or because Bradbury traveled with them? Or because of what was awaiting them in Scotland? Mostly likely all three and more.
***
Teagan’s throat hurt and her eyes burned at fighting the tears trying to escape. She would not cry at leaving her new found friends. She had to go with Lachlan to Scotland and see him settled as the Duke of Tremont. She would do her duty and bury her false father, get to know Bradbury, her real father, and hopefully come back to London in several months’ time. She loved Scotland and Murray Castle, but her heart had died the night MacPherson attacked her and the man she had known as Father tried to kill Lachlan. She would never stay away from her homeland long, but she wanted to experience London Society and hopefully marry Sebastian and make a home not too far from his family.
Besides her mother, Lachlan, and her grandfather and uncles, which she seldom saw, she’d never truly had the sense of family. She had found it with the Seabrook’s. And she wanted desperately to be part of their family. She loved Sebastian with all her heart, and it seemed only natural they would wed. Her stomach did little flips inside. Perhaps they would not wed? He may have professed his love for her, but he never mentioned marriage. She rubbed her stomach with her hand and closed her eyes to wipe out that thought. Of course they would marry. Why else was Sebastian traveling with them? He looked healed on the outside, but she knew it could take a longtime for broken ribs and an arm to heal. Was he in pain even now traveling in the luxurious coach? She glanced at him across the seat, sitting beside Bradbury. His eyes were cast out the window and his expression, from what she could see, was somber. Did he regret traveling with them? Stop it, she chastised. Ah will nae let my imagination get the better of me. He is here and that is all ah need tae ken.
After several days of travel, Bradbury broke his silence.
“When I first saw your mother running through a field of lavender, her skirts hiked up to her knees, I nearly fell off my horse. She was that beautiful, and my heart stopped beating as I watched for several minutes. When she finally saw me, she smiled, and something inside me changed forever. I never believed in love at first sight, but that’s what it was for both of us.”
Teagan could not take her eyes off the man who possessed the title of her real father. He sat up straight and had an air of confidence about him she admired. Even though he looked melancholy. He possessed this compelling charm that made her want to get to know him better.
“I was visiting a university friend at the time, otherwise I never would have met her. Anyway, we met daily in that field for a week. A thunderstorm rolled in one afternoon, and we made our way down the cliff to the beach and into a small cave for shelter your mother knew about.” He looked at her and actually blushed. “I will not divulge what happened next, but you both can surmise as you are the result of it. I tried to get out of my betrothal, but my father would not hear of it as the wedding was taking place in a sennight.” He paused and exhaled. “I never meant to hurt your mother. We were young and in love and didn’t think of the consequences. Two months after my wedding, she sent word about her pregnancy. She panicked, told her father, and he married her to Murray believing him to be a good and fair man. Something he came to regret not long after the wedding vows were spoken. I could not let your mother go. She held my heart. I’m embarrassed to say, I made the long journey once a month so we could meet, but never to...”
Teagan fought tears at the heartbreak she heard in Bradbury’s voice. “When my wife and son died in childbirth, I descended into depression and whiskey. I believed their deaths were my fault for betraying my wife. That God was punishing me. A year went by before I pulled myself together and ventured to see your mother again, and when I did, she had given birth to Ian and your father’s cruel nature was already in evidence. I begged her to pack you two up and run away with me, but she refused. Said she couldn’t leave Ian or the vows she had spoken before God.”
Several tears trailed down Bradbury’s cheeks, and Teagan knew her cheeks were wet as well. “So I watched from afar until she became too sick to venture out. I am so sorry for all the trouble I have caused. Love is a powerful emotion, and your mother and I could not fight it. I have many regrets, but loving your mother and creating you both is not one of them. I do regret not being the man your mother needed me to be though. I should have stood up to my father and married your mother. But there
is no going back. Not now, not ever.”
Silence descended on the coach, and Teagan noticed Bradbury looked disheartened and ill. Her heart ached for him, this man who was her father. And she was glad they were having the opportunity to get to know one another. She had a father. A real flesh and blood father who was kind and compassionate and loving.
Next she glanced at Lachlan who looked to be fighting his emotions as well. How could he not after all Bradbury said. Would she perhaps be able to call him Father someday? She hoped so for all their sakes. She needed him and he needed her. Would Lachlan be able to call him Father?
Her eyes ventured Sebastian’s way and found he looked as if he wanted to be anywhere but there. She didn’t blame him. Not with what had been said.
***
Sebastian tried to close his ears to the extremely personal conversation going on around him, but it was hard when it involved the woman he loved. Watching her emotions play across her face had his heart aching to take her into his arms and comfort her. He might have if Bradbury hadn’t been there. But then there would be no reason to comfort her.
Hearing the story of the doomed lovers moved him so he could only imagine how moved Teagan and Lachlan were. He could not wait to have time alone with Teagan so they could talk about it. From his experience woman always wanted to talk about important things, and this was so much more than important. It was life altering.
Sometime later he noticed Teagan had fallen asleep, her head rested on Lachlan’s shoulder, and his mind wandered to the rest of the trip. Later that day they would arrive at Bradbury’s country estate where they would spend the night. The following morning they planned to visit the blacksmith who helped Teagan and Lachlan, as well as him. Then on to Murray Castle.
With the rocking of the carriage and not having slept well since they took to the road, Sebastian didn’t fight the pull of sleep and let it wash over him.
He awoke with a start as the coach came to rough stop and loud voices shouting outside. His eyes locked with Teagan’s then Lachlan’s as Lachlan pulled a knife from his boot and Teagan did as well. He should have been surprised, but was not. What did shock him was Bradbury did as well. Did everyone carry weapons but him? Bradbury also reached under the seat and removed two pistols. He kept one and handed Lachlan the other. Lachlan then handed Sebastian his knife.
Lord Sebastian and the Scottish Lass Page 14