From your secret admirer.
“I do not see any connection here,” Emily said.
“Yes, except that it started with ‘Dear Ophelia’,” replied Ophelia.
“But, anyone could have written that,” replied Emily.
“Let us see the next one,” Ophelia said as she opened the second letter.
My sweet Ophelia,
The fairest woman out of a thousand, when will I have the courage to finally confront you and tell you of how deeply I care for you? When will I draw you close and kiss your lips, to show you how much affection I have grown for you?
Seeing you again few days ago made me realize how much my feelings for you have grown and I cannot stop thinking about you.
I pray I do not lose you to another for this weakness that I have when I come around you. Everyone has their flaws. You are mine.
“This is it!” said Ophelia, pointing to the last line. “He wrote the same thing here and here,” she said as she compared both the second letter and the one they had just received.
“Oh my goodness!” Emily whimpered. “Check the addresses.”
Ophelia looked for the address and saw that there was no address on the letters from the secret admirer. There was none on the one he had just sent. Funnily, all letters were written using the same handwriting.
Ophelia gave a short laugh and dropped the letters. “Lord Gibbs is my stalker. He is the secret admirer and now he is planning to marry me or ruin me!”
“He is really dangerous, Ophelia, we need to do something.”
Ophelia stood up, she was beginning to pace. She could not believe that all this was happening.
Benjamin was her secret admirer, he had been sending all those letters at the same time when she met Christopher. Yet, he kept on pretending to her, never mentioned anything about the letters.
For how long was he planning to keep this from her? Did he really think she was never going to find out? How exactly was she supposed to marry someone like that?
“Ophelia! You need to calm down,” Emily said, walking up to her.
“How can I calm down Emily? This is my life! My family! Who knows what this man is capable of? I am terrified. I do not know what to do. I need help!”
She placed a head on her forehead as she felt a headache coming. A knock sounded on the door and Emily who was closer to the door opened it.
“Hello, Ophelia, Emily.”
Ophelia was surprised as she saw Lady Rebecca standing right outside her door.
* * *
“Lady Rebecca,” Ophelia said then cleared her throat.
“It has been such a long time, Ophelia,” Lady Rebecca said, walking in. “Please can I speak with you. I really need to speak with you.”
Ophelia sighed and then signaled to Emily to excuse them.
After Emily had left, both Ophelia and Rebecca stared at each other for a while. Ophelia finally realizing how much she had missed her old friend and she desperately wished that things could be different.
“I know I am not supposed to be here, Ophelia, I got that from the last letter you sent to my brother but I am here for a good cause and I know you need my help.”
Ophelia inhaled sharply. “So you know about Lord Gibbs?”
Lady Rebecca nodded. “We do. Christopher got to know from your cousin.”
Now, Ophelia was confused. “My cousin? Charles?”
“Yes, he went to speak with my brother and that was how Christopher discovered Benjamin’s ploys to inflate the tax and to marry you.”
Ophelia sighed and went to sit on the bed. Now, her life problem was no longer a secret, still she wondered how Rebecca planned to help her.
She swallowed as she wanted to ask the next question. “Does your brother know that you are here to help me?”
“Of course, he made me come. He pleaded for me to speak with you.”
Lady Rebecca sighed and walked closer to her, sat beside her and took her hands in hers. “You must forgive him for his past. We should not be judged based on our past when it is clear that we have changed for the better. He has done everything to prove himself and he clearly cares for you, deeply. I know you care for him too, you never stopped, did you?”
Ophelia inhaled. Now, she was a bit relieved but at the same time well more confused. “Is he doing this out of pity for me?”
“No! Of course not! He wants to marry you because he cares for you, a lot. I have never seen him like this with any woman before.”
Ophelia stood up. “So many things have happened and it is difficult for me to make a decision, my lady. Everything is happening so fast…”
“Are those from your secret admirers?”
Ophelia turned to look at what Rebecca was talking about and then she realized she was pointing at the letters on the bed.
“Yes,” she replied.
“I could have sworn, the handwriting looks so familiar,” Rebecca replied, walking to pick one of the letters.
“I discovered today that Lord Gibbs and my secret admirer are the same person.”
“What!”
Ophelia gasped. “Yes, and what is worse, is that, he has given me a time lapse to consider his proposal.”
“Do you wish to marry him? Because if you do, then there is no need to save you.”
“I do not want to marry him, I never did,” Ophelia declared in frustration. “But how can I be certain that your brother means well?”
“He has told our parents about you and they want to meet you,” Lady Rebecca quickly said, with a smile.
This surprised Ophelia. She could not believe that Christopher would go that extreme in such a short time for her. That showed that he had serious intentions for her, afterall.
Rebecca moved close to her and held her hands. “So, you see, you do not have a problem at all. You have just the help you need.”
Ophelia found herself smiling before she embraced her. “I have missed you so much.”
“And I, you.”
* * *
“So, are you going to tell your parents about this?” Emily asked after Rebecca was long gone.
Ophelia shook her head. “No,” she said with a sigh while smiling. She felt relieved. Christopher had just done what would not only give her an everlasting bliss but also help her family, financially.
“Now, what do you plan to tell Lord Gibbs?”
“Well,” Ophelia started, more determined than ever. “I am not going to give him any reply. He will be expecting it. I want to see the look on his face when he discovers that Christopher and I are engaged.”
Emily laughed. “I would like to see that look on his face. So, you have finally agreed to marry Christopher?”
“Yes, there is no reason to wait anymore. All I need right now, is to wait until he comes to see me, and I cannot wait to see him again.”
* * *
Christopher Crampton, Viscount Barrington
Christopher was overjoyed when his sister told him the outcome of her visit to the Campbell’s cottage.
“She was really surprised when she heard that you had informed our parents of your interest in her….” she paused. “You did tell them, didn’t you?”
“Of course,” he replied, standing up from the couch. They were in the parlor alone, as their parents were already asleep.
“Father was really supportive. He said it would be best if I could first of all let you speak to her and hear from her before I make my decision.”
Lady Rebecca smiled. “Well, now, you know what you need to do. There is no need to waste more time.”
Christopher chuckled and embraced his sister. “There was no way I could have done this without you, sister,” he said, kissing her forehead.
Later that night, he went to bed, smiling. He was already picturing when he would finally get to talk to Ophelia. While thinking about that, Benjamin’s thoughts crossed his mind and his stomach tightened. He sighed and turned to his side.
He knew exactly what he was going to d
o. Benjamin never let him come to his house and always had excuses as to why. And now that he knew where he lived, he planned to confront him there. He would get there as early as possible so as to catch him at home.
Chapter 35
Christopher Crampton, Viscount Barrington
He waited at the front of the manor very early that day just in time to see Benjamin come out, pulling a white stallion with him. Christopher could tell he was about to go for his early morning ride.
Quickly, he stepped out of the carriage and walked up to him. When Benjamin spotted him, he looked shocked.
“Christopher! What are you doing here?” he asked. “I must say that I’m quite surprised seeing you come this far. I hope there is no problem?”
Christopher only smiled and looked at him. “It has been a while, Benjamin. You have not been returning my letters and not been coming to my house. I daresay you are not the friend of the year.”
Benjamin ignored his joke. “What are you doing here? How did you find this place?” he looked at the carriage then back at him. “Have you been following me?”
“I do not think you need to worry yourself about that,” replied Christopher, walking towards the stallion.
“So you have been following me?” he asked one more time.
“Yes, I have been following you. Didn’t Elias tell you I was here and that you went on a business proposal?”
Benjamin looked surprised. “That bastard, he told you where I went to? I will deal with that later. So, you must have heard about my proposal to Miss Campbell.”
Christopher had expected he would be the one to bring that up but Benjamin had beaten him to it.
“So you are not going to be remorseful or apologize about it?” he asked.
Benjamin snorted. “You only apologize for something you should never have done. Something you regret. I do not regret anything.”
Christopher was more surprised by his forwardness, and then he chuckled. “You betrayed me, Benjamin. You went behind my back to propose to a woman that you know I am in love with.”
“I found her first!” shouted Benjamin at him. “Do not speak to me of being in love with her. Do you know how hard it was, to listen to you as you went on gibbering on how you love her. How you could not stop thinking about her when initially, I had met her and I wanted her first! Dο you know how hard it was for me to listen to you and pretend not to know who you were talking about?”
“But we could have talked about it,” retorted Christopher. “If your intentions were honorable, you should not have been a coward to talk about it!”
* * *
Lord Benjamin Gibbs, the Baron of Salsbury
The more Christopher opened his mouth, the angrier he got. The anger was building up like a volcano deep down in his belly and he could feel his adrenaline rushing through him. He desperately felt like breaking something, but he had to take a quick short breath to calm himself down.
“You know, Rebecca was right about you all this time. I should have listened to her.”
Benjamin chuckled. “Well, that is not my problem. That was your mistake.”
“What exactly do you want from Ophelia? You do not love her? You just hate the fact that she and I are happy together and it kills you to admit that.”
Benjamin forced a smile. “Do you even wonder how she got to know about your dirty lifestyle?”
This seemed to get Christopher’s attention as he stared at him.
“What are you talking about?”
Benjamin laughed and walked closer to him. “I saw you,” he whispered. “Under the kissing bough.”
He was satisfied seeing the color drain from his face.
“I wanted to keep your dirty secret but, oops! I was able to start a conversation with some ‘lovely’ young ladies who were eager to hear gossip about the newest conquest of his lordship. But do not fear. I did not give away her identity. So if indeed you love her and you care about her reputation, you will leave her to me!”
Christopher gasped. The shock was evident in his eyes.
“You are a deranged man if you think that I am going to leave her to you. You do not even care about her. You care too much about winning her as a prize just to get back at me. What kind of sick love is that?”
He chuckled. “I do love her more than you’ll ever know. And I deserve her, not you. I will do whatever it takes to have her.” “What are you planning Benjamin,” Christopher said furiously. “Well, you just have to wait and find out, my Lord,” he said with a slight bow before walking his horse away.
* * *
Christopher Crampton, Viscount Barrington
Christopher watched as he mounted his horse and rode away. He could not get over the shock of everything he had just heard. He speculated that Benjamin was a boorish person at times but he never knew he could be this terrible.
To even think of ruining Ophelia’s reputation…what kind of a man would hurt another just to prove how deeply he loved them? Only a sick man would do that.
While he waited, still trying to get over the shock of things he had just heard, he had a feeling that someone was watching him.
He glanced towards the manor and there stood Elias looking at him from the slightly opened door. This time, he was not giving him a cold stare. It was more or less like beckoning to come to him.
Out of curiosity, he walked closer to the man who quickly looked at the floor as he approached.
He saw some scars around Elias’ neck and on his arm which made him wince when he scratched at them. He also saw a folded piece of paper in his hand.
“What happened to you there?” he asked.
“He did that to me,” replied the man, unable to meet his gaze. Christopher was shocked.
“Benjamin did that to you?” he asked.
The man nodded without looking at him. “He gets really angry and becomes terrifying.”
Christopher gasped as he remembered how he had heard a noise of something breaking the night he had following Benjamin home. He had been playing with fire all along.
“Why are you telling me this?”
Finally, Elias looked at him. “Because, you want to stop him and I want to help you.”
Quickly, he thrusted the folded paper in his hand into Christopher’s hand and went back in, shutting the door.
Christopher was more perplexed but he looked at the paper in his hand and unfolded it.
“Make sure to take the carriage in the midnight. Baron Nathaniel Lindemuth and his wife will be in the carriage. Do not leave any traces behind and I beg of you, make it clean.”
Christopher was confused. What could this mean? Elias has given him a tool to work with, and first of all, he would need to find out who these people were and find out what happened to them. If he was going to get rid of Benjamin, this might just be what he needed.
* * *
Miss Ophelia Campbell
She sat on a bench in Hyde Park, waiting for Emily. Her maid stood behind her. She and Emily were supposed to meet that afternoon in the park. It was a beautiful cold, yet sunny afternoon and Emily needed her to accompany her to the tailor that would be sewing Emily’s wedding gown.
She had a book in her hand which she was trying to read, but her mind was not focused on the page.
“Hello, there,” said a voice suddenly behind her. So startled was she that the book in her hand dropped. She turned around but her anger grew when she saw Lord Gibbs.
“Lord Gibbs! You scared me!” she said, placing a hand to her chest and wondering what he was doing there. She was suddenly no longer comfortable.
“You should be scared as it is rather strange for someone as beautiful as you to be sitting alone. And in the cold no less,” he said with a smile.
“I am waiting for Emily. She is supposed to be here,” she replied, trying to control her emotions as she could.
“Alright. Then I shall keep you company, for I do not want my fiancé to be sitting alone.”
She gave him a q
uick glance. “I am not alone. My maid is here with me. I am not your fiancé.”
“No?” he chuckled. “But you shall be. In the next three days, else, your family will suffer a major financial crisis.”
A Lady To Redeem A Rakish Lord (Historical Regency Romance) Page 26