Extraordinary Tales of Regency Love: A Clean & Sweet Regency Historical Romance Collection
Page 36
The Duke of Cooksey nodded, smiling. “That will be fine. But I do suppose we will not be able to explore the outside of Lockwood Estate.”
“Not today, my lord,” the Duke of Rabney replied. “But we will return another day.”
“I am quite sure.”
Light pellets of water were sprinkling all around them. The ladies dashed to the carriage, though they would not have gotten very wet had they not run. The driver was standing by the door of the carriage and opened it before the women got there. He held out his hand, which each of them took and vaulted themselves into the carriage. Lady Christian was behind them, looking from the carriage to the Duke of Lox and back again.
Emma could tell by the look on her face that she wanted the Duke of Lox to help her up into the carriage, not the driver. But when the Duke of Rabney realized what she was doing, he put one hand on her shoulder and pushed her gently toward the carriage. “Go on, Lady Christian. You should not wait until the rain gets harsher.”
“I do not…”
“Go on, Lady Christian,” the Duke of Rabney said firmly. Lady Christian’s eyes widened slightly and she hurried to the carriage to be helped up by the driver.
When she got in the carriage, she sat on the opposite side of the ladies. Emma waited to see what the Duke of Rabney would have to say about that. She waited with anticipation, feeling a bit childish for taking delight in the man’s scolding of his cousin. He was not hesitant to tell her what he wanted her to do. He could not make her leave but he would make her behave.
The Duke of Rabney looked in through the window of the carriage as the Duke of Cooksey prepared to get in. He frowned at his cousin. “Lady Christian, you must sit on the side with the ladies. It is not proper for you to be sitting with me and the Duke of Lox.”
“But does the Duke of Cooksey not wish to sit with his daughter?”
The brashness of the question would have surprised Emma if she had not known Lady Christian was raised in New York. She had picked up the American ways and had never learned anything about her British roots.
Without waiting for the Duke of Rabney to respond to the question, the Duke of Cooksey, who was twice the age of all his companions, held out his hand to Lady Christian.
“If you please, Lady Christian. It has been a pleasure walking and talking with you today. But it is most inappropriate for you to sit on this side of the carriage. I understand you have spent most of your life in New York. I would be pleased if you would, at some time, talk to me about what it is like there, as I have never been.”
“I would be delighted, your grace,” Lady Christian answered, smiling wide and taking the duke’s hand. She transferred herself to the other side of the carriage and plopped down in between Camilla and Emma, who looked distraught that she had done so.
The Duke of Cooksey looked a bit disappointed but sat on the other side of the carriage and waited for the other two men to get inside.
They waited in silence while the driver roped the Duke of Cooksey’s horse to the back of the carriage. When he climbed into the driver’s seat and the carriage moved, Lady Christian was the first one to speak, which did not surprise any of them.
“I am impressed that you found such a nice home, Bru… my lord,” she said, once again stopping herself from calling her cousin by his pet name. Her hesitation confirmed the Duke of Lox’s thought that she knew the moniker annoyed the Duke of Rabney and that’s why she used it. “There are many mansions in New York.” She turned her eyes to the Duke of Cooksey, addressing him. “But there are none that are quite so magnificent as the ones here in England.”
“Have you visited here often?” the Duke of Cooksey asked.
“I have.” Lady Christian nodded. “As you know, my family is here…” she lifted one hand to indicate the Duke of Rabney. “And there is always one occasion or another to attend. My father has made it clear that I am not to marry an American man.”
“May I ask why he took you to America if he did not desire you to marry a man there?” Emma asked curiously. She was not highly interested in the answer but felt the need to contribute something to the conversation. If the Duke of Lox decided to court Lady Christian and the Duke of Rabney courted Camilla, she would be stuck with the woman’s presence simply because the two dukes were rarely apart.
She had a feeling they would live together for as long as they could. They had traveled together for years, apparently, and were more like brothers than friends. She had no plans to stop seeing her cousin, whether she was confronted with the presence of Lady Christian or not.
Lady Christian was quick to answer Emma’s question, though she continued looking at the dukes sitting across from her as she spoke. “Oh, America is quite beautiful. The lands there and the people are simply unique. I have seen waterfalls the likes of which you would only expect beyond the Gates of Heaven. He is particularly taken with the American people.”
“Then why does he not wish for you to marry an American man?” Camilla asked.
Lady Christian turned a smile to Camilla, which she had not done for Emma. “He knows that I have other prospects here in England. He would not want me to marry a man in America when there is one in England for me to marry.”
Emma knew in her heart that Lady Christian was talking about the Duke of Lox. It made her feel sick to her stomach but for the life of her she could not figure out why it would bother her in the least. Although the Duke of Lox was handsome, smart, and wealthy, he was also sneaky, disloyal, and manipulative. That was not the kind of man she wished to marry.
Emma glanced at him as Lady Christian responded to Camilla’s question with a story of a man in America who had asked for her hand but she had turned him down. He had no title, as they did not follow such customs in America. As the woman spoke, Emma grew more and more frustrated. She did not understand her discontent. The Duke of Lox was no more hers to be jealous of than the Duke of Rabney.
By the time the carriage pulled up in front of Cooksey Castle, the rain had lightened once more to a drizzle. They stopped and the driver climbed down, the umbrella he’d used to shield himself clutched in one hand.
“My lord! My lord!”
The group in the carriage turned to see the Duchess of Cooksey dashing toward them, completely ignoring the raindrops in her distress.
Chapter 15
The Duke of Cooksey stepped quickly out of the carriage and met his wife, taking the umbrella from the driver and holding it over her head. She shook her head, waving the umbrella away. “My lord, we must get Lady Wentworth to her home.”
Hearing her name, Emma leaned forward, her heart racing. “What is it, your grace? What has happened?” Her first thought was that her father had passed on. Just the thought brought immediate tears to her eyes. The Duchess of Cooksey went to the open door of the carriage. “Your father has taken a turn for the worse, my dear. You must hurry home to see him. It is unclear how much longer he will be with us.”
Chills covered Emma’s body. The tears that had come to her eyes slid down her cheeks and she covered her mouth with her hands to keep from crying out. Camilla stood up and glared at Lady Christian until she moved to the edge of the bench seat. She sat with Emma, wrapping her arms around her cousin’s shoulders.
The Duke of Cooksey approached the door of the carriage and gently moved his wife to the side. He closed the door and looked through the window at the Duke of Rabney. “Please see to it that Lady Wentworth gets to her home quickly. I will follow along in another carriage with the duchess.”
“Yes, your grace. We will see to it.” The Duke of Rabney nodded, calling out to the driver to take them at once to the Corning mansion.
The driver was in his seat in moments and the carriage began to roll back down the hill to the main road.
Emma’s pain was palpable and could be seen on her face. Thoughts of her father when he was younger, stronger passed through her mind. She tried not to sob the entire way but knew she was going to anyway. Camilla’s arms around her were comfortin
g. Her cousin did not care that she was wetting her sleeves with her tears.
“Shhh, we will get there in time, my dear,” she murmured in Emma’s ear. “We will get there in time.”
She patted Emma’s hair, bouncing with her as the carriage moved too quickly for its wheels down the rocky road. At one point, she looked up, annoyed because the carriage rocked sharply and sent Lady Christian spilling onto Camilla’s back.
“Oh, I do apologize, Lady Fielding,” Lady Christian said, pushing herself upright and glancing at the two women with sympathy on her face. The look softened Camilla’s heart. When Emma got herself under a modicum of control, she pushed herself from Camilla’s arms and pulled in a deep breath. She glanced at Lady Christian and saw the sympathetic look, as well.
She did not have time to think or worry about the woman right then. She wanted to get to her father. She wanted to be home as fast as possible and could only pray the carriage would not lose a wheel because of their speed or that a horse would not stumble.
“I did not know your father was ailing, Lady Wentworth,” Lady Christian said. “I do not wish to intrude on your family. When we reach your home, I will have his grace take me home.”
Emma wondered which duke she was talking about. The thought was fleeting as the thought of her father passing before she was able to see him rolled through her mind. She struggled against the tears, swallowing them.
“Thank you, Lady Christian,” she replied in a weak, shaky voice. “But you are more than welcome to come to Corning Mansion and get some refreshments before your journey home. I know you must be tired after traveling all this way to come to England for the season.”
“I have been in England for a few days, Lady Wentworth. But if you do not mind, I will come in and rest a bit before having his grace take me home.”
Emma said nothing more as they rode to Corning Mansion. She was dreading what she would see when she got there. She did not hear when the Duke of Lox and the Duke of Rabney chatted quietly about the situation. They explained in soft voices to Lady Christian that the Duke of Corning had taken ill a few years back and could not seem to recover. The disease he was succumbing to had weakened his heart and any strain rendered him nearly useless.
When she saw Corning Mansion approaching quickly, Emma sat forward in her seat, straining her eyes to look at the house. There was only one extra carriage there and she knew it belonged to the doctor who was caring for her father.
Her heart pounded hard in her chest. “Papa…” she whispered, allowing new tears to slide down her face.
***
The Duke of Lox watched Emma with a heavy heart. He wanted to console her. He wanted to take her in his arms the way Camilla had done and ease her pain. He sat stiffly on the other side of the carriage, watching the woman’s agony, feeling completely helpless.
He no longer cared that Lady Christian was there. He was not annoyed by her presence when he was not thinking about her. She was no longer talking incessantly. She was watching Camilla and Emma with sad eyes. Her compassion for Emma’s pain made him feel less irritated with her.
Even though she considered Emma to be her rival, her heart was soft for the woman’s distress. That brought her up in his eyes, though not high enough to consider her for a potential wife. He knew who he wanted to marry. It was not Lady Christian years ago and it was not Lady Christian now. It would never be her.
He listened to the Duke of Rabney speaking quietly to Lady Christian. He was telling her what they would do as soon as they got to Corning Mansion. He was instructing her that the Duke of Lox would escort Camilla and Emma into the house while he and Lady Christian would wait in the parlor, where they would surely be offered pastries and tea.
Lady Christian said nothing, which surprised the Duke of Lox. He would have expected the brash woman to have quite a bit to say, under any circumstances. It was the first time he had ever seen her speechless. She looked taken aback by the situation as if she had never faced a dilemma of great magnitude before.
The Duke of Lox remembered how he had felt when his father had died, leaving him the dukedom to care for. He had felt a great deal of responsibility from the moment he received the title. He had not been particularly close to his father but did not say the same for his mother, who had always been an advocate and friend. Thinking about her whilst Emma was weeping for her father made him miss his mother more than anything.
He looked at the Duke of Rabney, who looked back at him. “I must go see my mother,” he murmured. His heart ached for Emma. Even in her pain and grief, she was still beautiful. Her red eyes, rapidly swelling, made his chest tight with sorrow.
The Duke of Rabney, who did not have either of his parents still alive, nodded at him. “I understand, Baldwin. We will plan a trip soon.”
The Duke of Lox wanted to tell his friend he was not obligated to come but it was appreciated. But right then, he did not feel it appropriate to make it about himself. He nodded and fell silent. Corning Mansion was close and when they arrived, he feared what Emma’s reaction would be.
The group in the carriage were quiet as the carriage rocked back and forth, racing down the rocky road with haste.
He looked through the window at the darkening sky. It was darker than it would have been if the sky was not blanketed with heavy clouds of grey. Typically, he enjoyed rainstorms. He found them comforting. But all he could think was that the rain reminded him of Emma’s tears. God was crying for the Duke of Corning.
The carriage pulled up in front of the mansion and he was the first one to stand, opening the door and jumping down before the driver had a chance to. The carriage had barely come to a stop when his feet hit the ground.
He lifted his hand to Emma and she took it without hesitation, climbing out of the carriage rapidly. The rest of the group followed, with the Duke of Rabney getting out last. He saw the Duke of Rabney take Lady Christian’s elbow and direct her up the stairs. He was grateful. He did not want the woman’s attention. He wanted to concentrate on doing what he could to help Emma.
He followed the women as they raced up the steps to the front door and burst through. Emma was calling for her father. As soon as he stepped into the mansion, he stood at the door, watching the Duke of Rabney take Lady Christian directly to the parlor. They disappeared on the other side of the door.
The Corning housekeeper, Gertrude, came quickly from a back room, looking at Emma with fear in her eyes.
“Lady Wentworth,” she said urgently. “Come with me, Miss. Your father wishes to speak to you.”
Emma nodded and followed the woman toward the back room where her father was. The Duke of Lox stayed back, not wanting to intrude. He found himself standing next to Camilla, both of them looking helplessly after the young woman as she dashed toward the back of the house.
He looked down at Camilla. “Lady Fielding, I feel as though my heart is breaking.”
Camilla looked up at him, tears in her eyes. “I have been fearing this day since his grace became ill, my lord,” she replied. “I do not know what to do to help my cousin. My uncle is such a good man. He was a very playful father. When Emma and I were young, he would take us to the pond and to town and he would buy beautiful dresses for us both, even though he did not need to.”
“I do not wish to intrude on the family’s private business,” he said quietly as he walked toward the parlor to join the Duke of Rabney. “But I get the feeling they are failing financially. Is this true?”
“I do not know about their private business, my lord,” Camilla responded, following him. “But I do know that Emma must be married soon. She has been told to marry by the end of the season or she may be subject to…” Camilla stopped talking. She did not know Emma’s fate. She should not speak of such things to the Duke of Lox.
The Duke of Lox did not need any further prompting. It was his guess that if Emma was unable to find a suitable husband by the time her father passed on, she may be subject to an arranged marriage of convenience.
But how would he convince her of that when she was so determined to think badly of him?
Chapter 16
Emma raced back to the back room and pushed Gertrude to the side to enter the room. Her step-mother was standing next to the bed, looking down at the Duke of Corning with fear in her eyes. When she looked up at Emma, she shook her head.
“Do not fear, Emma,” she said quietly. “He is still with us.”
Emma went directly to the bed and knelt next to it, placing one hand on her father’s arm. “Papa,” she murmured. “Papa.”
The Duke of Corning turned his eyes to his daughter slowly. She tried to smile at him but it was shaky and weak. “My daughter,” the Duke of Corning breathed. “I am happy to see you.”