by Sahara Kelly
Quickly backing up the stairs, she sighed.
She was alone. An odd thing, actually, since most of the time one or another of her gentlemen was around.
The sound of a carriage making its way up the drive attracted her attention, and she moved to a window to see who was there. Mindful of Evan’s recent experiences, she now made sure of the caller’s identity before opening the front door.
However, the travel-stained coach had clearly come quite some distance, and she saw, with pleasure, that it was Ione about to alight.
“Giles,” she shouted, hoping he could hear. “Ione has arrived.”
He heard and was at her side in moments, then hurrying forward to welcome his wife.
Jeremy came up from the kitchens, and Royce emerged, joining Gwyneth in the shared pleasure of greeting a woman who had become fast friends with all of them.
Gwyneth hugged her hard. “Ione. I am so glad you’re here. It is wonderful to see you again.”
“Thank you, dear Gwyneth. I feel the same.” Her bright eyes roamed over the others and she held out her arms. “I feel so welcome here. Come. Give me hugs please?”
“Not too many,” laughed Giles as he watched his wife enjoying her greetings.
“There are too few men,” Ione laughed back.
“The others are here, never worry,” Gwyneth smiled back. “But let us get you settled and rested after your journey.” She glanced at Giles. “Er…where are you staying?”
Giles surprised her. “We will be staying here.”
“But…I thought…the rule about another woman staying the night?”
“All will be explained, my dear.” Giles patted her shoulder. “Be patient. I believe there is much to discuss after dinner.”
“In that case, I’ll alert Evan.” She nodded and turned away, her mind in a whirl. How could Giles, of all people, break the rules set down by none other than Aphrodite Wolfbridge herself?
Harry came out of the parlour. “Is that Ione? Giles said she was arriving today.”
Gwyneth nodded. “Yes, she’s here. And Harry…she’s staying here, according to Giles.”
“But I thought…”
“So did I.” Gwyneth shook her head. “But I think Giles has something up his sleeve. He said to wait until after dinner. He’ll tell us then.” She glanced at the parlour. “So is Gabriel all right?”
Harry took a breath. “He is still in a bit of shock, I think.”
“His foot must be hurting him a lot today.”
“It’s not his foot, Gwyneth, it’s his heart.”
“What?” She blinked. “There’s something wrong with his heart?”
“Not exactly.” Harry gave her a gentle look. “You risked your life for him, love. He never—in his wildest dreams—ever believed anyone could love him enough to do that. And he feels unworthy.”
Gwyneth closed her eyes. “Oh, good lord.” She thought for a moment. “I must talk to him.”
“Yes, you should. If you can convince him you value him enough to die with him, perhaps he’ll come to think more of himself.”
“I’ll try.”
“Good for you. I knew you would.” Harry dropped a light kiss on her cheek and took off toward the kitchens.
“Tell Evan that Ione’s here?” She called after him, getting a wave and a nod in response.
The parlour was warm when she opened the door, and Gabriel’s smile even warmer. Darcy was taking full advantage, and had curled up on another ottoman, close enough for Gabriel to reach out and pet him if he was so inclined. Gwyneth’s arrival elicited little more than a raised head and a wag of the tail.
“There you are, my Lady. I am glad to see you.”
“And I you, Gabriel. Ione arrived just now. She’s gone upstairs but I’m sure she’ll be in to say hello soon.” She hurried to his side and knelt, leaning on the chair and looking at his foot. “Is the pain bad?”
“It’s getting easier every day. Burns are always hard to cope with.” He grimaced. “As I know only too well.”
“Oh Gabriel, love.” She leaned her head on his thigh. “You’ve suffered so much. I’m sorry this has added to your burdens.”
“It hasn’t. I only have one worry,” he said slowly. “That I am a burden to you.”
She jerked up her head and looked at him. “How can you say such a thing? You saved my life. You gave me that extra push out of the hall…”
“And you stayed with me. You risked everything to stay with me.” His china blue eyes filled with tears. “Why, Gwyneth? I’m not worth that kind of risk. You know where I came from, what I’ve been…nothing about my life deserves what you did.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but then thought better of it. Instead, she took one of his hands, rested it on his knee and laid her cheek against it. “You’re wrong. You, and all my gentlemen are worth that kind of risk. I value each and every one of you. You’ve all made me what I am. You give me strength, love, support and encouragement every day of my life. You cannot imagine what a difference you have all made to my very existence. You all share my bed and I share my body in return. But you’ve given me so much more than that. You’ve taught me how to love. And that was something I never thought I’d ever be able to do.”
She paused and rubbed her cheek against his skin. “Learning to love again, without the fear of being rejected or mistreated…it’s been an effort for me, Gabriel. But the rewards have been beyond anything I could imagine. And yes, I would risk my life for any of you. Because it’s the life you have given me. I could do no less.” She looked up at him. “Do you understand what I’m trying to say?”
A single tear coursed down over his cheek as he nodded. “Yes, my Lady. Yes…” His voice broke and Gwyneth rose from her knees, putting her arms around his neck and kissing away the moisture. “Enough, silly. I need you well. I need all my gentlemen. And soon.” She let her tongue slip between his lips, deepening their kiss.
Finally, she released him. “Do I make myself clear?”
“As glass,” he smiled, his cheeks filling with colour. “I won’t be dancing anytime soon, but there are probably a few other things I’ll probably be able to manage before too long…” His look was filled with the wickedness she loved to see.
“Right then. Now that Ione’s arrived, Giles has promised us some news. So you had better rest before dinner, because you absolutely must be there.”
She walked to the door. “I mean it, Gabriel. I love you all so very much. Never doubt that.”
His smile of joy was the only answer she needed.
Chapter Thirty-Four
“Evan, your meal was, as always, magnificent.” Giles touched a napkin to his lips and leaned back with a sigh. “I am replete.”
Evan grinned. “There is no better compliment than that.”
The others around the table echoed the sentiments, and even Darcy, tucked away by Royce’s foot, gave a celebratory woof, making them all laugh.
“Did you slip him some tidbits?” Gwyneth looked accusingly at Royce.
“Me?” His eyes widened. “How could you think such a thing?” He snickered. “Of course there might have been a couple of pieces of meat that slipped off my fork, but I’m sure Darcy was far too much of a gentleman to devour them.”
“I thought so,” Gwyneth frowned. “He’s getting plump.”
“I would too if I ate like this every day,” laughed Ione.
Gwyneth stood. “Let’s clear away and then retire to the parlour. Yes, there will be brandy, but I believe Giles has some news for us?” She shot him a hopeful glance.
He nodded and stood, helping Ione with her chair. “I do indeed. I’ll take Ione in and set up the brandy tray, unless anyone wants tea?”
Silence greeted his question.
He laughed. “I thought not.”
As everyone piled in to help, the matter of the dishes and what few leftovers there were, was efficiently dealt with, and all the current Wolfbridge residents, along with their two guests,
were soon settled in the parlour, with glasses of brandy within reach.
“Right then, Giles.” Gwyneth nodded at him. “What news have you to share with us?”
He looked around him, seeing faces he knew almost better than his own. And the room, one with which he was so familiar it was second nature to set the tray of brandy in a certain spot where the slightly shorter leg wouldn’t wobble.
Silly things to think of at this moment, but it helped him maintain his balance. This night would change so many things for all of them.
He only hoped it would be for the good.
Royce rose and gathered a sheaf of papers from the top of a sideboard. “Here. You’ll need these.” He glanced at Ione. “Thank you for bringing them.”
She smiled, but remained silent, sipping her brandy and turning her gaze to her husband.
Giles cleared his throat. “Well, as you all know, the ownership of Wolfbridge has been challenged of late. Even though that particular threat has been—er—eliminated, Royce and I agreed that we should attempt to follow up on the matters that have been raised during the last few months.”
Harry frowned. “Didn’t we discover that there were no heirs to the property? We had a pretty good idea of the people involved…the Bishop and the illegitimate child, and so on?”
“We did,” Royce answered. “But once Giles got the bit between his teeth, he gained access to many more records than we had.”
“Indeed I did,” Giles concurred. “And we traced the same families, starting with Lord Nicholas Pinebridge and his illegitimate child by Wilhelmina Markeley. We followed that through the various branches of Markeleys, and the consequent entails, along with the ownership of Pinebridge and its ultimate split into Fivetrees and Wolfbridge. We can’t forget that problematic Mortmain either.”
“So we weren’t too far off in our assumptions, then?” Gwyneth tilted her head to one side as she asked the question.
“No indeed, they were right on the mark. Your discoveries sliced through hours of unnecessary research. We were able to take what you had learned and follow a variety of different paths. It led us to an interesting place.”
“Oh?” Jeremy leaned forward. “Come on then, Giles, don’t keep us waiting.”
“Very well.” He picked up a piece of paper. “A question that I understand you all asked at one time or another, was about whether this property, Pinebridge, actually has an heir.” He paused and looked around at the waiting faces. “I can now confirm that yes, there is an heir to Pinebridge. Nicholas Markeley had no children, as you know. However, the way such things work is to find the next closest surviving male relative. There was only one.”
“Giles, if you don’t tell us right now, I swear…” Evan glared at him in mock fury.
“Michael Markeley’s wife had a brother who had several children. One of them is still alive.” He looked across the room at one of the occupants. “Michael Markeley was married to Letitia Parr.”
He emphasised the last name and slowly heads swivelled to look at Gabriel, whose mouth fell open. “What?”
“Yes, Gabriel. You are the last remaining male Parr, a direct descendent of the Parr family. Letitia Parr, Michael Markeley’s wife.” He took a breath. “Therefore, I am pleased to inform you that you now own not only Fivetrees, but Wolfbridge as well.”
“Good God.” Gwyneth slumped in her chair, her eyes wide. “We thought it was Parn or Purr or something, if I remember correctly. We never imagined it was a Parr. I’m…stunned.”
Which pretty much summed up everyone else’s response, too.
“I dd-d-d-don’t want this…” Gabriel stuttered. “No, no, it can’t be me. It can’t be.” He looked around, his eyes so wide that the whites all around the blue irises showed vividly. “I’m no Lord…”
“It’s all right, Gabriel, please relax. We have a solution.” Royce’s voice was unusually gentle. “We wouldn’t drop this on you if we hadn’t worked things out first.”
Still pale, Gabriel reached for Gwyneth’s hand as she sat next to him on the couch.
“If they say it’s all right, Gabriel, it will be.” She spoke softly and reassuringly and squeezed his fingers. “Let’s hear the rest.”
Giles nodded. “She’s right. All you’re inheriting is the land, Gabriel. The title comes through the Wolfbridge line, not the Parr line. So you can take a breath…” He looked at Royce. “You’d better carry on from here.”
Royce cleared his throat. “All right. Well, the other issue that may well prove to be a threat to our home is the matter of the entail going to women.”
Gwyneth frowned. “Wait. I thought that Aphrodite’s wishes were solidly backed and quite legal?”
“They were when she made them, Gwyneth, yes.” Royce said steadily. “The problem is that we’re now several generations on from that time. These days, as Giles pointed out, many more estates are being inherited by women, to the distress of the men who expected to run them.” He held up his hand to forestall what was obviously about to be an outraged shriek. “We cannot do anything about this, love. I swear. We looked into it, but the threat is real. What worked for Aphrodite will most likely not remain in place today if challenged by an experienced lawyer. So rather than take that risk, we came up with a plan of our own.”
Gwyneth gulped, still frowning. “And that is?”
“You must marry.”
The silence was profound.
“Royce,” she finally managed, after her brain stopped whirling. “I do not want to marry. I’m happy the way things are. Marriage was never part of my life here at Wolfbridge.” This time Gabriel squeezed her hand for reassurance.
Giles saw the panic rising in her eyes. “We know, dear child. We know. So we have made a plan. You will marry a nobleman with a distinguished title, thus ensuring the legality of any disposition you care to make for the future of Wolfbridge. It will be done in his name.”
“But…” She choked a little, fear and anger warring on her face. “How can I do that? I don’t know anyone like that.” Her expression changed to one of grave suspicion. “Who have you chosen for me?”
Giles looked at Royce.
Royce looked at Gwyneth. “Actually, that would be me.”
Once again silence fell, broken in a few moments by Jeremy, who clutched his heart. “All right. You need to stop doing this. I’ve been shot. I’m a weak man. I might just die of heart failure with all this insanity breaking loose.”
Harry shook his head, trying not to grin. “I agree, Jeremy, but by God your faces are worth their weight in gold right at this moment.”
“How can you laugh?” Gwyneth whirled around to him. “Is it a good idea for me to wed Royce? What about the rest of you? It’s not fair…” She turned on Giles. “You of all people, Giles, you should understand. How can you ask this of me?”
“I should add,” said Royce, ignoring her outburst. “That even though I renounced my title some years ago, before the war, I am still, legally, Royce Hadley, Earl of St. Arvans. There are no others in the family to claim it.”
“Oh.” Evan’s soft exclamation rang as clear as a bell across the silence that had fallen in the parlour.
“So now we’ve an Earl and a brand new member of the Landed Gentry in our presence. I’m not sure I can stand much more,” said Harry, shaking his head in an attempt to collect his wits.
“I…” Gwyneth blinked, speechless.
“There’s more, so take a breath. A deep one.” Royce seemed to be enjoying himself now.
Giles let his hand rest on Ione’s shoulder. This next revelation would be interesting.
“I do realise, no matter what you might be thinking at this moment, that I have no more right to marry our Lady than any of you. Less, in fact, since I’ve known her for a shorter time. However, while in town, I visited an old friend of the family. A Bishop. And I persuaded him to provide me with a marriage licence, which I happen to have here.” He pulled a document from the pile on the table.
Cl
earing his throat, he picked it up and read it. “It approves the marriage of Gwyneth, Dowager Duchess of Kilham, Lady of Wolfbridge, to Royce Evan Gabriel Harold Jeremy Hadley, Earl of St. Arvans, Baron Westlake and Viscount Meadwick.” He paused then grinned. “The names after mine are alphabetical, that’s all.”
Giles bit his lip at the varying expressions on the faces of those in the room. Finally, he took pity on them. “Gwyneth cannot marry all of you, obviously. Not in the official sense of the word. But unofficially? If you are willing, this document will allow you all to be the husbands of the Lady of Wolfbridge.”
*~~*~~*
Gwyneth’s head whirled, and she closed her eyes, gripping the arm of the sofa, lest she fall off it in a faint.
Five husbands? Good lord, she’d never imagined such a thing. But wasn’t that an accurate description of her current situation? Would anything change?
She opened her eyes and looked at the others to find them all looking at her. She swallowed roughly. “I…” she began. “Um…I don’t quite know what to say…”
Gabriel released the hand he was holding, and she turned to him, seeing a smile dawn on his face. “I think it is a marvellous idea. It knits our family tighter than ever. I can’t say they are legal ties, because of course they’re not, and that means that if—at any time—anyone should wish to leave, they can. Except Royce, of course. But it also brings us as close as we can be. I say yea.”
“He’s right.” Jeremy looked at her. “I don’t want to be anywhere else but at your side for the rest of my life. Wolfbridge is my home. I would be very proud to be one of your husbands.”
“They’ve said what I was going to say,” added Evan. “I can think of nothing more wonderful than to be assured that this is truly my home forever. And truly I already feel like your husband, Gwyneth. To be one in truth—well, that is the most delightful thing I can imagine.”
“Harry?” Royce turned to him.
“It’s a damned clever scheme,” he admitted with a grin at both Giles and Royce. “I find myself very glad that we fought on the same side.”
