One Night with a Duke

by Sandra Masters

  “I want to believe you hear everything I say, but you are not yet ready to utter words coherently, dear heart.” There was a tease of desperation in her voice. “I’m weary. Let me tell you some good news.” Her hand rested with gentle care on her stomach where her baby grew moment by moment. “Raven, we are to have a child. I will be strong for the babe’s sake. I know you would want that. So, if you hear me, will you awaken?” she asked with some pretense at humor.

  “After the intimacy we shared, I know no other could ever take your place,” she said softly. “Every other man looks like a disjointed shadow when compared to you.”

  It was then she thought about the Duchess Liana, who loved Raven as much as she.

  “I had no right to be angry over the love that Liana shared with you. I know what I endure now, so I understand the depth of your mourning, for you lost everything.”

  Fate was not kind. It humbled her to understand the power of Raven’s love for his duchess, as well as the power of her now-admitted love for him. He suffered a great loss for a long time.

  “I pray you can hear me. I will continue to talk. It makes the time go faster. If you can hear me, you can open your eyes and blink,” Samanatha coaxed.

  She fell to her knees and steepled her hands in prayer. “Please do not let him die. Give us, my child and I, your tender mercies. He is a good man. Give him the strength to endure the pain, and help him to heal. I beseech you with utmost humility. Our baby needs his protection. Be merciful to this wretched sinner. I am a changed woman worthy of redemption.”

  Then she added, “Mama, guard Raven and our babe. I know you’ve watched over me all these years, but I am desperate for your help. Do angels pray, Mama? If so, please seek intercession for him.” She thought she heard an angel cry. Was this an omen from her mama? Oh, No, did the angel cry because he passed? It would be a world without color if he were no longer in it.

  Her strength and courage on the decline, she rose from her knees, sat in the chair by his bed with the door still ajar and rested her head but a moment. She heard a moan and awakened and saw that his forehead was wet with perspiration again. His body shivered from the fever.

  “Did you just try to say something?” She bathed his face yet again and changed his coverlet, and feared to move him at all. “This dry cover will absorb the moisture from your body. Later I will ask a manservant to change your nightshirt. It would not be proper for me to do so here.” What nonsensical propriety after all their intimacies.

  The room took on a somber appearance with him lying so still. “I will hum a song to you so you might hear my voice. Since you are asleep, maybe I will accompany you. Do you dream? Am I in yours?” And so she did for a few hours in total exhaustion.

  Samantha awoke and reached for his hand, and noticed it was cold. “Raven, I will rub your hands to stimulate their warmth. If you can feel my touch, let me know. I’ll do one and then the other.”

  She continued her solo conversation, “You do not appear to be in pain. That’s a good sign. I thought of the times you kissed the palm of my hand and it seared me. Now I’m holding yours. Shall I kiss the palm? Maybe it will bring you warmth. Oh, when will you speak to me? Don’t say I’m impatient. The surgeon visited and has given you more laudanum, but when will you awaken?” She took his lifeless hand and kissed it in sweet gentleness.

  Hours passed and soon sunlight streamed through the window. “If you can hear me, come back. Don’t leave me, my love.” Her emotions were raw with worry and fear. The not knowing that he would survive unhinged her. She longed to feel his arms around her. Samantha would be happy to kneel at his feet and beg his forgiveness if only he would survive. Thinking back to that eventful night in the boathouse, he fell to his knees for her. It must have been difficult for such a proud, aloof man to humble himself at her feet. And what did she do? She mocked him in anger. “Forgive me, Raven.”

  She took a deep breath and spoke in a teary voice, “I need you to live so together we can pursue your dreams for England. You and I can address the social upheaval, dreadful squalor, industrial accidents, and diseases. Are you surprised I am aware now of the tremendous responsibility you have undertaken?” She echoed a weak laugh, “I now understand why you fought so hard. It has been quite an education.”

  Her mouth was parched, and all the speech made her tongue dry. Not even aware of her actions, her fingers rearranged the coverlet once again. “You had great vision, and the challenge is whether England will use her power for good or evil. I also understand that sometimes compromise is a fight between the two. I see everything so clearly now. Let me help you, but to do that, you have to live. We have so much to accomplish together.” Tears trickled from her eyes to her cheeks.

  The vigil continued throughout the day with Samantha tending him.

  Lady Minerva entered the room, “Dear girl, are you all right?”

  “Oh, Aunt Min, he hasn’t awakened. I’ve told him the same things over and over. My voice is raspy.”

  Lady Minerva encouraged Samantha to change her clothes and perform her ablutions.

  “I will call you if he wakes up. Now hurry.”

  About to leave the room, her aunt said, “We never know how strong we are until to be strong is the one choice we have. I’m proud of you, Samantha.”

  Hearing voices in the drawing room, Samantha peeked in. Raven’s relatives had returned, and waited with patience. She entered and gave the latest summary of his condition. Mirabella introduced her to Cedric, the heir presumptive, who was visibly upset. Samantha offered to take them to the sick room. They walked in silence together. All she could think was that Raven was dying. There was no sound from the sick room. At the sight of his brother lying so silent, Cedric exhaled. “Forgive me, my lady, I was not prepared to see my strong and disciplined brother so weakened. I don’t want to be heir this way for I love him.”

  Cedric wiped a tear from his eye. She went to him, and said in a compassionate voice, “We shall make him well, my lord. You will see. Isn’t that so, Mirabella?”

  “You and your family have been most kind.” He kissed her hand. “I am privileged to meet you. Let me know if his condition changes.” He then added, “I want to chide him for this scare to us,” and left the room shaken.

  Samantha gave the family updates on Raven’s condition each time the surgeon visited. The pressman attempted to question him all four times that day, but the doctor simply said there was no further news. The papers detailed the assassination attempt on the duke on the first page. Pressmen questioned visitors as they entered and left, but little information ensued.

  Winston and Lord Cedric Worthington gave guarded statements about the duke’s health and would not answer any other questions.

  Winston’s majordomo, Nigel, was kept busy with many guests. The doorbell clanged. Messengers delivered letters to the house.

  Soon it was evening again, and Raven still had not fully awakened, drugged with lesser amounts of laudanum. I am a changed woman—still strong, but my head is out of the clouds. Were they destined to be star-crossed lovers?

  “You cannot leave us. I promise I will never be rude to you again. I’ll behave. I’ll be subservient. It will be difficult, but I can do this. Come back to us. Please forgive me.”

  “I shall be sure to remind you of the subservient part.”

  She heard his voice. A miracle had happened!

  His eyes opened, and he looked at her as if for the first time. “I want you to be the woman with whom I fell in love.” His voice was hoarse and his breath was sparse. “Don’t ever change, Samantha. I like a challenge,” he whispered, his voice so weak, but his words were clear. “I am up to the task.” Raven reached for her hand, and she grasped it.

  “Oh, my love, you’re conscious at last.” Her heart leaped with happiness, and she shed sobs of pure, unbridled joy.

  “I’m in pain. What happened? Why does the top part of me hurt? Is it my heart? My shoulder?” he asked.

  She jumped to
her feet, retrieved the water glass, measured the laudanum with a lesser dose as the doctor instructed, and bent over him to help him sip the medicine. “I will answer all your questions, but for now drink all of this. It will ease your pain. Then I have to summon the surgeon.”

  He gazed around the room. “Where am I?” he asked again.

  “Do not strain your voice, love. You are in Winston House in the guest bedroom downstairs.”

  “Did I hear you say you are with child?” His voice was a ragged, hoarse whisper.

  “Yes, dearest, we are to have a babe. You did hear me. How glorious. Does the news cheer you?” Samantha asked, not sure of what he might answer. She waited for his answer. Was it possible the news would distress him? He would want to marry her for the child’s sake, but was that a reason for a lifetime commitment? Would he hate her? After all, she rejected him. Would he now think she leg-shackled him into marriage because of the babe?

  “A babe? Are you sure? It hurts when I talk, but I must know. Have you forgiven me?”

  “Oh my Raven, I’ve been so foolish. It is you who should forgive me. Our baby needs us. Please rest and don’t speak anymore. I am by your side and will inform you of everything. In the meantime, preserve your strength. Rest,” she whispered, and she leaned over to kiss his lips.

  He looked so wonderful with his stubble. Just to hear him talk and have him reach out to her was salve to her tormented soul.

  Chapter Fifty

  Samantha rushed outside the room and awakened a servant. “Hurry, fetch the doctor. The duke has awakened.” She climbed the steps and ran into her aunt’s room, “Aunt Min, he awoke. He spoke to me. I must change now. I know he will live. Come quick.”

  “Yes, of course. We must still take precaution and not tax his limited strength. Change. Have your hair cleaned and combed. Now that the duke can see you, you want to present yourself at your best. Cecily will bring you toast and tea.” She propelled Samantha along the corridor and they went downstairs and entered Raven’s sick room. Samantha covered him with the covers.

  “There will be many visitors today,” her aunt said. “If we are to spare him from unnecessary speech, we will have to be the hostesses. Now, hurry along. Go back upstairs and make yourself presentable.” She added, “Have a message sent to his family now. Good news, for a change, will be appreciated, Samantha.”

  “I will not leave his side, Aunt Min.” She gazed at her love fast asleep.

  In an annoyed tone, Lady Minerva said, “Has it occurred to you that perhaps his family might have things to say to him? They are just as apprehensive as you and with much more reason. We can limit his speaking, but they have their concerns, too. They seem like quite a nice lot, you know.”

  “Yes, Aunt Min, but I’m so afraid for him.”

  “I am afraid for you. We all are fearful. Keep your wits about you, Samantha. You are not yet his wife, nor are you betrothed. Both of you have suffered tragedies. Perhaps it’s time to gain measures of happiness. Don’t tempt the fates. Thank God for his recovery and never forget we are all in His hands.”

  “But the stars have foretold…”

  “It’s not the stars who have spared him so far. Don’t ever forget God who created them and the heavens,” said Lady Minerva.

  “Yes, Aunt Min,” she answered like a dutiful niece. “I will be back in a moment.” She was exhausted beyond all thought. He lived!

  Samantha remained vigilant by his bedside. Winston House soon became a beehive of activity. Raven’s movement awakened her. He awoke again with a need to speak. Samantha explained all that had happened. “Your family is here in London, and they are anxious to see you. They have been here for two days.”

  Still, he held her hand, though weak, and in short gasps at first, he said, “I had this strange dream. I walked on an unfamiliar road toward a bright light that pulled at me. I didn’t want to go. I didn’t want to follow.” He inhaled a deep breath to further his conversation. “But then your voice called to me and begged me to come back. I stopped and I listened.” He paused to catch his breath, “Did you say you were with child?”

  “Yes, Raven.” She whispered her reply.

  He paused, and wet his lips. “Could I have more water?”

  Samantha jumped from her chair and poured him a small glass from the bedside pitcher.

  “I turned around and came back,” he said.

  “Yes, you must get better so we can take proper care of our child. We need you, my love.”

  He searched her eyes and asked incredulous, “You do love me?” A smile crossed his unshaven face.

  “Oh, yes. I do love you.”

  “I feel strange, Samantha as if my mind is separate from my body.”

  She took his hand and held it. “You were in critical condition and unconscious. The surgeon gave you strong doses of laudanum for you to rest peacefully. That was two days ago.”

  “How far along are you with our child?” As if to relieve the pain, he placed a hand on his upper chest. “I still have a headache, and my shoulder hurts.”

  How wonderful it sounded to her. Our child. She wiped his brow again. “I missed my courses two months now. I guess it is about eight weeks.”

  “Ah, the wages of sin have produced consequences, have they not?” His voice was still raspy and low as he sucked in the air.

  “I will remind you of that when our child is born.” She smiled a happy grin for the first time. “You are a virile man, Raven. One night with you produced great consequences,” and she winked as she saw him ponder the thought.

  “Virile, you say. You’re deliberate in your flattery. That’s good.” He tightened his grip on her hand and lapsed into a deep sleep.

  Hours passed, and Raven slumbered in peace. He awakened in the morning and gazed at Samantha asleep in her chair by his side. His movements awakened her and she rose to give him more laudanum.

  “No. No more. Not yet. There is much to say, and my pain is not to the point of agony. Help me sit up, so I can look at you and don’t have to raise my voice.”

  Samantha went to him, extended her arms, and he was able to sit up, while she placed pillows behind him. Then she sat on the edge of the bed, and he reached for her hand. “I want to know we agree that you will marry me, and there will be no more of this nonsense about the duchess.”

  “Yes, I will marry you. I do understand more about the great loss you suffered, but I also want to believe that you now have a great love for me as I have for you.” Samantha whispered to him with a soft smile, “I know it was the power of our love for each other that brought you back. Now, please rest. The doctor prescribed a light broth, and I will ask the servant to bring you a tray. I will feed you. Dr. Clemons will be back again today, and you can speak to him if you wish. Whatever you will need to get better will be provided, Raven.”

  “The power of love, you say? Perhaps you are right. When I heard your voice, I knew I had to come back, no matter what. I heard you sing to me. You did talk a lot, Samantha. I heard all you said, but it was like my body was in a cocoon desperate to seek a way out. So I willed it.” He coughed a bit. The expression on his face winced from the wound. “Perhaps I cheated the fates this time. All I know is that my eyes are glad to see you and I want much to live for you and our child.” He groaned. “My shoulder hurts, but the head doesn’t ache as much, and I will need to talk to your brother. I must explain all of this to him lest he thinks me a dishonorable man.” His blue-gray eyes lost their intensity, but his gaze was one of love meant only for her.

  “Hush, please rest. You faced death, but I’m here, and will not leave your side. Soon you will be able to talk to your family. They are most concerned and anxious to see you. Doctor Clemons has requested you rest further.” Samantha leaned toward her patient and kissed his forehead with tenderness.

  Raven dozed again, but this time, his breath was easy.

  “Thank you, God,” she whispered, “for answered prayers. Thank you, too, Mama.”

  Raven�
�s recovery progressed well, and he decided his imposition on the Winston hospitality was long enough. Randall, his personal majordomo, had been summoned to attend to details he wanted to employ.

  Randall received the summons, his elation obvious. He noted his new instructions and left as Doctor Clemons entered the room.

  “I wish to go to my London residence,” said the duke with an assured voice. “I have given instructions to Randall.”

  “I suppose if I told you not to, you would go anyway, Your Grace,” said Doctor Clemons. “I will allow it if I can accompany you there, so if there are any complications from the rutted carriage roads, at least I will be available.”

  “So be it. You are correct, sir. However, I would like to speak to Winston alone. Can you seek him?” Raven, more like himself, but weak, was still in complete control of his destiny. He would rest better once he knew he had secured protection for Samantha and their child. So he was to have a child…again. His delight was lessened by the remembrance of the breech birth of Liana. He’d make sure that Samantha would not suffer the same fate. He wasn’t sure how, but his peace of mind would be tested until Samantha delivered the babe safely. Then he smiled to himself. All in all, it wasn’t too bad. He’d been shot. He was to be a father. He would marry the woman he now wanted above all. Together they would further his dynasty, but most of all, they’d have an opportunity to know each other most intimately. Now that, too, gave him elation. All he had to do was to conquer the wound and live…live…live. He was more than ready. It was such a randy feeling. He always dreamed of holding his son or daughter in his arms. Heaven’s gift to him touched his heart.

  Later, he sat in his bedroom chair and peered out the window at the heavy rain that pelted the pane obscuring any view.

  Samantha sauntered in and looked like a vision in his dreams in her lavender muslin dress that hugged and caressed her body. Raven had thoughts that a healthy man would have. He smiled. Perhaps he’d get well after all.