The Mysteries of A Lady's Heart: A Clean & Sweet Regency Historical Romance Collection

by Abby Ayles

  Doris had become Beatrice’s lead baker after things in the house had changed. Her brother’s desire to fill the house with more life meant Beatrice’s time in the kitchen had been reduced, and when her pregnancy had progressed, eliminated entirely.

  “Excellent,” Frederica replied. “Do you need anything before I retire for the evening?”

  Doris’ head shook heavily. “We will be fine here, my lady. We all know what to do. We will finish this lot now and do the rest in the morning, just as the Mistress would like.”

  “Wonderful,” Frederica said with a smile. “Have a very good night.”

  "Goodnight, my lady," the three women chorused before Frederica left the room.

  She liked them. They were hardworking and they never asked for anything, not that she wasn’t prepared to give if they did. They knew their responsibilities and carried them out to the letter, leaving her very little to be concerned about.

  That night, as she walked slowly up the stairs to her room, Frederica found herself happily fatigued. She sat at her desk and began reviewing her list of chores for the week. It was the same thing every night. She checked off one day’s items and prepared for the next.

  Her review done, Frederica changed into her nightgown with the assistance of her lady’s maid before climbing into bed. She was asleep minutes after her head hit the pillow.

  Chapter 2

  He could hear them at it again. The sound of his friends’ animated conversation was normal, but it amused him nonetheless. No matter how many times he heard them, it would never get old.

  Aaron Fitzherbert, Earl of Carmichael, and his sister, Lady Elaine, were two of the most loving and argumentative siblings Liam Somerset had ever met.

  “I told you, Aaron, that will not work,” Elaine repeated for the third time.

  “I told you it will,” his friend argued with a laugh.

  They were in the small dining room of the house the pair had leased for the coming months. Liam was seated at his desk in his room just a few feet away. The door was ajar and he could hear every word that was exchanged. He often stayed in his room to see to matters of his work before joining Elaine and Aaron for dinner.

  "How many times must I tell you, Elaine, I understand these things better than you do," Aaron continued to protest.

  “Not this time,” Elaine responded. What they were arguing about, Liam couldn’t tell. It may have been something as simple as the placement of a picture or the best wine to accompany their meal. The two loved to disagree and made a point to do so as often as they could, but it was just their way.

  “Where did you go today?” Aaron asked. Liam continued to write his letter, still keenly aware of his friends’ conversation.

  “Into town,” Elaine replied casually. "There was a sale at Marigold's and Louise and I decided to see what they had to offer."

  There was a momentary silence.

  “Without me or Liam?” Aaron questioned with a slight note of concern.

  “Yes. Why would I need you?” Elaine questioned nonchalantly. “What do you and Liam know of fabrics? Louise was with me, and there could be no better selector of muslins than her, saving Frederica of course.”

  Liam’s hand paused in its action. He knew Elaine’s response would not satisfy her brother. Aaron Fitzherbert was not a man who trifled with the safety of others, especially his only sister’s.

  “Two women alone are hardly protection,” Aaron answered sternly. “You should know better. You are the late Earl of Carmichael’s daughter, a woman of note, people could try to take advantage of that.”

  Elaine scoffed. “As you said, I am an Earl’s daughter, and the sister of one. Who would dare try to touch me? The title puts me at risk, as you see it, as much as it protects me.”

  Elaine’s words were only going to propel their conflict. She never saw threats, while Aaron saw far too many. If only they could meet in the middle, then the world would be a peaceful place, but seeing as both considered themselves right in all things, the likelihood of that happening was non-existent.

  Aaron was a protective brother, as were most men. He was not about to let his sister put herself in harm’s way, no matter how benign she believed her actions to be. Elaine, however, would not allow herself to be restricted either.

  “Next time you will think twice about such a foolhardy expedition,” Aaron commented. “Take Liam with you or let me know and I will accompany you. You never see the dangers of your actions, and God forbid you should ever have to see one of my warnings come to pass.”

  “You are not my father,” Elaine replied sharply.

  “And you are not my child,” Aaron countered. “Now act like a sensible woman and I will not be forced to give such lectures.”

  Now he’d done it.

  Liam set his pen aside and moved toward the door. Aaron had just started a war with his words and, if any of them wanted to have a peaceful dinner, Liam was going to need to quell the storm he could already feel brewing from the other room.

  “Sensible woman?” Elaine retorted venomously.

  “That is what I said,” Aaron countered.

  “I have more sense than any of the women you consider,” she replied. “If the women you entertained had half the sense of a bass, they would keep a wide berth from you. You will never marry any of them, yet you continue to flirt as if you would.”

  “I do not pretend,” Aaron replied coolly. “They are very well aware that I will not and do not intend to ever marry. We simply enjoy each other’s company and the amusement of our conversation.”

  “You are a cad,” Elaine retorted snidely.

  "Perhaps," Aaron replied. "But I make no pretense of being otherwise. I am who I am and I will not change. Why should I be denied friendly company simply because I do not wish to marry?”

  “I beg to differ,” Liam interjected as he raised a hand over his head and leaned against the frame of the door. A smirk lit his face as he watched them.

  Elaine turned in his direction. “A voice of reason. Probably the only source of male sense in this place.”

  Aaron scowled at her. “Elaine.”

  “Aaron,” she retorted snidely. She loved to press her brother’s buttons, but now was not the time for it.

  “Now, both of you, be so kind as to stop the bickering. You’ll spoil your appetites for dinner, and I am told that the cook has prepared a spectacular feast of lamb for us today,” Liam said.

  The pair continued to exchange angry looks. It happened once or twice a day. The good thing about siblings such as the Fitzherberts, was that they forgave quickly.

  “Aaron started it,” Elaine replied.

  “I did no such thing. It was Elaine’s foolishness that started this argument,” Aaron countered.

  “Now both of you, stop it. It doesn’t matter who said what or who started this evening’s fracas, the point is that it is time to finish it.” He looked from Elaine to Aaron and back again. Elaine pouted but neither spoke.

  “Elaine, you know your brother worries.”

  “He need not. I can take care of myself. I am never careless,” she replied.

  “No one said that you were,” Liam replied as he turned to Aaron and raised an eyebrow at him. His friend was about to speak, but the look stopped him.

  “You are very capable,” Aaron replied sullenly.

  Elaine continued to sulk. "You are not a cad," she replied.

  Aaron smiled. “Just a little bit,” he allowed.

  “Now, isn’t that better?” Liam interjected as he began to chuckle. “Eased tensions to make dinner easy.”

  “You have always been good at quelling our quarrels,” Elaine commented as she smiled at him.

  “You two have far too many,” Liam replied as he stepped into the room fully. He looked at Aaron. “You know you’re wrong, don’t you?”

  His friend’s brow furrowed. “Wrong?” About what?”

  “About never changing,” Liam continued. “One of these days you will meet a la
dy whose very presence will alter all your thinking.”

  A soft laugh filled the room as Aaron leaned back in his seat. “You really believe that?”

  “I know it,” Liam answered. "There is someone out there for each of us. I believe that, and when you meet that right one, no other matters."

  “The next thing you will tell me is that you believe in fairies,” Aaron mused. Elaine did not share his sentiment.

  “It’s better to believe in something than nothing,” she commented as she looked at Liam with a smile. “You were always wiser than my brother.”

  Aaron chuckled. “Now that I cannot argue with.”

  "Since I am wiser, why don't we head down for dinner? I could use a taste of the cook's lamb. He does nothing better," Liam suggested.

  Elaine laughed. “That is the best idea I’ve heard all evening.”

  “I am inclined to agree,” Aaron answered as he got to his feet to join them. “I’ll lead the way.”

  Aaron left the room first while Liam and Elaine followed. Liam smiled as he watched him. His friend truly did not believe in love or the possibility of it transforming a life. There was much Lord Carmichael had to learn and one day someone would teach him.

  Dinner was delicious, as expected. The cook his friends had hired was impeccable. Liam almost wished he could take him home with him when he returned to Marcombe and Edphrey Manor, his family home.

  The Somersets had long occupied the seat of Marcombe, but not nearly as long as some families held theirs. However, Liam believed five generations was a good start, and one he hoped to continue. He was the fifth Marquess of Marcombe.

  Liam looked at Aaron over their empty plates that were waiting to be cleared from the table. He smirked. “If you are so adamant that love will not change you, then I propose a wager.”

  “A wager?” Aaron questioned. “What kind of wager?”

  “I wager twenty pounds that you will lose yourself to some lady, and that her love will transform you.”

  Aaron laughed heartily. “Since when are you a betting man?”

  “Just now,” Liam answered. “I have been considering your adamant opinion that nothing can sway you, and I have never been more confident in the inaccuracy of that belief. Therefore, I do not see this as betting, but as a sure return of investment.”

  “An investment in my brother?” Elaine questioned. “Usually, I would say that you are setting yourself up for a loss, but since you and I are of the same mind, I think you might win this,” she commented.

  “Now the two of you wish to wage against me?” Aaron looked at Elaine and chuckled. “Do you wish to take a portion of his bet?”

  “It is unladylike to gamble. I leave that to you men. However, I will give my opinion that you are going to lose this one, brother. One day someone will win your heart and you will see what I have always said is true… Love changes everything.”

  "Love changes nothing because love does not exist. This feeling you speak of is just a glamour. Something made up to amuse young women and keep their minds occupied during days of boredom. They chase it relentlessly, hoping to win some man in to participate in their hopes, and sometimes they succeed."

  Aaron’s cynical nature when it came to love was amazing to Liam. Aaron and Elaine had come from a good, loving family, where their parents doted on one another. Liam wondered why their son would think otherwise when he had witnessed their affection his entire life.

  Aaron continued. “Good partnerships are established through marriage, or at least one hopes so. Love, however, I cannot attest to. Therefore, I take your wager,” he said as he laid his notes down upon the table.

  Liam smirked as he placed his notes beside it. “Elaine shall be the keeper of this bet,” as he said as he slid the notes towards her. She took them in her hands and smiled as she looked from one to the other.

  “I look forward to seeing the results of this,” she commented.

  “How long shall we let this last?” Aaron asked. “I expect you will get weary of it sooner or later.”

  Liam smirked. “We have your entire life,” he answered. “Love comes when it is time, and never before.”

  Aaron scoffed. "I am sorry to tell you but the watch was broken when I was born, my friend. There will be no time for me to marry, I assure you. However, I will gladly take your money. I am sure I can still find a use for it when I'm eighty."

  Elaine shook her head. "You are incorrigible," she stated as she turned from him. "Shall we play cards, Liam? It has been some time since I thrashed you," she teased.

  “Whatever you wish,” he answered. “I have no plans, and since your brother is here, I garner he has no plans either.”

  “That is where you are wrong. I have every intention of going to bed. It has been a long day and I need to rest.”

  “How boring,” Elaine replied. “One game?”

  Her brother sighed. “Fine. One game.”

  Chapter 3

  “Frederica! Frederica!”

  Francois’ voice bellowed loudly. Her stomach knotted tightly as fear caused her to tremble. He was drunk, again. He only ever knew her when he was drunk and needed money to settle some debt that he had incurred in his stupor.

  “Quiet, Madeline,” she instructed her lady’s maid. The young girl cowered at her feet with her head upon her lap. Frederica held her hand tightly as they waited with bated breath. Francois was a terrible man, whose temper was made worse by drink, something of which he was very fond and indulged in frequently.

  “Madame,” Madeline cried.

  “Hush,” she urged with a finger to her lips. “Silence. All will be well.”

  They dared not move from where they sat. Frederica hoped and prayed with all her might that Francois would succumb to the alcohol and fall where he stood. It had happened many times before, sparing her from the difficulties of his temper. She hoped that night would be the same.

  “Where are you?” her husband continued to bellow and the shaking of her limbs only increased. What did he want now? What trouble had he brought himself and both of them? Francois seemed skilled at bringing calamity as she was soon beginning to learn. Who was this man that she had married?

  They had only been married a month before the truth of her husband’s ways came to light. His love of wine and women was beyond anything she could have imagined. Where had the man that had wooed her gone? What had happened to his sweet words and kind gestures?

  Those questions had plagued her for months since their arrival in Dordogne. Everything had been a lie, even the place he had promised to take her. Frederica had never heard of Dordogne before he brought her to the house and left her there. He returned several days later, drunk and penniless and demanding money of her. The routine had continued ever since that day.

  The sound of his approach shook the insides of the house like an earthquake. Frederica could almost feel him drawing nearer. He was coming to find her. There would be no escaping him tonight.

  “Go,” she told Madeline suddenly. “Quickly. Leave me,” she instructed to the girl’s fervent protest.

  “No, madame. I cannot leave you. The Monsieur, he is very angry. I fear for you,” Madeline cried. She was eighteen and this was the first house she had worked for. Frederica feared it may be the last for the girl after this experience.

  Frederica nodded. “I understand, but you must go. He will be angry with you and his restraint with me will not be shown to you. You must leave. Go to your room and hide.”

  Madeline still refused.

  “Go!” Frederica commanded. The girl rose to her knees and quickly got to her feet at Frederica’s demand. She hated to be rough with her but she had no choice. She had to protect her.

  No sooner had Madeline left the room than Frederica heard Francois’ boots upon the stair. He was coming. She closed her eyes and waited for him to find her. It would not be long.

  The door to the bedroom opened violently and her husband wobbled into the room, using the walls and all that came n
ear his hand to bear him up.

  “There you are,” he slurred. “Didn’t you hear me calling you?”

  “What can I do for you, sir?” she asked as she got to her feet. Her stomach roiled as fear caused her insides to twist and turn. She felt as if she would lose her composure, but she did her best to hold herself up as she kept the distance between them.

  Francois came closer and she stepped back. She would not allow him to get his hands on her again. The memories of the last experience would never be erased from her mind, despite the vanishing of the bruises.