by Diana Bold
Ethan sighed and shook his head, aghast at the thought of Julian and Jane changing their wedding plans to suit him. “Don’t be ridiculous. I saw the look on Jane’s face when she spoke of Basingstoke. I wouldn’t dream of ruining that for her.”
Somehow, he’d find the strength to go home. He had no other choice.
A troubled frown played across Julian’s face as he broke out his excellent collection of cigars. “About your engagement… I know I have no right to pry, but I can’t bear to see you settle for less than you deserve.”
Ethan selected an expensive Cuban. He snipped off the end, lit it, and took a deep puff of the fragrant smoke before he answered. “Not everyone can have what you have.”
“I’m thirty-one years old.” Julian lit his own cigar and took the chair across from Ethan’s. “It took me a long time to find what I was looking for. But believe me, it was worth the wait.”
His brother’s obvious concern for his future touched Ethan so much he couldn’t keep up the careful charade. He realized he could confide his fears to Julian, tell him all the things he’d been unable to say to Christian. “I’m marrying Jessalyn for Christian’s sake. I can’t let him go to his grave without knowing his sister will be taken care of.”
Julian shook his head. “I applaud you for your willingness to help the girl, but don’t you think you’re carrying your loyalty to your friend a bit far?”
Ethan raked his hand through his hair. “Christian gambled away her dowry, so she isn’t likely to have any other offers, especially since she’s carrying the child of their former groom.”
“She’s with child?” Julian’s voice rose in disbelief. “I can’t believe Christian asked this of you. Let the bastard who got her into this situation deal with the consequences.”
“Believe me, I’d like nothing more. But he’s skipped town. He ran out on her when he realized the money was gone.”
Julian sprang from his chair and paced the room. He waved the end of his cigar in the air as he verbally worked out a plan. “If all the son of a bitch requires to do his duty is a dowry, I’m sure we can accommodate him. I’ll hire the Bow Street Runners to track him down, then we’ll offer him the estate I told you about earlier. We can even throw in a small fortune to encourage him to take the chit off your hands.”
“He doesn’t love her,” Ethan argued, guilty for the surge of relief his brother’s suggestion had caused.
“Neither do you.” Julian raised a questioning brow. “If she must wed a man who doesn’t love her, doesn’t it make sense that it should be the father of her child, the man she cared enough about to ruin herself over?”
“You have a point.” Ethan nodded. “But I doubt we’ll be able to find the bastard.”
“Oh, we’ll find him,” Julian promised. “Let me take care of this for you. I don’t want to see you throw your life away to fix someone else’s mistake.”
“Maybe you’re right.” Ethan finished off his cognac and wished he could forget the image of Jessalyn in the garden or how sweet it had been to hold her in his arms. It was better this way, he told himself. He’d take himself out of the picture before he had a chance to hurt her. “If you can do this, I’ll owe you a debt I can never repay.”
“No, Ethan.” Julian shook his head and gave his brother a sad smile. “You don’t owe me a thing.”
Chapter Nine
The following morning, Ethan convinced Jessalyn to go with him to view the estate Julian had won in a gamble. They passed the trip in comfortable silence, both lost in their own thoughts.
Ethan was preoccupied with the idea of tracking down James Flint. Julian’s plan had obvious merit. If Flint returned to do his duty, Jessalyn and her child would be safe and protected. Christian could stop worrying about his sister’s future, and Ethan could return to Brazil.
South America. He should be thrilled to return to his work, but instead, there was just a sense of inevitability. He belonged in the jungle, not the drawing room. He’d never been meant to settle down.
A tiny voice in the back of his mind reminded him how lonely he’d been during the past few years and just how much he’d enjoyed the time spent with Jessalyn thus far. But it didn’t matter. She deserved far more than he could ever give her.
He stole a glance at Jessalyn, who stared out the opposite window, her lower lip caught between her teeth. She’d probably be grateful to escape this farce of an engagement and be reunited with the man she loved.
Unfortunately, there was no way to know if Julian’s Bow Street Runners would find Flint. In the meantime, Ethan had no choice but to go ahead with his marriage plans. Still, he breathed a little easier knowing there might be a way out.
Finding a home for Jessalyn and Christian was Ethan’s top priority. He hoped to accomplish that today if Jessalyn liked Julian’s house. Her opinion was the only one that concerned him, since she’d be living there long after he and Christian were gone.
A little more than an hour later, they arrived in front of a Georgian-style mansion with large, sparkling windows and a sweeping green lawn. The house immediately appealed to him. He couldn’t stop the surge of excitement as he stepped down from the coach onto the cobbled front drive.
"It's beautiful," Jessalyn breathed, as he helped her down from the coach.
“It certainly is.” He held her against him for just an instant longer than was necessary or wise. His reaction to the brief contact made him even more determined to see Jessalyn happily married to someone else. “Let’s go inside.” Shaking away the image of Jessalyn in another man’s arms, Ethan mounted the front steps and unlocked the door.
Jessalyn drifted past him, her eyes wide with wonder. She spun around in the vaulted entry and craned her neck in an attempt to see everything at once.
Ethan smiled at her obvious delight and glanced around the spacious foyer. The pleasant scents of fresh paint and beeswax filled his senses. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been in a house that smelled so clean and new.
No ghosts haunted these halls. No bad memories spread their poisonous miasma from room to room. Promise and hope radiated from every corner.
Jessalyn grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the drawing room. “Look at all these windows. There’s so much light.”
“Do you like it, Jess?” The spacious room with its pale blue walls and marble fireplace exuded warmth and charm. Under Jessalyn’s deft hand, it would become a wonderful place to relax at the end of the day.
She nodded, eyes sparkling. “I love it. Can we see the rest?”
“Of course.” Ethan trailed after her as she darted from room to room. All the rooms were large and inviting, with pale, cool colors and warm oak floors.
His favorite was the office, which boasted walls of built-in bookcases and a cozy fireplace. It would be the perfect place to write the book on orchids he'd been planning for so long.
Far too easy to imagine building a life here. A life with Jessalyn.
All the more reason why he needed to find Flint. During the years to come, it would comfort him to imagine Jessalyn’s little family living happily ever after in this wonderful house.
Eventually, they wandered upstairs to the master bedroom suite. The two large bedrooms were connected by a very modern bath. The claw-footed tub was big enough for two, and the water closet amazed him. He flushed it experimentally a few times, while Jessalyn stared at the tub in awe.
“Hot and cold running water. Have you ever seen anything so decadent?”
“Never.” The image of Jessalyn relaxing in that immense tub, her pale skin covered with steam and bubbles aroused him more than anything in recent memory.
Taking her hand, he led her down the hall to the nursery in an attempt to distract himself with thoughts of the baby. He needed to remind himself that Jessalyn could never really be his, no matter how much the thought of playing house with her appealed to him.
“Oh, Ethan.” She made a slow circuit of the room, and her eyes welled with tear
s. “Can you imagine it? With a cradle in the corner and a mural on the wall?” Her voice broke on the last word, and she buried her face in her hands. Her narrow shoulders shook as she cried in earnest.
“Why are you crying?” Unable to help himself, he took her in his arms. “What’s wrong, sweetheart? I thought you liked it.”
She burrowed closer to his chest and refused to look at him. “I’m just overwhelmed. For so many months, I’ve been terrified about the future, certain I’d end up on the streets with my child. Now, for the first time, I feel safe. As though everything is going to be all right.”
He prayed her faith in him was warranted. “You are safe. I’ll make sure you and the baby always have a roof over your heads.”
“Thank you.” Gratitude shone in her beautiful eyes. “You’re far too good to me, Ethan.”
Clearing his throat, he set her away, trying to put some distance between them. “Do you want me to buy this house? Do you think you could be happy here?”
“I think it's perfect.” She smiled through her tears. " Absolutely perfect."
He had come to the same conclusion. "What about Harding Hall? Would you rather I try and buy it back? I know how much it means to you."
She hugged herself as though to ward off a sudden chill. "I think it's better if I don't go back. I don’t have many happy memories there, and I would forever be reminded of…"
She trailed off, but there was no need for her to continue. Ethan was all too aware of whom she spoke.
“Tell me about him.” He cleared his throat, determined to find out how she felt about the bastard before he went any further with his plans. "Do you still love him?"
She rubbed her hands up and down her bare arms. "I’m carrying his child, aren’t I?"
It wasn’t really an answer.
Frowning, he tried again. "What will you do if he changes his mind? If he returns after we're already wed?"
The stricken, guilty look on her face convinced him she'd given the matter some thought. "I don't think he will. In fact, I'm rather sure of it."
"I wouldn't stand in your way," he told her. "I want you to be happy, Jess. I'd give you an annulment if you asked."
To his surprise, a flash of hurt swept across her expressive features. "It seems wrong somehow, to be discussing an annulment before the wedding has even taken place."
"Perhaps. But I want to put you at ease."
Jessalyn hugged herself, her earlier happiness fading. How did he think this would put her at ease? It only proved how eager he was to escape the responsibility Christian had placed upon him. If James showed up tomorrow, Ethan would probably whoop with sheer joy.
In fact, he'd be far happier about it than she would. James had ruined whatever they'd had when he'd walked away from her, more concerned about her lack of a dowry than the child she might be carrying.
How humiliating to realize her brother had done a better job of choosing a husband for her than she had.
"That's very kind of you." She looked away, unable to meet Ethan’s gaze while everything she felt was revealed in her eyes. "But I really don't think he's coming back."
A sudden silence fell between them, and she didn't know how to break it. She felt her pregnancy keenly. Even if Ethan was interested in a true marriage, which seemed unlikely, she was not worthy of his affections.
"So, what's the verdict? Shall we buy this house, or would you prefer I make an offer on Harding Hall?"
"This house." This decision, at least, was easy. "I want a new start, Ethan, and Briarwood seems like the perfect place to begin."
* * * * *
Less than a week later, Jessalyn pressed her face against her bedroom window and watched in stunned disbelief as James Flint alighted from a hired hack in front of the house. What on earth was he doing here?
A sense of déjà vu overwhelmed her. Only two short weeks ago, she’d stood at this same window and prayed for his return. But Ethan’s arrival had changed everything. Now she found herself praying for something else altogether.
She pressed her hand to her stomach and knew she should be thrilled to see her old love. Unfortunately, Ethan’s face filled her mind. If James had returned for her, she would lose Ethan forever.
Desolation swept through her in a wave. She didn’t know when it had happened, but anything she’d ever felt for James had disappeared, incinerated by her reawakened love for Ethan.
She blinked away a flood of tears and started to turn away from the window, only to freeze at the sight of the two brutish men who stepped out of the coach behind James.
He hadn’t come of his own free will.
Refusing to dwell upon the implications of what she’d seen, she hurried down the servants’ stairs. She was determined not to jump to conclusions until there was no other choice.
She reached the first floor in time to see the two men escort James into Christian’s office at the back of the house. Slipping off her shoes, she crept into the adjoining music room. The open transom above the door that connected the two rooms would allow her to hear every word.
She needed to know what lengths Ethan was willing to go to in order to free himself of this unwanted marriage.
* * * * *
Dismissing the Bow Street Runners who’d managed to track down Jessalyn’s former lover, Ethan paced the confines of Christian’s office and tried to control his rioting emotions. He’d never expected Julian’s men to find the bastard. Now that they had, he was stunned to realize how much he hated the thought of giving Jessalyn over to the man.
He sank into the chair behind the desk and fixed his nemesis with a steely glare. James Flint was tall and broad-shouldered, handsome in a coarse, lowborn sort of way. But what concerned him most was the man’s resemblance to himself. With those green eyes and shaggy sable hair, Ethan felt he could have been looking at his own younger brother. Cynically, he wondered if his father had ever taken a maid to his bed.
To his credit, the bastard glared right back. He had to know he was at an extreme disadvantage, but he wasn’t easily intimidated.
“Who the hell are you?” Flint finally asked. “Where’s Harding?”
“I’m a friend of the family,” Ethan answered. “And I’m sure you know why I’ve brought you here.”
Flint gave a bitter laugh. “If you think your hired thugs can make me marry the chit, you’re a fool. Don’t you understand I’m without funds?”
“What if she’s with child?” Ethan asked, alert to the slightest nuance of the bastard’s reaction. “Your child?”
A flicker of emotion lit the other man’s green eyes, but his face remained expressionless. “That’s unfortunate.”
The urge to reach across the desk and smash the man’s too handsome face was almost impossible to resist. Jessalyn loves him, he reminded himself. All this would be for nothing if he killed the man before offering him the incentive that would change his tune.
“The only thing I find unfortunate is that Jessalyn isn’t a better judge of character. Did you ever care for her at all? If Lord Harding had given you her dowry, would you have been a good husband, or would you have chased a different skirt every night of the week?”
Flint shrugged. “I doubt any prim and proper virgin could have held my interest for long.”
Ethan sank back in his chair. “Wrong answer, my friend. I was prepared to offer you twice the dowry originally promised, perhaps even throw an estate into the bargain, if you’d given me any indication you’d treat her right.”
Flint’s eyes widened, his whole demeanor changing from confrontational to imploring. “For a deal like that, I could be good to her, I swear.”
Ethan shook his head. He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t consign Jessalyn to the heartbreak and misery Flint was sure to cause her. Better if he married her himself. At least he’d never hurt her intentionally. “Get the hell out of here.”
“You need me.” Avarice gleamed in Flint’s green eyes. “Who else will marry the silly chit?”
“I will.” Ethan spoke with weary finality. He should have known there was no easy way out of the promise he’d made to Christian.
Flint gave a harsh laugh. “What a noble sacrifice. But if you have enough money to pay me to marry her, you can pay me to keep silent about who really fathered her child.”
Sudden fury pulsed through Ethan’s veins. He surged out of his chair and wrenched the other man to his feet. He couldn’t believe the stupid bastard had the nerve to try and blackmail him.
“I don’t think so.” He tightened his grip on the man’s throat for emphasis. “I had enough money and resources to find you. Do you really think I’d hesitate to have someone dispatch you permanently?”
When he released Flint, the other man gasped for breath and collapsed back into his chair.
“Go on,” Ethan muttered. “Get out.”
With one last fulminating glare, Flint left the room.
* * * * *
Jessalyn intercepted James in the hallway outside Christian’s office. She needed to look in his eyes and see the truth behind the hurtful things she’d overheard.
James came to an abrupt stop when he saw her. His face flushed with embarrassment. “Hello, Jessie.”
She shook her head, unable to speak past the lump in her throat. She felt like such a fool. How could she have believed she’d loved this man? All summer long, she’d given herself to him and planned their future together, but now she realized she’d never really known him at all. His heart had never been engaged. He had only been with her because of the money.
He reached out as though to touch her, but let his hand fall short of the mark. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I’ve made a botch of things, haven’t I?”
“Yes, you have.” She didn’t even try to hide her disillusionment. He’d once seemed charming and worldly, but now she saw him for what he really was—a pale imitation of Ethan.
