“It is de rigueur when one is a lady,” Lady Bolger pontificated. “It comes with the territory. As a gentleman, you were never expected to know about flower arrangements and such.” She shook a finger at Elijah teasingly as she smiled.
“No, I was not,” he agreed. “As a matter of fact, most of my education was on business and politics, with a strong dose of philosophy, history, and French.”
“Dreadful, but necessary, I suppose,” Lady Bolger said, taking a dainty sip from her teacup.
Elijah and Diana shared a look. She grinned at him. They both held each other’s gaze for a moment. When he looked away, Lord and Lady Albany were both watching them, smiles on their own faces.
“How is your visit so far, Lady Bolger?” Lady Albany asked.
“It is all very well. As you know, I grew up at Lutterhall Manor, though I am now more accustomed to my Bolger Castle, which is a new house, built on the grounds of the old castle. It isn’t quite as drafty as Lutterhall Manor, which was made centuries ago.”
“Bolger Castle was built by my uncle, with my aunt in mind,” Diana explained.
“It is as he should have done,” Lady Bolger said, regal as any queen. “My comfort has always been his first concern.”
“Will Lord Bolger be joining you here?” Lord Albany asked.
“No. He’s needed at Bolger Castle. There’s always so much to be done,” she replied with a world-weary sigh. “I was needed here, as chaperone to my niece.”
“Lord Lutterhall never said,” Lady Albany commented. She sounded curious. Elijah knew that Lord and Lady Albany were very close to Diana. He wondered at that.
Apparently, not close enough to Lord Lutterhall.
“He’s afraid of history repeating itself,” Lady Bolger said, sadly. She was looking into her teacup. It was an interesting remark. Elijah wasn’t sure if it was meant to be a mark against him.
“I would never ask Diana to meet me in the woods in the middle of the night,” Elijah stated firmly. “I would never risk her safety.” On no occasion, would he ever have her meet him in the woods.
Lady Bolger studied him, while he stared back at her, unblinking. “You must understand,” she said, in a tone that was far gentler than any of them had expected. “My brother is angry with himself over what befell his daughter. It’s not you at all.” She turned to Diana. “It’s not you, either.”
They were all silent. This was a turn that no one had been expecting. Elijah and Diana’s eyes met. She looked sad. He smiled at her, holding his hand out. She took it. He squeezed it. That look said more than either of them were able to, as surrounded as they were by others.
However, now that he understood, he could see Lord Lutterhall’s concern. It gave Elijah hope, that when he asked Lord Lutterhall for Diana’s hand in marriage, he would say yes.
I can’t imagine my life without her. It simply has to happen.
* * *
Diana was aglow from the success of the morning. By the time that she and Aunt Clarabelle returned, she was in a very good mood. As she always did, she went to see how Eleonora was faring.
She found her sister in her bed chamber, sitting at her writing desk. The desk was littered with crumpled up papers. All around her, there were charcoal stubs, in many different lengths.
Eleonora was focused on her task, leaning over it, biting her bottom lip.
“Eleonora?” Diana called out, softly.
Her sister turned toward her. There were smudges of charcoal on her face. For the first time in half a year, her sister’s eyes were alight.
“What are you doing, love?” Diana asked.
Eleonora showed her. It was a lop-sided drawing of a male figure, wearing a dark jacket. It stopped mid-stomach. Diana suspected that she knew who this was, but not his actual identity. It looked like a child’s drawing.
“I’ve been trying to draw my gentleman,” she explained morosely. “But my hand shakes, and I can no longer draw as well as I used to.”
“Perhaps, someone who knows him will recognize him.” Diana hoped that she could instill hope within her sister, though she herself wasn’t sure that anything could come of Eleonora’s painstaking efforts.
“I wouldn’t,” Eleonora stated. “And I knew him well.”
“You don’t know—”
“But I do, Diana.” Eleonora sobbed, covering her mouth with a charcoal-smudged hand. “I feel like a complete failure.” When her hand came away, she had dark marks on her face.
“It’s not your fault,” Diana told her, setting the drawing down. She placed a hand on her sister’s shoulder. She wanted to console her, though she knew that it was often nearly impossible.
“If I hadn’t gone to meet with him in secret, then perhaps we’d be married now and happy.”
“No, Eleonora. It wasn’t your fault.”
“Papa says—”
“Darling, you mustn’t listen when he speaks like that,” Diana told her sister. When Eleonora’s gaze met hers, Diana saw hope there. “This gentleman, he is someone that you love. You would never have met with him if you didn’t trust him.”
Eleonora shook her head. Diana went on, noting that her sister didn’t refute what she had said. “So he must be good, for that is only the sort of gentleman whom you could ever love. Something happened, and it was not your fault. This was not any sort of punishment. You were hurt. It was an accident. That’s all.”
“But you’re wrong, Diana. I was very bad. And now, I’m being punished.” Eleonora burst into tears. Diana wrapped her arms around her sister, holding her close. When she glanced over at Sarah, the lady’s maid had a guarded look on her face.
She quickly turned away. Diana suddenly knew something, in her gut. Sarah knew more than she was letting on. She was keeping it to herself. Diana wondered how to go about finding it out.
* * *
Elijah had gone to Albany House for tea. He and Lord Albany stood on the terrace, overlooking the garden. It was a brilliant sunny day in the countryside. The sky was bright blue, with barely a single cloud in sight. Though they were only a few hours outside of London, it felt like they were much farther North. It was so quiet and peaceful out here.
His mind, as it always did, went to Diana. He wondered what she was doing that day—if she was thinking of him, too. His thoughts went to Lord Lutterhall, who seemed to dislike him. He was the one cloud on the horizon, threatening to ruin everything by raining.
“How much do you know of Lord Lutterhall?” Elijah asked. He was having trouble getting close to the Earl. He wanted for them to have a good relationship—he wanted to feel more secure of his suit. As things stood, he had no assurances.
“I presume you’re asking because of Lady Diana?” Lord Albany grinned at him.
“I mean to ask him for her hand,” Elijah was pleased to confirm. He was going to ask Diana first, but he knew that they still had several weeks before the agreed upon month.
“That would be a very good match, indeed.” Lord Albany thought for a long moment, rubbing his chin with his fingers. “He’s very strict when it comes to his daughters,” he remarked. “He cares for them very much, particularly since his wife died in childbirth.”
“Diana?” he asked, knowing that she was the younger of the two. She had never mentioned this to him.
“No. A third daughter, Caroline, who died only a few days after she was born.”
“Oh. How devastating that must have been.” It suddenly made perfect sense. The Earl had suffered a horrible loss, first his wife, and then his daughter only a few days later.
“Yes. His two daughters are all that he has, besides his title and estate. He cherishes them, more highly than any jewels. When he came so close to almost losing Eleonora, his already strict ways became even more rigid.”
Elijah was beginning to understand Lord Lutterhall a little bit better. “I don’t think that he likes me very much.”
“He had his cap set at the Duke of Domnall. Though, given Lady Diana’s spirit,
that would never have happened. They would have clashed.” Lord Albany cleared his throat. “I’ve known Lord Lutterhall since we were children. He’s a strict father, but ultimately, I know he’s got Lady Diana’s best interests at heart. Once he sees how much love exists between the two of you, I doubt that he’ll find anything to object to.”
Elijah nodded, feeling a little bit better. “Any advice?” He was coming to see Lord Albany as a friend and an advisor. The elder gentleman’s calm demeanor was comforting. He reminded Elijah very strongly of his own father.
“Focus on Lady Diana. Lord Lutterhall will come around of his own accord. If he does not, then I will gladly go and speak to him on your behalf.”
“I feel so lucky to have met her,” he admitted. “I’ve lost everyone. My mother, my father. Aside from my friends, I’m alone.”
Lord Albany smiled. “Then she’s even more blessed,” he remarked. “It is best to be loved by someone who knows that they are lucky to have you.”
Elijah smiled. He certainly did feel lucky. Things between the two of them had gone so smoothly. If they hadn’t, then the road block that her father imposed might have broken them. Instead, it had brought them even closer together. It made it clear, just how much they both cared about the other.
“I’ve meant to tell you,” Lord Albany began. “I saw your father a few days before he died.”
“Did you?”
“He seemed happy,” he replied. “Happier than he’d been in a very long time. For his final few months, he had been very chipper.”
“Well,” he mused, finding himself surprised. “I suppose that’s the best I could have hoped to hear.” He wondered what had changed.
“Indeed. It seemed as though he didn’t know that the end was coming. He even told me that he felt as though he’d turned over a new leaf. It sounded to me as if he had much to live for.”
Elijah didn’t want to tell him. His father had known that his death was coming. Nothing seemed to fit together. His father had written that note, hiding it in the diary, to warn him. Then, given what he had told Lord Albany, it seemed like he believed that he was beginning anew. Only to be murdered in the cottage in the middle of the woods.
He was missing something important. But what it could be still eluded him. He hadn’t been out to the cottage. He wondered what he might find there.
Chapter 18
When Diana found her father, he was in the drawing room. He was sitting on the settee, a glass of brandy in hand. He seemed lost in thought.
“Father?” she called out. She was agitated. With that one glance from Sarah, she had suddenly known that the maid knew something. Sarah hadn’t been out when Eleonora had snuck out. That much had been discerned by other members of the household. However, Sarah and Eleonora had always been close, so it stood to reason that she would have known all about Eleonora’s love interest.
He blinked, looking in her direction. “Yes, Diana?”
“I just came from Eleonora’s room,” she told him, sitting down in a chair across from him. “I think Sarah knows more than she’s letting on. About the night of Eleonora’s accident.”
“Oh?” He raised an eyebrow, then took a sip of his drink. He swallowed, wincing a little at the bite.
“It was a look that she gave me,” Diana admitted. “When I was talking with Eleonora, just now.” She didn’t add what Eleonora had been working on. It seemed too sad to discuss. Her sister was heartbroken, over a gentleman who may have decided not to pursue her any longer. Who might have moved on after not hearing from her for months and months.
“I’ve suspected as much for quite some time. Naturally, she knows something,” her father admitted. “It was my greatest hope that she would come to me with the information, however. I’ll have a talk with her. If she’s hiding something, then she might have good reason to be doing so. I imagine she’s trying to protect your sister.”
Diana was suddenly struck with fear. Sarah was often the only person who could get Eleonora to calm down, during one of her fits. Sarah was Eleonora’s lifeline. They depended upon her.
“You wouldn’t dismiss her, not when she’s the only one who’s able to console Eleonora.” Worry filled her. She knew that her father was strict. If Sarah had helped Eleonora, then his wrath would know no bounds.
“Certainly not. I’m sure there’s something that could help us find out what happened to your sister.” He tilted his head to the side. “We need to know. All of this wondering and not knowing is plaguing me.” His brows were furrowed.
Diana nodded. She, too, was tired of being in suspense. To know what had happened to her sister would give her some relief. She knew that Eleonora’s gentleman was out there, wondering what had happened to her. If he showed up, then he could prove, once and for all, that Eleonora’s reputation was still intact.
“Leave it to me,” he assured her. “I have much experience in matters such as these.”
“Perhaps I could be of assistance,” Diana suggested. She wanted to be there, to hear everything that Sarah had to say.
“No.” He shook his head. His face was stern.
“Let me be there, Papa,” she begged. “Maybe she’ll be more willing to share her knowledge, if I’m there.” She had known Sarah for years. Surely, if they spoke to her, she would help them. They had treated her well.
“Diana, my dear daughter,” he said, leaning forward. He held out a hand to her, and Diana placed hers into it. He held her hand. “Let me protect you. You don’t need to be there when I question her. I…want to save you from the unsavory details, if there are any.”
Diana swallowed the painful lump in her throat. She loved her father, and felt touched by his desire to protect her. “I’m an adult now, Papa,” she said. “I can’t be spared unsavory details all of the time.”
“I know that I won’t be able to do it for much longer,” he said, smiling at her with such fierce love. “Let me do it, this once more. What do you say?”
She nodded, slowly. She couldn’t deny her father the chance to protect her. He was right—very soon, it would no longer be within his purview. “Very well. You’ll tell me what you can, though?”
“Of course.”
They both smiled at each other sadly. For the first time, Diana realized that things were changing. Perhaps, they had been doing so for a long while now, yet she hadn’t realized it.
“I know that you love him,” he said. “You must understand, my dear.” He let go of her hand. “It’s hard for me to let you go.”
Diana felt a lump in the back of her throat. She knew why he was this way, after her mother and baby Caroline had died, years ago. She smiled at him. After Eleonora’s accident, when they had come so close to losing her, her father was afraid of letting go.
“It’s all right, Papa,” she assured him. “You won’t be losing me. You’ll be gaining a son-in-law.”
His eyes went far away as he nodded slowly. “Yes,” he murmured. “A son-in-law.” He glanced back at her, smiling.
* * *
Elijah missed Diana, greatly. They had seen each other several times, but there was rarely a moment for them to speak freely. Lady Bolger was always there, watching them closely.
It was finally the morning before the ball. He was filled with excitement—it was the first ball that he had ever thrown. He hoped that it would go well.
Diana, Lady Albany, and Lady Bolger were at Cambolton House, going over the final preparations for the ball. They were walking through the gardens along with Elijah’s housekeeper, choosing the flowers for the arrangements.
Elijah made sure that he and Diana were walking together behind the others. He glanced over at her, and she smiled. “I know what you’re doing,” she whispered.
“Do you, really?” he asked, giving her his biggest grin.
Suddenly, he saw his chance, as Lady Bolger and the gardener had just turned the corner, vanishing from sight.
“Quick! This way!” he whispered. Diana’s face registere
d surprise, but she ran down along the hedge row with him.
“They cannot see us here,” he said.
She was frowning. “What is it?” she asked.
“I’ve missed you.”
Diana smiled. He leaned in, capturing her lips with his own. The kiss lasted for a long moment. A warm rush pooled in his stomach, his hand gripped her waist, feeling the soft swell of her hip.
She looked up, into his eyes. For a first kiss, it was perfect. Even better than he had dreamed it would be. He had a warm feeling, flowing through his veins.
Sinfully Bound To The Enigmatic Viscount (Steamy Historical Regency Romance) Page 12
