by Wendy Vella
“Yes, I know. I’m a lady, and why am I not back in the house organizing a morning tea for the local quilting society?”
She actually had the audacity to yawn after those words. Before he could draw another breath, she had climbed back down the bank and into the water.
“What the bloody hell are you doing?”
“Going to retrieve my clothing.”
“There is a way around, get out of that water at once, Eleanor!”
She ignored him and kept walking.
“God’s blood!” Louis climbed down and joined her. “Are you totally witless, woman? Will my children have insanity in their future?”
“How dare you!” She spun on him when she reached the middle of the river. “I saved that cow from certain death, and this is how you thank me?” She was screeching now.
“What of your death? Did you think that you could have drowned out here alone? Did you think how I would feel coming upon your body, floating lifeless, face down the stream?”
She paled at that, but rallied.
“I was in no danger of d-drowning.”
Shivers were wracking her body now, and her teeth were starting to bang together loudly.
“Get out of the water, Ellie.”
“I will, but only because I wish to.”
Louis sighed. “Why must you argue with everything I say?”
“B-because you see me as a different p-person from what I wish to be.”
The words were softly spoken, but as he was near, he heard them clearly.
“I-I c-can’t be that person, nor do I w-want to be.”
She turned to look at him, and her sadness and despair made his chest ache.
“Come, let us talk no more on this matter. We need to get you warm.” He reached for her, but as he did she slipped and fell, and before he could grab her she had gone under the water.
“Ellie!” He lunged for her, hauling her up and into his arms.
She spluttered and coughed.
“I-I am alright; it was just slippery underfoot.”
He held her close, needed to feel the heart that still beat strong in her chest. “I was worried for you.”
“I-I know.”
He climbed out first when they reached the bank, and pulled her up behind him. She was silent as she wrung out her skirts, and took the pins from her hair. He watched as she squeezed the water from the long curls.
“Here, wear my jacket.”
“I-I have my own.” She bent to pick it up, along with her hat.
“You are cold, so wear mine as well.”
“I-I don’t want it.”
She wasn’t looking at him, but away. Her voice had lost all its passion and anger. In fact, she sounded beaten.
“Yet you will.” He lowered his jacket around her shoulders after she’d pulled on hers, then stuffed her arms through each hole, before doing up the buttons. He then led her to her horse, and lifted her into the saddle.
She started walking before he had mounted, and when they were in the clear she galloped away from him. Cursing, he caught up to her and paced alongside. The ride took an hour, and when the stables came into sight he knew only relief. She could bathe now and warm up. He prayed she did not receive a chill from her actions.
“I fear I will never be the woman you want me to be, Louis.”
She had stopped her mount just before entering the stables. Her eyes were facing forward, her voice emotionless.
“Ellie—”
She ignored him, and urged her horse inside. Once there she dismounted and handed the reins to Chalmers before Louis could assist her. He followed, determined to speak with her, but as he reached the house he saw three men standing outside, hugging her. Her brothers had arrived. They released Ellie, and she looked over her shoulder and saw him, then walked away.
He’d never seen her quiet before, never seen her subdued, but she was those things and more now.
“What have you done to my sister, Thurston?”
Joseph, Earl of Ellsworth spoke, but it was on behalf of the men who flanked him, his brothers, Rory and Charles Haddon. Louis was subjected to three angry looks.
“Your sister went riding, alone, this morning. I found her in a stream, attempting to rescue a drowning cow.”
He’d expected to see understanding, but instead the three men laughed. Insanity seemed to run through the entire family.
“She could have drowned, damn you!”
This got the Earl’s attention.
“Our sister is not like other young ladies of society, Thurston. She is strong, and wilful, and knows her own mind. It would be extremely foolish of you to believe you could change her.”
“She nearly drowned,” Louis said again. Just saying the words chased a chill through him, and as he was bloody frozen it was not welcome. He was not a man for excessive emotion, and he rarely raised his voice. Now, however, he could do nothing else. “Your sister knows no boundaries; she does not understand how she should behave—”
Charles, the youngest sibling, looked disgusted “Lord, please say you were not foolish enough to try to tell her that?”.
“Did you, Thurston?”
The Earl was a large man who could intimidate with just a look. His brothers were not his equal yet, but in time would be. However, Louis was not easily intimidated.
“I am her husband!”
The Earl shook his head. “And we are her brothers and have never tried to subdue her nature. Ellie, is kind and generous, and she has a wonderful, if slightly wild spirit. If you break her, Thurston, I shall kill you.”
The brothers nodded, backing up his words.
“Don’t threaten me, Ellsworth,” Louis growled.
“Louis, I count you as a friend, and would not have allowed you to marry someone I love as dearly as Ellie, had I not. But you are behaving like a fool. For pity’s sake man, talk to her, don’t lecture her!”
He couldn’t believe they were treating him like he was in the wrong.
“She refuses to yield to anything I say. Refuses to stay out of my affairs. She constantly demands more of me than I have to give.”
“And you want her to be submissive, do you?”
Did he…lord no!
“I’m sure what drew you to her was her spirit, Thurston. It was her ability to simply be Eleanor. The beauty of her smile, and the strength of her personality.”
Dear Christ. The reality was, he had been attracted to the bright and shining light that was Ellie, and yet now he was trying to subdue her, trying to dim that light.
He suddenly felt like he was on unsteady ground. His mother had told him how his wife should behave, repeatedly, since he was old enough to understand. Was it possible she was wrong?
“My sister will run before she yields, Thurston. And has already asked me if we will take her with us for a visit.”
“No!” Louis went cold at the thought of Ellie leaving him.
The Earl did not reply. He and his brothers simply turned and walked inside.
Chapter Three
“I am not a person to sit idly and stitch, Joseph, as you very well know.”
Ellie’s brothers had bundled her into a carriage and taken her driving. They were rolling down country lanes, with lovely scenery passing her window, and she saw none of it. Only that the life she had wanted with Louis was crumbling around her feet. The desperation inside her was rising. She loved him, and yet could she stay with a man who wanted her to change?
“I understand that, Ellie, but you also need to realize your behaviour is not normal for a woman of your standing.”
“But, Joseph—”
He raised a hand to stop her.
“I have not finished. Now while we, your brothers, accept that you are different, Louis has no concept of how to. He was raised by a stiff, uncompromising father, and his mother was no better. In fact, she was quite frankly a venomous harpy.”
Her brothers were all variations of each other, tall and handsome, and at times
she had wanted to bang their heads together. However, she had known they were always there for her, as she was for them. Now was no different, even if she did not like what they were saying.
“The thing is, Ellie, Louis loves you, he just hides it extremely well behind that stiff-necked facade,” Charles said.
Ellie tried to force down the flare of delight at her brother’s words.
“Perhaps if you did not try to have everything your own way all the time, and saw things from your husband’s perspective upon occasion, you could find a way through this impasse,” Rory, the middle brother, added.
“I do not want everything my own way!” Ellie declared, but as she looked at the men around her she realized that was just what she had wanted.
“Compromise, from what I gather, is integral in marriage, and as you are not exactly known for it, perhaps you could give it a try.”
She looked at Rory, the calm one of their family. Was he right? Had she not even tried to give her marriage a chance? Had she set her course, and to hell with her husband?
“Reason with him, talk things through, and if that fails, sister, then we will beat him into submission,” Joseph said, offering her a gentle smile.
“But for heaven’s sake, Ellie, show some patience!” Charles said.
“I am patient.”
Her brothers scoffed at that, and Ellie suddenly saw the truth. She had not even tried to make her marriage work. Yes, Louis had also been in the wrong, but had she tried harder, and demanded less, perhaps he would have seen reason, or at least they could have come to an understanding.
“It seems I need to speak with my husband.”
Her brothers nodded.
She found Louis in the stables. His horses, Ellie had come to realize, were very important to him. He was bent over a hoof, inspecting it, and she waited for him to finish. Despite her earlier protest, patience was not something she’d ever had, so the wait was not an easy one.
Having three brothers had taught her very early in life that if she wanted something she had to obtain it quickly, or they would get it first.
As he lowered the hoof to the ground, she started speaking. “Being raised the only female with three brothers, and a father who saw my strong personality as a wonderful trait, allowed me to believe I should go after what I want, and if that does not work, then I should demand it.”
She heard his snort of laughter.
“Whereas I was raised by a father who cared little for me, and a mother who governed my every movement and action from the day I was old enough to talk.”
He did not turn to face her, instead still bent over the horse, and now inspecting the hind leg.
“I am different than other women, Louis. I like to be outside. I like to help my brothers with our horses, and discuss the living conditions of our tenants. Riding the boundaries of my family’s estates is something I also do often. I was raised that way, and while I do know how to stitch, it is not my favorite pastime.”
He laughed again, and the sound gave her hope.
“Come and tell me what you see when you look at this hoof, Ellie.”
She recognized an olive branch when she was being presented with one, and opened the stable door. Closing it behind her, she moved around him to look down at the hoof he had once again raised. Bending, she inspected it closer.
“It appears to be a bruised sole.”
“It does, and what should I do for it?” He looked at her now, his eyes intent, and Ellie felt the swell of love, as she always did when he was near. Even when she was angry and hurting, she could do nothing to stop her heart wanting this man.
“I-I would take off the shoe, and pare the sole to relieve the pressure, then a poultice and bandage should be added.”
He nodded and gently lowered the hoof. “The perfect diagnosis.”
“Louis, I need to tell you something.”
“I’m glad you did not leave with your brothers,” he said as he led her from the stable. He held out a hand, and she took it. “Let us go to the house and we will talk.”
“I will try to be less demanding.”
“And fail,” he said, leading her up the steps and inside. He kept walking with her hand in his, not stopping until they had reached the conservatory. Only when she was seated on the bench beside a wall of windows that exposed a wonderful vista of Thurston lands, did he release her.
“Louis—”
“When I knew you had ridden out alone this morning, I was worried, but I have never known such fear as when I found you in the water with that cow.”
“Oh, Louis, I’m sorry.”
He paced away from her.
“I felt crazed with it as I climbed down the bank, that at any moment you would slip under the water and leave me. That the cow would knock you down and then, in its panic, stomp on you.”
“Forgive me, Louis, I never meant to worry you.”
“Ellie—”
“I love you,” she interrupted him before she lost the courage to say the words.
“Pardon?” He retraced his steps to stand before her.
“I love you, Louis. I would not have married you otherwise.”
His face transformed before her eyes, his usually serious expression draining away to be replaced by a look of wonder.
“I’ve never been loved before.”
The words were so simple, and yet they broke her heart. She could do nothing to stop the sob.
“Don’t cry, Ellie.” He dropped to his knees before her. “Please, sweetheart.”
“H-how did we get it so wrong, Louis?” She clutched his hands. “I wanted us to be happy.”
“I think we were both in the wrong, but between us I have great hopes we can turn that around, especially in light of your declaration.”
“Really?”
Regaining his feet, he sat beside her, then lifted her onto his lap. She rested against his chest as his arms closed around her.
“I’ve realized that I was trying to change what drew me to you, Ellie. Your spirit caught and held me from the first glance. It took your brothers to make me see that.”
“I have challenged you constantly, Louis, and I am sorry. Perhaps we can compromise from now on, and talk through things, rather than arguing.”
“I can try to do that. It may take a few attempts, but I’m sure with your instruction I will get there.”
She touched his cheek. “Good, because now I actually can read, and do watercolors, should I wish it. It has been terribly exhausting riding every day, and walking about the paddocks.”
He barked out a laugh.
“I do love you, Louis, and have done so since I first laid eyes on you.”
The smile fell from his lips as he looked down at her, his eyes studying every inch of her face.
“I had not realized this pain inside me was love until today. Until I thought you could be taken from me, Ellie. But it is love, and it consumes me.”
No more words were needed as his lips met hers.
###
Captured by a Duke
Ladies Always Shoot First
Book One
Summer Hanford
When Annabel runs off to surprise her fiancé the day before their wedding, the one thing she doesn’t count on is being stopped by highwaymen. Kidnapped but not without recourse, Annabel shoots one of her abductors and makes her escape. Too late, she discovers she didn’t really want to get away.
Chapter One
A nnabel tugged back the velvet curtain and leaned forward to peer out the carriage window. Trees sped past, but her gaze was drawn to the impenetrable darkness a few scant feet beyond the sun-kissed foliage. The forest looked invitingly cool compared to the heat inside the carriage.
She shifted her gaze to Kitty, seated across from her. “If we tie the curtains back, we can have more air.”
Kitty shook her head, brown curls bouncing about her misleadingly cherubic cheeks. “Too much dust will come in. Do you really want to meet your future husba
nd coated in dust?”
“I still don’t understand how I’m to meet him without giving away who I am.” Annabel let the curtain fall back into place and snapped open her fan. She wasn’t certain which would make a worse impression; arriving coated in dust or with her blonde curls plastered against her forehead.
“Leave everything to me.” Kitty appeared enviably untouched by the summer heat.
“Why did I let you persuade me to trick the servants into taking us? Meeting the duke a day early will make no difference. I’ll still be forced to wed him.” Annabel shuddered. What could possibly have possessed her father to promise her to some uncouth backwater lord who couldn’t be bothered to visit London to court her?
“Don’t worry. I have a plan.” Kitty spoke with supreme confidence.
Annabel frowned. How many times had Kitty said those words? By now, Annabel should have learned not to go along with her friend’s plans. Somehow, they always ended in trouble, and this current scheme promised the most trouble of all. Sneaking off to meet a man, even her own fiancé, was nearly unforgiveable.
Yet, it had sounded so reasonable when Kitty suggested it. After all, it was only fair Annabel should have a chance to set eyes on Richard Darrius, Duke of Southwood, before she pledged her life to him. Now, though, she couldn’t imagine how she could meet him and then gracefully extract herself if she didn’t care for him.
“It had better be a good plan,” she muttered.
Kitty’s smile only added to her angelic guise. “One of my best.”
Annabel, less than reassured, decided they should turn back. She opened her mouth to say as much when the carriage skidded to a halt. Annabel flew from her seat. Kitty’s screech filled the small space. They collided in a tangle of limbs.
A gunshot roared.
Chapter Two
T he horses squealed. Annabel was thrown back against her seat as the carriage lurched forward. Kitty spilled onto the floor.
