by Yasmine Nash
She really had to get a grip. She was acting like some lovestruck simpleton. Meanwhile, Jon was acting perfectly composed, as though their little adventure last night hadn’t affected him at all.
Jon waited until the servants had left the room before he spoke again.
“I have decided not to be angry with you,” he said, while Louisa helped herself nervously to a cup of tea. “I very easily could, you know. After all, you could have been set upon by robbers, or worse. You could have been kidnapped or murdered.” His voice rose just slightly, and he took a few moments to calm himself.
“But you are here safely now. I shall need your word though, Louisa, that you will never attempt such a dangerous stunt again. I really could not let this pass a second time.”
“Very well,” Louisa said thoughtfully after a few moments. “But only if you promise never to abandon me without giving me any notice again.”
Jon was surprised into laughter. “You’re correct, that was badly done of me, although yours was still the worse offense by far, I think. But all right, if you insist.” He looked her straight in the eyes. “I shall not run off without warning you again, no matter how pressing the business.”
“It’s a deal then,” Louisa agreed cheerily.
“I’ve been thinking of what to do with you,” Jon said, while Louisa stacked her plate with sausages and toast. She froze, worried he was going to punish her after all.
“You couldn’t have brought very much with you. If you’re going to be staying in London, you’ll need a lot more clothing. And we’ll have to find ways to occupy your time.”
“So I am to stay then?” Louisa asked cautiously, not quite sure she could believe her ears.
“Yes, why not? You’ve come this far already, so you might as well enjoy the place. Besides, I wouldn’t want to send you back alone again. You’ll stay here with me for a few weeks until I’ve completed my business, and then we’ll return to Devonshire together.”
“So you truly did have business here?” Louisa blurted out in surprise.
Jon chuckled again. She was beginning to like the sound of his laugh very much. She’d have to come up with ways to tease it out of him in the future. She noticed that he didn’t answer the question though.
Instead, Jon changed the subject. “I’m afraid most people are still away in the country right now. London isn’t the most fashionable place to be in the summer. Understandable. The weather is hot and the air stinks. It’s not the best time to make your entry to the city. The available company will be more limited than in the winter, but we’ll find some people to make your acquaintance.”
“Oh don’t worry about me,” Louisa said breezily through a bite of toast. “I don’t care much for company. Believe me, I shan’t feel like I’m missing out.” She brightened as an idea struck her. “I know! I should bake for you.”
He smiled again, but this time it seemed to be just out of politeness.
“I’ve never told you, have I? I’m an excellent baker,” Louisa said smugly. She was determined to wipe that skeptical look from his face. “Mrs. Crawley, the clergyman’s wife in Haverton, tried to steal my cook away from us for five years because she loved our chocolate cakes so much. She would never believe me when I told her the recipe and technique were my own. So when she finally convinced the cook to jump ship, Mrs. Crawley was greatly disappointed by the dry, tasteless cakes she produced, and I must admit, I felt a great vindictive pleasure at that.”
Jon chuckled again. Success!
“You are full of surprises,” he admitted. “But why have I never heard of or tasted these delicious cakes before?”
Louisa pushed her empty plate away from her. “I was worried you’d disapprove. It’s not proper behavior for young ladies to be hanging about in the kitchen with the servants. And I suppose I wasn’t in the right mood to do it either,” she added thoughtfully. “Baking had become so linked to Haverton in my mind. You know, my grandmother was the one who taught me. My mother hated it,” Louisa said with a smile. “I would always come up from the kitchens covered in flour. But Papa would just laugh. And when Mama tasted my cakes, she always forgot her objections.”
Louisa stared off at the wall for several moments, lost in these reminiscences of the past. When she finally looked at Jon, he was staring at her with a peculiar expression, as though he couldn’t decide what to make of her.
“Well, that’s enough of that,” she said airily.
“Yes,” Jon agreed, rising from the table. “I have business to attend to.” He paused and cleared his throat. “I think it’s all very dull, but you’re welcome to join me if you’d like.”
Louisa nodded eagerly, hoping her smile wasn’t too wide on her face.
Jon was right. It was dull stuff. She sat next to him in his attorney’s office all morning while the two men discussed tenants and other legal issues on some of his holdings. Haverton was not mentioned once though—Louisa listened closely for that. She was not so smitten by him that she’d forget why she had come here in the first place.
Jon made up for it afterward though. He took her shopping for a few new gowns and other necessities in the afternoon. “Some of Mildred’s clothes can be made over to fit you, but the two of you aren’t really the same size,” he’d explained.
All throughout the afternoon, he very patiently offered his opinions on all the styles she was having made and the fabrics and colors she had chosen. Louisa decided that since she was in London, she might as well take advantage of that by having new gowns made in all the latest fashions. By the end of the afternoon, she had ordered far more gowns than were necessary to last her the rest of the two-week visit.
A necessary expense, she told herself. Who knew when she’d be in London next? Besides, Jon seemed to agree, for he didn’t open his mouth to argue with her once.
Chapter 10
Jon slept shockingly well that night, considering his body ached to burst into Louisa’s bedroom and finish the job they’d started the previous evening. But he was still unsure of the wisdom of pursuing her in earnest—although his dam of fortitude was weakening by the day.
If Jon didn’t find relief soon, his resistance would break. He was almost tempted to seek out succor in other sources. Jon didn’t care much for brothels, but if visiting one could solve his problems, he was almost tempted to do so. Unfortunately, the thought of any other woman except for Louisa left him cold. He’d have to find another solution.
Jon rose early, as he did most days. He had already finished his breakfast and was seated at the table drinking his second cup of coffee by the time Louisa made her way to the breakfast room. This was beginning to feel dangerously like they were developing a routine. Jon chose not to examine why the thought caused a surge of joy.
Louisa happily carried the conversation, while Jon chimed in a few words where needed. She had never seemed this talkative back in Devonshire. There, she had been quiet and introspective more often than not, unless the two had been in a fight. The thought that it was because she hadn’t been happy there made his chest ache with sympathy. He had done badly by Louisa in the past, but he was getting better.
And yesterday. While it wasn’t necessarily true that Jon had come to London because of an emergency, now that he was here, he had more than enough business to occupy his time. Louisa had accompanied him on all his dull errands, without a single word of complaint. In fact, she’d offered a few sage bits of advice several times that he’d been grateful for.
“If you’re feeling patient again today, you’re welcome to come along with me,” Jon told Louisa. “I have a meeting with my banker at noon, but afterward, I have the entire afternoon free. I was thinking we could take a walk along the riverbank.”
“That sounds marvelous,” she said.
As the two were preparing to stride out the door, however, a messenger arrived with a letter for Jon. “It’s urgent, Your Grace,” was all the boy said before he ran back where he’d come from.
Jon loo
ked over the letter with consternation. “It’s in Mildred’s handwriting,” he muttered before opening it. His frown grew as he read. Finally, he finished and crumpled the note in his hand, cursing loudly.
Louisa watched everything with concern. “What is it? What’s wrong?” Fear flashed over her face. “Is Mildred ill?”
Jon wondered if this was how Louisa had found out about her parents’ demise: through a letter?
He almost hesitated, but why hold back? Why not let her in on this particular family disgrace? After all, it was likely to spread around town like wildfire soon anyway. And at least Louisa cared for Mildred. It was even possible his sister had confided something of her prior difficulties with Louisa.
“Everyone is healthy,” he assured her. “But it seems,” he said slowly, “that Mildred’s husband has landed in some trouble with the law again.”
“Again?” she asked.
So, judging by the surprise on Louisa’s face, Mildred had not told her anything about these misfortunes. That almost caused Jon to clam up and say nothing more, but he’d already started. Better to tell her the truth than allow her to conjure even wilder fantasies in her mind.
Jon sighed and ran the hand that wasn’t still clutching the crumpled note through his hair. “My worthless brother-in-law has a habit of spending more than he can afford.”
That was putting things lightly. Timothy Allen had blown through Mildred’s entire inheritance of 30,000 pounds within their first five years of marriage. He was the unfortunate combination of being bad at gambling and unable to live within his budget. Mildred tried her best to reign his spending in—she was the one who’d insisted they sell their expensive country home to reside year-round in a modest apartment in London—but she’d been unable to cure the man of his gambling addiction. Ever since, Jon had been dispersing his brother-in-law’s debts every six months or so.
“I never liked him, but Mildred was desperately in love and I couldn’t bring myself to say anything against him that could cause her unhappiness,” Jon admitted. “I wish I had, though; if I’d persuaded her not to go through with the marriage, she’d have had a much easier life. He threw away their entire fortune, and I’ve been called on several times to remove his debts.”
“Is that what happened this time?” Louisa asked, worry etched into every line of her face. “He’s incurred another debt he can’t pay?”
“Yes,” Jon said. “The fool. Thousands of pounds. Even worse, he’s gambled away a house he no longer owns. Apparently, the person on the other end of the bet is a member of the House of Lords and he’s not amused by Timothy’s inability to pay. They’ve thrown him in debtor’s prison. If he can’t find the payment for that debt, they may ship him off to America to work as an indentured servant.”
And his sweet sister would still be here to deal with the scandal Timothy had left behind in his wake. Jon wouldn’t allow that to happen.
“How awful,” Louisa said, looking as though she were near tears. “She never so much as mentioned her struggles. I can’t imagine what that burden must be like.”
“I can trust you to be discreet about this, I hope?” he added as an afterthought. “The story is likely to spread, but I’d prefer it if it wasn’t by my hands.”
“Of course,” Louisa assured him. “I won’t breathe a word. Mildred is dear to me as well. Surely there must be something we can do to help her.”
“I would gladly see the man imprisoned,” Jon admitted aloud.
The bitterness in his voice surprised even him, but he had been watching his poor sister suffer for years because of her husband’s failures. It had also instilled in Jon a determination that he would never be the cause of such unhappiness in a wife of his own.
“I’d let him rot there,” he added, “but the pain and humiliation that would fall on my sister as a result would be unbearable. I shall do my best to aid her.”
“And so shall I,” Louisa said stubbornly. “We should leave right now to see poor Mildred. How she must be suffering!”
Jon agreed and soon they were off.
“I had been hoping to take you to see her this week under different circumstances,” Jon said as they set out for their ride to Evan’s Buildings, the slightly rundown part of London where his sister and brother-in-law leased their apartment.
More than once, Jon had asked his sister to move into his London residence full-time, since he spent so little time in the city anyway. But she refused every time, insisting she was happy where they were. He doubted it. Not that Mildred was shallow, but the cramped, crumbling Evan’s Buildings were a far cry from the luxurious manor where the siblings had grown up.
His sister had never said as much, but Jon had an inkling that she was worried about her husband’s ability to remain in Park Lane without gambling off the furniture. And Jon’s theory had been spot on, it seemed, for his brother-in-law had managed to gamble away someone else’s property without even living there at the time.
* * *
Once the pair had arrived at Evan’s Buildings, Jon and Louisa were ushered into the parlor, where Mildred sat dejectedly on a sofa. She looked 10 years older than she had the last time Louisa had seen her, just a few weeks ago. Her normally piercing blue eyes were swollen and her skin was pale and haggard. Those eyes began welling up with tears the moment her gaze alighted on Jon. Her brother rushed to her side on the sofa and gathered Mildred in his arms while she quietly cried on his shoulder.
Louisa watched from the doorway, feeling increasingly uncomfortable and wishing she hadn’t come after all. She was intruding on such an intimate moment. Perhaps Mildred would resent Louisa for seeing her in this state? She fixed her gaze on the window, doing her best not to stare.
After a few minutes, Jon gently disentangled himself and said, “Louisa has come as well. She wanted to see how we could soothe your nerves.”
Mildred looked up in surprise. So she hadn’t noticed Louisa was there before! Louisa felt even more awkward.
“I had no idea you were in London,” Mildred said, wiping her eyes and looking disconcerted. “I’ve wanted for you to come to visit, although I would have preferred it not be under these circumstances.”
“I only just arrived in town yesterday,” Louisa told her. “Tell me what you want from me,” she asked Mildred. “If you wish me to leave, you only have to say so. I promise I won’t feel offended. My only aim is your comfort.”
“You’re very kind,” Mildred said quietly. “Stay. Both of you, please. I need the distraction. My mind has been all a-flutter since I received the news this morning. I was so angry at Tim because he had stayed out all night long, and then I received his note. If he gets sent to America, I don’t know how I’ll cope…” Her voice trailed off.
From all Jon had already told her of Timothy Allen, Louisa thought it sounded like Mildred would be better off without the man. But she didn’t voice this thought out loud.
Instead, she said, “We’re not going to let that happen.”
“I’ll go to my attorney today and see how quickly we can get this sorted out,” Jon assured his sister. “But you should tell us exactly what happened, Mil.”
“I don’t see how this can be fixed,” Mildred said haltingly.
“Humor me, then,” Jon said gently.
Mildred slowly explained the entire story, with plenty of pauses to recollect herself. Timothy had always been a bit reckless—it was part of what attracted her to him when they were first courting—but she had thought Timothy’s bad habits were a thing of the past. Then, over the past month, ever since she’d returned from Devonshire, she’d noticed him acting secretive and staying out late at night. Apparently, he’d been gambling away more and more of their assets, limited as they already were.
A long streak of bad luck had seen them all gone: all Timothy’s investments, their small savings in the bank, even—Mildred said with a sob—her jewelry. Mementos from their mother, the late Duchess. She’d discovered them missing this morning when, afte
r reading the letter in disbelief, she’d ransacked her drawers, only to find them bare.
If only that were the worst of it. Several weeks ago, with no more money to spend, Timothy had offered their old manor as collateral in his wager with Arnold Chatsworth, cousin of the prince himself. What had persuaded him to make such a reckless choice against a man with such powerful connections, it was impossible to say. Obviously, Timothy had lost the wager, and when Chatsworth had gone to collect his due, he’d been furious to learn he’d been lied to. The cops had been sent to arrest Timothy, discovering him at the card tables yet again, trying one last, desperate attempt to win back what he’d lost.
Louisa could tell Jon was barely containing his anger. “Why didn’t he come to me?” he said with frustration. “Timothy knows I could have cleared his debt before it got this serious; lord knows I’ve done so in the past. We may have been able to resolve this situation before the courts got involved.”
Mildred didn’t respond. She seemed worn out from giving them that explanation, as though the act of speaking so long had wrung all the remaining energy out of her. Louisa felt again as though she were an interloper, intruding on something private. The least she could do was be useful.
“Here,” she said to Mildred, handing the other woman a glass of sherry she’d poured from a tray on the sideboard. “Drink this. It will soothe your nerves.”
Jon rubbed his face with his hands. “Don’t worry, Mildred. I’ll handle this. I’ll go straight to my lawyer to discuss the matter.”
“I hate that you’re stuck cleaning up my mess again, Jonny,” Mildred mumbled sleepily. It seemed like the sherry had gone straight to her head.
“Do you want company? I don’t think you should be alone right now,” Louisa told her friend. “I can stay here with you while Jon handles this.”
Mildred shook her head. “You’re kind to offer, but I don’t think I’m up to it. I think I’ll just retire to my bedroom and try to rest.” Louisa promised to be back to look in on her friend soon.
