Montgomery Family 03 - Turned Around By Love

by Vikki Vaught

  Henry looked menacing as he said, “I can tell you who it was. It was our uncle, my mother’s brother. He tried to rape her. Melody and I caught him just in time, but it’s made her extremely wary of men. That’s why I’m so surprised that she’s marrying you.”

  Jonathan looked Henry in the eye. “I convinced her that I wouldn’t expect her to be intimate unless she decides she wants it. I’m hoping she’ll fall in love with me and that we can work through her problem, but even if that never happens, I’ll always love her.”

  “What will you do if she doesn’t change her mind? Are you prepared to live a chaste life? You’re a stronger man than me, if you can do that.”

  Thinking about how he could explain this to Henry, Jonathan decided to be candid. “When we were first getting to know one another, I thought that nothing would ever come of my attraction to her, since I never planned to marry. My brother was strong and healthy, he already had a son to be my heir, and he and his wife were expecting another child when they died. I have no desire to be with another woman. Kathryn is the only woman I want in my life.”

  Henry interrupted, “But that still doesn’t fully answer my question. How will you handle it if Kathryn never changes her mind? Saying you don’t desire to be with any other woman is one thing, knowing you’ll be strong enough to be faithful, is another.”

  Looking Henry straight in the eye, Jonathan put all the conviction into his voice he could muster as he answered him. “Shortly after we met, I went to a brothel. When I left there, I felt as if I had betrayed Kathryn, even though we barely knew one another. At that point, I thought I was merely infatuated with her and that it would run its course, but then when we were together so much at my brother’s, I realized I love her. If I can’t be with Kathryn, then I would rather live chaste for the rest of my life, because I don’t want to be with anyone else.”

  Henry beamed at him. “Jonathan, welcome to the family. I’ll be proud to call you brother. I believe my sister already loves you. There’s no way she would say yes, unless her feelings were engaged. She just doesn’t realize she’s in love with you yet.”

  “I certainly hope you’re right. We had better get back to the drawing room. I’m sure Kathryn is wondering where we are.”

  When they returned to the drawing room, Kathryn walked over to them and said, “Well, did he pass your test, Henry?”

  “He passed with flying colors. I’m happy for you, Puss. Now, where is my pretty wife?” Henry asked.

  “Melody took William upstairs to feed him,” Kathryn explained. “He started fussing, and she said that he’s cutting some teeth. How long are you going to be staying Henry? I hope it’s long enough for us to have a birthday celebration for William.”

  Henry glanced over at his mother. “It all depends on how well Mother treats Melody. I won’t have her upsetting Melody in her condition.”

  “What, you mean Melody is going to have another baby? I’m so pleased for you. I do hope you have another daughter. Our family needs more girls. Mother has been wonderful since I’ve been here, and she adores Jonathan. I know she loves living here in Bath, and that may have helped to soften her attitude. If she gets too unbearable, you can always come and stay with us. Isn’t that right, Jonathan?”

  Smiling fondly down at Kathryn, Jonathan replied, “Whatever will make you happy, my dear. Invite anyone you want to our home. I would be happy for them to stay.”

  “Jonathan, why don’t you stay for dinner?” Kathryn asked. “Other than Mother, the rest of us are very informal, and since you can do no wrong in her eyes, she’ll not say a thing about the way you’re dressed. Please, stay so you can get to know everyone better.”

  Henry spoke up. “Yes, do stay, Jonathan. I have an extra set of dress clothes and we’re close to the same size. I’m sure Melody isn’t going to be satisfied until she has her chance to interrogate you. You might as well give up, you’re outnumbered.”

  Jonathan turned to Kathryn and laughed. “I can definitely see that I’m outnumbered. Whatever you want, my dear. I’ll be happy to stay.”

  Everyone went upstairs to get ready for dinner. Abernathy showed Jonathan to a room where he could freshen up and change his clothes. Henry’s valet brought Jonathan a spare set of dress clothes for him, and from the looks of them, they would fit.

  Thinking back on their conversation, he was glad he had been candid with Henry. He seemed to be a likeable person. In fact, so far, he liked all of Kathryn’s family. He looked forward to meeting Helen and her husband the next day.

  Kathryn was just glowing with happiness, and Jonathan fell more in love with her each day they spent together. He hoped Henry was right about Kathryn already being in love with him. He just knew that if she were in love with him, she would be able to overcome her fears about intimacy. He would just need to be patient.

  As Kathryn was dressing, she thought about Jonathan calling her “my dear,” and she decided she liked it. She realized she wanted his affection, even if they never had a higher level of intimacy. She decided she would just enjoy his affection and quit being so suspicious. It would be nice to have companionship.

  Marriage wasn’t all about physical intimacy. She would try to be a good wife to Jonathan, and she would turn a blind eye to him having a mistress. After all, she couldn’t expect him to do without sex just because she didn’t want to have any. She knew better than most how driven men were to have sexual congress. She would just have to find a way to let Jonathan know without actually telling him he could have a mistress.

  Dinner was a joyous affair. Even the duchess was on her best behavior and treated Melody with the utmost respect. After dinner, the men didn’t stay in the dining room, but joined the ladies straightaway. Mary played the pianoforte, and when she was through, she asked Jonathan to play for her, which he said he was happy to do. Everyone agreed they both played beautifully.

  At ten o’clock, Jonathan got up to leave, and Kathryn walked him to the door. “Jonathan, when you come tomorrow, go ahead and bring dinner clothes with. I want you to get to know Helen and Matthew just as you have Henry and Melody.” Kathryn looked embarrassed as she added, “I wanted to let you know that while I can’t be intimate with you, I do want us to be affectionate. So if you would like to kiss me, it would be all right.”

  “Dearest, nothing would please me more.” Then he pulled her into his arms and gave her a brief, yet gentle, kiss on her lips, and then he released her. “I’ll see you tomorrow at four o’clock. I look forward to getting to know the rest of your family. Do you think your mother would mind if I brought Elaine and the children with me tomorrow? I hate to leave them out, and I know the children would love being around your nieces and nephews.”

  “Oh Jonathan, that would be wonderful. Yes, please bring them. What’s a few more when there are already so many?” Then she hugged him and kissed him quickly as if she were embarrassed. He hugged her back and then took his leave.

  Kathryn went back into the drawing room, and soon everyone went to their rooms for bed. Once Kathryn had changed into her night rail, she sent Sally away. As Kathryn lay there waiting for sleep to take her away, she replayed the evening over in her mind. She was so pleased that her family had responded so well to Jonathan. Of course, she’d been fairly confident that they would all like him. After all, Jonathan was so kind and solicitous of her. It made her feel so safe and cared for.

  Jonathan had been so gentle when he had kissed her good night. She realized that it had been her first kiss. Even though she had endured so much pain and humiliation at the hands of her uncle, he had never kissed her. Knowing that Jonathan was the first to kiss her felt special, and she was glad that at least her uncle hadn’t taken that away from her. Kathryn reached up and touched her lips as sleep took her away. Her dreams that night were of how safe she felt with Jonathan.

  Chapter 13

  October 1823

  The next morning brought another beautiful fall day. Everyone had breakfast together and then Kath
ryn, Melody, and Mary took the children across the street to the park. All the children had a wonderful time, and Kathryn enjoyed watching them play. Kathryn turned to Melody. “Henry told Jonathan and me that you’re expecting again. When do you expect this baby?”

  Smiling, Melody replied, “The doctor says I should have the baby the middle of April. I hope I have another girl this time. Mary Elizabeth has demanded that we give her a sister. She says she already has enough brothers. Henry wants a girl too. Now, tell me all about Jonathan. You didn’t tell me he was so attractive in your letter. Are you madly in love with him, or are you like Helen and think you’re just marrying for the children?”

  “Melody, I truly am marrying him because of his niece and nephew, but I’m very fond of Jonathan. He’s a wonderful man, and I wish you could have met his brother and Allison. You would have liked them. It has been just awful for Jonathan since they died. He and his brother were extremely close. Allison was expecting another child, which only makes it worse.” Kathryn got tears in her eyes, and Melody reached over and patted her hand.

  “It’s all right, darling,” Melody said as she gazed sympathetically at Kathryn, “I would say you’re due for a good cry. I’m sure it was a terrible ordeal for all of you. My heart goes out to those sweet children. I’m sure they’re devastated over the loss of their parents. I’m glad Jonathan is bringing the children with him today. It will be good for them to be around other children. Kathryn, are you sure you’re not in love with Jonathan? You seem very close, and I can tell he cares a great deal about you. Don’t you want to be in love?”

  Kathryn hesitated, but then she said, “No, I don’t. After what happened to me…I find the whole idea of intimacy repulsive. The only way I agreed to marry him was if it would be a marriage in name only.”

  “Darling, I know you had a horrible experience with your uncle, but physical love is actually quite wonderful when two people truly care for one another. When I’m with Henry, it’s the most incredible feeling in the world. Sometimes it’s so beautiful that it brings tears to my eyes. You already seem quite fond of him.”

  “I am fond of him, and I told Jonathan last night that it was all right to kiss me, and he did,” Kathryn said, and then in embarrassment, she added, “It was quite pleasant, and I even kissed him back briefly, but then I became embarrassed and he left. I’ve decided that he needs to take a mistress since I can’t be intimate with him. At least he’ll have a good reason to take a mistress, not like some men of the ton who cheat on their wives for no reason at all.”

  “Kathryn, I think you need to think about this before you go telling him to take a mistress. What if you end up falling in love with him? Take my word for it. You would definitely not want him to have a mistress then.”

  Looking disquieted, Kathryn replied, “I’ll need to think about this some more. I thought I had the answer with telling him he could have a mistress, but maybe you’re right. I might be jealous if I thought he was spending too much time with another woman. I’m glad we talked today. You’ve definitely given me quite a bit to think about.”

  “Since you enjoyed his kiss…why don’t you do this? When Jonathan kisses you, try kissing him back. You may find out that you’ll like it, and if you enjoy his kisses, then you may like his touches also,” Melody replied, then with a look of embarrassment, she continued, “I’m not talking about full…ah…intimacy, but just a little affectionate kissing and touching. How does that sound?”

  “Well, I guess I could try that. I’m glad we talked today. I’ll need to give more thought to this.” They spent another thirty minutes letting the children play before taking them back to the nursery so they could get ready for luncheon.

  Kathryn thought about Jonathan’s kiss last night. It had been pleasant, and it hadn’t been threatening. She had actually enjoyed it. If he could just kiss her like that, and nothing more, then she would like it. This touching business sounded frightening. Touching was what her uncle started with, and all of his touches were awful. No, kissing was all right, but no touching.

  Jonathan arrived in plenty of time to be there when Helen arrived. He brought Elaine and the children as they had previously discussed. When Frankford and Jane met all the nieces and nephews, they got excited and immediately started playing with them. Elaine was enjoying all the children so she decided to stay with them.

  When Jonathan and Kathryn left the nursery, he reached for her hand and raised it to his lips and kissed it. “How are you, today? I thought about what you said last night about affection, and I’m glad that you’re receptive to it. I promise that if I ever touch you in any way that makes you uncomfortable, just tell me and I’ll stop. I care about you very much, and I shall never hurt you. Would it be all right if I kissed your cheek?”

  Kathryn breathlessly replied, “I would like that very much.” He gently pulled her into his arms, kissed her pretty, soft cheek and Kathryn giggled. “That tickles.”

  Jonathan laughed as he gently hugged her close. “I want to hold your soft, delicate hand, nothing more, all right? You have such beautiful hands, by the way. It’s one of the first things that I noticed about you.”

  Kathryn nodded her head and shyly looked down. As he put her hand in his, they walked down the stairs to join the rest of the family.

  It felt comforting, holding Jonathan’s hand. Kathryn decided that holding hands would be all right. When they reached the entry hall, the door opened, and Helen and her family were arriving. Kathryn dropped Jonathan’s hand and ran across the room to hug Helen.

  “I’m so glad that you’ve arrived! Come meet Jonathan. He’s right over there. I know you’re going to like him.” Kathryn pulled her sister over to Jonathan and said, “Jonathan, this is my sister, Helen, Lady Collingswood.” Then she turned to Helen and added, “Helen, this is Jonathan, the Marquess of Sutherland.”

  Jonathan bowed as he kissed Helen’s hand. “Hello, Lady Collingswood. I’m pleased to meet you. Kathryn mentions you with fondness, and has told me you’re very close. I understand you have a great love of horses. I also enjoy riding quite a bit. While you’re in town, you’ll have to come out to our home so we can go riding together.”

  Helen smiled exuberantly. “I do love to ride. It would be my pleasure to go riding with you. Now, none of this formal addressing, please call me Helen, and I’ll call you Jonathan. Let me introduce you to my husband.” She called over to Matthew. “Matthew, come here and meet Jonathan.”

  Matthew walked over and shook Jonathan’s hand. “I’m pleased to meet you.” Then with a grin, he said, “So you’re the one who’s captured our Kathryn. I’m amazed because she’s insisted for as long as I’ve known her that she would never marry. Congratulations! Kathryn wrote us and told us about the loss of your brother and his wife. Please, accept our condolences. I can only imagine how difficult it would be to lose a brother.”

  “Thank you. I miss both of them tremendously. Please, call me Jonathan. I look forward to getting to know you,” Jonathan replied, and looking fondly at Kathryn, he added, “I’m the most fortunate of men that Kathryn has agreed to marry me.”

  Helen looked over at her children and said, “Jonathan, meet my children. This is Christina and Catherine, and yes, they are identical. And these two rambunctious boys, who are also identical, are Winston and Nelson. I understand you have a niece and nephew. Are they here with you?”

  “We just took them up to the nursery before you arrived. Frankford is six years old, and Jane is Five. We left them with the other children. They’re loving every minute of their playtime.”

  Matthew laughed. “Well, I’m going to get mine up there too. That way they can join the pack. I’ll see you at tea.” Matthew and Helen gathered the children and went upstairs to the nursery.

  As Jonathan watched them leave, he said, “Kathryn, I like your sister Helen and her husband. Let’s go into the drawing room and join the others.”

  Jonathan placed her hand in his, and they went into the drawing room. Ka
thryn and Jonathan found a seat on the couch and sat down. He continued to hold her hand. Helen returned from the nursery and came over to talk with them. As they were talking, Matthew came over and started talking to Jonathan.

  “Why don’t we find somewhere so we can talk?” Matthew asked.

  Jonathan nodded his head and said, “We can go to the library. I know where it is now, since I went there yesterday when I talked to Henry.”

  Jonathan led the way to the library, and when they entered, Matthew went to the cabinet and started to pour two brandies. Jonathan spoke up. “Thank you, but none for me.”

  Matthew looked over at him, raised his eyebrows and asked, “Do you dislike liquor?”

  “Actually, I like it too much, so I’ve decided to stop drinking anything except wine at my meals. I was injured at Waterloo, and from that time on I began using liquor to deaden the pain, but it started causing a few problems for me,” Jonathan explained.

  Matthew took a seat. “The only time I’ve ever had a problem with liquor was when I went to my wedding. I was so nervous about marrying Helen that I drank too much. Once we were married, I calmed down and didn’t have the need to drink excessively.”

  “Kathryn tells me you’re from Devonshire. I’ve never been there, but I’ve heard about the moors. Do you live close to them?”

  “We’re about six miles from Dartmouth Moors. We live along the coast, and Collingswood Hall sits right next to the sea. Helen mentioned that you’ll be coming for a visit with Kathryn the first part of November.”

  Jonathan shifted in his seat trying to find a comfortable position. “I hope that it’s not inconvenient for me to visit at that time, but I would rather not be separated from her so soon after our marriage. Why were you so nervous about marrying Helen?”