The Wounded Nobleman (The Regimental Heroes)

by Jennifer Conner

  The Wounded Nobleman

  Jennifer Conner

  The Wounded Nobleman

  Regimental Heroes Series Book 3

  Copyright © Jennifer Conner

  2012

  Books to Go Now

  For information on the cover illustration and design, contact bookstogonow@gmail.com

  First eBook Edition –April 2012

  Printed in the United States of America

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes.

  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any person, living or dead, any place, events or occurrences, is purely coincidental. The characters and story lines are created from the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously.

  If you are interested in purchasing more works of this nature, please stop by

  www.bookstogonow.com

  This story is dedicated to my horse friends

  Ali, Darlene, and Marilyn

  Who showed me how impaired my knowledge of horses really is!

  The Wounded Nobleman Book 3

  Book 1:The Duke and the Lost Night

  Book 2:The Reluctant Heir

  please look for Jennifer’s other short stories

  The Mobile Mistletoe Series

  Love Comes for Saint Patrick’s Day & Love Comes for Valentine’s Day

  Valentine Surprise

  Cupcakes and Cupids

  Do You Hear What I Hear?

  New Year Resolution

  Christmas with Carol

  Auld Lang Sigh

  Rush of Love

  Fields of Gold

  Christmas Chaos

  The Christmas Horse

  The Music of Christmas

  All I Want for Christmas is You

  Weddings First Chance

  and novel

  Kilt by Love

  Chapter 1

  Ellis Garrison breathed in the scent of fresh cut hay as he refolded the heavy wool horse blanket and threw it over the stable gate. He loved the smell. It reminded him of spring and everything new. He began to straighten when his ears filled with a horse’s panicked cry. The hair on his arms rose.

  The cry came again. Good God! He knew the sounds of all his beasts with his back turned. He did not recognize it. It had to be the new horse he had taken on yesterday against his better judgment.

  He looked around for his cane. It had been over eight months and he still wasn’t used to using it, or keeping track of where he’d propped it. Why could he never find the bloody thing when he needed it?

  The horse cried again, this time the protest mixed with the curses from his stable hand.

  He dragged his wounded leg and limped out of the barn towards the shouts. Ellis raised his hand against the bright light and squinted at the sun over head. The Friesian, Liber, reared up on his hind legs over the stable hand sprawled on his back in the dirt. The man fumbled under his dirty coat and pulled out a pistol.

  “No!” a female voice cried. “He’s only scared. Don’t shoot him!”

  Callie Dunning? What the bloody hell was she doing here? The feather-brained chit was going to get herself stamped to death or shot if she carried on like this. Should I care? She’d crushed his heart before he’d left for the war.

  The stable hand still had the barrel of the pistol pointed at the chest of the rearing horse.

  “Give me the long lead,” she demanded.

  The stable hand blinked.

  “Now! Give me the lead you halfwit!” She stumbled forward and yanked the rope free from the man’s hand, then spun back to face the horse. “There you go—you’re fine. Everything will be fine.” She led the horse towards the far side of the round pen.

  The horse stopped and whinnied. Callie shook her head. “No you don’t, come on, let’s all calm down.” Liber cried again but didn’t rear. She took an apple from her pocket. “One more time around without a temper tantrum and this is yours.”

  Liber stomped his foot but followed her. Amazing.

  Ellis limped into the pen. “I demand to know…”

  She held up her hand. “Hush! Do you want to excite him again?”

  “What?”

  “You heard me.” Her gaze never left the horse’s. “If you scream and yell, you will just excite him. Who knows what he will do?”

  “It’s my horse.” How dare she? Who did she think she was? He was the son of the Earl of Garrison and the owner of all these horses. She was, well… trespassing.

  “I know that full well, but I just saved him from being your dead horse. So hush.” She walked Liber to the center of the ring and left Ellis to stand alone.

  He moved to the side of the pen to give her room. They would discuss this later. Right now, she did have Liber under control. In fact, Liber dropped his head and pushed at the pocket of her dress.

  Callie smiled at the horse, took an apple from her pocket and fed it to him. He ate it in one large crunch.

  Ellis leaned a hip on the cut wood slats of the pen and watched with fascination. This was not the same girl he’d pined over in younger days. He’d remembered her always coiffed to perfection. Shiny hair. Gloves. Satin dresses. Colors that matched her creamy skin and blue eyes, anything to catch the boy’s eyes… including his. Now the dust the horse kicked up covered her plain brown muslin dress. There were smears of dirt on her cheeks and her blonde hair tousled around in wispy strands. She was still beautiful. It seemed strange to see her hands without gloves. They were so small, but must be strong. She held the beast secure ly.

  His leg ached from standing in one place too long, but Callie made a good distraction. Many things haunted him these days, and she mixed through it all. Mad at himself, he liked his memories where they were. Now that he’d seen her once again, he remembered her pressed against him, kissing her sweet… oh so sweet mouth.

  Ellis looked out over the pastures where his other horses grazed. Nothing had changed about the land in a little over a year’s time, but everything was different. Garrison should be long to his brother, Clarke . He was the eldest. But his brother fell in love, married, and basically turned over all of Garrison to him. He hadn’t put up a fight. What else would he do? After his leg was badly wounded in the war, the thought of returning to the land and horses he loved was the only thing that brought him through recovery.

  He knew Clarke hadn’t forfeited the estate to him out of pity. He’d never understood, but Clarke truly disliked horses. He would be saddled, he smiled at his pun, for the rest of his life breeding and raising Garrison’s prized carriage horses. Their Friesians were some of the best beasts in England. Had been for generations. He should be honored to accept the post of his brother.

  As he watched Callie walk Liber around and around the pen, Ellis tried to pinpoint what was different about her. It came to him. Her eyes. They didn’t sparkle with life and that devil-may-care look they once held. Her eyes were sad. Troubled. Haunted. Like his and so many of the men who returned from the war.

  But she hadn’t fought. What was her life’s story? Had she been jilted by a lover like she’d jilted him? He hadn’t seen her in over a year and had no claims.

  He moved behind her. She spun with a startled squeal.

  She brushed a hand over the front of her dress. “The poor creature’s been ab
used.”

  Ellis raised an eyebrow. “And how would you know this?”

  She pulled back his lip. “He’s ground his teeth down and he’s panting.” She moved to his flank . “He’s been beaten with… something. Look, there are scars. He was terrified when the stable hand hit him with a stick.”

  “Good God,” he heard himself mutter. Callie was right. Ellis placed his hand on Liber’s flank and it flexed. He trusted an agent to do the purchase. He knew he should have checked the horses upon their return to the stable. He would never hire that man again. “Why did you step between them? You could have been killed!”

  “I couldn’t let this innocent animal be helplessly abused again.” There was a sudden darkness in Callie’s eyes. Ellis thought she would cry. Instead, she tipped her chin high and handed him the lead rop. “I am sorry for talking to you so abruptly. You were right, it is your horse. I had no right to interfere.”

  “But you did.” He ran his hand along the rope but didn’t take it. “Why are you here?”

  She looked at the ground. “I love your horses. I come here and watch them as often as I can. Your horses are the grandest.”

  “I know.”

  “Yes.” A weak smile tipped her lips. “I’ve done my best to avoid you… up until today.” She met his gaze. Her eyes were so blue they were almost transparent. “I’m sorry I hurt you back when we were… younger.”

  “It was only a little over a year ago.”

  “It seems like a lifetime. I can guess we have both changed. Will you forgive me?”

  “For what.” He knew bloody well what she meant, but wanted to see her squirm and feel dreadful for what she’d done to him.

  She sighed and shook her head, but said nothing.

  He let the rope slip and took it from her. When his fingers brushed hers, she jerked her hand back. Ellis watched her strange reaction.

  She turned to leave and he suddenly realized he didn’t want her go.

  “Come back tomorrow. There is obviously no stable hand in my employment who can handle Liber as well as you.”

  “Me?” she asked. Her eyes widened in surprise.

  He motioned his hand. “I don’t see anyone else standing here. If you promise you will not throw yourself between a man with a gun and a horse, you can come back tomorrow and work with Liber. You can help him adjust.”

  Strangely enough it wasn’t the horse that needed to learn to adjust back into life, it was him. Things were so much simpler before. Before the war Callie had so many men courting her he’d lost count. He’d thrown his hat in the ring as a suitor and marriage prospect when she’d practically cold-cocked him throwing it back. She let him kiss her… a few times. God… that memory kept him warm on many cold nights. But she’d made it clear he was not at the top of her list. Not nearly rich enough for her tastes. He was a dalliance and was told to move on when she’d met the Duke of Bingham.

  As far as Ellis knew, the Duke never asked for her hand and then the poor chap died of whooping cough. That meant she was available, but Ellis was nothing but a wounded nobleman with a hand-me-down estate. What did he have to offer the beautiful Callie Dunning? The same as before… now with a limp thrown in. Nothing that would ever interest her or be good enough for the likes of her.

  There were many reasons he had made sure to avoid her since he’d returned from the Crimean War. The main reason was he could never get her far from his mind.

  Chapter 2

  Callie knew she could tame this stallion. In the past few weeks, she’d taken Ellis’s offer and worked Liber every day, hour after hour making days blur into weeks. She hoped that soon, Liber would be accepted as one of Garrison’s top carriage horses. He’d be wanted—loved. Knowing love from her family was a childhood memory. Her parents never showed much emotion before, but now... after the ‘incident’ it was nonexistent. As far as Father was concerned, what was done was done, and he would talk no more of it. They hadn’t made the offer to take her out for another season. There could be a chance of scandal. That could never be.

  Mother and Father lived to be a part of society’s functions. It was one of the only reasons she feared they lived. A sad reason Callie decided. Life should be about saving sick children, or teaching them to read— not parties. A few years back she began to fall into their beliefs that superficial belongings were the only things that mattered.

  ‘ Let one gentleman court you until you find another with a higher ranking in society of course. This will make the perfect husband,’ her mother told her. That was why her father turned down Ellis’s offer for her hand. ‘ A Duke!’ her mother exclaimed when the other man came along, and had swooned over the prospect of the union.

  Callie knew she’d hurt Ellis. Of all the young men, he was her favorite. He was funny, smart… and very handsome. She would have accepted his hand, happily, she really would have. She cared for him deeply, but knew Mother would never have allowed it. Not when there was a Duke available.

  But the Duke died, and then Ellis left for the war. After what happened, she was left to… survive. She tried to think of a more appropriate word, but couldn’t. Her parents never knew the whole story. No one did. With her drastic change in personality, they assumed she’d been ruined in the attack. She should care, stand up for herself and tell them they were mistaken. But she was tired. Tired of all of it. So at the age of twenty-three she’d chosen to have her family refer to her as a spinster.

  She clicked her tongue and Liber followed her around the circle. Suddenly, he stopped, shook himself with nostrils flared, and swung his head from side to side.

  “Honestly. We’ve been out here for hours and I have nothing but good things to say about you. I think you are nearly ready. You even let me harness you and now, you are going to cause me grief and prove me wrong?”

  His black-brown eyes surveyed her. He flicked his ears again just as the first splat of rain hit her. In a minute, it was a downpour.

  Callie looked up at the sky. “You’re a horse. Do you mean to tell me you knew it was going to rain like the heavens had opened up?” She laughed. For all she knew, maybe he did. The dry ground quickly turned to ankle deep mud.

  Her hands slipped on the hemp rope as she tugged on Liber’s lead. She assumed there would be thunder and lighting. There was static in the air, you could feel it and she didn’t remember it being this cold in past years. A chill ran up her arm as rain soaked through the layers of her thin dress. Her foot caught, and she stumbled forward twisting her ankle.

  “Damn,” she swore as she fought to remain upright. The barn was only fifty feet ahead. She had to make it. By the time she came through the stable door, she was out of breath and limping. She led Liber into his stall, slid the latch closed and dropped to a pile on the ground.

  Slowly lifting the hem of her skirt she tried to wiggle her ankle. “Ouch!” she cried to no one in particular.

  “What happened?” a voice asked.

  Callie snapped her head around to find Ellis behind her. “What are you doing here?” she asked.

  He smiled, that cute smile where only half of his mouth quirked up. That hadn’t changed since they were children.

  “Ahhh, yes. Your family owns the place,” she answered her own question.

  “I thought you’d forgotten. Now, to a more pertinent question, why are you sitting on the ground in the middle of my stable?”

  “I twisted my ankle in the blasted mud bringing Liber in. I tried to hurry. A lot of good that did us.”

  Concern etched his face. “Are you all right?”

  “I think I only turned it.”

  Placing his cane to the side for a brace, he struggled to kneel. “It’s a good thing I was here. I took Brixton over there for a rambling canter halfway to London and back. The stable hands were off to supper, so I decided to give him a proper grooming myself.”

  “Is this common for you to do your own grooming?”

  “I grew up in this stable. If I am to run it properly for my father
, then I must remember all the skills of the stables. That entails its workings on every level.” He began to unbutton the small closure at his wrist and slid his hand out of his riding gloves. She never noticed how strong and large his hands were. His hands were not those of a wealthy son of an Earl. There were tiny scars and calluses on his fingers. Working man’s hands. She liked the fact. Even though they must be expensive gloves, he tossed them in the dirt and reached for her ankle.

  His eyes met hers. “I need to take off your shoe,” he stated. “Is that all right?”

  She nodded and he wasted no time unlacing the boot to slide it off.

  Ellis wiggled her foot. “Does this hurt?”

  “Yes. But not terribly.” It did, but she wasn’t going to admit it. She could tell it wasn’t broken.

  “I am going to call for the stable hands to bring the wagon back and take you to the house where you can get proper care.”

  “I will be fine. I…”

  Ellis cut her off. “I insist. It is the least I can do with all the time you spent with Liber these past weeks. You have turned him into a fine, manageable horse. I watch you work him. You have amazing skills with animals.”

  “It’s not true.”

  “It is. After you left, I sent one of the grooms to move him to a different stall. Liber stomped down so hard, the poor boy almost lost a foot. But not with you, you calm him.” He looked up and met her gaze. “But, you’ve always been special.” He reached up to tuck a wet strand of her blonde hair behind her ear.

  Her lips parted to protest, but instead, for some unknown reason, she said his name. She felt him shifting, closing the gap between them. He watched her and it confused her even more. It wasn’t leering or harsh. There was more than idle flirting behind his eyes; he cared deeply for her. His look made her ache to be the girl he once knew. She remembered how he had once looked at her. With love.