The Wounded Nobleman (The Regimental Heroes)

by Jennifer Conner

  Ellis was confused. It was a frightening experience, anyone would be afraid of being held at gunpoint. But, this was more.

  “I had to stop him… he was hurting me”.

  The boy never actually touched her. Was Callie speaking of this attack or something from her past? “Let me take you home,” he said.

  “No!” she cried and struggled to sit up. “Please, Ellis, don’t take me back there. Father will not believe me… again. Can’t we stay here? I will be fine.”

  She wasn’t fine. She was far from fine, but if she didn’t want to be taken home so be it. He would let it be her decision. The first drops of rain hit his face as he looked up at the blackening sky. Rolling to his knees, he struggled to stand and then scooped her in his arms.

  “Your leg,” she protested.

  It was odd, it hurt, it always did, but with Callie in his arms, he barely noticed the dull ache. Ellis strode the distance to the chaise and gently lowered her inside. He yanked the folding hood over them for protection from the rain and then dropped down beside her.

  She looked out over the grounds. “We played here when we were young. Do you remember?”

  “Yes.” I remember. Ellis touched his finger under her chin and brought it higher until she met his gaze. “Tell me what happened back there or better still, tell me what happened that frightened you so terribly in the past.”

  She twisted free and shrunk away from him. He let her turn away, but then wrapped his arms around her. He whispered in her ear, “I know what it feels like to be afraid. The war... I am speaking of more than just my leg. The wounds you often can’t see are the ones which hurt the worst. Any loud noise, I turn inside out. I wake at night, drenched in my own sweat. Those are memories of the past I cannot escape.”

  Callie turned, a look of surprise on her face. “That is the same way I feel.” Her eyes were red from crying, but she was so beautiful.

  He cupped her face , this time not allowing her to turn away. “Then trust me enough to tell me what happened.”

  She paused for a long moment. “Last year on my way back from a visit with friends, my carriage was attacked by highwaymen . I thought they would leave once they had the money and jewelry, but they wanted more. One held the driver, while the other dragged me out onto the ground. I fought, but he was so heavy. He slapped me and punched me until I stopped fighting.” She stared at her feet.

  Ellis felt anger boil through him. How could anyone hurt her , she was such a gently and loving being. “He raped you?” he asked, barely over a whisper.

  She shook her head, and gave a weak smile. “Not that anyone would believe me, but no. It was his intention. He had my skirts raised and his fingers…” She swallowed. “Another carriage came along. I guess it startled the men to run. He left me there in the mud. When the other carriage brought me home, the look on my father’s face said it all. He thought I was ruined and blamed me.”

  “That’s insane. How could he blame you for being attacked?”

  “I told Father the truth about what happened. I fought with all my might, but he didn’t believe me. What good is a spoiled daughter who is rumored to be raped? With my dress ripped and my body bruised… well, he didn’t want to take a chance of a scandal. It is much easier to write me off as a spinster than to have to explain to a suitor that his daughter may not be chaste.”

  “Did they ever catch the men who attacked you?”

  “The one who beat me was caught for another crime. I went to town and watched him hang. I thought it would help, but it didn’t. I still have the dreams.”

  “They are nightmares, not dreams. Our nightmares may be different, but we have them none the less.” Ellis thought he would never find someone who understood how he felt. Surprisingly, he’d found that someone right in front of him. “Unfortunately, we can’t erase all of it, but I can tell you it does grow easier to live with day by day. Clarke told me that he was responsible for saving me on the battlefield. He also said he expected me to do something with my life.”

  The color returned to Callie’s cheeks and made them a deep pink. “What is your life’s plan?” she asked.

  “To protect you.” He swallowed. “To love you if you will have me.” He kissed her then, pouring all the sentiment he wished he could have shown her earlier. “I only wish I had been here before.”

  “There was nothing you could have done.”

  His tone grew dark, “I would have killed them. They would have had to go through me before they ever touched you.” He feathered a kiss over the lavender-scented skin of her wrist. “I promise, no one will ever hurt you again.”

  “You can’t make a promise like that.”

  “I just did.”

  Chapter 4

  When Ellis pulled the chaise to the front of her family’s estate the light had dimmed from the sky leaving it a steely grey. Wind picked up blowing leaves in circles over the drive. Callie tried to stop her hands from trembling, but it was a lost cause. Too many resurfaced memories.

  Ellis assisted her to step free of the chaise and handed the reins to the stableman before offering his hand. It was warm wrapped in hers and his grasp was strong and steady.

  When they walked into the foyer her father made a grumbling sound in his throat and turned. Lord Stanley and Lord Dransby were in the study with him, along with Pastor Elsmire.

  “He must be having friends around,” she commented as they started to walk by the open door.

  Her father called out. “Garrison. I need to see you in my study. Now.”

  Ellis glanced over at her and raised a brow in question. She shrugged.

  Her father set his whiskey glass on the piano. “I demand to know what you were doing with my daughter, unescorted, for the entire day.”

  “Sir, we were on a picnic, nothing more.” Ellis’s hand tensed and then he pulled free from hers.

  A hard laugh left her father. “You expect me to believe you?” his voice raised to a thunderous bellow. He’d been drinking, the smell of liquor trailed out of his open mouth. “I brought friends over today to bear witness to all…this.

  Ellis rose to his full height of six-two and squared his shoulders. “With all due respect, sir. I had your permission to take your daughter out for the day…. unescorted.”

  With a wave of his hand, he dismissed Ellis. “Look at the state of her dress. The two of you have been rolling around in the mud! I realize what kind of girl she is and that she will give her body to any man, but, I am still her father.”

  “Is that what you call yourself?” Ellis asked coldly. “Parents love and support their children, so I’m not sure where that leaves you.”

  “What? How dare you speak to me that way? In my own home!” Her father’s face grew crimson.

  “How dare you accuse your daughter of things which she has never done?”

  “After you have been with her today I demand to know your intentions.”

  “Father,” Callie pleaded. She grabbed his arm but her father yanked it free.

  “Your intentions,” he repeated and puffed out his already wide chest and stomach.

  “What do you wish me to do?”

  “Marry her, of course. That is why the pastor is here.”

  “No!” Callie cried. “Ellis had your permission to take me out today. We did nothing wrong.” She whirled toward Ellis. “You don’t need to do any of this.”

  Ellis glared at her father before weaving his arm through hers, and then brought the two of them to stand in front of the pastor. “Pastor Elsmire, I ask for you to marry us here, at this moment. With the witnesses, I am sure it will be legal ly binding?”

  “Yes,” the pastor answered. The look on his face told her that even he doubted her father’s intentions. “Are you sure about this my son? Maybe, we should wait a few days.”

  “No, we will not wait. In front of you and God, there are two reasons I wish to state before taking vows. The first, I promised to protect this woman for the rest of her life. In order to d
o that, she will never step foot in this house again, unless she chooses to.” He slid his arm down and grasped her hand. “The other reason is… I love her.”

  The sincerity on his face made another tear slip free and skitter down her cheek.

  He brushed at the tear with his fingertip. “Do not cry, my love. This is the happiest day of my life. I hope yours too.” Ellis smiled at her as he turned to face the man. “Pastor, if you don’t mind, we’re ready to take our vows and then I will take her home.”

  When they rode away from her family’s estate and headed towards Ellis’s property line, every step the horse took lifted more of life’s weight from her shoulders. They rode in silence. Too much had happened in the last few hours to even begin to formulate it into speech.

  When they arrived at Garrison, Ellis gathered the staff and introduced her as his new wife. The staff looked as shocked as she felt.

  “You need to do whatever my wife asks and bring whatever she needs,” he stated, then grasping her hand he led her up the stairs into a large bedroom. He shut the door behind them and let out a long slow breath before propping his cane against the door.

  “Well, Lady Garrison… this has been quite a day.” Ellis’s smile made her heart flip.

  Callie rolled her eyes and forced herself to return his smile. “And I think that you are now the king of understatement.” The air in the room was heavy. She shifted from one foot to the other, attempting to stay still.

  Holding her gaze captive, he moved to stand in front of her. Gently, he pulled her against him.

  This is my husband , her voice said in her head. She laid her head on his shoulder and sighed. “For the first time in as long as I can remember, I feel like I have come home.”

  “This is your home.” He took her hand and kissed the knuckles “But tonight, I am going to leave.”

  “It’s our wedding night.”

  He’d removed his coat before coming upstairs with her. Her eyes skimmed his broad chest and muscles barely hidden beneath the soft folds of his cotton shirt. She swallowed. Callie looked into his dark eyes, noting they were shuttered with need but clear. In her limited knowledge of the subject she read desire, but mainly she saw love. For me.

  “Will you kiss me goodnight?” she asked angry with herself that she couldn’t muster the courage to ask him to stay.

  “You will never need to ask me twice for that request.” He brushed his lips across hers with whisper soft contact. He smelled of outdoor pine and leather.

  “This is only the beginning of our lifetime together. I made the decision before we returned. You are still working through being attacked. I cannot have you afraid of me. I could never live with myself. So, when I lie with you as my wife, it will be your decision… not mine.”

  He kissed her again, and her mouth softened. She could feel his fingers unclench at her side and slide into the small of her back. She tensed.

  “But tonight is not the night.” Ellis stepped back, but not before she felt the press of his manhood against her stomach. “You will know when you are ready, and until that day comes, I will wait for you.”

  Chapter 5

  Ellis hadn’t contacted Clarke, but instead showed up unannounced to Spencer’s card club. He walked through the large wooden doors and closed them behind him. His brother and Spencer stopped their conversation and looked up.

  “Ellis?” Clarke rose to his feet to greet him. “I didn’t think you would come.”

  “I like to surprise you once in a while, big brother.”

  “That you have. Come and sit.”

  He and Clarke chose seats as Spencer poured them each a finger of whiskey.

  Ellis drained the glass and set it on the table in front of him. “And speaking of surprises, I feel I have one which will rate slightly higher than my being here today.”

  Clarke’s brow rose in question as he eyed his brother.

  “No, I am not leaving you with the horses. I know how much you hate them and I would never do that to the poor animals.” The relief he saw on his brother’s face made him laugh. “I married Callie.”

  “You what?” Clarke sat up so quickly his drink splashed over the edge of the glass and stained a dark splotch on his waistcoat. “When did this happen?”

  “Two days ago and about a minute after her father tried to accuse me of taking her virtue. The bastard gave me permission to take her out unescorted to set me up. He’s a drunken sot who never deserved a daughter as fine as Callie.”

  “So you let him force you into marrying her?”

  “No one has ever forced me into doing anything I did not wish. You are my brother; you know that better than anyone does. I love her, Clarke. I loved her before we went to war but she was promised to another. I figured that was the end of it, but this is a second chance to prove to her I can be the husband she desires.”

  Clarke settled back in the chair and leveled his gaze at him. “I guess it should not come as such a surprise. I only expected a little more… notice.”

  “I would have liked that too, but some things just happen” Ellis grinned. “So, tell me more about this club.” He sighed and settled back.

  Spencer took the seat across from them. “We all suffered from the Crimean. Some mentally, some physical ly.” He motioned to Ellis’s leg. “Myself, it is mental. I don’t know if this will help, but I feel like the things eating at my mind grow easier if I talk them through. I have to be with people I trust to speak of what we saw. Both of you understand the memories which haunt my dreams and the invisible blood that stains my hands.”

  Ellis nodded and noticed Clarke did too.

  Spencer continued. “I feel we all have strong women in our lives. They will love us no matter what our mental condition, but they deserve for us to be whole.”

  “We are a mess,” Clarke added and let out a snort.

  “I have more faith in them right now than I do in myself.” Spenser drummed fingers on the carved wood arm of the chair. “Let’s meet once a week.”

  “For how long?” Ellis asked.

  “Until we feel we no longer need to.” He held out his hand to the other men. Musketeer style they took the pact.

  Then the three of them began to talk about the war.

  Chapter 6

  A week passed and Ellis came to Callie’s bedchamber every night leaving her after a soft caress and a kiss. When he departed, she found the need to have him lie with her stronger than ever.

  At the beginning of their second week of marriage Ellis announced, “I have a surprise for you.”

  They just finished breakfast in the sunroom after his father joined them. She smeared a little more orange marmalade on her toast and eyed the two men. By the mischievous smile on both their faces, his father seemed to be in on Ellis’s plan.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “If I told you it wouldn’t be a surprise.” Ellis grinned. It made his dark eyes sparkle. He looked so much like his father - they were like a mirror image of the other. “Meet me out front in say…” Ellis tapped his finger to his chin, “fifteen minutes.” He jumped up and ran from the room , not giving her a chance to ask additional questions.

  Most of the women of the house staff giggled and whispered behind their hand s.

  “Does everyone know what is going on but me?” Callie asked Lord Garrison.

  He just grinned and slurped up the last of his fruit compote.

  As the clock over the mantle struck a quarter past the hour, Ellis met her at the front door. Dressed in an open-necked white shirt, knee boots and waistcoat he looked so incredibly handsome… and out of breath. Good gracious, what in the world had he been doing? At the nape of his neck, his dark hair was pulled back and his breathing was audible. Sweat glistened on his forehead.

  “Are we going for a ride?” Callie asked and raised an eyebrow.

  “I think I just did that . No more questions.” He stepped behind her and placed his hands over her eyes. “Trust me. It’s only a few steps out
side.”

  She let him lead her until they stopped before lifting his hands from her eyes.

  In front of them was one of Garrison’s finest carriages. It was glossy, jet-black and had the family crest emblazoned in gold on the door.

  One of the four horses of the team was Liber. He stomped a foot as if he recognized her and whinnied.

  “I rode him over myself .” Ellis moved closer to rub Liber’s flank. The horse flicked its ears. “He will be one of our finest carriage horses,” he said with an air of pride. “He’s ready.”

  Ellis offered his hand to her and smiled. One of the men opened the door to the carriage, and Ellis helped her step in.

  When he sat beside her, she asked, “Where are we going?”

  “To finish the picnic we never had.”

  When the carriage came to a stop, Ellis pulled a large wicker basket from the back and after a look toward the blue skies informed the drivers they needn’t to wait. They would walk back. The horses galloped away with the empty carriage bouncing behind.

  “To see Liber with the team was an amazing surprise,” she exclaimed.

  “And to see him behave.” Ellis chuckled as he flipped the wool blanket onto a large patch of grass. I think he likes his new friends, and wants to fit in. I would never have been able to show him the patience you have.”

  “I do not believe that for a second. You have shown me this last week that you are the most patient man on earth.” She was so happy, she couldn’t seem to stop herself. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulled him down, and kissed him. Without permission, and without warning. For one of the first times in her life she did what felt right and did not think first.

  Callie needed to reclaim so many things from her lost year, starting with showing her husband how much she cared for him.

  “I love you, Ellis,” she whispered against his mouth. Callie kissed him hard, demanding a response and rejoicing when, after a moment’s hesitation, he gave in.