“I just want you, Jeffrey. Being with you makes me happy.”
Relief filled his eyes and the smile he gave her made her heart flutter. “Then I’ll obtain a special license tomorrow and we can get married whenever you want.”
“Oh, thank heaven!” she cried.
Jeffrey drew her into his embrace again, holding her close against his chest.
Yvette snuggled into him, breathing the masculine woodsy scent of him and closing her eyes. She sighed deeply. “I wish you could have married me today in the chapel, when your parents wed.”
He chuckled at her impatience. “Had I known you didn’t want a grand wedding, I would have.”
With her head against his chest, Yvette listened to his heartbeat as she drifted off to sleep with Jeffrey’s strong arms holding her tight.
Sometime later, Jeffrey kissed her cheek and whispered, “Wake up, darling. We’re here.”
Rising slowly, she stretched and peeked out the carriage window. It was dark out but the lights from Devon House cast a warm glow on the winter street. It was time to face her family and break the big news to them.
Yvette took a deep breath and looked at Jeffrey. “Are you ready?”
“Are you?” He countered with a wink.
“Let’s go tell them.” Filled with more nervousness than she’d expected, she entered the house with Jeffrey, greeted first by Granger.
“You’ve just missed supper, Miss Hamilton. Shall I bring you and Lord Eddington something to eat?” he asked them.
“Yes, thank you,” Yvette answered. “That would be heavenly. We’re both famished, aren’t we, Jeffrey? Where are they all, Granger?”
“Everyone is in the large drawing room, decorating the Christmas tree,” he told her. “They even managed to bring Mrs. Hamilton downstairs and she’s with them, too.”
“Thank you, Granger.”
Mother was there! She gave Jeffrey an anxious glance and her stomach tightened. What would they all think? What would they say? Would they be happy for her?
Yvette and Jeffrey walked the hallway toward the drawing room and they paused in front of the closed door. From within came the sounds of conversation, laughter, children’s voices, and Christmas carols.
Jeffrey took her hand in his and kissed her mouth briefly. “Do you want to tell them or should I be the one?”
“You tell them, Jeffrey,” she whispered back. “I doubt they’d believe me.”
“Be brave.”
“I will.” With her heart fluttering, she opened the double doors to the grand drawing room.
Her entire family was there. Her mother. Colette and Lucien. Juliette and Harrison. Lisette and Quinton. Paulette and Declan. Colette’s two sons, Phillip and Simon. Juliette’s daughter, Sara. Declan’s daughter, Mara. The youngest of the children, Lisette’s brood of three and Paulette’s son, must be up in the Devon House nursery. They were all gathered together, enjoying the carols that Lisette was playing on the grand piano, and decorating the enormous evergreen tree that dominated the room with its height and rich pine scent.
“Yvette! You’re back early!” Paulette called out to them, the first to notice their arrival, of course. Paulette never missed anything. “And you’ve brought Jeffrey with you! How was the wedding?”
Yvette hesitated before she entered the room, but Jeffrey still held her hand and pulled her forward.
Lisette suddenly stopped playing the piano and they all turned to look at Yvette and Jeffrey. Surprise registered on their faces; the fact that Jeffrey held her hand possessively was not lost on any of them. The room grew quiet except for the children, squealing and running around the Christmas tree.
Jeffrey gazed at Yvette’s sisters and brothers-in-law before pulling her closer to his side. He flashed his signature smile. “We have some good news to share with all of you.”
Juliette, who had been sitting beside their mother on the sofa, suddenly rose to her feet, her expression wary. Paulette grinned broadly in anticipation. No one else moved and Yvette could hear her own heart beating.
Jeffrey wasted no time. He cleared his throat and announced clearly, “Yvette has agreed to be my wife. We’re going to be married.”
Juliette gasped. Paulette squealed in delight. Lisette looked utterly baffled. A slow smile spread across Colette’s face. Lucien’s brows drew together in a confused frown. Harrison looked vastly amused. Quinton stared at them in disbelief. Genevieve appeared quite pleased.
Out of all of them, Yvette was surprised that Declan Reeves was the first to speak. In his soft Irish accent, he said, “Well, I think that’s just grand. We should celebrate!”
All hell broke loose then.
“You can’t be serious!” Juliette cried, staring angrily at Jeffrey. “You cannot possibly marry my little sister!”
“What is going on here?” Lucien demanded, his expression a little reproachful.
“But what about Lord Shelley?” Lisette asked, her face a mask of confusion.
Colette rushed over to them, placing her hand on Yvette’s shoulder. “Is it true?”
Yvette finally spoke up, knowing her cheeks were scarlet. “Yes, it’s true. Jeffrey and I are going to be married.”
“Oh my!” Her eldest sister was surprised, but obviously delighted. Colette declared, “I had a feeling about this, but I think you both have some explaining to do.”
Paulette hurried to their side, hugging both Jeffrey and her in turn. “I knew it. I knew it!”
“You knew what?” Juliette asked in an incredulous tone. Her face was a strange combination of astonishment and distress.
“I knew they were in love with each other.” Paulette smiled in triumph.
“When did all of this happen?” Lisette asked in wonder, gathering around them as well.
Yvette exchanged a glance with Jeffrey. “I’m not sure exactly. It just . . . happened.”
“Yvette, ma fille, come here.” Genevieve Hamilton’s hoarse voice silenced all but the children, who were happily oblivious to the family drama unfolding around them.
With Jeffrey still holding her hand, the two of them walked over to her mother. She looked up from her perch on the sofa, staring first at Yvette, and then her gray eyes settled on Jeffrey. Still weak but having lost none of her fierceness, she asked, “You wish to marry my daughter? My baby? Ma fille bébé?”
Jeffrey answered, “Yes, Mrs. Hamilton, I do want to marry her. Very much.”
“This makes me happy. Je suis enchantée de ces nouvelles. You are a fine man, monsieur. I knew it. I knew you would marry one of them! J’ai toujours su que vous finiriez pas épouser une des mes filles. Vous avez bon goût, mon garçon. Mes félicitations.” She smiled as Jeffrey leaned down and kissed her cheek.
Pleased that her mother was happy, Yvette looked up at the others for their blessings.
At that moment Granger entered the room with supper trays for her and Jeffrey, although Yvette had completely lost her appetite from all the excitement.
“Oh, Granger!” Colette called excitedly. “You must bring some champagne for us. We are going to have a little celebration. Yvette and Lord Eddington are engaged to be married!”
The old butler didn’t blink an eye at Colette’s announcement, perhaps because he’d served them alone in the sitting room for too many nights to count. He’d obviously suspected something all along. He smiled broadly at her and Jeffrey. “That’s wonderful news! I shall return with champagne for everyone.”
“Well now, I’d love to hear how all this came about between the two of you,” Colette said to them. “And I’m sure I’m not the only one curious!”
“I’ll take the children upstairs now,” Juliette announced, her eyes dark. “It’s time they were in bed.” She hurriedly gathered the four children, who were quite reluctant to retire, and left the room, her discontent clear.
Yvette’s heart sank at Juliette’s reaction. She hadn’t expected her sister to be so displeased with the news.
“I don�
�t think Juliette’s taking this very well,” Jeffrey remarked wryly.
“I daresay she’ll get over it,” Paulette chimed in, ever the pragmatist.
“Well, I think it’s wonderful!” Colette drew them to the sofa and everyone gathered around. “Now let’s hear what happened while we were away.”
“I still don’t understand how this transpired right under my nose and I didn’t notice anything,” Lisette said, shaking her head.
Yvette, suddenly shy, looked to Jeffrey and then back at her family. “I don’t know quite how it all happened.”
“It’s all Lucien’s fault, really,” Jeffrey said with a grin, looking at his friend most pointedly.
29
December Night
“I asked you to watch over her, not marry her, Jeffrey.”
Later that evening Jeffrey finally found himself alone with Lucien Sinclair, his oldest friend, in Lucien’s private study. Paulette and Declan had returned to their London townhouse, as had Lisette and Quinton. Mrs. Hamilton had been brought back upstairs to her rooms. Juliette and Colette were putting their little ones to bed. Yvette, exhausted from the long carriage journey that day, had retired for the night as well. Drinks in hand, Jeffrey and Lucien sat before the fire in the large leather armchairs, just as they had back in September.
Jeffrey shook his head. “I assure you, it was not my intention to marry her at the outset.”
“What the hell happened?” Lucien asked. He still looked baffled by the news.
“I don’t know. I simply fell in love with her. I can’t explain it.”
“I don’t understand it. She’s just a girl.”
“She’s almost twenty-one and quite grown up, Lucien. You know that as well as I do.”
“I can’t get my head around it.”
“Neither can Juliette, apparently.”
Lucien chuckled with glee. “It’s a rare treat to see our Juliette so rattled.”
“Isn’t it, though?” Jeffrey grinned in agreement. Then he grew thoughtful. “I wish she had taken it better.”
“To think the whole thing was Harrison’s idea,” Lucien said absently, shaking his head. “Juliette and I were against it from the beginning.”
“What?” Jeffrey was thoroughly confused.
Lucien laughed again. “While we were still in America, Colette read Yvette’s letter about their mother being ill and said what a comfort you’d been to Yvette. Then Harrison remarked, wouldn’t it be perfect if you and Yvette married?”
Stunned, Jeffrey said, “He didn’t!”
“Yes. Looking back now, it was quite a prediction on his part.” Lucien drank his bourbon. “Colette was in favor of such a match, but Juliette and I, in a rare show of solidarity, were against it.”
Jeffrey grew quiet before asking, “May I ask why you’re against Yvette marrying me?”
Lucien tossed his friend an apologetic look. “I can’t really say. There’s truly nothing I have against you, Jeffrey, you know that as well as I do. You’re a good man, a fine man, and my closest friend. I’d trust you with my life. It was just my initial reaction, perhaps because I still think of Yvette as a child and I’m protective of her.”
“I can understand that. And I expected you to feel this way, to tell you the truth. I even told Yvette you’d more than likely hit me.”
“What did she say?” Lucien raised a brow.
“She told me to hit you back.”
Lucien laughed again. “That’s my little Yvette.”
“She’s my Yvette now,” Jeffrey pointed out.
“Yes, I suppose she is,” Lucien said thoughtfully. “I’m happy for you both. Honestly.”
“Thank you.” Jeffrey felt relieved. Lucien’s acceptance meant a great deal to him. Now he only had to contend with Juliette.
Lucien continued, “You and Yvette marrying is actually a good thing, the more I think about it. Now I don’t have to make friends with old Shelley.”
It was Jeffrey’s turn to laugh. “I almost feel sorry for the man.”
“Me too.”
Jeffrey sipped his drink. “So why is Juliette so put out?” Lucien sighed. “Probably not for the same reasons I was. But give her time. It’s an unexpected adjustment. You’ll have to talk to her about it, smooth things over. I’m sure she’ll come around. You know Juliette.”
“Yes, I know Juliette.” Jeffrey smiled wistfully, thinking back on all the time he had spent with her that summer, once he’d finally caught up with her in New York after she had run off. They had had their fair share of heated arguments as well. But that was the nature of his friendship with Juliette Hamilton.
“I thought I’d find you two still in here.” Colette smiled at them as she slipped quietly into the study. She walked over to Lucien and he pulled her onto his lap.
“Colette might know,” Lucien said, hugging his wife.
“Colette might know what?” she asked with a light laugh.
Jeffrey answered, “Why Juliette is so put out with me for wanting to marry Yvette.”
Colette gave him a warm smile. “I don’t know, really. You’ll have to ask her that. As I said earlier, I couldn’t be happier for you both.”
“Thank you.” It meant a great deal to him that Colette was pleased by his love for her sister.
“Now we get to keep you in the family, Jeffrey,” Colette declared happily.
“Was I going somewhere?” He arched an eyebrow.
“No, but if Yvette married Lord Shelley and then you eventually married someone else, then naturally you’d spend more time with her family and we wouldn’t get to see you anymore.”
He quipped wryly, “I can see you’ve thought this through a great deal.” Still, he was touched that she wanted him as a permanent member of the family. That inclusion mattered more to him than anyone knew. Except maybe Yvette.
“I have. And now you will truly be our brother and we won’t lose you to someone else! It’s perfect. I said so from the start, didn’t I, Lucien?”
“Yes, you did,” Lucien agreed. “Juliette and I were the holdouts.”
“Did I just hear my name?” Juliette asked.
Jeffrey looked up to see that Juliette and Harrison stood in the doorway of the study.
“Come in and join us.” Lucien waved his hand. “We were just talking about you, Juliette.”
She and Harrison took seats on the sofa. “Yes, that’s what I heard.”
“Jeffrey and I want to know why you’re so upset about him and Yvette.” Colette folded her arms across her chest and gave a questioning look to her sister.
“I can’t explain it,” Juliette said rather mutinously.
Jeffrey arched a brow at her. “Do try.”
Juliette looked with an appeal toward Lucien. “A little help here?”
“Oh, no. Don’t look at me to save you,” Lucien said with a shake of his head. “I’ve already thrown in my cap and made peace with it all.”
“Traitor.” Juliette frowned at him.
“Come now, Juliette,” Harrison chided his wife lightly. “What’s so bad about it? We love Yvette and want the best for her. We all love Jeffrey. The two of them together make perfect sense.”
“Thank you, Harrison.” Jeffrey grinned at his old friend, grateful for his support. He and Lucien had become friends with Harrison Fleming over ten years ago when they had gone into the shipping business together. Never could they have imagined then that they would each marry into the same family. Three sisters. It was almost ridiculous.
“I’m sorry, Jeffrey,” Juliette began rather haltingly. “It’s just that you were my friend first. Yvette’s just a child and I—”
“She’s not a child anymore.” The heat in his own voice surprised Jeffrey. “And I love her.”
The room grew silent.
“Yes,” Juliette said softly at last, her eyes wide. “You’re quite right. She’s no longer a child. But it’s just that I’ve known you a long time and I happen to know a little about the women y
ou have known in the past and I . . .”
“Don’t, Juliette.” Jeffrey stopped her from saying any more. “They can’t even compare to your sister, so don’t do it.”
“I wasn’t comparing, I just don’t see why . . .” Juliette’s voice faded. “Never mind.”
“Jeffrey, as you well know, my wife can be a little possessive in her friendships,” Harrison pointed out in a conciliatory tone. “I think she may be afraid of losing yours.”
Jeffrey stared at Juliette. “Did I lose your friendship when you married Harrison?”
“No,” she admitted. “But you were ours and now you’ll be Yvette’s.”
“Yes,” he said, liking the sound of that. Belonging to Yvette.
“I don’t know about anybody else, but I’d like another drink.” Lucien stood and went to the bar, refilling his glass with bourbon.
“I’ll take one of those while you’re up,” Harrison called out.
While Lucien fixed the drinks, Jeffrey caught Juliette’s eyes again.
“I’m sorry, Jeffrey. I’ve been a terrible brat tonight, haven’t I?” Juliette asked.
“Well . . .”
Harrison chimed in. “Yes, you have.”
Colette laughed a little. “Harrison’s right, Juliette. You behaved dreadfully.”
Looking almost defeated, Juliette hung her head. “I don’t know why you’re so happy about it, Colette. Don’t you think it’s a little . . . uncomfortable?”
Jeffrey stared at her. “The fact that I am marrying your sister is uncomfortable for you, Juliette?”
Juliette remained silent.
“Well, I think it’s perfect, Jeffrey.” Colette smiled. “And I had my suspicions that something was going on between the two of you that first afternoon I came home. You acted so funny when I mentioned Yvette.”
His By Christmas (Hamilton Sisters) Page 23
