“Good heavens!” Lucas said sounding thoroughly impressed. “And this scroll?”
“The Duke might find this the most interesting of all.” Davina looked up at Gabriel and held his gaze. She was tired of looking away from people who thought themselves to be her betters and, on this occasion, she remained steadfast. “It is a map pinpointing the exact location of the pit entrance in question.”
“Are you quite sure?” The Duke spoke with some excitement.
“I am definite.”
“But what of you now? Once the theft is discovered, you shall not be able to return home,” Lucas said, his face full of concern.
“My uncle is from home today, and I must move quickly. I have an appointment to return to the employment registry in Winterton in just an hour from now, and I cannot miss it. I must make haste.”
“Employment registry?” Lucas looked utterly dumbfounded.
“Before coming here, Sir, I made my way into Winterton and registered for employment as a governess. They are seeking a position for me and have told me to return at the appointed time. Once I have secured a position, I shall hasten home and pack my things and leave. I have no desire to be in the house when my uncle returns this evening.”
“But you simply cannot go and work as a governess,” Lucas said.
“I have no other option. The Duchess of Horndean has seen to it that I must either betray you or betray myself. As you see, I chose to betray myself.”
“And we really are most terribly grateful, my dear,” the Duke said with a smile.
“But if you choose to work in service, when would I see you?”
“Perhaps it is not best, Sir, for you to continue to associate with a woman whose station in life, already so far removed from your own, has just found itself so very much lower. I do not wish to make it any harder than it is already, but I must beg that you release me, for my future very much relies upon my being back in Winterton within the hour.”
“But wait, Davina …” Lucas stood looking at her helplessly and, for a moment, Davina found herself feeling most terribly disappointed in him. It seemed clear that he would do nothing to save her from her fate.
Not wanting to drag the humiliation and pain out a moment longer, Davina nodded briefly at them and turned and hurried from the room. Hearing his footsteps coming along behind her, Davina broke into a run, speeding past the butler and out through the door. A long goodbye would serve to do only two things; it would break her heart and disrupt her chances of employment with the registry in Winterton. No good could come of it, and so she kept running until she reached her horse.
Chapter Ten
Davina could hardly believe it was only mid-afternoon by the time she had made her way back home from Winterton. The day had been literally crowded with incident, and she felt utterly exhausted. However, with no more than two hours before her uncle was due to return, Davina knew that she had no time to waste.
Running into the house, she ran past Violet and straight up the stairs to her room. Violet gave chase, and both women arrived in her quarters quite breathless and reddened.
“Miss Marfont?” Violet said a little desperately.
“Oh, my dear Violet. You must help me, really you must.”
“I would do anything, Miss Marfont. Tell me, what is it?”
“I have been put in a most dreadful position and had to make a terrible choice. Unfortunately, that choice means that I can no longer live here with my uncle, and I fear his return. You must help me pack as quickly as possible and help me load my belongings onto the cart so that I may leave for Winterton.”
“Winterton?” Already Violet had tears in her eyes.
“I am afraid so. I am going to be a governess on the far edge of Winterton. I am not due to start for three more days yet, so I have booked myself into the coaching inn there. But you must not give me away, Violet, really you must not. If my uncle questions you, you must simply say that I took my things and barged my way out of the house without a word. He will believe that.”
“Then we must pack,” Violet said, tears beginning to roll down her cheeks.
With Violet’s help, Davina had packed and moved everything she intended to take with her in a little more than half an hour. Realising that she had a little time to catch her breath, Davina decided to take ten minutes in the drawing-room alone and perhaps have a sherry to calm her nerves a little.
As she sipped at the thick, viscous fluid, finally her emotions began to catch up with her. In truth, she did not know what she had really been expecting from Lucas Farrington. Had she really thought that he would suddenly decide to save her? Get down on one knee and offer himself as a husband and protector? Of course, he could not, and she could not help thinking herself ridiculous for ever having harboured such a desire.
And yet he was a good man; a learned man. He was strong and passionate with the heart of a poet, and she would spend the rest of her life missing him. The idea that she would never see him again finally reduced her to tears. Davina laid her sherry glass down on a side table and pulled a handkerchief from the pocket of her gown. As she buried her face in the handkerchief, suddenly the door to the drawing-room flew open.
Her heart began to thunder as she had fully assumed it to be her uncle, home early. Quite how he would have discovered her theft so soon did not occur to her.
However, as she looked up through bleary, watery eyes, Davina could see Lucas Farrington standing framed in the doorway. His ashen hair was more unruly than ever, and his eyes bright and breathing ragged from his obvious exertions.
“I have looked for you everywhere. By the time I had reached Winterton you had already gone.”
“Lucas?” As if in a dream, Davina rose to her feet.
However, she found she could not take one single step. Davina simply stood where she had risen and stared at him in wonder. What on earth was he doing there?
“You cannot leave me. You must not leave me.” Breathing hard, Lucas stared across the room at her. “You are mine, Davina; do not leave me.” His voice was rough like gravel, and his eyes so intense that she felt almost afraid.
His passion was back upon him but, this time, Davina knew that there was not one ounce of anger in it. It was the very purest passion, and she began to feel something of the same rise in her own chest.
Suddenly, Lucas began to move as if he had been somehow freed from invisible chains. He turned to firmly close the drawing-room door, and Davina could hear the key twisting in the lock. As he turned back to face her, Lucas was already removing his cloak.
By the time he had reached her, he had dropped his cloak to the floor, never once taking his eyes from hers.
“Do not leave me,” he said again as he advanced upon her. Still, Davina had not moved from the spot but simply stood waiting, anxiously anticipating the moment he would reach her.
In the moment he did reach her, Davina gasped as he thrust his arms about her waist and lifted her clean off her feet. Instinctively, Davina threw her arms around his neck and held him tightly. She very quickly realised that Lucas had not broken his stride at all but continued to walk, holding her tightly against him until he reached the wall on the other side of the room and pushed her firmly back against it. When she made contact with the wall, Davina cried out but knew that she was crying out in need and nothing else.
“Please, never leave me.” His voice was hoarse.
With her feet still off the floor, she could feel Lucas begin to push up the fabric of her gown and petticoats. He was holding her easily against the wall with the weight of his own broad, muscular body, and Davina found she could not help wrapping her legs, now freed from the confines of her gown, around him.
“I will never leave you, Lucas,” Davina breathed, hardly knowing what that meant.
In truth, she did not know what the future held for them, for still he had made no promise. And yet, somehow, it was immaterial. All she had was that moment, and all she cared about was that moment. Davina wanted
Lucas in a way that she had never suspected herself capable of, and yet she could find no shame in it. He was all that she had ever wanted in her life, and her passion for him was equal to his passion for her. They were two people trapped in a moment, unable to stop until they had consummated their love.
As Davina felt the hasty removal of her undergarments, she knew exactly what would happen next. And she would never have tried to stop Lucas, even if her life had depended on it.
Epilogue
“So where is Miss Marfont now?” Gabriel said, pacing the drawing-room floor as was his custom.
“I have taken Davina to stay at the home of my friend, Miss Florence Nelson. I believe you are acquainted,” Lucas said with determination.
“Yes, I rather like Miss Nelson.”
“And what of Davina? When are we to meet her?” Daphne, the Dowager Duchess of Calgarth, smiled warmly at her middle son.
“At the earliest opportunity, Mama. You see, I should like to marry her as soon as possible.”
“And why is that?” Gabriel said not bothering to hide his suspicion.
“Because I fear for her safety.” Lucas gave his brother a look that instantly quietened him. Whilst he was perhaps the most detached of all the brothers, when his passion was aroused, there would be none who could stop him, and Gabriel knew that well. “Her deception will very soon become clear. Already her uncle knows that she has left him and will be searching for the reasons why. If Prudence Cunningham makes her husband aware, then undoubtedly the Duke will think her fair game. I intend to protect her, and once she is part of this household, I think you will agree that she will, indeed, be fully protected.”
“Indeed, you are quite right, brother. And please do forgive me for my …”
“Think nothing of it, brother,” Lucas said, not keen to hear his brother apologise for a suspicion which, if he was honest, had found the truth most decidedly.
He had indeed made love to Davina Marfont, and it had been the most wonderful experience of his life. However, that was certainly not something he would share with his family.
“That poor young woman has gone to great efforts for this family already, and she is yet to be a part of it,” Daphne said in her usual, caring way. “You must bring her here tomorrow to meet us all so that she can be assured of her welcome here, now and forever.” Daphne nodded at Lucas. “And you, Gabriel, must place a little pressure to bear upon the Minister. I should like to see this wedding take place at the earliest opportunity. After all, as Lucas says, the poor child’s safety is at risk.”
“As you wish, Mama,” Gabriel said with a smile before striding across the room to kiss his mother on the forehead. “You dear, sweet, romantic woman.”
“I am a romantic, my dear Gabriel. But if only the romance I so enjoy did not always arrive with a serving of this dreadful feud. When will we ever be done with it?” And with that, Daphne Farrington smiled sadly at both of her sons before turning and slowly making her way from the room.
The Lord, The Lady, and a Time to Choose
Book 4
Introduction
When the Earl of Delbrook tries to edge his only daughter into matrimony, she is more than happy to oblige.
Lady Clarissa, young, beautiful, and intelligent, finds the manners and wit of Lord Spencer Farrington more than pleasing. He is handsome and amusing; everything that a young man should be.
Spencer Farrington, brother of the Duke of Calgarth, finds himself suddenly keen to gain the approval that he had never truly earned from his father when he had been alive. He sets off on a path which will see him drawn ever deeper into the feud between the Duchies of Calgarth and Horndean in a way he has never been before.
Finding himself spearheading a plot to upend the Cunningham’s plans to sink a lucrative copper mine, Spencer begins to lose sight of what is really important in life.
Despite his growing attraction to the beautiful Lady Clarissa, Spencer makes the fatal mistake of putting the business interests of his family before his own happiness.
Will he be able to change his ways and stop the woman he loves walking away from him and into the arms of the handsome and charming Earl of Marston? And will the feud between the Farringtons and the Cunninghams ever reach its conclusion?
Chapter One
“He really is awfully handsome, Clarissa. In fact, all the Farrington men are. I think it is their colouring; most unusual.” Harriet Lennox, Lady Clarissa Kensington’s finest friend in all the world, stared dreamily off into space.
“Yes, and I think Spencer Farrington is far less intimidating than his older brother.” Clarissa pulled a face and laughed.
“Oh, indeed. The Duke is handsome, but I would not dare to even look in his direction. He seems to have become a most intent sort of a man since his father died.”
“I daresay it is the way of things when a young man finds himself suddenly made the Duke. The sudden responsibility interlaced with the grieving for a lost father must make it a most uncomfortable experience,” Clarissa mused.
“I have no doubt. And he must have a softer side, for his wife is a terribly nice and amusing woman. I cannot imagine that she would have been drawn to Gabriel Farrington if he was as severe in all aspects of life.” Harriet laughed a little harder.
“But still, I am glad that he and the next two brothers are safely married, or my father might well have thrown me in the path of one of them instead. I think I much prefer the idea of Spencer Farrington to any of the rest.”
“What about the youngest one, Philip?”
“He is a little younger than me, Harriet. I know it is only by a couple of years, but still, I find I cannot put up with younger men. They seem so very unformed to me.”
“Oh, Clarissa. I must say that is rather amusing.” Harriet chuckled. “But what age is Spencer?”
“He is four and twenty.”
“A whole year older than you, my dear!” Harriet was highly amused.
“But it is essential when it comes to men. They take much longer than we do to become sensible and at ease with themselves. The younger they are, the more they find they must prove themselves in some way. I feel sorry for them in many respects, but I simply do not want to have to guide a young man through that tedious phase.”
“Actually, as amusing as I am finding this, I do understand entirely. My dear brother is continually trying to prove himself to our father at the moment, and I do believe that the whole thing has Papa quite dumbfounded. Dear Papa, he makes no demands of either myself or my brother, so quite why my brother is determined to gain Papa’s approval is beyond me.” Harriet stared vaguely across the vast drawing room for a moment. “Perhaps, as you say, it is simply a facet of burgeoning manhood. And one quite rightly avoided, my dear.” Harriet finished with an abrupt nod.
“I think Spencer is old enough to be over that sort of thing. And, besides, his own father has already passed away.”
“And what of Spencer himself? You have told me very little of this first meeting of yours. Where were you?”
“We had been invited over to have tea with the Dowager Duchess, Daphne Farrington. Goodness me she is a terribly nice woman. I think the relationship with in-laws is rather important, and I must admit myself relieved to find Spencer’s mother so very agreeable.”
“Heaven’s above! You talk of marriage already. You have had but one meeting with Spencer Farrington. You might not be so keen after two or three meetings.” Harriet laughed again.
“Well, it is the wish of my father, have no doubt on the subject.” Clarissa smiled and rolled her eyes dramatically.
“Has your father said as much to you?”
“No, but he has no need of such an explanation. I know him too well and am very aware of the fact that he has only become involved in the search for a suitor for me in order that he might put forward his own recommendations.”
“But is he drawn to Spencer Farrington in particular?”
“Oh, most decidedly.” Clarissa raise
d a smoothing hand to her thick, golden hair. “Well, not Spencer particularly but rather the Farrington family in general.”
“Oh, I see,” Harriet said knowingly.
“Father was a great friend of the late Duke, Wentworth Farrington, and I rather think he sees the family allegiance slipping away with the succession of the new Duke. As always, marriage is the best way of ensuring family ties.” Clarissa shrugged.
“But do you not mind?” Harriet said, her pretty brown eyes full of concern for her friend.
“I suppose it is just the way of things. I daresay I would mind very much more if Spencer Farrington was unattractive or had a disagreeable personality.”
“But the way we are bartered as if we were nothing more than simple objects.”
“In truth, it does make me angry. I do adore my father but, were I to think about things for too long, I should find myself thinking less of him. And yet it is something that we cannot escape in society, is it not? And at least my father is only pushing me towards Spencer, rather than demanding I marry him. I do have the final say, and I am pleased to report that my father made that very clear. Still, he also made it clear what a wonderful alliance one with the Farringtons would be.”
“It is the blackmail of your emotions, is it not?” Harriet said, seemingly annoyed on her friend’s behalf.
“Yes, it is.” Clarissa looked down.
“But Spencer is awfully handsome.” Harriet, very aware of her part in lowering Clarissa’s mood tried to make things right again. “And at least your father is the vaguest bit interested in who it is you eventually marry. The old Baron just lets me sail along. I often wonder if he remembers that I am here at all.” Harriet finished with a laugh.
“Perhaps, in some ways, there would be some relief in that sort of anonymity.” Clarissa smiled and looked around the room.
Regency Romance Collection: Regency Fire: The Historical Regency Romance Complete Series (Books 1-5) Page 19
