“Even the Duke,” Papa asked.
Susan thought about that. “I didn’t see him.”
“Here he comes now,” Louisa said as she gazed out the window. “I recognize his coach.”
“And the groom? Has he arrived as well?” Papa asked.
Susan wondered if he was referencing the last wedding when the groom did not arrive but decided it was an innocent enough question.
“Yes, he’s standing with his best man at the altar waiting for you, darling sister.”
“Then shall we?” Papa asked.
“I think we need to wait for the Padre, Papa. He’s the one to tell us when to go out.”
“Very well.”
And it was just at that moment that the Padre did appear.
Susan noticed the Duke and his aunt seated at the back of the congregation as they left to proceed down the aisle. Susan looked lovely, as the bridesmaid, in the dress she and Katherine had constructed together.
The ceremony went without a hitch. There were all the requisite tears and sighs from the families, and just as the couple was vouching their “I do’s,” a tremendous thunder clap cut through the sanctuary, startling everyone.
Mamma gasped as the heavens let loose and it began to pour torrents of rain. “Oh, my, the reception—the inn is too far,” she said.
Susan went over to the family. “We’ll just need to wait it out. It’s far too fierce to try and get to the carriages with the rain like this.”
Some of the guests had come forward to congratulate the bride and groom, and some of the guests were gathered at the church door watching the violence of the storm.
Katherine came up to Susan. “We’re not going anywhere soon with this going on. Come visit with some old friends we’ve not chatted with in a while.”
Susan and Katherine went over to visit with their friends. Daniel gave her a generous smile as she approached.
“You were a stunning bridesmaid,” Daniel said. “You almost outshone the bride.”
“I did not,” Susan insisted. “She was much prettier than I was.”
Daniel cocked his head. “I guess that’ll depend on who you ask.”
Several old friends engaged Susan in conversation and she got caught up in the visiting until she looked up and saw the Duke and his aunt standing alone near the entrance looking anxious to leave.
“Excuse me,” Susan said and went over to greet the Duke.
“Your Grace, and I’m sorry, I don’t know your aunt’s name.”
“Mrs. Clarissa Darlington,” the Duke said. “Aunt Clarissa, this is Miss Susan Wilton, the sister of the bride.”
Susan wondered if the Duke remembered her from the previous unsuccessful wedding.
“Such a pleasure,” Mrs. Darlington said. “What a shame about the storm. We’ll all get muddy feet, even just going to the carriage.”
“I believe the drive in front of the church is graveled, Mrs. Darlington.”
“Ah, perhaps that’s so.”
“We’re so pleased the two of you could attend the wedding. It’s such an honor to have you both.”
Aunt Clarissa smiled. “How nice of you to say so. I’m afraid I get out little these days with all my duties at Haverford House, and I know few in the local community.”
Susan turned to the Duke, “Your Grace, I’m sorry we couldn’t order better weather for you.”
The Duke laughed. “Even his Royal Highness can’t do that. And please call me John. I think we’re well enough acquainted to be able to use Christian names, may we not?”
“If it pleases Your Grace. Sorry—John.”
“Will you be attending the reception?” Susan asked.
John thought for a moment. “I think not. Aunt hasn’t been feeling too well, and I think it best if we return home so she may rest.”
“Of course.” She turned to his aunt who was looking a little pale. “May I get you anything? Would you like to sit while the storm passes?”
“Thank you, dear, I would. I am feeling a little faint.”
Susan turned and waved to Katherine to come over.
“Please sit.” She led the aunt to an empty pew.
Katherine arrived. “Do you need something,” she asked.
“Yes, could you find some water, please? Mrs. Darlington is feeling a little faint.”
“Of course,” Katherine said, and turned to search for assistance.
Susan sat down next to Aunt and took her hand. “We’re looking for some water. It shouldn’t take too long. Are you feeling any better?”
“I am a little. Yes, thank you.”
“And how are you related to the Duke?” Susan asked.
“I’m his father’s sister. Widowed some years ago and since then in charge of the Haverford household. It keeps me busy and I’m still near family.”
“It must be a comfort, Mrs. Darlington.”
“Please, call me Aunt Clarissa.”
“I will,” Susan said smiling.
Katherine returned with a glass of water. “Here you are, and the Padre said there’s a sofa in the vestry you might lie down on if you wish.”
Aunt drank the water. “Oh, no. I’ll be just fine now.”
“Can we get you anything else?” Susan asked.
Aunt shook her head.
By now the rain was letting up and a few rays of sun created shafts of light in the neighboring fields. The Duke’s coach approached the entrance.
“Aunt, we can go now, if you like. The carriage is waiting for us.”
“Oh, yes. I should like that.”
Susan helped her up and led her toward the church door.
“Thank you, dear, you have been most kind,” Aunt said.
“My great pleasure,” Susan assured her.
As they were leaving, John turned to her and said, “A most pleasant wedding. Unlike the last one which ended so shamefully on my family’s part.”
He did remember. Susan nodded. “I’m pleased you enjoyed yourselves.”
“Your sister and her husband’s wedding present will be arriving at your family home in the next day or two.”
“Thank you, Your Grace, I’ll tell my sister.”
“John,” he said with a nod. “And if you don’t mind, I shall drop my Aunt back at Haverford House and return for the reception. I feel like a little celebrating is in order this afternoon.”
“We’d be honored.”
The Duke and his aunt departed and, with their leaving, the church quickly emptied out and the guests headed toward the inn where the reception was being held.
Susan was attending to her family when Katherine came up.
“Will you travel with Daniel and me to the inn?” she asked, and then leaned in and whispered. “He’s quite taken with you and particularly asked me to invite you. What do you say to that?”
Susan turned to her Mamma and asked if she might travel with Katherine. She nodded in agreement.
Daniel sat directly opposite Susan in the carriage. He was beaming at her like a boy eating watermelon.
“Miss Susan, Katherine tells me you’re teaching at our old school, he said.”
“I am,” Susan replied.
“Do you teach both boys and girls?”
“I do. Although they are in separate classes.”
“I don’t imagine the boys will be learning much with a charming teacher like yourself at the helm,” he said winking.
“It’s not a ship, Captain. The boys are children, not the leering sailors that you’re accustomed to.”
“Point taken. I guess I’ve been too long at sea.”
“And, as for my charms, like you said before, I guess it all depends on who you ask.” She winked back.
Katherine couldn’t help but giggle. “You two… the banter of the bantams. Like two roosters at a cock fight.”
Susan patted Katherine’s hand. “We’re just exercising our wings.”
Chapter 3
The party was in full swing as the Duke returned.
There was exuberant dancing and equally exuberant drinking. While the party was boisterous, the crowd was well behaved with only a minimal amount of bawdy jokes about the wedding night. These were country folk, after all, and not the high society of London.
Susan was clustered with a group of old friends. She saw the Duke go over to the bride and groom to congratulate them. He then went to speak with the two sets of parents. When he was finished, he went to the bar and ordered an ale, then stood back against the bar to observe the party.
Susan returned to her conversation with Katherine and several of their childhood friends that they’d not seen for a long while. It was fun catching up and reminiscing.
Daniel came over after chatting with his parents.
“Miss Susan, might I engage you for a dance? There’s little dancing aboard a frigate, and I have a yearning to stretch my legs a bit.”
“Captain, it would be my pleasure.”
Country dancing was much less refined than in the halls of London. There were no dainty Varsoviennes. No Zingirellas. No waltzes. Just hearty and robust county, polka dancers beating out strong rhythms across the dance floor.
Captain Daniel took Susan’s hand and led her into the dancing maelstrom already underway.
“Captain, what’s the name of your ship?” Susan asked.
“The Resolute.”
“Not heard of her. Is she a newly minted vessel?”
“Indeed she is. As I am a newly minted Captain. She’s my first ship and I’m her first captain.”
“Congratulations. You rose rapidly in the ranks it seems. And you started out as…?
“A lieutenant in His Majesty’s Royal Fleet.”
“And one day Admiral, I assume.”
Daniel smiled. “That is as it may be. It’s not for me to say. I could take a bullet in battle or go down in a broiling sea. A sailor learns not to plan too far ahead.”
“That sounds most wise.”
Daniel led her from the dance floor as their dance ended.
“Might I offer you some refreshment?” he asked.
“I think some punch would be refreshing.”
“And nothing to eat? The wedding feast seems most lavish.”
“We spared nothing for our guests. And we were particularly pleased that the Duke of Lennox agreed to be one of our guests. My parents were most impressed and wanted equally to impress the Duke.”
“I see. Then may I tempt you?”
“I think not. For me, a punch would suffice for now.”
“Then a punch it shall be. If you wait here, I shall return.”
Daniel left and Susan found a quiet spot where she could recover her breath after the vigorous dancing.
She was patting her brow with a handkerchief when she heard, “Might I have a dance, Miss Susan?”
She looked up to see John standing before her with his hand outstretched.
“Oh… Yes, of course.” She’d been taken by surprise.
John led her to the floor. The polkas seemed to have ended and the band was playing a pleasant enough waltz. The floor was less crowded and they were able to enter the dance without having to wait.
“My aunt spoke most highly of your kind service to her at the church,” he said.
“Thank her for me. I was happy to help. I know the church was close and, with the frenzy of the storm, the combination undoubtedly overcame her.”
As they danced Susan remembered that it was only a few years ago that the Duke’s wife, Annabel, died giving birth to their daughter, Elizabeth. It was rumored that he suffered greatly and in the ensuing years, the Duke was rarely seen at any local events. So his being here at the wedding was quite a surprise. Perhaps he was healing, she thought.
Susan looked up into John’s eyes, but she had to look away, as she felt a fluttering in her stomach, and was breathless, not because of the dance, but because of her rapidly beating heart. It had to be this man’s touch that was causing these sensations.
Susan needed to distract herself from this turmoil and she asked, “How is your daughter, Elizabeth? She must be four or five by now, is she not?”
John’s demeanor suddenly changed and he stopped dancing, turning away, and leaving Susan stranded on the dance floor without saying a word of good-bye. She was shocked. What had she said to elicit such an extreme reaction?
The Duke stormed out of the inn and she could see him riding off on his horse through the inn window.
“Sorry, it took so long,” Daniel said, as he came over to her with her punch. “But there was a slow moving line.”
Susan was still in a whirlwind of emotion and it was all she could do to answer Daniel. “Oh, yes. Thank you. There was no rush.”
“Did I see you dancing with the Duke of Lennox? I thought he’d gone back home with his aunt.”
“Yes, it was the Duke,” Susan mumbled as she made an effort to collect herself, twisting her handkerchief until it was in a tight rope.
Daniel had led her to the side of the room and he found them a small table.
“Would you care to sit? You seem upset. Is everything all right? Are you ill?”
Susan sat down, brushed down her skirt and directed her full attention back to Daniel. “No, I’m quite fine, thank you. I think I must have overexerted myself on the dance floor.”
“And the Duke—he certainly rushed off in a hurry. He looked angry.”
“Yes, he did and I don’t understand why. All I did was ask after his daughter. And he got upset and rushed off.”
“That seems most strange,” Daniel said, reaching out and putting his hand on top of Susan’s.
She looked over at him and smiled. He was helping her settle down.
“How long are you home for?” she asked, withdrawing her hand from his.
“I have but a week more.”
“And to where, and how long, is your next voyage?”
“I can’t say where, as that’s not public information, but I expect to be away for at least another year.”
“That must be very difficult for you—being so long away from home and family.”
“It’s the responsibility that goes along with the privilege of serving in the Royal Navy.” He looked deeply into her eyes. “And it can take a personal toll as well.”
“Well, look at you two. All cozy at this little table.” Katherine was standing over them, a drink in her hand, and looking particularly red faced and even a little tipsy.
Daniel looked disturbed at being interrupted. Susan felt there was more he wanted to say.
“Come on, you two, why aren’t you dancing?”
Just then Katherine’s beau, Roger, came over and put his arm around her waist. He was a sturdy county lad with dark-blond, receding hair, and one of those ruddy, flush complexions that so many country working, farm lads had.
“Aye, Katherine, my love, you promised me another turn about the floor,” he said poking her in the side.
She looked over at him with a great deal of affection and said, “And you shall have it, Roger. I was just trying to get my no-good brother and my reluctant girlfriend to get out there as well.”
“Come, brother, join us,” Roger said to Daniel.
Daniel looked over at Susan and she nodded. “Very well,” she said.
They stood, and the two couples headed for the dance floor.
But all through the dance, even though she was now more settled, Susan couldn’t get John’s reaction to her question out of her mind—not to mention her inner turmoil at his touch. She’d never felt that way at any other man’s touch—ever. Especially not Sir Jasper’s. And, as she thought about it, not even Simon’s.
“Are you happy for your sister’s marriage?” Daniel asked as they danced.
Susan was taken from her brief reverie. “Very much so. Robert’s a good friend and colleague of mine from where I teach. He’ll make her a very good husband. And I know she’ll make him a very good wife.”
Daniel seemed to hesitate, but went ahead and a
sked, “And I seem to remember, that not long after I left for the Navy, Katherine wrote that you were to be married, isn’t that so?”
“Indeed.” Susan smiled faintly. “But, alas it was not to be.”
Daniel waited for a further explanation, but it was not forthcoming. “Do you care to share the circumstances?”
Susan had long ago come to peace with the situation and was no longer shy about talking about the fiasco.
“My fiancé was Simon Chamberlain, the Duke’s brother. And—being the scoundrel that he was—absconded with goods and money from the Duke and disappeared on our wedding day.”
“You seem to take that well.”
“Oh, Daniel, how can one not laugh at the absurdity of the situation?”
“So you’re unattached? You aren’t being courted by others?”
“I recently escaped from a most boring suitor—who shall remain nameless. And at present, I’m enjoying my spinsterhood.”
“I see.” Daniel seemed to go into his own thoughts just before the dance ended.
As they were leaving the dance floor, Katherine came over and pulled Daniel aside and spoke to him.
He then came over to Susan. “My parents are jealous of the attention I’m giving you, and insisting that with my brief time home I spend more time with them. Will you forgive me?”
“Of course. Most understandable. And I should be spending more time with the new bride, groom, and my family as well.”
Daniel followed Katherine to where her family was gathered. She knew she needed to be with her family, but she took a moment to assess the past few moments. She was still shaken by the Duke’s abrupt departure, but she was also resonating with the fact that Daniel appeared to be interested in her. She had had no time to consider this new development and she realized his attentions pleased her. Daniel was most charming, quite handsome, and the brother of a close friend. But to be quite honest, he was a sailor—bound to be gone for many months or even years at a time. What sort of husband could he be under those circumstances?
Susan saw her mother waving for her to come over to the bride and groom’s table, and she went to join her family.
Her mother reached out her hand to Susan. “Come, sit with us. You’ve been too long away from us.”
The Governess Who Stole My Heart: A Historical Regency Romance Novel Page 3
