"Is there a problem?" she asked as calmly as she could.
"No, miss. I mean, my lady. It's just, should you be going out alone?"
He was sweet to care. Caroline knew that. So she shouldn't feel irritated by his concern.
"Oh, there is a party of us. I just thought to get a bit of a head start. Only in the gardens, of course. I would not go far unattended." Caroline gave him a blinding smile and noticed his cheeks turn scarlet.
"Very good, my lady," he stuttered. "If you are sure."
"I am quite sure, Jimmy," she answered confidently acting as though she had all the time in the world.
It did not take long for Fortuna to be brought out, saddled up and ready to go. Caroline stood on the mounting block and pulled herself into the saddle with ease. She and Fortuna had gotten to know each other very well over her stay and Caroline would be relying on their camaraderie to get Fortuna to London in record time.
Caroline stayed on the normal track for a few moments, until she was sure that Jimmy had stopped watching and gone back to the stables, then as soon as she felt the coast was clear she set off for the road.
Of course, they would discover she was gone soon enough and it would not take much to figure out where to. But that did not concern her right now. What concerned her was finding Tom and telling him, once and for all, that she loved him.
The journey was more arduous than Caroline had supposed it to be and some hours into it, she began to worry about the folly of her plan.
It was all well and good galloping off with these grand notions of romance but practicalities had a habit of getting in the way of grand notions and it wasn't long before Caroline began to think of all the things that could go wrong with her journey.
For one thing, she did not know for sure where Tom was headed. For all she knew, he could decide to go to his home in London before going to the docks.
For another, once she was seen in London, galloping about alone, her reputation would be in absolute shreds. Nobody would accept her anywhere and she would bring disgrace to her family's name, as well as Edward's.
And what if she could not find him? What if, by the time she got there, he had already left? What then?
Caroline began to feel decidedly panicky. She had never ridden so far alone before. She was frightened and, since the road was quite rough in parts, she was bloody sore too.
Plus, the sky was starting to darken ominously.
Caroline was seriously tempted to turn back. But, she had been travelling for some hours now and was, in fact, closer to London than she was to Essex.
And besides, if she were to turn back, what would she be turning back to? A life of emptiness, of never experiencing the joy of love and being loved?
She had lived that life for too long. And Tom deserved better. Deserved to know that Caroline loved him, that he hadn't been let down again.
So, with renewed steel in her spine, Caroline continued on the road to London and prayed that she was not too late.
The sounds, sights and smells of London's docks would haunt her forever, Caroline thought some hours later as she lead Fortuna cautiously toward the harbour.
This was no place for a lady.
She had often heard it said and now she understood why.
The closer she got to the harbour, the stronger was the smell. It was the stench of fish and of uncleanliness.
Everywhere she looked, men leered at her in a way that she had never experienced, and hostile looking women, who wore a lifetime of drudgery on their faces, made their unacceptance clear.
Caroline was afraid. Truly afraid.
The darkening sky was starting to empty and soon there would be a tumult of rain and nowhere to shelter from it.
She could, she thought desperately now, hide out in one of the taverns, but they really weren't establishments she would like to enter. For one thing, most of them were filled with raucous and extremely ungentlemanly sailors. For another, she was afraid of getting caught up in one of the brawls that seemed to break out for no obvious reason.
She was beginning to regret her impetuous decision. She was lost, alone and had nobody to turn to for help.
Of course, there would be people of her own class milling around the transatlantic ship but she had no idea where to go or even what time the sailing was. If she'd missed it already then she truly had no idea what she would do.
The rain began to come down in earnest now and Caroline stood in the middle of the muddy, dirty street and felt like crying.
This was not how she had intended things to go. She should be back in Essex, with Tom, celebrating their engagement with her family.
Caroline looked around and saw, to her terror, that she was garnering more and more attention. And none of it good.
Perhaps she should turn around and leave, she thought desperately. Her heart was pounding and she noticed that she had caught the attention of a group of dirty looking men who had stumbled out of a building to her left. She did not think it was a tavern. No, based on the women who were milling outside and even leaning out of the windows, it was the type of building that Caroline had never wanted to see.
She swallowed her tears of fright as the men began to call out to her.
"Ain't this a pretty one?"
"And what's a fancy thing like you doin' alone in a place like this?" they called as they approached slowly.
Oh, God, I do not know what to do, thought Caroline frantically.
Perhaps she should run? But where to?
Her breathing became shallow as she panicked in earnest. It would not do to faint yet she felt dizzier by the second.
Suddenly, her arm was grabbed and she screamed in fright.
"My lady." She looked down into the startlingly green eyes of a very beautiful young woman. "My lady," the girl repeated, "come, it is not safe here, for either of us."
Caroline had no idea who this girl was, or if she could trust her. It was entirely possible that she was being led away to be robbed. Or worse.
But something told her that this young woman was just as scared as she, and that she clearly did not belong here either.
"Come," she urged Caroline again. So Caroline pulled on Fortuna's reins and followed the girl quickly back up the street.
They came to a sort of square, in the better part of the port, Caroline supposed, though it was still a less than salubrious place.
Caroline's companion slowed to a stop. The rain was beating heavily on them both and Caroline noticed the young girl carried two trunks with her.
"Who are you?" she asked without preamble.
This was fast become a total nightmare.
"My name is Julia, my lady. Julia Channing."
"Lady Caroline Carrington," answered Caroline.
The girl looked to be about Caroline's own age and her manner of dress and speaking indicated that she was highborn. Or at the very least upper middle class. So what was she doing here alone?
"Are you with someone?" Caroline asked now and noticed a flash of emotion across Miss Channing's face before she schooled her features into impassivity.
"I—no, my lady. I am quite alone."
"Well, where are you going?" asked Caroline, amazed to think that there were two young ladies wandering around London by themselves. It simply wasn't done.
"I have no idea," Miss Channing laughed, though it sounded a little hysterical. "I had thought to catch a ship but it seems that the passenger boats are not sailing for a few hours yet so I am rather stuck. Are—are you travelling too, my lady?"
"No," said Caroline, shouting to be heard over the torrential rain. At least it had cleared the streets somewhat and she felt slightly safer. "No, I came to look for someone but I have no idea where to start."
Caroline felt a little better about her hopeless situation, knowing that she was not entirely alone. And she trusted Miss Channing. The girl was shockingly beautiful but seemed sweet and she had helped Caroline, after all.
"Perhaps—perhaps we
should leave here. My family's townhouse is in Mayfair, though I do not know if my brother opened it before coming to Essex." She knew she was talking of things that Miss Channing would not understand but she was cold and frightened and worried that she had lost Tom for good. "If not, we could always go to my sister's. She is not there but the staff know me. I do not think it would benefit either of us to stay here for much longer."
Miss Channing looked shocked at Caroline's offer, but relieved too.
"Yes, perhaps that is best."
They turned to go, Caroline trying not to cry about missing her chance to see Tom. If the boats weren't sailing until later, she could go back to Mayfair and get some of Edward's footmen to accompany her on her search. That was sure to be safer and more efficient.
Caroline was brought up short to realise that, as they'd been speaking, the men who had been shouting at her further down the street had stealthily surrounded them. They were stuck.
Tom lowered his glass and shook his head at the bartender's silent offer of another. He'd had quite enough.
How idiotic he'd been to come tearing off to London. His boat did not leave for hours, which left him far too much time to nurse his heartache.
It had happened again. He called himself every kind of damned idiot.
Two years of trying to forget her totally wasted. And what was more, he knew now that he would never forget her. She was unforgettable. She was his heart, his soul, his whole world.
He had been sure, so sure, of her love for him. But then, he'd never told her that he'd loved her. Never said the words. But surely she had known?
He thought back to last night. It seemed like a hundred years ago. She had wanted him, he was sure of it.
So how could everything have changed so much? Perhaps she was still as much a coward as she had been before. Perhaps the love of a title was still stronger than her love for him.
God, if he could buy a kingdom for her he would. He could probably afford it too.
Tom shook his head. Sitting in a tavern in the docks for hours on end would not help, much as it was tempting to forget the whole world right now. He would be better off returning home and coming back in a few hours.
Slowly, wearily, he made his way to the door, ignoring the various invitations being thrown his way by the light skirts who liked to frequent places like this.
He pushed open the door and was surprised by the downpour. So much for sunny summer days. Well, the weather befitted his mood.
He was about to walk round and collect Brutus when he noticed a group of men, and he could not accuse them of being gentlemen in any way, surrounding what looked like two lone women.
From his quick glance, the women looked like they did not belong here. He wondered if they were in some sort of trouble.
Blast it all. He would have to help. His conscience would not let him do otherwise.
So he made his way over to the group, sizing them up and noticing with some satisfaction that they were extremely unsteady on their feet. That should make it easier should things turn nasty.
Tom was about to call out, when suddenly the air left his lungs. Two of the men parted a little and he got a clear view of the women. He had no idea who the shorter red-head was, but whoever she was, she was standing with Caroline.
Caroline was whispering furiously to Miss Channing, urging her not to panic.
"We shall wait for them to part a little, and then we shall run. Do you understand?" she asked urgently.
Miss Channing could only whimper in fright but she nodded her head.
The men were swaying unsteadily and Caroline hoped that would make it more difficult for them to follow.
Her habit was soaking wet and heavy. Caroline thought back to Rebecca's ordeal when she had been kidnapped by the awful man who had been psychotically obsessed with her. It had rained then too, she remembered Rebecca telling her. And it hadn't stopped Rebecca from escaping, so it would not stop Caroline either.
She noticed suddenly that one of the men stumbled, meaning that there was a break in the circle.
Shouting "run" she dashed towards it, only to slam into something solid. Before she could fall back, two strong arms snapped out and caught her.
Caroline looked up, preparing to scream, and found herself looking into the most beautiful eyes in the world.
"Tom," she gasped before throwing her arms around him and sobbing into his neck.
Tom had no idea what was going on, but he had no time to try to figure it out. The young girl who had accompanied Caroline was standing unaccompanied and he could see their group of admirers trying to figure out whether she was with Tom or not.
Caroline still clung to him, her body trembling, so he moved her gently to one side then reached out an arm and pulled the young lady toward him.
"Stay close," he muttered to her and she nodded her consent, though she looked as shaken as Caroline.
What on earth was going on here?
"Are those yours or Caroline's trunks Miss?"
"Channing. My name is Julia Channing. And yes they are, mine that is. Mister?"
Tom smiled at the young lady's spirit.
"Crawdon," he answered easily. "If you'll excuse me."
Removing Caroline gently from his side, but not before dropping a kiss on her head, because he couldn't help himself, he walked over to the gentlemen, still surrounding the lady's trunks.
"Be careful," he heard Caroline whimper. He turned back to wink at her, before returning to the men in front of him.
He walked straight through them and picked up the lady's trunks, staying alert for any sign of danger.
"They both belong to you?" asked one of the men in a slur that could hardly be described as English.
Tom gritted his teeth but gave no answer as he plucked up one trunk then another and turned to walk back toward the ladies.
He deposited the trunks at their feet, placed Fortuna’s reins firmly in Caroline’s hands, then turned back to the men.
He did not want any trouble, not in front of Caroline, so he said nothing, just gave a speaking glance before turning away.
He needed to get the ladies out of here.
"They can't both be his…" The conversation went on behind him and he did his utmost to ignore it.
"Well one of 'em is."
"My money's on the blonde. See the way he looked at her?"
"Can you blame him?"
A raucous laugh and Tom felt his blood begin to boil.
He should just leave it. Walk away.
"No, I can't. If she was my bit of skirt I'd take—"
He didn't get to finish as Tom's fist slammed into his mouth. Probably not the best idea he'd ever had. But the bastard had it coming.
Thankfully, the rest of the drunken men decided they didn't want any trouble and quickly scarpered away.
Tom walked back to Caroline and waited until her eyes connected with his gaze.
"Now—" His calm tone belied his inner fury. Had she any idea how much danger she was in walking around here with only another young woman for company? When he thought of what could have happened to her, the fear was unlike anything he'd ever felt. "Do you want to tell me what the hell you're doing here by yourself?"
Caroline was in such a state of shock, fear, and relief that Tom was here that she could not string a sentence together.
But there was so much, so much that she wanted to say.
He was furious. That much was clear from the flash of fire in his blue eyes, though his voice remained calm. Too calm.
"I-I c-came to f-find you." She tried to speak, truly she did. But her teeth were chattering and the wet was soaking into her skin.
Tom bit out a curse then looked around as if trying to figure out what to do.
"Alright," he said after a moment's silence, "Come with me."
They set off at a slow pace, and how strange they must have looked.
Caroline had ridden Fortuna to exhaustion so Tom left her with the reins while he pluck
ed up Miss Channing's cases and they made their way toward where Brutus was tethered.
Tom had arranged for Brutus to be picked up later by a footman but he would be home now before someone even left to pick up the horse.
So now he had two horses, two hysterical females, two heavy trunks and no idea what to do with any of them. Marvellous.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
TOM PACED ANXIOUSLY in the study of his townhouse while he waited for Mrs. Smith, his housekeeper, to see to his unexpected guests.
He had dispatched a footman as soon as they had returned with a note to his estate in Essex informing them that Caroline was, bizarrely, here.
The journey back to the house had been interesting to say the least. They had walked past several unsavoury characters until Tom could hail a hackney into which he'd deposited the ladies and the cases, before mounting Brutus and leading Fortuna beside him.
It had been a slow progress but at least Caroline was out of the rain now.
Tom had been worried sick that she would catch her death but Mrs. Smith was an extremely capable woman and he knew that she was in safe hands.
He also knew that he had no women's clothes here so sent someone round to Edward's. A strange request to be sure, but in his note he had asked that two of Caroline's or Rebecca's gowns be sent round.
Tom did not know if they would fit or not but the ladies had to wear something and he could not very well lend them some of his clothes.
He groaned aloud at the vision of Caroline in his shirt. Now was not the time.
His head was reeling. What the hell had happened that Caroline had turned up alone in the middle of the London docks? And where were the people who were supposed to be looking after her?
The answer came soon enough.
Just as he was pouring himself a much-needed drink, the front door had been thumped loud enough to shake the house.
He heard the footman scramble to open it but Tom did not need to guess who it was.
Before he had a chance to stand, his study door burst open heralding the arrival of Edward, Rebecca, Aunt Catherine, and Charles. They scrambled into the room, nearly falling over themselves.
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