by Cheryl Holt
“What is Miss Etherton’s opinion of your approaching wedding?”
His father’s question yanked him out of his despicable reverie.
“I haven’t told her,” Aaron muttered.
“Why not?”
“She’s a very moral person. She wouldn’t understand how I could have developed an affection for her when I’m about to marry someone else.”
“When were you planning to tell her about it? Or were you going to simply waltz into the front foyer with Priscilla and introduce them?”
“I hadn’t thought it through. I’m so confused.”
“Here is what I need you to do, Aaron,” he father firmly, stoically said.
“What?”
“I want you to return to Fox Run and seduce Miss Etherton.”
“Father!” Aaron scolded. “I won’t talk about it.”
“She’s fascinated you, so avail yourself of her many charms. Have that fling I encouraged you to have. Get her out of your system before this eats you alive.”
“I can’t decide how to proceed.”
“Aaron…son…listen to me.”
“I’m listening, I’m listening.”
“Passion fades. Romance fades. You’re a man. You enjoy the chase, the hunt, but once you corner your quarry, your infatuation will wane.” Aaron must have looked as if he’d argue the point, for his father added, “You know this is true.”
“I suppose.”
“Let Miss Etherton thrill and tantalize you. Dine on her attributes. Feast until you are sated, but then I’m begging you, I’m pleading with you! Send her away so you can come home and wed Priscilla.”
“I’m not sure I can, Father. You might finally be asking too much of me.”
“I’m not, Aaron. I’m only asking what I’ve always asked, that you be a dutiful, loyal son. Please!”
His father had never begged Aaron for anything, and Aaron had never refused to do his father’s bidding. His father—for all his rants and foibles—had Aaron’s best interests at heart. Aaron realized that fact, which was why he’d never rebelled as Lucas had.
“If you would treat Priscilla so hideously,” his father softly said, “what will become of us? We’ll be shunned. We’ll be ostracized. I couldn’t bear it. Could you?”
The query rang out with an exhausting resonance, and Aaron winced.
At Fox Run, his choices had seemed so simple. He’d told himself he could tot off with Evangeline, but there were so many unconsidered aspects to such treacherous behavior. He was stupidly, foolishly in love, so he’d pretended none of those other aspects mattered, but they did.
And with his father staring, pleading, Aaron was at the end of his rope.
“I have to go,” he mumbled.
He pushed up from his chair and practically ran from the room.
“Aaron!” his father called. “Are you heading to Fox Run? Where will you be?”
Aaron ignored Lord Sidwell and kept on.
* * * *
“Might I have a private word with you?”
“If you must.”
Claudia glared at George, thinking she’d be delighted if he staggered out to the garden and drowned in the fountain.
Family difficulties were escalating. Aaron had left again, and Priscilla was in a wretched state, constantly asking if she was about to be jilted.
Claudia had no answers for her daughter. She wished she’d never given George the time of day when he’d suggested the betrothal. She wished she could get on a fast ship, sail away, and never come back.
She couldn’t imagine that a man as sensible and amiable as Aaron would cry off, but if he did, Claudia would buy a gun. A very large, very deadly gun. She’d use it to murder George Drake, then Aaron Drake. As she was dragged to the gallows, she’d climb the stairs with a smile on her face.
They were at a supper party, with Claudia not having known George would be present too. She’d been avoiding him, determined they wouldn’t cross paths until the night before the wedding when they were jointly hosting a lavish fete for the happy couple.
Happy couple, bah!
She was so disgusted, she nearly spat on the floor.
The meal was over, the guests mingling. George motioned to a quiet hallway, and she walked down it with him and followed him into an empty salon. He closed the door, and she watched as he went over to the sideboard and poured himself a whiskey.
When he poured her one too, she braced, recognizing that—whatever he was about to say—it would be very, very bad.
She grabbed her glass from him and took a long swallow, then said, “Let me have it. Don’t hold back.”
“I’ve seen Aaron.”
“Are you about to tell me it’s over? For if you are, I’m likely to throttle you with my bare hands.”
“No, it’s not over—although he’d like it to be.”
“I hope to God you told him to grow up and stop complaining.”
“I did, but it’s complicated.”
“Complicated in what way? Your son has been engaged for an entire year. The wedding is in three weeks. It’s a little late to whine about complications.”
“Don’t bark at me, Claudia. I completely agree with you.”
They stood, glowering like combatants in the ring, neither able to land the crucial, decisive blow.
“I need you to deal with a situation that’s arisen,” George said. “Actually, Priscilla needs to, but I have to ask you if you feel she’s up to the challenge.”
“The challenge? I won’t try to guess what you’re implying.”
“He’s met someone,” George bluntly stated.
“Who has? Aaron?”
“Yes.”
“Meaning what? He would wed her instead of Priscilla?”
“Yes, which is totally out of the question.”
“Of course it is,” Claudia concurred. “But…?”
“The woman is at Fox Run. Her name is Evangeline Etherton.”
“Evangeline? What sort of name is that? She sounds like a missionary’s daughter.”
“She’s a schoolteacher.”
“A schoolteacher?” The news made Claudia so angry that red dots formed in her vision, and she wondered if she wasn’t about to suffer an apoplexy.
“And not just any schoolteacher,” George said. “She worked at Miss Peabody’s school with Amelia Hubbard. They’re…friends.”
George placed special emphasis on the word friends, figuring that reference to Miss Hubbard would galvanize Claudia as nothing else possibly could.
Despite Claudia’s efforts to prevent the marriage, Miss Hubbard was about to join the Drake family as Lucas’s wife—if she hadn’t already. But one of her friends might join too? Aaron might shame Priscilla with Amelia Hubbard’s bosom companion?
It was all too much to absorb.
“What are you asking me, George? Whatever it is, I’ll do it.”
“Aaron is at Fox Run with Miss Etherton.”
“Marvelous,” Claudia sarcastically seethed. “Is he planning to return for the wedding?”
“I’m nervous, so I thought we should ensure Miss Etherton leaves Fox Run so she is no longer there to distract him. Once she’s gone, he’ll come to his senses.”
“How—pray tell—would we make her leave?”
“From what I’ve learned about Miss Etherton, she had a very sheltered upbringing. She’s a very moral, very honorable young woman.”
“I’m certain she’s a veritable paragon of integrity.”
“She wouldn’t tolerate deceit or dishonesty, and Aaron hasn’t bothered to inform her that he’s engaged.”
Claudia gasped. “She doesn’t know?”
“Apparently not.”
“How could he suppose to keep such a secret? A servant could simply mention it in passing, and it would blow up in his face.”
“He’s not thinking clearly.”
“Obviously not.”
“So I decided I should be thinking for him.”
“And yo
ur thinking is…?”
“Initially, I was opposed to Priscilla visiting Fox Run, but she hasn’t been there in ages, and it’s about to be her home. She should tour the manor and jot down a list of the redecorating projects she’d like to attempt.”
Claudia nodded. “I should probably travel with her. We could stay a few days.”
“Yes, several days are definitely in order.”
“After we arrive, we’re to chase Miss Etherton away? Is that the plan?”
“I’m expecting—when Priscilla introduces herself—Miss Etherton will go on her own. You and Priscilla won’t have to do anything at all.”
“What about Aaron? Won’t he be angry?”
“Briefly, but he can’t deny Priscilla’s identity or her desire to inspect the property. Miss Etherton seems to have a strange hold over him, but if she departs, her influence will evaporate, and he’ll be right as rain.”
“Consider it done, George.”
“Before you so firmly reply, Claudia, I must caution you. This will take an enormous amount of finesse. I would only advise your participation if you can coach Priscilla as to how the visit should be managed.”
Claudia scoffed. “Don’t worry, George. She’s my daughter. Once I explain what’s at stake, there will be no need to coach her.”
“When can you leave?” he asked.
“First thing in the morning.”
“Wonderful.”
He downed his drink, then walked to the door and yanked it open. “Send me a note as soon as there’s news.”
“I will.”
He slipped out, and she downed her own drink, then set down the glass with a hard thud.
Aaron, having an affair! Aaron, imagining Claudia and his father would let him cry off! The stupid idiot had a marital noose around his neck, and she’d be more than happy to strangle him with it.
She hurried back to the party to find Priscilla so they could head home and pack their bags.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
No, no, I want to stay with you…
Evangeline thrashed in her sleep, trying to push herself out of her dream.
“Don’t make me go with them!” she moaned, the haunting remark jabbing at an old wound she’d never understood.
She grabbed for someone’s hand—she couldn’t see who it was—but bigger, stronger hands yanked her away. She wailed with fear and lurched awake, her heart pounding, tears on her cheeks. It took her a moment to calm, to remember where she was: her bedchamber at Fox Run.
She was in her bed, safely snuggled under the covers. The room was dark, but out in the sitting room the remnants of a fire still burned. She rolled onto her side so she could be comforted by that bit of light, so she wouldn’t feel so alone.
To her surprise, Aaron was in a chair a few feet away, drinking a glass of liquor and quietly watching her.
She gasped with delight. When he’d left for London, he hadn’t said how long he’d be away, and she’d been on pins and needles every second, staring down the lane, hoping to find him riding in.
“Hello, you.” She smiled. Everything would be all right now. Finally.
“Hello.”
“When did you get back?”
“Awhile ago.”
“You sneaked in, you bounder.”
“I was just about to wake you. It sounded as if you were having a nightmare. Was it your same dream again?”
“Yes.”
“Were there any new details?”
“No, it’s always exactly the same. I’m very young, and someone is taking me away, but I don’t want to go.”
“I wish I had an idea of what it indicates.”
“Believe me, so do I.”
“If we could unravel it, we might learn about your past.”
“When I was tiny, I yearned to figure it out, but as I grew older, I started to think that maybe I wasn’t meant to know my history. Maybe it would be horrid and I’d be crushed.”
“Or maybe it would be grand, and you’d discover you had an entire family out there that’s dying to meet you.”
“If I have a huge, mythical family, how was I lost in the first place?”
“That’s an intriguing question, isn’t it?”
He stood and came over to the bed. As he eased a hip onto the mattress, he seemed troubled.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“I’m fine.” He paused, pondered, then shook his head. “Actually, I’m not fine. Why do people always say they are? We’re all so bloody polite.”
His crude language disturbed her. It signified he’d probably had more to drink than she’d suspected.
“You must have been traveling for hours. Were you riding alone in the dark?”
“Yes.”
“I’m guessing you were drinking and riding. Was that wise? I’d have been panicked if I’d known.”
“I was eager to return.”
“To see me?”
“Yes, to see you, you scamp. What would you suppose?”
“Well, I was hoping it wasn’t to sit around reading your account ledgers, but you can be such a stern fellow. How can a girl be sure?”
“I missed you,” he murmured.
“I missed you too.”
He pulled her into his arms, lifting her off the mattress to bestow a stirring, exhilarating kiss that went on and on. He seemed particularly driven as he’d never previously been with her. He caressed her everywhere, as if needing to feel she was solid and real, that she wasn’t an illusion.
“I’m glad you’re still here,” he said as he drew away. “I’m glad you didn’t leave.”
“I told you I wouldn’t.”
“I was afraid you’d be gone.”
“Silly man. I wouldn’t go anywhere without you.”
“Good. Let’s keep it that way.”
What did he mean? Was he saying he wanted to be with her forever?
“How was London?” she asked.
“Oh, about as awful as I could have predicted.”
“Were you able to settle your family issues?”
“No, but with my family, nothing is ever easy.” He studied her, then—almost as if he was testing her—he inquired, “Do you know any of my relatives other than the Bosworths?”
“I know your brother. I met him once.”
“You never mentioned it.”
“It never came up. Besides, it was just a quick introduction. He briefly stopped by the school where I was teaching.”
“So you know his fiancée, Amelia Hubbard.”
“She’s a great friend of mine, but are you certain they’re still betrothed? Last I heard, they’d decided not to proceed.”
“And last I heard, they’d decided they should.”
“Should I celebrate or not?”
“Time will tell if it’s for the best. I love my brother, and I’m an optimist, so I’ll keep my fingers crossed.”
Aaron chuckled, but it wasn’t very merry. He looked distressed and a tad lost.
She rested a palm on his cheek. “It was difficult for you to go home, wasn’t it?”
“It always is. My father is a hard man.”
“Your issues involved him?”
“Yes, and other…things, but guess what, Evangeline?”
“What?”
“I don’t want to talk about London or my father. I’ve talked lately until I’m blue in the face.”
She tugged on the covers and patted the mattress. “Then lie down with me. Let’s just hold each other. You’ll be better very soon.”
She shouldn’t have asked, and he gazed at her for an eternity, clearly debating whether he should agree, but finally, he slipped under the blankets and stretched out. He slid an arm under her shoulders and pulled her to him, so she was draped over his chest, her ear directly over his heart. She could hear its steady beating.
Immediately, she realized it was the most thrilling moment of her life. He was big and warm and solid, and with him touching her all the way down,
she felt safe and secure and cherished as she’d never been.
He stared at the ceiling, obviously torn by weighty thoughts. She yearned to inquire, What about us? What will happen?
He’d claimed they would eventually be together. Had he spoken to Lord Sidwell? Had they quarreled over her?
If so, she had to do whatever she could to make Aaron see it wasn’t the end of the world. Once they were married—even if the earl was initially furious—Evangeline would wear him down so he accepted her.
She had excellent instincts with people, could charm them with her pretty manners. She’d charm the earl too. Of that fact, she had no doubt.
“You’re not angry with me, are you?” she asked.
“With you? Never. Why would I be?”
“My presence here is creating so many problems.”
“No, you’re wrong. You’re the only good thing I have at all.”
He kissed her again, the embrace quickly growing heated as he shifted her onto her back, as he also shifted so he was on top of her.
“Have you visited my cousin?”
His query vexed her. It seemed an odd time to discuss her betrothal or the vicar.
“You asked me not to. I sent a message to the vicarage that I had a cold, so he’s stayed away.”
“You haven’t severed the engagement?”
“No, but now that you’re home, I’ll do it right away. I’ll go to him tomorrow.”
“I couldn’t bear it if you married him.”
“I couldn’t either. We’re completely incompatible. I shouldn’t have agreed without meeting him, but when I was first informed of the betrothal, I was pressured to make a decision.”
“You deserve someone much better than him.”
“That’s what I’ve been thinking too.”
She paused, on tenterhooks, waiting, expecting him to propose, but he was silent.
Blasted man!
He simply began kissing her again, sweeping her into the spiral of desire.
There was a frantic level to it that had never arisen previously. They grappled and pawed at each other as if they were struggling through barriers, fighting their way to a gripping conclusion. She couldn’t hold him tightly enough, couldn’t bring him near enough. He appeared to feel the same, as if it was impossible to satisfy their need to connect.
When he’d sneaked into her room, she’d been asleep and attired in her nightgown. Gradually, he was removing it, tugging up the hem, untying the bow on the bodice, so he could yank the garment over her head. He tossed it on the floor.
