Adeline

by Christina McKnight

  “Of course,” Watson stammered.

  “You were saying, Watson?” Jasper asked, aiming to recapture the man’s attention. But when Watson looked back at his master, Jasper was certain Watson had forgotten what he’d come to tell him. “The coach?”

  It was the only prodding needed as Watson nodded vigorously and refocused on Jasper. “Yes, me apologies. Miss Adeline’s coach canna be repaired—“ At Jasper’s scowl, Watson collected himself and rearranged his thoughts. “What I mean ta say, is it be much longer ta fix it, and even then, it be likely the coach would break down again afore reach’n London.”

  “Oh, no,” Adeline protested, jumping to her feet. “I must return, or my brother will think something awful has happened to me.”

  For the first time since her arrival, the thought struck Jasper that the proper thing to do would have been to send a servant to London, even with the storm, with word of Adeline’s safety and the repairs needed for the carriage. Instead, he’d thought only of making certain she found refuge at the Abbey, without thought of her family’s concern.

  Adeline welcomed the servant’s intrusion, yet she did not relish the news he’d brought. Her carriage was beyond repair, or at least it could not be mended at Faversham Abbey. Watson’s news should have filled her with a sense of helplessness. Instead, she only thought of more time with Lord Ailesbury—Jasper. Eventually, it would be necessary for her to find her way back to London and her family, but a few more days’ respite was certainly not all bad.

  After the storm had passed and the roads dried, she would buy passage on the mail coach, much like she’d done to come to Canterbury that first time. Certainly, Alistair could not object to her making the journey alone with only her drive and maid, though she hoped Jasper would allow her to borrow the funds for the fare.

  To think he’d lost both his parents at the same age Adeline had been cast from her family’s home and sent to a school where she hadn’t known a soul. At least her family had been alive and whole. The same was not true for Jasper.

  “She and her maid will take my traveling coach,” the earl announced, brushing his hands together as if all had been resolved and the remedy was best for everyone.

  Yet, his proclamation meant she’d likely be packed up and shoved off toward home at first light. God, Adeline glanced about the room until her gaze settled on a small clock on the table by the windows. Seven o’clock…in the evening.

  A meal would likely be served shortly, and then she’d be sent to her chambers for the night, that is if Jasper didn’t demand she dine there alone as she was still outfitted in the damp, borrowed riding habit. She’d paused briefly before sitting on the lounge, worried the water from her skirts would damage the fabric of the furniture, but ultimately, she’d decided her skirting was not saturated enough to cause lasting injury.

  “Wonderful, m’lord,” Watson replied with a curt bow to Ailesbury and then Adeline, where she still stood.

  “Wait,” Adeline said, stepping away from the lounge. “If you have not traveled beyond the village, how can you be certain your carriage will not suffer the same fate as mine?”

  Watson chuckled, and Jasper frowned as she looked between the two men.

  The servant spoke first, “Because, m’lord maintains his carriages hisself. He not be overlook’n anythin’, I can say that for certain.”

  “He does?” Adeline asked, turning back to Jasper. “That is very interesting. I was aware you owned the plant but—“

  “Oh, he be do’n far more than that, miss,” Watson said in a conspiratorial tone, leaning in close to Adeline. “My master looks after the livestock, the crops, and all the repairs—both here and in the village.”

  Yet, Adeline had witnessed the villagers turning away from him after he’d risked his own safety to save Grovedale.

  “Watson.” The warning in Jasper’s tone was similar to when he’d caught her at the plant. “As I was saying, ready the carriage for Miss Adeline and her maid. Maxwell can ride up top with George to London. They will leave at first light and arrive with the noonday sun.”

  The smile fell from Adeline’s face, and her spirits dipped. She would see no further reprieve, gain no more time with Jasper.

  “And, as Miss Adeline has voiced concern, I think it best I accompany them to town and the safety of her brother’s townhouse.” The man did not so much as smile at his news, his mouth drawing into a straight, serious line.

  “You do not have to do that,” Adeline countered. “I am certain we shall make the journey without incident.”

  She would never insist he make the trip to London with her; never expect him to leave his home, his duties, his people to make certain she arrived safely. The prospect of hours nestled in the closed carriage, no one but Jasper and Poppy for company, should excite her after thinking she’d be departing Faversham and would never see the man again. Yet, the idea of Jasper in London terrified her.

  He’d lived a sheltered existence at the Abbey. Something he was accustomed to.

  Things were not the same in London. People gossiped in parlors, in ballrooms, at the opera, at the playhouse, in the parks, in the gardens…and most never even bothered to lift their fan to hide it.

  “It would assuage my gentleman’s honor to know you made the journey safely,” Jasper said as he moved to the sideboard and poured a clear liquid into another polished, glass tumbler. “We shall leave at daybreak, and I shall return not long after nightfall.”

  The words were spoken low, as if he were reassuring himself that the decision to accompany her was not the grand mistake Adeline feared it would be.

  Lord Ailesbury punctuated the decision by throwing his head back and swallowing the liquid he’d poured from the sideboard.

  His resolve instilled a measure of confidence in Adeline at Jasper’s plan.

  Abbington stepped into the room once more as Watson bowed and made his departure.

  “Dinner, my lord,” the man announced.

  “I will take my meal in my room, Abbington.” Jasper set his glass back on the table. “Please see that Miss Adeline eats her fill. I am certain she is ravenous after our long, eventful day.”

  He stepped before her, made to take her hand, but paused when he seemed to remember her fingers were bare. Instead, he issued a quick bow and turned to leave the room.

  “Until the morrow, Miss Adeline,” he called as he crossed the threshold.

  She gave Abbington a weak smile as he gestured for her to proceed him from the room, following in Lord Ailesbury’s wake.

  Adeline was most certainly, positively, undoubtedly starving—but not for any food to be had at Faversham Abbey. Her cheeks heated at the thought, and she ducked her head as she passed the butler to hide her flaming face.

  Chapter 13

  Adeline stretched her arms above her head and arched her back with a low groan, careful not to knock into Poppy, who slumbered on the seat next to her. The maid had been like a hawk the entire journey to London, completely at odds with her less than attentive demeanor while at Faversham Abbey.

  And what a comfortable jaunt it had been. Jasper’s traveling coach was as he’d proclaimed, well-maintained and lavish, with an even, smooth ride to match—so far superior to her own family’s carriage she might as well have been riding in a market cart before. Now, she had the sense she traveled like a queen—or at least a princess. As they’d rolled through the small towns on their way from Kent to London, people had stopped to gawk and wave as they passed. Young children dropped whatever they held and ran alongside, shouting their hellos.

  If Alistair were in possession of such a fine conveyance, Adeline would endeavor to spend more time traveling…to Somerset, Essex, Bath, Dover, and, oh, certainly a trip to Kent. She would visit her sisters at Miss Emmeline’s School each and every month, without fail.

  Images of the man sitting across from her invaded her sweet fantasy. Would she long to stop at Faversham Abbey, as well?

  She glanced to where he sat ac
ross from her, his scowl focused out the window as they entered London proper. When he met her in the foyer at the Abbey, prepared to depart, she’d been taken aback by what she saw. Gone was his casual appearance as he’d oiled and tied back his dark hair with a shiny black ribbon, his boots were polished until they shone, his coat and neckcloth—while outdated by society standards—were clean, pressed, and well-tailored. His trousers were not as form-fitting as was commonplace among the London ton, but they accentuated his muscular thighs. The height of his collar and the tie of his cravat hid the worst of his scars, but still Adeline could see them below his ear and at his cheek.

  To her chagrin, Jasper—err, Lord Ailesbury—could walk into any Bond Street shop or stroll the rows at Hyde Park, and no one would think anything of it. His aristocratic nose, hard jawline, and reserved arrogance were the makings of a most sought after lord.

  Bond Street and Hyde Park were one thing…the Melton horde was another. With eight siblings, Adeline could never accurately predict what they would say or do. Thankfully, Arabella and Ainsley were in Canterbury, and Adeline’s mother hardly left her rooms. But that still left all four of her brothers, Alistair, Abel, Alfred, and Adrian, and her two sisters, Adelaide and Amelia. Plus, Theodora… Adeline could not forget her dearest friend-turned-family-member. Part of her argued she should inform Jasper what was to come once they arrived at her family’s home. Although another part of her—a far more insistent part—suspected that if he knew, he’d likely push her from the moving carriage as it rolled past her family townhouse and hurry back to the Abbey as quickly as he could.

  She refused to dwell on why she cared so much about her family’s opinion of the earl.

  He’d merely rescued her from the storm, provided shelter and food until it passed, attempted to repair their family coach, and now returned her to the loving embrace of her kin.

  Simple. Uncomplicated. And unquestionably noble of Lord Ailesbury.

  Unfortunately, in Adeline’s mind, nothing about Jasper was simple or uncomplicated—though she never doubted his noble intent.

  Certainly, it was her actions and thoughts that were not quite so pure.

  Her skin grew warm every time she thought of him rescuing Grovedale from harm.

  A tingle shot through her each time she pictured him in his library, pacing before the fire, with the light making his shirt all but transparent. His corded muscles, his broad shoulders, his powerful stride…then it had all broken down when he’d dropped his tumbler and allowed his head to fall backwards as his eyes closed.

  It had been meant to be a private moment. Had he been reflecting on the past? Relieved about the present? Or dreading the future?

  Adeline did not know, nor had she asked. What she was certain of, was that she could have stood there, her back pressed against the closed door, and watched him in his private musings all night—and possibly into the next day.

  As they traversed the congested London streets on their way to her family home, Adeline noted a transformation in the man sitting across from her. He no longer looked bored nor irritated. His pensive scowl gradually altered to a look of utter disbelief—he was enthralled with the scene outside his coach. They rolled down the wide street, taking their place in the slow-moving line of coaches and horsemen, no one paying them any mind. It was far different than the fascinated looks they’d received as they traveled through the remote countryside.

  Adeline glanced out her window, attempting to see the London streets from Jasper’s eyes as if she were seeing it all for the first time.

  Women promenaded down the walk on the arms of finely dressed gentlemen, with their servants following, their arms heavy with their masters’ Bond Street purchases. A shopkeeper swept the wooden walk outside his shop and waved to a man on horseback. A cart, loaded precariously with fruits and vegetables for the market, careened to the left to avoid a man who stepped into the street without first looking. The sharp shrillness of a child’s scream drew Adeline’s attention to a mother and son, standing outside Samson’s Ices, the babe pulling and straining toward the shop and the delights within.

  “My aunt, Alice, said my parents would bring me to London with them when I was a babe,” Jasper said, sitting back in his seat and turning toward her. His unexpected words startled her—he’d been silent most of the trip, even dozing for a while. “However, I remember nothing about the city or our time here.”

  His stare turned hooded, and Adeline wondered if his thoughts had traveled to his deceased parents or his aunt, whom he spoke of with such reverence and kindness it was as if she were the only mother he knew. Yet, he hadn’t been a babe when his parents died—twelve is young adulthood. Adeline had traveled to Canterbury all on her own by mail coach at the same age.

  “London can be overwhelming and stiflingly grand if one is not versed in city life, my lord.” She added the my lord in preparation for the time to come. She needed to keep in mind that Jasper was only the man who’d stumbled upon her unusable carriage and offered assistance, he was nothing more to her. He could be nothing more. “I have found that one either falls in love with the hustle and bustle of London, or they depart and return only when forced.”

  His brow drew low as he allowed that to sink in. When he remained silent, and her maid, Poppy, began to stir, Adeline sat back against the velvet cushion.

  All too soon, the carriage shifted, indicating they’d turned off the main street and onto the lane that led to her family townhouse. There was no time left to warn him about her peculiar family, nor her overbearing eldest brother. There was no time to make apologies for anything that might spring from her siblings’ mouths.

  There was no time to even so much as tamp down her nerves because the traveling coach swayed once more as it turned into the rounded drive of the Melton Townhouse and drew to a stop.

  Chapter 14

  Jasper took a deep breath, begging his heart to cease its racing and the unease that coursed through him to vanish. He would only see that Adeline made it inside safely, her belongings unloaded and returned to her home, and then he would be on his way back to Faversham Abbey. Simple, uncomplicated—certainly the courteous thing to do in such a situation.

  Or, at least that’s what he’d chanted to himself the previous night as he’d tossed and turned, dwelling on the fact that come morning light, he’d be trapped in an enclosed coach with the woman who either reduced him to a fumbling mess or incited his anger every time they shared the same space. The chant had not disappeared during their long day of travel, either; it had only been reduced to a silent plea that rattled around inside of him, causing his head to pound.

  Glancing out the window once more, his coach pulled to a stop outside a modest townhouse, as the door sprang open and several footmen ran forth. His driver, George, hadn’t even disembarked his perch before he was greeted by a man in cream and blue garb. The sheer number of servants exiting the house, all dressed in the same attire, had Jasper praying that departing his carriage would be unnecessary. Certainly, he could watch Adeline enter her home from here. His driver could handle the unloading of her trunks, and he could be on his way.

  It was a stellar plan until he looked over at Adeline and noticed her smile.

  She was excited to be home, as she should be.

  Beside her, her maid reached out and collected their possessions and slipped them into Adeline’s handbag.

  Adeline’s driver, Maxwell, opened the carriage door and put the steps into position.

  Adeline didn’t move.

  No hand reached in to assist her down.

  Neither George nor Maxwell came into view through the open carriage door.

  Bloody hell, they stood back and awaited Jasper’s exit. It was his duty to offer his hand to Miss Adeline for departure. His plan for a quick escape crumbled before him.

  Jasper pushed away from his seat and stepped down the waiting stairs to the cobbled drive, immediately turning and raising his hand to Adeline. She set her gloved fingers on his arm
and hopped from the coach.

  It could be explained as nothing but a hop—perhaps, a leap.

  She completely eschewed the steps that’d been set for her.

  A round of greetings ensued as servant after servant bowed to Adeline and wished her a joyous return to London. Unlike the hoyden he’d been used to while she was at Faversham, Adeline nodded to each servant, speaking briefly with a couple, and smiled the entire time. Her chin was held high, her hands smoothed the wrinkles from her skirts, and her eyes sparkled.

  What stunned him the most was her ease with all the commotion and activity around her.

  Her poise never faltered, her grace never slipped, and her smile—damnation—that smile!

  Jasper took a step back into the shadows of his waiting coach as servants unloaded several trunks, and her maid stepped down, taking hold of Maxwell’s arm. With any luck, not that he’d seen any since before Adeline’s arrival, the servants, with Adeline in tow, would continue in to the house and entirely forget about Jasper…leaving him free to depart unnoticed.

  Instead, she froze, and her back stiffened, her head whipping from side to side as if she searched for something very important. For a split second, Jasper feared she’d forgotten something at his estate—and he’d be made to see the object daily until it was returned to her.

  “Lord Ailesbury?” She turned, her stare finding him in the shadows as a bashful blossom crept up her neck. She immediately lowered her gaze from him, and asked, “Shall we?”

  Unfathomable terror coursed through him as his chest seized and his heart thrashed, causing blood to boom between his ears. Even his normally strong and solid legs shook with something akin to weakness. However, Jasper was not weak. He’d worked tirelessly since his youth to make certain he was never again seen as weak. His neck and side would be forever marred by the burn scars, but that did not mean he lacked in any other way.