by Jo Beverley
Summer. She tried to block what happened then out of her mind. It was too painful to bring up those memories. And regrets. Aunt Louisa had been terribly wrong about that. Charlotte regretted many things she had done that summer. Regretted one thing in particular.
As much as she tried to forget, it haunted her daily. Gavin Ellsworth haunted her thoughts, her dreams, her every waking moment. The aching loneliness in her heart had not healed and she feared it never would.
“Oh, let’s hurry, Charlotte!” cried Allen, dancing a little jig around her.
After they gathered their picnic items, Charlotte ordered the older three to carry the baskets and things and she grabbed Andrew’s chubby hand firmly in hers. They set off across the field while the autumn sun sank low in the sky. As they rounded a hedge they spied a carriage coming up the drive.
“It’s Alec!” Excited shrieks pierced the air and the boys broke into a run.
Charlotte held fast to Andrew’s hand, although he tried desperately to break free. The carriage disappeared from view as it drove to the front of the house. The three older boys raced ahead. By the time Charlotte reached the back entrance, she was exhausted and felt as if her arm were pulled from the socket. She released her impatient charge and Andrew went careening down the hallway in a mad hurry to find his big brother.
Removing her hat, she sighed and followed after the sound of her brothers’ wild cries. She always knew exactly where they were simply from the amount of noise they made, and today was no different. She knew her brothers were in the front hallway. As she neared, she could distinguish amid the noise her mother’s sweet voice and Alec’s laughter. Her pace increased as she turned the corner.
“Charlotte!” Alec cried when he saw her. He broke loose from his little brothers, raced to her side, swept her up in a bear hug, and swung her around. He finally set her down and took a look at her. “You haven’t changed a bit, Char. You’re as pretty as ever!”
Smiling broadly, she said, “You, on the other hand, look much older!”
“Did you send those little monkeys to attack me?” He laughed and pointed to Andrew, Adam, Addison, and Allen.
“Of course I did!” She gave him a wink.
“Let’s not stand here in the hallway any longer,” her mother, Elizabeth Forsythe, suggested. “Shall we go into the drawing room? We can’t have our guest standing here all day. I fear we’ve kept you here too long as it is, Lord Langdon.”
Charlotte glanced over at her mother and froze at the sight of her standing beside a handsome gentleman; tall, blond, and muscular. Her mind spun and she became slightly dizzy, clutching Alec’s arm for support.
“I’m sorry”—Alec tugged her forward—“I should have introduced you.”
Charlotte moved on leaden feet, her heart racing so rapidly in her chest, she thought it might very well explode.
With an easy manner and blithely unaware of his sister’s reluctance, Alec introduced Charlotte to the man who had turned her life upside down. “This is Gavin Ellsworth, Lord Langdon, a new friend of mine from Cambridge. Gavin, may I present my sister, Charlotte Wilton.”
Charlotte stared into the depths of hazel eyes that were far too familiar. She recognized every fleck of gold and brown.
Gavin’s brows raised and he looked at her with surprise, holding out his hand. “I am pleased to meet you, Miss Wilton.”
She nodded, unable to form a coherent word, and took his hand in hers. The spark that shot through her veins when they touched almost knocked her to the ground.
“Alec, you neglected to mention that your sister was such a beauty.”
She closed her eyes at the sound of his voice and he released her hand. She suddenly felt very cold.
Charlotte heard her brother laugh and say something about Gavin keeping his distance from his only sister. Her elegant mother then ushered them all from the hallway and obediently she followed her family into the drawing room and sank gratefully upon a damask chair. She was vaguely aware that little Andrew had climbed onto her lap. She heard the words that were being spoken, but she could not take anything in except that Gavin Ellsworth was there in her home. He’s here! Somehow he had become friends with her brother.
And he had pretended not to know her.
He was as shocked as she was. She could see it in his eyes. But he acted as if they had just met for the first time. As if what had happened between them in Spain had never happened at all.
A lump formed in her throat. She did not partake of the tea and cakes and biscuits that were served, although Andrew ate more than enough for her and left the crumbs on her lap as evidence. She did not enter into the conversation among her mother, Alec, and Gavin, nor did she object to the shouts and interruptions from the boys, who were tumbling about on the floor. It took all her energy to keep from bursting into tears.
“Charlotte, are you feeling well?” Alec asked.
She blinked and looked up at the sound of her name.
“She does look rather pale,” her mother said, her voice tinged with worry. “Perhaps she was out with the boys too long this afternoon.”
“Addison scared her by jumping out of a tree!” Andrew tattled on his brother with no remorse, his mouth filled with shortbread biscuit.
Charlotte leapt at the excuse. “I … I do have a dreadful headache. Would you mind if I went to my room to rest for a bit?”
“Not at all, darling,” said her mother.
“Excuse me,” she whispered. She felt Gavin’s eyes on her as she shooed Andrew from her lap and fled the drawing room as decorously as she could manage.
When she reached the safety of her pretty floral bedroom, she flung herself onto her four-poster bed and buried her sobs in the pillows. Wishing she were anywhere but in her home, she could no longer hold back the tears. Hot and stinging, the tears poured down her cheeks while great sobs wracked her body.
It was the first time she cried over Gavin Ellsworth.
Chapter 10
Gavin was stunned. When he had accepted Alec Forsythe’s invitation to visit his home, he had never imagined that Charlotte Wilton was Alec Forsythe’s stepsister! He was not sure if acting as if they were meeting for the first time was a wise decision or not, but he had been so astonished to see her it was all he could do. She had not rushed forward in recognition nor appeared especially happy to see him. Nothing less than shock had registered on her beautiful face. At the time, his behavior had seemed the best course of action.
He had not said another word to her, and she had grown eerily quiet. She had disappeared to her room claiming a headache, but Gavin’s instinct told him he was the reason for her distress. She had remained in her room for supper as well. He idly wondered if she would hide for the duration of his visit. After the pain she had caused him he felt slightly mollified by her obvious discomfort at his presence in her home.
Gavin spent the night in a restless mood, unable to sleep.
He had found Charlotte Wilton and was in her house! After four months of wondering about her, dreaming about her, missing her, and cursing her, she had turned up on a whim. And she was even more beautiful than he remembered. She had looked so carefree when she first entered the hallway, before she had recognized him. She’d obviously just come in from outside, holding a straw hat in her hand and wearing a pink striped dress. Her blond hair was tousled and her cheeks were full of color. The genuine delight at seeing Alec had been clearly written in her expression.
Until her eyes met his. Then all the color had drained from her face.
Meanwhile all he had wanted to do when he saw her was shout for joy. He had believed he would never see her again, so when she appeared before him, so great was his happiness at finding her, it took every ounce of his self-control not to pick her up and spin her around as her brother had done.
The next morning Gavin breakfasted with the family. He was amused by the antics of the four younger Forsythe brothers and noted how much Charlotte and her mother, Elizabeth, looked alike, yet
Charlotte was nowhere to be seen. He knew she was avoiding him and it irritated him. He spent most of the day with Alec and his father, the Baron of Glenborough, looking over their estate and learning about their management methods.
Later that day he was returning to his room to change for supper when he ran into Charlotte in the upstairs hallway.
They both stopped walking and stood in awkward silence. Neither of them made a move to pass by but held each other’s gaze. Already dressed for supper and apparently willing to be seen by him again, she looked stunning in an elegant evening gown of deep blue edged with black lace, her blond hair swept back from her face. He recalled all too vividly the sight of her with her golden tresses spilling around her naked shoulders, looking like a goddess in pale silk.
Finally Gavin reached out and grabbed her arm, drawing her quickly into his guest room. She did not resist but she did not seem overly eager to go with him either. He closed the door once they were inside.
“Charlotte, this is ridiculous. We can’t pretend not to know each other.”
She said nothing, but he noticed that her breathing had become more labored and her eyes, the color of aquamarines, were wide with panic. She took a step back from him. He so desperately wanted to hold her in his arms, to kiss her.
“Charlotte,” he said again.
“What are you doing here?” she whispered.
“I had no idea that Alec was your brother.”
“You must leave.” There was a note of pleading urgency in her voice.
“Why?” He stepped toward her and her familiar lily of the valley scent washed over him. The need to touch her became unbearable. “Why? Because you cannot run away from me here?”
She gasped as the truth of his comment hit its mark and her eyes flashed in anger. She made a move toward the door.
He prevented her from doing so by pulling her into his arms. And then he gave in to his desires and covered her enticing lips with his own. God, but she tasted like heaven! How he had missed her. He held her tightly against his chest, feeling her body next to his.
Melting against him, she kissed him back as his tongue delved deeper into her mouth. Her arms went around his neck and the soft sigh that escaped her sent his mind reeling. They moved back until he had her against the wall.
The thrill of kissing her once again excited him more than he could have anticipated. Judging from her eager response she had missed kissing him as much as he had missed her. And he had missed her. Not a single day had passed that he had not thought of her, not wanted her, not longed for her.
They continued to kiss and he wanted to devour her. She clung to him, her fingers splaying into the hair at the back of his neck. He wanted her desperately, wanted to strip her of her gown and lavish her naked body with his kisses. As his desire for her grew, he could sense her own heightened passion. Her tongue intertwined with his and her body arched against his. His hand moved to cup one luscious breast and she moaned at his touch.
“Charlotte,” he murmured her name into her sweet mouth.
“Charlotte!” A young and quite impatient voice wailed from the hallway. “Chaaaaarrrlotte!”
They both froze at the sound. Her hands fell from his neck and she shoved at Gavin’s chest. With great reluctance he released her and stepped aside.
“Charlotte!” the voice called.
“It’s Andrew,” she whispered frantically. “He’s looking for me. What shall I do?” She covered her kiss-swollen lips with her fingers, her cheeks still flushed with desire. Tendrils of her blond hair had spilled from its arrangement atop her head and now framed her face softly.
Gavin wanted nothing more than to carry her to the large bed in the center of the room and make love to her for days.
“Charlotte!” Andrew continued to cry, his five-year-old voice filled with anguish. They heard his little footsteps stomping farther down the hallway. “They’re being very mean to me! Chaaaaarrrrrlotte!”
Gavin grabbed her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. She stared up at him but he could not read her thoughts.
As Andrew’s childish wails faded, Gavin carefully opened the door and peered down the hallway. He nodded at Charlotte and she scurried out of his room and fled down the hallway in search of her distraught brother. She did not look back at him, but Gavin watched her until she disappeared into the boys’ nursery.
Chapter 11
“So what do you think of our estate, Lord Langdon?” Elizabeth Forsythe, her blond hair swept stylishly atop her head, asked her guest.
Charlotte kept her eyes on the delicate china plate in front of her, piled with roast partridge and squash, although she still could not swallow a single mouthful. She had not been able to eat anything since Gavin had arrived yesterday. Her stomach rebelled at the mere thought of food.
“Glenstone Manor is beautiful. I was quite impressed at how well you have been able to drain your fields,” Gavin said. “The system you have employed would work well at our estate since we have similar problems with the hills above the fields. I would like to bring my father to visit to see what you have accomplished here.”
Charlotte could not suppress a surprised glance at Gavin, who sat beside her at the elegantly set dining table. Since when had he taken an interest in his father’s estate? Or in farming? This was a startling change from the indolent and carefree man she met this summer. And Lord Langdon? He never referred to that title while they were in Spain! She remembered him mentioning his father’s earldom, but oddly enough she never thought to ask about his title and everyone at the villa had simply called him Señor Ellsworth.
He was still as handsome as ever, though. That had not changed. If anything he had become even more attractive. As he sat at the table in his formal evening attire, the jet black of his jacket and the crisp white of his shirt set in stark contrast to his golden blond hair and tanned skin.
Her heart skipped a beat at the memory of the passionate encounter they had shared in his bedroom not an hour ago. She touched her lips, which were still tingling from his kiss. Being in his arms again had brought to the surface long suppressed memories of their last night together in Spain and she found it difficult to breathe. She trembled to think what might have happened in his bedroom if they had not been interrupted by Andrew’s shouts.
“Of course, you and your family are welcome to visit us anytime you wish. How are you getting on at school?” her stepfather, Alexander Forsythe, asked him.
“I’m finding Cambridge much more to my liking than Oxford, but it might be that my change in attitude has more to do with it than anything to do with the school,” Gavin explained.
“Why is that?” asked Alec.
“You see, I had a bit of an epiphany while abroad this summer.”
Charlotte dropped the fork she had been holding onto her plate. The clatter caused everyone to look at her.
“Excuse me,” she murmured in apology, carefully placing her fork back on the table. Her pulse quickened as Gavin continued to speak.
“I realized that I was a very fortunate man, indeed, and I ought not to squander the opportunities I have in my life. Much to my father’s delight, I have changed my wild ways and have focused on my studies and placed my energies into improving and modernizing my family’s estate.”
“That is very commendable,” her stepfather commented. “Fathers do appreciate sons who take their inheritances as the serious responsibilities they are instead of spending every last pound on frivolous pursuits.”
“You’re very welcome, Father,” Alec quipped dryly and gave a sly wink across the table to Charlotte.
“Where did you spend the summer, Lord Langdon?” Elizabeth asked with polite interest.
“I spent a great deal of it in Spain.”
Elizabeth cried in wonderment, “Why Charlotte was in Spain this summer too!”
The sound of Charlotte’s crystal water goblet shattering against the gleaming mahogany table startled everyone, Charlotte most of all.
“W
hatever is the matter with you, Charlotte?” scolded her mother, before Roberts, the butler, hurried to clean up the watery mess and glass shards. “That was my grandmother’s crystal!”
“I … I am terribly … I am so sorry,” she stammered awkwardly. “I don’t know what happened.”
“Please be more careful, dear,” her stepfather said gently with a pointed look in her direction.
“So what did you think of Spain?” Alec asked Gavin.
Charlotte silently blessed her brother for drawing the attention away from her.
“It was quite beautiful,” Gavin began. “I met some very interesting people. In fact, I fell in love while I was there.”
Charlotte held her breath. The room began to tilt a little. She held tightly to the edge of the table in order to stay upright in her chair. Will this supper never end?
“With a Spanish lady?” Elizabeth asked, intrigued by his story.
Gavin smiled, showing the dimple that so enchanted Charlotte. He said, “No, she happened to be English, surprisingly enough. And astonishingly beautiful.”
“How romantic!” Elizabeth cried in delight. “Imagine going all the way to Spain and falling in love with someone you could have met here at home!”
Charlotte quickly picked up her fork again and stabbed a bit of squash. She shoved it into her mouth to keep from screaming.
“Just a moment.” Alec looked confused. “This is not the same woman you just became engaged to, is it?”
