The Sinful Secret 0f A Broken Earl (Historical Regency Romance)

by Lucinda Nelson

  “She sent a book to Mr. Thomas. A book that she’d taken from the Duke’s study before running away with Sarah. It was his own personal journal. It accounted for many of the atrocities he committed against the maids, and the most recent entry detailed growing tensions with his lover, Amelia, and how she’d discovered his activities. There were also more… explicit statements which implicate him in the murder.”

  Henry knew what that meant. It was hard to imagine that there was a book out there containing a man’s crazed intentions to murder the woman Henry had once loved.

  “Once we had the book, we had all the proof we needed.”

  “Then…”

  “Your name is cleared,” she confirmed. He could hear the smile in her voice. He only wished he could see it.

  ***

  Miss Magdalene Riley, Daughter of the Baron of Brambleheath

  Once the doctor had finished his visit - during which time he checked on Henry’s eyes and insisted on him drinking plenty of water and eating a hearty meal – Maggie slipped into the bed beside Henry.

  Having him in her arms again felt almost unreal. There had been moments when she’d wondered if she’d ever hold him again. If she’d ever see him with his eyes open again.

  As she laid with him, she drew soft circles across his chest with her fingertips and told him what he’d missed during his long sleep. She told him that Alicia had come home, and that she’d been anxiously waiting for him to wake. She also told him that Rachel and Jeremy had come, and that they visited almost every other day to see if he had woken.

  Henry seemed to enjoy being told these things. He breathed steadily and smiled from time to time, though this seemed to pull on his wound, which then made him wince. He didn’t speak much. It seemed like he was still processing all that he’d been told. The fact that all his hopes had finally been realized. The heartache was over.

  As evening turned into nighttime, Maggie let herself truly sleep or the first time since his injury.

  In a matter of moments, after darkness fell, she was sound asleep beside him.

  Maggie expected to sleep late into the morning, but that was not the case. Something stirred her in the early hours, when it was still pitch dark outside. She felt groggy and disorientated as she blinked her eyes open, finding the space beside her empty. She felt the space with her hand. It was still warm.

  Maggie looked around the rest of the room and saw a figure sitting at the dresser, in front of the mirror. “Henry?”

  He didn’t turn his head. When she strained her eyes, she could see that he wasn’t wearing his bandages anymore. They were on the floor beside him. Maggie stood and went towards him. She put her hand on his shoulder, but the moment she touched him he seemed to snap out of a daze. He put his arm up to cover his face and recoiled away from her. “I want to sleep alone,” he said, in a sharp and shaky voice.

  “Henry, you shouldn’t have taken your bandages off,” Maggie said, with a furrowed brow. She tried to pull his arm free of his face so she could look at his wound, but he stood and moved away from her, without once showing his face.

  “I said I want to sleep alone.”

  Maggie didn’t understand. “Why?” She murmured, feeling stung.

  “I don’t want you to see this. Please leave.”

  “But Henry, I don’t care about that. I’m sure it’s not so bad.”

  She tried to move towards him again.

  “Get out!” He said loudly, through gritted teeth.

  This time, it was Maggie who recoiled.

  ***

  Lord Henry Rivers, the Earl of Radingley

  When he’d seen himself in that mirror, Henry had felt like he was looking into the face of a monster. His scar cut across his eye, dividing his face in half. The line was grisly and raw, making him look like a carved up beast. It even passed over his lip, disturbing his smile.

  Not that he’d be smiling much anymore.

  As he looked at himself, he’d felt this sinking feeling. And when Maggie had tried to approach him, he’d never felt more ashamed or humiliated. He couldn’t stand for her to look at him. He didn’t want to see the disgust in her eyes.

  So he did what he always did. He sent her away, and he hid. He hid for weeks, refusing to see anyone. And with everyday that passed, he sank further and further into despair.

  Maggie came to his door everyday, but everyday he sent her away. Alicia came too, but he couldn’t stand the thought of frightening her, so he sent her away too. He felt sure that eventually they’d give up on him… and stop visiting. And then they could go ahead and live their lives to the fullest, without him hindering them anymore.

  Sometimes the thought of this made him feel incapacitated, and he couldn’t even get out of bed to open the curtains. And sometimes, it was the only thing that kept him resolute. Knowing that one day they’d be happy, if he could just force them to let him go.

  “Henry…” A murmur came through the door. Henry was lying in bed, on his front, staring at the wall. He closed his eyes when he heard the sound of Maggie’s voice. It had been weeks since he’d seen her face. “Can you hear me?”

  He didn’t answer.

  There was a moment of silence. He thought she might have left, but then she spoke again, in a shaky voice. “I’m leaving today, Henry. I…” Her voice broke. “I can’t stay here anymore.”

  Henry found himself holding his breath. She seemed to be waiting for him to say something, but any words he might have been able to give her were stuck in his throat.

  “I found a position at a local school,” she said. “But before I go, I just wanted to say that-”

  She stopped speaking, and he felt like his heart was going to implode from the pressure waiting put on it. He’d thought it impossible to feel pain like this.

  When she spoke again, she was so quiet that he was afraid he’d misheard her. “I love you, Henry,” she whispered. “I hope you know that.”

  And then he heard her footsteps fade into silence.

  Epilogue

  Lord Henry Rivers, the Earl of Radingley

  For a long time, Henry laid very still after she left, letting those words replay themselves in his head. Days passed, and he stopped accepting food. He expected to break apart, but instead he just felt… hollow.

  It was days before it finally hit him. That she was gone, and she wasn’t coming back. When it did, Henry fisted his pillow and pressed his face into it until he couldn’t breathe. He yelled into the material, muffling the sound as his shoulders started shaking violently with grief.

  He’d lost her. She was gone. It was what he’d wanted for her, but it was the hardest thing he’d ever had to do. He beat his fist against the headboard above him. The pressure of the pillow against his face made his wound ache, but he continued to press harder and harder to quiet his cries.

  And then he heard a voice.

  “Papa.”

  Henry lifted his face from the pillow and gasped in a breath. He turned his face and saw Alicia. He was frozen as he stared at her. It was the first time she’d seen his face since his injury.

  But she didn’t flinch or recoil. She just stared at him with a small crinkle between her brows.

  “Aren’t you afraid?” Henry whispered to her, in a broken voice.

  Alicia shook her head. “I’m angry.”

  Henry blinked in surprise. “What?”

  “You made Maggie go away. Because you’re scared. You sent my new mama away.”

  Henry was speechless. Her words were like a punch to the gut, and all he could do was stare at her as they sank in. “I heard her say she loves you,” Alicia went on. “And you love her too. Then why did you let her go away?” Alicia’s eyes filled with angry tears as she said this. “Why?”

  He had so many reasons. All he’d done for the past few weeks was think of reasons. That Maggie would be disgusted by him. That she deserved better. And yet now, when he was confronted with Alicia’s pain – a reflection of his own – he reali
zed that none of his reasons mattered anymore.

  ***

  Miss Magdalene Riley, Daughter of the Baron of Brambleheath

  He just let her go. And just like that, it was all over. Maggie had spent weeks trying to see him, but not once had he even said a word to her. It was like he didn’t care anymore. For a long time, she was able to convince herself that that wasn’t true. That he was only afraid and troubled by his scarring.

  But as days faded into the next, she found it harder to believe that he wanted her anymore. So she said goodbye to Joseph and secured a position at the local school. The steady income since they’d started at Radingley had paid off some of their debt, and the collectors were feeling reassured again. This gave Maggie the opportunity to return to Brambleheath, alone.

  It was strange staying in that huge house on her own, but she didn’t want to waste unnecessary funds on household staff. Besides, she was in no mood for company. Everything felt quiet and calm in her life now, but there was this undertone of sadness that she was always fighting against. The part of her that missed the man who’d changed her life. But who, in the face of her confession of love, had said nothing.

  Maggie was leaving the schoolhouse after a busy day spent teaching. The sun was shining, and children were dancing around her, meeting their parents. She smiled and said, “See you tomorrow,” when young Tommy skipped past her.

  Maggie was hoisting her satchel of books higher onto her shoulder, when she spotted someone she recognized. It was Alfred. The sight of him warmed her heart, and she smiled. “What brings you here?” She said, when he approached, his face wrinkled with fondness.

  “Hello, Miss Riley. I was hoping to find you here.”

  “Why’s that?” She asked. “Is there word from my brother?”

  Alfred shook his head, then looked back over his shoulder. Maggie followed his gaze.

  There was a carriage parked up, with curtains drawn. Her smile fell from her face. “Is he in there?” She murmured after a moment.

  Alfred nodded. “He wants to speak to you.”

  Maggie hadn’t seen him in so long. Even when she’d been at Radingley, those last few weeks he’d refused to come out of his room. Maggie swallowed, feeling suddenly nervous.

  Then, putting on a brave face, she faked a smile at Alfred and started walking towards the carriage. Once she was standing outside of it, she knocked gently on the window.

  The door swung open and she stepped inside.

  Henry was inside, but she wouldn’t have known it was him by sight alone. He was wearing a cowl and kept his face low. She knew it was him by the scent of his body in the small carriage. The warm, spicy scent that reminded her of the way he’d touched her in the library.

  Maggie took the seat opposite him.

  “Are you well?” He asked, without lifting his head.

  “I am,” Maggie answered. The sound of his voice made her feel sore with nostalgia.

  “I’m glad.”

  There was a long, uncomfortable silence. “Why are you here, Henry?”

  She heard him swallow. “I’ve come to say something to you. Something I should have said before.”

  Maggie didn’t answer. She might have felt hope before, but she’d become a hopeless person in recent weeks, so she only waited.

  Henry lifted his head, just slightly, so she could see the outline of his nose and his chin. “What you said when you left… That you-” The words caught in his throat.

  “That I love you,” she said, in a hollow voice.

  “Yes,” Henry rasped. “I should have said then, but I didn’t. I was afraid, so I’m saying it now.”

  “Are you not afraid anymore?” She murmured.

  He expelled a breath. “I’m terrified. But a little girl reminded me that it needs to be said.”

  Maggie opened her mouth to ask him about Alicia, perhaps to postpone whatever he’d come to tell her because she was afraid too. But before she could muster a sound, he lifted his hand to silence her.

  His face tipped back, and she finally saw his eyes, cast in shadows by the hood. “I love you, Maggie.”

  Her heart froze in her chest, and all she could do was gaze at him in disbelief, entirely speechless.

  “Did you hear me?” He said, in a shaky voice. “I love you.”

  Maggie couldn’t find words. She didn’t even know if she could believe it. So instead of speaking, she let her hands communicate for her. She leaned forwards in her seat and put her hands up towards his face.

  He tensed, but didn’t flinch away. When she drew closer, he touched her wrists and whispered, “It’s grisly…”

  Maggie looked into his eyes and let him see her resolve. With a shaky sigh, he let go of her wrists. And Maggie gently pulled the hood back.

  Her eyes scanned his face, taking in the fear in his eyes, the tension in his mouth, the strong line of his jaw. And the scar that divided it all, but that was no less beautiful than the rest of him.

  She started to smile and touched his cheek. “You foolish, foolish man,” she whispered. “To think that I’d ever stop loving you.”

  She leaned in, and she kissed him.

  As their lips met, she felt something give way in Henry. He trembled, then held her face in his hands and kissed her with an abundance of love and joy. “Marry me,” he murmured between kisses. “Please. Marry me, Maggie.”

  “Yes,” she breathed, as his kisses brought her happiness back.

  The Extended Epilogue

  I am so happy you finished reading The Sinful Secret of a Broken Earl, till the end!

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  Book 8 – A preview

  Chapter 1

  Mid-September,1836, Hawkshire, England

  Miss Juliana Gaverton

  “What in heaven’s name are you doing, daughter?”

  Juliana looked up at her father but ignored him and instead continued eating with her hands.

  “Juliana!” shouted her father one more time, this time slamming the wall with his hands.

  “What do you want from me?” she demanded angrily, nostrils flaring.

  “Why will you be eating with your hands when you are not a savage?”

  Juliana gave her father a long hard stare. “A savage? Was that what you called my mother when you sent her away?”

  The look on the count’s face was exactly what she expected. His wrinkled face was carved in a lopsided brow. His mouth primed and the look in his eyes was that of guilt.

  That guilty look was all she needed. She continued to eat with her hands. She knew that this was wrong and unladylike but she was no lady nor was she interested in being one.

  The last thing she wanted was to call Jeremiah Browning her father. He was no father to her; he was just a man who needed her to inherit his properties after he would be long dead. She was certain that if he had his own children, he would never even have tried to find her after so many years.

  “I told you several times that it was not my wish to send your mother away,” her father attempted to explain just as he had tried to do for the past few days that she had been brought to his home.

  “But you sent her away!” she lashed back at him. “My mother had to struggle after you got her pregnant! Did you even think about what she went through? You seduced her, got her pregnant and then fired her! What kind of a man are you?”

  “I tried to look for her…” the count explained.

  “When exactly did you do that, father?” she demanded, drawing the last word. “Was that before or after you got married to your wife?”

  “I did what my father
wanted me to do,” said the Count soberly. “I regret it every day.”

  “That is rather convenient, don’t you think? I wonder if you will still regret your actions if you had a child of your own!” she shouted callously.

  “I am your father, so you must learn to respect me!” shouted the older man at her.

  “You are not my father! You have never been and you would never be a father to me!” she shouted back.