by Shana Galen
“That’s why you kept telling me you would keep me safe.”
“Ye may not believe me, but that’s all I care about. I never lied to ye when I said I loved ye. I do. And I deserve what’s coming to me, lass. It’s my own selfishness that’s responsible for this. If I hadn’t wanted to stay close to ye—”
“I wanted you close too.” She grabbed his hand. “I would have told you not to leave me, not to report them. I couldn’t have borne it if you had been forced to go.”
He pulled his hand free from hers. “Now ye know the truth, and I hope ye realize yer better without the likes of me. I’ll fetch a constable, take ye home, then go to the magistrate and confess my part.”
“No!”
He stared at her. “It’s better I go to them. The truth will out, and they’ll search every nook and cranny in the land to find me.”
“Then we’ll run away.”
James shook his head. “What are ye saying, lass? It’s over. There is no more we.”
She flinched back as though struck. “You don’t love me anymore?”
“Of course, I still love ye, but—” Then a thought struck him. “Do ye still love me?”
She nodded. “Nothing can change how I feel for you. In fact, I love you more. You saved me.”
He laughed. “Ye saved yerself. But love doesn’t change anything. I’m part of this, and I’ll be tried and convicted.”
Suddenly, her shoulders squared, and her chin lifted. “We’ll see about that.”
James did not know how she managed it. He fetched a constable, but when it came time to relay the story of what happened, Phil made James seem like a hero. The way she told it, he had saved her. James knew once Patrick and Sean were questioned, the truth would out, but if he could have a little more time with Phil before he was torn from her forever, he would take it.
Finally, Sean and Patrick were led away, and James and the magistrate, who had been called in, escorted Phil home. The duchess was half out of her mind with worry, though she had obviously calmed herself when she’d received word her daughter had been found and was unhurt.
Still, as soon as Phil and James walked into the foyer of Mayne House, she cried out and rushed to embrace her daughter. Phil hugged her back, and James looked down, trying to give mother and daughter a moment of privacy.
The magistrate cleared his throat. “I’d like to have a word with you, Your Grace, if I may. Some details of Lady Philomena’s account are a bit unclear, which is perfectly understandable. Perhaps we could speak in private.”
Phil disengaged herself from her mother and faced the magistrate. “I’m afraid you’ll have to return tomorrow. My family has been through an ordeal, and we cannot possibly be expected to answer questions today.”
“But my lady—”
“We will speak with you tomorrow. Banks?” The ever-present butler stepped forward. “Please see the magistrate out. Let him know when he may call tomorrow.”
The speechless magistrate followed the butler, and Phil turned back to her mother. “Mama, I think we had better talk.” She glanced at James. “In private.” She indicated a chair, one that a visitor to Mayne House might use. “Will you sit there and wait for us, please?”
James sat, glad to get off his feet, which still felt unsteady. The ladies moved upstairs, and he leaned his head back against the wall. That helped the throbbing slightly. Banks came and stood over him. “Shall I pack your things, James?”
James opened his eyes. “I don’t think I’ll need them where I’m going, Mr. Banks.”
Nine
Phil waited until her mother had finished sobbing and until they had both had a good deal of Madeira. Then she sat beside her mother on the couch and took her hand. “Mama, I have a story to tell you. It’s about a lady and a footman.”
Her mother’s sharp eyes met hers and narrowed. “I see. Is this a fictional story?”
Phil wet her lips. “It is based on a true story. Will you listen?”
The duchess took another sip of Madeira. “Go ahead.”
“It begins with the daughter of a duke. She didn’t want to marry a man out of duty. She wanted to marry for love. None of the men she met at balls or the opera or any social events made her feel anything more than friendship. But then she met a man who made her belly flutter. The moment he walked into her life, everything changed. The sun seemed brighter, the air crisper. Food tasted even more savory, music sounded more beautiful. She fell in love, Mama. She didn’t want to. She didn’t even know if the man noticed her.”
“But he did,” her mother said darkly.
“He did. He did not want to love her either. He was not a bad man, but he was desperate. His family was poor and suffering. He and his friends needed money. They hatched a very ill-advised scheme—some might call it criminal.”
Her mother harrumphed.
“He would pretend to be a servant in the duke’s household, and there he would plan how to abduct the lady and collect a ransom.”
The duchess lifted the ransom note she had clutched in her hand.
“But when he met the duke’s daughter, his plan to abduct her changed into a plan to protect her. They tried to ignore their feelings. They fought the pull of their love, but eventually it triumphed, and they gave in.”
Her mother’s eyes narrowed. “How hard did they fight?”
Phil went on. “The servant continued to try and protect his love, but his former accomplices had other plans. They abducted her and tried to hurt her. The servant risked everything to save her. He risked his life and his freedom.”
“And now?” her mother asked, her eyes clear and steady on Phil’s.
“And now the lady must protect him. His accomplices will implicate him. She must keep him safe.”
“Is that what he’s asked you to do?”
Phil shook her head. “No. He has agreed to go to the magistrate and turn himself in.”
“Then let him!” Her mother rose from the couch.
“Mama!”
The duchess walked away, crossing the thick Aubusson rug, then turned back. “Fine. Then let him run away. We will give him some money to take a ship far away.”
Phil nodded. “If that is what you want. But then we’ll need enough for two passages because where he goes, I go.” She stood.
“Just you sit down, young lady. You will not leave this house, and you are forbidden to run away with a criminal!”
“Mama, I am of age. I may do what I want.”
Her mother stared at her. “And this is what you want? A life of poverty and crime and...and labor!”
“I want James, and if that is the price, then I will pay it.”
“Absolutely not.” The duchess stamped her foot. “I will not have it. I will not have him. Your brother’s marriage was bad enough, but a footman. Not even a footman—a man masquerading as a footman. I will not have it, Philomena! I will not.”
“Then I will pack my things and go. We had better go tonight as the magistrate will undoubtedly return first thing in the morning.”
“Fine,” her mother snapped. “Then go.”
Phil crossed to her stiff mother, leaned down, and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I love you, Mama. Give Anne and Phineas my love as well. And tell my nieces and nephew I will write to them.” Then she turned her back and walked out the door. She started down the steps at a demure pace, then realized she needn’t behave like a lady any longer. She would be Mrs. Finnegan as soon as it could be arranged.
James saw her coming and stood, his face twisted in a look of concern. She went to him, took his face in her hands, and kissed him. The gasps of the nearby maids echoed in the foyer. “You’d best pack your things,” she said when she pulled back. “We’re leaving.”
“Leaving?”
“We’ll take the first ship we can. Where shall we go? America? India? Perhaps China?”
“Phil, no.” James caught her hand. “Ye can’t leave here. Ye can’t leave yer family.”
“I can, and I will. I’ve chosen, James, and I choose you.”
JAMES’S KNEES BUCKLED, and he felt as though he might need to sit again. No one had ever said words like that to him before. No one had ever chosen him, much less the daughter of a duke. He loved her more than anything—more than his freedom, more than his life. And she loved him too. She had chosen him over everything in her life. And yet, how could he take her away from all of this? His gaze roamed over the grand foyer with its marble stairs and crystal chandelier. How could she be happy in a dirty, cold room with only their love to live on?
“I love ye, Phil,” he said. “But I can’t. I love ye too much to take ye away.”
She put a hand to her throat. “What are you saying?”
“I plan to go to the magistrate.”
“No!”
“It’s better this way. I won’t have yer reputation tarnished or bring ye away from this to watch ye starve.”
From the top of the stairs, the duchess cleared her throat, and James started in surprise. He hadn’t known she’d been standing there.
The duchess raised a brow. “You really do love her, don’t you?”
James stared at the imposing woman, hardly daring to speak to her. “I do, Yer Grace. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. I know I’ve caused a muddle.”
“Well, now,” she said, descending the stairs. “That is quite the understatement. This is more than a muddle. This is a scandal.”
“Not if I go to the magistrate, Yer Grace. No one has to know—”
“Oh, my daughter will make sure everyone knows,” the duchess said, waving a hand at Phil. “She has her heart set on marrying you, and I have known her long enough to know that once she sets her mind, nothing can sway her.”
James didn’t know what to say. He stood, looking from mother to daughter.
“Philomena,” the duchess said. “In the past few years, I have lost four sons. I have mourned those losses and clung to my remaining three children. And now you want to leave me as well.”
Phil bit her lips, her eyes turning watery. “I do not want to, Mama, but I must.”
“Because you are in love. Oh, you think I am so elderly now, but I remember what it feels like to be in love. I was in love once.” She looked at James. “But the world is a harsh place. One cannot survive on love. He is right about that.”
“I don’t—” Phil began.
“Hush. I am thinking.” She walked away, paced back, then walked away again. Phil crossed to James, and he took her hand.
“I can see only one way. Banks, can we rely on the discretion of the staff here?”
Banks, who had been standing in a corner, stepped forward. “Of course, Your Grace. Every man and woman in your employ is loyal to a fault.”
“Good. Then, Phil, I will send for your brother and that awful woman he’s married. He and I will go to the prince to petition for a knighthood.”
James frowned. “For who?”
“It’s for whom, and that whom would be you.”
“I can’t be a knight.”
“You needn’t wear armor or joust,” the duchess said. “But it will give you some prestige. Philomena has become quite the storyteller lately. I am certain she can make you out to be a hero.”
“But Patrick and Sean—they’ll tell the magistrate about me.”
The duchess shrugged. “And we will say they are lying. We never employed a James Finnegan.”
“But—”
The duchess raised a brow. “Do you think the magistrate will question me?”
James couldn’t imagine the king himself questioning her. “No, Your Grace.”
“Good, then it’s settled. When the magistrate calls tomorrow, you stay out of sight,” she told James. “After he leaves, I think it best if we depart for Southmeade Cottage. I can think better in the country. When I am there, I will decide what we shall do about James Finnegan. You cannot go by that name any longer.”
“But my sisters—”
“Oh, good Lord. They mustn’t ever know that you married Philomena. Do you send them money now?”
He nodded. “The majority of my wages.”
“We will send them a monthly allowance. You can claim it’s your wages. They will be taken care of.” She turned to Phil. “What say you to all of this, Philomena?”
Phil released his hand and pulled her mother tight against her. “I say, I love you, Mama. Thank you!”
SPRING DRAGGED HER feet, and it seemed to Phil that summer would never arrive. Summer and her wedding. Her mother had separated her from James as soon as they’d returned from London and arrived at Southmeade Cottage. James had been summarily settled in the dowager house. The duchess had told everyone he was James Fillimore, a distant cousin, and even though the servants all knew exactly who he was, they pretended they had never seen him before.
The duchess prodded her brother Phineas to see Cousin James made a knight for the service he had done in rescuing Philomena from her abductors. As Phil had told the story, Cousin James had been passing by and heard her screams. He’d raced into the old shop and rescued her. They had fallen in love at first sight, not having realized they were third or fourth cousins.
The ton devoured the story as though it was an ice at Gunter’s on a hot August day, and though a few whispered rumors about James having been a footman, most people did not put any stock into those outlandish stories.
Now as Phil stood beside James in the church, she wondered if anyone would notice that the vicar had just asked if she would take James Finnegan as her husband, not James Fillimore. She smiled at her Irishman as she said she would, and he smiled back and gave her a conspiratorial wink.
Finally, the vicar pronounced them duly wed, and she did not think any bride could have been happier. They turned and beamed at the guests. Phil’s smile was returned by her brother and his wife, her sister and her nephew and nieces, and of course her mother. She saw several of her friends but frowned when she couldn’t find Mrs. Catarina Draven or Ines. The sisters had made the Catarina lace for her wedding gown, and as she so enjoyed their company as much as their lacemaking, she had invited them to attend the nuptials.
Phil leaned over to James as they walked down the aisle to exit the church. “I wish your family had been able to come.”
He smiled. “Sure and they wouldn’t have known what to make of this. But I received a letter from me oldest sister last week, and she’s doing well and loves her new house.” James winked at her again.
Phil knew this as he had read the letter to her. “And none of your sisters suspect that you made up the story about your investments paying off?”
“As it was yer story, lass, why would she?”
They exited the church and stepped into the bright morning sunshine. An open landau festooned with flowers waited for them. James—Sir James now—handed her into the conveyance then took the seat next to her. “How long will the breakfast last?” he asked, leaning close. His breath tickled her ear.
“At least two hours,” she whispered back as she waved to the guests. “Why?”
“Because I’m tired of sneaking into your chamber at night to steal kisses.” His voice was low and sent a delicious shiver through her.
But she managed to give him a dubious look. “That’s not all you do.”
“Yes, well I want to do it without worrying yer ma or yer brother will charge in and club me over the head.”
Phil wanted exactly the same thing. She was tired of stolen kisses and clandestine meetings. “We’ll sneak away early, if we can. Maybe I can create a distraction.”
“Throw the bouquet!” one of her nieces called, and Phil complied. She closed her eyes and raised the ribbon-wrapped flowers she held. But before she could throw it, she heard the sound of hooves coming fast. She opened her eyes and stared at the cloud of dust nearing them. A single rider approached fast.
“Do ye know him?” James asked, tensing beside her.
“I do. It’s Lieutenant Colonel Draven.
” Just as she said it, her brother stepped forward and waved a hand.
“Sir!” Phineas called. “You’ve missed the wedding.”
Draven pulled his horse up short and tipped his hat to the carriage. “My felicitations, my lady. I am sorry to interrupt, but I need the duke.”
Phineas was already beside Draven’s mount. “What’s the matter, sir?”
“I need you to come to London, Mayne. It’s Ines.”
Phil started. “Miss Neves? What’s happened?”
Draven gave her a worried look. “She went missing one afternoon two days ago. We thought she was merely hiding to avoid an outing with a suitor she did not fancy, but when she did not appear, we made a thorough search and could not find her anywhere. I sent my man to investigate, and”—he reached into his coat—“he brought me this news of a sighting.” Draven handed the folded scrap of paper to the duke who looked at it and swore.
“Duncan, that lunatic.” The duke handed the note back to Draven. “I’ll have my horse saddled and meet you as soon as I can.”
Phin signaled to a groom and went to speak to his wife. Phil looked at James.
“Sounds like yer friend may have run off with her lover.”
“She didn’t run off,” Draven said, obviously having overheard them. “She was abducted, and I intend to bring her back and have Duncan Murray hung by the toenails.”
The crowd of guests began to murmur amongst themselves.
“Mama, shall we start for the house?” Phil asked.
Her mother waved at her distractedly, and James instructed the coachman to drive.
Once the carriage was underway, James looked at her quizzically. “Ye don’t want to stay and hear any more of the gossip?”
She shook her head. “It will take them ages to come back to the house as they’ll want to see my brother off and gather any last morsels of information. I, on the other hand, see this for what it is.”
