“Poor Zelda,” Owen said. “Theo always had it in his mind to go elsewhere. Every new girl, every new day – it’s all an adventure to him.”
“She’ll find someone to suit her,” Rebecca said. “Quite beautiful.”
“Simple, more like,” Owen replied.
“What a dreadful thing to say!” Rebecca cried.
“And yet I’m here with you, aren’t I?” Owen said.
Rebecca fluttered her eyes beautifully, naming his argument as disdainful. Owen then sprung open the front door to reveal his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Crauford – a long-time couple, who now stood closer together than he’d seen in many moons, there before them. Even his father’s arm was wrapped around his mother’s waist.
At the sight of Rebecca, his mother’s lips curved into a slight smile. Owen beamed back at her, then said, “Mother. I’d like to introduce you to my fiancée. Rebecca Frampton.”
His mother’s motions seemed to move slower than time should have allowed. She dropped her hand forward for Rebecca to take, which she did. The women shook hands, their eyes locked. Owen wondered what sort of conversation two women such as they could possibly have, like that, without words themselves.
Finally, his mother uttered, “It’s marvellous to meet you, Rebecca. Owen’s told me so much about you. Not only are you terribly beautiful – it seems you can keep up with his rather wicked ways.”
“Mother. Are you attempting to convince her to leave me again?” Owen asked, laughing.
Rebecca turned back, her hands still linked with his mother’s. Her eyes glittered with tears. “Oh, it’s just wonderful to be here. Shall we eat?”
The four of them sat at the kitchen table, as the dining table still had to be bought back from the antique seller. This was an act that Kenneth Frampton had discussed already with Owen’s father a few days before. Beyond the dining table, he suggested purchasing several other items – then allowing Owen and Rebecca to complete the rest, as they would remain at the house for several months, until Owen’s father rid himself of his gambling addiction for good. Rebecca hadn’t bat an eye at this request.
The last time he’d seen her, she’d said, “Your father is ill. If he needs us to be there, we will be. Besides. It will give us a chance to fix the house up for them to live properly. Oh, and Owen… I don’t mind if we live beneath the means in which we were raised. The wealth, the luxury – the many, many things? I don’t see a purpose for it all anymore.
Not with Theo off to live without a thing on his wayward travels – and not with Tabitha and Anthony, living out a stable and lower income life, happily, in love. I am not of the mind that wealth allows for endless happiness.” Owen had heartily agreed. What did he need wealth for? He only wanted to care for those he loved.
When the evening concluded, Owen’s mother walked Rebecca and Owen to the door, whilst Neil Crauford fell back into his study, seemingly exhausted. His mother had more energy, more life to her, and she fell forward to hug Rebecca, so serenely, her eyes closed. When she fell back, she dotted her eyes with a handkerchief and said, “You’ve brought life to our family again, Rebecca. I don’t know how I can ever thank you.”
Owen walked Rebecca to the stables, where her coachman had begun to hitch-up the horses once more. Once there, Owen took her tender hands in his and whispered, “I think it’s fair to say my mother dislikes you. I’m afraid we’re going to have to end this…”
Rebecca heaved a sigh, mocking him. “I suppose it’s for the best. It’s been a lovely journey with you, Owen Crauford. I only wish it could have worked out.”
“Perhaps in another life,” Owen said. He leaned forward and dotted a light kiss on the end of her nose. “In this other life, I suppose I’ll see you next at the engagement party.”
Rebecca’s eyes lightened. “Yes. In this other reality – can you imagine what our guests will say?”
“Their engagement will never last! Enjoy the cakes, the wine, only until their next engagement party, and then their next…” Owen said, his smile widening.
“Perhaps we should end things, get back together again, over and over again, if only to throw them all off,” Rebecca said.
“Every year, a new engagement,” Owen said. “As long as I get to spend my life with you, one way or another.”
He kissed her soft lips, then pressed her against the side of the carriage, suddenly overwhelmed with his own feeling. His cock, thick and heavy, burned against his trouser leg, and her hand found it and wrapped around it, at first softly and tentatively, and then harder. The moon glowed down upon them. He kissed her hungrily, passionately, and then felt the carriage tilt slightly as the coachman lifted himself into the driver’s seat. Owen broke the kiss and placed his hand on the soft curve of her cheek. She bit her lower lip, then whispered, “I suppose it’s really time for me to go.”
Owen assisted Rebecca into the carriage and instructed the coachman to drive safely. Rebecca rolled her eyes, saying, “You really don’t have to keep such a watchful eye.” But her face showed appreciation for his actions, the sincerity.
Owen stood back, his hands shoved in his pockets, watching as the carriage chugged out towards the road and then disappeared. He inhaled slowly, overwhelmed with love for his family, for his girl.
Suddenly, there was a cough from the stable. He cut to the side, simmering with shock, to find Theo leaned up against it, smoking a pipe. His eyes glittered in the moonlight.
“I thought she’d never leave,” Theo said.
“Theo! I didn’t expect you,” Owen said. He shook his dear friend’s hand and shook his head at him, incredulous.
“I wanted to come and say goodbye. I’ve decided to head to London already tomorrow and then on to the West Indies. I feel myself dragging my feet here, just waiting for something to happen next. And truthfully, Zelda has painted a rather wicked portrait of me to the other women in the county. They’ve labelled me a bit of a pariah.”
“I hate to say you had it coming,” Owen said, chuckling softly.
“I really did,” Theo agreed. “It’s better that I leave as swiftly as I can. Perhaps I’ll return in a year or two – enough time for the gossip about me to die down so that I may return to my raucous days of courting. By then I’ll be older, wiser. More handsome, surely – with a whole new chapter of stories.”
“I wish you well, Theo. And I hope you’ll write to me. You’ve been the closest thing to a brother. And I hate that you won’t be there for my marriage.”
“And yet, you know yourself that you’ve found an equal with Rebecca,” Theo said. “She’s more you than I am, in fact. Far cleverer than myself.”
The men spoke for a few minutes more. Owen couldn’t help but feel that time slipped between his fingers, uncatchable, strange. He watched his dear friend leap back atop his horse, bow his head in a final goodbye. Then he swept across the fields, the rolling hills, and disappeared, just as Rebecca had before him.
But Owen couldn’t feel hollow about it. He wouldn’t allow it. Theo was off to do precisely what he’d always wanted; and Owen would have the woman of his dreams. There was nothing to complain of. Nothing else to say.
Chapter 32
The engagement party was held at her father’s estate. Kenneth Frampton requested that it be a grand affair, as this was his last daughter, his final shot, and Molly pulled out all possible stops for the meal and little garden snacks. Champagne and wine were served, and a string quartet played joyfully in the corner of the rose garden.
Rebecca wore a beautiful light-yellow gown, and her hair curled daintily down her shoulders. Evelyn collected a few of the curls in her little hand and sighed. “I don’t understand why you got all the looks. Why do the youngest daughters always get all the looks?”
Her husband Ulrich pulled up beside her, his mouth filled with food. After he swallowed – a difficult task indeed, he said, “Darling, don’t say such a thing. When I met you, you were the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen.”
“And now, time has stamped itself across my face,” Evelyn said.
“Don’t be silly,” Rebecca returned.
Ingrid, the middle sister, burst up between them, cradling a glass of wine. “What are we fighting about now, my dear sisters? I supposed that all that drama would be over, now that our Rebecca has finally decided to fall for someone. Rebecca, we’d nearly lost all hope…”
“Don’t push her. I know this one,” Evelyn said. She dropped a finger against Rebecca’s chest and prodded her slightly. “She’s as malleable as ever. She’ll drop him like a fly any moment, if she feels she’s pressured into it. Won’t you, darling?”
“Everyone does seem rather surprised that it’s moving forward,” Ingrid continued. “Remember that other engagement party we had for you, Rebecca? You must have been nineteen at the time. I had no doubt that you’d dig yourself out of that one. You were far too young at the time. Almost too mischievous.”
“Apparently, many guests have bets regarding whether or not this will go forward,” Evelyn said. Her eyes were glossy with wine.
“Sisters! I don’t suppose you have as much doubt as the others?” Rebecca said, rolling her eyes slightly.
“Just tell us, Rebecca. There’s a great deal of money to be made,” Ingrid said conspiratorially. “If you’re going to leave him, let us know so that we can put money down.”
“Yes. As your sisters, we should be allowed inside information,” Evelyn whispered.
Rebecca felt arms wrap around her, the thick and sturdy arms of Owen Crauford. Then, the gruff whisper came, “What should we do? All this gossip, all this betting about our future…”
“Monstrous, isn’t it?” she said, giggling.
Ingrid and Evelyn exchanged confused glances. Tabitha and Anthony approached from the side, Tabitha seemingly even more pregnant than she’d been only a week before. The string quartet swept into another song, and Owen’s grip on her tightened.
“I suppose I should tell the truth, then,” Rebecca said, giving a slight shrug. “It’s unfortunate. I wanted to be your source of drama for many years to come. I wanted to enrage Evelyn as much as I could, confuse Ingrid, whittle my father down… But it seems this time, I’ve actually fallen in love with someone. I suppose I’ll have to sit with this decision for the rest of my life. Will I regret it? Who’s to say. I’ll keep each of you updated.”
Ingrid laughed and allowed her shoulders to droop. Ulrich gave a confused glance towards Evelyn, who seemed not to have updated him on the many wicked arguments she’d had with Rebecca over the years. Suddenly, Peter and Oliver swept through them, Peter chasing after Oliver frantically, and Ulrich burst after them in an attempt to calm them. Evelyn tutted and said, “Just imagine the sorts of children you’ll have. You’ll be old and cranky like us in no time.”
“And I know you’ll relish the day we are,” Rebecca said, her smile widening.
The garden party guests snacked and drank until Molly called them into the large dining hall for a marvellous meal of quail and roasted vegetables and simmering gravy. Twenty people sat at the table, broke bread, and prayed over the newfound love between Rebecca and Owen. Rebecca’s eyes flashed about the table, relished the view of her soon-to-be mother-in-law, who already seemed to have gained a bit of healthy weight. Her cheeks glowed as she laughed at something Neil Crauford whispered into her ear.
Her father clinked his glass. The table grew sombre as both he and Neil Crauford rose and walked together towards the head of the table, with a view over all guests.
“Now that I have your attention,” her father began, “I wanted to thank and welcome each and every one of you. Perhaps some of you don’t know the story of this impending marriage. If you know anything about my daughter…”
“And my son,” Neil interjected.
“Then you know that they’ve never taken any sort of traditional path. When we attempted to force them into a marriage outside of their control, they resisted us.”
“Hated us, even,” Neil added.
“Yes. Quite.” It was clear, from their tones, that the two men were in the midst of an attempt to get along – a task that would surely take them many years to get right. “But despite their intense distaste for our decision, it seems that they found something in one another.”
“Something that they felt was worthwhile,” Neil said.
“In a sense, they never would have come together without their sincere lust for disappointing us,” her father said. “They found in one another a similar individualistic nature. And I pray that they’ll never lose that within themselves – that they’ll find within one another the support they require to continue on in their individual pursuits together.”
“All our love to the both of them,” Neil said, lifting his glass.
“Yes. All our love,” her father repeated.
Everyone at the table lifted their glasses and beamed towards Rebecca and Owen. They murmured, “Hear, hear!” and then drank. Beneath the table, Owen squeezed Rebecca’s hand. Her cheeks grew warm as she cast her eyes towards her lap.
She wasn’t the sort of woman to weep in the company of so many others. Hers would be private tears, tears of joy shed in the darkness of her own bedroom. The story of herself – and this newfound version of Rebecca Crauford had only just begun. It would be up to her and Owen to fight for what came next.
THE END
Can't get enough of Rebecca and Owen? Then make sure to check out the Extended Epilogue to find out…
How is Tabitha dreaming of raising her children?
How will Neil Crauford manage to stay away from gambling?
Will Augustus find his perfect match after all?
Click the link or enter it into your browser
http://henriettaharding.com/owen
(After reading the Extended Epilogue, turn the page to read the first chapters from “A Night With a Ravishing Governess”, my Amazon Best-Selling novel!)
A Night With a Ravishing Governess
Introduction
Bridget Cottrill has never wished for this horrific reality; abandoning her life, her family, and everything she’s ever known. Eager to change her circumstances, she decides to depart for Buckinghamshire to take upon a governess position, but a great surprise awaits her; trying to escape from her cruel and deviant lover, Aaron Barlow, she will end up into another man’s arms. Graham will steal her heart from the very first moment. When their sizzling passion becomes undeniable, will the fiery Bridget manage to find true love?
Being the eldest son of the Duke of Huntington, Graham is the sort of man who never bothered himself with frivolous courting. When he meets the new governess of their family, he’s faced with something powerful, life-altering; emotions he could never have foreseen. The whip-smart and bright-eyed Bridget immediately steals his heart, but this union is something the Duke would never approve of. Will Graham be able to prove that their love is meant to be?
When the Duke's priceless heirloom is ripped from his study during a ball, it’s obvious to everyone that Bridget is the thief. Now, she must prove her innocence both to Graham and the Duke himself. Their journey to discover the true thief will slowly lead them to a burning affair that will tear their worlds apart. Will they let each other close enough to fight together for their love? Will they survive to meet the passionate future they could have together?
Chapter 1
It’s a dreadful thing, isn’t it, when one’s entire existence is wrapped up in the affairs of one’s father. Bridget had considered it, and considered it again, and decided that the fact that her father had gone bankrupt due to a bad investment was assuredly partially her problem, as it was tied up in her future as a potential bride, a potential wife—but more than that, she knew that his assured trek towards debtor’s jail, if he didn’t come through on his promise to pay the debts back, would truly impact the well-being of her family.
A Wicked Duke's Prize: A Historical Regency Romance Book Page 29
