A Lady Most Lovely (44 page)

“Thank you, Harding,” James said. He glanced at the worn object with equal distaste, then motioned to the far side of the room. “Set it there for now.”

That bag might be all the woman had in the world, Geoffrey thought, and yet James was so casually dismissive of it. The man had a long way to go when it came to finding compassion for those less fortunate.

He turned back to the woman. She stirred and moaned softly. “Easy,” Geoffrey murmured, unable to resist the urge to comfort her, although he doubted she could hear him. “You’re safe now.”

James watched from the other side of the sofa as Geoffrey cleaned the blood from her hair and face. “What a specimen she is,” he remarked as her features came into view. He leaned in to scrutinize her. “Look at those high cheekbones. And the delicate arch of her brow. And those full lips—”

“This is a woman, James,” Geoffrey remonstrated. “Not some creature in a zoo.”

“Well, it’s clear she’s a woman,” James returned lightly, unruffled by Geoffrey’s tone. “I’m glad you noticed. Sometimes I wonder if you are aware of these things.”

Geoffrey was aware. At the moment, he was
too
aware. He could not deny that, like James, he had been taken by her beauty. Except her lips were too pale, chapped from
dryness. He had a wild urge to reach out and gently brush over them with cool water…

“Good heavens,” James said, abruptly bringing Geoffrey back to his senses. He dropped his handkerchief from his face. “This is Ria.”

Geoffrey froze. “What did you say?”

“I said, the young lady bleeding all over Auntie’s sofa is Victoria Thornborough.”

No. Surely that was impossible. There were occasions, Geoffrey thought, when James seemed determined to try him to the absolute limit. “James, this is not the time for one of your childish pranks.”

James shook his head. “I am absolutely in earnest.”

“But that’s preposterous.”

“I think I should know my own cousin. Even if it has been ten years.” He bent closer as the woman mumbled something incoherent. “You see? She heard me. She recognizes her name.”

The room suddenly became quite still. Even the servants who had been hovering nearby stopped their tasks. All eyes turned toward the sofa.

Was this really Ria? Geoffrey had to take James’s word on it for now; he had never met her. He had been in Europe during her brief, clandestine courtship with his brother. This woman, to whom he had been so curiously drawn—for some reason he could easily believe her to be a lady, despite her dirty clothes and bruises. He had no trouble believing Edward could have fallen in love with her—had he not been taken with her himself?
No,
he told himself again. It had been mere compassion he’d been feeling. And it was utterly incomprehensible that his sister-in-law should appear like this out of nowhere.

“If this is Ria,” Geoffrey said, “then surely Edward would be with her?”

“So one would expect,” James replied. “I agree that the situation is most unusual.”

“Unusual,” Geoffrey repeated drily. The word might describe everything about what had happened between Ria and his brother. Their elopement had taken everyone by surprise, causing a scandal that was bad enough without the embarrassing fact that Ria had been engaged to his other brother, William, at the time.

“At least we can surmise that they were not aboard the ill-fated
Sea Venture,
” James said. “Where
did
they go, I wonder?”

“That is only one of the many things I’d like to know,” Geoffrey said. He’d exhausted himself with searches and inquiries after Edward and Ria had disappeared without a trace. The best they could discover was that the couple may have booked passage on a ship that had sunk on its way to America. And yet all was conjecture; there had never been answers.

Geoffrey took hold of the woman’s left hand and began to remove a worn glove that was upon it. He heard the maid behind him gasp, but he was beyond worrying about the possible impropriety of his actions. If this was Ria, he wanted evidence that Edward had made an honest woman of her. He did not think his brother would deliberately trifle with a woman’s affections, but he also knew Edward was prone to rash whims and irresponsible actions. Anything might have kept him from carrying out his plans.

With one last gentle tug from Geoffrey, the glove came off, revealing a hand that was rough and calloused.
It was a hand that had done plenty of manual labor. Though she was not wearing a wedding band, she was wearing a gold and onyx ring that Geoffrey recognized as having once belonged to Edward. The sight of it nearly devastated him. He could think of only one reason she would be wearing it instead of his brother.

“Why?” Geoffrey asked roughly, as his concern melted into consternation. “If they were in dire straits, why did they stay away? Why did they not ask us for help?”

“If you were in their shoes,” James answered, “would you have wanted to face William’s wrath? Or Lady Thornborough’s?” He looked at the woman thoughtfully. “Perhaps they were not always so destitute. Look at her, Geoffrey. Look at what she is wearing.”

Geoffrey allowed his gaze to travel once more over the slender figure in the plain black dress that seemed to declare her in mourning. “No!” Geoffrey said sharply. How could she have survived, but not Edward?

Geoffrey rose and gave the towel and the glove to the maid. He walked to the window and peered through the lace curtains to the street below. It was filled with carriages moving swiftly in both directions, but he could see no sign of either his coach or the doctor’s. He knew it was too soon to expect their return, but he could not quell the anxiety rising in him.

Which was worse: the continual pain of not knowing what had become of his brother, or the final blow of discovering he really was dead? If anyone had asked him that question before this moment, he might have given an entirely different response.

He had to get Ria well again. And he had to get answers.

Also by Jennifer Delamere

An Heiress at Heart

Praise for
An
H
eiress at Heart

“Engrossing and heartbreaking…
An Heiress at Heart
is poignant, profound, and lovely.”

—
USA Today
’s Happy Ever After blog

“This is a wonderful love story… not your usual English stuffiness; there is something for everyone.”

—
RT Book Reviews

“[A] clever historical and subtly inspirational romance… filled with emotion and sexual energy… The classic historical plot will appeal to many readers.”

—
Booklist

“Extremely well written, well plotted, and historically detailed… I definitely will read every book Jennifer Delamere writes.”

—BooksLikeBreathing.blogspot.com

“The romantic tension between Lizzie and Geoffrey is ever-present, but graphic love scenes are entirely absent, which will delight those historical romance fans who prefer a more delicate approach.”

—
Publishers Weekly

“A pretty good read.”

—ReadingwithStyle.blogspot.com

“Fantastic… I loved this book.”

—ReadingwithAnalysis.wordpress.com

“Jennifer Delamere sets a new standard in Victorian romance, with characters who shine and a plot that’ll keep you guessing.”

—Abby Gaines, author of
The Earl’s Mistaken Bride

“A sweetly rendered tale of discovery and forgiveness with a refreshing touch of innocence.”

—Cindy Holby, bestselling author of
Angel’s End

THE DISH

Where Authors Give You the Inside Scoop

From the desk of Jennifer Delamere

Dear Reader,

One reason I love writing historical fiction is that I find fascinating facts during my research that I can use to add spice to my novels.

For Tom Poole’s story in A LADY MOST LOVELY, I was particularly inspired by an intriguing tidbit I found while researching shipwrecks off the southern coast of Australia. In describing the wreck of a steamer called
Champion
in the 1850s, the article included this one line: “A racehorse aboard
Champion
broke loose, swam seven miles to the shore, and raced again in the Western District.” Isn’t that amazing!? Not only that the horse could make it to land, but that it remained healthy enough to continue racing.

Although I was unable to find out any more details about the racehorse, as a writer this little piece of information was really all I needed. I knew it would be a wonderful way to introduce the animal that would come to mean so much to Tom Poole. Tom and the stallion are the only survivors of a terrible shipwreck that left them washed up on the coast near Melbourne, Australia, in early 1851. Tom was aboard that ship in the first place because he was chasing after the man who had murdered his best friend. By the time he meets Margaret Vaughn
in A LADY MOST LOVELY, Tom has been involved in two other real-life events as well: a massive wildfire near Melbourne, and the gold rush that would ultimately make him a wealthy man.

As you may have guessed by now, Tom Poole is a man of action. This aspect of his nature certainly leads him into some interesting adventures! However, when he arrives in London and meets the beguiling but elusive Miss Margaret Vaughn, he’s going to discover that affairs of the heart require an entirely different set of skills, but no less determination.

From the desk of Erin Kern

Dear Reader,

There are two things in this world that I love almost as much as dark chocolate. One of them is a striking pair of blue eyes framed by thick black lashes, with equally dark hair just long enough for a woman’s fingers to run through… Excuse me for a moment while I compose myself.

And the other is fried pie.

Okay, I just threw that last part in as an FYI. But what I’m really doing is tucking that useless tidbit away for a
future project. That’s just how my weird mind works, folks.

But in all seriousness, while I really do love a blueeyed man, even more than that I love a wounded soul. Because I love to fix things. In my books. In real life I kind of suck at it.

Way back when I first started writing the Trouble series, as was kicked off with
Looking for Trouble
, I had an atypical wounded soul already forming in the cavernous recesses of my mind. I just needed to find a home for her.

Yes, I’m talking about a wounded heroine. I know that sounds kind of strange. Most romance readers love a scarred hero who gets his butt kicked into shape by some head-strong Miss Fix-It. Not that I don’t love that also. But I also knew
Looking for Trouble
wasn’t the place for her.

Lacy Taylor needed her own story with her own hero. And not only her own hero, but one with an extra tough brand of love that could break through her well-built defense mechanisms.

But make no mistake. Lacy Taylor isn’t as much of a tough cookie as she’d like everyone to think. Oh, no. She has a much softer side that only Chase McDermott could bring to the surface. Of course, she tries to keep Chase at arm’s length like everyone else in her life. But he’s too good for her defenses. Too good-looking. Too loosehipped. Too quick with his melt-your-bones smile. Not to mention his blue eyes. Gotta have those baby blues.