His Unusual Governess (20 page)

‘Can you forgive your father—and me for telling that scoundrel? I thought he would make you a good husband, Sarah.’

‘I would never have married him even had he not tried to blackmail me—but I wish I had known the truth.’

‘Would it have made a difference? You could not have been more loved, Sarah. Your mama’s life was so much richer for having you.’

‘Yes, and I loved her—but what of my true mother? It hurts me to think Father sent her away.’

‘He gave her money. She had enough to live decently for the rest of her life.’

‘But she had lost a child. I think that must have been hard for her to bear.’

‘Well, it cannot be changed now.’

‘No, it cannot …’ Sarah looked up as the door opened and a maid entered carrying a tray, which she set down close to Sarah. ‘Thank you, Rose.’

‘Is there anything else, miss?’

‘No, I believe we have all we need.’ She looked at her uncle as the maid went out. ‘Will you have tea or some Madeira wine, Uncle?’

‘I believe the wine,’ her uncle said, looking relieved that the awkward business had gone off better than he might have hoped. ‘You’re such a sensible girl, Sarah.’

‘I have tried to be, particularly since my father died—but I am thinking of selling the mills if Lord Myers can find a suitable buyer.’

‘I made a mistake there as well,’ her uncle said with a look of apology. ‘I thought you’d be better without the burden of those mills—but I should have left it to you decide when you were ready.’

‘I believe I may be ready now—if a trustworthy buyer can be found.’

‘I reckon as Lord Myers will find you a buyer who can be trusted. Your workers won’t suffer and you’ll be the richer for it. That young fellow
has a good head on his shoulders even if he is an aristocrat.’

Sarah laughed. ‘I am glad to hear it.’

‘He says you’re to be married within the month. Your aunt and cousins are invited—so that will mean an expense with all the new gowns.’ Her uncle sighed. ‘But if he’s right for you, it’s worth it.’

Sarah was a little shocked, for Rupert had not told her that he intended the marriage so soon, but she merely smiled.

‘I hope you will give me away, Uncle?’

‘Well, if it’s what you truly want …’ He looked pleased, then shook his head. ‘I hope this other business can soon be sorted out. Sir Roger is an evil man and he needs to be brought to justice.’

‘He was wicked to tell me those lies. I do not know what he hoped to gain by spreading a false scandal.’

‘Mud sticks, girl—especially when you’re not out of the top drawer. No, do not look like that, Sarah. You know some of those top-lofty dames in London society will look down their noses at you, even if you are Lady Myers. They will never forget that your father made his money from trade.’

‘It was a decent, honourable business and I
am not ashamed of what Father did for a living—but I think he treated my birth mother ill.’

‘Well, you must make up your own mind on that—but try not to hate him.’

‘No, how could I? He loved me and I loved him—but I wish he had let her at least see me sometimes.’

At that moment a discreet knock at the door heralded Merrivale’s arrival. He greeted Sarah’s uncle with every sign of friendship, shook his hands, insisted he must stay and took him off to speak with the housekeeper about his accommodation.

Sarah was left to the contemplation of her thoughts. She was conscious of a deep ache inside. The knowledge that her mother had been a respectable woman who had given her child to a childless woman but at the last had been grieved to part with her was painful. She wished with all her heart that she might have known her, spent a little time with her.

She needed to talk to Rupert, but knew that he would be with the others. Besides, as kind as he was, she could not expect him to understand her hurt over her mother’s distress and pain.

‘I do not love you the less, Mama,’ she whispered. ‘It’s just that I would have liked to know her, too.’

Feeling an unexpected sweep of loneliness,
Sarah left the parlour by the French doors and went out into the sunshine. She knew it was almost time for tea, but she needed a few moments alone to sort out her thoughts. It was difficult to reconcile what her father had done and yet she understood. Mama had always been delicate, but so sweet and gentle. Sarah and her father had both done everything they could to please her and make her life easy and gentle. They had both mourned her desperately.

Her feelings for her mama and her father had not changed, she discovered as she walked in the direction of the rose arbour. However, there was an empty space inside her, a feeling of terrible loss.

Sarah had been wandering for some minutes lost in thought when she became aware of the rustling sounds. She stiffened, glancing over her shoulder just as a man lurched towards her. He had a thick blanket in his hands and she guessed that he had been about to pounce on her. Sir Roger had somehow found his way inside the grounds and was intent on causing her harm.

‘Stay back or I shall scream.’

‘You are far enough from the house for it not to matter,’ he snarled. ‘I’ve plotted and planned for this, Miss Hoity-Toity, and I’ve waited day after day for you to venture out alone. I was
about to give up and go back to town—and now here you are.’

Sarah swallowed hard. He was right. She was far enough from the house for her screams not to be heard. Normally there were gardeners about, but she could see none. She had nothing that she could hit him with and only her wits to hold him off.

‘Whatever you do, I shall not marry you.’

‘If you prove stubborn, I may have to kill you.’

‘What good would that do you?’

‘If I can’t have you and your money, I’ll make certain no one else can.’

Sarah gasped. Was he mad or just driven to desperation by his debts?

‘Why do you hate me so?’ He had clearly lost his mind and she must play for time, try to think of a way to escape him.

Sarah heard the twig snap behind her. She thought that he must have heard it, too, but he was lost in his grievances, both real and imaginary, his eyes taking on a strange glazed look.

‘I do not hate you. I love you—you must know that you encouraged me at the start.’

‘That is a lie. I never encouraged you—never wished to be your wife… .’

‘Then I might as well kill you now.’

He dropped the blanket and suddenly there
was a pistol in his hand. Even as he lifted his arm to fire, two shots rang out simultaneously and he fell to the ground where he lay, twitching horribly.

Sarah’s scream brought three men running from the shrubbery, two from behind Sir Roger and one from closer to her. She saw that one of them was a man she had thought a gardener, Monsieur Dupree and the other was the man she needed most.

‘Rupert,’ she said, took a step towards him and fainted.

He was there to catch her before she hit the ground.

R
upert bent down by her side, looking at her anxiously. It was merely a faint rather than serious injury. Pray God they had been in time thanks to the dancing master’s timely warning. Rupert had but dismounted from his chaise when Dupree came rushing at him, shouting that he was sure he had seen Sir Roger lurking in the bushes.

‘I saw Miss Sarah walking alone, but she looked in some distress and so I did not join her—but then I spotted this rogue lurking and came to find help.’

Summoning one of the men he had hired to protect Sarah whenever she went beyond the boundaries of the estate, Rupert had felt for his pistol and smiled because it was already
loaded and ready for use. He’d had men searching everywhere for Sir Roger without success, but now it seemed he had come to them. His satisfaction as he pulled the trigger and saw it hit home flared triumphantly through him. The devil had paid for his misdeeds and she was safe.

He felt a rush of tears as he knelt by her side, running his fingers over her face, looking for signs that she was hurt. God help him if he’d been too late.

Rupert lifted Sarah into his arms. She moaned a little, her eyelids fluttering, and he knew a rush of relief. She was alive. Thank God, thank God! His darling girl was alive.

‘Hush, my love. You’re safe now,’ he said and glanced coldly at Sir Roger’s body, which had stopped twitching. ‘Dead?’

‘Oui,
of a certainty,’ Monsieur Dupree said. ‘He was shot twice, in the back and the head. Both shots might have killed him.’

‘Good. The rogue deserved to die. Take him to one of the annexes and send for a doctor—and the magistrate. This business is messy and must be cleared up as swiftly as possible if we are to avert a scandal.’

‘Yes, cap’n.’ The old soldier saluted and then bent down to haul Sir Roger’s body over his
shoulder. ‘I’ll see to ‘im if the Frenchie sees to the rest.’

Rupert nodded grimly, but made no reply as he strode towards the house carrying his precious burden. As he approached several people came out to meet him, Francesca running towards him, Sir Freddie close behind and the two older men standing on the steps watching.

‘Is Sarah all right? We heard two shots.’

‘We found her in time. Sir Roger was about to kill her—he’s dead. I think the man was entirely mad.’

‘It was my fault,’ William Hardcastle said. ‘I told him her story.’

‘No, he knew it before he even met her. He was bent on getting her fortune, but when she proved too stubborn he decided to settle for revenge.’

‘Good grief. Because she wouldn’t marry him?’

‘There’s a lot more to the story. Explanations another day, if you please, gentlemen. Sarah’s comfort comes first.’

‘Of course, of course.’

‘Take her to the salon and put her on the daybed.’

‘No, take her up to her room,’ Francesca said. ‘She will want to be private for a while. You
should stay with her until she feels better, Uncle Rupert.’

‘Good girl, go up and pull the covers back.’

Francesca was ahead of him as he carried Sarah carefully up the stairs. He knew she was stirring, but she merely buried her head against his shoulder, not saying anything until he had placed her gently on her own bed.

‘Please do not be cross with me, Rupert,’ she said and her eyelids flickered. She sighed and then looked up at him. ‘I know it was foolish to go there alone, but I had something on my mind.’

‘My foolish love,’ he said and bent to brush his lips over hers. ‘Why should I be cross with you? I might be annoyed with your uncle, for I suppose he told you the truth, and I am furious with that devil that tried to murder you—but I could never be angry with you. I love you far too much. If anything, I am angry with myself. There was a letter on my desk warning of an attempt on your life from James Monks, but some papers of mine had covered it and I missed it. If you had died, I should never have forgiven myself.’

Sarah inched her way up against the pillows, looking at him, her lovely eyes wide open as if in surprise. ‘You love me? You truly love me? I thought, but I …’

Francesca discreetly closed the door behind her as she went out. She shook her head at the small group gathered there. ‘No need to worry,’ she said. ‘Rupert will take care of her. She will be quite safe with him.’

Inside the room, Rupert smiled down at the woman who looked at him with such dawning wonder in her eyes. ‘Come, Sarah. This is not like you. Surely you knew I was in love with you? I could barely keep from carrying you off to my bed and ravishing you.’

A smile lit her face, making her look beautiful. ‘I thought you might want to lie with me—but lust does not always mean love, does it? Your uncle said something about you once losing a woman you cared for?’

‘Years ago when I was wet behind the ears,’ he said and smiled, his fingers brushing her cheek tenderly. ‘For too long I have felt little inside—transitory lust for a beautiful woman, yes, but true feelings, no, they have eluded me, until you came.’

‘Why?’

‘Why did I feel nothing?’ Rupert frowned. ‘My parents were not particularly happy together—an arranged marriage—and I asked a lady to marry me. She laughed and called me a boy, which I was at the time. I joined the army because there was a war …’ His smile faded, his
eyes, had he known it, wintry and bleak. ‘I saw too many friends die in terrible circumstances, Sarah. A man can only take so much. I carried my best friend Harry from the field. For two days he lingered in terrible pain and then he died in my arms, begging me not to forget him and to take his things to his family, which of course I did. Some of my friends blamed me for my decision to attack the enemy position that day. Lives were lost, though we gained our objective, but some of my friends blamed me for those lost.

‘After that, I shut all feelings out. When I resigned my commission I gave myself up to a life of pleasure, taking a woman if I felt like it, but giving nothing. I think that would not have changed had not a most unusual governess walked into my life.’

‘Oh, Rupert, my dearest one,’ Sarah whispered and held out her hand to him. He took it and pressed it to his cheek, then kissed the fingertips. ‘I am sorry about your friends. I know nothing can change what happened or give you back what you lost—but when we have children of our own they may help to fill the empty places inside you.’

‘You have already done that,’ he said and bent to kiss her, this time a long, lingering kiss that made her sigh and cling to him. ‘If you
cling to me that way, I might just get in that bed with you.’

Sarah laughed, the laugh that had melted the ice and set warm blood flowing through his veins. ‘If I did not think that everyone was waiting for us to go down to tea, I should invite you to keep your word. You may consider it an open invitation.’

‘Shameless hussy,’ he murmured and nibbled at the side of her neck. ‘You taste so good, my love. I can hardly wait for our wedding night.’

Sarah touched his cheek. ‘I do love you so very much.’

He caught her hand and kissed the palm. ‘Do you? I was afraid you couldn’t possibly love me as much as I love you. I have not exactly courted you, have I? For a long time I could not trust my feelings. I feared to be hurt or disillusioned and it was not until you were shot the first time that I began to understand how much you meant to me. Even then I was not sure that I could truly give my heart, but then I realised that my life would be nothing without you.’

Sarah smiled and caught his hand, holding it to her cheek. ‘I have no need of flattery. I want you with all your faults and all your virtues. I do not think that any other man could content me.’

‘That is just as well, Miss Hardcastle, because
I cannot kill all your unwanted suitors.’ He saw the light fade from her lovely eyes and cursed himself for a fool. ‘Forgive me. It was but a jest. Sir Roger has gone now, Sarah. Nothing can harm you now. I have a special licence in my pocket and we shall marry just as soon as you are ready.’

‘Tomorrow?’ Sarah said, laughing up at him. ‘No, no, my aunt is looking forward to the wedding. We must wait the three weeks, I think—but I do not see why we should wait in other ways… .’ Her cheeks turned pink and he laughed in delight.

‘Wanton jade. How much I am going to enjoy being married to you, Sarah. You will set all the old tabbies by the ears when I take you to town. They will not know what to make of you.’

‘I fear they may cut us.’

‘Nonsense. They may be shocked by your story, but their curiosity will bring them flocking and, when they meet you, they cannot fail to appreciate that you are a true lady. Your mother was one after all.’

‘I believe her married name was Harlow,’ Sarah said, her brow wrinkling. ‘Her husband was killed in a foolish duel, leaving her penniless—but my uncle must have told you.’

‘My agents uncovered the story, dearest. I have many agents working on this business and
we knew that Sir Roger had returned to the area.’ He took her hand and kissed it. ‘I fear I cannot give you the news you would wish for. Your mother died, just as your father was told. However, there is something …’

She gazed up at him, enquiring. ‘You have discovered something else?’

‘You have a brother called Harry. I had the information just this morning and intended to tell you when we had a moment to be private—which has been devilishly few and far of late, my love.’

‘A brother?’ Sarah stared at him, some of the pain of her mother’s death draining from her. ‘I truly have a brother?’

‘A half-brother to be precise,’ Rupert said. ‘He is an officer in the army. I had thought you might wish him present at our wedding?’

‘Oh, yes, I should love that. Does he know about me?’

‘I think he is aware he has a sister somewhere, but not the details. I shall leave that to you, Sarah. We can make arrangements for you to meet—or you could invite him here so we might get to know him a bit before we wed.’

‘Do you think of everything?’

‘I am used to being in command. If I am too authoritative, you must tell me and I shall try to change.’

‘I would not change you for the world,’ she said and the sparkle was back. ‘At least … perhaps little things …’

‘And what may they be, minx?’

‘You do not kiss me enough,’ she whispered. ‘I dare say I may find other things—’

She got no further for he decided to supply the lack immediately.

‘So it is all arranged,’ Francesca said and hugged her arm as they walked together in the gardens a few days later. It seemed to Sarah that her life was free of a dark shadow and the sun shone brighter than ever before, the birds singing sweeter than of late. ‘You are to be married in three weeks. When you leave on your honeymoon I shall leave with Grandfather and Freddie to stay with his mama—and when I return you will be here again.’

‘Yes, that is what Rupert suggested. I know I promised to come with you, but you have your grandfather and John—and, of course, Sir Freddie, who loves you dearly.’

‘I shall still miss you, but you must have your trip to Paris,’ Francesca said. ‘I have all the rest of this year and next spring to be with you, dearest Sarah. It is wonderful that Rupert says you will make your home here with us until I
am married. I cannot thank you enough for all you’ve done for me.’

‘It was a happy chance for us both that I came here,’ Sarah said and squeezed her arm. ‘We have both found happiness—and I have found a brother. I have written to invite him to stay and attend our wedding. Your grandfather is to spend more time with us, and, if he can bear it, may make his home here once more.’

‘Freddie says he can live with us if he chooses—or we will live here some of the time. I am sure that there is no need for him to be so lonely again.’

‘I believe he knows that,’ Sarah said and bent to smell a rose, picking the delicate pink bud and tucking it into her gown. ‘Everything has turned out so well for us.’

‘Everything is perfect.’ Francesca said. ‘Oh, here is Freddie. Shall we join him?’

Sarah let her go. ‘Go on, dearest. I want to pick one or two more roses.’

‘So you are happy, Sarah?’ Rupert asked as they walked in the moonlight that night. He stopped and drew her closer, brushing his lips over hers. ‘Can you look forward to our wedding without any shadows?’

‘I shall always be sorry that I never knew
my mother, but perhaps my brother will tell me about her.’

‘I am certain he will,’ Rupert said and touched her cheek. ‘You have the rest of your lives to get to know one another. We shall begin at the wedding and, if it pleases you, I would like to settle some money on him for the future, for when he retires from the military.’

‘Should I not do that?’

‘You will allow me the pleasure,’ Rupert said. ‘Your money is your own, but I shall do what I can to further your brother’s career and set him up with an estate when he is ready.’

‘Would you do so much for my sake?’

‘I would do more,’ he promised and kissed her.

‘I think my mother would be happy that her children were reunited as family.’

‘Then you are truly happy?’

‘So happy,’ Sarah said and gazed up at him. ‘Of course, one thing could be better. You could kiss me more… .’

She gurgled with laughter as he crushed her to him and she felt the burn of his urgent desire.

‘Shall I take you to bed, Sarah? I am tempted, but with a house filled with friends and relatives I fear it could not remain our secret—and I would not have anyone think less of you.’

‘Then take me to the summerhouse,’ Sarah
said. ‘There are cushions and blankets and we could make ourselves a bed.’

‘You wicked wanton girl,’ he murmured huskily. ‘I might have known you would think of a way.’

Sarah turned on her side, raising her body to look down at Rupert as he lay with his eyes closed, the moonlight playing over his features. She reached up to trace the proud line of his neck and moved across his sensitive mouth—the mouth that had kissed her nearly senseless. He caught her finger with his white teeth and she laughed.

‘I thought you were sleeping?’

‘Just content,’ he said and opened his eyes to look at her. ‘You are such a warm, wonderful woman, my Sarah. I do not know what I have done to deserve you.’