Joan Smith (21 page)

She tilted her head to look up at him, but didn’t speak. The moment was too precious to require words.

“God, I was such a fool. Rushing into a proposal to a girl I scarcely knew. I only knew that I wanted to marry and settle down. Aurelia was there—the prettiest girl I had met. Before I knew what I was about, I found myself shackled. Or as close to it as made no difference. Can you ever forgive me?”

“Oh, Nick!”

“I shall take that for a yes. Now for the big one. Darling, I love you so much, I ...”

Words failed him. He drew her into his arms for a long, sweet embrace by the fading embers, whispering all the love he had had to suppress for so long. Jane felt not only the thunderbolt of love, but the flashing lightning of desire as passion mounted, and he crushed her against him as if he would never let her go. For an hour they sat together, talking about their close escape, and the future.

After such a late night, they did not come downstairs until eleven the next morning. Aurelia’s note had been found and read, the elopement discussed, and its advantages and disadvantages thoroughly gone into.

“It need not hamper me from picking up a thousand or so acres hereabouts for my hops,” Town-send decided. “I’ll throw a mansion up on a few acres for ‘Relia and Willie, for when he is in England. With his connections, we will fit into country society with no trouble.”

“ ‘Relia will still be called a lady,” Marie pointed out. “Lady Winston.”

“Willie will be a real lord in no time,” Townsend decided. “That lad knows his way around. A bosom bow of the prince.”

“It is a pity about the wedding,” Mrs. Townsend said, thinking of all the planning that had gone into it.

“She can wear the gown when she is presented at court,” Marie pointed out.

The first meeting with the jilted bridegroom could not be anything but awkward. Regrets were expressed and forgiveness granted. Before noon, Townsend was drawing out his heavy turnip watch and saying that they had best be off.

“We’ll stop at Tupper’s Tavern in Gatwick for a spot of luncheon,” he said to no one in particular. “I am thinking of adding it to my chain of tied houses. With luck, we will lay our heads on our own pillows tonight, and be there to give Lady Winston a little wedding party before she leaves for Paris. No reason the poor girl should be diddled out of a wedding party entirely.”

“You can have ‘Relia’s carpet and lamps and vase sent to my place, in Grosvenor Square,” Marie informed Lady Elizabeth.

“I will be very happy to,” Lady Elizabeth replied promptly.

Marie was impressed with her easy victory. There was quality for you, say what you would. She had expected to have to haggle for the goods.

The trunks were brought down and loaded on the  two carriages. The farewells were so cordial, one would almost think Aurelia had come to Clareview for no other reason than to elope with Sir William.

When Mrs. Lipton went abovestairs for a hand of all fours with her fiancé, she was not too disconcerted to discover he had forgotten their engagement. Everyone else soon forgot it, too. They had a different engagement to conjure with. Amberley thought the colonel had chosen well. The Town-sends were well enough in small doses, but they could not like to think of them spoiling all the parties at Clareview with their overweening ways.

“I shall toddle along to have a word with George,” Pelham said. “I believe he is having some sort of service at St. Peter’s for New Year’s Day. I will tell him to get practicing up the wedding service for you two.”

“Won’t you do it for us, Pel?” Jane asked. “You have practiced it for days. You must know it by now.”

“Daresay I could do it, for you. I mean to say, you can always prompt me if I go astray, Jane. You know it better than I do.”

Nick could not like to think of his wedding being turned into a farce by Pel. “I was hoping you would be my best man, Pel,” he said.

“Would I have to memorize anything?”

“Just carry the ring, and give it to me to put on Jane’s finger.”

“Daresay I could manage that. Consider it done.”

They saw Pel off, then went back into the house, to see the servants removing the festive boughs from the saloon.

“Come with me,” Nick said, leading Jane to the ballroom.

The kissing bough still hung in the archway. He placed her under it, saying, “I have wanted to do this ever since I saw Pel kissing you. That was when I first began to realize my ghastly mistake.”

“What a slow top you are. I realized it long before that.”

“But you didn’t do anything about it, wretch.”

“What could I have done?”

“This,” he said, and kissed her fiercely.

Copyright © 1994 by Joan Smith

Originally published by Fawcett Crest [ISBN 0449223310]

Electronically published in 2013 by Belgrave House/Regency Reads

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This is a work of fiction. All names in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to any person living or dead is coincidental.