Chapter 12 #2
“Impulsively and with anger would be my way of putting it. However, I also don’t think you’d have done what you did unless you truly wanted her as your wife. Not as an act of revenge, but because you care for her and found an excuse to make her yours.”
Edward stared at his friend and acknowledged the truth in what he was saying. Yes, Edward had known making Melody his would prove a challenge. Was that his true motivation for kissing her in the park where Moorland would see, then declaring their engagement so there was no going back?
He’d been so consumed by heartache, disappointment, and rage, he’d not taken time to think it through. But the truth was…
He longed for her. Desperately. Though his actions these past two days would make their relationship hard to mend.
He’d wrecked their marriage before it began.
After all, she’d been right, had she not?
He’d given her no cause to think he would ever make her his countess, had not even told her he loved her.
And the worst part was, he feared he could not find the means by which to stop lashing out at her.
“How did you get past Samantha’s deception?” Edward asked. “How did the two of you manage to make amends?”
“We fought. Viciously. Until she managed to pin me down.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“Later, when I’d cooled off enough to listen, she told me everything about Harlowe and his plan to destroy me. From that moment onward she strove to prove her loyalty to me, and her efforts paid off. Especially when she helped me escape the hangman’s noose. I’d trust her with my life now.”
“So what you’re saying is—”
Another scream split the air, this one louder than the previous ones.
Edward’s heart shuddered in response to the sound — at the sight of his friend’s despair.
His friend. They’d known each other forever, yet this business with Melody had put a wedge between them.
The hurt Edward had felt when he’d learned that Adrian knew all along who she really was but had kept it from him…
Is there anything you’re not telling me about her?
Of course not.
A deliberate deception that crushed him. He still couldn’t forgive Adrian for it, even though time had provided him with the clarity needed to understand why he’d acted as he had.
He was glad Samantha had sent for Melody. It gave him the chance to work on mending the rift between himself and Adrian. Oh, how he’d cursed Adrian these past few weeks, how he’d sworn never to speak with him ever again.
Yet here he was, the very core of his being aching because of what Adrian must be going through now.
The fear for his wife, magnified by the trauma he’d known in adolescence when his mother died giving birth to his sister.
All Edward wanted to do was ease his concerns, but how could he when the truth was that there were no guarantees Samantha would make it through this.
The only thing to be done was hope and pray all would be well, that both mother and child survived.
“Your wife is a fighter,” Edward said a few moments later when the right approach struck. “She will put all her strength and determination toward delivering that child and returning to your side.”
No guarantee, but faith in the woman Adrian loved.
“Yes,” Adrian said, following the response with a few solid nods of agreement. “You’re right. I married a warrior, not some wilting wallflower. She’ll be fine. She has to be with a child to care for.”
Edward said nothing, allowing Adrian’s words and the optimism they instilled to fill the hallway.
An additional series of groans came from the room.
They seemed to drag on forever, and then the door opened.
Melody appeared, her expression such that it was impossible to tell if there was cause for concern or rejoicing.
“She wants you by her side,” Melody told Adrian. “The doctor has allowed it as long as you swear you won’t interfere.”
“How am I to make such a promise?” Adrian hissed. “If I don’t trust what he’s doing, I’ve every right to stop him.”
“Just make the promise,” Melody gritted, the look in her eyes encouraging Adrian to comply. She sent a quick glance over her shoulder, then added, “You can always break it later.”
“Fine,” he said. “I swear not to interfere.”
“Good.” Melody informed the doctor, then admitted Adrian to the room and stepped into the hallway.
She closed the door behind her and sagged against the wall beside it. When she raised her gaze to Edward, he finally saw the concern she’d hidden while speaking with Adrian.
Edward’s stomach contracted. “What is it? What’s happened?”
“She’s exhausted and in pain. The baby is turned the wrong way and… Doctor Moore is worried that dragging this on will endanger both mother and child. He’s going to keep trying to help Samantha through a natural birth, but’s he’s sending for Mr. Melroy. In case a cesarean becomes necessary.”
“What does that mean?” He’d heard of this, had he not? Surely his understanding of what it entailed must be wrong. The doctor couldn’t possibly be thinking of cutting Samantha open. That was absurd. Whatever chance she had of survival would surely be slim if this path were pursued.
Horrified, he stared at the door while trying to figure out some way in which to help. It opened in the next instant and a woman exited the room. The midwife, he assumed, or perhaps just a nurse?
“Am I to understand that Mrs. Croft has to undergo surgery?” he asked the woman, his hand already on her arm to prevent her from walking away and ignoring his question.
“Possibly.” The woman yanked her arm free. “If you’ll excuse me, haste is of the essence.”
He dropped his hand and stared at her retreating form. God have mercy, this could not be happening.
The gentle touch of fingers against his hand made him turn.
He met Melody’s watery gaze and instantly pulled her into his arms. What a fool he was to have treated her so abominably.
Were she in Samantha’s position, he’d walk barefoot through broken glass and make a deal with the devil to switch places with her.
Anything so she would be safe and out of danger.
Yes, she’d deceived him, but as she’d correctly pointed out, there had been no promise between them. They’d not been attached and he…he had left her without a single assurance that they would ever be more than friends.
“Take heart, Melody.” His hand swept over the length of her spine with soothing strokes. “She’s getting the best medical care England has to offer. Let’s be thankful she did not remain at Deerhaven Manor.”
“Yes,” she muttered against his chest, her voice slightly muffled. And then she was stepping back, away from him. “Forgive me, my lord, I’m not myself. I—”
“Neither am I. Nor have I been these past few weeks since learning of your…secret identity.” He swallowed past the knot that had formed in his throat and set his palm against her cheek. “I’m so terribly sorry for how I’ve treated you.”
“It’s all right.” Heartache filled her eyes.
“No.” The pain he saw in her expression was more than he could bear. “It is far from all right. I’ve been unjust and cruel and so unlike myself.”
“Though not without reason,” she murmured. “Had I been in your position, I would have responded similarly. The hurt I caused you—”
“Is surely less than what I’ve caused you.” Shame expanded inside his gut until he felt sick. “I can only imagine how much you must loathe me.”
She shook her head slightly. “There was never any loathing on my part. Resentment and sadness, yes, some anger too, but nothing as harsh as loathing.”
His fingers traced over her cheek. “You are a much better person than I, Melody.”
“I don’t believe that for a second,” she said with a slight quiver to her voice. “No one is as good and kind as you, which is why I stayed. Contrary to what you may think, you did not force me to marry you, Edward. I chose to become your wife when I could just as easily have fled.”
“Back to Italy,” he said, aware that she’d had another option besides him.
“I stayed because I believed that you and I could be happy together once we got past this.”
Heaven above, he’d never felt smaller. It was as though he’d been blind to everything but his own riotous emotions and was suddenly able to see.
“I will make it up to you,” he said. “I swear it.”
Her faint smile was like sunshine, washing away cloudy days. It wobbled at the sound of approaching footsteps and vanished completely when she saw the people rushing toward them.
Edward’s own heartbeat slowed to a sluggish pulse. It was the woman who’d left the room a few moments before. She was now accompanied by a man who carried a leather bag with him. Two additional nurses followed behind in their wake, a variety of supplies in their arms.
“Are you the surgeon?” Melody asked.
A swift nod was his only response as the woman who’d gone to fetch him opened the door to the room. The surgeon was promptly ushered inside, and then the nurses followed him in.
Edward gave Melody a nudge. “Go on.”
She didn’t hesitate for a second, hurrying after them all so she could be by Samantha’s side. The door swung shut one second later, leaving Edward alone in the hallway.
Optimistic about the turn of events his conversation with Melody had brought about, yet terrified on behalf of Adrian and Samantha, he sank to the nearest bench and buried his head in his hands.
Whether or not today would bring about happiness would be determined by how things progressed in the room directly behind him.