Chapter Five
Miranda was surprised by how enjoyably the evening passed.
She and Gwenys were dining with Solway and Douglas at the Golden Rose, one of Edinburgh’s finest establishments, and neither the meal nor the company disappointed. To her dismay, having Solway beside her felt nice.
Too nice.
This frightened her, but she was not going to say or do anything to spoil their last night here.
It was decided, mostly due to her insistence, that they would depart for London tomorrow.
Gwenys was obviously disappointed because she liked being in the company of Douglas Lanark and hoped to spend more time with him.
He seemed to be a good and diligent young man, but would he or Solway ever seriously consider taking a Sassenach bride?
Well, Solway had suggested it to her.
But he must have been thinking of protecting Mongo and his companions from her wrath at the time.
These men were Scottish noblemen and felt a strong sense of loyalty to their country. Would their kinsmen not feel betrayed if they were to take English wives?
She was not going to make too much of it, since she was never going to marry again.
As for Gwenys, she would soon be making her come-out and be inundated with gentlemen seeking to court her.
It was likely she would forget Douglas and be swept away by a handsome marquess or earl, or possibly a duke, upon attending her first ball.
“A toast,” Douglas proposed as he rose with champagne glass raised high.
“To the fairest roses of England,” he said, smiling at Miranda and Gwenys, although mostly at Gwenys.
“May the sun always shine on ye. May the rain always fall warm and gentle upon yer shoulders. May yer life be a bountiful garden filled with friends ye have cultivated along the way. May they always treat ye with kindness. As for this friend,” he said, placing a hand over his heart, “he shall never forget ye lovely English roses and these days of heaven spent with ye. I will carry the blossom of our acquaintance in my heart forever.”
Gwenys smiled back at him with tears in her eyes.
Oh dear.
Was there possibly something more serious going on between them?
Gwenys could be a little bit of a goose when it came to men.
But this felt different. She hadn’t chattered on and on about Douglas as she usually did about other young lords upon meeting them.
No silly outpourings, even though she was always one to talk about her potential beaus with gushing praise, only to forget about them the next day when another came along.
But she was quiet about Douglas.
Miranda wondered whether she was being an ogre to force these two apart. She wanted to return with all haste to London, but there was no pressing need for it. And hadn’t Tilda warned her that another few days of bed rest would be helpful?
Well, the decision had been made. It would become clear in the months ahead if these two were serious about each other. Anyway, how could anyone develop strong feelings for a stranger within a couple of days? Was it not dangerous to believe in love at first sight?
In truth, was it not dangerous to believe in love at all?
Yet love did happen. Miranda had seen it with several of her dearest friends.
who also happened to be her neighbors on Duchess Square.
Lady Berry Thane, for one, whose husband, Gideon Knight, adored her.
Another of their neighbors, Suzanna Carstairs, had found love with Gideon’s best friend, John Bonham.
Not to mention how happy one of the very first friends she had made on Duchess Square, Lady Fiona Shoreham, was now that she had found true love with Robert Durham, the Duke of Durham.
In truth, no one could ever doubt how deeply and faithfully Durham had loved Fiona, since he had remained ever true in his affections since he was a child and they first set eyes on each other as neighbors in the countryside.
But this deep and abiding love that her friends had found was rare, was it not?
Miranda had thought herself in love once, but she had been so wrong. How could she ever trust herself again?
Solway now rose with his champagne glass aloft.
“I’ll second that sentiment, and add that ye ladies may always look to us should ye ever be in need of assistance.
I’ll be escorting ye to London, but it is my heartfelt wish no’ to part ways afterward.
With yer permission, I would very much like our friendship to continue and prosper. ”
“Yes, Your Grace,” Gwenys responded, “I certainly hope so.”
Miranda knew he was waiting for her to say something, but she merely raised her glass.
She saw the disappointment in his expression when she took a token sip of her drink so as not to appear rude, and then set it down.
How could she encourage him?
Perhaps if he were not a danger to her heart, it would be easier for her to be light and cheerful about the possibility of their forming a friendship.
They returned to the Lampton Inn shortly afterward. She and Gwenys bade the gentlemen a good evening and retired to their chamber. She caught Gwenys glancing at the door to the room numbered twenty, which was immediately next to theirs.
“Lady Wharton was so mean, Aunt Miranda. What distorts a person like that? Especially one who is given every advantage in life?”
“We won’t ever see her again, Gwenys. Do not dwell on her.”
“Do you think she will chase after Solway once we are back in London?”
Miranda’s heart gave a little tug. “I do not know, nor do I care.”
“That is so cruel of you, too,” Gwenys chided her as they entered their quarters. “He has treated you very nicely.”
“So did my husband before we were married,” Miranda shot back, slamming the door shut after them and immediately regretting it.
First of all, she did not truly believe Solway was like that wretch she’d once had the misfortune to call husband.
Nor was she pleased that she had behaved like a petulant child just now.
It was not like her ever to lose her composure.
Unfortunately, despite all her efforts to fashion a good life for herself over the ensuing years, her husband’s betrayal still stung her badly.
But she could not forget that the Lawsons were Gwenys’s family, too. Indeed, her father was now the Earl of Lowery, having inherited the title upon the death of her deceitful wretch of a husband.
She should not be speaking ill about any of them. Despite Gwenys’s obvious love and loyalty for her, the fact remained that these men Miranda was thinking ill of were Gwenys’s father and uncle. They were her blood kin.
She also had to be careful what she said about the witch of a stepmother.
Gwenys’s father had remarried shortly after Gwenys’s mother had died. The new wife was a waspish woman, petty and constantly scheming to cut Gwenys out of her father’s life so that she and the stepdaughter could take precedence.
And men could be so foolish in this regard, for Gwenys’s father did not see this happening at all and often went along with his wife’s manipulative wishes. This was why Miranda had taken Gwenys into her home, determined to shield the good and loving girl from that intolerable situation.
Miranda hoped she would not prove to be just as awful to Gwenys in a different way. She could not allow her own hurtful marriage experience to interfere with her niece’s happiness.
Yes, she had to be very careful about this.
They helped each other unlace their gowns, and then Gwenys helped Miranda don her nightgown.
Her ribs still pained her, which meant she could not raise her arms above her head without feeling sore.
However, Tilda had efficiently bound her rib cage this morning before she and Solway had journeyed to Edinburgh, and those bindings were holding up well.
“Sweet dreams, Gwenys. We’re to get an early start in the morning. ”
“Sweet dreams to you, Aunt Miranda,” Gwenys said as they climbed into their separate beds.
Miranda blew out the candle and lowered her head wearily to the pillow. Her ribs had been mostly bruised and only one or two ever so slightly fractured, but the strain of pretending they did not hurt at all had left her exhausted.
She was asleep before her head hit the pillow.
Something stirred her awake a few hours later, and she sat up with a grunt.
What had alarmed her?
She quietly lit her candle and held it up while looking about the room. A soft amber light fell upon Gwenys’s bed…Gwenys’s empty bed.
Miranda gasped.
Why was Gwenys not in her bed?
Miranda tossed off her covers while trying to rein in her pounding heart. She rose too fast, almost stumbled, but quickly recovered her balance and proceeded to walk around the room with the candle held high to make sure Gwenys was nowhere in here.
The candle cast an eerie glow upon the beds and walls. “Oh, Gwenys. What have you done?”
She set the candle down a moment, hastily donned her robe and slippers, then took the candle back in hand and left her quarters.
Recalling her last experience—Mongo’s abducting her when she had walked out of this very inn to investigate the noises outside her window—she knew it would be the height of folly to repeat this same mistake.
Instead, she made her way quietly down the hall toward the Royal Suite. If there was any searching to be done, she would do it with a big, gloriously brawny, and handsome beast of a duke by her side.
Of course, that she thought he was handsome beyond words did not really matter.
She was not certain of the hour, but knew it must have been well after midnight because the inn was quiet. She knocked lightly at Solway’s door and was surprised when it opened immediately to reveal him wearing nothing but his trousers, his falls only half buttoned.
Drat, he looked so gorgeous.
She averted her eyes from the taut ripples along his stomach.
He appeared surprised to see her. Had he been expecting Lady Wharton?