Chapter Fourteen
“I should go. I need to check on some of the repairs I made this morning to make certain all is well.” Laurence drained the contents of his teacup and then made to push back his chair from the table in the servants’ hall.
He’d taken afternoon tea with the staff of Landry Hall, for Rose had been napping due to a megrim from the morning.
“Thank you for the companionship and the tea.”
Mrs. Henderson appeared in the doorway, and the buzz of conversation stopped. “Captain Danbury, a word, if you please?” Her gaze connected with his. “In my office.”
“Of course.” As knots of apprehension tugged in his gut, he nodded his goodbyes to the rest of the staff assembled at the long table.
Then he stood, pushed in his chair, and followed the housekeeper along the narrow corridor.
When they entered the small, windowless room that served as her domain, she closed the door behind him.
“Please, take a seat.”
He frowned but did as she asked. “Is all well? I’m feeling much like I did when out of favor with a university professor.” With a glance at a wooden cupboard at one side of the space, he returned his attention to her.
“Please don’t worry. Everything is fine; I just didn’t want the rest of the staff to overhear.
” Mrs. Henderson sat on a wooden chair behind a battered and scarred desk.
A small vase containing two late season roses rested in one corner along with a stack of three slim books.
On the other corner was a carved wooden dog.
In the middle was a closed leather-bound account book where she rested her folded hands.
“I have heard back from my sister regarding the matter of your sister.”
“Ah.” Worry twisted down his spine as he settled into a hardbacked wooden chair that faced the desk. “From the look on your face, I’m wondering if I even wish to know what you discovered.”
A soft chuckle left her throat as she waved away his comment. “All is as well as it can be, but this information will prove interesting at the very least.”
“I’m intrigued.” He rested his ankle on his knee. “Tell me.”
“It seems that your mother’s lover had a cottage in a rural part of the county, a few miles away from your father’s manor. He pretended he was married—his sister went along with the farce—and appealed to your father once it became known that the old baron wished to rid himself of the babe.”
“And?” He could scarcely breathe as his pulse pounded with excitement.
“And they were so convincing that apparently your father believed their story. They told him they’d wished for a child for years without God granting them a babe. Allegedly, the tale was fraught with emotions, tears, and pleading.”
“And my father fell for it.” The baron might have been many things, but buried deep down, he had a soft heart… before he’d shrouded it with black over the years. “He let that ‘couple’ have the baby, to adopt it as it were.”
“Oh, yes. My sister, who lives in the nearest village to the cottage, said your mother’s lover was quite an attentive father.”
“And the man’s sister? What happened to her?”
“From what my sister wrote, the sister lived in that cottage. She kept house for your mother’s lover. For many years, until her death a few years ago.”
Laurence frowned. “What did the lover do for a living?”
“As far as my sister knew, he was a banker in London. While he was away during the week, your sister was left in the care of her aunt. When he wasn’t working, your sister’s father was at the cottage, spending time with the girl—taking her for walks, playing in the garden, teaching her how to dance while her aunt gave her an education on everything a woman should know, including the knowledge of herbs, gardening, keeping chickens and the like. ”
“It does sound as if she was very much loved.” And while he was happy about that, sadness overshadowed that, for she’d never known him, her only sibling. “I’m glad of it.”
Slowly, the housekeeper nodded. “Yes, as am I.”
“What is her name? I wanted to call her Lucy, yet I’m sure that isn’t the name she was given.”
Mrs. Henderson nodded. “She was named after your mother—Elizabeth. I believe her father and aunt call her Beth.”
“Beth.” A wash of moisture filled his eyes, and he blinked it away. “That’s a lovely way to remember my mother.”
“Indeed it is. I also have the direction of the cottage as well as the name of your mother’s lover.
” She opened her ledger, drew out a folded slip of paper, then leaned forward and slid it to him over the desktop.
“My sister says that Beth still lives there. Her father is nearly sixty and in failing health. She looks after him.”
“Oh?” He snagged the paper then tucked it into the pocket of his waistcoat. “What ails him?”
“Some sort of disease of the lungs, I think.”
“Lucy would be four and twenty now,” he said in a low voice. “She should be married and starting a family of her own.”
Mrs. Henderson nodded. “I asked my sister about that in my letter as well. Though your sister has a suitor who has been interested in her for almost two years, they haven’t gotten engaged as of yet due to your sister not knowing what will happen to her father.”
“But that is exactly the reason they should move ahead with an engagement. At least then her father can see her wed.”
“Some people aren’t as methodical as you, Captain.” Her gaze bore into his. “Speaking of that, you are ten years older than your sister, and you haven’t sorted your life. You should also be married and starting a family.”
Heat crept up the back of his neck. “I am well aware of that, yet you already know my circumstances.”
“Life has a way of surprising us, but you can’t put off the most important things until life sorts itself to our satisfaction.” Then she rose to her feet. “Do with the information about your sister as you will. Family is important, but so is romance. Don’t neglect one to chase the other.”
“I will try my best.” He scrambled to his feet. “Thank you, Mrs. Henderson. You have been most helpful and insightful.”
Later that afternoon
How the devil was he so fortunate as to be with this woman?
Laurence had met Rose that afternoon while walking the property after he’d checked on some of his repairs from the day before.
She said the pain had left her head and that she’d wanted to take in the fresh air before it rained again.
One thing had led to another, and now they were both tumbled in the tall meadow grass, well away from the manor yet close enough to a country lane that they could be seen if anyone should happen along.
The only thing he could think about in the moment was kissing the woman in his arms and possibly removing her from bits of her clothing.
Except he was the one who’d shed his jacket, collar, and cravat.
At one point, he’d gotten Rose onto her back where he’d taken full advantage of her eager willingness to make her fly with his head between her thighs.
Which she’d done after he’d bedeviled her button with his lips and tongue.
The moment she screamed out her satisfaction, he grinned with pride, for she was quite the exuberant partner.
“Turnabout is fair play, Captain,” she murmured with a bit of exhaustion in her voice as she pushed at his form until he toppled over onto his back.
Desire flooded his brain as well as surged through his shaft. “Or you could ride me and we’ll both find release.” Already, he’d been pushed very near his breaking point.
Her grin promised wicked delights and sent shivers over his skin. “Not right now, I think.” As she spoke, Rose reached for his frontfalls. “I wish to discover how long you can hold on before breaking while I manipulate your manhood.”
One by one, the buttons slipped from their holes at her insistence. When his engorged member popped free of the fabric, she moved to kneel at his side. Laurence shook his head. “We can be seen.” His voice was graveled by need.
“Ha.” A snort escaped her. “We could have been seen when you were doing unspeakable things to me just now, but you weren’t concerned about it then.”
Oh, that smart mouth of hers was so damned enjoyable. “I was, of course, but since I was busy giving you pleasure, I didn’t say anything.”
“Cheeky.” That didn’t stop her, for she’d made great strides in reconnecting with her inner hoyden, and with a wink, she took him in hand quite literally, sliding her curled fingers up and down his shaft.
The soft sound of her laughter when he thickened and hardened went straight to his stones.
“Rose…” An unexpected moan was wrenched from his throat when she leaned down and took a good portion of his length into the warm cavern of her mouth.
“Damn, that feels good…” He should have just let himself relax and given in to her ministrations, but instead, worry that they’d be interrupted wouldn’t leave his mind. “Stop. We must stop.”
She came off his shaft with a soft pop. “Why? Everything we’ve done since meeting has been rooted in scandal. This is no different.” When she reached for him again, he scuttled away over the grass, and she frowned.
“I know that, but it doesn’t mean it’s right, and it certainly doesn’t mean it’s the only thing you deserve.
” Especially if he was, indeed, courting her in his own way.
He should have treated her with respect and decorum all along, but instead he’d been caught up in the whirlwind of feelings and sensations from merely being with her.
“What is wrong with you?” Confusion shadowed her face as she watched him from her knees. “We’ve done worse than this, and if you’re worried about my reputation, don’t be. I was ruined long ago.”