Chapter 50
At the Black Cross in Bromsgrove, Jonathan arranged for a message to go on to Seven Ways ahead of them, so Daniel should not have been surprised at the crowd that gathered in the forecourt for the arrival of the black Elmhurst coach, with Jonathan and himself following on horseback.
As they turned the corner and the house came in view, he drew rein to consider the size of the waiting crowd. He could identify the Thornton clan, but there seemed to be another three women waiting with them.
‘Who are all these people?’ he asked Jonathan.
Kit peered out of the window of the coach.
He groaned. ‘It’s Thamsine,’ he said, ‘and she’s brought the whole household with her.’
As the women came forward, he recognised his mother and his sister and a band tightened around his chest. He, in his turn, had been recognized.
Frances, a young woman now, not the girl he had left behind, broke ranks and ran toward him.
He all but threw himself out of the saddle and into the arms of his sister, burying his face in her hair to stop the tears.
‘Daniel Lovell, do you have any idea of what I have been through?’
Daniel looked up. The years had not been kind to Margaret Lovell, her hair now steel grey, but as soon as she spoke, Daniel could see that they had not mellowed her and her tongue was as sharp as ever.
Daniel broke from his sister’s embrace and covered the distance between them, sweeping her up into his arms. ‘Mother, I am so sorry.’
‘Put me down, you foolish boy,’ Margaret protested without anger. He set her on her feet and she looked up at him, her finger tracing the scar across his cheekbone.
‘I had given up hope—’ she began and burst into tears.
Frances flung her arms around both of them, also crying.
‘When you have quite finished,’ Kit’s voice broke through the circle. ‘I have someone else for Daniel to meet.’
Daniel straightened, hoping that the tears that had been wrung from him did not show.
A tall, elegant woman, with her chestnut hair dressed in fashionable ringlets, stood beside Kit, surveying him with her head tilted to one side.
‘Daniel, may I present my beloved wife, Thamsine.’
Daniel swept a low bow, a gesture that lost its impact as Thamsine stepped forward and gathered him into a close embrace.
‘You have no idea of how long I have waited to do that,’ she said, stepping back with tears in her eyes.
Kit turned to his wife.
‘Thamsine, my darling, are you going to explain what you are all doing here? ’ Kit began and his eyes widened. ‘Don’t tell me you brought the children as well?’
‘No. They are at home.’ His wife’s lips tightened.
‘I get a few lines scrawled in a message to say you have found Daniel and the two of you are going on a secret mission?’ She tapped his injured arm, causing him to wince.
‘And look, you managed to get yourself hurt again! Don’t expect me to pat your fevered brow. ’
Kit threw his head back and laughed. ‘That is the last thing I expect of you, Tham.’
In the uproar of reunion, Daniel had lost someone, and he looked around searching for Agnes among the crowd of Lovells and Thorntons.
She stood in the shadow of the coach, holding the two children by the hand, a small, lonely island amid the joyful reunions. He ran across to her, sweeping Henry into his arms and taking Agnes by the hand, all but dragging her across to where his family waited.
‘Please allow me to present Mistress Agnes Fletcher,’ he said.
Agnes sank into a curtsey.
His mother’s eyes flicked from Agnes to the children. ‘And whose children are these?’
A spot of colour appeared on Agnes’s cheeks. ‘My sister’s children, Lady Elizabeth Ashby and Henry, the Earl of Elmhurst.’
‘Earl or not,’ Kate hurried across, ‘these look like two children who have had enough of being confined to a coach. Come inside, all of you. There are refreshments in the parlour.’
‘Wait!’ Daniel said and gathered Agnes to him. ‘Before we go any further, I want you all to know that Agnes and I will be wed as soon as it can be arranged.’
He had the satisfaction of seeing his mother’s mouth open in an O of surprise, but she had the grace to close it again.
‘A wedding? Here?’ Nell Longley clapped her hands together. ‘How wonderful!’
Kate turned to her husband and held out a folded paper. ‘There is a message for you, Jonathan. It arrived this morning. The man said it was urgent.’
Jonathan took the paper and broke the seal, scanned the contents, took a deep breath, and looked up.
‘I am sorry, but wedding plans will have to wait. We are ordered to London.’