Chapter Sixteen
The meeting had gone very well. Lord Arlington was excited about Malcolm’s plans and had agreed to think it over and give an answer in two days. Excitement pounded in Malcolm’s heart, and he knew he was on his way to starting his own business. Yet through the excitement, guilt ate away at his gut. He would have to confess to Camilla, and he prayed for her understanding and forgiveness.
Shadows played with his vision while he traveled home, especially when he spotted a couple atop a horse in a lovers’ embrace. He narrowed his eyes, not believing what he saw. His heart dropped, shattering as it hit the ground. What was Camilla doing with Captain Wilkes?
He tightened his grip on the reins, and his jaw hardened. They kept their conversation low, but it was the way the captain’s arms wrapped around her in a possessive manner that made pain, cold as steel, slice through Malcolm’s heart. Then she leaned over and bestowed a light kiss on his lips.
Malcolm neared, and she quickly broke away from the soldier, swinging her head toward him. The moonlight peeked through the trees, lighting her wide eyes. Although the pain in his heart caused his chest to tighten, he still held his head high as he rode toward the couple.
She pushed away from the soldier and dropped to the ground. Wringing her hands against her stomach, she hurried to him. “Malcolm,” she cried softly.
“Hold your tongue, woman.” He swallowed the bile rising to his throat. “We will not air our quarrel in front of others.” He gestured to her horse. “Mount and follow me home.”
She inhaled sharply, and her hand flew to her mouth. Tears swam in her eyes, but it didn’t matter. He closed off all feelings but anger.
Captain Wilkes didn’t speak, but his self-assured grin said enough. The arrogant man lifted his chin and rode away. When Kat grabbed the reins, her hands shook and there was a slight quiver to her chin. Good. Let her worry about the consequences.
Malcolm kicked the horse’s belly and let out a yell, urging the animal into a run. Wind blew against his face. Each mile closer to home made his chest tighter, threatening to suffocate him. He couldn’t understand why she had done this. She had charmed him into loving her, and he fell fast for her antics. This was the same Kat he had married, not someone from his dreams.
Upon reaching his estate, he pulled his steed to a stop and jumped off, throwing the reins to Hyrum. “Mrs. Worthington is not far behind. Assist her.”
He strode to the house, not looking back to see exactly where his wife was. Entering the hall, he limped, and the heavy footsteps echoed on the floor. The clamor he made as he awkwardly hurried up the stairs brought most of the servants out of the rooms in haste. Once inside his room, he slammed the door behind him.
He yanked off his cape and flung it to the floor. Anger guided his hands as he removed his waistcoat, not caring that buttons flew in all directions. He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled off his boots.
His breath came fast, as if he had run for miles. He stood and paced with a limp across the floor, raking his fingers through his hair. Unanswered questions swam in his head. Why had he been so gullible?
When his door swung open, he stopped and faced the intruder. His wife stood still, silhouetted by the moon shining through the window. She wore a servant’s dark brown blouse and breeches, but her cloak was missing. She held a single candle that gave enough light to see her tear-streaked face. Her bottom lip quivered. Her hand shook, making the flame flicker.
“Malcolm,” she whispered, a sob tearing from her throat. “It’s not what it looked like.”
He threw back his head and released a bitter laugh. Once he contained his mirth, he sneered, “If you remember correctly, that is the very phrase you used the first time I caught you in another man’s arms.”
She stepped inside the room and closed the door behind her. After setting the candle on the nearby table, she walked toward him. “I’m not that woman.”
“Indeed? It certainly appeared that way a little while ago.”
She stopped in front of him, crossing her arms over her bosom. Her brows were drawn, her lips pursed. Deep lines of anger marked her forehead.
“And looks can be deceiving,” she said.
“Yes, you have definitely proven that theory.”
“Malcolm, will you allow me to explain?”
“Explain what, my dear?” He shrugged. “There is nothing to explain when I can see perfectly with my own eyes.”
“What you saw was a woman pretending—”
“Yes, just like you have clearly pretended with me.”
She huffed. “Will you stop interrupting so I can explain?”
He sighed and folded his arms.
“As I was saying, you saw a woman pretending… pretending to be her sister to protect the man she loves more than life itself.” More tears ran down her face.
He scratched the throb booming in his forehead. “Pretending to be her sister? What are you talking about?”
She took a deep, shaky breath, wringing her hands against her stomach. “I’m not the woman who stood beside you at your wedding. I am her sister, Camilla.”
He chuckled, although humor was still not the emotion running amok through him. “The woman I married was named Camilla, my dear. Or have you forgotten?”
“I’m the twin sister of the woman you thought you married.” She licked her lips. “In my father’s confused state of mind, he absently arranged for you to marry his good, obedient daughter, Camilla, forgetting I wasn’t living at home but a widow in mourning. The rebellious and not-so-innocent daughter, Katherine, stood in my place as a proxy when we were supposed to marry. Kat was living a lie, Malcolm. She wasn’t your wife. I am.”
Past the ache spreading through his body, his mind pieced together what she was saying. He had wondered if the woman who returned from Preston not too long ago was the sister. Apparently, he had been correct after all.
She wiped at the tears streaking her cheeks. “Malcolm, you know I’m different from the woman you thought you married. You have told me that several times. Even your children know. Would the woman you married have loved your children as much as I? Could the woman you married have been able to make you fall in love with her?”
Good heavens, she made sense. But… No. It was impossible to believe.
Yet he did want to believe her. He wanted to know he had fallen in love with a different woman than the one who betrayed his trust a mere month after exchanging vows. “You are telling me we are really married?”
“Yes. When I saw the marriage certificate in the Bible with my name on it, I was confused. I found a priest and asked him if proxy marriages were legal. He said they were. Kat knew my name was on the marriage certificate, but she went ahead and married you, knowing full well what she was doing.”
“What about that kiss I just witnessed between you and Captain Wilkes?”
She sniffed. “I was protecting you.”
“Protecting me?” He skeptically lifted a brow. “From what, pray?”
“From Captain Wilkes. He caught me coming back from your secret meeting, and I had to do something to distract him.”
Malcolm’s heart lodged in his throat again, and he caught his breath. “Secret meeting?”
“The secret meeting you had at the Lion’s Paw Inn.”
He scowled. “How do you know about that?”
“I followed you.”
“Why did you follow me?”
“Because my husband didn’t trust me enough to confide his whereabouts this evening.”
He swallowed hard. “And the captain knew about the meeting?”
“No. At least, he didn’t say he did. Because of the way I’m dressed, he thought I was out trying to find him. Apparently, Kat had been meeting him secretly for some time before she went to the insane asylum in Preston. I couldn’t let him think differently and suspect there was more to my midnight tryst. I explained I was on my way home, and I was being followed. He would not let me go.” More tears streamed from her eyes. “The only way I could get him to release me was to give him a kiss.” She sniffed and wiped her eyes. “I’m truly sorry you had to witness that, but I was acting. Nothing more.” Her shoulders drooped and she placed her trembling hand on his chest. “You are the man I love—the man I will love until I die. Me, not the woman who deceived you on your wedding day. I’m not my sister. I would never hurt you like she did.”
Tears stung his eyes and he held back a sob of relief. She seemed truthful. Dare he hope? During their stay at the Burwells’, he had wanted her to be a different woman—the woman of his dreams. Could this be real? She was correct—the woman he’d exchanged vows with had never shed a tear when he caught her with other men. His children would have never loved that woman.
“Who is in the asylum?” he asked.
“Kat, the woman you thought you married, was in the asylum.”
“What do you mean?”
“She died before I traveled here.” Her voice broke. “Malcolm, I planned on coming here to beg for your help. I did not have the funds to pay for Kat’s stay at the asylum, nor her burial. Since you were her husband, I thought it was only right you pay for it.” She took a deep breath. “But when everyone mistook me for my sister, that was when I decided to play along. Then when I saw my name on the marriage certificate, I knew what had really happened.”
She stared at him with huge, watery eyes. He said nothing, trying to absorb her confession. The pain on her face told him what he needed to know.
“Malcolm, if you don’t believe my story or my true identity, I can take you to London and have you meet my aunts and uncles. They know the difference between me and my twin. They can tell you I’m Camilla Hardy, who married an earl. Even my servant, Timothy, knows the truth.”
Malcolm continued to stare at her in silence. He couldn’t react. The shock was still too real. Camilla covered her face with her hands and sobbed. Her whole body shook. Seeing her like this tore at his heart. Camilla definitely wasn’t her sister. The woman he married never would plead for forgiveness. The woman he married never had any kind of feelings.
His heart soared with relief. But he had been so quick to judge, and now the woman he loved was in pain because of him.
He gathered her in his arms and pressed her face against his chest. He squeezed his eyes closed and breathed in her flowery scent. He had been a fool. Then again, he hadn’t known the truth. Now he did, and he would make up for his horrid treatment.
“Oh, Camilla, forgive me.” His voice broke as he held her tight. He buried his face in her hair, his eyes filling with tears that slid down his cheeks. “I love you so much. I’m so grateful you aren’t Kat. I want you and none other.”
“You shall always have me,” she muttered into his shirt.
Her warm breath brushed his skin, stirring awareness inside him once again. “Will you forgive me?”
He kissed the side of her face, and she turned and met his mouth with her lips. Holding her head, he devoured her mouth, hoping his love would show with every touch. She clutched his shirt, pressing against him. He ravished her mouth, then trailed his lips over her tear-streaked face and down her neck.
He pulled away and gazed deep into her eyes. “Are you truly my wife? Are we indeed married?”
She nodded. “My name is on the marriage certificate. And as I said, the priest confirmed my belief that proxy marriages are legal.”
“Please, Camilla, let me love you the only way a husband can. Now.”
She held him closer. Love burst in his chest, and hope for a new beginning was finally within grasp.
“Yes, my darling husband. Make me your wife.”
Tenderly, he lifted her in his arms and carried her to the bed, not caring about the twinge of pain in his leg any longer. Taking great care, he placed her on the mattress. Tears still glistened in her eyes, but it was the love shining on her face that made his heart swell with happiness.
Before joining her on the bed, he shrugged out of his shirt and cravat. Her gaze moved slowly over his chest. Never had a woman looked at him with such longing anticipation dancing in her eyes.
He crawled next to her and cupped her face. “I love you, Camilla. I don’t ever want to stop telling you that.”
“I don’t ever want you to stop saying it.”
He pressed his mouth against hers for a kiss, situating them on the bed a little more comfortably. He moved one arm behind her back and wrapped the other around her waist, bringing her up against his body.
The kiss was slow and meaningful. She participated fully, running her hand over his chest before moving it up his neck. Her touch sent heat surging throughout his body. This was not surprising, since he had always enjoyed the way she touched him so adoringly.
Breaking the kiss, he moved his mouth to her earlobe, suckling it gently. He shifted his hand to the top button on her shirt. Strange, but he’d never had to undress a woman wearing men’s clothes before. Yet he wasn’t repulsed. Instead, excitement grew inside of him—these clothes would come off a lot quicker.
He flicked open the first button, and then the second. As he trailed kisses down her neck, she tilted her head back to give him better access. Once the third button came apart, he had more room to slip his hand inside.
A low crooning came from her throat. He lifted his head to see the effect it had on her. Her eyes flickered open, greener than he had ever seen them before. Her skin was so soft, so silky—he couldn’t stop from wanting to feel all of her.
She’d once mentioned being married, but her husband had died. Although this wasn’t the time to ask about him, Malcolm wondered if she had loved that man. Yet if she had, she wouldn’t have loved Malcolm so quickly.
Without knowing anything about this other man, Malcolm vowed to make his wife blissfully—and passionately—happy tonight… and every night for the rest of their lives.