Chapter Nine
Later that evening
Felix sat in silence across from Caroline as they traveled to the Marylebone area where Withington ’s sister resided. When it didn’t seem that his new fiancée wished to talk either, he retreated into his thoughts.
At the age of one and forty, he was engaged to be married.
He still wasn’t over the shock of it all, for it had just happened hours earlier.
Engaged to the woman who had single-handedly turned his world upside down, blew it apart, and then put it back together into something strange and foreign yet exciting.
Would he prove a good and decent husband?
Or had he been alone for too long? Was he too old to have someone in his life on a permanent basis, living with him day in and day out?
It was something that remained a mystery and worried him, if he were honest with himself, but Caroline believed in him, and that was all that mattered.
But what if he disappointed her? That would kill him, no doubt, for she deserved the best of everything in life. And he certainly wasn’t that.
“Stop thinking so much, Felix.” She nudged the toe of his boot with her foot. “It will make you more crotchety than usual at a time when you should be happy.” Then she snickered. “Or at least not grumpy.”
There was something about her that always made him want to grin. And damn it all, he reminded himself he now had the absolute right to protect her, provide for her, and to claim her as his for the rest of his life.
“How the hell are you always right?” The way her eyes glittered in the dim light each time they passed a gas lamp on the street made him think of jewels, and though the bonnet did her no favors in looks, there was something dear about seeing her in it knowing she was once more partnering with him in a murder investigation.
“Will you lead me a merry chase, then, through the course of our union?”
“If you’re fortunate.” She offered a smile, and he didn’t think it would be so bad having a wife. Then she sighed. “Do you have regrets already, Major?”
He frowned. “There are many things I think about over the course of my life, but asking you to marry me is definitely not a regret.” If he had the chance to do everything over again with different decisions, getting together with her wouldn’t be one of them.
“I’m glad to hear that.” She shifted on her bench, and her reticule slipped off her lap, suspended on her wrist by its strings. “I still can’t believe you finally asked.”
“As am I, but I’m sorry I made you wait.” Had he already bent her faith in him? “I had to be certain… after everything.”
“I know, but just remember that not all women are the same, nor are all men.” When they went past another streetlamp, her expression reflected nothing except honesty.
“You and I are a team now, Felix. For better or for worse, we’ll help each other, lean on each other’s strengths, in every aspect of life. ”
He nodded. Dear God, would he have a decent enough income to keep her in the style to which she’d grown accustomed over the years? “Have you informed your aunt that we’re engaged?”
“Not yet.” She shook her head. “By the time she returned home, I’d had a late tea, a bath, and then was readying to go out again with you. I promised her I’d come sit with her once I got in but before I retired.”
Not letting the image of her naked in a bath distract him, he nodded. “How do you think she’ll react?” To be fair, he didn’t know that much about Caroline’s great-aunt other than what she’d told him in letters.
“No doubt favorably. When she met you the other day, I think she liked you.” Again, she snickered. “She’ll adore you, I think.”
He snorted. “Only time will tell.” Then his frown returned. “Will you write to your father or wait until your parents return to Town to inform them?”
“I hadn’t given the matter any thought, since I wished to enjoy this between us for a few more days.”
“Ah. I suppose I’ll need to write to my mother. After I inform Felicity of my new status, of course.” He blew out a breath. “I didn’t have an opportunity earlier this evening.”
“I have a feeling she’ll react with rousing enthusiasm.”
“Indeed.”
Not long afterward, the carriage arrived at the Turington residence.
As Felix assisted Caroline out of the vehicle, he tried to ignore the fact that the rain from earlier had changed definitively to snow, which didn’t show any signs of stopping although it was only lightly drifting down at the moment. “Mind your steps, love. It might prove slippery.”
“Is that you trying to act charming, Major?” She smiled at him as she took his hand. “How interesting and… confusing.”
Was she already changing him?
Damn.
Immediately, they were shown into a parlor on the ground level and were told by a middle-aged butler that Lady Angela Turington would be down directly, for she’d been expecting someone to call since she’d been informed of her brother’s demise.
While Caroline perched on a low sofa, Felix preferred to pace about the small room, peering into the shelves and curio cabinets at the trinkets resting there.
“You take the lead on this one,” he told her as he clasped his hands behind his back.
“Me? Why?” Surprise jumped into her expression. “You like questioning suspects.”
“I do, but you have a softer approach and more compassion. To me, people make stupid decisions that put them into bad ways. You can see deeper into why a person did what they did.” He allowed a small grin.
“Since the widow didn’t seem all that heartbroken over her husband being dead, the sister might have a different outlook.
The sight of feminine tears makes me uncomfortable. ”
A slow smile curved her highly kissable lips. “You are quite charming, Major.”
“I have my moments.”
Fabric rustling at the door betrayed the presence of someone else, which cut their conversation short. Felix nodded as a woman came into the room dressed in an elegant black gown with blonde hair coiffed with exquisite care as if she were ready to step into a ballroom.
“Major Kourier? Miss Ives?”
“Yes,” he answered promptly, and for a moment, he was completely shocked at the lady’s appearance, for where Lord Withington had been in his mid-fifties and had a somewhat harsh look, his sister was at least ten years younger, and quite beautiful in an understated way.
He cleared his throat. “I’m Major Kourier, working with Bow Street.
We’re investigating your brother’s murder. ”
Caroline rose from the sofa with a frown. “And I’m Miss Ives, his fiancée and deductive partner,” she said with a definitive claim and possession in her low-pitched voice.
That slight tell sent awareness rippling over his skin.
“Ah, well, I am glad the two of you are here. I received the news earlier today, and have been in shock since then.” Except that emotion—or even grief—was absent from her expression.
“How did you learn of the murder?” Felix asked with a frown.
“Oh, my sister-in-law sent a note over with a courier. As you can imagine, she is in fragile health with the pregnancy and her getting ready to begin her confinement, so I went over there for a couple of hours.”
“Ah, of course,” he murmured. “She must have sent for you directly following our visit.” It would seem the woman was the direct opposite of her brother.
The lady shrugged. “I wouldn’t know, but news of his death didn’t surprise me.”
Caroline threw a speaking glance at him then gestured to the sofa. “Why don’t you sit with us, Lady Angela? We shouldn’t take too much of your time with our few questions.”
Heat crept up the back of his neck. Why the devil was he thrown sideways at the sight of a handsome woman when he’d finally secured the hand of the woman who held his heart?
The woman who possessed a sprinkling of freckles on the tops of her cheeks that he couldn’t wait to count?
The woman who had the power the illuminate the darkness so he wouldn’t become lost in it any longer?
You’re better than this, Kourier.
“Well, I suppose I could spare you a few moments. I’m nearly on my way out. One of my closest friends is throwing a rout tonight,” the lady said as she sat on the sofa.
Caroline resumed her previous spot. “Yet you are in mourning. That gown is quite lovely. I thought socializing was frowned in that regard.”
“Thank you for the compliment, dear. I had the gown made earlier in the year, so it was quite fitting to use now. And besides, no socializing is only a suggestion. I am not going to let his gown go to waste.”
“How… economical of you,” Caroline said faintly with an equally faint frown.
The lady tittered with laughter while her eyes sparkled. “Don’t be like that. I suppose I shall observe mourning—an abbreviated period, of course—for he was my brother, but let’s be honest. He was a horrible person. Undoubtedly, you’ve heard that more than once since beginning your investigation.”
“We have, of course,” Felix inserted into the conversation as he sat heavily onto one of the chairs near the sofa. His damned thigh was paining him at the moment, and all he wanted to do was remove the prosthetic and massage his stiff muscles. “But that is beside the point.”
“I quite understand.” Lady Angela nodded. She was as lithe as a gazelle on an African plain, but while she was willowy thin and elegant, she truly didn’t hold a candle to Caroline’s more substantial form, figure, and attitude. “My brother has always been an acute embarrassment to me all our lives.”
Caroline frowned. “How so?”
“Well, starting with our looks, I was the light one and he was the dark one. Mama always said his black hair and dark temper came from our paternal grandfather, while I took after her mother.” Lady Angela shrugged.
“Though he was the third son of an earl—I was the fifth child—his title was one of his own choosing, for Papa had only two courtesy titles, and they went to my older brothers.”
“I’m afraid you’ll need to explain further,” Felix said with a nod.