Chapter 16 #5
Alex raked a hand through his hair. “Yes, but it is such a difficult talk to have with her just now. Perhaps we ought to wait until tomorrow.”
Tulip nodded. “I expect she will want her aunt to be properly buried with her family.”
Or next to his own grandfather, Alex thought.
But he needed to consider this further before proposing any such thing.
Elspeth and his grandfather weren’t married, although he was now fairly certain the old man had sincerely loved her and intended to make her his wife.
The magistrate took each of their statements, and then did the same with Mrs. Granger who had been more seriously injured than Tulip and was not strong enough to get out of bed.
It was almost eight o’clock in the evening by the time all the questioning and official duties were completed.
“Do you wish for the constables to remain on guard at Thornwycke this evening, Your Grace?” the magistrate asked Alex.
“No, Lord Farnhum. We’ll be fine now.” He wasn’t merely saying it to be polite, but felt that aura of malevolence lifting from his home. It was like the sun bursting through a thick, gray mist and spreading light all around them.
He never imagined being happy here, but perhaps he could shed the ghosts of the past now.
In truth, he would be happy anywhere, so long as Tulip was by his side.
They could make a fresh start here.
Perhaps even turn Thornwycke Hall and the Davenport farms into a proud legacy for their offspring.
William, the doctor, and the magistrate and his constables agreed to return tomorrow to discover what lay beneath the willow tree.
Carver decided to remain here overnight, for he had a spare room in the servants quarters that he often used whenever he was too tired to return home or when foul weather made travel too difficult.
“Your Grace,” Carver said once the others had gone, “may I look in on Mrs. Granger?”
Alex frowned, for the woman really needed to rest after her ordeal. “Is there a reason you wish to speak to her?”
He nodded. “We both lost someone dear to us at the hands of that fiend. She might find comfort in talking to me. I truly believe I might understand her feelings better than anyone else could.”
Alex glanced at Tulip, seeking her guidance because she had good instincts about such matters that had more to do with heart than logic.
She nodded.
“Very well, Mr. Carver. But do not stay too long. She was hurt and needs time to heal.”
“Understood, Your Grace.” He gave a nod and walked off toward the servants quarters.
Tulip smiled at Alex.
He sank onto the settee beside her. “What, love?”
“Do you not see it? I think Mr. Carver is in love with Mrs. Granger. I think those two will be married before the year is out.”
Alex laughed as he gently lifted her onto his lap. “Truly? Do you think she will accept him?”
“Yes, it is quite possible that she has loved him all along. However, she must have been quite confused and wary of him because of the lies Ernfield had been feeding her. For this reason, she kept her distance, much as I did when you first came into my life. But she now knows he can be trusted. There is no longer a reason to hold back her affection.”
Alex laughed again. “Seriously? But he must be a good fifteen or twenty years older than her.”
“And your point? The same could be said of your grandfather and Elspeth, but that did not stop them from loving each other. Mrs. Granger is a young woman who has lost her family and obviously came here out of a need to understand what happened and possibly gain answers that might lay their souls to rest. In coming here, she felt alone and scared. Mr. Carver has been steady as a rock for her, quietly looking out for her. He is a good man who will continue to care for her and protect her.”
“I will admit, I think he likes her. But how do you know her feelings?”
“The little details. Her eyes light up whenever he is near. She blushes and pats her hair whenever he approaches to speak to her.”
“Ah, of course.”
“You are mocking me, Alex. But I know I am right. I’m just sorry Ernfield’s evil whispers kept them apart for so long. That fiend must have been worried they would start talking to each other beyond casual conversations and start putting things together.”
“So he dropped poisonous hints to keep them apart. Yes, it is quite likely.” He kissed her on the cheek.
“Not mocking you, my love. I am chiding myself, for I was the London magistrate’s top investigator.
But it seems I am good with facts and not nearly as good as you when it comes to matters of the heart.
I think we would have been an unbeatable team had we worked together in London. ”
She wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head against his shoulder. “Perhaps this is why you were attracted to me.”
“For your investigative instincts? No, love. I can assure you, my response to you was completely primal, a wolf spotting his mate. I wanted to ravish and devour you, claim you at first sight. Mine. Mine to love and protect. No one else was ever going to get their hands on you.”
“Dear heaven, I never would have guessed.” But she sighed contentedly in his arms. “I’m glad the worst is over. It is over, isn’t it?”
“Yes, love.”
“Are you going to read your grandfather’s journal again?”
He nodded. “This time with an impartial eye, for I think anger clouded my judgment, even though I tried hard not to let it. I might have missed some obvious clues because I was filled with so much resentment for the old man. In truth, for all the Davenports. My anger is gone now. They did not deserve what Ernfield did to them.”
“So, they might not have been as debauched as reputed?”
“Oh, that part was true. They were a hedonistic lot. I will not be placing any of them on a pedestal any time soon. Same goes for the three wastrels we left back in London, Harold Havers and his brothers, Neddy and Barton. I have no intention of ever inviting them here or entertaining them in London. The less we see of my family, the better.”
He carried her upstairs and was just at the door to the duke’s chamber when Tulip tapped him on the shoulder. “What is it, love?”
“Do you not find it odd that we haven’t seen hide nor hair of the ladies who made free with the Davenport generosity?”
“Not odd at all.”
“But it is odd,” she insisted.
“No, love. I told you that I wrote to Carver as soon as I inherited the title and advised him I wanted them removed. I was serious about it and the tone of my letter conveyed it. I could say that I was thinking of you at the time, but you weren’t even deigning to speak to me yet.”
“Then why, Alex? They would have fawned over you. You could have taken any liberties and they would have adored you.”
“Those liberties destroyed my family. My uncles and cousins were gamblers, drunks, and debauchers. My father was probably the same when it came to gambling and drinking. The only difference is that he might have loved my mother and stayed true to her. But he was too weak to challenge my grandfather. So, what good did it do them? They lived in misery, all because my father would not stand up for his love.”
She kissed him. “I’m sorry I brought it up.”
“It’s all right.” He entered the bedchamber and settled her on their bed. “Best we speak our minds, get it all out in the open, and then never bring it up again.”
She regarded him earnestly. “I never will, Alex. I see how much these memories hurt you.”
“But I’ll heal because you are with me. Don’t fret, Tulip. I am content and I know my life with you will be a happy one.”
She smiled. “That is remarkably optimistic of you.”
He nodded. “I have everything I ever wished for and more. And just to be clear, I did not wish to inherit the title. What I wished for was you. One night with Tulip, is what I wanted, and then you let me kiss you in Lady Fullerton’s garden. In that moment, I knew my wish would come true.”
She arched an eyebrow. “That’s all you wanted? One night?”
He chuckled. “At the time, I could not even get you to talk to me. So, yes. I thought one night might be enough to have you notice me.”
“I married you. That’s a bit more than a little notice, I would say.”
“Yes, but your marrying me was no assurance we would ever live under the same roof. It all happened so fast, I wasn’t certain you would go through with the marriage.
Or if you did, that you would want anything to do with me afterward.
So, I was still making wishes about you.
Grant me one night with Tulip. Then grant me another night with Tulip. Then another. Then a lifetime.”
“Seems all your wishes have been answered. You are well and truly stuck with me.”
He chuckled. “It may be equally said that you are truly stuck with me.”
“Or blessed to have you,” she said with heartfelt sincerity. “You weren’t the only one making wishes. After that night in Lady Fullerton’s garden, I hoped for the same. One night with Alex. Then another. Then a lifetime.”
“You’ll have it, Tulip.” He kissed her gently. “Rest now, love.”
He stretched out beside her and took her into his arms, holding her in his embrace until she fell asleep.
He could have slipped out of bed once she was lost in slumber, for the hour was still early. But he was exactly where he wished to be, and that was holding Tulip in his arms.
The night fell softly.
The sky turned dark and a full moon shone with silvery brightness.
Stars twinkled overhead.
Tulip’s body was warm and curled against his.
He’d almost lost her today.
But by the grace of heaven, she was safe in his arms.
Yes, this was the best night ever.
And the next ten thousand nights would be even better.