Chapter 28
As the silhouette of Blackwell Hall appeared on the horizon, Nicholas’s insides twisted and tangled in so many knots that he couldn’t possibly make sense of them.
He was pleased to see his home, but he dreaded the confrontation to come.
The Hall was as imposing as ever—a rectangular construct of stone and brick with windows lining the bottom and top floors and stairs leading up to the main entrance. The lawn around it was lush and green, and clouds floated on a blue sky in the background.
They’d taken a week to travel back, moving more slowly than they had on their journey to Gretna, allowing time for breaks so that neither of them suffered so much from being trapped inside the carriage.
They had looked around the towns they came across, and he loved being able to introduce Sophie to new places.
She was such a breath of fresh air. She found so much joy in exploring and discovering what made each village special.
Unfortunately, they’d delayed all they could.
Now it was time to face his mother.
As the carriage rumbled down the drive, a group of figures emerged from the front entrance and stood in wait.
From a distance, it was impossible to tell exactly who they were, but as they drew closer, he made out his brother’s dark hair and matching attire and a feminine figure in blue who could only be Kate.
They were accompanied by a pair of footmen, the butler, and the housekeeper, Mrs. Tubbs. There was no sign of his mother.
Sophie’s hand slipped into his. “Are you ready?”
He sighed. “As I’ll ever be.”
He already knew he was destined to get a verbal bollocking.
The real question was whether Theo would follow their mother’s lead or embrace Nicholas’s marriage instead.
Usually, he would expect the latter, but when his brother had no doubt been subject to his mother’s temper for the past while, he couldn’t be certain.
The horses slowed, and as they arrived in front of Blackwell Hall, the driver halted them completely. One of the footmen stepped forward and opened the carriage door.
Without any sense of propriety, Sophie bounded down and raced to Kate, throwing her arms around her friend before any words were exchanged.
Nicholas disembarked more slowly, pausing once he was on the ground to rotate his shoulders and stretch his arms. There were a couple of knots in his back from the tension that had built since they left their last stop, and he suspected they wouldn’t go anywhere until after he’d finally spoken to the elder Lady Blackwell.
He glanced at Sophie. She and Kate had released each other and were already deep in conversation. Theo had taken a few steps toward him but seemed uncertain of what to do next. Nicholas also held back, not wanting to risk eating a fist.
“So, you’re married,” Theo said, pushing his hands into his pockets.
“I am.”
Theo strode toward him, and Nicholas braced for impact, but instead of hitting him, Theo yanked him into a hug and squeezed him so hard, the air was forced from his lungs.
Nicholas went weak with relief and hugged Theo back, breathing in the spicy aroma of oil of wintergreen. His brother must have been taking his frustrations out on his boxing bag, because he only used liniment when he was sore from too much training.
“I’m happy for you,” Theo murmured near his ear. “You deserve someone like Sophie.”
Nicholas grabbed Theo’s shoulders and held him at a distance. “You aren’t… angry?”
“No.” Theo grimaced, and his expression turned apologetic. “I’m sorry for my harsh words in that letter. I was worried about how what happened might affect Sophie and our family, but if you and she are happy, then I’m happy too.”
Nicholas looked at Sophie, who was grinning broadly and gesturing about with her arms as she explained something to Kate. His heart filled, and once again, he couldn’t believe how lucky he was to be able to call her his.
“I never anticipated wanting a wife, but I am the most fortunate man alive to have her.” Turning to even more serious matters, he asked, “Is Mother here?”
Theo’s lips pressed into a firm line, and the corners of his eyes tightened. “She is, but she went to her room when we saw you coming.”
Ah, so that was how it was going to be.
At least she hadn’t come storming out to meet them with a raised voice and a list of accusations.
Still, it was a little childish of her to hide in such a fashion. Although, it could be said that it had been childish of them to flee to Gretna Green. So, perhaps they were equal.
“I made her promise me that she would come down for supper,” Theo added.
That was something, he supposed.
“Thank you for your forgiveness, Theo. It means more than you can imagine. I was afraid of how you might react. You’re my closest friend as well as my brother, and I would hate to lose you.”
Theo drew back sharply. “You never need to worry about that. You’re my closest friend too—sometimes, I think, my only friend. No matter what happens, you’ll always have me.”
Nicholas blinked rapidly and turned away, knowing that Theo would be uncomfortable with the tears brewing in his eyes.
“Come here.” Theo hauled Nicholas into another hug. “We’re family. Whatever happens, we’ll figure it out. So don’t go getting any silly ideas about no longer being welcome here.”
That was it.
Why couldn’t this bloody man let him handle his emotions alone?
A tear spilled over, and he swiped at it before it could get much farther than his cheek.
“Aww!”
Suddenly, a soft female limpet clamped onto his side. Chuckling, Nicholas dabbed his eyes to make sure he was no longer at risk of crying and drew Sophie into his arms.
Kate, who had also joined them, cleared her throat. “We’ve prepared the room adjoining Nicholas’s for Sophie if you both would like to move here permanently. Otherwise, we can have another house built on the property.”
Sophie beamed up at Nicholas and then turned around and bounced on the balls of her feet. “We would love to have rooms here.” She hastened over to Kate and took her hand. “Do you realize that this makes us sisters now?”
“I do.” Kate smiled fondly. “I always wanted a sister and never had one, but now I have two, and I couldn’t be happier.”
“Shall we show Sophie to her new chamber?” Theo asked, resting his hand on the small of Kate’s back.
“Of course, my lord.” The housekeeper gestured for the group to precede her inside. “This way, please.”
Mrs. Tubbs led them up the stairs and into the family wing. As they passed his mother’s room, Nicholas couldn’t help pausing to see if he could hear her inside. There wasn’t as much as a sniffle, so he continued on, trying to dismiss the creeping sense of unease.
Nicholas waited as Sophie was shown her own chamber—a room that had previously been used for any visiting close friends of the family—and assured her that she could make any changes she wanted to the decor.
She might not be as design focused as Kate, but no doubt she would want to put her own stamp on the place.
As soon as she was settled, he went to his room and washed up, changed out of his travelling clothes, and waited for her to join him before they returned downstairs to share tea and biscuits with Theo and Kate in the drawing room.
The light from the afternoon sun spilled through the window.
Theo and Kate shared a chaise, with Theo resting his elbow on one side, a book propped in his other hand, and Kate occupied with a sketch.
A silver tea tray sat on the table, and as Nicholas and Sophie entered, Kate put down her sketchbook and started to fix them all tea.
Nicholas grabbed a biscuit from the plate beside the tea and took a bite as he and Sophie sat on the pair of chairs opposite. Sophie accepted a teacup from Kate and dunked a biscuit into it.
“So, tell us everything that happened,” Kate said, leaning forward, her eyes bright with interest.
“How far back do you want us to start?” Sophie asked as Nicholas finished eating his biscuit.
“With the house party.” Kate slid the other teacups to each of the men respectively and took her own. “When you were caught together, was it part of the fake courtship or something else?”
Nicholas chuckled as Sophie suddenly became enthralled by her tea. “I’m afraid that was exactly how it looked. Let me explain.”
He started with the moment he’d first had the realization that he was attracted to Sophie and walked them through the house party, making sure to emphasize how diplomatic he’d been in his dealings with Baron Sylvestor compared to how he wanted to behave.
Sure, he’d exhibited a few moments of immaturity, but on the whole, he thought he’d done remarkably well.
When he was finished, Theo whistled. “It sounds like you’ve had an adventure.”
“We certainly have,” Sophie agreed, her mouth full of biscuit. “What happened in our absence?”
Kate and Theo exchanged a glance.
“Mother turned back before reaching Nunhaven. Baron Sylvestor announced his engagement to Miss Marianne Bloombury as soon as he returned to London to take up his seat for a session of the House of Lords.”
Nicholas rested back in the chair and crossed his legs at the ankles. “I must admit that I’m relieved we didn’t ruin things for everyone. I’d have felt terrible if what happened between Sophie and me had disadvantaged the baron.”
Much as Nicholas may have wanted to wipe the smile off the baron’s overly handsome face during their mutual courtship of Sophie, he did like the man and didn’t wish him ill.
“And how is Mother now?” he dared to ask.
“She’s quite beside herself.” Theo mirrored Nicholas’s position but held himself more stiffly.
“As far as I’m aware, nothing has come of the scandal in terms of bringing to light the secrets of the past. In my opinion, you did the right thing in disappearing because while it might have caused a minor furor within the house party, with no one around to see you, and given the short lifespan of gossip in the ton, I doubt it will cause any long-term problems.”
“Thank God.”