Chapter 11
Two weeks later…
Pulling back the string of his bow, Julian anchored his hand against his mouth before releasing a breath along with the string.
I am getting married.
The arrow zipped through the air, hitting the target dead in the middle as Julian relaxed his posture.
The letter of acceptance had arrived at the house before he had. It had been a bit of a shock, his pulse racing as he read the simple sentence.
I accept your proposal, my lord.
He still could not believe that she had accepted so quickly, yet it worked in his favor that she had. His heart jostled behind his ribs again as he thought of the shocked look in her eyes. She had seemed shocked but not scared when he had looked into her eyes. Those beautiful eyes.
His reservations against the institution of marriage still stood, yet he had to admit that marrying Lily stirred a long-forgotten excitement deep inside of him. If anything, they would be the best of friends, which would make life a lot easier for them both.
Turning back to the dilapidated house behind him, he rested his arm on the top of his bow with the other end in the grass. Soon, the old house would be restored to its former glory, and he and his bride would live here.
Because of Lily.
His breathing quickened slightly as he thought of her as his bride. It seemed surreal to him that it had only been two weeks since his proposal, yet there he was standing on the doorstep of his wedding.
“Great shot!” Benedict called out as he began to clap, striding confidently toward Julian. “I saw the arrow from the house. You must have been practicing quite a bit to hit your mark every time.”
Julian greeted him with a stiff smile. “There is not much else to do on the estate once all of the orders have been given.” He lifted his bow and tapped it back down in the grass in an attempt to dislodge some dirt.
“My new butler managed to find these old bows and targets in the attic. He said that it would be good for me to practice some of the finer points of being a gentleman while my home is restored.”
His tone was almost begrudging as he glanced over Benedict’s shoulder at the men in the distance who were hammering away at the side of Redding Hall.
“The new butler?” Benedict asked with a raised eyebrow. “I was surprised to hear that you were here, but I am even more shocked to see that the house is already under construction. Has Miss Prescott’s father given you an advance on her dowry?” He stopped beside Julian.
Shaking his head, Julian ran his tongue over his lips before turning back to the target. “I figured that the deal is done, I may as well use the last of my savings to fix the house, then we can move in a few months after the wedding, and the dowry can be used to fix everything else.”
Nodding slowly, Benedict looked from the construction on the house to the untidy garden around them, where the targets had been set up.
Weeds as tall as a grown man choked out shrubbery, while the grass was higher than their ankles.
“You seem awfully confident that Miss Prescott will go through with the wedding,” he carefully remarked.
Julian paused, mulling over the mark in his mind before answering.
“I trust her, Benedict. I cannot explain why, but I do. She has as much to lose from this arrangement falling through as I do. While I do not have the full story, her mother is eager for matters to be settled so that she may return to her husband in the colonies.”
Benedict nodded this time, cheering up considerably as he smiled. “It is all good and well. At least with you marrying Miss Prescott, I will be able to see a lot more of Miss Arabella Tremaine.”
“I did not know that the two of you were acquainted. Have you been courting her?” Benedict asked, feeling as if he had missed a great deal through his troubles.
Chuckling, Benedict walked over to the stack of bows and arrows and lifted one to inspect.
“You have been so caught up in your pursuit of marriage that you hardly noticed my attention has been placed on her since the masked ball. She is a wonder to chat with, and I can see myself settling down with someone like her sooner rather than later.”
“Someone like her, or Arabella in particular?” Julian teased.
“Someone exactly like her and possibly her. That is all that I am willing to say on the matter. Now, shall we have a bit of competition? I should very much like to see just how much you have been practicing.” Benedict walked toward him again with his bow in hand.
“It seems a shame to come all of this way just to be shamed, but as you wish.” Julian smirked as he turned toward the targets again and walked a few steps to a new one that had not been peppered with arrows.
Allowing Benedict to go first, he watched as the arrow zipped through the air and hit the edge of the target.
“That does not count; it was just a warm-up,” Benedict grumbled and stepped back.
“Of course not,” Julian mused and took up his stance once again. His arrow zinged through the air in a straight line, hitting the target just off center.
“Good shot,” Benedict clapped again before taking up his stance.
“That one was also just practice. I wanted to give you a chance to catch up.” Julian watched as his friend chuckled and made his way back to the line that had been dug in the grass with the tip of Julian’s boot.
Stopping for a moment, Benedict lowered his bow and turned to Julian. “How are you feeling about tomorrow? If anything, you should be glad that you will finally be rid of Miss Everet. The wedding should stop her from causing any more trouble.” His remark caused Julian to frown again.
“I do not think that Miss Everet deliberately, or even knowingly, caused any trouble, Benedict.
I'm certain that whatever has been said was done so innocently and more than likely mistakenly. I have always known that she has had a soft spot for me, but I never made her believe that there was ever a chance.”
“I am certain that you never led her on, but mark my words, Miss Everet is so infatuated with you that she would have gone to any lengths to make you see her. I do not believe that her remarks were innocent. On the contrary, I believe that they were very much thought through.” Benedict turned back to the targets and readied a shot, loosing his arrow after a deep breath.
The arrow hit its mark this time, nearly entering the red dot in the middle with perfect accuracy.
Julian raised his brows as the corner of his mouth lifted into a smirk. “It would seem that I am not the only one who has been practicing. Have you been spending more time with your father at the family estate?”
“I have. It would seem that my father is beginning to come around on the idea of me owning my own fleet of ships. We talk business while shooting, hunting, fencing, and riding. It was a bore at first, but I am beginning to like the time we spend together.
But let us not change the subject, Julian.
Mark my words, Miss Everet is more troublesome than you are willing to concede.
Keep a close eye on her when it comes to your marriage.
Miss Prescott, should I say soon-to-be Lady Barnard, will do well to stay away from her.
She has concocted a love story in her mind, and someone like that is dangerous. ”
Waving the idea away, Julian stepped up to the mark, positioning his body for the shot before splitting Benedict’s arrow in two.
“You are overthinking the matter, Benedict. Miss Everet would never harm a fly. She may be disappointed, but that does not mean that she will cause trouble in my marriage.”
***
The rest of the afternoon had passed quite peacefully, with Julian shooting down every arrow that Benedict managed to place on the target.
The distraction had helped Julian regain some of his composure before returning home, where he wished to spend his final evening as a bachelor with his mother and sister.
“Julian, there you are,” Juliette said cautiously as he stepped into the parlor.
Hopes of rest sank instantly when Julian’s eyes fell on Miss Everet at his sister’s side. Her eyes were red and puffy as if she had been crying, yet she lifted her chin defiantly as if nothing had happened.
“Good evening, my lord. I hear that congratulations are in order. I was shocked to hear that the wedding is taking place so quickly, and that I had to hear the news from your sister.” Her breath caught a little as if she were fighting back tears.
Clearing his throat, Julian stepped into the room and forced a polite smile.
“Miss Everet, I am sorry if the news has come as a shock to you. Mrs. Prescott was eager to move the wedding up, and a special license was obtained. She would like to return to her husband as soon as possible. I am certain you can understand.” He tread carefully, wanting to escape as soon as he could.
An awkward silence descended on the room as Eleanor kept her gaze fixed on Julian with a look of betrayal in her eyes.
“I… I think I should go and check on the tea. They should add another cup and more sandwiches as well.” Juliette hurried to her feet and rushed past Julian before he could stop her.
Steeling himself for the conversation to come, Julian turned back to Eleanor. “Miss Everet, I…”
“Did you ever consider me?” She cut him short as she shook her head and looked to the side, fiercely wiping at her cheeks.
Allowing the question to set in, Julian decided to set the matter straight. “I never meant to hurt you, Miss Everet. You have been a friend to our family, but I never considered you more than that.”
Her gaze snapped back to his as her eyes darkened. “A friend to this family, but not to you?” The question hung bitterly between them.
“Of course, I have always thought of you as a friend, but I am afraid that it has never been more than that…” His words hung in the air like a knife that had sliced, cutting its mark sure and true.
Eleanor came to her feet as her lips trembled, but she seemed to regain her composure as she smiled sadly at him.
“I thought we had an understanding, my lord. I was waiting for you to propose, but it seems that I have been a fool all along. A fool in love with someone who did not even see me.” A single tear fell down her cheek as she reached up and wiped it away again.
In love.
The words hit Julian square in the chest as a wave of pity washed over him.
He had once been in love himself, and it was never easier to hear that the person you loved did not return your affections.
But Benedict had been right; Eleanor had concocted a love story in her mind and had believed it with all her heart.
“I hope you will believe me when I say that I never meant for you to get hurt, Miss Everet. I only want what is best for you and your future, but I am afraid that it was never going to be me. Even if Miss Prescott had not come along.”
Eleanor shook her head again and wiped at the last of her tears before meeting his gaze again.
“Well, I am ashamed to say that I have been rather foolish. Forgive me if I have made things uncomfortable for you, my lord. I would like to offer my sincerest congratulations, and also say that I hope the two of you will be frightfully happy.” She forced a smile that did not quite reach her eyes.
Perhaps Benedict was also wrong.
He had been right about Eleanor living in a fantasy, but her reaction did not seem as if she possessed the malice to say things out of place. She had simply believed that she and Julian had had an understanding that did not exist.
“Thank you, Miss Everet, and I hope you will not be so disappointed that you will stay away from the wedding tomorrow. I know that Miss Prescott seemed to enjoy your company at the gallery,” he spoke quietly, hoping to mend at least some of the rift that had been created.
“That is something at least. It is good to know that I am so highly thought of by our new viscountess. I shall endeavor to spend more time with her in that case. I am certain that she will need all the help she can get in her new role. I shall chaperone her into the world of becoming one of us.”
Miss Prescott will do well to stay away from her…
Benedict’s words from earlier in the day came to mind, but Julian pushed them aside. After all, Eleanor was congratulating them, and he did not see her as being as vindictive as Benedict thought.
Julian chuckled, hoping to defuse some of the attention. “That is very kind of you, Miss Everet, but I am certain that Miss Prescott will have things in hand. She is quite fierce and determined in character.”
A look of hurt flashed in her eyes, and Julian realized that he had just praised his future wife.
“Not that your input would not be valuable. I just meant that Miss Prescott will have her aunt, as well as my mother and sister, to guide her.” He added quickly.
Eleanor’s lips spread into a stiff smile.
“Of course, I just think that she will need all of the help she can get. Miss Prescott is not like us, my lord. She grew up in a world where our rules and social norms do not apply. I have watched her, and she does not quite know how to carry herself like one of us.”
He thought back to the night of the ball, where she had been so seemingly rude to him.
Had it been because of the gossip surrounding her arrival, or had she now known how to behave at a ball?
Surely, she had attended social events in America, but that did not mean that she knew how to behave in London.
Closing the distance between them, Eleanor placed her hand on his arm.
“Do not concern yourself, my lord. I shall act as her guide. Miss Everet shall be the best new viscountess that the ton has ever seen. You will want her to behave correctly because of your seat in parliament. Anything bad could potentially reflect poorly on you, but I shall ensure that such things do not occur,” she said demurely.
Nodding, Julian forced a smile, but a seed of doubt had begun to take root in his heart.
Would Miss Prescott be able to handle the pressure that came with being part of the aristocracy?
She had said that she had wanted freedom to be herself.
Did that mean that she would not conform to playing by their rules in England?