Chapter 14
Madame Chapelle’s
Clements Lane
Kitty blinked and rubbed her eyes, stretching her arms over her head. She could hear voices, probably in the kitchen. Had she overslept? A male voice rose above the others.
Pa.
She tossed back the counterpane and pulled on her robe.
By the time her fingers touched the handle, something was scratching the other side of the door.
When she opened it, Terry’s wagging tail and wiggling body greeted her with an excited bark.
She fell to her knees and hugged him, tears spilling down her cheeks.
Holding him in her arms, Kitty ran down the short hall and burst into the kitchen. Her father was there, cap in his hand, still wearing his long coat from his last shift. She set Terry down and threw herself into her father’s arms, her breaths coming in short gasps.
“I missed you so, so much,” she cried into his neck. “Is it over? Tell me it’s over.” She hugged him with all her might as he twirled her in a circle.
“Time for you to come home, luv,” he said.
Her heart pounded, happiness welling up in her chest and spilling over in more tears. When he finally loosened his hold, and her feet were firmly back on the floor, she turned to her new friends.
Like her, Genie and Lydia both wore their nightclothes and mobcaps.
“We will miss you,” said Lydia, holding out her arms.
“But we’ll see you almost every day,” added Genie, waiting for her turn to hug Kitty.
“Pa—” She turned around to face her father again as Ben entered from the parlor.
“There’s the hero of the day,” said her father.
“Hero?” she asked, staring at the handsome man who had stolen her heart. Kitty longed to fling herself into his arms, but there were so many people in the small space.
“His quick thinking saved my life. Didn’t know he even owned a pistol,” Pa told everyone.
“A p-pistol?” Fear caught in her throat. How close had she come to losing the men she loved? Because she’d admitted to herself this week that she was madly, crazy in love with Mr. Benjamin Cooper.
“Never used it,” Ben said, taking a step closer.
His brown-gold eyes studied her, then he held out his arms. “I don’t care if this is appropriate or not,” he said, his voice husky.
“I believe I’ll serve tea in the parlor. Mr. Felton, would you join us?” asked Lydia.
Her father grinned. “Delighted to.”
Kitty almost knocked the poor man over when the room was empty. “I knew you would fix everything. I knew I could trust you.” She kissed him on his mouth, his cheeks, his chin, his nose. “Thank you!”
Ben loosened his hold and let her slide back down to the floor. His gaze locked with hers, as if proving to himself she was there, then bent his head to kiss her. He pressed his lips to hers, and she kissed him back.
“I brought you a present,” he murmured against her hair.
“I’m starting to enjoy surprises,” she said, putting her hands behind back. “Should I close my eyes?”
“Yes.”
She did but heard him walk away, then return.
“Open your eyes,” he said.
She did, and he was holding a large package wrapped in brown paper. Kitty raised a questioning brow but took the package and sat at the table. Ben joined her as she untied the string.
“Oh my,” she gasped as she peeked in small pouches holding wonderful goodies. There were beads and feathers and tiny braiding… a treasure trove of supplies that would have cost a small fortune.
Two swaths of cloth, one of satin in rifle green and one of silk in Pomona green, were the perfect amount to make two reticules.
“Your favorite color is green, but I wasn’t sure what shade. So the man at the East India Company said he would choose a dark and a bright.”
Kitty blinked back tears. “You went to Millard’s to buy all this for me? It’s too much.”
“No, it’s not. And don’t cry,” he said, panic in his tawny eyes. “I wanted to make you smile.”
“Happy tears, you ninny,” she murmured. “You don’t mind courting a woman who has aspirations other than being a wife?” The answer to this question could change her life.
“You met Nora. She was raised by Maggie. Can you imagine any male telling them they couldn’t pursue their dream?” He reached over and tipped her chin up. “I want you to be happy, Kitty.” He leaned forward and kissed her softly as her arms curled around his neck.
“My good luck charm,” she whispered in his ear.
“And you may be mine,” he told her, kissing her again.
* * *
May 1821
St. Clement’s Church
“I now pronounce you man and wife,” the vicar announced to the congregation.
Clayton kissed Genie, and Kitty quit trying to stem the tears. She let them fall freely for her friend.
Lydia squeezed her hand. “I’ve been through two handkerchiefs already. Lud, how I love that girl.”
Kitty hugged her, then turned to wait for Ben, who had stood up for Clayton.
He stopped in the aisle to escort her out into the bright morning.
He was dressed to the nines in black tails, violet waistcoat (to match her eyes), and a pristine white cravat.
Behind them, Lydia followed on George Lockwood’s arm.
Genie confided that the man’s eyes had misted when her aunt requested that he escort her to the ceremony. Perhaps another wedding was on the way?
“Congratulations!” The cries echoed in St. Clement’s Church as the newly wedded couple departed the building. The people who loved them most called out their well-wishes.
Lydia began to cry again, George patting her hand. Maggie and Nora were wiping away tears too. Paddy and Gus were grinning. Harry and Sampson were both there, lopsided smiles on their faces, an arm protectively around their wives.
They had labored for weeks on a wedding dress of the palest rose; the intricate ivory lace overlay so delicate Kitty had been afraid to touch it at first. The lace had come from Italy, a gift from Genie’s father and stepmother, Lord and Lady Winston.
Clayton was so handsome in his slate coattails, his auburn curls barely tamed, and his moss-green eyes shining with love.
The couple laughed at the worn shoe thrown by Eli. A sign of good luck that Mr. and Mrs. Pierce hopefully wouldn’t need. They would honeymoon in Paris, another wedding present from Genie’s father.
Clayton dodged another old shoe thrown by Roger.
“May ye have a dram of the happiness I’ve had with my Maggie,” Paddy said, hugging them both, then kissing his wife on the mouth with a loud smack.
As they left for the wedding breakfast, held in the O’Brien’s backyard with tents to protect them from the sun, Kitty gazed across the street at Madame Chapelle’s. She would help Lydia run the shop while Genie and Clayton were on the Continent.
The carriage lurched forward, and Ben moved next to her on the squab. “I’ve never seen him so happy.”
“I thought Nora and Gus were riding with us.” She peered out the window. “What happened?” Her father was meeting them at the O’Briens.
When she turned around, Ben was holding a small box. His silly, lopsided smile was identical to his brother’s, a smile formed of love. Kitty smiled, her hand moving to her chest as if to protect her heart.
“Miss Katherine Felton, the loveliest, cleverest of women. I always thought I was luckless. A man who providence passed by, who never had a chance playing the odds.” He swallowed. “But I’ve found my lucky charm, and I hope to keep her by my side for the rest of my days.”
Her hand went to her mouth, joy bubbling up her throat and spilling out as tears. She began nodding her head as he opened the box.
“Will you marry me? Will you be my wife, the mother of my children, and the maker of my clothes?”
She began to laugh, wiping her cheeks. “Yes, you ridiculous man. Yes, I will marry you.”