Chapter 43
Lavender squeezed Thomas’s hand as the carriage rolled up the drive to Gardner Manor.
He’d gone straight from the Gilfordshire’s townhome after his proposal to visit with the Privy Council, telling them he was taking her home to announce their engagement.
He didn’t want anyone to think he was running off again.
It had been a day of travel and stolen kisses and Jack’s constant flow of conversation whenever Lavender and Thomas got too quiet staring at each other.
She had the love of Thomas Monteclare, and she was about to tell her parents she was engaged to be married.
She’d never been so frightened of a conversation with them.
Thomas jumped down and then helped her, putting out his arm. “Shall we go share the good news?”
They should, but what if her mother reacted in an embarrassing manner, what if she went on and on about how long it took her to secure her father’s last wish for her?
Or worse, what if she talked about Lavender not being good enough for a duke?
Lavender didn’t know if she wanted Thomas to witness any of her parents’ initial reactions to the news.
“Maybe I ought to go in and tell them alone, and then send for you.”
“You are trying to save me discomfort.” Thomas’s eyes were soft and fierce all at once. “That means you are expecting something of an unfortunate nature to occur, and I will not allow you to face it alone.”
“That is my job, Thomas.”
He took her chin in his hand and bent down to kiss her cheek. “Then it’s my job in your family as well. Only I cannot pretend to be as good at it as you are. If you want to bring your father peace, we’ll do it—but not at the slightest expense of your happiness.”
Lavender smiled and tried to believe she wouldn’t be humiliated in a few minutes time, but she was unsuccessful. She was let in without so much as a knock. “My Lady.” The butler bowed. “It is good to see you again.”
“Thank you. Are my parents in my father’s room?”
“They are. Would you like me to announce your visitor?” He looked over Thomas with a raised brow.
“I’d like to do that myself,” Lavender answered, leading Thomas toward the grand staircase.
She took the stairs hesitantly, savoring the seconds she gathered before the commotion of her mother broke through her peace.
The bedchamber door was closed, and she could hear her father’s coughing fit just beyond.
She knocked.
“Who is it?” came her mother’s stiff voice.
“It’s Lavender. I’ve brought someone with me I’d like you to meet.” She was shaking, but Thomas held her ungloved hand still. How had she forgotten her gloves in the carriage? Her mother would be mortified.
Before she knew how to handle the situation, the door swung open to reveal her mother. Her deep blue eyes were fixed on Thomas. “Your Grace, what an honor to have you in our home. Have you come to check in on my husband?”
Thomas looked at Lavender. “I believe you have not seen your daughter for months,” he prompted her attention toward Lavender.
“Of course,” Lavender’s mother replied, looking her over. “Heavens, child! Where are your gloves?” She turned back to Thomas. “I assure you she is not usually so untamed as this.”
“Mother,” Lavender interjected. “I–”
“I’ll fetch you a shawl. There’s no need for His Grace to feel pity over your state.” She turned back toward the room. “My daughter suffered an accident years ago. Please forgive her forgetting to hide the scars. It’s such an unfortunate situation.”
Lavender followed after her. “I’m not ashamed of my arm, mother, and neither is Thomas.”
Her mother froze mid-step with her back to them both. “Excuse me?”
Thomas cleared his throat. “I adore her arm, her chin, the way her hazel eyes flicker gold in the moonlight. I love every piece of your daughter.”
Her mother spun around with her mouth agape. “You . . . but . . . what I mean to say is . . . but you are a duke. And a wanted criminal.”
“I am.”
“You were traveling Europe when Rose came out for her Season. It was simply bad timing, Your Grace. I guess I can be thankful her name did not become entangled with yours now that you are wanted by the crown.”
Lavender could have melted from the heat of her embarrassment like a candle thrown into a bonfire.
Did her mother hear anything Thomas had said?
He’d told her he loved Lavender, and still, she was thinking of her sister who was happily married with children of her own.
Of course she wasn’t as good as Rose. Lavender had never aspired to that.
She’d been content in the background. A nagging in the back of her mind told her that a duke of the realm would be better suited to her eldest sister than she.
Her father coughed, and Lavender moved toward him. “I’m going to say hello to father.” She took quick steps toward his bedside, trying in vain to leave her mother’s words behind her.
His face was pale, his cheeks thinner than when she’d left home. He had his eyes closed when she approached.
Lavender set her hand atop one of his. “I’ve come home, father. I have some good news.”
His eyes fluttered open and then closed, then they snapped open again—more alert. “Lavender, is that you?”
She nodded, blinking back tears. She didn’t know why she was crying. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that her father actually saw her, unlike her mother’s greeting. It wasn’t much to cling to since Thomas was not immediately at her side. “How are you feeling?”
Her father pushed himself to a sitting position. “Fine, I’m fine. Is everything alright? We’ve had your letters, of course. What has happened to bring you home?”
Lavender looked over her shoulder to where Thomas and her mother were having what looked like an argument, where Thomas looked livid, and her mother confused. “I’ve brought someone to meet you.” She made a motion with her hand to have Thomas come to her side.
“Your Grace,” her father said with a dip of his head. “It’s good to see you again.” Her father’s eyes narrowed as he looked Thomas over. “You look different from last Season.”
“So do you, my lord,” Thomas said with a half-smile.
Lavender’s father laughed. “Yes, but you look better. What can I do for you? I’m afraid I’m not much of an active participant at the House of Lords this year, but I could write some letters to people of influence.”
“I’m not here on business, Lord Gardner, though I intend to pick your brain on another occasion. I have some big plans moving forward, and you might be just the person to connect me with the right people.”
“What big plans are these?” Lavender’s father asked.
“Mostly, I want to increase the literacy rate of the lower classes. But today, I’d like to speak of something even more important.” Thomas glanced at Lavender and held out his hand for her to take. He intertwined their fingers. “I was wondering if you would allow me to marry your daughter?”
Lavender’s mother gasped. “What? What is this? How can this be?”
Lavender’s father shook his head a little. “I’ve been reading the papers, Your Grace. I do not know if I can agree to this arrangement. Not that I am in a position to deny you.”
“You are her father; you have every right to deny me. I am gratified at your hesitance on your daughter’s part. The papers do paint a bleak picture of me indeed. However, yesterday had some large developments. I am happy to explain.”
Her father shook his head. “No, I don’t have the energy for that. If Lavender trusts you, who am I to interfere with your reasons?”
Lavender sniffed. “You trust my judgement?”
Her father took her other hand, beads of sweat beginning to shine on his bald head.
“I wouldn’t have sent you to London to find a husband if I didn’t.
The only thing I want to know is whether this is a marriage of convenience or not.
You knew we were pressuring you to find a husband, and Lord Fenleigh, I know you must be in some spot of trouble.
What does it benefit you to marry my daughter? Is it finances you are in need of?”
“I don’t need her dowry if that is what you are insinuating.
But I could speak for hours of the benefits of marrying Lavender.
She is kind and compassionate and wise and humble.
She makes days brighter and nights unbearable because she isn’t with me.
I love her, Lord Gardner: Lavender is the center of my world, and we’ve come to ask you for your blessing. ”
The center of his world—she’d never felt so wholly important to anyone.
She was the background flower, the one who was made to help others.
She might not continue to be such a background figure as a duchess, but she could certainly use her position in society to help others, to foster peace, to encourage kindness.
And she wouldn’t be alone. She had faith in Thomas’s abilities.
Lavender’s mother was sitting on the end of the bed at the end of Thomas’s speech. “You’re not going to take her to France, are you? My son cannot be associated with such a scandal as that.”
Thomas took a slow audible breath through his nose, likely to remind himself to be patient. “I am not a traitor to the crown, my lady. And I will not take Lavender to France unless we choose to tour the country one day when it is safe to do so.”
Lavender’s father coughed, his entire body shaking with the movement.
“So long as you continue doing whatever is making you look like you have a purpose to your life, and your name gets cleared, you have my blessing. You’d best procure a special license, Your Grace. I’d like to see this wedding if I can.”
Thomas nodded. “Thank you, Lord Gardner. I will see to that as soon as I can manage it.” He held out his arm to Lavender and led her from the room. Her parents’ voices oddly silent behind them. It seemed they were at a loss for words—not for long, surely.
As they descended the stairs, Thomas stopped one stair below Lavender and set his hands on her waist. He pulled her close to him, their faces a breath apart. “Before I go to procure that special license, would you introduce me to Henry?”
Lavender’s stomach danced at his touch like moonbeams reflecting off a river. She leaned toward him and took in the scent of his shaving soap before she kissed his cheek. “I’d love to.”
Pulling her even closer, Thomas ran his hands up her back and kissed her properly.
The worries and concerns about her parents' reactions slowly fell from her shoulders. He kissed away her feelings of insufficiency and replaced them with an awareness of how much she was valued. She allowed him to take his time, relishing every moment they stole together. Thomas forced her away from him and took another step down the staircase. “We’d best be going. I don’t intend to wait long to make you my wife, Lavender.
I side with your father: the sooner the better. ”
She led her betrothed out to the gardener’s shed at a much quicker pace than she’d led him to her parent’s chambers. Her knock held no hesitation. She inhaled the sweet scent of spring and sunshine while she waited for the wooden door to open.
Henry beamed at her. “Lady Lavender, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes.” He limped out of the shed and bowed low to her. “Who is this young man you’ve brought home?”
“What happened to your leg?”
“Oh, I just took a little tumble in the woods. They’re an overgrown mess, always have been. I’ll be right in a week or two.”
Lavender led him to a bench to sit down while she finished her introduction. “I want to introduce you to Thomas Monteclare, my intended.”
Thomas bowed to Henry. “It is an honor to meet you. I’ve heard nothing but good things about you from Lavender. And I feel I owe you a debt of gratitude for watching over her so fully. Without you, I might not be the happiest of men.”
A buzzing sounded in Lavender’s ear, and she flinched away from a lazy bee.
Thomas swatted it from the air with the back of his hand.
Henry laughed. “You’d best get used to doing that, son. She attracts more bees than the flowers do.”
Lavender tried to calm her breathing.
“One of her requirements for a husband was to be willing to take a bee sting for her. I will be diligent, I promise.” Thomas came behind Lavender and put his arms around her waist.
Henry laughed even as Lavender’s chest filled with gratitude for this man she loved so fully.
“What were her other stipulations?” Henry asked.
Thomas smiled at the elderly gardener. “She requires an incredible library. Thankfully, I can give her that as well. She also requires all my devotion, attention, and love. She’s still coming to understand how important those are. I intend to spend the rest of my days showing her.”
Lavender felt like she was floating. How was she so blessed to have the love of the lost duke?
“Now,” Thomas pulled Lavender in close and kissed her neck. “When I get back from procuring a special license to marry this incredible woman, I expect you to tell me where you want me to begin gardening first. Your injury has let the paths get a little out of hand.” He winked at Henry.
“You have experience with gardening?” Henry looked impressed.
“A little,” Thomas said.
“What duke doesn’t?” Lavender added with a chuckle.