An Earl to Enchant (5 page)

Morgan sat back in his chair, looked at the sentence, and smiled.

Was he really trying flattery? What happened to just stating the facts?

“They aren’t nearly as persuasive,” he said and then chuckled.

Yes, flattery always worked on a woman. And what he had written should work very well and get him the answer he wanted. He dipped the quill back into the ink and continued.

Four

My Dearest Grandson Lucas,

Read with interest this tidbit of philosophy from Lord Chesterfield: “You will say perhaps, one cannot change one’s nature; and that, if a person is born of a very sensible gloomy temper, and apt to see things in the worst light, they cannot make-new themselves. I will admit it to a certain degree, for though we cannot totally change our nature, we may in a great measure correct it.”

Your loving Grandmother,

Lady Elder

Arianna heard her maid calling her name, but she didn’t want to wake up. Her dream was too alluring. She was in a room where bright sunlight streamed in through an open window and thin sheers billowed hypnotically from a gentle wind. She lay on crisp, clean sheets that felt heavenly to her tired body. The scent of summer flowers permeated the air all around her, and a soft breeze stirred across her face.

No, she didn’t want to wake from the dream that took her back to her childhood home in the Cotswolds. If she woke, she’d find herself lying on damp sheets, in a small room, on the cold, drafty ship. She would feel the swaying and rocking, the constant movement that tortured her day and night. She would hear the howling wind and the creaking of the hull as the ship tossed about on the swelling waves. If she opened her eyes, the scent of flowers would be gone, and in its place would be the stale, pungent smell of wet wood, salty air, and stale food.

“Miss Ari, I have your breakfast.”

With a jerk, Arianna’s eyes flew open. She rose up on her elbows and quickly glanced around the swirling bright, spacious room. The dizziness was back. She squeezed her eyes closed and willed the room to stop spinning. She breathed in deeply three times and slowly opened her eyes again. By concentration she was able to focus on her maid who stood at the foot of her bed, holding a tray.

Arianna’s gaze strayed to a small bud vase on the tray that held a single flower that was the exact shade of blue as Lord Morgandale’s eyes. Her stomach tightened. She wasn’t dreaming. She was no longer on the ship. She had finally made it to England and she was safe at Valleydale, and the handsome Lord Morgandale was in residence.

Arianna went limp with relief.

“I didn’t mean to startle you,” her maid said.

“No, Beabe, you didn’t,” Arianna said, swallowing past a dry throat. “I’m afraid I was sleeping so hard I didn’t want to wake up.”

“You asked me to rouse you early, but you looked so weary last night that I waited until mid-morning. I hope you won’t be cross with me for delaying.”

“No, no, it’s all right,” Arianna said, wishing she didn’t feel so blurry-headed, so lethargic that all she really wanted to do was go back to sleep. “I obviously needed the extra time this morning.”

When would she start feeling the way she had before the fever? She was eager for her strength and good health to return so she could accomplish what she had to do for her father.

Thankful that the dizziness had passed, she sat up in bed and stuffed pillows behind her.

“I think last night was the first night in months that I’ve slept all night without waking.”

“To tell you the truth, Miss Ari, the same goes for me. Though I haven’t been sick with the fever like you, I didn’t take well to the sea voyage, either.” She placed the tray across Arianna’s lap.

Arianna looked at Beabe and for the first time realized she looked tired, too. There were sagging, dark circles under her eyes, and she was thinner than she used to be, too. The strain of the journey and taking care of Arianna had taken its toll on her maid as well. They both needed a place to rest and recover.

“I know, Beabe. I appreciate all you have done for me. You’ve taken such good care of me all these weeks. I wouldn’t be alive today if not for your kind attention, and I will see to it that you are handsomely rewarded when we finally get to London, and that you have at least a month or longer to visit with your family.”

Beabe smiled at her. “Don’t you worry about me, Miss Ari. I promised your papa I would take care of you. I couldn’t let him down, now could I? But this is a mighty fine place we’ve come to. It’s a shame we won’t be staying for a little while longer.”

“Yes, it is,” Arianna agreed, realizing she wasn’t in a hurry to leave Valleydale either but knew she must.

A worry wrinkle formed between Beabe’s eyes, and she asked, “Do you think they’ve found that man who killed your father, Miss Ari?”

Arianna swallowed past a dry throat. “I hope so, Beabe,” she said, trying to sound a lot more cheerful than she felt. “I choose to believe there will be a letter waiting for me when we get to London, telling me that.”

“You don’t think Mr. Rajaratnum followed us to London, do you?”

Arianna smiled affectionately at her. “Of course not. Why would he? He wanted the formula, not us.”

“But he knows we saw him.”

“He also knows we have already reported him to the authorities, and they are looking for him. He has what he wanted, Beabe.”

Beabe smiled, nodded, and turned to look through one of the trunks that sat on the floor. “I know you’re right. It’s just that every time I see a gentleman from India, like yesterday when we got off the ship, I think it’s him.”

“But it couldn’t have been him, as you know. Mr. Rajaratnum had no way of knowing we would be waylaid in Egypt for weeks or that we would have booked passage to Southampton rather than London.”

Arianna looked at the woman who’d been her maid for the ten years she’d been in India. Beabe was a sturdy, robust woman in her early forties. Her light brown hair had only recently begun to show signs of gray, but Arianna seldom saw it, as most of the time it was completely covered by her mobcap. Beabe’s wide brown eyes were always sparkling. Her thin lips often lifted in a smile for Arianna.

Most of the people she and her father had associated with in India had Indian servants, but her father had insisted she have a British maid so that Arianna would constantly have the influence of her homeland in her life.

Arianna took a sip of the warm chocolate and slowly swallowed. It had been months since she’d had any to drink, and it was delicious. Beabe started humming, and Arianna settled against the soft pillows with her thoughts. They went immediately to the earl. She remembered how strong his arms were when he’d carried her last night and how tightly he’d held her. She remembered how warm and firm his body had been when her hip was pressed so close to him that she felt the rise and fall of his chest. She remembered his strong neck, his masculine lips, his wide shoulders, his…

Arianna shook her head and took another quick sip of chocolate, thankful her maid could not read her thoughts. What was wrong with her? She had to stop that nonsense of thinking about the earl’s physique. It was maddening.

She looked around the room and was at first puzzled by the lack of color. The walls, the draperies, and even the bed where she sat were in varying shades of white.

Although Arianna found the room very restful, she wondered why the only colors in the room, other than the dark wood furniture, were the flowers sitting on the dressing table that stood between two windows. A tall, oval mirror was attached the table. A large wardrobe stood on one wall, and a fireplace and sitting area with the chairs upholstered in white brocade were on the other side of the room.

Her bedchamber in India had been decorated with fabrics dyed in rich, vivid tints of orange, red, gold, green, and purple. The people of India adored bright colors and used them liberally. Arianna had come to love every shade and variation of all the primary colors. Now she couldn’t imagine living without vivid color in her life.

After living in India for a couple of years, her father had relented and allowed her to have some of her dresses and a few saris made in the brighter fabrics of India rather than the pastels that she had always worn as a child. Though he had remained strict and never allowed her to wear the sari and matching
cholis
out of their house.

“I know that all your trunks were brought up last night, Miss Ari, so what would you like for me to pick out for you to travel in today?”

“It doesn’t matter to me, Beabe, as long as it is bright and cheerful. I will let you decide. But go ahead and work on that now, as I would like for us to be on our way to London by noon.”

“I’ll have to hurry to make that happen. I’ve been a slugabed today.”

“Nonsense, Beabe, you deserved the extra rest. When we get to London, I will find us a suitable place, and we will hole up until we are both over this journey that has taken us so long.”

Beabe smiled at her as a soft knock sounded at the door. Arianna knew it had to be Mrs. Post, the woman she’d met last night, because the housekeeper had told her all the other servants had been given a few days off.

Beabe walked over and opened the door. Arianna heard Mrs. Post ask if she could come in, and Beabe stepped aside and allowed her to enter.

Mrs. Post was once again impeccably dressed in a pale gray, high-waisted dress that was covered by a neatly pressed apron.

“Good morning, Miss Sweet. I trust you had a restful night.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Good. I’m sorry to disturb your breakfast, but I just spoke to Lord Morgandale, and he asked that I give you a message.”

Arianna’s breath kicked up a notch. Perhaps the surly man was unhappy she wasn’t out of his house fast enough. Though she hardly felt like moving, she’d remedy that soon enough. And she didn’t know why but she didn’t want this to be the last time she saw the earl. The thought of never seeing him again made her chest feel heavy. Considering the man had such a prickly temper, it was all very odd to her that he caused her heartbeat to race and her breath to grow short.

“You aren’t disturbing me, Mrs. Post. What did the earl have to say?”

“That I am to bring you more food to eat than toast and chocolate. He wants you to have a hearty breakfast, and that I should see that you eat all of it.”

Arianna looked down at the toast, butter, and jam that she hadn’t even touched. Her appetite hadn’t returned since the fever. And the earl wanted her to eat more? So, it appeared the earl was not through ordering her around as of yet.

“Just who does he think he is?” Arianna said as much to herself as to the women in the room.

Mrs. Post remained stiff and unflustered as she offered, “He is the master of this house, Miss Sweet.”

That was difficult to argue with. “Yes, that is true, but I should think he’d have better things to do than concern himself with what I eat.”

“I’m sure he looks at his instructions as for your benefit, Miss Ari,” Beabe offered.

“Lord Morgandale also said that you should spend the entire day in bed.”

Surprised, Arianna looked at Mrs. Post and said, “You mean he is going to allow me to stay here today? He’s not rushing me off?”

“Quite the contrary, Miss Sweet. Lord Morgandale told me to inform you that he has paid your driver and sent him away.”

Arianna gasped. “No!” she whispered. “What am I to do? I can’t believe he did that! How am I to get to London?”

“I’m sure he will arrange that for you at the proper time. For now, he intends for you to stay here at Valleydale while you recuperate from whatever it is that ails you.”

Arianna didn’t know what to say. She looked at Beabe. The woman couldn’t hide the hopeful expression on her weary face. Arianna felt a twinge of anger at herself for not realizing sooner that her maid needed the rest the earl had mandated, too; Arianna just didn’t like it that the man hadn’t given her a say in the matter.

“Lord Morgandale said if you wished to speak to him about this or any other matter, he would be available to see you in the drawing room tomorrow evening before dinner.”

“Tomorrow?”

“That is his first opportunity to be available.”

Arianna supposed, being an earl, he was busy. At least the overbearing man had granted her the opportunity to speak to him later.

Mrs. Post continued. “He said I should arrange for hot water to be brought up to you whenever you are ready for it so that you can wash away the traveling dust, so to speak.”

How had the earl known exactly what she needed and wanted? A tub of hot water to wash in sounded divine. The earl might have the temperament of a grouchy bear, but without his knowing, he was not only giving her the comforts of his home, he was giving her what she desperately needed right now; a place to rest so that she could renew herself and be ready to accomplish her goals as soon as she reached London.