Authors: Kaitlin O'Riley

It Happened One Christmas (13 page)

BOOK: It Happened One Christmas

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Making her feel even worse, he continued to compliment her. “You are so lovely and special. I don't know what I would have done without your support while I was working for my uncle. Knowing that you would be mine kept me going. I am the luckiest man in the world to have you as my wife.”

Hot tears stung her eyes and she blinked rapidly to keep from weeping in front of him. “No, I am lucky to have you,” she cried, “and I promise to be a good wife to you.”

“I know you will.” He leaned close to her and placed a kiss upon her cheek.

On impulse Lisette placed her hands on either side of his face to draw him into a kiss. A real kiss. Although surprised by her overture, he willingly obliged her and she kissed him almost feverishly, pressing her lips against his. His mustache tickled her face, but she persisted, waiting for that all-consuming desire to overtake her as it did when she kissed Quinton Roxbury. Henry pulled her closer to him, his arms wrapping around her in a firm grip and easing her against the back of the sofa. Now that was more like it. Lisette leaned her head back and opened her mouth to him, something she had never done before. Without hesitating, he accepted her unspoken invitation and slipped his tongue inside her warm mouth. They kissed for a minute and she knew instinctively that Henry was thrilled by it.

When he quickly broke away from their embrace, she stared at him. Red-faced and breathing heavily, he had a smile from ear to ear. Pleased beyond recognition, he shook his head in disbelief at their unexpected intimacy.

“I am luckier than I have a right to be,” he uttered hoarsely. “But as wonderful as that was, my dear, we should stop now.”

“Yes,” she choked out. This time she could not stop the tears spilling from her eyes.

Henry immediately froze at the sight of her crying. “Forgive me, darling. I should not have kissed you that way.” He reached into his pocket and retrieved a monogrammed linen handkerchief, which he used to dab at her cheeks. “Lisette, please don't cry. We are engaged. It's not wrong for us to kiss. I only said for us to stop before things went any further.”

She nodded and sat up straight, taking the handkerchief from him. She wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. Her tears were not because they had kissed but because of how that kiss made her feel. Or more precisely, how it did not make her feel. “I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me.” She mustered a smile for him.

“I think you are overwhelmed with excitement and exhausted from traveling all day on the train. I bet you haven't eaten anything since breakfast. Let's get you something to eat, shall we?”

“Yes, that would be wonderful.” Her stomach was in such a knot she did not think she would be able to eat anything, but she wanted him to feel that he was helping her.

In a tender gesture, he brushed a stray tendril of hair from her face. “You are so lovely, Lisette.”

“Thank you,” she whispered, almost unable to bear another kindness from him.

“I have something for you first. It's the reason I wanted to see you alone for a moment. Although that kiss almost made me forget completely.” He reached into his other pocket and withdrew a small box. He handed it to her with an expression of nervous excitement on his face.

With a trembling hand, she took the box from him and opened it. Inside was an elegant gold ring set with a single pearl.

“It's an engagement ring. I thought you should have one.”

“Oh, Henry, it's beautiful. Thank you.” She had never possessed a ring before.

“Put it on.”

She slipped the delicate ring over her trembling finger.

It was entirely too large and slid around her finger in a ridiculous manner.

“I told the jeweler I thought it too large. You have such slender fingers.” He shook his head in disappointment. “We shall go back and have him size it properly for you,” he said, attempting to be positive.

“Yes, just as soon as we can,” she agreed, placing the pretty ring back in the box. While she had been away in Brighton kissing a veritable stranger, Henry had planned a party for her and bought her a lovely ring. Feeling perfectly wretched, she handed the ring box to Henry and he placed it in his pocket.

The door to the study swung open and her younger sister Paulette stuck her blond head in, staring at them. “There you are! We've been looking for you two! Everyone is wondering where you had gone off to.”

Henry rose from the sofa and helped Lisette to her feet. “We were just coming to rejoin the party.”

Paulette eyed them with skepticism. “Of course you were.”

Lisette smoothed her hair nervously. “We shall be there in a moment, Paulette.”

After her sister closed the door, Lisette faced Henry. “Thank you for everything, Henry, for the party, for the ring. I am most happy to be home again and with you.”

He placed a light kiss on her cheek. “You make me very happy, Lisette.” He took her arm and led her back to the party.

And So It Continued Both Day and Night

Wednesday, December 10, 1873

Lisette sat at the breakfast table early the next morning, anxiously waiting for her brother-in-law to enter the dining room. She hoped Lucien would come to breakfast before her sisters arrived so she had an opportunity to talk to him in private. She and Lucien often breakfasted together, for they were both early risers. That morning she made sure she was in the dining room first.

She had barely slept the night before. Wracked with guilt over her behavior with Quinton Roxbury and overwhelmed by Henry's sudden demonstrations of love, she lay awake most of the night.

“Good morning, Lisette,” Lucien said as he went to the buffet and piled his china plate high with scrambled eggs, ham, and toast.

Lisette smiled broadly, relieved to see her brother-in-law alone. “Good morning.”

“Did you enjoy your engagement celebration last night?” he asked, taking a seat across the table from her. A footman poured him some coffee.

“Yes, thank you again for everything.” She stalled for a bit of time. “How is Colette feeling this morning?”

“She is still sleeping. I didn't have the heart to wake her after such a late night. This baby is making her more tired than I recall her being with Phillip.”

“That is because she didn't have an active little boy to care for when she was carrying the first time,” Lisette pointed out as gently as she could. Honestly, could the man not figure that out for himself? Lucien was a good husband and an unfailingly kind brother-in-law. She genuinely liked him and had grown to love him over the years, but sometimes she had her doubts about the common sense of men in general.

“Ah, yes.” He nodded in agreement, his handsome face a bit sheepish in expression. “That makes sense.”

“I spoke to Colette before I left for Brighton. Lucien, she needs to let Rose help her more often. She's exhausting herself.”

“You know I agree with you, but your sister is very stubborn. However, I think once the baby arrives, she will have no choice but to let Rose help her.”

“I hope so,” Lisette murmured.

Lucien continued to eat his breakfast and she bided her time. Paulette would be down before long. She had promised to help Paulette at the bookshop later that day. Because Colette was so far along in her pregnancy and unable to work in the shop and Yvette was no help whatsoever, Lisette had agreed to assist Paulette during the Christmas season instead of only teaching the errand boys and shop girls as she usually did a few days a week. She had to talk to Lucien before Paulette came in.

“Lucien,” she began, feeling nervous, “I was wondering if I could ask you something.”

“Of course,” he said, scooping up eggs with his fork.

“Last week, a gentleman called upon you to discuss a building project,” she stated in as casual a voice as she could manage. “Mr. Quinton Roxbury.”

Lucien nodded. “Yes, he came to see me to ask if I would invest in his venture. Are you acquainted with him, Lisette?”

“Yes and no,” she responded hesitantly, unsure just how much information to divulge. What if Lucien became suspicious about her association with Quinton Roxbury? She would be mortified if her brother-in-law found out that she had been kissing the man in Brighton. “That is . . . We met accidentally as he left Devon House that afternoon he was here to see you and then by chance again the next day we happened to be in the same compartment on the train to Brighton. He then explained to me about his project to build houses for the poor and how he had approached you to be a contributor to his endeavor.”

Lucien sipped his coffee and eyed her with keen interest. “And what did you think of his idea?”

“Oh, I think it's wonderful!” she said with more enthusiasm than she had intended. “I agreed with him wholeheartedly. No one can be a productive member of society living amidst the filth and squalor of a tenement with no way to stay clean or healthy. People need to live in real homes in order to have hope of a better life. He spoke so eloquently about it, he quite convinced me.”

“I can see that,” Lucien uttered dryly, raising an eyebrow.

“Mr. Roxbury and I spoke at great length about it on the train.” She paused before asking, “What did you think of his plan, Lucien?”

“It certainly has its merits.”

“Are you going to help him then?”

“I'm seriously considering it. Why do you ask?”

“I promised him I would put in a good word for him with you.”

“Consider your word taken,” he said with a smile.

“What is your interest in Mr. Roxbury, Lisette?”

“I've no interest in Mr. Roxbury!” she protested, perhaps a little too vigorously. “I merely wished to help a good cause.”

“That is very commendable of you.”

She thought she detected a slight note of sarcasm in his voice. “Thank you.” Lisette hesitated but could not help asking, “How well do you know Mr. Roxbury?”

“I know of him well enough, I just don't know him personally, if that's what you are asking. His brother John is the Earl of Kingston and I believe there are other brothers as well. Roxbury is a talented designer. I've seen some of his work and it is very impressive for a man not yet thirty. The new town house that Lord Hartwell built in Saint James's Square was designed by Roxbury and it has caused a high demand for his services. There was an article in
The Times
a week or two ago about the new museum he crafted. He's making quite a name for himself.”

“Then you are going to help him?” she asked with excitement. She had no idea that Quinton was so well respected and could not help a sudden burst of pride in learning of his success. And more than anything, she wanted his new project to succeed.

“Most likely, but there are a few points I need clarified first. He is coming by to see me later this afternoon to discuss some terms.”

Lisette's heart thudded and almost stopped at the news. She hadn't expected to see Quinton again and had quite resigned herself to that fact. Now he was coming to her home that very day.

“Here? He's coming here?” Her voice squeaked.

Lucien regarded her with an odd expression, but before he could respond, Paulette entered the dining room. Paulette, who never missed a word anyone ever said.

“Who is coming here?” Paulette questioned eagerly as she took a plate from the buffet.

“No one you know,” Lisette said at the exact same moment Lucien said, “Just a business associate.”

With her long blond hair braided tightly behind her head, eighteen-year-old Paulette sniffed with an injured air, a bit put off by their dismissal of her. “Well, if you don't want me to know, then fine.”

Lisette silently blessed her brother-in-law for not saying Quinton Roxbury's name aloud and instantly forgave him for his obtuseness in understanding his wife's exhausted state earlier. Lucien was more insightful than she gave him credit for.

“Not everything concerns you, Miss Nosy,” Lucien teased her younger sister.

Paulette stuck her tongue out at him and turned away to fill her plate. He and Paulette had always enjoyed a playful and teasing camaraderie from the day they met in the shop.

“So you are helping out at the bookshop today, Lisette?” Lucien asked, skillfully changing the subject to one that would prompt Paulette to lose interest in the mysterious business associate.

“Yes, she is,” Paulette said, taking a seat beside her sister and answering for her. “We have so much to do today! We are expecting a large delivery of Christmas cards this morning and I expect we will be quite busy.”

“Christmas cards?” Lucien asked, his brows rose in question. “This is something new?”

“Yes, they are becoming very popular and I predict we are going to sell out rather quickly,” Paulette answered with great confidence. “Oh, and wait until you see them! They are quite beautiful. Anyone would be happy to receive such a Christmas greeting.”

Paulette was very proud of the fact that she had added a rather extensive line of fine stationery and writing instruments to their inventory at the shop. It had proven to be a very successful business venture that Colette had begun two years before and Paulette had taken over and expanded upon. For someone so young, Paulette showed a remarkable talent and business sense that, in conjunction with a little guidance from Lucien, had tripled the sales at Hamilton's Book Shoppe.

Even though they no longer needed the bookshop to support them financially as they once did, because of Colette's marriage to Lucien, Lisette's sisters loved the shop too much to sell it to someone else. Colette and Paulette still oversaw the general day-to-day operation of the business and made all the major decisions, but they had also hired help to assist them. While Lisette had never had quite the passion for the bookshop that Colette and Paulette did, she did not detest working there as Juliette had. Lisette actually enjoyed being in the shop from time to time, and she especially liked working there during Christmastime. Helping people choose Christmas gifts made her happy.

Lisette had also taken over the education of their workers. Anyone employed by Hamilton's, from the young errand boys to the shop girls, had to read and have a sound literature background. Since they tended to hire those needing assistance in that area, they provided the lessons. This tradition had sprung from Colette's idea of exchanging employment for lessons in reading when she had no money for wages. The first errand boy she hired was illiterate and so she taught him his letters and in return he delivered books for her. Now that the shop was doing so well, they could afford to pay their employees a more than fair wage and they gave them an education. Lisette had loved teaching the younger ones how to read, and that had become her area of expertise at Hamilton's Book Shoppe.

“The Christmas cards are a wonderful idea,” Paulette, filled with pride, stated again.

“I cannot wait to see them,” Lisette said, although her pulse was still racing at the possibility of seeing Quinton Roxbury later that day.

BOOK: It Happened One Christmas

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