The Langley Sisters Trilogy Boxed Set (66 page)

“About two hours is my estimation,” Luke said, fiddling with a neck strap on one of the horses.
 

“Are you all right?”
 

Luke looked at Will then and found a smile. “I seem to have a way with disarming highwaymen.”

Will shuddered, and then gripped Luke’s shoulder again as he remembered the last time Luke had thrown his knife. It had been Will’s wife, Olivia, who had been robbing their carriage and received Luke’s knife in her shoulder for her efforts.

“Pray you never have to do so again, my friend.”

He didn’t answer, just nodded. His heart was still thumping; he could see the moment so clearly in his mind. Bella’s scream as the man pulled her onto his horse. If Luke hadn’t stopped him, how would they have found her?

“Don’t think about what if, Luke. Think only that she is inside the carriage awaiting us, though God alone knows how I will rid my head of it. And then there is the recounting of the story to her sisters.”

“We would not have found her, Will—”

“She is safe, Luke. Focus on that fact alone.”

Luke nodded and headed for the carriage as Will moved to talk with his drivers. He needed to see her now the shock had passed, to assure himself she was all right.
 

“How do you feel?” He questioned her as he stepped inside.

Bella allowed Luke to wrap a blanket around her legs and then took the flask he handed her. His face was solemn, eyes shadowed.

“Sip it slowly. It will warm you and help lessen the shock.” He sat on the edge of his seat, looking at her.

“I-I’m all right, really,” she added, lifting the flask to her lips. Tipping it slowly, she tasted the liquid, enjoying the burn as it traveled down her throat. Now she was inside and the danger was over, she couldn’t seem to stop shaking.
 

“It all happened so fast, Luke. There was no time to think.”

“It’s all right now, Bella. We have you,” he soothed, lifting the flask back to her mouth. “I won’t let anyone else hurt you.”

“It’s not your fault,” she protested, as Will opened the door and joined them.

“The two of us could not keep you safe, Bella,” Will said, taking the seat beside her. “And we could have lost you were it not for Luke. Allow us a few self-recriminations, if you please.” He put his arm around her.
 

She reached for Luke, gripping the fingers he had braced on his thigh. “If you had not stopped that man when he had me before him—”

“I just told Luke not to think about it and now I am telling you the same thing, Bella. No good will come from what if’s, even though we will all have them. I urge you to put this incident to the back of your mind.”

Luke had saved her.

“Are…are you all right, Luke?”

“I’m all right, now I know you are safe.” His fingers turned and engulfed hers briefly before he released them.

She nodded, and then leaned her head back on the seat. The brandy had warmed her and made her feel as though she were floating. Her eyes stayed on Luke and his on her. She remembered how he had held her when she fell, called her “love”. How could he ever believe she would stop loving him?

“Were you telling me the truth when you said nothing hurt?”

“Yes.” She nodded her head. “I will be a bit sore tomorrow, but I am all right, Luke.”

“Livvy is going to kill me for letting this happen,” Will said, leaning closer to look in her eyes. “Are you sure you didn’t get a knock to the head? Your pupils don’t look right.”

“Call for the doctor as soon as we arrive, Will.”

Waving their words aside, Bella decided to close her eyes as her head felt wobbly, and in seconds she was asleep.
 

***

“Wake up, Bella, we’re home.”

She opened her eyes and let Will help her upright.
 

“I’m sorry. I seem to have used you for a pillow, Will.” Yawning, she looked for Luke but he was already out of the carriage. The window showed her nothing but darkness.

“How do you feel?” Bella could see the worry still lingering in both her brother-in-law’s eyes.

“I am well, Will, and I am not made of glass, nor will I fall into a fit of vapors continually when this story is recounted,” Bella said. “I will be a bit stiff and sore, but I have had worse. I appreciate all you have done for me, truly, more than I can ever say,” She then added, hugging him, “However, you will no longer treat me like a fragile doll that needs help to get about the place, nor will you watch my every move.”

“You sound like both your sisters, now. Where has our shy young lady gone?” Will grumbled. “It will be hard,” he added. “You were hurting and in pain and often trying to hide it. I saw how you suffered, Bella, and because of that I wanted to protect you.”
 

“I know.” She patted his hand. “But now I’m a lot better, and a lot stronger, so I would ask you to try to take a step back.”

He nodded solemnly, and Bella knew he understood; however, she was unsure if he would actually listen.

The weary travelers climbed down and, after stretching, made their way up the path of Willow Hall. The door flew open and then there they were, her sisters. Bella felt the first of her tears fall. For so long, it had just been the three of them. They had supported and loved her, just as she had them, and now seeing Phoebe and Livvy again, she realized just how much she had missed them.

“Bella!”

“Phoebe! Livvy!” Bella cried, hurrying towards them to fall into their waiting arms. They crushed her between them, and she felt the babies who one day she would become auntie to pressed against her, welcoming her home.

“This may take some time.” Bella heard Will’s voice as he joined them, shaking the hand of Lord Finneous Levermarch, Phoebe’s husband.
 

“They’ll hug and cry and then talk over the top of each other until finally running out of breath,” Finn said, herding the sisters inside out of the cold. “Only to cry again, and there will probably be more tears later, as Phoebe seems to be able to cry on command these days.”

“As does Livvy.”

“Beast!” Phoebe sniffed, and Bella laughed as she turned and fell into her husband’s open arms, while Livvy did the same with Will.

She watched them hold each other, saw the love in the small gestures, the gentle kiss and brush of a hand down a face. She wanted this, wanted a man to love her above all others. Her eyes moved to the door at that moment as Luke walked in, carrying her luggage. Would she have it with him?
 

“What has happened?” Phoebe had moved from Finn’s arms to stand before Luke. She took his hand when he turned to leave. “Tell me, Luke. I can see it in your eyes. Something has put those storm clouds in there.”

He was more a friend to them all now, since she had entered the clinic and he had taken up Freddy’s old position. His relationship inside Will’s household had made him draw closer to her family, and Bella was pleased, as Will loved Luke like a brother and relied on him the same way.
 

“Tis nothing to worry over,” he said gently to Livvy as she moved to look at him also. The smile he gave her sisters made Bella’s heart thud a little faster.
 

“Well, now, how about we begin the interrogation in the warmth of the parlor?”

“Freddy, Jenny!” Bella rushed to hug them both as they appeared in the hall. Jenny had been the Langley’s housekeeper and Freddy, Will’s old man of affairs; they had fallen in love at first sight, although it had taken Jenny longer to acknowledge that love. Now, however, they were happily married and lived here, at Willow Hall.

“Excellent idea,” Will said, ushering them all towards the room. “Luke, you come, too.”

“I have work—”

“Luke Fletcher, you will come with us and I don’t want to hear another word from you. There is nothing that need be done at this hour that cannot be put off until tomorrow.” Phoebe jabbed her finger into his chest. He rolled his eyes, which made her laugh, and then shooting Bella a fleeting look which she could not interpret, he followed them.
 

“Look at you walk!” Livvy cried, watching Bella. “There is no limp at all. It worked, didn’t it?”

“More tears,” Will said, pulling out his handkerchief as he guided his wife through the door.
 

Bella felt the walls of her old home wrap around her as she took a seat before the fire. This had been the Langley family home until Livvy had married Will, and she was pleased it belonged to Freddy and Jenny now. She was home with the people she loved, the people who now made up her family.
 

Jenny soon brought tea, and with it the demand for what had taken place on the journey. Will took over the telling; he did not hide anything. They’d all agreed that if they did, someone would let it slip and Phoebe and Livvy would not be happy.
 

Luke, who was standing beside the fire drinking tea, quickly put down his cup as Livvy waddled towards him. Bella watched color fill his cheeks as she cupped them.

“You, Luke Fletcher, are a wonderful, brave man, and I can only say how glad I am that it is our lives you are part of. Had you not been there, I—”

“Sssh, Olivia, please. There is no need for you to think about that. Isabella is safe here with you.”
 

Bella swallowed back the rush of emotion as Luke spoke gently to Livvy. She had often seen this side of him, the man who was filled with so much goodness.
 

“Yes.” Livvy turned to look at Bella, as if to reassure herself, and then, climbing to her toes, she kissed Luke on the cheek. “Thank you.”

They talked about the clinic after that. She told them what she had done and what she still needed to do. They caught up on news and laughed and did what they did best— enjoyed each other’s company.

“I have sent both yours and Thea’s measurements to Hannah. She and Alex are in London still, and they will start getting materials and patterns organized for you both,” Phoebe said.

“So soon?” Bella felt nerves flutter in her stomach. Luke’s face did not betray what she was sure he felt at the mention of her upcoming season.
 

“Two months is not a long time, Bella. And there will be much to do when you arrive.”

Bella studied Phoebe, who was blossoming through her pregnancy. She was a woman men looked at, even with her round stomach. Finn often said being married to Phoebe had taught him control, as so many men admired her that he had given up glaring at each, and now simply smiled, safe in the knowledge that it was he that she was married to. Unlike Livvy, who was also beautiful, but now as she was nearing the end of her pregnancy looked tired and worn down, Phoebe still glowed.
 

“I will come to London with you all. Livvy will have had a few weeks to recover from the birth by your departure, but she will still be tired, so it’s best I come too, just to ensure your foray into society runs smoothly. I would hate for you to appear at your first ball in mustard and feathers.”
“You’ll be six months along, though, Phoebe. Surely it will prove tiring for you to be in London?” Bella felt she had to point this out, as one look at Finn told her he was not pleased.

“Thank you, Bella. That’s exactly what I have been saying.”

Phoebe poked her tongue out at him. “I don’t intend to horrify society by entering any of their hallowed walls in my delicate condition. I merely wish to come to London to see how my business fares, and to ensure myself that you and Thea are turned out to my liking.”

“If you’re sure?”

“She is,” Finn sighed.

“And I would not miss this for anything, Bella. This is what you have always dreamed of, after all.”

Not everything,
Bella thought, struggling not to look to where Luke stood. She hoped that one day he was her future; the one thing she had always wished for was him.

“We shall also see how Livvy recovers before making any firm plans with regards to travel dates, as I have stated many times. You and our child will be fully fit before we make the journey to London,” Will added.

Livvy waved her hand about, as she often did when she didn’t like what someone was saying, and then rested it on her large belly.

“And now we have imposed upon Jenny and Freddy long enough, sisters. We will return home,” Livvy added.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you, Bella. Finn and I are buying a property near to Livvy and Will, but as it is not yet ready, so we are staying with them until we leave for London.”

Bella’s smile was genuine. She had no wish to be parted from either Finn or Phoebe, nor her niece or nephew when they came along. “That’s wonderful news.” Bella hugged her sister before turning to face Will and Livvy. “If Jenny and Freddy do not mind, can I stay here for one night?”

All eyes turned to Bella as she spoke.

“I just want to visit our parents’ graves in the morning, and see Thea, and then perhaps walk into the village before I leave.”

They understood; she saw it on their faces. This was something she had wanted to do often without assistance. The villagers knew her as the lame Langley, the one who they pitied, but she wanted to show them she no longer needed that pity.