The Wedding Affair (Rebel Hearts series Book 1) (10 page)

“He is Sally’s newest and is always hungry.” Louisa collected her plate, which he noticed held finely chopped scraps of her breakfast, and slipped from the room to the terrace outside. When she stopped at the balustrade, Felix decided to join her in the sun.

Louisa smiled as he walked over. “He had a terrible start in life. Sally rescued him from a dog in the village and brought him home in her pocket to live with her others. The hunting dogs do not bother any of them, I am happy to report. In fact, I think they are a bit afraid of being scratched.”

She fed the cat from her own hand and, when the animal had fed enough, placed him gently on the flagstone pavement. He scampered away into the low shrubbery.

“He is a lucky fellow then to have found a place to belong.” Felix glanced around once more. Unlike the stray cats Sally took in, Felix did not belong here. “Some of us never do.”

He had to end his obsession with Sally before he made a complete fool of himself. Louisa appeared startled by his remark, so he shrugged.

Revealing how much he had longed for Sally during the past six years would do him no good. Her love was gone, and it was high time he accepted it for a fact and got back to his real life as captain of the
Selfridge
. “Would you excuse me? I need to speak with your father.”

“Of course.” She smiled sadly but caught his arm to prevent him going immediately. “Perhaps later today or tomorrow if you are free, you might like to walk with me in the gardens. I would love to hear more of your life and of Laurence especially.”

The wistfulness of her tone blunted his immediate denial, and he phrased his response more carefully. “I am not sure if I will have an opportunity. It all depends on the admiral.”

“Forgive me. I miss my twin, but he does not write to me anymore. He only cares to share his adventures with his wife. Cecily reads me parts of his correspondence, but it is not the same as receiving his confidences directly.”

He understood something of the bonds between siblings even if he was not close to his own. He nodded. “If there is time, I will seek you out before I depart the estate and share all that I can.”

With that intention in mind, arranging his departure, he said good-bye and reentered the breakfast room. The admiral had already excused himself, so he ventured out into the hall in search of him, or a footman to ask for directions.

He found Admiral Templeton in the Newberry Park great library, but he was not alone. A stranger, likely a messenger, dressed all in black had his attention. Felix hung back a moment to give them privacy, and after a hushed, whispered conversation, Admiral Templeton turned away with a furious scowl. He stormed off toward the duke’s study, and Felix trailed behind. The door banged shut loudly, cutting off any chance of hearing the conversation. After a few moments, the door reopened, only it was the butler leaving instead of the admiral.

Felix peeked inside and discovered the duke standing alone at a window that overlooked the drive.

Behind Felix, the sound of harness and carriage moving off drifted into the hall.

“Good morning, Captain.” Rutherford gestured Felix into the room with an impatient wave of his hand. “I trust you slept well last night.”

“I did, and thank you.”

The duke cleared his throat. “My son has just now received an urgent message and been recalled to London. He will not be able to meet with you as he would have liked. He will not return for several days in fact.”

“I will go and pack and follow him to London. Perhaps there he will have time to see me.”

“No!” the duke exclaimed, thumping his canes on the floor to forestall his exit. “My son insisted you wait here for his return.”

Damnation!

The duke shuffled to his desk and sat with a groan before he continued, “Since the timing of his return is uncertain, his place will be taken by others.”

Felix moved to stand before the table. “I was given to believe the matter that brought me here was urgent.”

“And it is,” the duke barked. “Absolutely vital.”

“Then what is this about?” Felix folded his arms across his chest, belligerence heating his blood at the unnecessary delay. “The admiral has told me nothing of my purpose in being here.”

The duke appeared amused rather than intimidated by his posture. “This is about your career, Captain. Your very future as commander of the
Selfridge
.”

“Why now of all times?” he asked, incredulous. “We have almost won the day. I have made you very rich, and surely you can have no complaints.”

“Watch your tone!” The duke straightened up, brows lifting. “Do you not think I am owed an accounting? Until I am satisfied with your conduct, you are ordered to remain at Newberry Park to answer an inquiry into your command.”

Felix jutted out his jaw, furious that his career could hang in the balance because of the duke’s whim. But then had it not always depended on someone else? He was also now suspicious that Admiral Templeton was not the driving force behind his presence at Newberry Park. Was he here only because the Duke of Rutherford wished to see him squirm and to torture him with Sally’s outstanding match? “Am I accused of misuse of your support and funds?”

“Of a sort.” The duke smiled in a way that did not comfort. “We will meet at precisely eleven o’clock to discuss the situation. Rodmell will come for you. I expect the process to take several days to complete. Perhaps even weeks.”

More than a week and he might be here to witness Sally marry. He could not be present for that. Surely Rutherford would not be so cruel.

The duke’s brow rose, challenging him to argue over the length of his stay.

Yes, Rutherford
could
be that cruel. Declining to accept the breach-of-promise payment when Sally had broken with him had not excused him in the duke’s eyes. It had only made Felix less of a fortune hunter in his own mind. A distinction the duke clearly did not share. He should have taken the money and been done with the lot of them. “As you wish,” he ground out.

“Splendid. I will see you soon then.” Satisfied, the old man shuffled away to the window, leaving Felix seething. The Duke of Rutherford truly was a menace, and there was not a damn thing to do about it. He had to stay and clear his name of whatever slur had been cast upon his reputation. He had to keep his ship and his command.

If he did not, he had nothing else to live for.

Not even the hope of Sally.

Chapter Ten

S
ally paced past Ellicott and surveyed the bare chamber full of hope for the future. It was still early in the day, and on impulse she had stolen Ellicott away to Torre Cottage to put forward her proposal that they spend half a year at his estate and half a year in Essex visiting her family. She wanted him to think about her ideas while he was away on his business trip. When he returned, they could negotiate terms in earnest and he would discover for himself that she was not quite as meek and mild as she had let him believe. “This was my grandmother’s favorite room in the whole house.”

“Yes, charming,” Ellicott drawled, clearly unimpressed by a room that had no furnishings of any kind.

Time and a loving hand would bring this house back to life. If only Ellicott could see the possibilities and imagine it as a summer home by the sea for them.

She glanced out the window, and her breath caught at the spectacular view of the estate and choppy waters beyond. “We could live here a few months to half a year and be very comfortable.”

“Why on earth would I want to live in a little cottage on your grandfather’s estate when he has ample guest rooms?”

Sally bit her lip, trying not to show her frustration at Ellicott’s lack of understanding of her dream. Of what great boon her grandfather offered them by giving her this place if she wanted it. To have a place that was just for them, few servants but close enough to her family that seeing them was no great obstacle. “From here you can see the mansion and the arrival of any visitors who come. My grandmother used to say she could never be surprised when she lived here.”

Ellicott’s arm slipped around her waist, and he pulled her against him. “It is a very pretty view. But I thought we were to spend the morning getting better acquainted rather than discussing dilapidated houses and long-dead relatives of yours.”

They were without a chaperone for the moment, and it felt strange to be in his arms. Louisa had come with them but had claimed to be entranced by the garden’s wild beauty. Her sly smile hinted she would stay there for a while too, so they had some privacy to discuss her plans for them.

Ellicott dropped a kiss to her brow and slowly kissed down the side of her face. For a moment the sensation stirred her emotions, but it was a remembrance of someone else who had done exactly the same thing once upon a time.

“I wanted to talk about our living arrangements before we marry, but since time is short I must be blunt,” she whispered as Captain Hastings’s handsome face at breakfast this morning taunted her. She could not imagine why he dared to show his face. Her father rarely invited officers under his command to stay, and then only in London. He had promised Felix would never darken her door again.

By the light of day, Felix had been exactly as she remembered him. A little sterner perhaps in his expression, a little more aged and his skin tanned. His nose had been broken she suspected, and there was a small cut on his jaw which was new.

Simpleton!
She should not be thinking of Felix. Not now. Not anymore. Not when her future husband’s arms were tightening about her body.

Ellicott laughed against her throat. “What is there to discuss? Summers are the busiest time at home, and now we are to marry we have no need to bend to society’s expectations. We can do whatever the hell we want and please ourselves first.”

“I want to see my family.” Her breath caught as Ellicott moved his hands up her torso so they rested just beneath her bust. “Louisa is to return to London for a second season soon, and my cousins too are of an age when they will need me. I cannot let the sole responsibility of bringing them out and chaperoning them in their first season fall on my aunt’s shoulders. My mother was very little help to me.”

“My dear, your devotion to your family is unnecessary now. They ask too much of you. You must learn to live your own life.” He frowned and his hands slid down to encircle her waist. He tightened his grip slowly until his fingers met around her middle. “If the situation is warranted, of course you can go to London any time you like. I do not intend to be a tyrant but I will need you more than they do.”

He moved his hands lower. Sally told herself that Ellicott’s possessive tone was no more serious than a fear of being separated. He cupped her bottom and squeezed each globe.

Sally tried to relax. “And I should not like to be parted from you so soon after we marry. But I am sure there will be times when you will have no time for me.”

“True, and you will be busy with your own concerns.” He groped her flesh with growing enthusiasm. “There will be our children to bring into the world and raise.”

“Yes, I hope so,” she choked out around her shock.

He spun her around and met her gaze seriously. “If that is not enough excitement, you can always take a discreet lover once I have an heir and a spare to succeed me.”

She blinked as he brought his mouth crashing down on hers.

It was a hard kiss and without gentleness. Ellicott backed her into the nearest wall and pressed his body against hers. His tongue prodded her lips and she parted them, too surprised to refuse.

He thrust his tongue into her mouth a few times, mimicking the act of lovemaking. This kiss had purpose, a definite intent to claim her body despite his suggestion she would take another man to her bed. He cupped her face and deepened the kiss, revealing a hunger she had not known he possessed. He stroked his tongue into the depths of her mouth again until she squirmed. He drew back but grasped one of her wrists to hold it against the wall. “Sweet Sally, you can stop pretending to be modest now.”

He slid one hand down her side and grasped her gown, his intent clear to lift it. Did he mean to have her here and now? Against a wall? Sally stopped him. “I am not pretending. I am modest.”

“Come now. We have avoided the topic for months, but I have known for some time that you are not as you would have others believe.” He raised a brow, challenging her to deny his accusation. Arousal heated his eyes. “I happen to like adventurous women. That is why I think you and I suit for marriage very well. What do you say we visit a bedchamber and practice at being man and wife in earnest?”

Sally was astonished he would suggest it. He had never given any hint he was less than a proper gentleman. “We should not.”

“Why not? You are not as other women are, and believe me, I do not hold that against you. In fact, I wholeheartedly approve of a lady developing a broad palate.” His brow lifted. “A woman of your beauty and intelligence attracts attention, and you have all of mine for the present.” He licked his top lip, staring at hers so hard she could not possibly misunderstand that his thoughts had turned lascivious. He leaned into her a little, and she felt the hardness of his erection pressing against her stomach. “You would make me the happiest of men if you agree.”

“Not now. Not here,” she whispered softly, overwhelmed by his proposition and his recognition of her scandalous past. “Why would you ask me to marry you if I am unlike other women?”