A Brazen Lady And The Shunned Duke (Faces of Love Series #3) (9 page)

R
evealing
A Marchioness’s Heart
is a Novel with 380 pages.

If you have enjoyed reading my books so far, I believe you will be interested in checking out this book.

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I
t was just
past dawn when Loyalty awoke, her mind already racing with all the things she needed to do that day. The
HMS Adventure
was due to arrive in port today after a long trip, and she was eager to be there when it arrived, fresh and smiling. Her suitor, Midshipman Nathan Rambles was on board, and she wanted nothing more than to see him, even if it meant waiting until all the officers and the fanfare came off the ship first.

Loyalty was not normally a morning person, but Nathan was worth waking up early to greet. She rolled over, reaching for the glass of water beside her bed, and then sat. She had been up late the night before finishing all the things that needed to be done. Nathan was home so rarely that she didn’t want work to interrupt them if she could help it. It might be unconventional for a woman to work, but Nathan didn’t mind. Besides, they couldn’t get by on only his income right now, so it made sense for her to continue to work.

In addition, she liked working. She was honoring her parents, and she was providing for herself should something happen. Things happened to sailors every day; she knew that. It wasn’t that she wished it, of course not. However, Loyalty was prepared for anything.

Meeting Nathan three years ago had been the moment she was sure that she had a future. He had been standing in the center of the square, just a sailor then, helping his commanding officer with signups for the new recruits. Nathan was already ear marked then as the potential genius that he was, assisting in tasks above his pay grade. He was shy, awkward, his social skills seeming to lend energy to his brilliance. There was something about the way he was thinking, the way he looked, concentrating, that caught her attention. She had fallen in love with him being shy at first, and after many shy, awkward lunches in the square and walks home, Nathan had revealed that he felt the same. The rest was history. She knew she was going to spend the rest of her life with him; she just wasn’t sure when that could realistically begin.

Loyalty lived a simple life in the center of London. At 18 years old, she should have been married already, with a few children clinging to her skirts. However, typical was not the way her life went. Her parents had always told her that she was different, special, that they had chosen her. They had adopted her when her birth parents had died of plague when she was just a baby. They had not cared at all for the large birthmark that covered half her face and neck; they told her repeatedly that she was beautiful, until she almost believed it. When the other children had made fun of her, her parents turned her mind to other things, such as business and assisting them. Soon, Loyalty found herself barely caring when she looked into a shiny surface; looks weren't everything. Nathan had never so much as mentioned it, seeing a strong and kindred soul in her eyes. Besides, neither of them were royalty, born to glitz and glamour. They were born into hard work and struggle, with dirty fingernails and stained clothes. It was a meeting of the minds, and eventually the heart.

Although they were poor, Loyalty had never wanted for anything. Her parents both ran their own businesses, as successfully as single-person businesses could be. Her father had run a print shop until his death, a heart attack on the floor one day. Her mother had run a laundry business, able to remove stains even from the whitest of fabrics, and fold sheets with perfect corners. The money from the sale of her father's print shop had kept them afloat for several years, combined with her mother's laundry income. Nevertheless, life was tough in London, with harsh winters, and her mother started to lose her stamina over the years. When she passed away, Loyalty felt as if she was all alone in the world, two sets of parents gone, and only working dawn through dusk saved her from falling into the streets like other young ones who had been orphaned. Her father had left her with a good business sense, and always told her to make informed choices, not to let others tie her down.

Such had been her life for the past three years. Nathan was working toward promotion; she was rebuilding the business, and although they loved each other; they weren't quite ready to get married yet. His shore-leave visits were rare, and she felt like they were too focused on their individual lives.

A knock came at the door as she set the kettle on the fire and she smiled, knowing who it was. Loyalty's only other salvation from a world of constant work and loneliness was her closest friend, Jerrico.

When she had first met Jerrico, a handsome King's Guard with bright blue eyes and a shining smile, she’d thought she was in love. He had come to their house weekly when her mother was contracted to do some of the palace laundry. It was their biggest contract, and the bonus was Jerrico's visits. However, even at 12, she’d learned quickly that what she was experiencing with the 16-year-old Jerrico was not romantic love. It was more like a meeting of twin souls. Jerrico and Loyalty were alike in all the ways that mattered, and different in all the ways that they needed to be. She was a calm, normal breath in his chaotic, seemingly glamorous life. He was always sunny to her sometimes pessimistic, and she was healthy to his weakness. Because as beautiful and healthy as Jerrico seemed, he was plagued by a mysterious illness that often left him unable to work for days on end. There were fevers, chills, fainting spells and tremors; things that would have put a normal guard out of work. However, Jerrico was practically guard royalty, his father and his father before him, so his captain let him out of work whenever he showed up looking like death. Loyalty's house was his sick bed, close to the palace, but far enough away for no one to see him recover for a weekend. As her mother did before her when she discovered it, she spent days by the fire listening to his labored breathing and bringing cool compresses. In return, Jerrico brought her anything that he could from the palace to make her life bearable, and ensured that her palace laundry contract was always intact. It was a good trade.

Today was a scheduled visit; so she wasn't concerned when she opened the door to find him carrying three bags of laundry. It was a task for a lower-ranking guard, but he always made sure it was him. Loyalty sometimes found herself wondering, though, if Jerrico did anything besides visit her. He always seemed to get the best duties when he wasn’t with her, and an obscene amount of leave. He was very friendly, with a wonderful smile, and she wondered if he had gotten in good with someone at the palace.

Whatever it was, though, she was glad of it. His company when Nathan was away was much appreciated. Besides, Jerrico was the last link to her parents. He remembered her mother and her father when it seemed like no one else did. Jerrico had an amazing memory, and he often found a way to bring up memories she had long forgotten.

“Just drop them anywhere,” she said as he did just that, stepping inside. “You're a little bit early.”

“It's a busy day,” he replied, indicated by the fact that he was already in uniform. “George decided to throw a banquet.”

“Which George?” she asked as she sorted through the bags. She never commented on the fact that Jerrico was so close to the royal family that he didn't bother to give them titles. She had no idea whether he was talking about the king or the prince in any conversation unless she asked.

“The king,” he replied, leaning against the wall with a yawn. When his yawn turned into a cough, she whipped her head around. “I'm fine,” he said and held up his hands defensively. “I just ate on the way, which was too fast.”

“Are you sure?” she looked at him suspiciously.

“I'm sure,” he said, and indeed, he did look fine. With color in his cheeks and a sparkle in his eye, Jerrico attract ladies wherever he went. However as a King's Guard with a secret, he didn't feel that he could offer them a stable life. As far as Loyalty knew, there had never been a serious woman in his life. “Besides, Nathan is due to arrive today, isn't he? Wouldn't it damper the mood if I was here?”

“Are you insulting my virtue, sir?” She raised an eyebrow. She knew he was teasing, but it was hard for the two of them. Without being married, she and Nathan even holding hands in the street put her virtue at risk, and she didn’t want that. Even if it meant standing slightly apart from Nathan, she tried to remain respectable when she could.

“Since you're not a princess, does it matter?” he teased right back and she rolled her eyes. “Seriously, from what I saw Charlotte go through, you are quite lucky that you don't have to worry about any of the things she does. She had all of us in a tizzy because she couldn't find a muff that she had thrown out last month and forgotten about since.”

Loyalty was well versed in Princess Charlotte's ridiculousness. The only child of the Crown Prince, Charlotte was Jerrico's favorite to tease. She was spoiled, stuck up, and enough to drive anyone mad. Since she had passed away in childbirth, it seemed Jerrico spoke of her with a little more fondness. However, he had teased her in life, and he wasn't going to let up now, although it was clear that he missed having someone young around the palace, even if it was just to guard them. Court life in itself was full of gossip and things far less virtuous than Nathan spending the night with Loyalty before they were officially married, and she reminded Jerrico of that, making him laugh.

His eyes sparkled as he glanced at her. “And since you are not a princess, the only thing that matters in that respect is whether I can steal him away for an hour tonight for a drink.”

“No, you cannot,” she replied as she moved the bags closer to the fire, where she would eventually dunk the clothing into boiling water. “Not on the first night he's home and I don't care how close you two are. Although,” she straightened and brushed the hair out of her eyes. “I am glad that you are, though. Friends, I mean. My two worlds have collided happily.”

“Of course we are,” Jerrico bestowed her with another smile. “We both love you, don't we? Now,” he took out a sack of coins, her payment for the laundry, and handed it over. “Don't spend it all in one place. I should get back. I'll be by tomorrow then, if you like?”

“I can cook dinner, if you can behave,” she replied, putting the coins into her apron pocket. She was grateful for the prompt payment, although she didn't let on how grateful she actually was. Without it, the only thing she would have had to feed Nathan was thin cabbage soup and crusts from last night. The palace contract seemed to be the only thing keeping her going.

“I can't promise that, but I will be back,” Jerrico said, taking her hand and kissing it. “Milady.”

“Go away,” she said, and he laughed, heading out the door and leaving her to her thoughts. He obeyed, heading off to work. It wouldn't surprise her one day if Jerrico was Captain of the Guards, and if Nathan's brilliance made him captain of a ship.

Two captains and a laundress weren’t exactly the types of stories that bards sang about, but it was going to have to be enough for her.

She knew his ship wasn't due in until midday, so it meant that she had some time to start the laundry, and hang some of it to dry. Not that Nathan would have minded if she had some work to do while he was here--he usually had mounds of paperwork to do. Nathan was being fast tracked for a strategic officer’s position, and he usually spent hours planning attacks and poring over old battle reports. She took an interest where she could, but things like that often seemed miles away. She knew that he faced danger on the seas, and she knew that there was death, but it wasn't at her front door. As connected as she felt to him, his job was a world away from their nights together.

Stoking the fire to get the water to boil faster, Loyalty briefly considered what hat she would wear. To avoid stares in public, she often wore a wide brimmed hat with a veil to cover her birthmark. It got raised eyebrows, but it was nothing compared to the stares she received on account of her appearance.

The hours flew by, despite how excited she was to meet him, and soon it was time to leave. She had a smile on her face as she left, excited to see her love again. She wasn't a princess; she didn't live in a palace or have riches and servants. Nevertheless, despite all of that, she was happy, she didn't want for anything. In the moment, everything seemed perfect.

Everything was about to change.