A Hope Remembered (22 page)

“So…my father and your mother might have married?”

She eased back to look at him. “We could have been brother and sister.”

His eyes, though shadowed, gleamed with intensity. “Then I must say I’m grateful things didn’t work out between them.”

The music spilling into the garden was another waltz. Colin glanced in the direction of the house, then back at Nora. “Would you do me the honor of this dance, Miss Lewis?”

She couldn’t help a tiny smile—he’d been the only one she wanted to dance with. “Yes, Mr. Ashby.”

He led her to a patch of grass beside the path and they began to dance. She followed his lead, even as he began improvising the familiar steps with fancy spins.

“Where did you learn to dance like this?” she asked with a laugh.

“Christian.” It was the first time she’d heard him mention his brother without the undercurrent of regret. “I taught him how to converse with the young ladies and he taught me how to dance with them.”

“What was he like?”

Colin slowed the pace of their steps. “He was serious, prone to thinking first and acting second. I’m sure you can guess I was quite the opposite.” Nora smiled at the vision in her head of Colin as an exuberant, impulsive boy. “But he also had a way of coaxing me out of a bad mood when Father had said or done something irritating. One couldn’t be unhappy for long when Christian was happy.”

“He sounds like a good brother.”

“He was.” Colin spun her away from him. “He would have liked you, very much.” He pulled her back and resumed dancing. “I want you to like my family, Nora. I want you to like it here…at Elmthwaite.”

The snubs she’d experienced the last hour repeated in her mind. Could she imagine herself being happy in this sort of life? While Colin easily slipped from her world of necessity and toil to the ease and affluence of estate life, she found the contrast jarring and uncomfortable.

“I do like it here.” She bit her lip to stop the rush of emotion in her throat as he dipped her back. “But my place is in the cottage down the road, not in an elaborate drawing room like you. I don’t think I can—”

His lips met hers, stealing away her protest and setting Nora’s pulse to galloping. He eased back, leaving her breathless, and lifted her gently to her feet before he kissed her again. Nora encircled her hands around his neck. His tender kiss, though brief, succeeded in chasing away her doubts.

Colin pressed his forehead to hers, their breath mingling in the cool night. “We’ll make it work, Nora. Somehow. I promise.” His mouth lifted in a smile that sent a ripple of feeling through her middle. “And a…” He paused, waiting for her to supply the answer.

“Gentleman,” she finished in a whisper.

“Always keeps his word.”

W
ith his hands tucked into his pockets, Colin crunched up the drive toward Elmthwaite Hall, after seeing Nora to her lane. She’d encouraged him to return to the party rather than walking her to her doorstep, and he’d agreed. The temptation to kiss her again—more soundly this time—might have proven too great if they’d lingered in the dark by her cottage. So he had contented himself with placing a kiss on her palm before bidding her good night.

Ahead of him he spied Lyle standing in the alcove of the front doors. Colin lifted his hand in greeting. “Escaped the party, did you?”

Lyle shrugged. “Lady Sophia is looking for you.”

Colin frowned at the news. “No chance she’d buy a story of my drowning in the lake during a midnight swim?”

His friend chuckled. “Might be worth a try.”

“You don’t like her?” Colin came to stand next to him, his eyes on the few stars he could see through the clouds.

“Wealthy, beautiful, and extremely smug. Most definitely not my type.”

They stared at the sky in comfortable silence until Lyle asked, “Did Nora enjoy the party?”

“I believe so.” Colin thought of their kiss. If her response was any indication of her feelings, he felt confident she was ready to put the past behind her and consider him a true contender for her heart.

“What now?” Lyle’s question wiped the grin from Colin’s face.

Colin turned to him. “What do you mean?”

“Are you going to marry her?”

He wanted to, and that desire increased every minute he spent with Nora, but would Sir Edward ever allow it? “My father has his hopes pinned on someone else. Someone like Lady Sophia and her father’s pile of riches.”

Lyle frowned and shook his head. “I’ve never seen you this happy before, Ashby. And that’s Nora doing.”

Colin ran a hand over his jaw as the old guilt and doubts assailed him. “It’s complicated.” How much should he share? The burden he’d been carrying since meeting Nora begged to be lightened. “My father wants her land—to build a hotel.”

“What does Nora say about that?”

Shame coated Colin’s throat so he could hardly voice his response. “She doesn’t know.” Lyle’s eyebrows rose in challenge, bringing a frustrated sigh from Colin. “He charged me to get to know her and persuade her to leave. I tried, at least in the beginning, but…well, I failed, Lyle.”

“Because you’re in love with her.”

“Yes,” he murmured to the gravel. “But that doesn’t change the fact that my father needs this hotel. It’s the reason we converted the stables—to bring in more cars and provide guests with transportation from the railway to Elmthwaite.”

Lyle leaned against the nearby stone wall, his cane clutched in both hands. “Is the estate really in need of the revenue?”

“Yes.” Colin kicked at a pebble and sent it skipping over the drive. “If we do nothing and I choose not to marry someone wealthy like the earl’s daughter, we’ll have to sell Elmthwaite eventually. And that is something I promised Christian I would never do.”

“What will you do then?”

Colin gave a bitter laugh. “I was hoping you might have some advice.”

A sad smile settled on Lyle’s face. “I don’t think I’m qualified to give the best advice in terms of marriage or women. But…” He threw a pointed look at Colin. “Nora Lewis seems to be the kind of woman a man ought to fight for. She’s worth a hundred of those stuffy heiresses here tonight.”

The truth of Lyle’s words pierced Colin deep, scattering his worries like bits of wool. How could he stand by and let someone like Nora walk away? While Elmthwaite Hall might mean the world to him now, his world meant nothing without Nora. “You’re right. It’s time I told her what she means to me.”

“What about your father and his plans?”

A sense of loss moved through Colin at the reminder. He wouldn’t live up to Sir Edward’s expectations after all and he would let Christian down in the process. But Nora was worth far more to him. “He’ll have to make other arrangements.”

Lyle met his level gaze and seemed to understand the price of Colin’s simple statement. “Good luck, ol’ chap.” He clapped a hand onto Colin’s shoulder.

“We’re both going to need it,” Colin said with a chuckle.

“And why is that?”

He turned toward the door. “Because Lady Sophia will be staying on a few more days.”

“Ah, but it is your illustrious company she desires.” Lyle grinned as he shuffled past Colin.

“Don’t remind me.”

“Forget luck then, Colin. I’d say you’re going to need something much stronger.”

Nora let Phoebe out the back door. The morning air drew a shiver from her, but it couldn’t erase the smile playing at her lips. She might have felt out of place at the party last night in the company of women like Lady Sophia, but not in Colin’s presence. With him, she felt cherished, beautiful, important. And when he’d kissed her…it didn’t matter if she was a sheep farmer and he was the son of a baronet. They were simply a man and a woman in love.

The faint sound of someone knocking at the front door reached her ears. Who would be coming around at this early hour? Could it be Colin? Her heart leaped in anticipation.

“You wait here,” she told Phoebe.

She quickly tied the dog’s rope to one of the gate posts and hurried back into the house. Thankfully she’d already dressed and brushed her hair. Another knock drew her down the hall. At the front door, she smoothed her hair back.

“Good morn—” She choked on the words as she threw open the door and found Sir Edward standing there.

The older gentleman looked equally uncomfortable. “I apologize for coming here so early, Miss Lewis, but there’s an important matter I wish to discuss with you.”

Nora swallowed her surprise and stepped back. “Come in then.”

Sir Edward crossed the threshold and stopped in the entryway. Nora managed to close the door behind him, but he remained where he stood.

“It’s been more than thirty years since I was last inside this house,” he murmured, his eyes taking in the parlor and the dining room.

Though she wasn’t sure he’d give an answer, she couldn’t help asking, “What was my mother like back then?”

The slightest smile crinkled the corners of his mouth. “She had a contagious passion for life and was very beautiful.” He frowned at the cap in his hands. “I wanted to attend her funeral, but I wasn’t sure your grandfather or the other villagers would appreciate my presence. I don’t know that they ever forgave me for breaking her heart all those years ago.”

“She did marry for love later on,” Nora said, hoping to dispel the sadness and guilt hanging like a shroud around him.

“Yes, Matthew Galbert. A good man, though very ill. And you’re their daughter?”

She nodded and maintained a steady gaze, despite the way he scrutinized her. Why was he willing to acknowledge her and her mother today when he hadn’t last night?

“I’d heard Eleanor had a daughter, who went to live with relatives, but I had no idea you’d been sent all the way to America.”

A strained silence clouded the space between them. “Would you like to sit down?” Nora waved in the direction of the parlor.

Straightening to his full height, Sir Edward marched into the parlor and took a seat in the armchair. Nora sat on the settee.

“I’ll get straight to the point, Miss Lewis.” Something in his curt tone told her he wasn’t here to reminisce. “I want to buy your land.”

“What?” She gave a startled laugh. “Whatever for?”

“I want to build a hotel on this property, to bring tourists to Larksbeck and Elmthwaite Hall.”

He wasn’t joking. Nora frowned at the realization. “I don’t understand.”

He glowered at her as if she were a simpleton. “You have the best view of the lake, apart from Elmthwaite Hall, of course. So naturally this would be an ideal setting for guests to experience the Lake District.”

She drew herself up. “But this is my home.”

“Yes, and Elmthwaite is mine,” he shot back. “Or it will be as long as we move forward with this plan. We need the extra funds, I’m afraid.”

“We?” Every piece of this conversation was proving to be a study in confusion.

Sir Edward lifted his boot onto his knee, a hard sort of smile twisting his face. “Yes, myself and Colin.”

The air felt sucked from Nora’s lungs. “Colin?” she repeated in a strangled voice.

“Of course. The boy’s to inherit my title and the estate someday. Naturally he wants to see it continue to flourish. A hotel here would ensure that.”

Why did it feel so difficult to breathe? Nora pressed a hand to the base of her throat. Colin wanted her land for a hotel?

“I asked him to charm you, to convince you to go elsewhere, but I realized last night that you may have charmed him instead. Therefore, I’ve taken it upon myself to deliver my request.”

Nora’s thoughts were a snarled mess. Colin had been given the task to charm her? To convince her to leave? She thought of their kisses, their time together. It had all been an act? Heat crept into her cheeks. She’d been a fool to think the son of a baronet would take sincere interest in her.

Anger followed on the heels of her embarrassment when she thought of the broken window, the destroyed garden, the fallen stone wall. Colin had clearly grown desperate these past few weeks to stoop to such means of persuasion.

She dug her nails into the palm of her right hand, the very palm Colin had the audacity to kiss last night. He’d even promised to find out who was doing the vandalizing when all along it had been him.

“What do you say, Miss Lewis? Are you willing to sell?” Sir Edward lowered his foot to the floor. “I’ll pay you enough to give you a fresh start somewhere else.”

A fresh start was the reason she’d come here in the first place. Nora scanned the simply decorated room, taking in the things her parents and grandparents had owned. Could she leave this place, now that she knew it was the place of her birth, a place where she still had family?

Her eyes fixed upon the gramophone. Memories of listening to it with Colin and Lyle traipsed through her mind. This cottage held more than forgotten times with her family—it held countless moments with Colin, too. Could she remain here with those recollections, knowing all the while it had been a ruse?

Tears blurred Sir Edward’s image, but she blinked them back. She would not cry in front of this arrogant man. “I’d like a week to make my decision. I’ll let you know then if I intend to sell.”

“Very good.” He jammed his cap back on and stood. Nora didn’t bother to join him. He could let himself out. “A pleasure doing business with you, Miss Lewis. I’ll be in touch in one week. Good day.”

At the click of the door behind him, Nora dropped onto her side, her cheek pressed to the couch. The tears fell from her face onto the worn fabric, but they did little to ease the hurt lancing through her. She’d given her heart away, only to lose it all over again. But this time, there wasn’t the knowledge she’d been loved in return. No, this gaping hole couldn’t be partially filled with happy memories of the deceased.

“Oh, Mother,” she whimpered, not sure if she meant Eleanor or Grace, or both. A wave of loneliness crashed over her, stealing her breath with its intensity. She hadn’t felt this alone and abandoned in a long time. At least she still had Phoebe.

She sat up and dried her cheeks with the back of her hand. Wherever she ended up, she still had the puppy. In that, she could be thankful for Colin.

Grabbing her sweater from the kitchen, Nora stepped out the back door. She needed a walk, a chance to clear her head and think carefully over her decision. “Ready for a walk, Phoebe?”

She shut the door and turned toward the gate. Phoebe wasn’t there, straining at her rope as usual. Concern gripped Nora’s heart as she walked to the post. The top of the dog’s rope was still tied, but somehow the rest of the line had snapped in half.

“Phoebe?” she called. “Phoebe, come here.”

The dog didn’t appear. Nora pushed through the gate into the field, looking for the puppy. There was no sign of her. Her worry churned to desperation in her stomach and brought a resurgence of her earlier tears. She brushed them away and leaned over the stone wall, scanning the ground for paw prints. After a few moments, she caught sight of something long and thin lying in the grass.

Nora scrambled over the wall and reached down to pick up the rest of Phoebe’s rope. It was still attached to the dog’s collar. How had the puppy managed to wriggle out of it? There was no telling where she’d run off to now. Nora lifted her eyes to the fell, rising into the gray clouds in front of her. Would Phoebe venture that far from the cottage? There was only one way to find out.

She started up the face of the mountain, her shoulders pulled back in resolution. “Phoebe?” she yelled every few feet. Rainy mist soon dampened her sweater, but she didn’t turn back. She had to find Phoebe—the dog was the only thing she had left.

A firm knock at Colin’s door had him glancing at the mantle clock. It was early in the morning still, but Gibson was already helping him dress. He didn’t want to wait any longer than he had to before going to tell Nora how he felt.

“Come in,” Colin said, curious as to who else in the house had awakened early. Perhaps it was Lyle.

The door opened and there stood his father. A feeling of dread began to fill Colin’s gut at the sight.

“Will you excuse us, Gibson?” Sir Edward directed as he entered the room.

“Yes, sir.” Gibson finished buttoning the cuffs on Colin’s sleeves before he exited the room and shut the door.

“What can I help you with, Father?” Colin worked at the buttons on his shirt, his jaw clenched in forced patience.

Instead of answering, Sir Edward dropped into one of the armchairs and leaned back. Colin caught the man’s self-satisfied smile in the mirror. What was his father so happy about this morning?

“I believe congratulations are in order, my boy. I have done in one morning what it’s taken you weeks to do.”

Colin’s fingers stilled as he slowly turned around. The trepidation inside him grew stronger, heavier. “What are you talking about?”