The Langley Sisters Trilogy Boxed Set (69 page)

“You’re so different now, since you came back from India. You speak like them, you read and write, but mostly you carry yourself differently.”

“Them being?”

“Gentry. You’re an equal to them now, and I’m not talking about birthrights and such, I’m talking about the man you are.” Her sharp little face studied him with an intensity he recognized in himself. “You hold yourself upright; you don’t take orders, but give them.”

“Ah, Rosie, if only it were that simple,” he said, placing a kiss on her forehead.
 

“Lord Ryder respects you, Will; he asks you questions that you answer easily. I saw it that day when he came to visit Ma. He talked to you like an equal, not a servant.”

“Is there a point to this conversation?” Luke ran a hand over her head, like he did with all his siblings when they were near.
 

“I want you to keep changing your stars, Luke.

He heard the desperation on her whispered words. Nudging her chin up with his hand, he looked into the eyes that were like his own.

“Explain that to me?

“If you change your stars, then I can change mine.”

“And you want that?”
“More than anything.”

Luke hadn’t thought about anything other than putting his family into a house that gave them more rooms, and offering them the comfort of food and money. He’d not thought about his siblings wanting anything else from life, but perhaps he was wrong.
 

“You can’t be a noblewoman, Rosie, and attend balls and such.”
 

“I don’t want that.” Her nose wrinkled. “I could think of nothing I would like less than wearing all those silly clothes and doing nothing but walk about the place hoping someone would see me.”

Luke laughed. “What do you want to do then?”
 

“I want to paint.” Her eyes sparked with excitement as she spoke.

“You can paint here; I can get you what you need.”

She shook her head. “I know that, but I want to see the best art in the world. I want to go to Paris and Italy.”

He was literally stunned speechless. Inside his little sister’s head, these dreams had been forming and he never knew. Shame on him for thinking he was the only one who thought about being something other than what he’d been raised to be.
“You never told me any of this before.”

She gave him a small smile. “I’m telling you now.”

“And how do you know about these artists?”
“I go with Ma to clean Squire Patrick’s house sometimes, and he saw me looking at the pictures and showed me a book he has. He then let me draw a picture with his paints. Ever since, I go there once a week and he teaches me and I love it Luke.”

He took another look at his sister, really looked, and saw the determination in her eyes.

“And Mother has no idea?” he guessed.

“No! She would be horrified if she found out. She thinks dreams are for fools and that you should live the life you were born into, but I don’t.” She shot him a look. “You’re not going to tell her, are you?”

“If you clean my boots, I may not.” Luke laughed as she punched him in the arm.
 

“Well, then, Miss Rosie, I shall have to think about our stars, yours and mine,” he said, hugging her close.
 

“Promise?”

“Promise,” he vowed.

They were ready a few minutes later. Graham, the youngest Fletcher, sat on Luke’s shoulders, with Simon holding his hand, while the others ran in front of them, down through the village. The air was brisk, but the walking soon warmed them up. His mother walked at his side, back straight, smile fixed. She sensed something was going happen that she didn’t like, and she was preparing for battle.

“Graham, do not pull my hair out at the roots, if you please.” His five year old brother chuckled but released his hair.

“Where are we going, Luke?”
 

“You’ll find out when we get there, Ally.”

They walked to the sound of chatter, as his siblings discussed, argued, sang and were in general high spirits. At the end of the town, they turned left and walked up a long curving driveway, which had overgrown trees on both sides.
 

“Why are we going to Mr. and Mrs Tumbridge’s old house? They’ve been dead ages now,” Rosie questioned him.

“Because we are,” Luke responded.

They stopped at the top and there sat the house. Two stories high, it was wooden with lots of windows and space. Around it sat a few acres, and enough room for his siblings to play, or have a horse or pets if they wished it. Lifting Graham off his shoulders he lowered him to the ground before taking a key out of his pocket.

“Anyone want to take a look inside?” They all said yes, so he took his mother’s hand in his, and led them to the front door, which he opened and in they all went.

“No, Luke.”
 

“Yes, Luke.” She tried to pull away, but he simply laced her fingers between his and kept moving, towing her along with him.

The house wasn’t grand, but it was comfortable. There was a large front room with a fireplace and he’d had the entire house furnished with what he thought his family would need.
 

“Why are we here, Luke?” Tommy and the others had followed him and his mother into the parlor.
 

“I’ll tell you soon, but first I want to talk with Mother alone. You can take the others through the rooms, but I don’t want too much noise, and no mess.”

They all looked from him to their mother and back to him, before they nodded and filed out of the room.

He sat his mother in one of the comfortable chairs before he spoke.

“I bought this house three months ago. I’ve had it furnished for you and the children.”

“I can’t…” Her words faltered as she looked around the room and Luke saw something like excitement flicker in the brown depths.
 

“You know that Mr. and Mrs. Elders never had children, and they are wanting to move from that cold little house they have, due to Mr. Elders chest suffering during the winter months.”

She was watching him as he spoke, eyes weary again.

“I have spoken with them and they would like to come here and help you with the children, Mother. There are two rooms off the kitchens they could have.”

Esmay Fletcher rose and began to walk again while Luke stayed where he was. She stopped a few minutes later and said, “I want to see the rest.”

They walked all over it, saw the five bedrooms, and the extra two for Mr. and Mrs. Elders. He’d put comfortable mattresses on all the beds, and lots of blankets. The furniture wasn’t brand new, as he knew his mother would hate that, but it was comfortable.

He left her alone once they had completed the tour, and took his brothers and sisters outside to inspect the barn. They ran around the gardens and played on the swing he’d had made in one of the trees.
 

“Luke!” His mother called him from the front door and he left the children to go to her.
 

“Well?”

“You’re a sneaky one is what you are, Luke Fletcher.” She had her hands on her hips but he saw the smile playing around the edges of her mouth and excitement in her eyes.
 

“You taught me.”

“I’ve decided that we are moving in here, and the Elders will come, too. They’re a gentle couple and they can both read and write which will be good for the children. I’ll call in there now and see them.”

“All right, and I’ll organize to help you move at the end of the week, as I still have a few things I need to do here before you do.”

He saw her tears as she reached for him, and he held her tight as her shoulders shook.

“Thank you, son, for doing this even though I told you not to. My pride stopped me from seeing what was best for us all.”

“Let’s tell them now, and then the arguments will start over who is having which room.”

Luke heard his mother’s laugh and thought that perhaps it was the first one she had shared with him for a long time.
 

CHAPTER FOUR

Bella arrived back at Willow hall determined to put the incident with Luke from her mind. Lord, that was a pathetic word for what had transpired between them. When his lips had touched hers, she’d felt it through her entire body. Her heart had raced as every part of her ignited, and places she had never known could feel that way had stirred to life. His arms had crushed her to his chest and she had felt the strength of the man she loved, felt the need that Luke Fletcher felt for her. Yet there could be no future for them until he saw that she had changed, really saw it, both inside and out, and maybe Bella needed this time to understand those changes, too.
 

“Are you ready to do your stretches?” Sally said as she entered.

“Yes, thank you.”

Sally spent the next fifteen minutes pushing Bella’s leg gently into various positions and then finished the treatment by rubbing it vigorously, which hurt, but Bella was used to the pain now. Walking to her washing water after Sally had left, she thought of Luke again. Not only she had changed; he, too, was different. His clothes had changed his appearance, but that was not the only transformation. Luke was changing inside. He may not see it, and perhaps she hadn’t before she went into the clinic, but it was happening. He was making decisions that affected his future, too.

Picking up the wash cloth, she sank into a chair and buried her face in the cool fabric. She thought about what her father had asked him to do. No matter what Luke had said to the contrary, it had kept him in Twoaks and at her side when perhaps he may have chosen to leave. Rising, Bella changed her dress and then made her way to the kitchens where she knew Jenny would be.
 

“Did you enjoy your walk?”

Even though Jenny no longer needed to spend time in the kitchen now she was married to Freddy, she still did. ‘Taint right to have someone else cook for us, when I’m perfectly capable,’
she’d said when Bella questioned her.
 

“Yes. Thank you.”

“Well, you just go through to the parlor and sit with Freddy and I’ll bring you some tea.”

“Before I do, Jenny, I want to ask you something.”

“Of course.” Putting down the spoon in her hand she came to stand before Bella.

“Did you give Luke Fletcher a letter from father?”

“I did.” Jenny nodded. “He asked that I did so not long before he passed away.”

Bella had known he would never lie about something as important as this, but she’d still had to check.

“Luke said that you did, and I was just confirming.”

“Is everything all right?”

She forced a bright smile onto her face. “It certainly is, and it can only improve after I have eaten a piece of your ginger cake.” Leaning forward, she planted a loud kiss on Jenny’s cheek and then left to find Freddy.

They chatted over their tea until a knock sounded at the door, which Jenny hurried to answer. Minutes later, she walked back in smiling, followed by Thea.

“Thea!” Bella hurried to her friend and hugged her close. “How is it that you are here?”

“Will sent word you had stayed the night, so I had the carriage bring me here, and you can take me home when you leave to go to his house.”

Althea Ryder was Bella’s dearest friend. They had known each other for as long as she could remember and over the years they had shared much. Raven-haired and gray-eyed like her brother Will, she was a lady of determination and spirit, yet with a humor that often sent Bella off in peals of laughter. They had not spent much time together over the past few years, and Bella was looking forward to changing that now.

“Will you walk with me to the village, Thea? It seems so long since we have talked, just the two of us.”

Thea stepped away from her and looked her up and down.
 

“I can see the changes in you, Bella, and even though it is cold enough to freeze my toes, I would be delighted to walk through Twoaks with you.”

Bella turned to Freddy and Jenny hoping they did not object.

“Go now in case the weather gets worse.” Jenny waved them from the room and Bella hurried upstairs to retrieve her coat, bonnet and gloves.

“Your pain has gone, Bella. I can see it in your eyes.” Thea took her arm as they left the house and made their way towards the street.
 

“It has, Thea. I have limitations, of course, and cannot overdo things still, but I can walk without help and a cane, and as long as I take care when I do, then yes, I can walk without pain.”

Thea’s smile was wide as she hugged Bella close.

“And we are going to have a wonderful season now, Bella. It would have been wonderful even if you were injured still, but now you will be able to dance and enjoy as I have always wished you would.”

“It still hurts if I overdo things, Thea, and I must rest when that happens.”

“But it does not cause you constant pain any longer and that is what matters.”