The Wedding Affair (Rebel Hearts series Book 1) (25 page)

“What do you think?” he said in a deeper tone that struck her senses like the flick of his tongue against her most intimate places. “I would like nothing better than to get to know you all over again, sweetheart.”

She blushed as she pressed her knees together, drowning in his heated stare. She was powerless to prevent the reaction, not when she wanted to rediscover everything about him too.

“Sally, come over here and tell this old fellow how lovely Shropshire is in the summer,” Ellicott called out.

Sally closed her eyes to break Felix’s hold on her, sucked in a sharp breath, and then let it out softly. “Please excuse me, but please give my grandfather’s offer serious consideration. It would be good to have you here, and I would like to see you again.”

“I will be waiting.”

Sally stood and hurried to her betrothed before she made any promises. If she was going to reconsider marrying Ellicott for Felix, she had better decide and quickly. Breaking an engagement would be expensive and embarrassing for the family at this late stage.

She smiled at Ellicott. “I could not say, having only ever visited your home in the autumn.”

“The autumn months are lovely too.” Ellicott took a drink from a passing waiter and then tossed back the entire thing. Sally frowned at the empty glass. Was that his fifth drink this evening?

Uncle George moved away as Ellicott curled her arm about his and held her at his side. He led her to take a turn about the room. “What were you whispering to Captain Hastings about?”

“A message from Rutherford,” she said, noticing Felix was watching them. “Nothing of importance.”

“He is a dry fellow. Hardly ever see a drink in his hand for all he is meant to be a sailor.”

He drank, of course, but she had never seen him indulge to excess. Not like Ellicott had done on numerous occasions in the past year. She had overlooked his lapses because she had wanted to marry him. Now, though, it was his least appealing attribute after his strong dislike of cats. “I would not know.”

“It hardly signifies. I see your young and handsome neighbor, Lord Cameron, is back again. Does the earl have his own room too, or is it just sailors who are invited to rest their heads where they do not belong?”

Sally ignored the question about Lord Cameron as he did have a guest chamber here, having stayed so often in his youth. She was pleased to see Felix and Lord Cameron seemed to have hit it off immediately. If Felix became the estate manager after she married, they might have a great deal to do with each other in the future.

She switched the subject to family. “It is good to see my uncle so high-spirited tonight. Ever since William made landfall, he has not been himself. I swear, only my cousin’s amateur theatricals and musicales made him laugh these past months. His foot has been aching terribly these past weeks too, but it is clear he is feeling better tonight.”

“You mean the foot that is not attached to his leg anymore?” Ellicott laughed as they reached the most distant point in the room. “My dear, what an eccentric family you have to complain of something that is not there.”

She bristled at the term eccentric and was thankful her family were so far away. “I love them all the more for their little quirks.”

“More than just a little quirk in some. Your mother wails about your absent brothers day and night, your sister hardly comes out of her room without a book, your younger cousin squeaks whenever she sees me, and you and your aunt Penelope run the whole of the estate with hardly any help. I told Rutherford he simply had to hire a proper steward, but he claims he already has someone in mind. I think he just agreed with me so I would go away.”

Probably.
She coughed quickly. Her grandfather would not have liked to be told what to do by someone who was not part of the family yet, not to mention younger. “He does have someone in mind.”

“Really?” Ellicott waved over a footman and obtained a fresh glass of port. “Who?”

Sally should not speak of the matter openly. Not until Felix had accepted the challenge of managing the estate for her family. “He has not told me the name, but I know he is serious about hiring someone.”

Very serious if he thought a position of steward might tempt the captain to retire to the quiet of Newberry Park. He must have an enticement in mind that he had not told her about to sweeten the deal. What else could tempt Felix to stay?

Ellicott drew close, forcing her to look up. “Mother mentioned there was another captain staying in a guest room. The infamous Captain Jennings. My dear, your family really does consort with the most interesting characters.”

“Captain Jennings is not a guest now. He visited my grandfather briefly, but then returned to his rented rooms at the village.”

“The village inn, you say? How provincial.” The sounds of keys being struck drifted in from the music room. “Ah, wonderful. Another musicale,” Ellicott murmured. “Let us hope it is your sister and not your middle cousin. She is much too fond of the dramatic for my taste.”

“Audrey chooses music to suit her mood rather than the popular choice of the crowd.”

Ellicott scowled. “Then I swear she must have been in a black mood every single day I have been here. Shall we
join
the family amusements yet again?”

Sally rose, bristling at the sarcasm in his tone, and followed everyone else into the music room, stopping at the doorway when Ellicott did. It was foolish of her to have expected him to appreciate every member of her family. Audrey was so young and could be easily hurt by a cutting remark. She hoped her cousin never realized Ellicott disliked her choice of music so much.

Everyone else was seated and facing the pianoforte. There were three chairs remaining at the rear of the room, but she waited for Ellicott to lead her there.

Ellicott leaned close, drawing her against his body. His hand slipped lower to her hip and caressed her. “On second thought, let’s slip away while we have a chance.”

“My absence will be noticed.”

Ellicott scowled. “I wonder if you will notice mine.”

He strode off in another huff that was entirely her fault. She considered chasing after him, but what good would that do? She did not want to be alone with him. She was not even sure about the marriage.

“Are you going in?” Felix asked in a voice that carried into the music room.

Aunt Pen turned in their direction and gestured to the remaining chairs impatiently.

Sally nodded. “Yes, of course I am.”

She led the way, aware of Felix at her back. She took the middle seat, and Felix took the end, leaving the isle row for Ellicott to claim if he ever came back.

She did not want to be rude, so she smiled at Felix. “Have you heard much music?”

“Some. Your brother is quite proficient on an upturned ale barrel.” His eyes danced with mirth.

“He always did like banging things.” She laughed at the memory of their childish theatricals in this very room. “After an hour of play, my ears used to ring.”

“That still happens on board.” He smiled broadly and then bent over. When he sat up, he had Arturo in his hand. “Not my boots, little beast.”

He passed the squirming cat to Sally. “I think this is yours too.”

“Yes. I am sorry.”

“Don’t be. It is in his nature to protect his own.” He smiled softly. “Do you still play the harp?”

Sally settled the grumpy cat beside her feet and untangled a length of yarn she kept inside her glove for such moments. She dangled it beside her chair, and Arturo was distracted enough to leave the captain’s glossy black boots alone and swat at the toy instead. “You can be easy. I have ceased torturing family and friends in recent years.”

“I would not have called it torture exactly.” He tugged on his ear lobe a few times. “It was more a long and drawn out savaging of the eardrums.”

Sally shrank into her chair. He had teased her many times in the past that her playing could be used to defeat the French. She frowned at the memory as her middle cousin caressed a few keys of the instrument. In truth, she had stopped playing because of his remarks. She had begun to doubt herself, and not just in music. “Everyone is safe now.”

“I am only teasing you,” he whispered.

“Of course you are.”

He fidgeted. “You are the only musician I could ever sit still for on the harp.”

She faced him. “The truth is better, Felix. You hated my playing.”

A few of the candles were extinguished to add atmosphere to the room, and then Felix leaned closer. “I adored teasing you, just as you tease poor Arturo there. That is not the same thing as disliking your playing, and you know it.”

“I do not know anything.” She shook her head and shifted her attention to the pianoforte. “We never really knew each other, did we?”

Chapter Twenty-Seven

“Y
es we did,” Felix insisted. “And I will prove that I am exactly the man you said yes to once.”

She met his gaze, yearning for what they’d had but afraid to commit herself. Things were different now. Sally had never been comfortable harboring doubts, but she had plenty. Did she love him or simply love what he made her feel? There was no easy answer, so she kept quiet and kept her feelings to herself.

They were silent as Audrey commenced to play. As Ellicott had predicted, the tune was mournful and full of dramatic melancholy that sent a chill sweeping through her body. Audrey really did use music to cast her emotions on those around her, whether they wanted to feel them or not.

Sally nibbled on her finger, seeing her cousin’s state of mind with new clarity and concern. Audrey had always been an odd girl, too serious and yet timid despite her importance to everyone. How would she fare in London society in her first season? Would she be celebrated or ridiculed the way Ellicott had hinted she might?

As the piece ended, she glanced at Felix in fear of his reaction. He stood immediately, a wide smile on his face, and clapped, leading everyone else to join in with him.

He grinned down at her, and for a moment she was overwhelmed by his excitement. “My word. William had mentioned she played well, but I had no idea she was so good. At last, a pianist with substance and not the usual fluff and air pieces so often played in London.”

She stood slowly, aware that every inch of Felix was so near and yet so far away. “Truly?”

“Oh yes. She is simply wonderful.” He grinned, his blue eyes alight with passionate feeling. He had looked at her that way once. On the day she had accepted his proposal. “Warn her chaperones they will need to beat Audrey’s suitors back with a very heavy club when the girl makes her come-out.”

His confidence in Audrey’s prospects relieved her mind greatly, but it did not prevent her from being besieged by regret. He had claimed to love her once. Could he love her that way again? Could she ever forget and forgive?

Sally wanted, more than anything in her life, to find out what was real between them or just a memory. Around him she was herself, and he never made her feel that was wrong. They talked, they argued, they laughed together easily and made love as if it was the most natural thing to do. What would it feel like to join him in his room again? Was it love she felt from him or just attraction? He had threatened to have her if she sought him out, and she was so tempted. Very tempted, because the thought of him touching her intimately made her ache even in a crowded room.

He caught her staring and raised one brow. “Is the cat savaging your ankle?”

“No, I was just considering what you said today and…”

She had waited for Felix, and now that he was here she was not sure she could bear to let him go. She knew what she needed to do. She wanted everything Felix had promised her younger self they could be together.

He frowned, searching her face. “Sally?”

Now was not the time. “We should congratulate my cousin on her performance.”

Felix let her lead the way, praised Audrey till she blushed, then began a lively conversation with Lord Cameron and Louisa. “Tomorrow at eight o’clock would suit,” he said finally.

Sally turned, catching Louisa staring at Felix with wide eyes. “You cannot fight each other.”

“Why not?” Lord Cameron asked. “A man can get rusty if he does not practice.”

“I am not much in need of practice, so fair warning. I will test your limits.” Felix sauntered off with a smug smile on his face.

Louisa grabbed her arm and shook her. “Sally, Hastings has just challenged Lord Cameron to fight him with swords. You must put a stop to it.”

Sally understood why Louisa was worried, but she did not share her fear. Cameron was proficient enough with a sword not to be a danger to himself or Felix. The young man who had stayed with them after his father’s tragic death and had cuddled on her lap as she read him stories as a child was more than capable of taking care of himself now. But it was natural to feel concern for him. “What is wrong with a little harmless practice between men? Our brothers always fought against each other and included us too. If they were here they might do the same.”

“But Cameron is no match for a seasoned captain.”

Sally was looking forward to the match. She would make sure to return from the fields just to have the pleasure of watching Felix stripped down to battle against an opponent who was not trying to kill him. “Felix is hardly going to do more than draw a little of his blood. At the very worst.”