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The heartwarming words hit him harder than he’d expected them to. To his horror, William felt tears prick his eyes. He hadn’t cried since the day he’d found his mother’s lifeless body and yet here he was.
Elizabeth slid an arm around him. “Do you think she liked it?” she asked him gently.
He blinked the tears away, nodding. “I’m sure she’s smiling down at us right now.” Then he drew in a breath, lifting his head upwards. Swaying leaves blocked much of the sunlight but he still caught slivers of the blue sky. It might not be her grave but… “I know you’ve been quite frustrated yourself, Lady Gillet, but you need not worry anymore. I’ve promised Beth that I’ll spend the rest of my life making sure that she is happy, and I will make the same promise to you. Please, continue to watch over us.”
Elizabeth rested her head on his shoulder in that moment as they both let their thoughts consume them. He didn’t know how long he stood there. In fact, he wasn’t certain what he’d planned on saying, or doing, once he arrived. The last time he’d come here, it had been when he’d returned from Africa, and he’d spent the entire day cursing his father and lamenting on the fact that the only person who loved him was dead. This time, William didn’t have the urge to do any of that. If anything, he only wanted his mother to see that he’d found happiness…and that he had no plans on letting it go.
Without a word, he reached for the blanket and spread it out under the tree. He gestured for Elizabeth to sit and she did so with a gentle smile, tucking her legs to the side of her. William took her side.
“Do you truly think everything will end well?” Elizabeth asked after a long moment of contemplative silence.
William took a moment to respond himself before he took her gloved hand and planted a kiss on the back of it. “It has to.”
It wasn’t the best answer he could come up with, but Elizabeth seemed content with it. And as they stayed there for the rest of the day, not leaving until late evening fell, William promised himself she would never have another reason to worry.
Chapter 20
James was at his wit’s end—and Mr. Wilson’s darting eyes and flexing fingers were not making things better. It had already been days since he’d ordered him to find Lady Elizabeth, and putting faith in all the good things he’d heard about this man, he’d believed he would have found her by now. Yet, here he was, without Lady Elizabeth in tow.
Mr. Wilson’s eyes darted away from the lion statute sitting by the door of James’ study and up at James. The flicker of the candlelight nearby made his face appear much gaunter that it actually was. “You look displeased, My Lord,” he pointed out.
James’ annoyance deepened. He twirled the whiskey in his glass, watching as Mr. Wilson put his briefcase to the side of the chair and relaxed. Quelling the urge to chuck the glass at his head, James murmured, “Did you think I would not be?”
“Is that why you have summoned me?” To his credit, Mr. Wilson looked utterly unfazed by the anger so clearly simmering within James. He looked just the same as James had last seen him—with his clothes disheveled, his hair a mess, and his entire demeanor so untrustworthy that James was beginning to berate himself for listening to the advice of others in the first place.
James set the glass on the table, resting his elbows on top and lacing his fingers together. He wouldn’t explode—not yet. Not until he’d gotten all his answers. “Have you learned anything about Lady Elizabeth’s whereabouts yet? Or is that why you have not been maintaining contact with me and have been staying out of sight? Is it because you realize you cannot do the task I have asked of you?”
Mr. Wilson shook his head in that very irritating jerking motion. “Not at all, My Lord,” he stated. “On the contrary, I have not been in contact with you simply because I have putting a few things in order first.”
James narrowed his eyes. He’d been just about ready to throw the hardest thing on his desk at Mr. Wilson, not caring about how badly it might hurt him. He was not a noble, so James did not really care. He only needed to get one thing out of him. “What is that?”
Mr. Wilson stopped tapping his finger against his thigh and leaned back in his seat. In that moment, he became an entirely different person. The constantly anxious demeanor fled and what now sat before James was an assured man, the barest smirk lifting the corners of his lips as if he knew James’ every secret. For the first time since meeting Mr. Wilson, he was a bit wary.
