“Where are you going?” she asked.
“To secure us a means of private transport.”
Leah may well have her concerns about travelling with him, but James was under no illusion as to what he would do if Tobias Shepherd intercepted them en route to Cornwall and tried to take Leah back. With that thought foremost in his mind, he was determined to do all he could to avoid Leah’s father.
Once downstairs, he had a quiet word with the innkeeper, who promptly pointed him in the direction of the nearest gunsmiths.
As soon as James was gone, Leah attacked her wedding gown. She tore at the laces with the sharp knife, not bothering to spare either the fabric or the bindings. She found a lose thread and pulled on it hard. The gown was left in satisfying shreds within minutes. When she was finally free of the hideously expensive dress, she rolled it up into a tight ball and stuffed it into her bag, vowing to never wear it again. She retrieved one of her simple day gowns and put it on.
Leah then sat and finished the rest of her stew in her warm, comfortable attire. She washed it down with the half tankard of ale. The ale was bitter and not something she was used to drinking. Its effect, however, was most welcome. By the time James finally returned to the room, she had just enough energy left to unlock the door and let him back in before she lay down on the bed and promptly fell asleep.
Sometime in the middle of the night, she woke with a start and sat up. Panic gripped her before she managed to focus her gaze on the fireplace. In the chair by the fire, James was stretched out fast asleep, snoring softly. When she saw him, Leah smiled; James had draped his mother’s woolen cloak about himself.
She lay in the dark, allowing her mind to ponder the events of the day. This was not the wedding night she had imagined, thank God. But lying listening to James’s heavy breathing, her heart told her that not only was she exactly where she should be, she was also with the right man.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“Do you think it is wise for us to take so long to travel to Mopus Passage? What if my father has followed me and is waiting for us when we reach my grandfather’s house?”
Leah’s question was a sensible one, and it had kept James awake late into the night. They needed a plan.
He had sworn a silent vow to do everything in his power to protect her from the rest of the Shepherd family. He was not by nature a violent man, but when faced with tyranny, even good men would take up arms. The pistol he had purchased the previous evening lay hidden in the pocket of his coat. He could only hope that he wouldn’t have cause to use it.
But he was determined that Leah should have the right to choose whom she married. He knew that there was more than a small amount of self-interest in that promise. While Leah remained unwed, there was still a flicker of hope for his heart to be granted its greatest desire.
For her to love him. For her to choose him.
James’s plan involved him driving the private carriage he had hired last night. They would travel the main road during the day, but instead of staying at the coaching inns en route at night, they would find lodgings at smaller out-of-the-way villages.
It would mean they would take longer to reach Mopus Passage. James had weighed up the options and decided that it was the overnight stops where the greatest risk of Tobias Shepherd trying to reclaim Leah lay. Leah’s father could call upon the services of the innkeeper and his staff to help secure the release of his wayward daughter from the blackguard who had spirited her away from her lawful guardian. If that situation eventuated, he would be powerless to do anything to help her.
Leah took a sip of her tea before setting the cup down. James could tell she was not convinced of the merit of his plan. In the cold light of morning, she seemed less at ease than she had the night before. “I’m sorry,” she said.
James looked across at her. “What are you apologizing for?” If anyone should be offering up an apology, he knew it was him. Every day he should be telling her how sorry he was for leaving her to face Guy and her father alone.
“For doubting you. You have had ample opportunities in the past day to tie me up and force me onboard a London-bound coach. All you have done instead is to feed me and give me somewhere safe to sleep. And you have listened,” she said.
He shook his head. He was not going to accept her apology for not trusting him. Until now, he had given her no reason as to why she should place her trust in him. “How about we both apologize, and agree to be friends? That way, we leave here today with a fresh start,” he said.
The wordfriendsdidn’t roll off James’s tongue as easily as it should. That same tongue now felt the pressure of his teeth as he forced himself not to say anything more on the subject, fearing that if he did, he would say too much.
He wanted Leah to see that he was more than just someone feeling an obligation to keep her safe. He wanted her to be happy. He ached to be a part of her life, for her to see him beyond being merely Guy’s friend. As far as James was concerned, his bond with Guy was already irretrievably broken.
“You wish to be friends?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Alright, we can be friends. But you must understand that friends don’t keep secrets from one another. Which means you have an obligation to tell me not only why you chose to betray Guy, but also why you are helping me.” Leah reached out a hand and they locked fingers. “Please, James, help me understand. I want to trust you, but I need to know the truth.”
“When I saw you run out of the church, I didn’t stop to think about whether I was betraying Guy or not. I saw a young woman who had chosen to flee her wedding and I knew you needed my help. The last thing I was going to do was to grab you and drag you back inside St Georges. I sent some of the wedding guests in the wrong direction, then followed you,” he replied.
“Guy will never speak to you again after what you have done. I hope for both our sakes that you are prepared for the impact of losing that friendship,” said Leah.
“I understand what yesterday will have cost me. But you mean more to me that he does,” replied James.
James really didn’t want to have this conversation so early in their journey west. He wanted them to spend time together so that when he felt it was right to declare himself, Leah would have had the opportunity to get to know him a little better. For them to have strengthened their friendship, and hopefully, for the first buds of genuine affection for him to have formed in her heart. It was not to be.
“Why?” she asked.
