“What did he tell you!” Her friend couldn’t contain her excitement.
But as hard as she tried, Clara could not come up with the answer.
John, Luke, and Lord Merritt were in the study with the solicitor when a footman appeared. “Lord Maxwell,” he addressed, “Lady Clara requests your presence in the drawing room.” With her father’s permission, Luke took his leave.
What an awful few days it had been. Luke had done everything in his power to protect Clara, but the one day he absolutely had to be in Parliament was of course the day Mr. Merritt made his move. The image of the horrible scum of a man striking her, when Luke had been just inches away from stopping it, would replay in his mind over and over for the rest of his life. That, along with his own failures, had kept him up most of the night.I could not protect her. I failed her when she needed me the most.I am undeserving of her. It is all my fault. It is all my fault.
“Luke,” Clara greeted him from her lounged position in the drawing room. “I have a question I must ask you.”
He crossed to sit in the chair beside her. Sparing a glance at her beautiful face, he saw dark, purple and black swirled bruises painted across the majority of it.That was all your doing,his brain insisted.She is hurting because of you.His heart felt like it was breaking. “Yes, Clara?”
“What did you say to me, yesterday, at the hat shop?”
His brain was thrown back into that moment. Watching her pig of a cousin strike her when he was just out of reach. Then tackling the man to the ground before John punched him straight between the eyes. While his friend kept him down, Luke had run to Clara, holding her poor, shaky, precious body, and whispering, “I am sorry, Love. I am so sorry.”Over and over until Lord Merritt took her from his arms.
Luke’s voice was melancholy as he said, “I apologized for not protecting you.” He had failed her, and now his world felt heavy, dark, and depressing.She is better off without you, his brain urged.
“Luke,” Clara whispered tenderly, “come here.”
He dragged himself to stand beside her sofa, but he couldn’t open his eyes. He could not bear seeing his shortcomings displayed so openly across her slender cheeks.
“Kneel before me, my knight,” she commanded him. As he knelt, Clara reached for his hand, wrapping it between both of hers. “Luke …” she spoke hesitantly, “I told Everett to meet me at the hat shop.”
His heart broke in a whole new way.
“Obviously,” Clara continued, “I now realize my mistake. But Luke.” She waited until he looked at her. “I am the one who failed you. Not the other way around.”
A big fat tear leaked from his eye and slid down to his chin. Even now, in her moment of pain, Clara was comforting him. As always, she was caring for others. He tenderly lifted the pile of hands and kissed the one on top. “What shall you have me do now, my queen?”
She smiled. “Well, I wouldknightyou, but seeing as you are already a knight …” She scrunched her lips in thought, “I know. I insist you spend the day on that sofa,” she pointed to the seat across from her, “and read to me.”
“And what would you like me to read?”
She shrugged, a strange sight while lounging, “It doesn’t matter. I just want to know my knight is near, should I require his assistance.”
Luke dipped his head. “Of course, your majesty,” he said as he sent the footman to fetch a book.
And slowly, throughout the day as he read to her, Luke’s guilt subsided. Clara would recover. Mr. Merritt was no longer a threat. He had done everything in his power to keep her safe. By the end of the book, he and Clara were laughing and joking as they always did. As he watched the woman he loved laugh through her pain, he silently took his vow once more.I vow to protect you, my queen, now and forever.
Chapter 14
Preparations
-two and a half years later-
December 1810
Life continued on, as it always does. Clara quickly recovered from Mr. Merritt’s advances, and with him behind bars, had happily finished her time in London. After her dear friend Alice's heroic act on her behalf, the older debutante quickly became one of the most popular women inTown. By the end of the Season, she had three marriage proposals. Alice chose the widower viscount, Lord Palmer, and instantly became a loving mother to his two young daughters.
The next two trips toTownwere similar to the first, though without the unfortunate appearance of a scoundrel cousin. When Parliament was not in session, Clara spent about half her time at Rosecrest and the other half at Maxwell Manor. She enjoyed her time at both estates. She had come to love her friends in Faversham and Harleston, and though she missed her parents while she was away, she thoroughly enjoyed acting as lady of the house when she stayed with Luke.
And she liked being with Luke. In fact, she considered him her best friend at this point. There were many things about her that only Luke understood. He could decipher her mood, sometimes even before she could, and he always knew exactly how to cheer her up. There was not a single secret Clara did not feelcomfortable telling him, and though he did not do it often, Luke had opened up parts of his heart to her as well.
It was nearly Christmas, which meant there were only a few short weeks until Clara would finallycome outto society. After hearing Luke usually ate a sad Christmas dinner alone, the Merritts had decided to host Christmas at Maxwell Manor and show him their traditions—although Clara wasn’t sure he would enjoy the festivities as much as the Merritts did.
On Christmas Eve, the family would host a large festival for all of Faversham, or Harleston, in this case. The rich and the poor, the old and the young, all piled into the ballroom, ready for a night of food, lively music, and dancing. At Christmas, all were equals, and all were welcome. There would be mistletoe, holly branches, and a large Christmas fire. After plum pudding and gingerbread came Clara’s favorite part. Lord Merritt would hush the crowd and tell the story of the birth of the Christ Child. Her Papa’s deep, soothing voice always made Clara feel like a little girl again, tucked up in her small nursery bed.
Actual Christmas day was a small event, usually just the four of them, though with Luke this year, it would be five. They exchanged gifts, had simple meals, and recovered from the excitement of the evening prior.
