For the first time that night, he leaned over and peered down at the little bundle. “You know, I only saw him briefly when she came to me last month. He looks like my uncle and like my father which is no great wonder since they were brothers.”
Clara smiled. The scent of his aftershave reached her, a peculiar, woody mixture with hints of a meadow. It was pleasant. He had always smelled good. It was one of the things she remembered about him—the way his scent would sometimes linger in a room after he had already left it.
And now, it seemed, she was going to be married to the man who carried that scent.
Both of them sat quietly, looking down at the baby, until the carriage stopped a few minutes later in front of the estate.
“Well,” he said, “we are here. Your new home. I wish I could have shown it to you in daylight, but it will have to do for tonight.”
With that, he opened the carriage door and stepped out. Clara rose, cradling the baby in her left arm. She stepped to the carriage door and took Julian’s hand. With his assistance, she stepped out into a life that was going to be so unlike the one she had expected to walk into when she had risen that morning.
CHAPTER 5
Julian was at the front door just as Richmond, the family butler, hurried down the stairs.
“Your Grace,” he said, “I had not expected you back so early.” He stopped and looked at Clara and then at the bundle in her arms.
“Richmond, let me introduce you to my wife, Lady Clara Hampshire. Or rather, the Duchess of Lynden as she is now. And our son, David.”
“Your wife.” He looked from one to the other and then fell into a deep bow. “My Lady, what a pleasure it is to meet you. Although rather unexpected, I must say.”
“Yes, there is much to explain,” Julian said quickly. “For tonight, Her Ladyship is going to be staying in the blue guest room. Please have Mrs. Parker prepare the room. And I will also need to send an urgent message if you wouldn’t mind waking one of the footmen. In fact, two messages.”
“Of course, Your Grace. And a chamber for the child? Shall I prepare the nursery?”
“I wish to keep him with me.” Clara looked up at him with clear, determined eyes. “I want him to stay with me, if that is quite all right.”
Already, she was maternal. How odd it was, standing here with her holding the baby, knowing that the child belonged to his cousin, and yet all the world believing that the child was his and she was his wife. And come morning, they would have to find a way to make it so.
He had spoken with considerable confidence when he had told her that the vicar at the home parish would do as he asked, but he was not certain of it at all. The man had been a family friend for decades, and they were close, but were they close enough for him to make alterations to official documents? He had to believe that he would help them. Otherwise, there was only Gretna Green, and a Gretna Green marriage would not match their story.
His mind raced. He thought of Arabella. What had she done? And who was this man who had trapped her in Italy? He had tried his very best to extract information from her, but she had not been forthcoming.
Arabella had always done as she pleased, and his parents had indulged her in it. Later, he had done the same. He had never been able to say no to her, and that had always been a problem. It was his indulgence of her that had led to this. He should havebeen stricter. He should have gone after her to Italy, but her letters had seemed so confident.
“Julian,” Clara said beside him.
He blinked. “Yes.”
“David will stay with me.” This time it was not a question but a declaration.
“Of course, he will stay with you if you wish. There is no question about it.” He turned to the butler. “Richmond, have my cradle brought up out of storage. The carved one with the blue paintings—you know the one.”
“Yes, Your Grace,” he said. “I shall see to it at once.” He hurried away, and a moment later, Julian heard him calling for a footman.
“The cradle was mine,” he explained. “When I was a baby.”
Clara nodded. Then she said, “Do they know that Arabella was here?”
“No,” he said quickly. “One of the maids she trusted had let her in, and nobody else saw her. When I spoke to her, she made it clear that she did not want anyone to know, so I put her in one of the cottages here on the estate. She hid there. The staff does not know about the baby. Only that one maid, and the maid left with her.”
“I see.” She paused. “Were you thinking about her earlier? When we arrived, you were miles away.”
“Yes,” he said. “I was thinking about what I could have done differently. What I could have done to help her. But I could think of nothing.”
“I have had the same thoughts,” she said. “Wondering whether I had been so self-involved that I had missed something in her letters. Whether I could have stopped her. Whether I could have done anything.”
“I truly do not think there was anything either of us could have done. If Arabella wants to keep secrets, Arabella keeps secrets. That was always the end of it.”
