Page 88 of A Lady in Name

Lucy turned to him, and Stefan was struck by a different light in her eyes, a lessening of the troubled mind she’d exhibited these several days. A stirring of hope rose up in his breast.

“Stefan, I think she is at peace now, like her mother. You will laugh at me, but I believe she has been instrumental in almost all I have done.”

Stefan had no belief in the supernatural, but if thinking of the matter in this light was of comfort to Lucy, he was unwilling to dash her down. “I dare say it is possible.”

“Well, only look at how things have turned out,” Lucy urged. “Did I not begin with an undefined desire to seek out the author of my misfortunes, as I thought of your uncle then? And when we returned to Upledon to fetch my things, why did I feel so strongly I must find out something of the woman who had given birth to me? It all fits, Stefan. When you thought to secure my future, it was to your Aunt Dorothea that I went. And only she could have told us the truth and set us on the path to discovery.”

Despite himself, Stefan caught a little of her enthusiasm. “It was at St Bride’s, where she was wed, you felt her so strongly.”

“You see! It is not coincidence, I am sure it is not.”

He smiled across at her. “My love, if you choose to believe it was Alice working from beyond the veil, who am I to gainsay you? For all I know, it may well be so.”

To his intense satisfaction, she heaved a great sigh and shifted closer to him on the seat, tucking one hand under his rein arm. “Can you drive if I hold you?”

“Without the least difficulty,” he told her, and was gratified when she leaned in and kissed his cheek.

“Cobbold, turn your eyes elsewhere,” Stefan ordered, and pulled up his team.

When he set his horses in motion a few moments later, he felt deliciously refreshed. “We really must get married,” he murmured for Lucy’s ears alone. “And that right speedily.”

Lucy blushed and allowed one of her hands to settle cosily upon his thigh. “Do you suppose I might purchase a suitable gown in Gloucester?”

“You may buy all the gowns you wish, my darling.”

“But not with your money,” Lucy protested at once. “You must allow me a trifle of independence. I come to you without dowry or any other advantage.”

“What do you suppose I care for that? Besides, I don’t think I could cope with the complications of supplying you with a dowry out of my own coffers and then paying it back to myself.”

Lucy had to laugh. “That is all very well, but pray indulge me in this one thing, Stefan. At heart, I am only the vicar’s daughter. Let Papa be the one to supply my wants on this occasion.”

“Very well.” Stefan flicked a glance at her, in which she recognised the teasing gleam she was coming to know. “On one condition.”

“Oh? And what condition might that be, sir?”

“That you indulge me in your turn and agree to honeymoon in Much Marcle.”

“Much Marcle?” Lucy exclaimed. “Why in the world should you wish to remain there?”

“I have conceived a liking for the place,” Stefan said at his blandest.

Lucy eyed him with puzzlement. “But should we not go back to Pennington as soon as may be? Dion will be anxious to know how we have fared.”

“You may write to tell her, and we will send Cobbold back with the news. Indeed, I must send you back, anyway, Cobbold,” he said, throwing the words over his shoulder.

“For what purpose?”

“I need Barnsley to arrange for my lawyer to come and witness your legitimacy in the register here.”

“But the lawyer can come here without you, can he not?”

“Ah, but I must guard the evidence, in case your mad uncle should take it into his head to meddle.”

Lucy eyed his profile with growing suspicion, half convinced he was joking.

“And then there is Paulina,” he added coolly. “She is bound to kick up the devil of a dust. Do you truly wish to face that?”

“Not in the least. But we cannot hide away forever, Stefan. We will have to brave it out at some time. And I cannot imagine why in the world you are so set upon Much Marcle.”