Page 32 of Maid for the Duke

He held out his hand for Amelie and she stood, shaking. No one had ever spoken to her father in this way before, although it was long overdue. Time and again he’d shifted responsibility for the loss of their home, the loss of his fortune, never admitting he was the one at fault. It was liberating to hear someone tell him that he was entirely to blame.

‘Goodbye, Father,’ Amelie said softly.

‘You cannot mean to leave me here.’ There was a note of panic in her father’s voice now, as if he realised he might lose his shared room and be tossed into the communal cell with no guarantee of any food.

‘I will be back in a month, but not before,’ Amelie said, feeling the prick of tears in her eyes. For the last few years she had desperately wanted her father to be better. Every time something terrible happened, she hoped it would be the occasion when he finally stepped up. Although it was heartbreaking, she was finally ready to accept he was not going to change. She would not abandon him, but she would not waste her hopes on him either.

With Amelie clutching Will’s arm, they walked back down the narrow stairs and through the courtyard. Only once they were outside the main gates of the prison, with the stench and the oppressing walls behind them, did Amelie start to breathe properly again. She did not know whether to laugh or cry. She felt on edge, hysterical, and she was glad when Will helped her up into the carriage and they rattled over the cobbles, away from the prison.

Chapter Fifteen

For a long time Amelie did not speak. She felt tainted by the trip to the prison and wished she could take a bath to scrub herself clean.

‘I am sorry for what I said,’ Will said as they pulled away from the busiest part of London and made their way north through the outskirts. ‘I vowed to myself that I would keep silent. He is not my relative, not any of my concern; I know that.’

‘I do not blame you; he is infuriating,’ Amelie said with a half-smile.

‘He is much more than infuriating. I think he is one of the most self-centred, selfish men I have ever met. How could he not be concerned about your welfare? About the health of his other children?’

‘I am sorry I took you there. I do not know what possessed me to do so. You did not need to see that.’ Amelie had wanted him to see she had not been deceiving him about her father. Although not dead, he was completely indisposed, unable to help her or her family in any way. Yet she should just have told him the truth, not put him through the ordeal of traipsing through the most notorious debtor’s prison in London.

‘You do not need to apologise for that.’

The line between generous master and servant had been crossed a long way back; perhaps that was the problem. Will had been so good with her sisters and brother, making them feel at ease before sweeping them up into his protection and arranging the most nurturing and safe place for them to stay. Now she felt ridiculous for doubting him. She’d thought by taking him to the Fleet she might shock him, push him away, saving her heartbreak later when he did realise the whole truth of her family’s shame. But he was only sympathetic, not judgmental. She should have known how he would respond—he had shown her only generosity and goodness these last few days.

A bubble of laughter rose inside her and Amelie felt unable to control it. The whole situation was ridiculous. She had just taken a duke, a man with connections to the most powerful people in England, into the Fleet prison. He had seen the very worst of her situation and reacted only with kindness.

‘I do not understand why you have been so good to me,’ she said quietly, looking up to hold his eye. ‘You have done more for me these past three days than anyone else has offered in the last terrible two years.’

‘I confess, never before have I become so involved in the life of someone who works for me.’ He gave a rueful smile. ‘But what sort of man would I be if I learned of your misfortune and stood by and did nothing?’

‘Most people would have done exactly that.’

She searched his face, wondering if she had just been lucky to land in the household of such a good and noble man. It felt more than that. There was this inevitable pull, a feeling that their lives were somehow tied together, and that with each passing day they became more and more entangled. It was a ridiculous notion, but she could not shake it.

‘Thank you,’ she said, holding his gaze. ‘I will be forever in your debt for what you did for Marie and Harriet and Charles.’

‘They are lovely children who I think will thrive in Mrs Hampton’s care. When we return in a month, I think you will see a difference.’

‘I could see a difference in just two days.’

She felt a swell of gratitude and appreciation for the man sitting across from her. She’d have a lot of thinking to do, these next few weeks. Although he had not come out and declared a time period, Amelie knew the Duke could not go on paying for her family’s living situation indefinitely. What he had done was given her some breathing room, some time in which she would not have to worry about them or their health, and really focus on how best to support them for the next few years. It was a wonderful gift.

Their eyes met across the carriage, and this time Amelie could not look away. There was the same desire that had almost built to a crescendo when they’d been in Grantchester, but there was now something more too. The Duke no longer seemed aloof or formal. Despite his privilege and his wealth, he was likely the most considerate person she had ever met. His actions had only deepened the attraction she felt, so now, when she had the urge to kiss him, it wasn’t just physical desire; it was an appeal on so many different levels.

He must have seen something in her eyes for he leaned forward in his seat, their knees brushing together. Amelie forced herself to pause, to consider the consequences of what felt like the inevitable. She wasn’t sure she would be able to stop if she kissed him here in the carriage. She would give her virtue to a man she cared for deeply, but who could never offer her a future. They might have a few wonderful weeks together, but then he would return to his world and she to hers. At best, only she would know what she had done; at worst, she would heap further shame on her family name and become a complete outcast, vilified by society.

She knew all of this, but she felt powerless to resist. A kiss seemed inevitable, and her mind was already trying to rationalise why it would not all be a complete disaster. She wanted Will more than she had ever wanted anything, enough for her to push her reservations to the side, even if only temporarily.

‘Amelie,’ he murmured, searching her face.

‘I do not know why you have helped me so.’

‘Surely it is obvious?’ he said.

She shook her head.

‘I care for you,’ he said simply. ‘I know we have no future, that it is the most ill-advised entanglement there could be, but the truth is I care for you. It hurts me to see you upset. I have this urge to fix it.’