My Brown-Eyed Earl Page 26

  “Work an hour or two every day to start. As you regain your strength, you can extend your hours. What do you say?”

  The old man regarded him thoughtfully. “I’ll give it a try, for Hazel’s sake. She’s been so desperate to get me out of the cottage it’s a wonder she hasn’t set it on fire.”

  Will smiled, offering his hand. “Very good, Mr. Ostrey. I’ll inform my steward that you’ll start tomorrow.” They shook on it, and Will took his leave.

  But as he mounted his horse and rode back to Castleton Park, he kept thinking about what the man had said—about guilt holding a person back.

  Meg was in the grips of guilt. Guilt over the death of her parents, the orphaning of her sisters, and now, her relationship with him. Somehow, he had to pry her free.

  Even if she decided she didn’t want to marry him, he couldn’t let her go on flogging herself and pushing people away. He had to convince her that she deserved to be happy.

  With someone.

  Even if that someone wasn’t him.

  * * *

  Meg had attacked the parlor with the dust cloth for most of the morning, and while the room was starting to look marginally better, it seemed that every speck of dust she’d removed from shelves, tables, and other surfaces had settled onto her. She heaved open a window and shook out the cloth, then did the same with her apron.

  She was about to begin organizing the contents of several cabinets when a knock sounded at the front door.

  Her heart leaped in her chest. Charlotte was working, and they rarely had other visitors. It could be a delivery, but it was far too soon for the dresses and other items they’d ordered yesterday to arrive.

  Will had said he was going away for a while, but was it possible he’d returned already?

  Despite her attempts to keep busy, she couldn’t stop thinking about him. And even though they’d only been apart a few days … God, how she missed him. The way he could make her breath hitch with one wicked grin; the way he pretended as though he wasn’t wrapped around Diana and Valerie’s little fingers; the heart-stopping way he looked at her when he thought she wasn’t watching.

  Swallowing, she walked to the door and opened it.

  There on her front step, was Mrs. Hopwood, looking disheveled and frazzled. “Mrs. Hopwood,” she said, trying to hide her disappointment. “Why, what a pleasant surprise! Please, come in, and do forgive the—”

  “It’s awful!” the nanny interrupted, anguish plain on her face. “Lord Castleton isn’t in town, and I didn’t know where else to turn.”

  A frisson of fear skittered across the back of Meg’s neck. “Where are the twins? Please, tell me they’re all right.”

  “I don’t know,” she cried. Seeing the normally unflappable Mrs. Hopwood at her wit’s end frightened Meg more than anything. “I tucked them into bed last night and went to sleep on a cot in the very same room, but when I awoke, they were gone. Their mother’s gone, too.”

  “You did the right thing in coming here.” Meg coaxed the nanny into the house and guided her to the settee in the parlor. “Perhaps Lila and the girls are merely visiting the park or doing a bit of shopping?” she asked hopefully.

  Mrs. Hopwood shook her head. “They took most of their things with them. Everything except for this.” She pulled Valerie’s well-worn and much-loved doll from her satchel.

  “How odd. Valerie would never leave Molly behind.”

  “I found it at the foot of my bed. It’s as though she left it there for me … a clue.”

  Meg suppressed a shiver. “Did Lila mention anything about taking a trip? Had she been behaving suspiciously?”

  “No, but when I slept till noon this morning, I knew something wasn’t right. I’m usually up with the birds, but I could barely move my legs when I first awoke. I’m wondering if someone slipped something into my tea before bed last night.”

  “You were drugged?” Good heavens, it did seem as though something sinister was afoot.

  Meg leaned forward and patted the nanny’s hand. “How do you feel now? Would you like something to eat or drink?”

  “Thank you, dear, but no.” Mrs. Hopwood’s eyes brimmed with tears. “I just want to find the girls and make sure they’re well.”

  “As do I.” Meg stood and began to pace. “You stopped at Castleton House before you came here?”

  Mrs. Hopwood nodded. “I could tell that Mr. Gibson was as concerned about the twins as I. He said that he didn’t expect the earl to return for another day or two but that we had the staff at our disposal and that if there was anything we needed, all we had to do was ask.”

  Meg desperately wished Will were there. But he wasn’t … and if Diana and Valerie were in jeopardy, there wasn’t a second to waste.

  “I think we must begin by returning to Lila’s flat and looking for any evidence that might indicate where they’ve gone.”

  “It’s so sad, isn’t it?” Mrs. Hopwood said. “The safest place in the world for children should be with their mother. And yet, my intuition tells me that woman can’t be trusted. I’m terribly frightened for the girls.”

  “I am too.” Meg closed her eyes and said a brief prayer. She was the one who’d urged Will to let the girls visit with their mother and ultimately return home.

  If harm came to Diana and Valerie due to her recklessness, she’d never, ever, forgive herself.

  Chapter THIRTY-EIGHT

  Will had barely crossed the threshold of Castleton House when Mrs. Lundy and Gibson descended on him like a pair of homing pigeons.

  “It’s the twins, my lord,” Gibson said, taking his hat and bags. “I would have sent word, but I suspected you were already on your way home.

  “What the devil are you talking about?”

  Mrs. Lundy wrung her hands. “Mrs. Hopwood’s upstairs, beside herself. The girls’ mother drugged the nanny, took the twins, and left Town.”

  Will shook his head, certain he’d misunderstood. “Why would Lila drug Mrs. Hopwood?”

  “Because she was up to no good,” Gibson declared. “And she didn’t wish to be stopped.”

  “Do we know where Lila and the girls have gone?”

  The housekeeper shook her head. “No, but Miss Lacey is looking for them.”

  Dear Jesus. “Miss Lacey?” How the hell had she gotten involved in this mess?

  “Yes, my lord. Mrs. Hopwood sought her help.” The butler stood tall. “Miss Lacey left this morning, and I insisted that Harry go with her. I thought you’d want the young lady to be escorted.”

  “Damned right, Gibson. Where are they headed?”

  “To a village named Brinhaven in Essex,” Mrs. Lundy piped up. “Apparently, the twins’ mother has a sister who lives there. Mrs. Hopwood may know more specifics.”

  “I’m going to talk to her now.” Will stalked toward the stairs and called to Gibson over his shoulder. “Have my horse saddled immediately. I leave for Brinhaven within the quarter hour.”

  * * *

  “I wish we could return to London tonight,” Meg said, her belly tied in knots.

  Harry gave her a sympathetic smile as he helped her alight from the coach. “The horses require rest, and so do you. We’ll leave at first light—I promise.”

  Meg had found Lila’s sister in a tidy cottage on the outskirts of the village, but during their brief conversation, she hadn’t been able to glean any information about the whereabouts of Lila or the twins. On the contrary, she had more questions than ever.

  And they were hours away from London.

  Harry guided her to the front door of a quaint, bustling inn located in the center of the village. “I’ll secure a room for you and have some dinner sent up.”

  “Thank you, but I’m not hungry.”

  “You must eat,” the footman said. “Lord Castleton would want you to.”

  “I rarely do what Lord Castleton wants,” Meg snapped, instantly regretting it. “Oh, forgive me, Harry. I know you’re only trying to look after me. I’m just so worried
about the girls.”

  “It’s all right, Miss Lacey. I’m worried about the mites, too. Wait here, please.” He approached a counter, spoke to the innkeeper, and returned with a key. “Come. I’ll see you safely to your room.”

  Before long, she was ensconced in a clean, comfortable room with a dinner tray … quite alone. Harry and the driver were having dinner in the taproom downstairs and would be sharing a room down the hall that night in case she should need anything.

  But what she really needed was a clue. Some hint of where she could find Valerie and Diana. Or better yet, some way of knowing they were safe.

  She lit the lamp by the bed and managed to eat a few spoonsful of stew and nibble at the bread before pushing the tray away.

  Not tired in the least, she sprawled on the mattress, glad that she’d thought to pack a small satchel with a nightgown and a book. She’d brought Valerie’s doll, too, and she pulled it out, squeezing it to her chest as though it could somehow bring her closer to finding the twins.

  As she lay on the bed listening to the raucous shouts and laughter drifting up from the taproom below, she tried to convince herself that it was all a huge misunderstanding. That the girls were merely enjoying a spontaneous outing in the country with their mother. Perhaps they had already returned home and were tucked safely in their beds.

  A knock at her door startled her, and she leaped up. Harry must be checking on her, or perhaps a servant had come to retrieve her dinner tray. She opened the door and there, filling the doorframe with his broad shoulders, was Will.

  Her heartbeat hammered at the sight of him. How was it that in the space of a few days she’d forgotten how big, brooding, and breathtakingly handsome he was?

  “Why, in God’s name,” he snapped, “would you open the door to a random stranger?”

  “I am already regretting it,” she answered, even as hope blossomed in her chest.

  He swiftly closed the door behind him and hauled her against him. Her cheek pressed against the solid wall of his chest, and she almost wept with relief.

  She was not alone anymore.

  He speared his fingers through her hair and kissed the top of her head. “Don’t worry, Meg. I will find them. I won’t rest until I do.”

  “I don’t understand why Lila would do it.” She looked up at him. “Why would she drug sweet Mrs. Hopwood and whisk the girls away in the middle of the night?”

  “Come, sit.” He pulled her toward the room’s one chair and raised an eyebrow at the doll she still held in one hand. “You brought Molly.”

  She smiled to herself, a little amused and deeply touched that he remembered the doll’s name. “I hope to give it to Valerie. If we find her, that is.”

  “Don’t say if. We will find her.” He sat on the edge of the bed, opposite her, elbows propped on his knees. “Did you speak with Lila’s sister?”

  Meg nodded. “She said she doesn’t know where Lila and the girls might have gone, and I believed her. She seemed truly concerned about Diana and Valerie and said she would have offered to raise the twins herself if she wasn’t so feeble.”

  “Did she mention whether Lila has any other family? Other friends she might turn to?”

  “She said she suspected Lila was staying with a mysterious new gentleman friend that she mentioned a couple of times in her letters. But her sister knows nothing about him.”

  “Damn.”

  Meg could tell from the concerned look on Will’s face that he was thinking the same thing she was—that if Lila was indeed meeting with a romantic interest, he probably wouldn’t appreciate having the twins about.

  “If she wanted to run off with a lover, why didn’t she just leave Diana and Valerie with us?” Will muttered. “She is the sort of woman who always acts in her own self-interests … so what did she have to gain by taking back the girls?”

  Meg had asked herself that question, too. “Maybe she wished to appear a devoted, loving mother?”

  He scowled. “I must admit, she fooled me.”

  “Where do we go from here?”

  “Back to London. We need to discover who she’s involved with.”

  Meg groaned in frustration. “May we leave now? I hate to waste another minute when the twins could be in danger.”

  “No. The journey will be faster and safer if we wait until morning. You need to rest and eat something.” His eyes flicked to the dinner tray she’d barely touched. “That bad?”

  “I’ve no appetite, but help yourself.”

  He frowned. “Would you like some wine? It might help you sleep.”

  “No, I don’t think so.” She hugged the doll to her belly.

  “It’s a shame that Molly can’t talk.” Will smiled ruefully. “She probably knows everything.”

  A chill ran down Meg’s spine. “Do you think they’re frightened?”

  “Maybe. But they’re brave girls, and they have each other. That’s something we can be grateful for.”

  “Yes.” Meg clung to the thought.

  “Tomorrow, when we return to London, I’ll question Lila’s neighbors and try to learn who she’s involved with. Once I have a name, I can track him down.”

  “I want to help, too.”

  “Of course, and you shall.” He captured her hands and pressed his lips to the backs of them. “Tonight, however, there’s nothing to be done. If you’d like, we can join Harry in the taproom for a while. Or, if you’d prefer to be alone, I can leave you here—with the door locked—and retrieve you first thing in the morning.”

  She swallowed. “Or?”

  “Meg,” he said softly, “I would do anything for you. I would leave. I would stay. I would sit by your bed and watch over you as you sleep or make love to you all night long. I would do anything to give you a measure of peace. Just tell me what you need.”

  “I don’t want to be alone.” She stood, set the doll on the chair, and circled her arms around his neck.

  “It just so happens that I don’t want you to be alone either.” He chuckled, soothing her frayed nerves.

  She pressed her forehead to his, breathing in his familiar, masculine scent. She didn’t want him to go, but she couldn’t fall into bed with him just because she was distraught. Their situation hadn’t changed since she moved out of Castleton House. God willing, they’d find the twins … but then they’d go their separate ways.

  “Perhaps we could just lie beside each other?” She felt her face grow hot. “Unless that would be too difficult…”

  “It will be damned difficult,” he murmured, “but I will take as much of you as you’re willing to give. Now, and always.”

  “Thank you. I think that I might be able to fall asleep now that you’re here.”

  “Would you like me to leave while you change?”

  Her face got even hotter, but after all they’d been through and all they’d shared, it seemed silly to insist on privacy. “No, but perhaps you could face the wall?”

  He did as she asked and thoughtfully turned down the lamp as well. She’d never hauled on her nightgown so fast, and she tossed her dress over the back of the chair before scrambling beneath the covers of the narrow bed. “Done,” she said a bit breathlessly.

  “You can trust me, you know.” Amused, he sat on the chair and ate a few bites of her stew, shrugged off his jacket, and removed his boots. They chatted as he washed up and slid under the covers beside her, still dressed in his shirt and trousers.

  “If you’d be more comfortable without your shirt…”

  “I’d be more comfortable if you were naked,” he teased, propping himself up on an elbow.

  “I’m not certain I want you to be that comfortable,” she said dryly, “but I would not mind if you chose to remove your shirt.” His bare chest would be a pleasant distraction from her troubles. Tempting, too—but she would resist the pull.

  Shrugging, he pulled his shirt over his head and threw it on top of her dress. “Try to sleep,” he said, turning the lamp all the way down. “I’ll be
right here if you should need anything. Anything at all,” he added suggestively.

  Emboldened by the darkness, she snuggled close to him and slipped an arm around his waist. He caressed her arm lightly, lulling her into a content, trancelike state.

  “Everything will work out,” he whispered into her hair. “You’ll see.”

  How she longed to believe him. “If any harm should come to the twins, I’ll never forgive myself.”

  For several heartbeats, he was silent. Then he said, “Forgive yourself for what—wanting the girls to be happy? Wanting what’s best for them?”

  She appreciated what he was trying to do but wasn’t about to let herself off the hook. “I should have been more cautious about reuniting them with Lila.”

  “You couldn’t have known what she intended to do.”

  “I should have questioned her more, waited longer before entrusting them to her care.”

  “I don’t mean to split hairs, but I’m the one who decided to let the twins return to their mother. Setting that fact aside for a moment, would you condemn one of your sisters for acting as you did?”

  “They would never intentionally put a child in danger.”

  “Of course they wouldn’t. Neither would you. And you didn’t answer my question.”

  She thought for a moment, trying to find the crack in his logic. “I wouldn’t condemn Julie or Beth, but this situation is different. I should have known better.”

  “And why is it that you are held to a different standard? Are you more intelligent, more powerful, more responsible than they?

  She swallowed, glad that it was too dark for Will to see the tears gathering in her eyes. “No.”

  “Then why do you make yourself personally responsible for the safety and well-being of everyone around you?”

  “Maybe because the alternative is just too awful to contemplate.”

  He wrapped his strong arms around her and kissed her temple. “And what is that?”

  “That I can’t protect the people I love,” she said hoarsely. “That they could be snatched away from me at any time. That our happiness—our very existence—is subject to the whims of Fate.”

  “I’m afraid that has always been true, Meg. It’s the reason we need to love freely and fiercely while we can.” He stroked her hair, making her scalp tingle pleasantly. “Sure, we make our own choices, but Fate … well, she is squarely in charge.”