“I am not a physician, but I can’t see it would do any harm.”
Mrs. Hobbs returned pushing a tea cart. “Here we go. There is nothing that a hot cup of tea can’t solve.”
“Mrs. Hobbs, my husband has awoken. He is resting now, but would it be possible to put together some food on a tray for me to take up to him?”
“Yes of course. Right away, Lady Hawksridge.”
Susanna poured tea for her and Mr. Marlow. She added sugar to hers and then sat back with a sigh and took a sip. The bergamot-infused tea swirled hot and sweet on her tongue and her frayed emotions smoothed. “Mr. Marlow, you are as kind and as gallant as your letters intimated.”
“Pardon?”
Susanna boggled her cup and saucer.Drat.She took another sip of the tea before setting it on the table. “Mr. Marlow, I have something to confess. Hawksridge and I were traveling to Weymouth Bay to find you.”
“Me? But why?” he replied.
“You can imagine my shock when you introduced yourself after saving our lives by chasing away those horrible highwaymen. Truly it’s providence working finally. This has been a godforsaken adventure of a trip and now with Miles being hurt, and all because of me.” She couldn’t hold back a small sniffle. She knew that she was babbling and probably making no sense. This was not the impression she had wished to make on Mr. Marlow.
Mr. Marlow held up a hand. “Lady Susanna, why would you be traveling to find me and what letters were you privy to?”
Susanna took a deep breath. “Let me start at the beginning. You see I live in Marbury, a small town in Hertfordshire. My friends and I are all avid readers and one day we were in our local bookshop choosing something new to read and we discovered that several books had letters tucked inside. The letters were beautifully vivid; they were love letters. Through some sleuthing, we tracked the shipment of books which contained these letters to a book seller in London and then found the name of the family that had sold their library.” She picked up her cup and took another bracing sip of hot tea.
He raised his eyebrows. “Well don’t leave me in suspense. What does this all have to do with me?”
Susanna licked her lips nervously. “You see the letters belonged to Hawksridge’s aunt, Lady Diana Wells, or as you may have known her, Diana Edwards.”
Mr. Marlow’s mouth opened as if to reply and then snapped shut. His eyes clouded with emotion. “She kept all my letters?”
“She hid them among her favorite books to keep her family from discovering them. And then after things ended, she left them in the books because she said it was too painful to read them.”
“She spoke about our affair?”
Susanna nodded. “I believe she has plenty of regret about not going with you that night.”
He scrubbed a hand down his face. “She is not the only one with regrets.”
The door opened and Mrs. Hobbs stood in the threshold with a tray in her arms. “Lady Hawksridge, the food is ready. Would you like me to take it up to your husband?”
Susanna jumped up. “No, thank you. I will do it. He is awake but feeling very disoriented. I think its best if I take care of him.” She turned to Mr. Marlow. “Will you please excuse me? Perhaps we can finish our discussion later?”
“Yes, of course. Would you like me to call for Mr. Kent?”
“Yes, please. He said he would come back once Hawksridge had regained consciousness. But I think in the morning would be soon enough.”
Susanna accepted the tray from Mrs. Hobbs and hurried upstairs.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Alight knockon the door jarred Miles from his whirring thoughts. “Come in,” he called out.
The door swung open and the woman,Susanna, came through with a tray in her hands. She used her hip to shut the door behind her. Miles gingerly scooted up a little bit so he didn’t have to raise his head to look at her. He winced. The side of his head still beat a throbbing drumbeat against his temple.
She set the tray down at the foot of the bed and hurried around to his side. “Let me help you,” she said as she grabbed another pillow and shoved it behind his shoulders. “How’s that?”
“Perhaps one more behind my neck.”
She stuffed one more behind his neck and he relaxed his aching head against it with a sigh. “Much better. Thank you.”
Susanna,he liked that name, grabbed the tray and moved it to the bedside table. “Are you up for eating something? You must be hungry.” She slathered butter on a roll and offered it to him.
