He could only imagine what Ella was feeling.
Ella looked up at him, and in that moment, his heart ached for something he didn’t even realize he had been missing. He had been fighting for justice for a long time. But now he was doing it for another reason—not just for justice, but forher.
He folded his arms around Ella in the early morning shadows, and she melted against him. He relished her warmth against him—the steady rise and fall of each breath.
“I think I already know the answer,” he said in a low voice, “but are you all right?”
She drew a shuddery breath and looked up at him. “I am. But I’m worried. For Phoebe. For my father. What do you think is going to happen?”
Predicting such a result would be impossible. Even with the best of information, so many of the elements were completely uncontrollable. But she wanted reassurance. Perhaps sheneededreassurance.
“Well,” he began, “if Bauer did indeed take the money, it will be up to the Society as an organization or, at the very least, Hawthorne or one of the Society members to bring charges. They’ll likely have to engage the services of a thieftaker or someone of the sort. I’ll continue to seek Bauer on my client’s behalf, but before anything can really be done, we must locate him. Locatethem.”
She sighed again.
“I wish I could make this fair for you,” he added.
She smiled. “You are doing more than that, Gabriel. My whole life, most people have assumed I’m erratic and haven’t taken me seriously. You did. Youdo. And you listen to me without judgment. You have no idea what that means to me.”
“And I will continue to do so.”
“I’m worried about Phoebe,” she said as she leaned fully against him and rested her cheek against his shoulder. “What if she doesn’t wake up?”
He tightened his arms around her. “She will. But she’ll require a great deal of support, I imagine.”
Ella groaned. “Tomorrow morning is going to be an awful shock when the members gather for the lecture and there is no speaker.”
“How do you think they will take it?” he asked.
She inhaled deeply and leaned back so she could look at him again. “Someone will have to be honest about what happened. The last time the Society suffered a scandal, it nearly did not survive. This is so much worse. And if the Society does not recover . . .” Her voice faded.
He understood. If the Society were to disband, Keatley School would likely not have enough families who wanted to send sons to a school with such focus on the natural philosophies, and it might have to close its doors. If the boys school did not survive, then Ella’s dream of a girls school would not come to fruition.
He wanted to take away the concern and disappointment, the uncertainty and the unknown, but he could not do so.
Still, he could support her. Encourage her. And maybe . . . even love her.
He shifted, and she lifted her face up toward his. The night had been so long, so difficult, but he also felt more confident than he ever had. He brushed the hair from her face again and cupped her cheek. He lowered his face to hers and kissed her. When she did not pull away, he deepened the kiss and pulled her tighter.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, and as she did he knew he could never be content until he was sure she was happy and safe. That meant her concerns would become his, and in that moment he knew he’d do whatever it took to right the wrongs she was experiencing, no matter the cost.
Chapter 37
ELLA STOOD ATPhoebe’s bedchamber window. Through the ancient, wavy glass, dawn was breaking, and the faintest blue light crept over the verdant landscape. The pastoral view was the same as it always was—peaceful, lush, and calm—blissfully unaffected by the turmoil that churned within Keatley Hall’s walls.
Phoebe had not yet woken, and Mrs. Chatterly was asleep in the wingback chair by the waning fire.
Ella’s thoughts drifted to Gabriel. Comfort at the memory of his embrace enveloped her, and despite the seemingly unending difficulties, a robust flame of hope and optimism burned.
Gabriel cares about me.
He hadn’t needed to say the words aloud. The support of his arms around her, the tenderness of his touch, and his very presence emboldened and infused her with assurance she’d never imagined she could possess.
Ella had thought she knew exactly what she wanted out of life: She wanted to be at Keatley Hall. She wanted to open a girls school. She wanted to follow in her mother’s footsteps. It was her destiny. But what if she had been chasing the wrong path? What ifher future were to include love and marriage? Not because those things furthered the family’s interest, but because they were right for her?
A moan sounded from the bed behind her, pulling Ella from her thoughts.
“Phoebe!” Ella cried.
