Despite herself, Alice laughed. “I envy you. My own misfortunes seem rather less straightforward.”
“Then I shall argue with Lady Hetherington in your stead.” Her aunt crossed the room and studied Alice with concern. “Is there any news about Lord Stafford today?”
“No more than yesterday.”
“Well, then,” Aunt Gwen said with brisk optimism, “no news is good news, as your uncle used to say. You must hold on to that, darling.”
“I shall try.”
When her aunt departed, the silence pressed in on her again.
Alice had told her everything on the second day she’d returned to the townhouse after Jackson had kidnapped Jamie. She’d answered questions and promised never to hide things from her again. Aunt Gwen had then assured her she wouldhappily live wherever Alice wished to go, after she’d explained what her father wanted.
“I’m sorry, darling, but your father has always been a vile and selfish man,” her aunt had said. Alice had agreed wholeheartedly with her assessment.
The problem was, Aunt Gwen might say she was happy to live anywhere, but Alice knew she loved London and her friends here, and she had no wish to take her aunt away from that.
Alice paced to the window. Beyond the glass, the garden stretched green and drowsy in the afternoon light. Bobby was down there with Ezra, listening intently as the man explained something to him. She had hired the boy on Maggie’s recommendation, and already his cheeks had gained color and his eyes hope. It pleased her to see some good come from all this chaos.
She heard the sound of footsteps and wondered if Phipps or Maggie was checking on her again, or perhaps another note had arrived about Jamie. However, it was neither of them that stepped into the parlor after the door opened, but her father. Alice’s heart sank. She did not have the strength to battle wits with him today.
“Daughter,” he snapped.
“Father,” she dipped her head.
“Well, what has been done about what we discussed, Alice?”
“You were only here a few days ago, Father. Surely the need to hurl me from my home is not that urgent.”
Alice wasn’t a nice person to be around when she was worried or tired, or both. She was that now, and her temper was on edge.
“You will marry, daughter, and if you cannot find a suitable candidate, then I will. It is time. Now, I need some money before I leave for France, and when I return, it had better be for your wedding.”
“There is no need, as she will be marrying me.”
“Jamie,” Alice whispered as he walked into the room. A bruise mottled his jaw, and there were dark smudges under his eyes, but other than that, he was as he’d always been. Strong and so handsome.
“Who are you?” her father demanded. He’d not walked in society for many years, so he had lost touch with the names and titles of his peers.
“The Marquess of Stafford.” Jamie’s tone bordered on pompous as he glared down at Alice’s father. “And you, sir, should be begging your daughter’s forgiveness for your behavior. What man tosses his family from their home so he can install his mistress there? What man demands his daughter—the daughter who has run his estates and business affairs for years on his behalf—must wed immediately. You, sir, are a disgrace.”
She really should intervene, but all she could do was stare at Jamie and smile. He was here, and whole.
“How dare you!” her father blustered. “Are you going to let him speak to me like this, Alice?”
“Yes, because you deserve it. Now leave, Father, and go back to your mistress. I will move out of this townhouse as soon as I find suitable accommodations for my aunt and me.”
“You’ll be moving in with me,” Jamie said, his eyes still on her father. “And I will not treat her as you have. With me, she will be happy and loved.”
“My daughter will not move in with you—”
“We will be married first, and to think I am suggesting otherwise speaks more to your nature than mine, sir.”
Her father’s face looked ready to explode, but he did not speak again, simply turned and left the room without looking at his daughter again.
“Jamie—”
“I love you, Alice.” He moved closer, taking her hands as he stopped before her. “I didn’t plan to fall in love, or marry a woman that I would worry and care about the remainder of my life. But you are that person.”
