His eyes misted in response to her words and for a second he found it impossible to speak at all. Swallowing the fear that he’d felt for the past few hours, he carried her back toward the house. “I love you too,” he murmured, his boots sloshing heavily against the tiles on the terrace and then through the hallways of Thorncliff. The maids would not be pleased but there was nothing he could do to change that. Instead, he decided to focus on the wonderful fact that Mary would soon recover from her injury. “I feared I might lose you.”
“Just tell me that we will soon be married.”
Dropping his gaze to hers as they made their way back upstairs, Richard said, “I have the special license, so as soon as you are well enough, I intend to make you mine.”
A small smile graced her lips. “And all this time, I thought that I would be the one laying claim to you.”
Quickening his pace, he said, “If that is what you wish, then there is not a moment to lose.”
Her smile broadened. “Apparently you were correct when you said that duels can be a terrible inconvenience. This one has ruined my entire week!”
He couldn’t help but laugh, pleased by her ability to spar with him after all that she had been through. Confident that all would soon be back to normal, he returned her to her bedchamber and the continued care of the doctor and Lady Foxworth.
When Mary returned downstairs a couple of days later, she was met by her aunt who’d left her side the previous evening at Mary’s insistence.
“You are looking increasingly well,” Lady Foxworth said. “How are you feeling today?”
“A little sore,” Mary told her as they strolled through one of the hallways together, “but I suppose that is to be expected.” Taking her aunt by the arm she added, “Thank you for all that you did for me after... You took very good care of me.”
“Not good enough, it would seem. Had it not been for Mr.Heartly, things might have gone differently. He was right to take you down to the lake when I wanted to keep you in bed. Honestly, I cannot recall seeing a man more terrified than he was that night when he thought he might lose you.” Placing her hand over Mary’s she said, “He loves you a great deal.”
“As I love him.” They continued for a moment in silence before Mary decided to bring up a more difficult subject. “About Andrew—”
“You need not concern yourself about him.”
“Of course I do! What he did to Mr.Heartly during the war is difficult to forgive, not to mention that he almost killed me.” Frankly, she couldn’t recall ever being so furious with someone before.
“He committed fraud,” Lady Foxworth murmured, her eyes darting in every direction to ensure that nobody heard her, “against the king of all people. It would be impossible for us to keep such a secret without becoming partial to his crime, and once the truth got out, the scandal would be overwhelming. Which is why I have asked him to leave the country.”
Mary’s footsteps came to a halt. “Did he agree?”
Lady Foxworth nodded. “He left for Portsmouth no more than an hour ago with the intention of starting a new life for himself in America.”
“Good.” She was glad that Richard would finally be rid of the man who’d plagued his life for so long. “What about funds though? He will need money—some sort of income.”
“Mr.Heartly has assured me that he will have enough money with which to get by until he finds employment.”
Mary blinked. “Employment? I do not believe that Andrew has ever worked a day in his life.”
“Then perhaps it is time he started doing so rather than relying on others for support.” They resumed walking while Lady Foxworth dropped her voice to a low whisper so she could say, “Andrew has disgraced our family, Mary. Your parents will not fault me for making this decision. Especially not since Andrew was in agreement. He seemed genuinely remorseful when he left.”
“I think you made the right decision. In fact, I am relieved to know that Andrew will no longer be close enough to hurt those that I care about.”
“Or you,” Lady Foxworth stated. “He almost killed you, Mary!”
“Believe me, I am aware. His recklessness is unparalleled by anyone else I have ever known. To think that he almost robbed me of my life when it is only just beginning... I doubt I will ever be able to forgive him for that.” Blinking back the tears that threatened, she quietly said, “But in spite of my anger, I fear that I will one day regret not saying good-bye to him. I suppose I just wish that I would have had the chance to do so. After all, he is my brother and if he is leaving for America, I doubt that I will ever see him again.”
“That is probably true, but when I mentioned saying good-bye to you, he said that he would rather write.” Lady Foxworth sighed. “If you must know, I believe he was too ashamed to face you after everything that has happened.”
“I suppose so,” Mary muttered feeling raw inside. Neither of them chose to mention that even now Andrew was taking the cowardly way out.
“You have been a good sister to him, Mary. Indeed, you risked your reputation in order to help him.” Lady Foxworth pressed her lips together. “I do wish that you would have come to me for help though.”
“In retrospect, that would probably have been a wise decision.”
“One that would have stopped you from seeking out the stage.”
A smile flickered across Mary’s lips. “The truth is, I quite enjoyed performing at the opera. It gave me a feeling of accomplishment.”
