The Duke's Family for Christmas
Auteur·e
Sarah Mallory
Lectures
17,7K
Chapitres
24
A heartwarming Regency romance He has until Christmas Eve… To make them a family! Determined to claim the son his late wife kept secret from him, Leo, Duke of Tain, is working in disguise as his tutor. Until Miss Lily Wrayford, the child's fiercely protective guardian, discovers Leo's true identity… and gives him until Christmas to prove she can trust him! All Leo wants is to be a good father, but might this brave, captivating woman be the final missing piece of his family?
Chapter One
The hall clock was striking the hour. Lily perched on the edge of her bed and counted the chimes as they echoed through the dark, silent house. Eleven. She rose and threw her cloak around her, covering the pale grey riding habit. Her fingers were shaking as she tied the strings but at last it was done. She took a deep breath. It was time.
Picking up her candle, Lily went quietly along the passage to the nursery. The door was open, and she saw Betty inside, already dressed in her cape and bonnet and with a sleepy Toby on her lap. The little boy looked up as Lily entered, his dark eyes looking huge and luminous in the dim light.
‘Are we going now?’
‘Yes, my darling.’ She injected a note of excitement into her voice. ‘We are off on our adventure!’
He knuckled his eyes. ‘But I’m tired.’
‘Never mind, Master Toby,’ said Betty as she rose and settled him comfortably on her hip, ‘you can sleep in the coach.’
She cast a quick, anxious look at Lily, who smiled.
‘Quite right, you can. But it is time to go. Come along, and quietly now.’
They crept down the stairs and made their way across the empty hall to the door. There was only one bolt to pull back, and that had recently been greased to make it easy to move. Lily gave silent thanks for Mitton’s thoughtfulness. She had insisted that none of the servants should attend their going, because that way they would not be forced to lie to the Duke when he called. And call he would call, once he learned Toby was gone.
Outside, the moon shone brightly on the waiting carriage. Betty climbed in with Toby, then Lily quickly followed. Her groom, who was acting as footman for the journey, shut the door upon them and scrambled up onto the back of the carriage. It was only as they moved off that Lily realised she had been holding her breath.
Toby wriggled off his seat and climbed up beside her. She encouraged him to lie down and put his head in her lap, stroking his soft brown hair until he fell asleep.
‘Poor lamb, this is all so strange for him,’ murmured Betty. She paused, then: ‘If you please, ma’am, will you tell me now where we are going? I understand why you couldn’t say earlier, but I should like to know.’
Lily bit her lip. ‘I am not sure precisely where we are going yet, although I thought it would be best to travel east, into Wiltshire. I have ordered the coachman to change horses at the Globe.’
‘The Globe, in Wells? But that be more’n twenty miles, mistress!’
‘I am aware, and it means we must travel a little slower and look after the horses, but I thought it better than having the Duke discover our direction from one of the nearer post houses.’
‘You think he will come after us, then?’
Lily could not help the little shiver of fear running down her spine.
‘I am sure of it,’ she said. ‘My only hope is that we can evade him long enough to get far away. Somewhere I can live under another name.’ Even though she could not see the maid’s face in the darkness she could feel her disapproval. She went on. ‘I know you do not like it, Betty. Neither do I, but I cannot, will not, give Toby up to that man.’
‘But he’s Master Toby’s father, ma’am, when all’s said and done. I cannot be easy in my mind about this.’
Lily understood the nursemaid’s reaction. She knew this was a desperate measure, but she was convinced it was necessary.
She said quietly, ‘Then perhaps you should not come with us. I shall be very sorry to lose you, Betty, but I would not have you do anything against your conscience.’
She waited anxiously for the reply. It was not for Toby’s sake that she wanted Betty to stay. At seven years old, he no longer needed a nursemaid, but Lily dearly needed a friend.
‘Then I’d be grateful if you could set me down at Rooks Bridge, ma’am. I have family there, and they’ll take me in until I can find another position.’
Lily’s heart sank. ‘Yes, of course, if that is what you want.’
‘Nay, I don’t want to leave you, Miss Lily, but I think it is what I must do.’
Lily nodded and let down the window. She shouted her instructions to the driver and not long after the carriage began to slow. She pulled her purse from her reticule.
‘Here,’ she said, pressing coins into Betty’s hand. ‘That should cover the wages I owe you. If you write to Mrs Burnham she will furnish you with a good reference, I am sure. She has been housekeeper at Whalley House for so long I am sure her recommendation will carry sufficient weight in this area.’
‘Thank you, ma’am, I will write to her. And I’m sorry I can’t stay, but hiding the little man from his father...’ She trailed off as the carriage came to a halt.
‘I quite understand.’ The footman scrambled down to open the door and Lily waved Betty away. ‘Go quickly now, while Toby is sleeping.’
The maid climbed out of the coach and then turned back, her solid form illuminated in the moonlight.
She said earnestly, ‘You may be sure I won’t tell a soul about this, ma’am. You have my word.’
‘Thank you, Betty.’
The door closed and the carriage lurched forward. Lily closed her eyes and willed herself not to cry. She felt more frightened and alone than she had ever done in her life. The image of Leo Devereux rose up, clear as a painting in her mind, with his charming smile that hid a will of iron and those near-black eyes that pierced her very soul.
How she wished he had never come to Lyndham and turned her ordered life upside down.
