Page 49 of Drowned in the Pleasure of a Devilish Baron
“My dear, what a beautiful response!” he said. “What a show, indeed!” He stepped closer to her, sending her on her heels. “But don’t you see, pretty Miss Marlow, that you have only proven me right? For surely a true lady would not react so strongly to the words of a gentleman?”
“You, sir, are no gentleman, and you have made that quite clear this evening,” she said, and turned sharply on her heel to return to the front door.
The moment she entered, untying her shawl with hands shaking in anger, her mother fell upon her. “Sarah! Where is the Earl? How did it go?”
The door opened behind her before she could reply, and she knew by the heavy scent that it was the Earl himself.
“Lord Ashton, we were only coming to invite you into the drawing room for a drink. I am sure you would like to something to warm you before you begin the long journey back to London in the dark,” Lady Marlow said.
“I would appreciate that very much,” he said.
Sarah, knowing there was nothing for her to do but follow, joined them all in the drawing room, where a glowing fire was lit and the small table was set with whiskey for the gentlemen and sherry for the ladies. She took her seat at her mother’s side.
“Did you enjoy your walk, My Lord?” Lady Marlow asked. “Our garden leaves something to be desired, to be sure.”
“On the contrary, Lady Marlow, I found it to be enchanting. Though that may have been due to the wonderful companion I shared it with.”
John and their mother exchanged a look so obviously full of gloating triumph that Sarah would have felt embarrassed if she did not dislike the Earl so strongly. If only their clear desire for the Earl’s approval would send him away, but she was quickly realizing that he would not be put off so easily.
“John, I think I will take that cigar now, if you are amenable. There is something important I would like to discuss with you.” The look he slid Sarah’s way with these words made his meaning clear.
“Have it here, My Lord.” Lady Marlow stood and gestured that Sarah should as well. “We ladies are off to bed for the evening, and you will be more comfortable here than in John’s study.”
Lord Ashton stood gracefully and directed a deep bow to Lady Marlow. “Thank you for the wonderful dinner this evening. I am very appreciative of such a fine English meal after so many years abroad.” He turned to Sarah and bowed deeply once more. “And thank you, Miss Marlow, for your very fine company this evening. I have enjoyed getting to know you immensely.”
Sarah curtsied and thanked him, the words coming routinely through her cold lips as she left the room alongside her mother.
Once they were out of earshot, her mother took her arm and stared at her with gleaming eyes. “Well done, Sarah! You have entranced him! I saw it myself! However did you manage such a thing so quickly?”
“Mother, he was frightfully rude and over-familiar—”
“Oh, the very rich can be that way, darling, don’t worry about that. He is likely used to having what he wants, only be glad that what he wants isyou!”
“Mother, I do not—”
“Make way for Lady Ashton,a countess,” her mother marveled, not seeming to hear her.
“Mother, please listen to me!” Anger colored Sarah’s tone now, but it still did not kill the look in her mother’s eye. “He is not a gentleman, and I refuse to marry him.”
“We will speak more tomorrow,” Lady Marlow said and went to her rooms, practically floating on air as she did.
Sarah watched her go, a claustrophobic frustration flooding her heart as she went into her own room with a sick understanding of the situation she was in.
They are truly going to force me to marry this man.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Felix walked his fields, his heart full to bursting with joy at the sight of it. With the help of Lord Camden’s loan and Monsieur Dubois’s men, the cold, barren, unyielding hills of his land were being transformed.
Ahead of him, spread as far as the eye could see, were rows of freshly tilled, beautifully rich soil, where the buds of new growth would be nestled safely and promisingly within. No longer were his home and land quiet and sad, now they overflowed with life. Working men called out to one another, Monsieur Dubois overseeing every bit of work but just as often found in Felix’s cottage, nursing a glass of wine. Leonard visited daily, as excited as Felix at the prospect of new life on the Andrews land that had been idle for so long.
As he strode, hands proudly on his hips, boots muddied from the soil that would give him a future, he felt happier than he had been in a long time, maybe ever. It was all within his grasp now. Marriage to Sarah, and the ability to provide for her and the family they would create together, he could see it all before him, sparkling like the rarest diamond.
He made it to the outcrop of buildings that had gotten Monsieur Dubois so excited. Within just a week’s time, the workers had whipped the buildings into shape. They were still cold inside and had clearly been on the land for a long time, but a fresh coat of paint and run of maintenance had left them looking like proper work buildings. The insides were filled with expensive equipment that he could not name yet, but he would learn.
Though most gentlemen kept themselves dignified and well-separated from the labor that made their wealth possible, Felix had spent too many years scrounging to get by to allow that to happen. He was not able to simply sit back and wait for the money to pour in; he wanted to be a part of all of it. He wanted to learn it all, and know everything about the drinks that would be made on his land.
And if that’s frowned upon by the ton, then so be it. I’ve lived with worse than their displeasure.
