Page 51 of The Marchioness of his Desire
“And Edward Johnson? Has he agreed to dine with you?”
“He has. I received his reply to my invitation when I returned from visiting with the countess. Rebecca’s uncle, too. The players are assembled, the stage is set, and now we shall see the drama play out,” Nicholas replied, sitting back in his chair and taking a sip of brandy, the satisfaction of having trapped his birds foremost in his mind.
Chapter Twenty-Two
As Friday evening approached, Rebecca grew increasingly nervous. The thought of once more being in the presence of Edward and the countess terrified her. She wondered if Nicholas had underestimated Edward’s cunning, for she now felt she knew him better than anyone. He was a cruel man, capable of wickedness and devilry. Might he even now have some fresh designs to use against them?
“Are you all right, Rebecca? You have hardly eaten a bite of your luncheon. The meat is very good,” Nicholas said as the two of them sat with Laura in the dining room.
“I … I was thinking about this evening,” she admitted, laying down her knife and fork. “There is something about it; I am nervous.”
He reached out to her and placed his hand upon hers, a reassuring smile coming over his face.
“Do not worry; all will be well. I promise you. It is merely a dinner; that is all,” he said, and she nodded.
“I just … well, the thought of being in the presence of Edward again, after what he did,” she said, glancing at Laura.
“I do not want to see our uncle,” Laura said, looking up with wide eyes, a fearful expression upon her face. “He was always so harsh in his treatment of us, he always shouted, and he was never kind.”
“You will not. I have asked Mrs. Thrip to take care of you this evening, Laura,” Rebecca replied.
But despite these precautions and despite Nicholas’ reassuring words, Rebecca grew gradually more nervous as the evening drew nearer. She thought about the countess and about Edward, of her uncle, and all that could go wrong. Sitting in her chambers at her dressing table, she put her head in her hands and sighed.
All she had ever wanted was a happy home for her and Laura. How close they had been to realizing that dream, and now it seemed it might be snatched away from them. The thought of having been sold by her uncle repulsed her, as did the fact that Edward thought her a prize to be bought. Now, she placed a string of pearls about her neck and rose to her feet. She was dressed in a pretty green gown and wore a shawl about her shoulders, the very model of a respectable wife.
“I will see this through, even if I must tremble all the way through this awful dinner” she whispered, glancing down at her hands, before making her way downstairs to find Nicholas pacing the drawing room, seemingly as nervous as she.
“The hour approaches,” he said, hurrying over to her and kissing her.
His embrace felt strong and reassuring, and she rested her head upon his chest, trying her best to calm the nerves which were rising in her even now.
“I do not know if I can do it,” she admitted, looking up at him with trepidation.
“Be strong. All will be well tonight; I know it,” he said, placing his hands upon her shoulders and kissing her upon the forehead.
“But what if Edward …” she began, but he shushed her.
“Do not think of what might be; think only of what can be if all goes well. We shall soon be rid of the countess and of Edward, perhaps even of your uncle. And then you and I shall be happy, I promise you,” he replied, kissing her once again.
At that moment, footsteps sounded outside, and the loud echo of the door knocker signaled the arrival of their first guest.
“I wonder which one it is?” Rebecca said, but she did not have to wait long to find out.
A moment later, the drawing room door opened, and the butler announced the arrival of Mr. Edward Johnson. Rebecca glanced nervously at Nicholas, but her husband now drew himself up to his full height and nodded to the butler to show their guest in. Edward appeared a moment later, dressed in a naval uniform, though Rebecca noted that several of the buttons were missing and his braiding was coming unstitched about his shoulders. He nodded to them both, a look of suspicion playing across his face.
“I have come,” he said, in a declaratory manner, and Nicholas stepped forward.
“You are welcome, sir,” he said extending his hand, and Edward smirked.
“Welcome? I am surprised I was even invited. Surely you do not wish for my company. You especially, Rebecca, not after the way you so forcefully rejected my offer of friendship,” he said, refusing Nicholas’ hand and instead flopping down upon a chair by the fireplace and looking entirely at home in his surroundings.
“It was a little more than an offer of friendship,” Rebecca replied, blushing, and turning away from his gaze, but Edward only laughed.
“And that is the reason I am here, I suppose? To discuss my terrible behavior. Are you to berate me, Nicholas? To defend your wife’s honor? She should have been my wife, and, after the scandal you have enacted, I say it again,” he said, fixing Rebecca with a hard stare.
“We may remain civil,” Nicholas replied, glancing up at the clock, the sight of which made Edward raise his eyebrows.
“Tell me, am I the only guest invited to dine with you tonight?” he asked, and Nicholas made no reply.
