Page 71 of Her Daring Earl
“I don’t want to leave you.”
“It’s only for a moment,” he said. “Besides, Eliza, I need you to know something.”
She looked at him expectantly.
“You will never lose me. Even if something did happen to me. Because we will always find one another here.” He pointed from his heart to hers. “You are the only one who will ever own mine. And I would like to take up residence in yours.”
She nodded, holding her breath, for she had no words – just tears.
But they were happy ones.
For he was right. No matter what happened now, they would always have one another. That’s what love truly meant.
CHAPTER 24
As it turned out, devising their trap took much longer than anticipated.
The detective Levi had hired, Matthew Archibald, wanted to be sure that all was in order before they put a plan in place that could cause Fitz to be put in harm’s way once more.
Fitz couldn’t say that he overly minded, for he spent all of his time with Eliza.
Time which was often spent in bed, after the week it took him to recover.
Eliza refused to leave his side. As much as he wanted her to remain somewhere that he could be sure that she was safe, he supposed if she had to be in London, it was best to keep her close. He loved that she thought she was protecting him, but he supposed, in a way, she was, for her presence encouraged his improvement.
When Archibald came to see him, ready to put their plan into place, Eliza asked to be present in the meeting.
“She insists,” Fitz said helplessly as he led the man into his study, where Eliza waited.
Archibald only laughed. “I understand. My wife would do the same. I am glad to see you on your feet, Fitzroy. When I first met you, you were in a particularly bad way.”
“So, I am told,” Fitz said, rocking back and forth on his heels. If Eliza’s concern hadn’t been enough, Levi had come to visit and had told him that he’d had fairly grave concerns that Fitz wasn’t going to make it through. Fitz had made a jest of it, telling Levi that he had to change his surly attitude but, deep within, Fitz would admit that he had a similar concern.
If it hadn’t been for Eliza, he wasn’t sure that he would have been able to have the strength to fight hard enough to return.
But here he was. And he had enough of this.
“I was fortunate that your brother-in-law was summoned,” Fitz said. “I hear he is quite an extraordinary physician.”
Archibald nodded. “Hudson is certainly sought after, for his patients seem to fare better than most. I agree that you are most fortunate that one of your colleagues knew of his skills.”
Fitz paused before they entered the study, a thought striking him.
“Who called him? Which gentleman?”
“Mandrake, I believe his name is.”
“Mandrake?” he repeated, furrowing his brow. “Are you certain?”
“Fairly certain, yes,” Archibald said as Fitz waved him through the door. “Why does that not seem accurate?”
“Mandrake was who I guessed poisoned me,” he said, noting Eliza’s look of surprise at his words. “He and I do not agree on anything political, and he was upset with me for my objection to him courting my sister.”
“It thought you told him you would allow it,” Eliza interjected.
“I said that if Dot agreed, he could call upon her,” Fitz said. “That is a far cry from allowing marriage.”
“Hmmm,” was all Eliza said, as Archibald considered the situation.
