Page 60 of The Scoundrel of Drury Lane
Maynard silently brewed with anger. The man was so full of undeserved confidence he had become blinded to reality. But Maynard held the majority of the shares and could sell without Thomas’s permission. As much as he wanted to keep his company, he was not about to face debtors’ prison over it.
“I should get back to my office,” Maynard muttered and left Thomas alone. Let him plan murder—Maynard would plan for escape instead. If he sold the company to Lennox, he might get enough to sail to America and start over. It wasn’t what he wanted to do, but it was his best option. He didn’t want to deal with Thomas or his schemes ever again. He was done with him.
* * *
Suzannah staredat the front door of the quaint country church. In one hand she held a bouquet of pink peonies, which set off the frost blue of her silk wedding gown. Her hand trembled a little as she faced the open doorway.
“Are you all right?” Darius asked. He had stayed by her side every second that Kit had not been able to, except when she had changed into her wedding gown at a little inn a mile back on the road.
“Y—yes... Oh Lord, I am nervous, though.”
“That is perfectly understandable. You’ve only known Kit a handful of days.”
“Are you trying to bolster my spirits or dampen them, Lord Tiverton?” she asked, her voice now holding a slight edge to it.
He chuckled. “Bolster most certainly, but please understand that if I didn’t think this was a good idea, I would have convinced Kit not to go through with it—for your sake as much as his.”
Somehow, that reassured Suzannah. Darius was a nobleman, not because of his birth and title, but because of something deep within him. He was an honorable soul, and because of that, she trusted him.
“Kit is a good man. I only wish you could’ve known him before he was sent away. This angry, brooding Kit, that is not the man he used to be.”
They both stared through the interior of the church’s open doorway. Kit was waiting for her at the altar.
“I’m glad to know him as he is now, even with his scars and pain. I love him, as foolish as that may seem. But I love him as he is, the man who suffered and fought to survive and come home. Maybe someday I will see that other softer, sweeter man, but this one waiting for me...” She nodded toward Kit. “He’s the man who fights for what he believes in. He didn’t come home for vengeance, no matter what he says. He came home for love, and I will give him mine.”
The Duke of Tiverton blinked and cleared his throat. “I could trust no one else but you with my oldest friend, Miss Townsend.”
Her eyes began to burn with her own tears. “Heavens, we shall both be weeping before we get to poor Kit, and he’ll wonder what has happened.” She tried to give the duke a watery smile as he discreetly wiped at his eyes.
“Quite right. Today’s a day of joy, but Kit won’t understand our tears of happiness.”
The pair made the walk down the aisle with only Kit’s friends and servants in attendance, all clustered toward the front. The mossy scent of old wood and recent rain, combined with the muted splashes of sunlight from the stained-glass windows, made everything perfect. Even the off-key organ being played by an elderly woman with thick spectacles, who kept having to peer at the sheet music over them before playing more than a few notes at a time, added to the effect. Suzannah would have wanted no other wedding than this. Henry and Mr. Palmer were in the front row, Henry sitting in a wheeled chair that they’d brought from London. He held a cloth bag of rice at the ready for when the ceremony was over.
Suzannah was lost to a wave of gratitude and love all around her, and when as she took Kit’s hand and spoke her vows to love, honor, and cherish, she was somehowfoundagain.
Oh, Papa... I wish you were here,she thought.But know that I am happy, truly happy.
Kit held her hand tight, making his own vows to love and honor her. His cheeks turned slightly pink as he added that he would cherish her. Her tall, handsome husband truly was a multifaceted gemstone. She knew his value, and it had nothing to do with his title or his money. He was a man who hadn’t let life keep him down, no matter how often it struck him down. He kept getting back up, fists raised, ready to do battle once more.
Since she had lost her father, she had struggled and fought, but the world didn’t see women or their struggles the way they did those of men. She may not have faced enemies upon a battlefield, but she’d fought every day for food on her table and candles to light her way at night when she worked. She’d fought off the unwanted advances of men and fought every day to have the world see her value.
Kit had seen past her situation and had seen her heart and talent the moment he’d met her. How could she not love a person who saw the truest version of others?
They were pronounced man and wife, and Kit took her in his arms and kissed her. She dropped the bouquet of peonies at her feet to curl her arms around him. Someone whistled appreciatively. The shrill sound had Kit pulling away sharply, searching the small parish church for danger. It took her a moment to realize his nightmare was coming back.
“Kit,” she said, cupping his face. “I’m still here.” She kept speaking softly until his gaze met hers and he calmed.
“Yes, yes. It’s all right,” he murmured to himself and squeezed her. “We should go. Mrs. Swanson will not want us to be late for the wedding breakfast.”
Kit had sent some of his new staff ahead of them to his country home, Kentwell House, where they were preparing a breakfast for the small retinue of guests.
“Congratulations, Suzannah!” Henry bellowed with all the excitement of a young man his age. Rice pelted Suzannah and Kit as they passed by the boy.
“Notinside, blast you!” the clergyman cursed and marched over to Henry, demanding he surrender the bag of rice. Kit let out a loud, joyous laugh as he ushered Suzannah away from the commotion.
“I’ll be finding rice everywhere for the next week,” Suzannah said. It was in her hair and most certainly down the inside of her dress.
Kit ruffled a hand through his dark unruly hair, and rice cascaded over them both, making her laugh.
