Page 73 of The Vagabond Viscount
She silently nodded, fighting her emotions. Her heart and head were a sorry mess. This day had always been coming, but now that it was here, she was at a loss as to what to do with herself. Leaving Flynn and her mother weighed heavily on Augusta’s heart. Flynn would soon join her in London, but the duchess might possibly never come home. Today may well be the last time they would ever speak.
Before the coach left in an hour or so, Augusta planned to go and say her final farewells to her mother. Last night, they had all attended a farewell dinner at Palazzo Lazio.
Turning in Flynn’s arms, Augusta kissed her husband. “Six weeks. You promise that in six weeks you will be on board a ship. You will return home to me. If you are a day late, I will come and find you.”
His warm embrace held a promise, which was matched with his words. “I am coming home to you. The moment you set foot ashore in England is the day I will be stepping onto a boat at the port of Civitavecchia.”
Their lips met once more in a long, lingering kiss. His touch bringing back memories of being woken by Flynn in the early hours of the morning and her husband making love to her. In the afterglow of their joining, they had curled up together. While Flynn slept, Augusta had watched the dawn as it broke through into a golden Rome sky. She hadn’t wanted to waste a minute of being in his arms. Sleep would find her when she was settled on the boat.
Time had slowly, but inevitably ticked down. Flynn would soon have to leave. His own final goodbyes had been made yesterday, with the reassurance to Gideon that he would soon return to England.
“I love you. Stay strong, and I will see you very soon.”
“I love you too.”
He kissed her one last time, and then he was gone.
ChapterForty-Four
Augusta fought her tears for as long as she could, but when the cross on the top of Saint Peter’s Basilica disappeared from view, and Serafina let out a cry of anguish, she buried her face in her hands and wept. She was leaving Rome. Leaving Flynn. Leaving her mother behind.
I shouldn’t have been so horrible to her these past few weeks.
She had let her anger dictate her actions, and now as she sat in the coach headed north toward the port of Civitavecchia, regret rushed in. The worry that she may never see the duchess again sat heavy in her heart.
Gideon reached across the carriage and gave Augusta a pat on the hand. “We did all we could to get Mama to come home. I gave her the box of love letters which Papa had written. I talked to her. And right to the very end, I pleaded with her to make the trip back to England. There is nothing more any of us could have done.”
Augusta closed her eyes. She had been cold and hard toward her mother. Had her own behavior acted to undermine all Gideon’s good work? How could she possibly face her father if she was the reason why Lady Anne didn’t come back.
“I just wish Mama could have, for once, put her stubborn pride aside. Now she will be all alone,” sighed Augusta. At this moment, she hated herself for being far too much her own mother’s daughter. If there was one fault in their personalities that all the Kembal females seemed to share, it was the inability to get out of their own way.
The pain of losing her mother only served to make her pain over leaving Flynn behind worse. Three months from now, she would see her husband again.
But will I ever see Mama?
The rest of the trip was spent mostly in silence. Gideon and Serafina sat hand in hand, occasionally whispering words of love and comfort.
Her brother had come out of his long trip to Rome with a wife. Serafina was now the future Duchess of Mowbray. The family line would continue. But the duchess wouldn’t see her grandchildren when they inevitably arrived. Augusta caught the expression of sadness on Gideon’s face whenever he turned and gazed out the window.
In the early evening, the coach drew up alongside the dock at Civitavecchia. The sight of the ship, which was to take them back to England, had Augusta screwing her eyes closed and bowing her head. She had longed to go home and see her family but had never imagined it would be under these circumstances.
Their luggage was taken on board. Gideon and Serafina stood together on the dockside. Every so often, Gideon would place a tender kiss on his wife’s forehead and murmur something to her. Love shone in his eyes, along with a fierce glint of protection. They would do well together.
I wish Flynn was here. I miss him already.
Augusta’s gaze kept darting back to the road. Her heart had not learned to stop seeking Flynn.
My husband will come home soon. Take comfort. He needs this time.
With the last of the travel trunks loaded, Serafina held out her hand, and a grateful Augusta took it. “Come, sister. It is time we sailed for home.”
They walked up the gangplank together, followed by Gideon. On board the boat, Augusta headed toward her cabin. She wasn’t sure if she had the strength to stand and watch as the ship drew away from the dockside. There was every chance she would dissolve into a flood of tears.
Augusta was halfway across the deck when a shout rang out from the crew, and she turned. Her gaze landed on her mother. Gideon was helping the duchess down from the gangplank.
Oh. Thank god. Thank god.
Her feet began to move toward Lady Anne. She couldn’t imagine how hard this moment must be for her mother. She was setting out on the journey home, unsure of her welcome back in London. But if the duchess could swallow her pride, then so could her daughter.
