Heaven Bound (A Blakemore Family Book: Madame Lou Series Book 2) (27 page)

“Hear, hear!” several of the staff shouted and they all spontaneously erupted in applause and smiles.

Simon felt himself blush with pleased embarrassment. “Thank you all. And I must say that I am equally glad to know that when I leave England to go back home to New York, that Adeline will be left in such good hands no matter who she ends up marrying. Although, I have a funny feeling his name rhymes with madly.”

The maids all giggled and a few of the men coughed to cover up laughter. But it was all well- intended, so Simon didn’t mind. “Now, it’s time I got out of your realm and back to business. Albury, I’m going to take supper in my room this evening. I’m quite tired and will turn in early.”

“Yes, sir.”

Feeling as if his feet weren’t even touching the ground, Simon James spent the rest of the evening with a light heart and an easy mind and had his best night of sleep in years.

Adeline walked back to her bedroom in a daze. She wasn’t quite sure what had just happened, but she did know that her father had just released her from a promise they had both made to Margaret James before she’d died. Or so they had believed. But now, it appeared that Mother had never really cared about the title. It had all just been some sort of a misdirected competition that Mrs. James had participated in during the last years of her life, momentarily forgetting that she’d never really wanted that kind of life for her daughter at all. It was actually quite clear, from the letter Margaret James had written over twenty years ago, that what she had wanted for her daughter was the same sort of love match that she had shared with Addie’s father.

“Miss? You don’t look well.” Emily rushed to Adeline’s side and quickly led her over to a chair, pushing her down to sit. “Here, drink this.” Emily poured a glass of brandy from the decanter that had not been removed from her room since that night a few weeks ago.

“Thank you, Emily—I mean, Stone. No, I don’t like calling you by your last name. It feels too cold and distant,” Adeline said, sipping from the glass. “From now on, Emily, I’m going to do what feels right. No more trying to play by the rules that don’t make me happy.” She lifted the brandy up and looked at her maid. “Why don’t you have a bit and join me for a spell, Emily? I have some news, and I need some advice on what to do next. You are more experienced in the doings between men and women, so if you don’t mind, I’d like to hear your thoughts on the matter.”

“So what’s happened all of sudden to wake you up like this?” Emily asked, pouring herself a drink and sitting across from her mistress. “In the whole time we’ve been together, I don’t think I’ve ever heard you talking this way. Wasn’t it your father who called on the telephone just now? Whatever did he say to you? I haven’t had a chance to hear the gossip yet.”

Of course, there were no secrets in a house like this. Laughing, Adeline took a deep breath and told Emily what Mr. James had said about her mother and the letters she’d written before Addie was even born. “So Father said I can choose who I want to marry and it matters not if the man has a title, only that I love him. Can you imagine my father saying such a thing?”

Emily tipped her glass all the way back, then poured a second draught into her glass. “Never!” she said her eyes wide in shock. “Are you quite certain it really was Mr. James?”

“Quite,” Addie said, nodding in affirmation before she followed her maid’s lead, emptying her glass and pouring more brandy. “So now, my question to you, dear Emily, is how do I tell Jack that I am now a free woman? Or do I just leave in three days as planned and let him find out on his own?”

“Oh, you must tell him, Miss. I know he loves you, he must!” Emily said the words but the look on her face was one of concern.

“What, Emily, tell me what you are really thinking?”

“Well,” Emily said, now avoiding eye contact. “There is the remote possibility that he only agreed to your terms because he knew that he would not have to marry you after you’d...you know.”

“Yes, I do know.” Adeline said, thinking back to that first night and then remembering last night. “But last night—after—he said that he wished I would never leave. That must count for something as well.”

“You were with him again?” Emily’s eyes grew wide at the confession. “Well, that changes everything, doesn’t it? The first time I would have said it was just a passing fancy, but twice now and he didn’t want you to go...it could be love. Can’t be sure until he says it, though. Did he say it?”

“No, but I’m willing to give him another opportunity to do so,” Addie said, setting her brandy down. “You can finish that later, Emily. Right now I need you to help me prepare myself to go to Jack.”

Emily set her glass down and smiled at her mistress. “Well then, Miss, let’s make you irresistible. When Mr. Bradley sees you, if he hasn’t already declared his love, he will certainly be compelled to fall madly for you tonight.”

* * *

Jack had insisted on getting dressed today but by the time he’d taken both breakfast and luncheon with Winston and Lady Huntingdon, he had been too uncomfortable to attend tea as well. Retreating to his room again, he’d allowed one of the footmen to help him back into the loose silk pajamas he’d been favoring since the fire. Cook sent up a tray for his supper and he’d just finished it and was sitting staring out the window at the waning moon in the darkening summer sky when there was a knock at his door.

“Enter.” he called out, hoping it might be Adeline. He hadn’t seen her since after luncheon when she’d been called away to take a telephone call from her father.

“Hello, Jack,” Addie said, peeking around the door. “May I come in?”

Jackson smiled widely at her shyness. “You are so welcome to join me, Adeline; always.”

She came around the door and Jack could only stare. She was dressed in a particularly fetching ensemble that he thought was most certainly one of her French bits. Both the wrapper and the nightgown were blue silk in the exact shade of Adeline’s eyes. They were trimmed in silver lace and ribbons. The wrapper was hardly that, intended more to reveal than cover up the clinging gown beneath it. Jack’s breath caught as he eyes traveled up to where the garment was cinched under her breasts with a coy little bow holding the edges of the satiny material together over her firm, ripe, round bosom. The material was closely-fitted, revealing her already- hard nipples.

She followed his gaze and blushed, pulling the edges of the wrapper closed. “I shouldn’t have let you see this until after I’ve had a chance to tell you about my father’s telephone call earlier this evening. I have some news to tell you, Jack, and it might change your mind about, well, about me.”

“I don’t think there is anyone or anything that would change my mind about you, Adeline.” Jack said, confused by Addie’s words.

“What do you mean?” she asked, clearly trying to avoid saying whatever it was she had come to say.

Shaking his head, and wondering what Addie was up to, Jack just smiled and shrugged his shoulders. “That I wanted you before and I want you now, and there is nothing you could tell me that would change that.”

“That is all it is then? Just this physical joining?” Addie’s brows furrowed and she was biting her lower lip. He could see she wanted to say something but there was a concern holding her back.

“No, of course not, Adeline,” he said honestly, watching her visibly relax. “I enjoy everything about our time together; all of our time together, not just this. If we could just freeze time and never have to think about the future, that is what would make me happiest. To have you here with me and never leave, never have you marry some silly fop, or spend your days playing a noble hostess. But I know you can’t do that, I know you have other commitments that are important to you and no matter how much I want you to forget all them, I respect that you cannot.”

“But what if I could?” she asked, taking a step closer to him. “What if I told you that was what my father telephoned about? To release me and let me choose for myself. And what if I choose you, Jack? Would you still want me to stay then?”

Jackson sat speechless, trying to fathom what Addie had just told him. Could it be true? Was she really free to decide for herself? How could it be true? “Yes; oh, Adeline, yes!” Jack stood and in one step he had Adeline in his arms, all pain forgotten as he held her close and inhaled the sweet scent of her heady French perfume. “Do you really mean it? You will stay with me?”

“It is what I want, more than anything ever.” Addie lifted her face to gaze with what Jack thought was uncertainty at him.

Taking a deep breath, he lost himself in the endless depths of her wide blue eyes. He knew he couldn’t hold back his feelings any longer. “Dearest, Adeline. I have fallen quite deeply in love with you and was dreading your coming absence. Now that you’ve chosen me instead of becoming a fine lady with the possibility of a title for yourself and your children, I hope you will also do me the honor of becoming my wife.”

Addie was biting her lip again, and Jack thought for a minute that she was going to refuse his proposal. He wondered if his heart could bear such pain after all he’d been through this past year. “I love you, too, Jack, and I want nothing else in this world except to become your wife, but...”

Jack’s heart soared, she loved him! So why was she hesitating? “If you do love me, Addie, what could there be holding us apart?”

“Clara...”

Of course, Clara. Jack should have known that they would have to have this conversation eventually if they were ever to move forward. “We should talk about Clara.” Jack pulled Adeline over to the chair he had been occupying before and sat, holding onto Addie the whole time so she was forced to sit with him on his lap.

“Your injuries, Jack,” she protested, trying to get up.

“I’m fine,” he said, holding her tight, waiting for her to finally relax against his chest. “You’re right; we need to talk about Clara. It’s what we both need, to move forward with nothing between us. I’m going to tell you a story and you will sit here and listen. You may ask any questions you like and I promise to answer honestly. And then, when I’m through, you can decide if you will marry me and I won’t judge you if choose not to.”

Still biting her lip, Addie nodded agreeing to Jack’s terms and settled her head against his shoulder with her nose tucked snugly under his chin.

“I was only sixteen the first time I laid eyes on Clara, and for me it was love at first sight. She took a little more convincing, but eventually she declared her love for me as well and as soon as we were both old enough we ran away and got married.”

“Jack, I know all about yours and Clara’s history, what I want to know is about your love. How can you possibly love me even half as much as you loved your one true love? How will I live with knowing I can never replace her?”

Jackson was silent for a few moments, trying to find a way to say out loud what was truly in his heart. “You’re right, of course. Clara was my very first one true love. But that was before I knew I could have more than just one. And, while you can never replace the love I had and will always have for her, I do know that you don’t need to.” Jack moved Adeline’s head so he could look into her eyes while he expressed the feelings that were just now becoming clear to him. “Adeline James, I knew there was something incredibly special about you the moment I saw you, and even Clara knew I saw it. She must have always known that you admired me and how I always respected you and your courage. Looking back now, I can see that as soon as Clara knew she wasn’t much longer for this world, she started trying to plant the seeds of the idea of you and me carrying on without her. I sensed it and resisted with every bone in my body, wanting desperately not to betray Clara, even when I knew she was dying and knew it was her desire that I should find happiness after she was gone. I felt so guilty that I was attracted to your vitality and independence; everything that Clara did not have.” Smiling and stroking Adeline’s beautiful face and tracing a finger over her sweet soft lips, Jackson sighed as he felt himself becoming choked up. “I can’t lie to you, Addie; I do miss her. And even though in those final days she begged me to allow myself to love after she was gone, I knew what she really meant. I did try to resist your charms and I wanted to be angry at you for caring about us both, but I just could never get you completely out of my mind or my heart. So when you showed up nearly a month ago on my brother’s doorstep with your father, I knew then that Clara hadn’t given up on me or us. I suppose it’s as close to divine intervention as I’ll ever know.”

“Jack, I didn’t realize you knew what Clara had hoped for.” Adeline wiped a stray tear from her cheek.

“Neither did I…really. But lucky for us, we had that stubborn old Madame Lou to set us all straight.” Jack laughed. “I still don’t know if I believe she is really speaking to Clara, my father, and your mother, but I must say the old crone seemed to know just what to say to get us all back on track and remembering what is really important.”

“And what is really important to you, Jack?” Addie asked, needing to hear what he was finally ready to say.

“That I love you here and now and for our future together. And my love for Clara will always remain, but it is reserved for past memories only.”

Adeline smiled and the love in her eyes shone, lifting Jack’s spirits and renewing his soul. “I love you, too, Jack. And I promise to honor your past and cherish our future.”

Leaning over, Jackson gently kissed his fiancée and began pulling apart some of the bows holding her sexy silk gown closed. “I’ve wanted to do this since you walked in my door tonight.”

Addie laughed huskily and started to unbutton his pajama top. “I don’t think we are going to be able to get away with a long engagement, Mr. Bradley. It would be very bad form for the bride to appear unnaturally plump on her wedding day, don’t you agree?”

“Are you?” Jack asked, putting a hand on Adeline’s tiny waist.

“I can normally mark the days on a calendar for my womanly cycle, but this month, I’ve either lost count or something else is amiss.”

“I’ll get a special license first thing in the morning.” Jack said in between kissing the skin he was quickly exposing. “No need for anything too extravagant now that the King won’t be attending your wedding, Miss James.”