The Wedding Affair (Rebel Hearts series Book 1) (18 page)

He squinted down at Felix, and the stench of gin reached her nose. She took a closer look at Felix’s friend as he swayed and realized he was utterly disguised, hardly in a condition to be fit for proper company let alone a sickroom. The man shrugged. “No need to worry.”

She had hoped for so much more. However, Jennings was here and he had answers Sally needed. “Why do you say that?”

“He has suffered this before.” Jennings strolled around restlessly; he leaned right over Felix’s face and then shrugged again. “He is not catching.”

Sally sagged against the bed, resting her hands over Felix’s thighs, and sent up a prayer of thanks. He would live. That was all she needed to hear.

Jennings stopped beside the duke. “Was that all? You interrupted a pleasant afternoon of drinking, I will have you know.”

Rutherford’s eyes grew flinty. “Not quite.”

Jennings heaved a sigh, then strolled away, inspecting the empty decanters on a nearby table. He pushed his hair out of his eyes and turned back to face them. “You know that fellow you sent after me is lucky I was in a good mood today and did not have a sword at hand. What more can I give in the service of my country, Your Grace?”

“Time. I want to hire your services for the day and tonight.”

Jennings inspected his fingernails. “It will cost you.”

“Insolent pup.” Her grandfather barked out a laugh. “Sally, you can leave.”

She glanced at Felix’s flushed face. She could not leave him. “But Felix…”

“No argument. If the captain is soon to be on the mend, you have no business remaining. Jennings will stay, and Rodmell can take care of them both very well indeed.” He came closer, grasped her arm lightly, and turned her toward the door—away from her lover. “Do you want Lady Ellicott to discover you here? I do not think she would agree that your intended sacrifice in caring for the captain is a harmless activity for an unmarried woman. She is already looking for you.”

He opened the door and pushed her out so hard she stumbled over her own feet.

Rodmell darted inside, carrying yet more ice chips. He glanced back once, shrugged, and then kicked the door shut with his foot. She straightened her gown and let out a huff, scowling at her treatment.

What was she to do with herself now? She would still worry for Felix until he had recovered his feet. But that begged the question: if she had been so ready to put her life at risk to care for Felix, could it really be over for them?

If he died, she would never have an answer. But if he lived, she had some hard decisions to make, and soon.

Chapter Nineteen

F
elix smoothed his cravat into place, embarrassed and ashamed to have worried so many people unnecessarily. He was seated at the duke’s dining table for breakfast again, still pestered by questions, but at least he could answer them now with better clarity. “I do not know what it is, in truth. I was afflicted some years ago with a fever-like malady after shore leave in the West Indies. It comes and goes on its own schedule. This time was the worst it has ever been in a long time.”

“You scared us all to death,” the duke grumbled, stabbing into his steak with more enthusiasm and even less finesse than a midshipman in the heat of his first battle. “And at my age I do not appreciate the experience.”

Jennings pulled a face. “We had our close calls with fevers a time or two on board the
Essex
. Not much can be done but bury your dead when they do not recover.”

Jennings and the duke made an odd pair of breakfast companions. They rubbed each other wrong Felix could tell, and yet the duke did not have Jennings removed and Jennings did not seem inclined to leave.

“I should not have been here,” he agreed, weary but well once more. He would undoubtedly lose his command, but there was nothing to be done about that. He had fought hard to manage the illness without detection until now, and he could not very well deny a report of incompetence made by a respected and influential duke. Rutherford was sure to tell his son, Felix’s admiral, all about the situation upon his eventual return to Newberry Park. “I will pack and leave immediately.”

“About time,” Jennings exclaimed, throwing down his napkin and standing.

“You can go whenever you want, Jennings. However, I am not finished with Felix, and he must stay.” The duke scowled. “What is it with you men in the service? You have not the least bit of patience for the way things must be done.”

“But my health is a black mark against me. Am I not unfit for command?”

The duke studied him until his skin prickled with alarm. “By your account, and that of Jennings too, your health is no different than it has been for the past few years when you have captained your ship with outstanding zeal for His Majesty.”

Felix was completely confused. “You do not think this illness affects my ability to command? I was insensible for two days.”

The duke patted his napkin to his lips. “What do you normally do on board when the fever comes?”

“Weather the storm. Have the officers dunk me over the side in the bosun’s chair on occasion. I pretend I need to bathe or deliberately lose a bet.”

“Yes,” the duke said then pursed his lips a moment. “I recall Laurence mentioning such a lark in one of his first letters under your command. I thought it highly foolish of you at the time and sure to lead to unrest, but my grandson says the crew respects you all the more. Next time we will toss you into the sea, although I hate to think how Sally will complain about the treatment.”

“Time for me to depart before this gets overly dramatic,” Jennings asserted suddenly, collecting his hat from a side table. “I will see you at the village, Hastings, when you are able to escape this lot.”

Felix waited until Jennings was gone before he faced the duke. “Why would Sally care?”

The duke sipped his coffee and then added more sugar. “What do you remember of the past few days?”

“Speaking with you, here, with Lady Penelope taking notes. Maitland’s valet and Captain Jennings arguing in the adjoining room about the length of his hair as it was being cut. I first thought I dreamed that altercation. My memories during my illness are often jumbled about.”

“Jennings had the look of a scoundrel about him on his arrival,” the duke remarked indignantly.

He had indeed. “Then waking up alone this morning as Rodmell laid out my uniform.”

The duke grunted. “There are some things that should be remembered. Think about the time you have lost again, Captain. Harder.”

He had dreamed of Sally, but he could not imagine her bent over his sickbed. Not after he had told her to never come near him again after arguing. Her cool fingers had slipped over his skin in the dream, enthralling him as she stripped off his clothes. She had begged him not to leave her in his dreams.

Her family should not have allowed it, and yet they had been there too.

He glanced at the duke sharply, fearing he remembered not a dream but Sally actually at his bedside. Her cold fingers had slipped between his lips with ice in the dream, and she had told him not to die. Damn, but she was a confusing wench. Had she been in his room and the duke knew about it? “I hope I have not caused problems.”

“Eat.” Rutherford pointed to Felix’s plate with his knife. “I have no more questions for you today, but I do have a favor to ask if you are well enough for a short journey.”

“Anything. I am entirely myself again.”

“Good.” The duke drained his coffee. “My granddaughter acts as my emissary about the estate. I would like you to accompany her on a visit she must make today, but only if you feel up to it.”

“Alone?”

“No, of course not alone. She normally takes a pair of servants with her, but I would like someone with a presence that can intimidate. Ensure she remains safe from harm and discourtesy and you will have my thanks.” He gestured to the world outside. “Morgan heard whispers of dissent among the tenants. With my eldest son and grandsons gone so often and so long, it appears some feel courtesy for a nobleman’s granddaughter is optional. She wants to call upon the wife of a somewhat difficult tenant.”

“I see.” The thought of Sally facing open disrespect did not sit well with him. There was no question he would go and protect her, but he had not exactly come prepared to be an armed guard. “I have only one pistol with me.”

“That cabinet there behind you will have everything you might need.”

Felix rose at the duke’s urging and surveyed the small arsenal inside.

“Be impressive, Captain,” the duke advised.

“Impressive?” Felix took a sword, second pistol, and sufficient shot for the weapon. After a second thought, he took a sheathed dagger to wear at his waist, hoping he would never need to use any of them. He held his arms out wide as he faced the duke. “Will this suffice?”

“Splendid. You appear quite bloodthirsty.” The duke chose another slice of ham to add to his plate. “I am trusting you with my granddaughter, Felix. Do not disappoint me.”

He frowned when the duke used his first name again, something he had never done before today in their conversations. “I would not dream of it.”

“Oh, and one more thing. Whatever you do, do not tell Sally why you are armed to the teeth. She will only deny there is any danger to be found at home.”

Felix shook his head. “She is a Ford. She is not afraid of anything.”

“No. Not even a little scandalous undressing of an incoherent captain.” The duke raised a brow. “I have to wonder where she learned so much about unfastening male attire when until recently she has kept all men at arm’s length.”

Felix cursed under his breath. No wonder the duke was in an odd mood today. “She should not have done that.”

“No, she should not have. But she did so after ordering me out and with hardly a blush to her cheeks. Rather interesting, don’t you think?”

It was very intriguing from his perspective; he had thought she would only care about him because he could bring her pleasure. Caring for him during an illness was quite unexpected and kind. Why Rutherford was not angry about the impropriety made him worry.

“On your way now,” the duke insisted. “My granddaughter rises early with the dawn and she has been waiting for you long enough.”

By the arch of the duke’s brow, Felix suspected he knew there was, or had been, something decidedly more between him and Sally than just the broken engagement. He did not understand why the duke was not keeping them apart though. She was marrying another man. A lord everyone in the family openly approved of.

Or had Rutherford a different opinion entirely?

Felix jammed his hat onto his head, nodded, and strode out to the stables without bothering to question his lack of resistance to Rutherford’s plans. First he was forced to keep a distance from Sally by one Ford, and now the head of the family kept throwing them together.

What did the duke mean for him to do about Sally, if anything, or was this just another test of his character? If it was, he had failed that test days ago to act as a proper gentleman.

Chapter Twenty

S
ally glanced over her shoulder as footfalls echoed in the cavernous stables. A tall, broad shape with the rolling gait of a naval hero drew near. She ran to him, wrapped her arms around his chest, and squeezed. “Felix,” she whispered.

He embraced her in return, his fingers cupping the back of her head gently. He spun her away from the open stable doorway and into a dark corner where they would not be noticed. “I am all right, sweetheart. Everything is all right now,” he whispered against her hair.

Sally buried her face in his coat and breathed deep. “You were sick for so long, and they would not let me stay with you.”

“So you
were
there in the beginning?” He kissed the top of her head when she nodded. “I am glad they sent you away. How would it have looked to your family and future mother-in-law if you were found in my bedchamber? The poor old duck would be scandalized. I was well looked after.”

Sally let out a shuddering breath and ran her hands up and down his sides. His coat pockets bulged with strange, heavy objects she could not identify at first. “How you were looked after by that pirate, Jennings, hardly bears thinking about.”

“He is a good man. He is just not used to being around women anymore.”

She pressed her head harder against him. He might have died, and seeing him standing before her, touching her, was all she wanted right now. Dear God, she had worried for him these past days. She wrapped her arms about his body and released the tension she had carried.

Curiosity got the better of her though, and after a moment of much needed reassurance that he was not a product of her imagination she drew back to toy with one of the strange shapes in his coat pocket, discovering what appeared to be the handle and muzzle of a pistol. “Why are you carrying weapons?”

Felix pushed her off his chest, but she caught his coat and held on. She parted his uniform and discovered a dagger sheathed at his waist that she had not known was there.

He glanced down at the weapon and shrugged. “It is a dangerous part of the world I am told.”

“Who said that? My grandfather?”

Felix neither confirmed nor denied the accusation but did change the subject. “Gabriel Jennings was married, and when his wife died while he was at sea the news changed him. Please make allowances for his bad temper at the injustice of life. She was a very special woman, and he adored her.”