Regency Romance Collection: Regency Fire: The Historical Regency Romance Complete Series (Books 1-5) Read online

  On his fourth day, Gabriel had not been disappointed. He had once again waited patiently in Tangletree Wood, having seen her ride in that direction on every one of her morning excursions. Of course, he had not followed her into the wood on any other day, not wanting her to realise that he had kept her under scrutiny and had watched out for her habits.

  When first he heard the sound of approaching hooves, Gabriel had drawn his horse back a little from the path through the woods, concealing them both somewhat behind the heavy bracken. However, he had watched the pathway from his vantage point and given a great sigh of relief when he saw that it was indeed Evelyn who was approaching.

  Evelyn looked truly beautiful, wearing a velvet gown in a deep shade of green with a matching cloak and bonnet. Her hair had come a little free from its moorings at the back, and great shiny chestnut tendrils swung about her shoulders. Her cheeks were rosy, and her eyes were bright from her ride across the open, windswept moorland. Evelyn had clearly ridden her horse hard, and Gabriel could tell she was breathing rather heavily. The chest and shoulders seemed to be rising and falling rather fast, and something about the sight of her almost doubled Gabriel’s pulse.

  Finally, just moments after Evelyn had gently trotted by on her horse, Gabriel came out from his hiding place and began to follow.

  Her horse immediately sensed something behind him and began to prance a little. Gabriel quickened his pace, keen to be at her side before her horse began to misbehave.

  “Good morning, Lady Godfrey,” he said, in a bright and cheerful way.

  It came as no surprise to him that Evelyn looked startled to see him there. What he had not been expecting, however, was that she should look afraid.

  “Duke,” she said, rather shortly. “What on earth you doing here?”

  “I was just out for a ride, My Lady.”

  “I don’t believe you,” she said and turned sharply in her saddle to look over her shoulder.

  Once she had looked over her shoulder, Evelyn began to look all around her.

  “My Lady, what is troubling you? Who are you looking for?” he said, realising immediately that the young woman had assumed she was being followed.

  “I’ll ask you again, Sir, why are you here?” She looked back at him and held his gaze for a second only before resuming her surveillance of the entire area.

  “Alright, I shall not go on with my charade of just happening upon you. I must be honest, My Lady, and tell you that I was particularly hoping that you would come by.”

  “And why was that?” she said, not even bothering to look at him this time.

  “Because I find I rather like your company.”

  “But I am engaged to be married, Sir, and I cannot be seen with you.”

  “Why, what has happened?”

  “Why should something have happened? Are not all engaged ladies inclined to be exclusive to their fiancé?”

  “Not to this extent, My Lady,” he said and tilted his head a little, trying to force her to look at him.

  Evelyn did not bother to respond, but once again turned in her seat to see if they were being followed. Gabriel found that, more than anything, he wanted to get to the bottom of it all. It rather struck him that Evelyn was truly afraid, and he wanted to know the source of that fear. Of course, he felt certain it was in connection with the Cunninghams as a whole, but he wanted to know specifically what had occurred. Who and what had frightened her so?

  At that moment, Gabriel realised that he felt something for Lady Evelyn Godfrey, and he certainly saw her as more than simply a means by which he would punish the Cunningham family. In truth, all he wanted on that morning was to simply protect her. The feelings he had for her had been building since their first meeting, and he knew it. After their afternoon tea at Harbury Hall, Gabriel had found himself unable to think of anything but Evelyn. Worse still, he seemed to have laid the feud firmly to one side.

  “My Lady,” he said, trying to gain her attention to no avail. “Evelyn.” On hearing her name spoken, finally, she turned to look at him.

  “Forgive me, Sir, but either I must leave or you must. I cannot be found here with you; I simply cannot.”

  “Please, at least, tell me what or who has put you in all this state. I do not want to leave here today without knowing.”

  “And what good can come of you knowing, Sir? There is nothing you can do about it, so I would be doing no more than simply satisfying your curiosity. Now, I beg you would release me.”

  “I understand that you are uncomfortable here, but please just follow me for one moment into the cover of the bracken where at least we can talk without you perpetually looking around.”

  “I see no point,” Evelyn said, and her fear was making her short-tempered.

  “Please, Evelyn, please.” Finally, Gabriel was able to look into her eyes. For a moment, hers softened, the fear replaced by something else. In his heart, Gabriel rather hoped that what he could see in her eyes was a little of something he was beginning to feel in his own heart. “Please, just follow me. Just for a moment,” he beseeched.

  “Alright. But please understand that I can only remain but a few short moments,” Evelyn said and obligingly turned her horse to follow him deeper into Tangletree Wood.

  Gabriel led her so deeply into the wood that, in the end, they were almost picking their way through the bracken and branches.

  “Is this far enough, My Lady?” Gabriel asked. He was keen for her to be able to relax if only for a few moments.

  “Yes. I shall stay just a moment or two. Please say what you must say and release me, Sir.” Although her tone was short, Gabriel was pleased to see that she no longer looked about her for any sign of a witness.

  “Who do you think is following you?”

  “I do not know. In truth, I could not say that I am being followed as such.”

  “But you have reason to believe you might be followed. Why?”

  “My fiancé’s sister has discovered that I spoke with you at the home of Amelia Merriweather.”

  “So?” Gabriel said although he knew well the ramifications of what she was saying.

  “I am sure you are perfectly well aware. You need not waste time, Sir, for I finally realise how very deep and dark this feud must be. In truth, I always thought it a simple dislike. I never expected for a moment that I would be threatened so on account of it. And it is not just myself under threat, but my family is too. And so, I am sure you will understand why I shall have to shortly leave you and beg that you never approach me again. I would beg that you never once look my way nor smile at me if you see me. Please behave as if I do not exist. In truth, I feel I do not, so it should be easier than you might think.”

  “Good Lord!” Gabriel said, his hackles rising. “Tell me exactly the threat that was issued and by whom.”

  “But what good can it …?”

  “Just tell me. I shall not leave this place until you do. I must know, Evelyn.” Gabriel did not know what he would do with the information once he had learned it, but he was compelled by something deep inside to pursue the matter.

  “Eleanora Cunningham.”

  “Why am I not surprised? She is as vile as that mother of hers. They are as twin demons sent to earth by the Devil himself.” Gabriel almost spat the words.

  “You shall have no argument from me,” Evelyn said and stared straight into his eyes.

  Once again, Gabriel found himself lost in the bright blue depths, almost as if he had been taken prisoner. For a moment, he could hardly think of what to say.

  “And tell me, what threat was made to you?”

  “Eleanora told me that if I ever spoke to you again, she would tell the Duchess.”

  “Indeed? So the Duchess is not yet involved?”

  “No, and nor do I want her to be,” Evelyn said and shuddered. “For Eleanora led me to believe that they will come up with some scheme or scandal that would shame my family and me so badly that I shall never find a suitable husband anywhere in En
gland. Oh, and I believe her. She seemed almost to delight in my fear of it all. And I do not doubt her mother capable of the thing.”

  “No, Prudence Cunningham has ice running through her veins; she is a bloodless creature.”

  “And so I am sure you can see why it is I can never happen upon you again.” Evelyn stopped for a moment, and then looked at him squarely in the eye before continuing, “I know that you and my cousin contrived our meeting at Harbury Hall. Stuart never invites me for tea. He is famously lazy in such things.”

  “But …”

  “No, Sir, I beg you would hear me.” She held up a soft, milk-white hand to stay his voice. “And it was only after I recognised the fact that I realised that my invitation to Amelia Merriweather’s home was likely contrived on the same grounds. You wished very specifically to meet me, Sir.”

  “Yes, I did,” Gabriel said and wished at that moment that he had never sought her out as a means of fulfilling his plan. He should have seen her for the intelligent beauty she was and pursued her for her own sake.

  “And I suspect I know why, Sir.”

  “Perhaps, initially I …”

  “And I shall not be used so cruelly. Not by you or by the Cunninghams. I am a human, Sir, and find myself dismayed by all the lies and the hate. I am not a part of this battle, either for you or Richard Cunningham. I would wish myself a thousand miles away if I had but the means to get there.”

  “Please believe me when I tell you …”

  “Please, Sir, I would beg you do not tell me anything further. I found myself rather liking you, and the sudden realisation that I am no more to you than I am to my fiancé has come as something rather painful to me.”

  “But I grew to hold you in high regard, Evelyn. Please, do not let things end in this way.”

  “There is nothing to end, Sir. After all, as far as the world is concerned, we simply met by chance at the Merriweather home. Nobody knows of our meeting at my cousin’s home, nor shall they. There is nothing to end between us, Sir, for there is nothing between us.” Evelyn expertly turned her horse whilst avoiding the low hanging branches. “And now I shall leave you. I have told you everything as you requested and hope that you can see what harm you would do me and my family in disregarding my wishes. You have already used me very ill, Sir, and I beg you would not do that again.” And with that, Evelyn heeled her horse away to gently regain the unfettered path.

  Every fibre of Gabriel’s being was urging him to follow her. And yet his head told him that she would not welcome it; rather it would push them further apart.

  As he rode away in the opposite direction, Gabriel wondered how it was he had come to such a dilemma. How had he fallen in love with Evelyn Godfrey at all, let alone so quickly?

  One thing was for certain; there was no way on earth he would allow the marriage of Evelyn Godfrey and Richard Cunningham to come to pass. He knew not how he would stop it all, only that he would. Gabriel Farrington was quite determined, and he was not a man who was used to his determination coming to naught.

  Chapter Eight

  “I think we’ll have this fabric for the wedding gown,” Prudence Cunningham said, waving a small piece of heavily embroidered lace in front of Lady Gorton.

  Evelyn almost groaned out loud to hear her mother capitulate to the overbearing woman once more, as she nodded and smiled and exclaimed over the beauty of the fabric.

  “Oh yes, Duchess, what a marvellous choice,” Lady Gorton said in her most simpering tones.

  Whilst Evelyn had never been particularly keen on her parents’ choice of suitor for her, she had always rather gone along with things, thinking that she owed her family greatly for the life they had given her. And yet, as she listened to her mother bowing and scraping to the terrifying Duchess, she wondered why it was her parents would so happily sacrifice her to a family they themselves were afraid of. Did she really mean so little to them? They would sell her off to keep the Gorton Earldom going, the only consequences being suffered by Evelyn herself.

  For the first time in her life, Evelyn felt utterly rebellious. If only she had some means of securing her own future, she would kick dirt in their faces and walk away from all of them. Her parents, the Cunninghams, and Gabriel.

  At the thought of Gabriel, Evelyn had a most curious feeling in the pit of her stomach. She knew that she had liked him from the very first, and not just because he was so unusually handsome. There had been something about him, a directness of manner which Evelyn had entirely appreciated.

  Moreover, he had seemed genuinely interested in her opinions, and that was something that Evelyn had never found outside her small circle of female friends. And, of course, Evelyn knew that circle would grow ever smaller once she was under the complete control of the Cunningham family.

  As Evelyn imagined her every move being watched and controlled by Eleanora and the Duchess, she was assailed by an image of herself laughing and smiling in the drawing room of Amelia Merriweather. Eleanora’s interference meant, of course, that Evelyn would never be able to go there again. Her world was getting smaller and smaller, and she was not yet married.

  “I believe you are related somehow to the Earl of Harbury.” Eleanor looked up from the endless swatches of fabric. The only person with little or no stake in the fabric of this wedding dress seemed to be the bride herself.

  “Yes. Stuart Penhaligon is my second cousin, Eleanor,” Evelyn said without any feeling at all. She and Eleanor had not been in one another’s company since Eleanor had gripped her arm in the grounds of Horndean Hall.

  Evelyn subconsciously rubbed her arm and noted the fading bruise was still sore to touch.

  “Tell me, do you see much of him?” Eleanor went on.

  Evelyn wondered just how far Eleanor might take this conversation in front of their respective mothers. Her mouth went suddenly dry, and every breath felt raw and painful.

  “Now and again. We are not terribly close. Why?” Evelyn had dreaded asking the question, but knew she must.

  “I thought I really ought to make you aware that Lord Harbury is a very close friend of Gabriel Farrington. I have only just discovered it myself and would have made you aware far sooner had I known.”

  “Indeed?” Evelyn said, feigning ignorance.

  “Of course you know of the long-running discord between our family and the Farringtons. Well, since you are about to become a part of our family …” Eleanor let the sentence trail away and hang in the air.

  “Oh, I see!” Lady Gorton finally broke in, keen to bow down to the Cunninghams once more. “But of course the tie shall be broken. It is a very loose sort of a tie as it is.”

  “Oh, that is good of you, Lady Gorton.” Eleanora smiled, and Evelyn thought her mean, thin lips and bared teeth made her look like a wolf.

  “Mama is that not something Papa should decide? After all, they are his relations, are they not? His flesh and blood. Stuart’s father is Papa’s cousin.” Evelyn saw the look that Prudence Cunningham gave her and felt suddenly afraid.

  “I think I can speak for your father on this occasion, dear,” Lady Gorton said in a tone which suggested her daughter should be quiet.

  “Very well,” Evelyn answered in as cheerful and nonchalant a tone as she could muster.

  In truth, she felt like she was suddenly withering; dying on the inside. She was to be isolated from everyone she knew and everyone who cared about her. Her only hope for any ally at Horndean Hall was the Cunningham’s youngest daughter, Cordelia. She seemed so very different from the rest; softer somehow. However, she was little included and seldom listened to. Perhaps Cordelia could never help her at all.

  Of course, she would still see her own parents, but Evelyn was no longer sure she could truly count them among the small list of people who cared for her. Gabriel Farrington likely cared more!

  Once again, Evelyn thought of him. She had been attracted immediately in a way she would never be attracted to the pale and deeply uninteresting Richard Cunningham. But still,
when she had realised Gabriel’s intention towards her, she had felt once more like a leaf blowing in the wind of another’s plan, almost as if that was all she would ever be.

  And yet, when she had confronted Gabriel with the truth, he had not sought to deny it. Instead, he solemnly admitted his part in luring her to Amelia Merriweather’s home, and then Stuart Penhaligon’s.

  Evelyn had cut him short before allowing him to continue to tell her that, and whilst his initial intention had been less than admirable, he had found his regard for her growing. She had simply been too angry to listen to him and afraid of more lies.

  But what if he had meant it? What if his regard for her had grown as her own had done for him? Evelyn had liked him immediately. He was amusing and interesting and, more importantly, interested. Gabriel Farrington was everything that Richard Cunningham was not. The only trait in which they seemed to be evenly matched was their casual use of others in pursuit of victory in a thirty-year-old feud.

  But was Gabriel really so very intent? He had seemed genuinely concerned for her as they picked their way through the thick bracken and branches. And he looked so angry when she told him of the threat that Eleanora had issued. But had his anger been on Evelyn’s account, or was it simply another blow from one family to another?

  If only Evelyn knew the answer to that, for if all was known, Gabriel Farrington might well be the answer to her prayers. He might well be the only man who could save her from a lifetime spent as a prisoner within the walls of Horndean Hall.

  “How wonderful to have the whole thing settled.” Prudence’s nasally whine broke through Evelyn’s thoughts. “I remember when I joined the Cunningham family. It was such a great honour to become a part of the most powerful family in the North of England. I myself had to sacrifice many of those who had formerly been in my acquaintance, but I do not regret it for a moment. I became a part of something much bigger, you see, and that was more important than anything that had gone before in my life.” The Duchess leaned heavily in Evelyn’s direction and gave a smile that she likely thought was warm when, in fact, it was simply garish.