Christmas with the Marquess Page 4

  “I am quite all right, my lord,” Lady Ellen answered, brushing him off subtly, not wishing to speak to him more than she needed to.

  Lady Blanchard, who noticed the brief interaction between the two, glanced at Lady Ellen and her brow furrowed. She reached out her hand and pressed her hand against Lady Ellen’s cheek. Her hand was cold against Lady Ellen’s skin, and it was a welcoming relief.

  “You feel rather warm, my dear. Do you wish to return to your bedchambers?”

  “Perhaps I only require some air,” Lady Ellen uttered slowly.

  “A wonderful idea,” Lady Blanchard said and as she placed her napkin on the table, Lord Blanchard place his hand on his wife’s.

  “I do believe Ellen is fully capable of walking back to her chambers, my dear,” Lord Blanchard suggested with a firmness to his voice.

  Lady Blanchard nodded as her opinion on the matter was moot, and she glanced at Lady Ellen. “You may proceed, my dear.”

  Lady Ellen gratefully nodded and stood from her seat. She left the dining hall without even a moment’s notice from any of the guests. They were much too busy laughing, eating and drinking to even notice this shy, petite young woman leave.

  Lady Ellen rushed towards the nearest exit but found herself in a large music room she did not recognize. Truth be told, she was not quite certain where she was. The hallways were darker than usual, and she was not familiar with the ground floor of the estate. She had accustomed herself to the second floor, where the library and her bedchambers were located but in this lower hallway, she felt lost. As lost as she felt knowing she would never have a future with the only man she had ever loved, or had treated her with the utmost respect.

  Lady Ellen slowly made her way to the large widow and unlatched it with a bit of effort. The cold winter air swept across her face as she opened the window, and she sighed a breath of relief as it cooled her face within an instant. She closed her eyes for a moment until she heard soft footsteps behind her. After reopening her eyes, she turned and as she was about to speak, she noticed him standing in the doorway.

  It was not Lord Kingston.

  Lady Ellen sighed in disappointment but felt an unsteady feeling rise up inside her as Lord Marshall slowly made his way towards her. Even though he had been nothing but courteous to her, there was something about him which unsettled Lady Ellen.

  “My lord,” Lady Ellen uttered, but her voice felt as unsteady as she felt. “You should not be here.”

  “I simply came to see if you were all right,” Lord Marshall answered, still slowly approaching her.

  Lady Ellen felt stalked, as if she was the prey, and Lord Marshall the predator. “Still my lord, it is highly inappropriate for someone such as yourself to be alone with someone such as myself.”

  “And what does that mean, my lady?” Lord Marshall inquired, glancing at her with narrowed eyes.

  “A man of your stature and a young woman alone together in a dark room is very inappropriate. If anyone were to see us…”

  “What would they say?” Lord Marshall insisted.

  “It is in our best interest to avoid the rumors which may arise from our presence here,” Lady Ellen answered uneasily.

  Lord Marshall stepped away but did not leave, as if he did not care much whether they were seen together in such a way. “You seemed distracted at dinner.”

  “You should not watch people as closely, my lord. Some might think it is rude and inappropriate.”

  “So my lady keeps saying,” Lord Marshall answered. “I spoke with your father this afternoon while in the drawing room. He pointed out that you are nearing your third season.”

  “That is correct, my lord,” Lady Ellen answered and stepped back.

  “Do you not think that is rather odd, my lady?”

  “I do not understand. What precisely is it that you are insinuating, my lord?” Lady Ellen asked, her frustration at the young lord now visible.

  “I was not insinuating anything, my lady,” Lord Marshall shrugged. “It simply seems odd to me that a beautiful young woman such as yourself has not found a suitable husband yet.”

  Lady Ellen glanced at him rather defensively and crossed her arms, but she did not answer him at all.

  “I do not wish to offend my lady, but your father expressed his concerns regarding this. Lady Blanchard is particularly persistent in finding a suitable husband for my lady.”

  “My mother does not seem to think I have any say in the choices she makes for my future, regardless of how many times I remind her,” Lady Ellen sighed.

  “Your mother is correct to worry,” Lord Marshall pointed out.

  “And why is that, my lord?” Lady Ellen inquired, growing weary of the conversation. She wished Lord Marshall would simply leave and let her be. The only reason she had left the dining hall was to get as far away from Lord Marshall and his penetrative glances as she could, and catch her breath amidst the loving and sneaky gazes of Lord Kingston, whom she did not mind at all. She simply required a few moments to herself to gather her thoughts. Her feelings for him had grown so much in the past nine days, and she could not deny it any longer. If only there was a way that she could tell her mother and father that he was the man she wished to have, and to marry. If only there was some way Lady Ellen could prove to her mother and father that Lord Kingston was a kind and wonderful man who would never treat her with anything but respect.

  “My lady,” Lord Marshall’s voice whirled her back to the current moment and in all honesty, Lady Ellen had momentarily forgotten of his presence. She glanced at him and cocked her head.

  “Social conventions dictate that if a young woman is not wed by her second season, there is cause for concern…”

  “Social conventions are nonsense, to say the very least,” Lady Ellen snarkily remarked.

  “In your opinion perhaps, but Lord Blanchard seems to agree with me,” Lord Marshall uttered, his eyes darkening slightly. “He’s agreed to allow me to court you.”

  “He would never allow such a thing.”

  “He has given me his blessing and soon, you will be my wife,” Lord Marshall said through gritted teeth as he stepped closer to her. His hands grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her closer to him. “You will be mine, as well as your dowry, and there will be nothing my lady can possibly do to stop it from happening.”

  “Unhand me at once, or I will scream…”

  Even before Lady Ellen was able to complete her words, Lord Marshall firmly placed his hand over her mouth, silencing her entirely. Lady Ellen screamed against his hand but the sound was muffled and barely even sounded as anything.

  “There is no use in screaming, my lady. Not a soul alive will hear you, and not a single man alive would want you after I am through with you.”

  Lady Ellen struggled against his grip, but he was much too strong for her to ward him off in the slightest bit. Lord Marshall pushed her against the wall, his eyes glaring menacingly at her.

  “Unhand her, at once!”

  A voice shot through the dark, and Lord Marshall whirled around with an angry growl.

  Lady Ellen’s body froze as Lord Marshall stepped away from her, and although she desperately wished to run away as fast and far as she could, her body would not move. She glanced into the darkness and immediately recognized the approaching silhouette of Lord Kingston.

  “You have no business in treating Lady Ellen in such a manner, Marshall!” Lord Kingston uttered angrily.

  Lord Marshall’s jaw clenched as he stepped towards Lord Kingston. “And you have no business here, Lord Kingston.”

  “When it concerns Lady Ellen, it is most certainly my concern,” Lord Kingston pointed out.

  Lady Ellen noticed Lord Marshall’s fists balling at his sides, and she feared Lord Kingston would be injured by the deranged man.

  “I see. It seems like Lady Ellen is not as innocent as she appears to be. It is quite unfortunate that she has been added to your horde of Jezebels…”

  Lord Kingston
threw a powerful punch at Lord Marshall’s face, and he plummeted down onto the ground like a sack of potatoes. The sound echoed through the room, and Lady Ellen simply stared at them wide-eyed, still unable to move.

  Lord Kingston crouched down beside Lord Marshall and grabbed him by the collar, yanking him upright. Lady Ellen was surprised by Lord Kingston’s strength and how he had managed to drag Lord Marshall, who was a rather tall man, with such ease. Lord Kingston rammed Lord Marshall’s back against a nearby wall and held him for a few moments. Lord Marshall somehow threw a punch at Lord Kingston, who then released him from his grasp. Lord Marshall grabbed a backward stammering Lord Kingston and punched him again in the face. Lord Kingston retaliated with one last punch which sent Lord Marshall flat on his back on the floor.

  Lord Kingston, who was bleeding from where Lord Marshall’s family ring had cut through the skin just above his left brow, grabbed Lord Marshall by the collar, but this time held him flat against the floor.

  “What on Earth is the meaning of this?”

  Lady Ellen glanced up and noticed her father, and a few other guests standing in the hallway. They had heard the commotion from the dining hall and had come to investigate.

  Lord Kingston released Lord Marshall’s collar and stepped away from him, holding his hands up in defense. Lord Marshall scrambled to his feet and muttered incoherent words as he wiped the blood from his lip, hurrying out of the room.

  Lord Kingston glanced at Lady Ellen. “Are you all right, my lady?”

  “Ellen!” Lady Blanchard exclaimed as she noticed her daughter in the corner and rushed to her before Lady Ellen was able to answer Lord Kingston.

  Lady Blanchard forced Lord Kingston out of her way as she rushed towards her daughter, embracing her. “Have you been harmed, my dear Ellen?”

  “No, Mother. I am unharmed…”

  “You,” Lady Blanchard exclaimed as she turned to Lord Kingston. “If you lay one more hand on my daughter, you will live to regret it!”

  “Mother, it was not…”

  “Come along, Ellen.” Lady Blanchard interjected, disregarding her words as unimportant and ushered her daughter out of the room.

  “Lord Blanchard, allow me to explain…” Lord Kingston tried once more to address Lord Blanchard, but to no avail.

  “Perhaps my lord should have rather never returned from Europe,” Lord Blanchard muttered as he stormed off, following Lady Blanchard and Lady Ellen down the crowded hallway. Lord Kingston ran his fingers through his hair, attempting his hardest to ignore the stares he had become accustomed to while people were in his presence. Only now, he did not deserve it.

  ***

  Lady Ellen shrugged her shoulders as Lady Blanchard wrapped a warm blanket over her shoulders, and her father stood quietly in the corner of the drawing room. Neither one spoke a single word, but Lady Ellen was determined to tell the truth of what had happened. She did not wish for her mother and father to think Lord Kingston was at fault. In fact, he was the one who came to her rescue.

  “I knew it was a terrible idea for Her Grace to invite her nephew. All he does is create mayhem wherever he treads,” Lady Blanchard muttered as she began to pace the drawing room.

  Lord Blanchard, who seemed much calmer now than he had been when he left the music room, glanced at Lady Ellen, who sat quivering in front of the hearth, covered in a thick blanket. He slowly approached her and sat on the low stool beside her.

  “My dear, tell me what happened?” Lord Blanchard asked gently.

  “What did that horrible man do to you?” Lady Blanchard asked as she raised her hand to her face rather theatrically. “I would most certainly have to have a word with Her Grace regarding her nephew.”

  “Father,” Lady Ellen uttered as she glanced directly at her father, gathering her thoughts as speedily as she could. She needed to clarify this situation right at that moment. Her mother and father were clearly under the impression that Lord Kingston had been the one at fault, and she needed to inform them that their perception of him was wrong. “It was not what you think. I had tried to find a place where I could get a breath of fresh air, but I am not very familiar with the lower hallways of the manor. It certainly appears different in the darkness. I found myself in the music room and opened the window. It was then when I heard his lordship behind me.”

  “Lord Kingston,” Lady Blanchard hissed as she still continued to pace around the room.

  “No,” Lady Ellen uttered and shook her head.

  “Who was it, my dear?” Lord Blanchard asked and placed his hand reassuringly on her knee.

  “It was Lord Marshall,” Lady Ellen answered.

  “Lord Marshall? Are you certain?” Lady Blanchard gasped. “He is such a gentleman.”

  “Rose, please allow Ellen to speak freely.”

  “My apologies, Henry.”

  “Lord Marshall entered the music room and spoke to me. I felt uneasy in his presence but I was unsure why. He appeared as a very well-mannered young man. He informed me that Father had spoken to him regarding my unsuccessful previous seasons, which I found rather odd. I was not aware you discussed such things with others, Father,” Lady Ellen explained and glanced at her father, her eyes demanding an explanation.

  “I only touched the subject briefly, my dear. I did not mean any harm to you, and if anyone has harmed you because of it, I am deeply sorry,” Lord Blanchard told her. “It was most certainly not my intention.”

  “He also informed me that Father had given his permission to allow Lord Marshall to court me,” Lady Ellen continued.

  “I may have insinuated it,”’ Lady Blanchard admitted with a sorrowful cringe.

  Lord Blanchard pursed his lips in disapproval and lowered his gaze momentarily. “What happened then, my dear?”

  “Lord Marshall became threatening and grabbed me. I tried to scream, and he muffled my screams with his hand. He shoved me against the wall and…”

  Lady Ellen’s voice trailed as she shivered at the recollection of the events.

  “It is all right, my dear.”

  Lady Ellen took a deep breath and glanced at her father. “It was then when Lord Kingston arrived.”

  Out of the corner of her eye, Lady Ellen noticed her mother turn towards her, and her jaw dropped slightly.

  “Lord Kingston ordered Lord Marshall to unhand me, and they started to punch one another,” Lady Ellen explained and glanced at her mother. “Lord Kingston defended me; he rescued me from Lord Marshall. If he were not there, Heaven only knows what would have happened to me.”

  “He rescued you,” Lord Blanchard repeated and lowered his gaze, filled with shame.

  “He is a good man, Father, and even if you do not believe, I do. I have spent every evening with him in the library, and he did not once lay a finger on me, or treat me in any manner which was not respectful,” Lady Ellen uttered.

  Lady Blanchard’s eyes widened suddenly, and her face turned an angry hue of red. “You snuck out of our bedchambers…”

  Lord Blanchard raised his hand dismissively and shook his head. “There are more important matters to deal with at this very moment, Rose.”

  “Father…”

  “Rose, please inform Lord Kingston I wish to speak with him at once,” Lord Blanchard ordered and glanced at his wife, who seemed utterly shocked at his request.

  “I hardly think it is appropriate for a woman such as myself…”

  “It was not a request, Rose,” Lord Blanchard said firmly.

  Lady Blanchard pursed her lips, nodded obediently and did as she was told.

  As soon as Lady Blanchard left the drawing room, Lord Blanchard turned to his daughter. “My dearest Ellen, you met with Lord Kingston in secret?”

  “I did, Father, and I would be lying if I told you that I was sorry for doing so. Spending time with him made me realize how wrong people are about him. He truly is a wonderful man, and he would never take advantage of me.”

  “You have feelings for this man. I can see it
in your eyes.”

  “Indeed, Father. He is the one I wish to marry. I am aware of what you may possibly be thinking, but I can assure you, I am certain. I have not been this certain of anything in my entire life.”

  Lord Blanchard smiled knowingly at his daughter, and nodded slowly. “I look forward to speaking to this young man, as I should have done from the start. I trust your judgment, my dear.”

  “Thank you, Father.”

  Chapter Five

  Lord Kingston paced around the hallways, the cut above his brow stinging fiercely, and the throbbing pain in his knuckles still remained, but it did not matter to him. The only thing which mattered was that Lady Ellen was safe. He had done all he could, but Lord and Lady Blanchard would never truly see the man he was now. This thought saddened him immensely, as he knew they would never allow him anywhere near Lady Ellen. He desperately hoped Lady Ellen was able to explain what had happened, in order for him to be freed from his past, and be given a chance to redeem himself.

  Lord Kingston was desperately in love with Lady Ellen, but judging from the reaction he had received from Lord Blanchard, his love did not matter in the least.

  Loud footsteps echoed through the hallway and as he glanced in the direction the sound came from, he froze suddenly. Lady Blanchard approached him, and he was not certain what he should do. Should he hurry away from her as fast as he could? Should he stand quietly and allow her to pass, or should he stop her and attempt to explain the situation? Neither option sounded like a good idea.

  “Lord Kingston,” Lady Blanchard greeted him coldly.

  “My lady,” Lord Kingston answered.

  “My husband wishes to speak with you immediately,” Lady Blanchard uttered. “Please follow me.”

  Lord Kingston nodded and followed Lady Blanchard down the hallways she had come from. They did not speak a single word to one another the entire time, and as they reached the downstairs drawing room, Lady Blanchard opened the door and stepped inside, with Lord Kingston following closely behind her.