Page 60 of The Dreaming Beauty
Marcus returned the note and scratched his jaw. “My mother did not welcome the idea of you or them returning either. It is not my house, so I cannot say our friendship has precedence to her feelings. I think it best if I come to you.”
“But my aunts. They do not know what I discovered tonight. And I expect if I told them, they would simply deny it. They’re determined I live in the dark.”
“Then, I will bring the light, like I did tonight. We will meet here again tomorrow night and discover the truth together.”
“And if we get caught?”
He took in her fragile features, her eyes trusting him for all the answers. This was not how he had planned to court a woman, hiding away with only secret visits by the light of the moon. “How about a different plan, then? One a bit safer for your reputation? I will leave a note in the door of the fairy house, and you can retrieve it in the morning. We will communicate that way for the time being.”
She hugged herself, his coat dwarfing her. “Marcus, I do not know how to thank you. I was so frightened when I discovered the portrait, slashed as it was, and doubly so when the note came.”
How he wanted to pull her to him and promise that no harm would come to her, but he was determined to act honorably so she would always know she could trust him. “I want to help, but I must return before someone notices I am gone. Go ahead, and I will watch to make sure you get inside safely.”
She shrugged off his jacket and returned it to him. “Good night.”
He drank in her large blue eyes before handing her the candle once more. “Take this with you.”
She left him then with the small spark of light waving in front of her. She had not been lying to him, not that he’d presumed she was. But if what she said was true, then everything about her life was about to drastically change. He could only hope he would still be a part of it.
Chapter 26
Marcus finished writing his codednote to Tansy, leaving off his signature to aid with secrecy. His help with England’s incredible espionage network had taught him a thing or two. When the ink was dry, he sealed it with a common wafer that would not be traced back to him, or anyone really.
He rubbed his tired eyes before focusing on the letter once more, hardly believing what he had discovered. Rosalind White had indeed married Richard Knightly just over twenty years ago. While he had been told about the portrait, nothing could have prepared him for the stunning likeness of mother and daughter. There was no question of who Tansy’s mother was, but her father was still a mystery. Her mother could have borne Tansy before she wedded Richard, which fit better with her time of death. It would be hard to give this theory to Tansy, but it made the most sense. As far as her memory went and how she had known her mother for several years—that was not something Marcus could account for.
He’d slept little the night before, even though he had not stayed long at Rose Cottage. He’d even fallen asleep when he had returned home, but one nightmare had led to another. The second one had involved Nurse Jones. It was so completely different from his other dreams that it felt too insignificant to think twice on. That was the hard part about his research—deciphering the random from the meaningful. He rubbed his eyes. He had no desire to see the woman again anyway, and even if she had shown up in his dreams, this was one lead he was not going to follow. Besides, he had far more important things to concern himself with at the present.
He had just put the letter into his waistcoat pocket when Simon strode into the library.
“How did I know I would find you here? Oh yes. Because you rarely leave this room during daylight hours and, if I wagered a guess, not the nighttime hours either.”
Sometimes it did seem that way. “You sound worried. If I am content here, there is no reason for concern.”
Simon pulled a book off the shelf. “As your older brother, of course I am concerned. You should be out making friends and courting a woman.”
He and Simon had always been close, but there was no denying that the last year had distanced them in more than the literal sense. Marcus’s efforts might not have taken place abroad with the soldiers, but the intelligence he had acquired had been integral in the wrapping-up of the Napoleonic War. It was laughable to think Simon believed him to have remained in this room the entire time, so utterly without purpose. Instead of playing on his feelings of fatigue and annoyance, Marcus tried to see Simon’s comment as it was—one of concern—and shrugged in reply.
“I will lead the way for you,” his brother said. “Once I propose to the lovely Miss Tansy, you must do the same to Miss Bellvue or whoever it is that has caught your fancy.”
“Propose?” Marcus’s heart sank in his chest.
Simon laughed and put the book back on the shelf. “You’ll have to fire that gun someday. Otherwise, what is the point of the matrimonial hunt Season after Season?”
Marcus put his hand on the bookcase and gripped the shelf like an anchor. “I had no idea things were so serious between you and Miss Tansy.”
“They are as serious as I make them. Besides, you saw us together last night. Like I said, I am choosing to pull the trigger and get this wedding thing behind me before Mother does me in herself.”
“You love her, then?”
“More than I have any other woman. Marcus, if you had only taken the time to get to know her, you would see what I do. She’s a charming creature. Not even two weeks away from her could soften my admiration.”
Marcus had not lasted more than a few days away from Tansy. His teeth clenched. To measure his brother’s feelings against his own was unfair, but he could not help himself. He ruminated over her bloodline and wondered if Simon would care if by chance Tansy was conceived out of wedlock. “What about her connections? You know Mother will object.”
“That does concern me. I hate to think of the whispers, but you have never worried about such things. Surely you can help smooth the ruffled feathers wherever we go.”
“Me?”
“Yes. I will depend on you to help us. You have such an ability to be friends with everyone. If anyone can sway Society, it is not a duke but a man with your abilities.”
