Page 30 of Pursuing Mr. Mattingly

Chapter Nine

July 10, 1819

The peaceful shadows of the twilight had descended by the time Oliver arrived back at Ettesmere Park. He’d learned much during the three-day trip about the earl and the Winterbourne family and how special Sophia was to them. They’d entertained him with stories from the past and the scrapes the Winterbournes had fallen into. What he’d discovered about himself had been equally startling, for he’d been forced to grow a backbone of steel and try his hand at being aggressive, when none of that had been his lot. It was needed; he had been reduced to opening himself up for ridicule and blatant contempt when he’d been granted a private audience with the Archbishop of Canterbury.

In the end, the impassioned speech he gave, coupled with Sophia’s hastily penned letter, the support of more than a few notables throughout London he’d worked with while in his position as ambassador, and the earl’s assurances of a few donations to various causes close to the archbishop’s heart finally won him the much-sought-after special license.

Now, he was exhausted but beyond pleased.

I am free to marry Sophia and make a life together while we can.

Gooseflesh popped over his skin. As soon as he could arrange it with the local vicar, he would wed. Never in his life did he think this day would come. As soon as the traveling coach rolled to a stop, the young lordling vaulted out with the excuse of needing something to eat post haste. When Oliver moved to follow, the earl stayed him with a gloved hand on his arm.

“A moment of your time, Ambassador.”

“Of course.” Cold foreboding twisted up his spine. Would the earl prevent the union from taking place after everything he’d been through? He met the other man’s eyes. “Is something troubling you?”

“Not any longer, not after spending this time with you, seeing how you handled yourself as you spoke about marrying my sister and your motivation therein.” The earl offered a tight smile. “You truly care for Sophia. I can see it in your eyes, hear it in the way you speak about her.”

“I do.” Oliver nodded in the event the earl didn’t understand. “From the moment I laid eyes on her, she’s been my reason for drawing breath.”

“Even knowing next to nothing about her.”

“Must one discover everything ahead of a marriage, Your Lordship? Is that not what a couple does over the course of a union?” He grinned, for he couldn’t wait to unwrap the package that Sophia presented. “Surely you have felt that way yourself with your intended.”

“I have.” Lord Ettesmere’s jaw worked as if he were choosing his words carefully. “But my marriage will be different, for there is no expiration date upon it.”

“This is true, but conversely, couldn’t we argue that everyone’s time on this earth is limited? None of us know when we will expire.” Oliver sobered. His heart squeezed from the knowledge that he wouldn’t have years with Sophia. “If any of us can make someone else’s life better, can lighten the burden of another, even for one day, shouldn’t we try? Shouldn’t we all live as if today is our last?”

“Of course.” For a moment, the earl struggled with his emotions. He glanced through the open door at the butler who was directing the footmen to go after the luggage. When he met Oliver’s gaze again, the muscles in his throat worked. “I cannot tell you how impressed I am that you’re doing this for my sister. You have my respect and my support, but please, promise me you will do everything in your power to make her happy.”

“That is my intention. You have my word that Sophia will know nothing except contentment and joy until she breathes her last.” Please God help him to uphold that vow. It would be difficult enough, for there was nothing he could do to remove the inevitable thoughts that probably plagued her every waking moment. “And when that time comes, I shall be at her side until I must give her up,” he finished in a quiet voice.

“Good.” Lord Ettesmere offered a hand, and when Oliver shook it, he nodded. “Welcome to the family. You’ll soon find it takes a strong person to join our ranks.” He snorted. “Which is odd in and of itself, for this second season of all our lives is full of more emotional upheaval than the first time each of us wed.”

“Life, though, requires us to commit to a certain level of emotion in order to remind us that we’re alive. Good or bad, we’ve signed on for every portion of it.” And though his union would end with heartache—how could it not—he was determined to enjoy the hell out of every day he was given with Sophia. “Frankly, why would we want it any other way?”

Quite frankly, she was his reason for living at the moment, and he intended to enjoy every moment of having his little family to himself.

“You are quite wise for an ambassador.” The earl left the coach since the driver kept slapping his gloves against his thigh as he waited for them to disembark. “It gives me some relief to know Hannah will be in excellent hands when…” His voice broke and his words trailed off.

Oliver nodded as he too left the coach. “Thank you. I’ll do my best by her as well, and I think she has quite the talent for politics.”

“Well, she certainly can argue.”

“Indeed.”

The earl gestured with his chin. There, sitting cross-legged on the top step to the manor, was the girl herself. And instead of the dress he expected, she was clad in a loose-fitting man’s shirt and a pair of tan breeches. “I wonder if she’s waiting for me or you.”

“Let’s find out.” She was like a breath of fresh air though.

Lord Ettesmere snicked. “I don’t envy you the raising of her. She’ll be a hoyden if we’re all not careful, and I suspect you won’t remain in London the year around.”

“No, I won’t, but what is life without a challenge? And from everything you’ve told me about her mother, perhaps it’s in her blood to be bold and curious.” Oliver took his valise from the driver with a nod, then he and the earl approached the manor. “It will serve her well as she advances toward womanhood. She will make London take notice, and that’s a fact.”

Immediately, Hannah squirmed off the wall. She bounded over to them and threw herself into the earl’s arms. “Welcome home, Uncle Arthur.”

“Thank you. I trust you weren’t trouble for your mother while I was away?”

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