Page 4 of Tempting the Earl

The breath left him in a rush and he turned to pace to the far end of the kitchen. Pivoting on his heel, he strode the other way again, passing by the table this time to continue straight out the door.

Ainsworth waited.

Was he gone?

That was easy.

She sighed and made a face. Too easy.

Brushing the dirt from her hands onto her apron, she made her way to the small window beside the back door to take a peek outside.

He was still there. Striding rather forcefully to her herb garden before turning back. As he headed for the kitchen door, she scrambled back to her position at the table where she quickly yet carefully started laying out the wild garlic she’d found. But when he didn’t step inside, she risked another peek at the window to see he had returned to the garden.

With a snort, she turned her back on the window. Let him wear out his shiny boots if that’s what he wanted.

After nearly five more minutes, the shadow of his tall, male form filled her doorway once again. He came forward in a calm, measured stride. Ainsworth was standing at the stove, readying the ingredients for the soup she was making. She noted his stiff stance from the corner of her eye but said nothing. She’d already told him he was unwelcome. What more was there to say?

“If you’d read any of my letters beyond the first, Miss Morgan, you’d have gained a greater understanding for why I might have traveled so far from London despite not having an invitation.” His voice had hardened significantly in contrast to his earlier comments and questions. A distinct chill now coated his words. “In them, I shared a great deal of information regarding the man who fathered both Miss Claybourne and myself.” He paused. “Along with several other illegitimate offspring.”

She tried not to notice the strange way in which he referenced his father. But his last words drew her attention despite herself and she turned to look at him in surprise. “Several?”

His expression was disturbingly stoic as he nodded. “Several.”

A crude insult directed at a man she’d never known and had never wished to know left her lips before she could stop it.

The earl cleared his throat. “Quite.”

She realized with a twinge of surprise that the current earl didn’t like his father very much.

It didn’t matter.

Turning back to the table, she gathered a bit of the cow parsley she’d laid out. “That still doesn’t explain why you’re here.”

He was silent as she added the parsley to the pot and stirred. So silent, she began to feel a wee bit jittery.

When he finally spoke, his tone was oddly even, as though he were carefully choosing his words before speaking. “As I outlined in my letters, though my father passed on a few years ago, I had no idea my half siblings existed until last year. With one exception, that is.” There was a weighted pause. “As the current earl, it is my responsibility and my duty to correct some of the hurt and injustice he inflicted in his lifetime.”

Her heart chilled as she asked in a low voice, “What in bluidy hell does that mean?”

“It means I’d like to know my sister. I’d like to be a part of her life and have her as part of mine.”

“Nay!” The denial came out in a harsh and painful shout.

“I want only to do what is right by my family.”

“Family?” she scoffed as she spun to face him. “Caillie and I are family. I watched her mother endure three days of traumatic, heartbreaking labor to bring her into this world. I held her wee swaddled form as her mother struggled to heal—to live—despite being disowned by her own father, despite losing more blood than a body can spare. My cousin fought to live for her bairn and I was there when she couldnae hold on any longer. I’ve been there for the wee lass every day and night since. Through nightmares and tears and joys and every new discovery. I’m her family,” she declared with passion and fury. “You’re a bluidy stranger.”

She was so swept away by her own furious emotion, she didn’t realize she’d walked right up to the earl, brandishing her wooden spoon like a weapon. No doubt she resembled a wild woman in that moment. Face flushed and eyes flashing. Perhaps he’d be put off enough by her undignified show of temper that he’d leave in reasonable terror.

Unfortunately, as she tipped her chin to meet his striking gaze, he didn’t appear the slightest bit fazed. Instead, he replied simply yet firmly. “I’d rather not be.”

If he’d gotten angry or responded defensively, she might have been able to keep fueling her wrath. As it was, his calmly spoken reply struck her right in the center of her chest where there resided an unspeakable fear.

She clenched her teeth against it, forcing the fear back into a tiny little spot behind her heart. “And obviously, you’ve no trouble disrupting her entire world if it means you’ll get what you want.”

His blue eyes sparked, but his tone remained cool and reserved. “I’d every hope of avoiding a reunion that might be unsettling to the girl. It was the entire purpose of the letters you so casually disregarded.” His jaw tightened for just a second before he continued. “You brought us to this point, Miss Morgan, and though I may understand your reticence, I shall not bow to it.”

Taking a breath to say something—anything—to put him off his goal, she was stopped by the not-too-distant bark of a dog.

---