Chapter Fifteen
What the servants would think of Perry's suggestion she had no idea, and cared less. 'I thought you had rejected me…'
His expression changed to astonishment. The next thing she knew she was in his arms and being thoroughly kissed and her reservations about being his wife vanished under the heat of their passion.
'We cannot remain out here, darling, it is a matter of urgency that we find a suitable bedchamber.'
Instead of going in search of new accommodation they tumbled into his bed and by the time they emerged her dinner was quite cold and uneatable.
'I must eat, Perry, but it is far too late to send down to the kitchen as they will have retired long ago.'
'Then we shall go down and find ourselves something. Stay where you are, sweetheart, I'll go next door and bring you something to wear.'
'Perry,' she called urgently, 'you cannot wander about the place in your birthday suit. Put on a robe at the very least.'
'If you insist.'
He found the necessary article and then went in search of something similar for herself. She was glowing all over and no longer had doubts about her marriage. However grim – no that was doing it too brown – however difficult living at Silchester might be, as long as they shared a bed each night she would be content.
He returned and tossed her a nightgown and robe. 'These will be adequate, we are hardly likely to bump into anyone at this time of night.'
She scrambled into the garments and was about to ask where the slippers were but then decided she could manage perfectly well in bare feet this once. 'If there are eggs I can make us an omelette.'
'And I shall brew us some coffee. A feast fit for kings.'
Again, it was easier to use the secondary staircase; she was relieved that there was the occasional wall sconce still burning. 'Are these left on all night?'
'They are, it would not do for a Sheldon to be obliged to carry a candlestick about the place.'
'I wish we could live somewhere else, Perry, I don't think I shall ever be comfortable in such a grand establishment as this. Have you not a smaller estate we could remove to?'
'I have, but I wish to be close to my twin. You will soon get used to the grandeur. Anyway, next spring we shall have a separate residence and you may arrange things how you like.'
What she would like to be was away from his close-knit family where she would always be the outsider, but she could hardly tell him that. He was happy, delighted to be home and she had no intention of ruining things for him by making a fuss.
It was quite possible he was going to find it equally difficult to adjust after living such an exciting life for the past few years.
The kitchen was vast, and delightfully warm after the chilly passageway. The flagstone floor was unpleasant underfoot, but she had no option but to walk on it if she was to prepare them something to eat.
He was busy pushing and pulling levers on the giant iron range. 'There, you will have sufficient heat to do your cooking and I to make the coffee.'
She took down a flat copper pan that would be ideal for the omelette and then went in search of the ingredients. she was no more than a few feet from her husband when he said something that made her ears burn.
'I forgot your slippers. You cannot walk about in bare feet down here.' He picked her up and placed her on the wooden chair by the long table that dominated the centre of the room. 'Sit here, sweetheart, I shall find us something to eat.' He removed the skillet from the heat – he obviously did not intend to cook anything.
Nevertheless, he found them a tasty meal of cold cuts, pickles, crusty bread and cheese followed by a hefty slice of plum cake. This was washed down with several cups of coffee. They remained in the kitchen, where it was warm, to eat it.
'That was perfect, thank you, Perry. Is there any more coffee in that pot before we go?' Suddenly the kitchen door swung open. They both turned, open-mouthed, to see the duke standing there.
'You are up late, Beau, we thought the house asleep.'
'As did I. Would you object to me joining you for your midnight feast?'
'We should be delighted, Perry is just making a fresh jug of coffee. I shall get you a plate and cutlery.'
'You will do no such thing, sweetheart, I shall do it.' Perry pointed to her lack of footwear and Beau smiled.
'In which case, Sofia, I shall collect my own utensils.' He nodded solemnly. 'An extraordinary suggestion from someone as grand as I.'
'Not half as outrageous as sleeping on the dirt as you did in Spain.'
Whilst they had more coffee Beau devoured his late supper with relish. Whilst eating he explained why he was up so late.
'Why don't I go up there in your stead?'
'I would be grateful if you would do so. Dealing with malcontents will be more your field of expertise, being a military man.'
Her pleasure in the evening was trickling away. She was to be abandoned, left to sink or swim in this draughty great house.
Then she was poked sharply in the ribs and slopped her coffee on the table. 'That was quite unnecessary, Perry, I was not sleeping, I was thinking.'
'I know exactly what you are thinking, idiot girl. Did you think I would leave you behind? We might as well travel about the country until our home is ready for us.'
'I should like nothing better. I have never been to the north of England and would love to see the lakes.'
'I had hoped you would both be here for Christmas, but you could well be snowed in before your work is done, little brother.'
'If we ride we shall be there in a few days, far quicker than travelling by carriage. The luggage and servants can leave tomorrow and will be there in good time. I have no intention of departing for two days. I need to spend time with my siblings and for Sofia to get to know them before we go.' He smiled at her before continuing. 'We shall be back long before the festive period, I have no intention of celebrating anywhere but here.'
'Do you do anything special at Christmas, Beau?'
'I thought this year we must have all the family staying, children as well, not quite a house party but an intimate gathering. We have much to celebrate.'
'I have never seen a house decked out in the old-fashioned way, with ribbons and garlands and greenery everywhere. I could arrange that for you, if you would permit me?'
'Whatever you want, my dear, this is your home now. You are its chatelaine until you move into your own accommodation which won't be until next May at the earliest.'
She tried to hide her yawn behind her hand. 'If you will excuse me, gentlemen, I am weary. Please, do not get up, continue your conversation. I shall see you in the morning.'
Perry's eyes flashed. She was going to see him considerably earlier than that.
*
His wife was in her own bed, but Perry was content to spend the night there with her. He could hardly carry her through the corridor and back into his own domain. It was dawn when they were both ready to sleep.
'Whilst we are away, my love, we will have time to get to know each other better. I want you to be happy and will do everything in my power to make this so.'
'As long as I am with you I shall be content.' She settled into his arms and was immediately asleep.
*
They were woken when her maid came in and dropped the tray holding a jug of chocolate and sweet morning rolls. The crash was accompanied by a squeak of horror at finding him naked in her mistress's bed.
He started to pull back the covers.
'Don't you dare. Poor Polly has had enough shocks for one morning.'
The maid had vanished leaving the mess on the floor. 'I shall put on my robe. I should have returned to my own chamber and not given the poor girl such a surprise.'
Sofia laughed. 'If she is to remain in my employ she will have to get used to seeing you here. Perhaps it might be wise to suggest to your valet and my maid that they wait until they are called each morning in future?'
'Excellent suggestion, sweetheart. I give you my word that by tonight we will have sleeping arrangements more suited to our wishes.'
He shrugged into his discarded robe, barely restraining himself from leaping back into bed with his darling girl, and strolled back to his chambers. After his ablutions he sat still whilst he was shaved and then dressed himself.
It would be better to go in through the sitting room door and not charge into her bedchamber. She emerged as he entered and as always when he saw her it made him catch his breath.
'Shall we go down? I hope you are not hungry as there will be no breakfast served at the usual time today – we are having an early luncheon when everyone arrives.'
'We ate a few hours ago. I wish you to run through the names of your brothers and sisters and their spouses and offspring again so that I know who is who when they come.'
'Although we have a familial resemblance, only Aubrey and I are very similar.'
'Hardly surprising, my love, when you are twins.'
The time between their rising and the arrival of the family was filled by him showing her around the house. They ended the tour and walked into the drawing room. 'Well, are you impressed?'
'Of course, but I cannot imagine why anyone would wish to build such a huge place. It can never be comfortable or warm. Even if your brother has a wife and a dozen children they will still rattle around in this massive place like beans in a sieve.'
His brother was reading a newspaper in the chamber and overheard her remark.
'I fear I shall remain a single bean in that sieve, my dear, as I have no intention of marrying.'
Any other young lady would have been disconcerted by his comment, but she smiled at him. 'Then you will be lonely, but I shall not be sorry for you as it is your choice.' She walked across and sat gracefully on the sofa opposite and waited, tapping her foot, until he folded his newspaper and gave her his full attention.
'Thank you, your grace, I appreciate your courtesy.'
Perry had a bad feeling about this, she was about to do something outrageous and he wasn't sure if he should step in before she did or let matters unfold. He decided on the latter, no one else would take his formidable brother to task and it would do him good.
'You are a handsome man in your prime, let alone the fact that you are a duke and wealthy, and I have decided I shall not rest until I have found you a suitable wife. The Sheldons marry for love and you must do the same. Somewhere there is the perfect match for you, a young lady you will fall passionately in love with and cannot live without.'
His brother was rarely rendered speechless but on this occasion, he was. Perry waited for the icy set down to fall upon her head. Should he step in before it happened or just pick up the pieces afterwards?
Beau, to his astonishment, laughed out loud.
'You are an original, my dear, and have said what no one else in the family has dared to. If you find me a girl I can fall in love with then I shall promptly do so. I must warn you I have had hundreds of young ladies paraded in front of me over the past years and none of them has remotely interested me.' He leaned forward to emphasise his point. 'What makes you think you can find this person?'
'I think you have been looking in the wrong places, Beau. The young ladies of the aristocracy are unlikely to be of interest to you – too insipid, too boring – I shall widen the search.'
Perry expected his brother to make it abundantly clear he would only marry a young woman from the same echelons as him. Again, he was surprised.
'You must exclude young ladies from the lower classes, naturally, but as long as the candidates are daughters of gentlemen they can be considered.'
Perry could contain himself no longer. 'This has gone on long enough, Beau. It is unkind of you to tease my wife, to raise her hopes when you intend to crush them.'
'You have misunderstood the situation, little brother. Sofia is right that I would like to be married, but I will not settle for anything less then I see between all of you.' He rose and nodded to them both. 'I have some boring estate business to attend to before the others arrive.'
Until they were alone he still expected Beau to retract his statement but he didn't. 'I cannot believe what I just heard. You have said what we have all been thinking these past few years but have not liked to say. We have discussed it amongst ourselves many times, but now we have been given permission…'
'No, my love, I have been given permission. This shall be my mission. I have not moved in such rarefied circles as all of you and am better qualified to find him a bride.'
Her calm assurance that she could do something that none of his siblings had managed, irked him. She had only known Beau for a few weeks and yet believed she could find him a wife.
'We shall talk about this later, I forbid you to mention it to my family. They will be deeply offended that my wife of a few weeks believes herself better qualified than them on this subject.'
She looked away and didn't answer. His irritation turned to anger but he bit back his sharp response and strode from the room. They would discuss it later when he was calmer. Now he needed to talk to his brother and try and understand what had just been said.
Beau wasn't in the study and he was told by the butler he had gone out on estate business but would be back by eleven o'clock. Aubrey would know how to handle this – he had been married to a sensible woman for more than a year and was still blissfully happy.
He had been in parson's mousetrap for a month and was already beginning to regret his decision. Desiring his wife was one thing, but he was beginning to fear what they had wasn't real love, wasn't enough to make them both happy.
*
Beau surprised several lurking footmen by walking past them still smiling. Sofia was exactly what this family needed to shake it up, he had no intention of marrying, but he was going to enjoy watching her attempting to find him someone suitable. The fact that this would also keep her busy was another reason he had agreed to the preposterous scheme. Watching the expression of incredulity on Perry's face had been most enjoyable.
Without a doubt the rest of the family would wish to be involved in looking for a bride for him and he was going to find it highly amusing observing the attempts to entice him into matrimony when he was a confirmed bachelor.
There was still an hour or two before the house would be invaded by half a dozen infants and ten adults, as well as the six who already lived here. Once they had got over the excitement of greeting their long-lost brother he would inform them that they were to stay at Silchester for the Christmas period.
He would not object if they wanted a ball at some point, possibly a supper party or two. It was probably time he mingled with his neighbours again. He would rather be on his own than spend time in the company of people he had no interest in. The fact that they lived in his vicinity was not a reason to make them bosom bows.
Sofia was right to say the house was overlarge, cold and unwelcoming. He had not thought about this before, had just accepted this was how things were, but he must give the matter some thought. Even with the two wings removed and turned into separate homes for the twins the place was still impossibly large. He had never counted the rooms, but there must be more than a hundred.
Perhaps filling it with frills and furbelows, greenery and firs might make the place more hospitable. The custom of putting a yule log in the main fireplace in the grand hall had not been done for decades, but he rather thought he would revive this tradition as well.
He had scarcely picked up his pen when his brother marched in. With a resigned sigh he put it down and waited to see why he had been interrupted.
'What on earth made you say you would go along with Sofia's ridiculous suggestion? She is as likely to find you the young woman you wish to marry as I am to fly to the moon.' Perry straddled a chair and rested his forearms along the top. For a man supposedly in love with his wife he did not sound particularly happy.
'I shall enjoy seeing her try. I am quite aware that our siblings have been talking about doing something similar for the past year. Why are you here? It is surely not to talk about me.'
'Bringing Sofia here is like caging an exotic bird. I should have remained in Spain where she could live a freer life, not brought her back here to be constrained and bound by antiquated rules.'
'Are you saying that you are going to return there in order to keep your wife content?' His brother didn't answer. 'If she was Spanish I might have more sympathy with your concerns. However, she spent her formative years in England in a more restricted environment than this. If she genuinely loves you then she will wish to do whatever makes you happy.'
'Half the time I have no idea what she is thinking, I scarcely know her, but I do love her. I am at a loss to know what to do, what will be best for both of us.'
'Do you love her sufficiently to let her go – to open this metaphorical cage?'
'If she is already carrying our child then she must stay.' He rubbed his eyes. 'I had decided to stay out of her bed, to wait and see if she got her courses and then give her the option to leave but... well, I do not have the willpower.'
'But you do have the means. You told her you were not leaving until the day after tomorrow. Go immediately after the family have visited. Spend three weeks away and then you will know either way and can make your decision.'
'She will never forgive me for deceiving her. The last place she wishes to be is here.'
'If by so doing she gains her freedom then she will understand why you did it.'
His brother stood up, he looked haggard, the joy gone from his eyes. Whatever Perry might think to the contrary he was hopelessly in love with his wife and losing her would destroy him.
'I shall set things in motion, thank you for your sound advice. It is going to be the hardest thing I've ever done. I shall pray that she is indeed with child as I don't think I could live without her now.' He rubbed his eyes again and Beau wondered if they were giving him trouble. It was only a few weeks since he had regained his sight.
'I think you must go to London and see an eye specialist before you head for the north.'
'Again, you are right. My vision is worsening again and I fear I might be going blind and this time it will be permanent.' Instead of looking desperate at the thought Perry smiled. 'She will never leave me if I am unable to see, and I have Zorro as well. I shall manage very well whatever happens.'