Chapter Eighteen
Ava couldn’t stop smiling as she sorted through the gowns in her armoire. She had no idea how many gowns other ladies owned. She had thought she’d had enough, but after Brad had mentioned how surprised he was that her armoire was so empty, she realized she didn’t have enough clothes. Maybe she should ask Opal how many gowns and other accessories she should have. Then it would help her know how much to add to her wardrobe.
All of that, however, could wait. Brad had promised he would take her for a stroll through Hyde Park after their morning meal. Her skin was still tingling in the most pleasant way from their lovemaking. He had stayed in bed with her all through the night, and he had made love to her again when they woke up. He was willing to give their marriage a chance to be what she most wanted it to be: a love match. She couldn’t ask for anything better than that.
After careful debate, she selected her pink morning gown. Her aunt once said, It brings out your Spanish heritage. I think that’s one of your best traits. Your mother was a beautiful lady. It’s no wonder your father ran off to Gretna Green to marry her.
Ava hadn’t appreciated how much her mother had been willing to give up for the sake of love until now. Her mother’s father had been a wealthy gentleman, and he had wanted her to marry a Spanish gentleman who’d been a friend of the family. She met Ava’s father by chance as he was traveling with a friend. The two fell in love, and despite her father’s disapproval, they had eloped. It resulted in her being disowned from the family.
Ava’s father didn’t come from money, and he had to farm a nobleman’s land in order to provide for her mother. All through Ava’s childhood, the two had never complained about their lack of wealth. They had been happy.
Most people in London, her dear aunt included, put far too much emphasis on money. Money could buy a lot of clothes to fill up one’s armoire, but it couldn’t buy the things that really mattered, like happiness. What she wanted was for Brad to be as happy with her as her father had been with her mother.
She placed her pink gown over the chair in front of the vanity then returned to the armoire. At the bottom of it was the gown she had purchased yesterday, and it was still in the box. In all her excitement, she had forgotten about Miss Wilmington’s invitation to Ladies of Grace. She wondered if she should tell Brad about it. She could already envision how thrilled he would be to find out he would be able to discuss business ventures with the Duke of Silverton.
Some of her enthusiasm waned. No. She couldn’t tell him. Not yet. Just because she had been invited to an afternoon with the group, it didn’t mean Lady Eloise would make her a part of it. Ava was better off not saying anything unless she became a member. Then, she would share the good news with Brad, and he would be proud of her.
All she had to do was be careful in her conduct. The only thing preventing her from securing a place in the group was her clumsiness. As long as she didn’t do anything to embarrass herself, she would be all right.
She took the gown out of the box and hung it in the armoire. It was a nice purple color. She didn’t have any other purple gowns in her armoire. It would be nice to be able to wear this to other social activities in the future. Perhaps she might wear it to a ball Brad would escort her to.
Her heartbeat picked up in anticipation. She did enjoy dancing. It would be nice to be able to dance at future balls without trying to find a husband. Then she would be free to enjoy herself instead of worrying if she was appealing to any of the gentlemen in the room.
Humming a cheerful tune, she went to the cord hanging by her armoire and summoned her lady’s maid so she could get ready for the day.
***
Brad’s valet had just finished shaving his face when a knock came at the door of his bedchamber. Since it came from the hallway, it couldn’t be Ava.
The valet glanced in his direction as he was washing the razor.
Brad nodded from where he sat. “Go on and answer it.”
The valet set the razor on a cloth then went over to the door.
Brad stood up and took the moment to study his reflection in the mirror. Stephen often said Brad was much too vain, but Brad wished to look his best at all times. And that was especially true this morning. He wanted Ava to be pleased when she saw him.
Last night had been the best night of his life. Now that he was no longer afraid that he would embarrass himself in bed, he was free to enjoy every aspect of his marriage. Sending Stephen out for the evening had been the best move he’d made in a long time. With Stephen gone, he could be himself. He didn’t have his brother’s shadow hovering over him, telling him he was a failure.
Better yet, Ava didn’t make him feel like a failure at all. In fact, with her, he felt like he was competent in all areas. He had no idea that having someone in his life who believed the best about him could make him feel like he could take on the whole entire world if he had to.
Something magical had transpired the night before. He had been fond of her before. There was no doubt that he had enjoyed her company. But after spending such a wonderful evening with her, he suspected that he had fallen in love with her. Before last night, if someone had told him that it was possible to fall in love so quickly, he would have laughed. Love, after all, was something that took time. It was something that developed slowly — day by day, month by month, and year by year. But there was no doubt that the gentleman grinning back at him in the mirror was a gentleman who was in love.
The valet came over to him, interrupting his thoughts. The valet held out a neatly folded missive. “The butler brought this up here. He said it was from Lord Devonhurst. Lord Devonhurst requested that you open this at once.”
Brad took the missive. Without reading it, he already knew he wasn’t going to like it. It wasn’t like Lord Devonhurst to send a missive so early in the morning. It wasn’t even 8:30. Either he was deathly ill or very upset.
Brad swallowed the lump in his throat. Maybe he had just gotten around to reading the article in the Tittletattle. Lord Devonhurst hated scandals. Brad had hoped the gentleman would realize the story wasn’t true. Surely, Lord Devonhurst knew him well enough to know that he would never engage in scandalous behavior unless someone had tricked him into it. But what if he didn’t? What if Lord Devonhurst assumed the story was true?
There was only one way he was going to find out. While the valet set out his shirt, cravat, frock coat, and boots to finish dressing him, Brad took a deep breath and opened the letter.
Over the past year, I have overlooked your brother’s indiscretions because of the friendship I shared with your father, but after last night’s debacle, I can’t continue to overlook the endless scandals your brother keeps getting involved in. I’m afraid I’m going to have to terminate our relationship. A gentleman is best known by the company he keeps, and my association with you has started to tarnish my reputation because of the actions of your brother. My deepest apologies.
All at once, Brad’s good mood vanished. He had known that Stephen was irresponsible, but he never once thought that Stephen’s behavior would impact the relationships he had with other gentlemen. And this wasn’t just any gentleman. This was a gentleman who had been friends with his father. Brad remembered seeing the two talking together in the drawing room or den when he was a small child. This was the gentleman who had, along with his father, taught them how to wisely invest money.
Exactly what had Stephen done last night to upset Lord Devonhurst so much that he was cutting off all ties with him? Brad gripped the missive in his hand until it crumpled up into a ball. Ignoring his valet who was waiting to put on his shirt, Brad stormed out of his bedchamber and made a beeline straight for Stephen’s door.
He pounded on it. “Stephen Harrison Bachman, open up right now!”
He waited for his reprobate brother to emerge from the other side, but nothing happened.
Brad banged on the door again. “I don’t care how much your head hurts from all the drinking you did last night. Come to the door.”
Again, nothing happened. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. A door did open. It just happened to be the one that went to Ava’s bedchamber. She and her lady’s maid were watching him in open curiosity. He glanced at his bedchamber door and saw that his valet was also watching him. He should have known all of this commotion would attract attention.
With a grunt, he opened the door to Stephen’s bedchamber and marched over to the bed. To his surprise, it was empty. The bed was neatly made, too. That could only mean one thing: Stephen never came home last night. Which meant that he was still running loose through London causing all kinds of havoc.
Jaw clenched, Brad returned to his bedchamber, noting that Ava and her lady’s maid were back in Ava’s room. This was awful. Not only did he have to contend with Lord Devonhurst’s missive, but he had just looked like a raving lunatic in front of Ava. He needed to settle down before he saw her again. He didn’t want her to think she married a gentleman who was given to bursts of anger. He wasn’t that type of person. Really, he wasn’t. Most of the time, he was a gentleman in every sense of the word.
“Finish dressing me,” he told the valet.
The valet hurried to help him into the rest of his clothing.
As soon as Brad had his boots on, he dismissed the valet and went to the door connecting his bedchamber with Ava’s. He came to a complete stop. He took a deep breath. Yes, he was angry. But he didn’t need to let her see that. At least not any more than she already had.
Releasing his breath, he felt some of his anger dissipate. Not all of it. But enough to be pleasant. Only Stephen could bring out the worst in him.
He knocked on the door.
Ava opened it. She was already dressed, and her lady’s maid was gone. “Is everything all right?” she asked.
“No, I’m afraid it’s not. Stephen has done something horrible, and I must tend to it.”
“What did he do?”
“I don’t know yet, but I’m going to find out.”
He paused and took a good, long look at her to make sure she believed him. The last thing he wanted was for her to think he was making up some excuse because he didn’t want to spend time with her. He did want to spend time with her. He didn’t feel like going after Stephen, but if he didn’t, who knew what other damage Stephen might do? Lord Devonhurst might not be the only one who decided to quit associating with him.
Thankfully, there was nothing in her expression that made him think she didn’t believe him. Even so, he felt led to give her further assurance. He brought her into his arms and kissed her. It was nice to make such a bold move without worrying about it. From now on, when he initiated a kiss, he knew he was going to please her. The fact that she wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned into him only added to his confidence.
When the kissed ended, he said, “I don’t know how long I’ll be gone. I’m going to have to find my brother, and doing that will be like chasing a fox without the aid of a hound. I promise you that we will go for a stroll today.”
“Well, I have a social engagement to go to with some ladies this afternoon, so I might not be here when you return.”
“In that case, we’ll go this evening.” With a wicked grin that was uncharacteristic for him, he added, “A nice stroll before we get settled into bed might be nice.”
She smiled. “That would be nice.”
He brought her hands up to his lips and kissed them. “I’m going to miss you.”
“I’ll miss you, too.”
If it had been anyone but Stephen, he wouldn’t even be leaving her this morning. She was such a sweet person. One of the sweetest he’d come across in London. Other ladies were so caught up in climbing the social ladder or spending everything their husbands made. Ava, on the other hand, was content to lead a quiet and unassuming life. Most people would overlook her. He almost had because of one accident on the ballroom floor. What a fool he’d been. Never again would he look past a person’s character because of something as silly as an accident.
On impulse, he gave her another kiss, taking a moment to thoroughly enjoy her by interlacing his tongue with hers. He was surprised that he should become fully erect by a simple kiss. He had made love to her earlier this morning. It should have been enough to satisfy him until this evening. But he wasn’t the least bit satisfied. He wanted to take her back to the bed and have his way with her.
With a groan, he stopped kissing her. “I wish I didn’t have to find my errant brother. I would much rather stay here with you.”
Her cheeks grew pink with pleasure. “I’d rather have you stay with me, too, but I understand. You have to find him before he gets into any more trouble.” She stood on her tiptoes to give him a chaste kiss. “I’m looking forward to spending more time with you.”
“I’m looking forward to it, too.”
A lot of his anger had abated since he’d come in here to talk to her. If Stephen hadn’t just ruined his relationship with Lord Devonhurst, he would seriously consider waiting for Stephen to return home before dealing with him. But what if he received word from more gentlemen he did business with that they didn’t want to continue on in their association with him because of Stephen? What if Lord Devonhurst was only the first one?
He had to take care of business first. Pleasure would have to wait. Giving one last look at his beautiful wife, Brad let out a frustrated sigh and headed out of the room.