Page 53 of Alessandra (Chisholm Manor #1)

Once Alessandra was fully recovered and felt completely back to her normal self, she found herself appreciating Margaret more and more, letting her take on the role of Elizabeth's nanny.

While Edward and Alessandra both indulged in spending time with their daughter, while the weather was still warm enough, they started finally to get out for walks and horse rides together, reclaiming their simple enjoyment of each other's company.

Lying down together at the top of the summit, looking down over the estate, Edward heard Alessandra sigh.

He looked down at her from his higher position as he leaned on one elbow beside her.

"What is that sigh for, my beautiful wife?"

She looked up at him and moved her hand to the side of his face.

"I am blessed in this life with you, Edward.

I am thankful to you for giving me Elizabeth, and for loving me..." she started to say, but cut short her words as she felt tears come to her eyes.

He kissed her softly for a long time.

"And I look forward to spring," she added, making him laugh once again at her suggestiveness.

He pulled away from her and stood up, holding out his hand to her.

"Come, Alessandra.

We need to start moving back to the manor," he said and they stood together, relishing a standing hug for a long time.

"We both need to start doing our share of the work around the estate again."

"Yes," Alessandra agreed.

"I do feel like I have been letting your mother down."

"That is not true, but we do need to resume our duties," Edward said.

"Mother and Father will hand the estate over to us in the future, and we need to be skilled in managing it completely by ourselves."

Alessandra pushed her lips onto his and kissed him passionately while they enjoyed the last few alone moments.

In response, Edward gently placed his hands on her shoulders and eased away from her, shaking his head whilst smiling what she thought was the most beautiful smile ever.

As they approached the manor and dismounted from their horses, they both sensed that something was amiss inside.

With the first thought for both of them being that something had happened to their daughter, they ran inside and prepared to move upstairs to where she would be with Margaret.

As they approached the base of the main staircase, the drawing room door opened and Edward's father came out to them, closing the door quietly behind him.

"Father, what is it?" Edward asked with desperation showing in his face and his voice.

"Is it Elizabeth?" Alessandra asked at the same time.

"No, little Elizabeth is well.

There is nothing to worry about there, but we have been surprised by a visitor, and a most unwelcome one at that," Charles said.

"I did not want to ask her to leave until I had spoken to you both."

Edward and Alessandra both waited patiently for further details.

When they said nothing to what he'd just said, Edward's father resumed his news.

"In the drawing room with your mother, is Mrs Missinger."

Alessandra felt the warmth and colour drain from her face as she processed the news that was presented to her.

"Katherine is here?" she asked her father-in-law, who nodded at her.

"I do not understand.

Why would she be here?"

"She says she needs to see you, Alessandra," Charles said.

Edward moved closer to his wife, feeling a desperate need to protect her, even though he knew the great depth of her inner strength in every situation she was presented with.

"You need not go in there, Alessandra.

We can have her removed from the manor," he started to say.

Alessandra shook her head whilst taking his hand in hers.

"No, Edward," she said.

"She has come all this way.

Please come in with me if you wish, but I must see her.

No matter what Tom did to us, he was her husband, and he is now dead."

Edward nodded to her, and the three of them made their way reluctantly through the drawing room door.

Almost immediately upon sight of her, Tom's wife moved to stand directly in front of Alessandra, her face contorted in anger.

"You! I knew it was you that they were talking about - the way you threw yourself at my husband in Bath.

I did not realise the length then that you would go to, to ruin things for me and Tom."

Alessandra looked at Katherine, surprised and shocked at the words being thrown at her.

She held Edward back forcefully by his hand when she felt him start to move forward out of protection.

"Edward, all is well," she said quietly to her husband, her eyes never leaving those of the woman in front of her.

"Mrs Missinger and I need to talk alone."

She was not sure how the woman would react to her words, but Alessandra saw something of a slight melting in her eyes as Edward and his father both started to object.

"Please, Edward, go with your parents and wait outside of this door so you are close enough if I need you, but do leave us alone for a few minutes please."

Edward looked at both of his parents and they all left the room quietly, silenced by the power of Alessandra's request.

When the room was vacant except for the two young women, Alessandra gathered her strength and moved to a sofa near the fireplace.

"Please, sit with me and tell me what has driven you to come here and confront me."

Slowly Katherine approached and sat, the anger draining further from her face and demeanour, as she seemed to find the words to speak.

When she looked up and directly at Alessandra, there was a blend of sadness and frustration in her eyes.

"You were the one he wanted," Tom's wife said simply.

Alessandra hoped that Katherine would continue to explain what she meant.

When she did not, Alessandra finally spoke.

"If that were true, I would have been the one he married, do you not think?" Alessandra asked.

She could see the woman considering that in her head, but she did not say anything in response.

"Why are you here? Please tell me directly so I can understand what you are angered about."

"He left everything to you," Katherine said finally, the words flowing out of her like air deflating.

Alessandra assumed she must have misinterpreted what had just been said.

"I am sorry.

I do not understand what you are saying," she said.

"I think you do, Mrs Chisholm.

My husband loved you - and only you.

His direction for when he died was that everything he owned - his land and his fortune - would all be left to you."

Alessandra sat in shock, not wanting the news to be real.

"No! That cannot be true.

You are his wife."

"Did you love him?" Katherine asked, a sad tone underlying in her voice.

Alessandra looked at the poor woman who had gone through so much.

"At one time, yes, I thought I was in love with him," Alessandra replied.

"It was only a childish crush from before I met my husband, and before you and Tom married."

"But he always loved you," Katherine said.

"No, I do not think he did - not ever.

At any time when we were getting to know each other, he could have told me he was betrothed to you.

He could have told his parents that he wanted to marry me.

He did neither, and the only reason that could be was because he did not feel that way about me ... and he wanted to marry you."

"When he introduced me to you in Bath, I could see how you were with your husband, and I believe he - Tom - wished for that.

We were never like that.

He always had such a wall up around him.

I believed when I saw you in Bath, and the way that Tom looked at you, that you were the reason for that."

Alessandra looked closely at Tom's wife.

Her first impression of Katherine in Bath had been that she lacked empathy or true feeling for anyone but herself.

Something about her present countenance made Alessandra believe that perhaps she had loved Tom after all.

What good would it do to confirm his widow's beliefs by telling her about the love letters Tom had written to her, or the actions he had taken to see her?

"I cannot say how your husband felt about me, but he married you, and you are his wife..."

"Was!" Katherine exclaimed passionately.

"I was his wife.

Now he is dead, and I am his widow, and because of his love for you, I have nothing."

"Why do you think this?" Alessandra asked.

"His will states it," Katherine said abruptly as if that was the end of the matter.

"But when was the will made up? Surely, after he married you..."

Alessandra saw the frustration on the woman's face.

"He changed his will after he saw you in Bath!" Katherine exclaimed.

Both women sat silently as their minds flowed over memories of their respective interactions with Tom Missinger.

"Katherine," Alessandra said quietly, trying to calm the woman before her.

"I do not know why Tom did such a thing with his will, but I promise you that I have no desire to receive anything that was his - that now should be yours.

I know nothing of the law, but I am sure that with good advice, we can together put this right so that you have all that was his."

Katherine looked up at Alessandra - her adversary - with surprise.

She had not expected such a reaction to the news at all.

"You would do that?" she asked.

"Even if it goes against what Tom wanted?"

"If Tom wanted to leave everything to me instead of you, then perhaps he was not thinking properly at that time, because for him to do so makes no sound sense.

Let me bring in my father-in-law.

He will know who we can talk to about this, and what can be done," Alessandra said, seeing Tom's widow relax more as she nodded.

Alessandra brought Charles in, followed by Edward and his mother, who sat quietly off to the side, curious about what had been happening.

"Mrs Missinger and I require some legal advice, and I am hoping that you might be able to at least provide us with an idea of where to start," Alessandra said to Edward's father directly.

"Of course, Alessandra.

But what is this about?" Charles asked.

Alessandra took a deep breath before continuing, knowing that she could be about to cause her husband pain in her revelation.

"Mrs Missinger has been informed that everything that her husband owned, he left in a will ... not to her ... but instead to ... me."

She took her time getting through the sentence.

At the end of it, she saw Edward stand up in hurt and anger.

She cut him off with a stern and pleading look in his direction, before he could say anything that she knew could hurt the widow in the room.

"I do not welcome this news and would like to work with her in any way I can, to make sure that everything in question rightfully gets transferred to her, and not to me," Alessandra continued.

Edward's father sighed and rubbed his eyes, trying desperately to separate feelings about how the dead man had acted in his final weeks, from how he must project his feelings as being, in front of the dead man's wife.

"Mrs Missinger, this does seem a complex issue that is indeed unfair to you.

Please give me all the details you have about the lawyer who is processing the will.

I will instruct my legal man to make contact and get this sorted," Charles said.

Katherine looked from one person to the next.

Overcome with emotions she had not expected to have in the Chisholm household, she felt the tears start to flow.

"Thank you.

I did not expect..."

"Katherine, you must return to your home and talk again to the lawyer.

Ask them to write to me directly here.

You have nothing to fear from me.

I will help to put this right. Please believe me," Alessandra said.

Katherine nodded, feeling drained.

"Very well," she said, standing up.

"I will take my leave of you now.

I am sorry for coming here unannounced."

"I will walk you out," Alessandra said to distance them from the other family members.

As she approached her carriage, Katherine turned to Alessandra once more.

"I know that he did love you, and that when he died, he was in this area, hoping to find you ... but I also believe that you did not know the depth of his feeling or intention toward you."

Katherine climbed into the carriage and moved away from the manor, leaving Alessandra at the front entrance with much on her mind.

She felt hands move around her from behind, and she leaned back against Edward for support.

He said nothing, just held her like that, pushing aside his ongoing infuriation at Tom Missinger yet again invading their marriage - even now, from his grave.

That night in bed alone together, Alessandra felt Edward holding her particularly tightly to him.

"It will all get sorted, Edward.

Stop thinking about him," she said and heard him sigh.

"It felt like he was delivering yet another attempt to drive us apart from one another, even though he is no longer in this world."

"Perhaps that is why he did it," she replied, making his head come up and look at her deeply.

One thing Edward had not considered was it being simply another attempt of Tom's to cause friction between Alessandra and Edward.

"And that is exactly why we are not going to let it affect us, Edward.

You do not wish for me to lay claim to the land and fortune he has left, do you?"

"No! For him to not leave everything - anything - to his wife or any other family members, is despicable.

No, you are right, Alessandra, it must be put right for her sake," Edward replied.

Alessandra pushed him back so he was lying on his back and kissed him deeply.

"Good.

Now stop thinking about such unpleasurable things," she said before kissing her way down his body.