Page 29 of Dare to Tempt an Earl This Spring (Wedding Fever #1)

Back at Fort Balmore

E veryone had come.

Everyone.

Thomas shut the door behind the doctor with a click that felt far more significant than it should have. The entire ordeal had nearly made him lose his head of hair. He’d barely breathed until the doctor—the only person Thomas had welcomed from the Countess Chaswick’s following—gave his verdict. Ashley wasn’t badly hurt—just a few bruises here and there, as she had said. Except for her shoulder, which she needed to rest for the next week. He reluctantly turned back to the occupants of the room. The discord of voices that filled the room was unwelcome, and he found himself wishing he could kick out every single one who didn’t belong.

How was he supposed to talk with Ashley when no one would give them a second alone? She should rest, but every bit of her energy seemed reserved for placating the very people who should have been comforting her. We should have eloped. Then, at least, he’d have the authority to clear the room and be alone with his wife. How exactly had he lost authority in his castle, anyway?

Pondering the matter half-heartedly, he strode back to her, where she lay propped up against the pillows on the bed, while the Earl of Chaswick perched on the edge, concern etched into the lines of his brow. He cast a quick glance at her mother, who stood at the window with that ugly dog still clutched in her arms, her face contorted in distress. On the settee, her friends whispered furiously to one another, glancing between Ashley and himself.

“Thank the heavens you will live,” her mother exclaimed, and Thomas nearly rolled his eyes, taking a seat at the head of the bed. Did the countess not hear the doctor? “Riding on a horse, of all things!”

“What else would I ride, Mother?” Ashley replied, her tone clipped. “It’s just a small fall.”

“Small?” the countess exploded. “You were thrown off a horse at a public event! Royal and public! The entire royal family and the Ton saw it! What will the gossip sheets say? This will be the talk of the season!”

Saints, save him.

Did they not understand what mattered here? Did her mother’s concern only stretch as far as her reputation? Her fall had shattered him in a way he’d never admit aloud. Gossip was the last damn thing on his mind.

“Gather yourself, Lady Chaswick,” Ashley’s father said. “That is not what’s important here.”

Thank you.

“I beg your pardon? Just what is important, then?”

“Our daughter’s well-being.”

“Her reputation is her well-being! How could she do something so foolish as this?”

Thomas felt a flash of irritation flare within him. Couldn’t they see that Ashley wanted to be anywhere but amid their bickering? She didn’t need to be subjected to a verbal inquisition the moment they stepped through the door.

“I am right here,” Ashley muttered. “And I say, what is life without a little scandal attached to my name?”

She threw a wink at her friends, and he couldn’t help but feel a slight smile tug at his lips. Her resilience never ceased to amaze him. Ever the plucky optimist, Lady Ashley.

Chaswick rubbed his temples. “Your mother is right to worry,” he said gently. “You gave us all a terrible scare.”

“And for that I am sorry. I didn’t throw myself off the horse on purpose.”

Ah, she fell off a horse, but it is her reputation and her mother’s feelings at stake. That explained everything.

I see why she is confused about her own feelings.

Lady Chaswick sighed deeply, a hand pressed to her forehead as if she were trying to ward off a headache. Thomas almost let out a wry laugh. Did he need to send for smelling salts? However, she wasn’t the only one who’d felt on the verge of collapse tonight. But at least he had the grace not to make a spectacle of it. He clenched and unclenched a fist, inwardly counting the seconds until they’d all leave. “Perhaps this is not the moment for arguments,” she said, her voice softer now. “We all just want to ensure you’re safe, my dear.”

Thomas blinked. That must be the calmest he’d heard the countess up until now. “I agree. The doctor said all she needed was rest.”

“All’s well that ends well,” Sera chimed in, nudging her friends, who bobbed their heads up and down.

Just then, the door swung open, and Sebastian strode in, his face grim. He shook his head, and Thomas stiffened. It seemed Jordan Critton refused to leave. Hadn’t he already made it clear that the riffraff wasn’t welcome? But it seemed Critton was as determined as a cockroach. And to make things worse, Sebastian whispered in his ear, “Chaswick’s son arrived as well.”

He glanced at Ashley before his eyes caught Chaswick’s.

Chaswick must have caught their glance, for he suddenly said, “I saw Critton lurking outside. I hope he’s not welcome here.”

All eyes swiveled to the earl.

Ashley frowned. “Why?”

Her question made Thomas halt.

Chaswick sighed. “The man is a gambling rogue.” He sighed again. “That’s why I used my connections to run him out of town, but it didn’t seem to work.”

“What?” Ashley breathed.

Thomas felt his heart drop to his shoes with that one breathless whisper, a sense of dread clawing at him.

Had Paisley been right?

*

Ashley’s heart sank, her pulse hammering in her chest as her father’s words caught her like a blow to the chest. The man is a gambling rogue. I used my connections to run him out of town, but it didn’t seem to work.

It was her father? Not Thomas?

Her mind spun as she tried to make sense of it.

How could she not have known? All this time, she’d believed it had been Thomas’s hand in Jordan’s sudden disappearance. That single assumption had been the cornerstone of everything she’d done since—her anger, her schemes, even her engagement.

She had orchestrated an entire campaign of vengeance. She had accused him of cruelty, letting it fester until she convinced herself he deserved to pay for what Jordan had suffered. She had suffered. She’d crafted this relationship with a man she hardly knew, simply because it suited her purpose to be close to him, to dismantle some part of his world. Yet, it turned out it was the wrong man all along.

The realization hit her like a blow.

She had taken her ire, her fury over Jordan’s alleged exile, and aimed it squarely at Thomas without a second thought. How could she have gotten it so wrong?

But she knew…

Of course, her father wouldn’t mention anything. But in his note, Jordan had made it sound like it was Linsey.

Bile rose in her throat.

“Ashley?” Thomas suddenly said, concerned.

She glanced up, only to see him watching her, his gaze filled with worry. The look in his eyes said he wanted to reach out, perhaps to hold her. But so many eyes were in the chamber. She averted her gaze, inhaling a shaky breath. She couldn’t look him in the eye—how could she, after her entire reasoning for being with him had crumbled in one moment of revelation?

Space.

She needed to think, to untangle the mess inside her head, for she could certainly not untangle the mess she’d already made. The best thing she could do for him was to remove herself from his life. He deserved much better than what he got.

“Why didn’t you tell me, Papa?” she asked her father, who cleared his throat.

“You seemed quite…” He glanced at Thomas before returning his gaze to her. “Taken with him. I didn’t want to disappoint you any further.”

She stiffened, but before she could respond, her mother’s voice rang out. “What’s he doing here? How dare your by-blow show his face here?”

Ashley’s eyes widened. “Whose what?”

Ashley turned to Thomas, but he shook his head. Not mine.

Her father cursed. “This is not the time.”

Her head whipped to her father. “Don’t tell me… I have a brother?”

“This isn’t how I wanted you to find out, darling.”

Her friends jumped up at that moment. “I think we should give you some space,” Maddie murmured.

“Good idea,” Sebastian muttered.

A pressing need for space throbbed within her.

“I…I think I need a moment,” she murmured, barely a whisper. “Alone.”

She met Thomas’s eyes again, his gaze probing her. Then he rose, nodding. “Then you shall have it.”

“How can we leave you alone at a time like this?” her mother said. “I shall stay.”

Ashley briefly shut her eyes. “Why must you always question my choices? I want to be alone. Alone means alone.”

“Give your daughter some space.” Thomas’s tone was soft but firm.

She shot him a grateful glance.

“But—”

“No buts, my dear.” Her father rose to his feet. “Let’s go.”

Ashley waited until the door shut before she rose from the bed and wobbled to the window, her eyes instantly falling on a man below. He was in conversation with Jordan, of all people. She shook her head.

She donned her riding habit, eager to get out of the sullied outfit she’d worn at the Ascot. Everything about it—the Ton, the scandals, the expectations, and the hushed gossip—appeared just as dirty to her as those clothes. How her perspective had changed. What had been sparkling and elegant in the morning was nothing to her now. The estate, the country, and everything about Thomas and what he held dear had become her everything.

Plus, she had a brother.

A half-brother, as it appeared. But a whole person she’d never known.

And her family had kept it from her.

Just as her father had kept from her his role in Jordan vanishing from her life, setting her on a path she couldn’t even bring herself to regret. What a wonderfully bittersweet contradiction. How was she supposed to feel about all this? How was she—

The door suddenly opened, and Sera’s head popped in. “Are you all right?” her friend asked. “Do you need help to escape?”

Ashley suddenly laughed. “No, just help to the stables.”

She glanced back out the window, squaring her shoulders. She had a brooch to return.

And a brother to meet.