Page 33 of Her Duke’s Second Chance (Regency Second Chances #1)

CHAPTER 33

“ I am sorry to tell you this, Your Grace, but your wife will not make it.”

“No! No, you said she would be fine.”

Dr. Pritchard gazed solemnly at Robert. “It is very unfortunate, but it does happen.”

Robert shook his head desperately. “No, you cannot sit there and call it unfortunate after you assured me that she would recover! That she would be fine!”

The physician shook his head. “I am sorry. I lied to you.”

Robert leaped for the man’s throat with a guttural roar.

He jolted awake with a shout and looked around in confusion when he found himself in his own bed. Flinging his covers away, he scampered out of bed and ran to the connecting door, not even bothering with his slippers.

He pushed it open and hurried to Georgiana’s bed. She lay as still as he had left her when he went to bed. The glow from the fire added a rosiness to her cheeks that hid the pallor of her flesh. He touched her hand.

It was as limp as always but warm with life, the vein at her wrist pulsing weakly. His entire body slumped with gratitude.

She is still alive.

His shaky legs were too weak to hold him up. Robert scrambled for the chair that Daisy usually occupied and collapsed into it. Breathing hard, he stared at Georgiana, his thoughts racing.

If I leave she might have a chance. If I stay, I am rolling the dice on her life. There is no other choice. I must go.

He got to his feet slowly and approached the bed. He stared down at her bleakly.

“You deserve better than this. You deserve better than me .”

He bent down and kissed her forehead, then straightened up and walked back to his room. He checked the time on his fob watch that lay on his bedside table.

It was four-thirty in the morning.

He decided not to wake Stanley. He could wait until morning to leave. He did not want to sneak out like a thief in the night. He sat down on his bed, not wanting to fall asleep again lest the dream return.

He lit a candle instead and reached for his book. Sitting with his head against the headboard, he began to read.

“Surely you cannot leave! Not with Georgiana in the state that she is in,” Daisy protested when Robert told her his plan.

“I must. It is for her own good.”

“Oh, do not be ridiculous. That is nothing but superstitious nonsense,” Daisy said irritably.

“That is easy for you to say, but I have lived it. I will not take a chance. Not with Georgiana’s life on the line. Even if you do not agree or understand, all I ask is that you take care of her in my absence.”

“Robert, please do not go,” she begged.

He looked away from her in genuine sorrow. “I am sorry. This way, she will get better. I am certain of it.”

Stanley walked past them, carrying Robert’s bags to the waiting carriage. Robert followed him, feeling Daisy’s accusing eyes on him.

He let out a long sigh as he stepped into the carriage, feeling as though he was leaving his heart behind.

As the carriage lurched forward he felt a moment of doubt, wondering if he was truly doing the right thing.

But then the Georgiana from his dream flashed through his mind—cold, pale, dead—and he knew that there was no other recourse for him but to leave.

Not if he did not want his nightmare to come true.

She felt like she was drowning, being pulled under by an invisible force while fighting to reach the surface and just breathe .

Then she was gasping, hungrily gulping in air, realizing that her eyes were open without consciously willing them to do so.

She looked around frantically for a moment, confused about where she was.

“Georgie!”

She winced as Daisy’s loud voice pierced her ears.

“You are awake. Oh, thank the Lord.”

She reached out blindly, her eyes scrunched shut. “Hush, Daisy. Not so loud.”

Her sister grasped her hand, squeezing it tightly. “How are you feeling?” she asked.

“My head hurts a bit,” Georgiana said without opening her eyes.

“I am sorry. Let me…” she let go of Georgiana’s hand and Georgiana heard the bell ring. A minute later the door opened.

“Please bring Her Grace some willow bark tea,” Daisy ordered.

“No,” Georgiana said. “I think I need laudanum.”

“All in good time, Your Grace,” Mrs. Green’s voice said. “We must call the physician first. Those were his instructions.”

“Willow bark then,” Georgiana said resignedly.

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Daisy took her hand again. Even with her eyes closed, Georgiana could feel her anxiety.

“Where is my husband?” she asked.

Daisy’s breath hitched and she gulped audibly. “I was hoping for more time before I had to answer that question.”

Georgiana frowned. “What do you mean by that? Is he all right? Did something happen to him?”

Daisy sighed. “Nothing like that. He is fine. He is just…not here.”

“Why? Where did he go?” Georgiana could feel her heart sinking even as she waited for an answer.

Daisy dropped her head. “He has gone back to Emberford.”

Georgiana bit her bottom lip and her chin quivered uncontrollably as tears formed in her eyes. Her head was throbbing, and she felt woozy and disoriented.

She could not believe that Robert had run off.

“When did he go?”

“Three days ago.”

“And how long have I been…?”

“About six days.”

“Hmm.” She lifted her hand slowly. “I suppose that explains why I feel so weak.”

“Yes! I am sorry. I should have asked right away. Do you want something to eat?” Daisy asked with wide, anxious eyes.

Georgiana rubbed her stomach. “Yes. I think so.”

“Right away.” Daisy immediately reached for the bell pull.

Within a few minutes, Mrs. Green had returned, not just with a pot of willow bark tea, but also a bowl of broth and some soft, freshly baked bread to soak it up.

Georgiana grimaced when Daisy insisted on feeding her but saw that her hands were shaking too violently to hold a spoon. Her sister’s tongue was clamped between her teeth in an effort not to pour soup on her.

Georgiana stifled a small giggle.

“What is amusing you?” Daisy asked.

Georgiana shrugged. “Nothing.”

“So why are you grinning so hard?”

“I am?”

“Yes, you are.”

“Well, I suppose I could cry, but laughing is better.”

Daisy paused her feeding to stare at Georgiana with concern. “Why would you cry?”

She shrugged. “My husband has abandoned me. I feel quite unwell. My sister is having to feed me because my hands are too shaky and weak. Take your pick.”

“I am so sorry. You will soon feel better.”

“I pray that I will.”

Daisy took a seat on Georgiana’s bed and sighed deeply. “I am sorry he left. I tried to stop him, but he was hell-bent.”

“Why?”

“I do not know. He was just so adamant that he had to leave. Almost desperate, in fact.”

Georgiana sighed. “Perhaps he was tired of being here with an insensible woman. Maybe he grew bored.”

“No, I do not think so. It was more serious than that. He told me to tell you he would be back when you woke up.”

“It sounds like he was bored,” Georgiana insisted.

Daisy shook her head and sighed. “I do not know how to convince you otherwise.”

“Good. There is nothing of which you need to convince me.” Georgiana turned away, swallowing the lump in her throat.

It was too reminiscent of the day after her wedding, when she had watched from her window as Robert’s bags were loaded onto his carriage and he drove away.

At the time, she had told herself she was relieved to be left alone, but now she could acknowledge the sense of abandonment, loneliness, and embarrassment she had experienced. She remembered the humiliating feeling of inadequacy, of having failed in the one role every woman should be good at: being a wife.

If she had not found Selina shortly thereafter, Georgiana was doubtful that she would have survived it.

She wiped a lone tear from her face, and Daisy clutched her hand sympathetically. “I swear I shall kill him,” Daisy said angrily.

Georgiana huffed. “Do not. It is not his fault.”

“Whose fault is it then?”

Georgiana shook her head. “I am tired Daisy. I would like to rest now. Please let me sleep.”

She closed her eyes determinedly and turned away. Her head was still throbbing, and she felt a little dizzy, but she pushed all that away, determined to escape into the arms of Morpheus.

The carriage came to a stop outside the manor house at Emberford. Robert continued to sit, unmoving, wondering if he had done the right thing.

I could still go back to London. It is not too late.

Georgiana’s pale, still body from his nightmare flashed through his mind and he shook his head to dislodge the image. He could not go back if there was the slightest chance his presence would cause the thing that he feared the most.

Her death.

There was a knock on the carriage door, and he peered out of the window to see his grandmother staring expectantly at him.

“Do you intend to live in there or are you coming out?” she asked. His face flushed in embarrassment, and he opened the door.

“Good evening, Grandmother. What are you doing outside?”

“Well, I was watching from the window, waiting to see who would emerge from this carriage, and I got tired of waiting, so I thought I would come and look for myself.”

He heaved himself out of the carriage and down the steps, reaching for his grandmother’s arm and propelling her back to the house.

“You did not have to strain yourself like that, Grandmother.”

His grandmother snorted. “Do not be ridiculous. I can behave exactly as I please and no one can stop me. Certainly not a young whippersnapper like you.”

Robert snorted, shaking his head scornfully. “As if anyone could ever tell you what to do. You are a force unto yourself.”

She puffed up her chest proudly. “Indeed I am. And do not forget it.”

They walked into the house in silence and Robert paused by the stairs. “Shall I return you to your chambers?”

“Heavens no! Not before I have heard everything. Why were you gone so long?”

Robert gave a long sigh. “That is a long story, Grandmother, and I am exhausted. Allow me to take my leave to freshen up, and I shall regale you with my London exploits during dinner.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “Go on then. But I will hold you to it.”

“I know, Grandmother.” He turned away, his face falling as he climbed the stairs to his chambers.

He did not want to discuss Georgiana with anyone, especially not his grandmother. It would make what was happening all too real. He would rather keep running away from it until he no longer could. Nothing needed to change if he did not have to talk about it.

He called for a bath and a bottle of brandy, intending to disappear into it.

He was hopeful that he would get drunk, pass out, and avoid dinner altogether.

A knock on the door caused Georgiana to look up from the book in her lap. She had finally managed to convince Daisy to leave by saying she wanted to be alone and read her book, but she had not absorbed a single word.

She sighed. “It has not even been half an hour. Can this girl leave me alone?” she whispered to herself in frustration.

The door opened and three serving girls came in, each carrying a large bouquet of flowers. “These have just been delivered, Your Grace.”

Georgiana stared at them in surprise. “Delivered from where?”

“Why, from the florist, of course.” Jane, the first serving girl, looked uncertain. She hurried over to the vase, plucked a card from the bouquet and handed it to Georgiana.

Georgiana clutched the card in her hand without looking at it. “Thank you. You may go.”

She assumed that it must have been Selina who sent her the flowers. She did not think anyone else in London would bother. She looked down at the handwriting and frowned. It looked distinctly masculine and was most certainly not Selina’s handwriting.

Perhaps the florist wrote the note.

She snorted impatiently at herself and unfolded the note. To her surprise it was a poem, one she had never seen before.

I hope this bouquet finds you well,

If not, I hope it binds you,

To hope and life and tomorrow,

That what we started,

May not end in sorrow.

There was no signature, but she did not need one to know who had written it. She chuckled forlornly through her tears.

“If you feel this way, then why did you run?” she whispered.