Page 53 of The Swan Syndicate #1
Five days later, Stella and Beckworth stood among the trees just beyond the gardens, holding hands, a duffel over each of their shoulders.
Jamie, Fitz, and Lando were there, in addition to Hensley, Mary, and Elizabeth, who would be leaving with Mary and Hensley for London the following morning.
Eleanor stood with Barrington and Libby.
Everyone was smiling, if not just a bit sad.
Stella, Beckworth, and Eleanor had returned the day before from what ended up being a two-day trip to visit Bart and Lincoln. She was already missing this group. Her focus shifted to the gardens and the manor beyond.
Waverly had become home to her, even with the short time she’d spent there.
She and Beckworth had spent the morning lounging in bed with a pot of coffee while developing a story to share with the group in Baywood.
They wouldn’t lie about sailing on the Daphne , but they would gloss over most of the details.
Beckworth had laughed. His desire to stay longer could be blamed on the new foal. She couldn’t argue his reasoning, knowing how passionate Finn was about horses.
“Make sure you give that envelope to Finn.” Jamie shook his hand and surprised Stella with a kiss on her cheek.
“You have my word. He’ll be happy to hear from you.” Beckworth nodded to Hensley, who’d also given him a packet of letters for Finn and Sebastian. “Try to keep them out of trouble. MacDuff isn’t one to trifle with.”
Beckworth didn’t say anything to Barrington or Libby other than to nod and give them a smile as he read the incantation. The four of them had had a long talk after breakfast and shared everything they needed to.
When the fog came, the women waved goodbye—even Libby—and Stella waved back. Her grip was tight in Beckworth’s hand when the first tug of the fog came.
She closed her eyes and lowered her head to avoid the brightness of the light.
It didn’t help. Within seconds her stomach wrenched, and she doubled over, leaning into Beckworth.
When the pain receded and the light dimmed, she was spit out of the fog like she’d been shot out of a cannon.
Her feet dangled in midair, and she kicked her legs in a vain attempt to find the ground.
Her feet scraped the wood dock, and she thought she’d stuck the landing. It wasn’t the dock. It was Beckworth and the two tumbled, duffel bags and all, until they rolled to a stop, the bags dropping on top of them.
She shoved hers aside. “Good god, there has to be a better way to do that.”
Beckworth lifted up on his elbows and glanced around. “At least we’re in the right spot.”
The sun was bright for a winter day but softer than the light in the fog. Stella glanced at the path leading up to the inn. “I don’t see anyone.”
“Maybe they’re not home.” He stood and brushed off his pants then pulled Stella up.
“I was so looking forward to concierge service for my bag.”
“Come on.” He pushed her duffel toward her. “We’ll take it slow.”
They trudged up the path and were walking across the lawn toward the back deck when Finn’s truck barreled down the driveway and into the parking lot in front of the inn. Stella dropped her bag, which landed with a thud on the grass as she made her way onto the deck.
“I either need stronger arm muscles or I need to pack lighter.” Stella collapsed at the outdoor table and leaned her head back. Her arms hung by her side, unwilling to move.
Beckworth sat next to her and grabbed her hand. “It’s the impact of the fog. Your energy will come back soon. Some food will help.”
Stella was running through which foods she’d missed the most while in England when the French doors blew open and AJ burst out.
“You’re home!” AJ pulled Stella out of her chair, hugging her tightly.
Stella’s throaty laugh couldn’t be helped as she clutched AJ to her. When she pulled back, she admonished her friend. “With absolutely no welcoming committee.”
Finn was shaking Beckworth’s hand and passed him a beer before sitting at the table. “To be honest, we thought it would be another day or two before you returned.”
Stella slid Beckworth a glance. “We were gone almost three weeks. I thought that would be a couple of days on this side of the fog.”
AJ picked at the edge of the table. “It was. We thought you might stay longer than you planned once you got there.”
Beckworth jumped in before Stella. “If it had been a better time of year, we probably would have. But, as you know, England in January isn’t the best climate.”
Stella didn’t glance at Beckworth, but she wanted to. They’d had decent weather, and while it had been on the cooler side it wasn’t any different than winter in Oregon.
“So, tell us everything.” AJ stood and looked at Finn. “Did you start the coffee?” When he nodded, she ran for the door. “Give me a minute to get Stella some coffee.” She was back quickly with a cup for her and Stella.
Stella ran the mug under her nose. “Heavenly.” She took a sip and glanced at Beckworth, who dove into their rehearsed tale. She had to give him credit, the man was a master at weaving a tale, focusing on the hunting party and providing an update on all the people they’d visited.
“I’m relieved to know everyone is safe and living their lives without all the theatrics whenever we showed up.” AJ tucked her legs under her and savored the coffee.
“Well, everyone missed the two of you.” Stella emptied her mug, and feeling better, shuffled into the house, returning with the coffee pot and a hot pad. She refilled cups before sitting down.
“Do you know how the Daphne is fairing?” Finn asked.
“She’s still a fine ship and the crew sharp as ever under Jamie’s hand.” Beckworth grinned at Finn, who raised a brow.
“And you know this firsthand?” Finn asked.
“We might have taken a short sailing trip while we were there.” Stella straightened and sipped her coffee, staring at AJ over the rim of her mug. She was rather proud she’d been able to spit that out.
AJ almost choked on her coffee. “You went for a sail on the Daphne ?”
“Just up the coast to Swansea.” Beckworth smiled at Stella like a proud father. “We had fair weather, and Stella didn’t get sick once.”
“Mostly just using the herbs, but I admit I took a motion sickness tablet twice.”
“That seems odd.” AJ squinted at Stella, her truth radar on high alert.
“Stop that,” Stella scolded. “Jamie all but dared me. What choice did I have?” She couldn’t believe how flippant that sounded, but it did the trick.
AJ relaxed and settled back in her seat.
“Oh, I almost forgot.” Beckworth pulled the envelope and a stack of letters out of his pocket and slid it to Finn. “For you to read later. Letters from your mates and a few for Sebastian.”
Finn’s expression softened when he ran his fingers over the top of them. “I appreciate this.”
“And we arrived to discover a new foal in the barn.”
The two men fell into horse discussions as AJ asked Stella more detailed questions about the people.
Soon, the rest of their family and friends began arriving, all bringing food that Stella immediately sampled. They stayed for another hour before Finn and Ethan took their duffels to Stella’s car.
“Give us a day to acclimate,” Beckworth said. “Then maybe dinner at Joe’s?”
“Sounds good.” Finn rubbed the back of his neck, his signature grin sneaking through. “It’s a shame you didn’t have a camera to take a picture of that colt.”
“He’s going to be a fine stud. I think Hensley will be spending more time at Waverly than his own manor.
” Both men laughed at the truth of it before Beckworth climbed into the passenger seat.
He knew how to drive, but he preferred taking the wheel on long drives.
City driving drove him crazy, and as many times as Stella had shown him the shortcuts, he would lean his head back to watch the city—or as Stella knew—the people.
Neither spoke as they drove to their bungalow-style house. It was in her name, purchased with well-earned money from her broker business, but as far as she was concerned it was theirs, just like Beckworth considered Waverly theirs, though they weren’t married.
When she pulled into the driveway and parked, Beckworth turned to her.
“I think Finn knows we’re lying to them.”
S tella dropped the duffel on the bed and stared at the floor.
She’d wanted to turn on music and dance with Beckworth, excited for their ability to keep their secret.
Instead, she collapsed on the bed. Beckworth placed his duffel on a chair and opened it, removing his clothes and laying them on the dresser.
The bedroom originally had a king-sized bed, a stuffed chair with a round side table, two dressers, two nightstands, an electric fireplace, and a walk-in closet.
When Beckworth moved in, they found a second chair that complemented the original one, and then a bookcase was added.
It was only the first step in making the room efficient for their lazy streaks.
An LCD monitor was added to a wall, and some days they only left the room for food.
Beckworth had drawn the line at adding a mini fridge, declaring they wouldn’t leave the room for days and they might as well give the food delivery man a key so he could just bring the food to their bed.
Stella had laughed, and he’d picked her up and tossed her on the bed.
She was fairly certain sex had ensued afterward.
Beckworth placed his boots next to the door so he could take them to the utility room for cleaning. Once his duffel was empty, he placed it next to the boots where it would end up in the guestroom closet. Then he sat next to her on the bed.
“Why do you think Finn knows we’re lying?
” Stella picked at a loose string on her sweater.
“I’ve been playing back all the conversations.
I don’t remember saying anything that would’ve given it away.
And AJ would have called me on it the moment she caught the lie.
She was suspicious enough about the Daphne story. ”
“We didn’t really lie. We simply left out what we did on our sailing trip.”
“That’s walking a mighty fine line.”
“I don’t think Finn caught us in any specific deception. I think it’s more intuitive. He senses we left something out, he’s just not sure what.”
“Do you think he suspects we were on a mission?”
Beckworth grabbed her hand. “You’re going to unravel that. And, no, I doubt it. I believe it to be more of a feeling. Something he can’t put his finger on.”
She sighed. “And he’ll most likely say something to AJ.”
“I’m not so sure.”
That surprised her. She turned to him, pulling a leg up on the bed. “Why not?”
“Because he knows how she gets. She’ll jump to conclusions—most of them wild speculations. He won’t want to stir that pot.”
“I suppose.” But she worried her bottom lip.
Beckworth laughed. “And I probably shouldn’t have said anything to you.”
“What about Ethan?”
“I think Ethan and Maire were more nostalgic.”
“You think they wanted to go with us?”
“Maybe not before we left, but now? Yes, I think they do.”
“We’re going to have to be more careful.”
“Let’s not worry about it for now. But I agree we need to be careful we don’t slip. I’m sure our trip will come up more than a few times over the next week or so.”
He pulled her hands away from her sweater where she was still slowly tugging at the loose piece of yarn. She was indeed unraveling it. He slid the sweater off her shoulders then unbuttoned her blouse.
“I think we’re in need of a better way to celebrate our homecoming.” When his fingers brushed over her bra, then slipped behind her back, expertly unsnapping it, her mind refocused on the man in front of her.
Soon they were both rolling across the bed, and someone kicked the duffel off.
Beckworth hugged her to him, but Stella pushed him onto his back then straddled him. She ran her hands up his chest then more slowly on the return trip down. She kissed him, one hand running through his hair and the other trailing down his stomach.
He was more than ready for her, and her first thought was to take it slow. Until he reached between her legs. She pushed his hands away but didn’t stay on top for long before he rolled her over. It was like surfing a rogue wave—wild and freeing and intoxicating.
Nothing stayed hidden between them when they made love.
It was raw. Even at the tenderest of moments.
Jamie had said the two of them were alike, and he’d been right.
Their coming together fed a hunger they’d needed all their lives.
And it was hot enough and deep enough to fulfill them the rest of their days.
Sometime later—for some reason her ability to sense the general time never worked when the two of them were in bed—her eyes opened.
It took a moment before she glanced over to find Beckworth staring at the ceiling.
They were holding hands like new lovers.
They did that a lot, as if they had to touch each other, just to make sure the other person was there.
Maybe it was more than that. Some innate knowledge that there was a stronger connection between them than mere touch could provide, yet the feel of skin on skin deepened it.
She released a long sigh and squeezed his hand. “Don’t be mad.”
When she didn’t say any more, he squeezed back. “Just tell me.”
A minute passed before she finally spilled it. “I kind of promised Elizabeth, Mary, and Eleanor that we’d try to come back for the London season.”
She gave him a side glance to find he’d turned his stare on her. She fidgeted under his intense cornflower-blue gaze. Maybe she should have discussed it with him while they were still at Waverly. But it hadn’t been her fault the women had cornered her.
He was still staring at her when he said, “I have something to confess myself.”
She squinted at him, not expecting that response.
“I told Barrington to have Lord Templeton’s London house prepared for an April visit. Hensley said he’d find a reason for the Daphne to be in London.”
They stared at each other for the longest moment. Then they broke out in laughter.
Once their jovial mood faded, so did his smile, and his tone became earnest. “Do you know how much I love you?”
Stella stroked his cheek. “I have some idea, but it wouldn’t hurt to remind me.”
His kiss was heated with a hunger she hadn’t seen before, which seemed impossible after the many shared nights of heartfelt passion. Nights where they simply held each other or stripped the sheets with hot sex.
“We are two lucky people, Lady Swan. What adventures wait for us.”
“Until then, I only have one thing to ask of you, Teddy.”
He didn’t wait for her to finish before tugging her to him for more intimate adventures.