Page 40 of The Viscount Needs a Wife (All for Love #2)

S tepping over the threshold of the house in Cavendish Square, Annis was conscious of a sense of homecoming that surprised her. Especially when the butler Latham greeted her warmly and then a squeal of joy from the staircase heralded the stampede of children hurrying to greet them.

As Emrys caught and hugged the girls, she was pelted by Ewen throwing himself at her legs. She picked him up, her heart catching as he flung his arms round her neck and kissed her. “Mama!”

She laughed; her heart suffused with joy at the name.

She had transitioned from Miss Pingle to Mama, and it made her heart sing.

She looked across at Emrys, who had Charlie in one arm and Lizzie hanging off the other.

They exchanged a warm smile amid the children’s chatter, and her heart overflowed.

She had a family, and it now seemed possible, perhaps even likely, that she was born legitimate, so her secret shame might soon be no more. Is it possible to be any happier?

Mrs. Green stood at the bottom of the stairs.

“I’m sorry, my lord, my lady. I couldn’t stop them.”

Emrys juggled Charlie on his hip. “Not a worry, Mrs. Green. We are as glad to see them as they are to see us. Latham, see to the horses and our luggage, will you? Come on, race you back to the nursery, Lizzie!”

Annis followed in his wake, Mrs. Green bringing up the rear. “How do you keep up with them?” she asked over her shoulder.

“I don’t, my lady, and that’s a fact. They need more exercise here in town. It’s hard on them, cooped up in the house. If you’ll pardon my saying so.”

“You’re absolutely right. We will have to do something about that. I’ll speak to his lordship.”

They spent an hour with the children, learning all about what they had done while she and Emrys were in Bath.

“The duchess came to see us,” said Lizzie importantly.

“And she brought Miss Deborah who played dress ups with us.” said Charlie, crawling into her father’s lap.

Charlie’s propensity to cling to Emrys every chance she got was not diminishing yet, though Annis held out hope that over time it would lessen, as the little girl’s trust increased. They were doing all they could to improve that, but going away as suddenly as they had probably hadn’t helped.

But if affection could make any difference, then it was simply a matter of time.

Emrys loved his children so much. Annis marveled at the fact that he was as unstinting in his affection for the girls as he was with Ewen.

She knew this wasn’t common. Many men ignored their female offspring as being unimportant.

But not her Emrys. He valued all his children equally.

She wondered if her father would have paid her any attention had things fallen out differently.

She had so many unanswered questions about him and why he had apparently never lived with her mother and why their marriage was never acknowledged publicly.

And she couldn’t quite shake the nagging fear that he’d somehow had the marriage put aside so that he could marry Lady Damaris.

Had he loved Damaris? Was that that why he abandoned them? Shunned them?

The notion hurt. For herself and especially for her mother.

Janet hadn’t deserved that. She had worked hard all her short life and taken very good care of Annis.

Not that she had coddled her—Mama was strict but fair.

And protective. Annis realized just how protective she had been in hindsight.

Many of the restrictions Janet had placed upon her she could see now were born out of fear and desire to protect.

Janet had been afraid—every day of Annis’s life, she now realized. What had she been afraid of? Nicholas? Or the man who attacked and threatened me? Who is he?

Emrys had promised to find out.

*

It was the day after their arrival home that Emrys suddenly bethought himself of Debrett’s Peerage .

He didn’t possess a copy, so he went to Hatchard’s to purchase one.

Returning home from the bookshop with this treasure of knowledge of the English, Scottish, and Irish peerage, he retired to his study to search through its pages for the Earldom of Tavistock.

Twenty minutes later he was in possession of several facts.

Nicolas Benedict Redmayne, the eldest son of Gerald Benedict Redmayne, 6th Earl of Tavistock, was born on the 20th of November 1768.

He married Lady Damaris Godfrey, eldest daughter of the Earl of Grenville on the 14th of November 1791.

She bore him a son, Lawrence Percival Redmayne, on the17th of November 1792.

And Lawrence was the current and 7th Earl of Tavistock, Nicolas having predeceased his father Gerald, dying on the 8th of January 1793.

The 6th earl had died last year on the 12th of July 1817 and was succeeded by his grandson.

Having copied out these notes on a piece of paper, Emrys contemplated what they meant.

If the marriage between Nicolas Benedict Redmayne and Miss Janet Adelaide Pringle was valid and never set aside, then Annis was not only legitimate, but she was Nicolas’s only legitimate offspring, her half-brother Lawrence being the product of a bigamous marriage.

This suggested strongly that the agent of Annis’s terror was Lawrence Redmayne, since her very existence threatened his legitimacy.

But how to prove it, without placing Annis in any more danger or distress?

There was no doubt in his mind that he needed to share this information with her, but until he had a plan to prove the man’s culpability and neutralize the threat he posed to Annis’s peace and security, he was reluctant to do so.

He was trying to think what he knew of Tavistock, but it wasn’t much.

He wasn’t even sure that he had met him.

He had a vague memory of the 6th earl, a big bluff fellow with the old-fashioned, high-handed arrogance of many men of his generation.

A hard rider to hounds, if he recalled, a man’s man.

Not one for gallantry or pretty speeches. But of the grandson, nothing.

He resolved to speak to Robert about it.

As reluctant as he was to reveal Annis’s secrets, if he meant to bring Lawrence Redmayne to book, assuming the man was still alive and Annis hadn’t done him in on that field after all, he would need some help.

But first it behooved him to confirm that he was indeed still alive.

How Emrys was to do that, he wasn’t sure.

One more thing occurred to him. He had been assuming that Annis’s parent’s marriage hadn’t been set aside for some reason, but did he know that?

For what reasons could a marriage be declared void or annulled apart from nonconsummation?

He needed to consult the marriage act, but damned if he knew where he could get hold of a copy of that.

His best bet was to see his solicitor—he would know or could find out.

Two hours later he left his solicitors office confident that Annis was legitimate.

His man had listened closely to all the facts Emrys could give him and had done a bit of quick research himself.

From what they could tell, it seemed Nicolas had abided by all the rules and the marriage was legal, even down to the residency requirement of living in the parish in which they were married.

Not that he had revealed to his solicitor the true reason for his questions, but the fellow had been most forthcoming on the topic.

*

That evening they had yet another ball to attend, this one hosted by Countess Lieven, whose husband was the Russian ambassador to Great Britain.

Annis was surprised to find that the idea that her birth may be legitimate gave her so much more confidence, even without knowing for certain yet.

For the first time attending a society event, she didn’t feel like a fraud and welcomed the opportunity to mingle with the ton as, if not precisely an equal, at least one who should not be scorned.

She was proud to be Emrys’s wife, and she smiled and curtsied to their hosts, the very regal and beautiful Countess and equally haughty Count Lieven, refusing to be intimidated.

Entering the main ballroom on her husband’s arm, she was delighted to find acquaintance among the guests and to feel herself more at ease.

Emrys was attentive as always and only left her side to fetch her refreshment or speak with his friends when she was dancing.

And when it got too hot to be comfortable, he took her walking in the gardens.

They were taking a rest on a seat in a pretty rose arbor when she caught the sound of a voice that instantly destroyed all her pleasure, sending chills of horror down her back.

“What is it?” asked Emrys as she clutched his arm.

She looked around wildly to try to work out where the voice was coming from. It was behind them, she fancied. Their view was obscured by a high hedge, but the voices were clear enough.

“My dearest Cecelia, you have inflamed my passions to an extraordinary degree, I cannot wait until our wedding.”

“My lord, I am indeed sensible of it, yet I beg you, restrain yourself!” came the lady’s reply.

“It’s him!” hissed Annis, her breath coming short in panic.

“Him? The man who attacked you?” asked Emrys, keeping his voice low.

Annis nodded frantically. She was trembling, partially from fear and partially from relief. She hadn’t killed him, after all. But that meant she was still in danger if he saw her and recognized her.

“We have to go! If he sees me—”

Emrys nodded and stroked her arm in a soothing manner. “Hush, stay here. We will leave in a moment, I promise.”