Chapter 20

Frederick’s stomach kicked hard as Miss Martha Fairley made her confession. It was not that he was surprised that she had confirmed the thoughts that had come into his mind as he had listened to the exchange between the two sisters, but rather astonished at the very calm way in which she delivered this news. He could practically feel the shock running through Emma, for her hand had not only found him, but she had wound her fingers through his as well, gripping his hand hard as she stared straight ahead, looking only at her sister. His heart ached for her and, though he wanted to say something more, though he had questions he wanted to ask of her, Frederick chose to remain silent and let Emma speak, rather than letting loose with his questions.

“I cannot quite believe this.” Emma closed her eyes tightly, her hand pressing his with such strength, it was almost a little painful. “You, Martha?” Opening her eyes, she looked back at her sister. “Why? Why would you do such things to me? I am your sister.”

Martha’s jaw tightened.

“It is because of Lord Wellbridge, sister,” she said, with the very same calmness that had shocked Frederick before. “You said yourself that you saw that I cared for him, that I had an affection for him. Why, then, should I let my heart break when there was something I could do to garner Lord Wellbridge’s attention?”

“By punishing me? Even though I did not know of his interest?” Emma asked, as the other Miss Fairley shrugged and looked away. “Why would you not simply speak to me? Why would you decide to treat me in such a way, instead of coming to me with an honest, gentle manner in which you would have been able to ascertain my own feelings on the matter?”

“Because I already knew them!” Martha rose to her feet, one finger shaking hard in Emma’s direction, and it was all Frederick could do not to get to his feet and come between them. “I knew of your feelings. I knew that you were desperate to find a match, that you were utterly determined to secure a suitable husband, just as my own feelings were – and why then would you refuse Lord Wellbridge?”

“I did not even notice him!” Emma exclaimed as Frederick pressed her hand gently, reminding her of his presence, reminding her that he was there with her. “All I could think of, all I could see, was these embarrassments which kept overtaking me, these mortifications which had nothing to do with me and yet were placed at my feet! It is because of your actions that I became a wallflower!” Her hand pressed hard on Frederick’s, the lady’s voice wobbling as she continued to speak to her sister. “That night at the dinner table, when we dined with Lord and Lady Pleasance - Lord Wellbridge was not even present! Why then would you have the footman do such a thing as to make it look as though I was the reason for him dropping the plate?”

Martha sniffed.

“A bad reputation for clumsiness or the like does not come about simply by one action,” she said, as Frederick closed his eyes, attempting to hold onto the ball of anger which was growing bigger with every word that came from Martha Fairley’s lips. “I did not like that you were not only gaining the attention of Lord Wellbridge but also, even in your state as a wallflower, you were being noticed by one of the richest gentlemen in all of London!”

Frederick blinked, momentarily stunned.

“Wait a moment, Miss Fairley. You mean to say that you hoped that I would be pushed away from your sister simply because of her supposed clumsiness?” Seeing her nod and still utterly astonished by the lady’s audacity and her complete lack of embarrassment as she admitted to these things, Frederick shook his head. “But why should you do that? Would you not be glad that I was seeking her company, rather than Lord Wellbridge?”

Martha let out a harsh, broken laugh which made the hair on Frederick’s neck stand on end.

“Glad?” she repeated, scowling furiously. “Why should I be glad that my sister, my younger sister, has not only gained the attention of the one gentleman whom I have an interest in, but thereafter, once I have secured her status as a wallflower, finds herself with the attention of other gentlemen – the attention that I ought to have?” She flung up her hands. “The ton appears to have forgotten that I am the eldest! That I ought to be given precedence, that I ought to be looked at and considered before my younger sister. But no, they did not! I had Lord Wellbridge consider her over me, and that is the sole reason that I began my endeavors to bring about her ungainly reputation. It began at the end of last Season, and reached its successful conclusion at the beginning of this Season, only for you, Lord Yeatman, to step in. You were just as Lord Wellbridge was, seeing my sister rather than even once considering me! I thought, mayhap, that you were unaware of her reputation and thus, it was more than a little simple to continue with my plans. I gave a great deal of pin money to footmen and maids, I even resorted to a hair pin, and yet none of that made you even consider stepping away from her! Instead, it seemed to bring you all the closer and I–”

“Martha!”

Frederick started in surprise, as did Martha and Emma. He hastily got to his feet, only to see Lady Follet standing just inside the room, her eyes wide with shock and her face pale with fright.

“M…mama.” Martha’s demeanor changed in an instant, her eyes fixed on her mother, her hands clasped at her heart. “Mama, I do not know all that you have heard but–”

“I have heard enough to realize that Emma has always been telling us the truth,” Lady Follet exclaimed, her voice cutting through Martha’s excuses. “My goodness, can it be true? You would do such awful things to your sister simply because you were jealous of her?”

Martha lifted her chin.

“It was not jealousy. It was only that I desired society to see me first.”

“I should take my leave.” Frederick turned to Emma, aware that their fingers were still interlaced. “Would you be able to spare me a few minutes alone, Emma? I know it is a little improper but–”

“Of course.” Emma rose to her feet, walking towards her mother and sister as Frederick hastened to the door. He did not want to linger in what was going to be a private family conversation, though, at the same time, he was relieved that the truth was now to be made known. Stepping out into the hallway, he waited a little anxiously for Emma’s return, relieved when after only a few minutes, she stepped out to stand with him.

“My dear.” The way that his heart leaped as he looked at her told Frederick that there was a good deal more to his affections than he had ever really considered. The desire to speak with her had come from only one particular thought: to beg her to accept his hand in marriage. There could be no delay.

“Are you quite all right?”

Taking her hand in his, they began to meander along the hallway – though quite where they were going, Frederick did not know, but nor did he care. All he wanted at present was to be in Emma’s company.

“I am still a little stunned,” she told him, her hazel eyes swirling with all manner of evident confusion, her face a little pale still. “I did not ever imagine that my sister would be the one doing such a thing to me, though I also did not imagine that Lord Wellbridge would have any sort of interest in me!”

Frederick smiled briefly.

“The latter does not come as a surprise to me, my dear Emma. The more that I have come to know you, the more my heart rejoices every time I am in your company. You are the most wonderful creature I have ever known.”

She smiled and leaned against him, sighing heavily as their steps slowed, leaving them to stand together just outside the parlor door. Spying it, Frederick turned and, without a word, pushed it open and stepped inside.

Emma followed without a word.

Once the door was shut, Frederick turned, ready to open his arms to her – and she was already there, ready and waiting to be held tight. Frederick wrapped his arms around her, smelling honey and blossom as she clung to him, his heart aching both with love for her and also in sympathy for all she had endured. How long they stood together, Frederick did not know, but when she stepped back, he already felt it to be too short a time.

“You are sure that Lord Wellbridge will not do or say anything more?” she asked him, her voice soft with all the deep, overwhelming emotions that she felt. “You are quite certain that he will stay away from both me and my sister?”

Frederick’s expression softened, his hand catching her chin gently.

“You are still concerned for Martha, even after what she has revealed to you?”

Emma nodded, though her eyes glistened with obvious tears.

“She is still my sister. Though I am saddened and sorrowful over what she has done, though my pain over that is still very great, I recall what Lord Wellbridge did to me, and my fear still lingers – both for myself and my sister.”

“Then I can assure you that Lord Wellbridge will not come anywhere near you again,” Frederick promised, finding himself a little overwhelmed with all that she had revealed to him. How precious she was! How wonderful! To have such a consideration within her over her sister, even after all that she had learned, was quite incredible. “I swear it.”

“I thank you.” Emma let out a slow sigh and then melted back into his arms. “Thank you for going to speak with him. I do not know what you said, but I trust your word.”

Frederick could not help but drop a kiss on her forehead. When she looked up, startled, all he could do was smile. A gentle pink began to infuse her cheeks as she held his gaze and Frederick’s heart began to quicken, fully aware of the desire deep within his heart.

“I want to marry you, Emma.” The words came to him without hesitation and though they were plain and without excessive expression, he spoke them anyway. Emma’s eyes rounded a little, though she began to smile, one hand lifting to press against his heart. “We have not been courting for long,” Frederick continued, one shoulder lifting in a half-shrug, “but I do not consider that to be something that should hold us back. The truth is, Emma, the time that I have spent in your company has been more than enough to convince me that you are the only lady in all of England – in all of the world, no doubt – who could capture my heart.”

“Your heart?” Her eyes widened all the more, the smile fading for a moment. “You care for me?”

Frederick shook his head, seeing the light flicker in her eyes.

“I do not just care for you, Emma. I believe I am falling in love with you.”

She caught her breath and Frederick’s heart squeezed with the sheer joy of what he was expressing to her, as though it was both relieved and delighted that he was finally telling her what had slowly been growing within him, ever since he had first set eyes on the lady.

“I am more convinced of it than ever,” he continued, as Emma began to blink furiously, her eyes filling with what he hoped were tears of joy. “I want to marry you, Emma. I want to marry you not only to keep you safe, to keep you protected from Lord Wellbridge, but because I cannot even imagine my life without you being present in it. To consider my future as one without your bright smile, without your laughter, your kindness and your joy is nothing but a future of shadow and pain. You bring me such wondrous happiness that I can do nothing other than stand here before you and beg of you to accept my offer of matrimony. I swear to you that my heart is yours, and I shall fall more and more in love with you with every day that passes. I will give you all of myself, I will dedicate myself to my role as husband and I will prove my love to you every day of our lives… should you accept, that is.”

Emma began to smile.

“My dear Yeatman, can you think for even a moment that I would refuse you?”

Hope leaped in his heart.

“When I was in the carriage with Lord Wellbridge, the only person I could think of was you,” she told him, her other hand reaching up to wrap around his neck, her fingers brushing at his hair as sparks shot through him, his breath hitching. “My greatest fear was that I would be kept apart from you, that I would have no opportunity to return to the connection we had shared. I was afraid that Lord Wellbridge would take that from me, that he would steal every part of my future with you and break it into tiny little pieces, never again to be mended. But then,” she continued, her voice dropping to a whisper, “you came to save me from him and in that moment, my future was restored. I have thought about you, and all that you have done for me and, as I search my heart, I discover that there is not only an affection there for you, but also love. I love you in return, Yeatman. It is an astonishing feeling, is it not?” She laughed as her other hand draped around his neck, the sound making Frederick beam with delight, though heat began to rise from his core as she pulled herself even closer to him. “To realize that one is in love is one thing, but to find that love returned is quite another.”

“It is returned,” Frederick assured her, beginning to lower his head as he looked deeply into her eyes and found nothing but love there. “Then you will marry me, Emma? You will be my bride?”

In answer, Emma pushed herself up on tiptoe and pressed her mouth to his. It was as though a torrent of water had broken over Frederick’s frame, filling him with such warmth and yet such weakness at the strength of it. He kissed her back with as much fervency as he dared, aware of his heart screaming for joy at the happiness which now clung to them both.

“Yes, I shall marry you, Yeatman,” she whispered, barely breaking the kiss, her eyes still closed. “I accept the offer of your hand in marriage. I will be your wife.”