Page 29 of Second Chance Prince
Roberta and Estelle shared a glance. News had already spread. She was glad she was going to Grantham, until she remembered that there would be even more questions to answer once she got there.
Niki’s visit to Grantham was to go ahead, despite protests from his councillors and a terse message from Chamberlain Francis Ruess. Unfortunately, there had been nothing learned from the would-be assassin. As yet, he had not spoken despite inducements, but Freddie seemed certain he would eventually crack.
“He is afraid,” he said to Niki when he visited the following day to update him on events. “Whoever is in charge of the plot against you has some hold over him. He won’t give them up, and it might be due to loyalty, but it is also due to fear. I will break him eventually.”
He spoke with a confidence that was meant to reassure Niki. But he had to wonder if even Freddie Hart could force a man to talk who refused. Niki had been to see the man but did not recognize him. There was something, some slight idea that he may have seen him before, but Niki could not pinpoint it, try as he might.
There had been a development in regard to the package and threatening letter. Freddie informed him that Mr. Walter had confessed to the letter. “Gabriel believed him to be harmless, but he should have looked at him more carefully. Evidently, Walter felt so slighted when Roberta became engaged to you that he decided to punish her. And you. The heart is another story. Walter swears he had nothing to do with it and I tend to believe him. We think it was from an abattoir and it was mere coincidence that it arrived on the same day as the letter.”
“Walter will not trouble Roberta again?”
“Don’t worry, he is locked up.”
Niki was glad to hear it.
Freddie went on to say that they were looking into the possibility that the heart had been sent by the would-be assassin, and therefore was not a threat to Roberta.
That was a relief. She was safe, at least. Niki had learned to put on a brave face, and his training from childhood rarely let him down, but imagining Roberta in danger had made it difficult for him. The confusing thing was, he was finding it more and more challenging these days to return to his stoic self. It was as if she had cracked his mask, and his inner emotions were leaking through.
The three months he had allowed himself for his stay inEngland were counting down at a rapid rate, and he found he wanted to make the most of every day he had left.
He was looking forward to the stay at Grantham, despite his chamberlain’s objections. He would have bodyguards with him, probably more than before, but he would simply pretend they were not there. He remembered his previous visit to the home of the Ashtons with a mix of pleasure and regret. They were so full of life and mischief. Until he had met them, he had not realized how arid his own life was. And yet the family’s antics and the thought of his own reputation being damaged by them had sent him fleeing from the Ashton estate.
Would he ever have married Olivia? The dowager duchess had more or less presented her granddaughter to him on a platter, but in the end, Olivia’s love for Ivo, the Duke of Northam, had triumphed. Just as well. The last thing Niki wanted was an unwilling bride—he remembered his parents’ unhappy marriage all too well. If he had thought of marriage for himself, he had hoped it would be comfortable and calm. No loud arguments and doors slamming. No bitter recriminations and regrets. He wanted something at least approaching harmony.
Would Roberta give him harmony? He smiled at the thought. Probably not. The girl she had been on that first visit had been infuriating, yet captivating. He had found himself drawn to her despite her stealing Leopold from him and riding the stallion so recklessly. He had been furious about that. At the time, he had told himself he could never forgive her, but then she had apologized.
“My grandmother says I must say sorry,” she had said, watching him with guileless blue eyes.
“And are you? Sorry?” he had responded stiffly.
“Yes. I am sorry I was caught,” she’d said, with a grin.
He should have told her what he thought of that. He should have dressed her down and demanded a proper apology. But instead, he had felt his mouth give a reluctant twitch and it had been a struggle not to laugh.
Now he admitted to himself that it wasRobertawho had given him the lasting memories of his stay at Grantham. Everything else was blurred by three years’ distance, but Roberta remained clear and true. There was no escaping her.
Chapter Fifteen
Roberta was so glad to see Grantham, she could hardly speak. But with her sense of joy came an uncomfortable case of nerves. As soon as she stepped through the door, her grandmother demanded to know if she was injured, and Gabriel came and clasped her in his arms, saying how sorry he was to have dismissed Mr. Walter as harmless and could she ever forgive him, before Vivienne frantically examined her face as if expecting to see some terrible wound.
Olivia hadn’t arrived yet, although Justina was there with Charles.
“What a brave girl you are!” her sister cried. “It is like one of Annette’s books.”
Roberta gave a shaky smile. “That’s what I said. And sometimes, itfeelslike a book.”
Gabriel had given her a “look” to remind her that no one apart from him and Vivienne knew the truth, so she must be very, very careful. She almost saidAntonia knows!but that would not please her brother. The secret must stay a secret, and secrets were tricky things. She had never been very good at keeping them, and she told herself she would be glad when it was all over.
Although was that strictly true? The more time she spent withNiki, the less she wanted to be on her own again without him. Not just because life would be so very tedious, but because she was enjoying his company more and more. It was as if their secret enclosed them in their own little cocoon.
Olivia arrived the following morning with Ivo and his two sisters and the two children. Baby Edward was barely two months old, and Lily was two years and a bit. The whole family looked frayed from the journey, although Roberta was pleased to see their nursemaid was a capable older woman who soon gathered up the children and removed them to the nursery.
Olivia, once freed of her family responsibilities, tracked Roberta down in the stables, where she was reacquainting herself with the horses. She had brought Arrow with her, and when her sister pulled a face at the sight of him, Roberta felt indignant on her horse’s behalf. After all, he had won Olivia the race against Ivo down Rotten Row three years ago. “There you are,” Olivia said unnecessarily. “Is it true?”
Roberta met her suspicious look with wide eyes. “Of course it’s true. Niki and I are engaged.”
“And you flung yourself in front of a bullet to save his life?” Olivia shook her head. “It is like something you’d see at Covent Garden. You weren’t hurt, were you? No, of course you weren’t. You look…” Her frown faded, and suddenly she smiled her beautiful smile. “You look amazing. Congratulations!”
