Page 28 of Loving an Earl
Once inside the carriage, Emmeline leaned back and sighed. “Thankfully, that is over. I believe my ears still hurt from the music.”
Lilly found herself laughing. “That was music? I never would’ve guessed.”
Emmeline joined in the laughter, then turned serious. “We need to go home and change. The Duchess of Greenville handed me a note requesting us to deliver medicine to a sick baby tonight. He is quite ill and she’s afraid if he doesn’t receive the medicine immediately, he will not make it through the night. She’s sending a carriage and driver. I hope you don’t mind going with me. I know nighttime trips can be frightening, but the duchess wouldn’t ask if it weren’t imperative. And the young mother will not answer her door to strangers in the middle of the night. Perhaps at some point they will trust Mitchel and Flynn, but for now it must be someone from the Ladies’ Society.”
“I don’t mind at all. I wasn’t going to be able to sleep tonight, anyway, after witnessing Hollingsworth’s expression of dejection,” Lilly said as her heart ached for the marquess. “I feel awful for him. He must be desperate to ask a near stranger to marry him.”
“I agree,” Emmeline said as their carriage came to a stop.
Chapter Eleven
The Duchess ofGreenville’s driver was waiting outside Emmeline’s townhome when they arrived home. Lilly and Emmeline both picked up their skirts and hurried up the stairs to change clothing. After Daisy helped Lilly out of her evening dress, she sent her away and quickly dressed in a plain day dress, a black cloak, and sturdy boots. When she met Emmeline in the entry hall, she was dressed similarly. They left the house making haste to the unmarked coach.
“Good evening, ladies,” said the driver, Mitchel, as he helped them inside the old but sturdy vehicle. He was one of the men who drove for the cause, a man the duchess trusted implicitly.
“Good evening, Mitchel,” Emmeline said as she sat beside Lilly.
“We are on our own this evening. Flynn couldn’t make it.”
Emmeline and Lilly glanced at each other. It was first time they had gone on an assignment without an escort as well as a driver. She told herself it would be fine, even though her heart beat like a drum inside her chest. Emmeline had been doing this for years and never had an encounter with any unsavory men. She just had to concentrate on the poor sick baby who needed what was inside the large bag sitting on the floor by her feet.
Lilly had only gone into St. Giles during the night a few times but didn’t believe she would ever feel comfortable doing so. As the carriage left the respectable neighborhoods of London and traveled farther and farther into the poor, unsafe areas, the more Lilly’s heart pounded. She was afraid to look out the curtained window, knowing what she would see.
“I can see the panic on your face,” Emmeline said as she touched her hand. “Everything will be fine. We’ve been to this tenement before. When we arrive, do what you always do. Keep your hood up and don’t make eye contact with anyone—except for the poor mother. And you will recognize her—her name is Jane.”
Before Emmeline could say anything else the carriage jerked to a stop and Mitchel opened the door and lowered the steps. “Be quick.”
Lilly should have kept her head down. Instead, she gasped at the people milling around. Women—prostitutes—scantily dressed and dirty. Filthy men, drunk and swaying through the streets. Lilly gagged at the stench and her gloved hand flew to her mouth. Emmeline knocked and knocked on the door. Jane, the haggard-looking young mother, finally opened it just wide enough for her to hand over the bag and wish her well.
They hurried back inside the coach, Mitchel snapped the reins and sent the horses onward. Lilly leaned back against the squabs with a deep sigh. “I don’t believe I’ll ever get used St. Giles in the night. It is so eerie. Everything appears heightened. The sounds of the prostitutes and their customers, the drunk men, the awful smell.” She shivered.
“It is bad. The poor mother having to live in such squalor,” Emmeline said as she hugged herself.
They rode the rest of the way in silence. Lilly listened to the clop of the horses’ hooves, the creak of the carriage wheels, and the occasional yelling coming from the street. When they arrived home, she bid Emmeline goodnight and went to her room, undressed down to her chemise, and scrubbed the smell from her body with the pitcher of water and soap left for her by Daisy. No matter how hard she scrubbed, her skin still crawled with imagined filth. Eventually, Lilly conceded that she’d done the best she could.
Instead of climbing into bed, she took a blanket and lay on the chaise longue. Her mind wandered to the many unanswered questions floating around inside her brain.
Langford.
She questioned his motives where she was concerned. How could she know if he truly cared for her when his actions traveled from one extreme to the other? He frustrated her to no end. If she allowed herself to see his handsome face in her mind and remember the feel of his lips on hers her insides melted. A warmth curled around her heart, threatening to take over her entire body. He threatened her peace of mind. He was so contradictory he made her head spin from their first meeting to their last.
And they calledwomenfickle.
Even now, her heart pounded and her body trembled. Her fingers skimmed across her lips, causing her to sigh deeply. Whatever was happening between them had to end. She didn’t want to live in a state of uncertainty.
As for Hollingsworth, she sympathized with his plight but was glad his attentions would no longer be set on her. She truly hoped he found someone to marry and love.
*
Edmund sat ina quiet corner of White’s after leaving the musicale, enjoying his snifter of brandy. His thoughts got lost in the amber liquid when Hollingsworth darkened his vision.
“How dare you threaten to divulge my secrets? And how do you know I have any?” Hollingsworth’s voice was dark and menacing. Edmund had never heard or seen him so angry.
“Relax, I only said I would tell Lady Langford if you continued forcing this courtship. Which I gather from your actions tonight you won’t be?”
Hollingsworth grabbed him by his jacket lapels, hauled him to his feet, swung back, and punched him right in the jaw. Edmund, caught off guard was shocked when his arse fell back into the chair after being on the receiving end of the man’s fist. His drink and glass fell to the carpet with a muffled thud. He rubbed his jaw and smirked. “I hope you got satisfaction in that hit because it’s the only one you’ll get. Sit. Have a drink. You need one.”
Edmund was shocked when Hollingsworth sank into the chair closest to him. “A brandy, please, and another one for my friend,” he said to the waiter who had hurried over at the commotion.
