Then he was reliving the kiss. He remembered the way her hand had pulled at his lapel, urging him down toward her. Charlotte had kissed him back, there was no denying it, and the words she had uttered before that kiss lived with him.
“I suppose no woman will ever change your mind, will she?”
Had she been asking at that moment if she was the woman that could change his mind?
“I have to ask her,” the words were sudden as they escaped him. “I have to ask her what she meant by that, and why she lied.”
With his mind made up, he flung himself back down onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling, no longer pacing up and down.
It seemed just by having one conversation with Mr. Withers, Gerard had changed his mind completely on his future. Staying forever in this lonely mock castle house was pointless when there was no one to talk to here, no one to share it with. Jeffrey’svisits would keep him entertained, but it was not enough, not enough for true happiness.
He veered out of the bed suddenly and hastened across the room. In the far corner was a small box that had belonged to his mother. He tore it open, rifling through the poor contents that she had treasured and kept closer to her, for her entire life.
In this box were many treasures she had held close to her heart, including a small note where she had described the day that Gerard had first spoken. His first word,Ma,was imprinted on that note forever.
Beneath the note, Gerard pulled out the one thing that his mother had clung onto, until her dying day. He lifted the golden necklace out of the box, watching as it shimmered in the grey light that filtered in through the lead-lined windows. The red ruby glistened, turning back and forth on the momentum created by Gerard lifting the necklace high. It glimmered like sheening blood then suddenly rested still in the palm of his hand.
“Aye, haunted.” Gerard suddenly understood something which had been missing from his life.
His mother had been haunted by her love, but it was a love that could never be indulged in for life. It was a love that they couldn’t commit to as they were so separated by position, yet Gerard’s love? Charlotte was indeed haunting him, yet she was not out of reach. She was unattached, of his class, and waiting in London.
Gerard pocketed the necklace, unsure why he did it, but deciding that it was best he carried it with him from now on, as a reminder of what could have been.
Gerard gathered his clothes back together again. He pulled on his waistcoat but didn’t bother with the cravat nor the tailcoat. When he returned to his room, he found Jeffrey and Mr. Withers laughing about something again.
“There you are.” Jeffrey topped up Gerard’s ale and passed it to him. “You all right? You look… well, I don’t really know how you look. A bit different to when you left this room.”
“I have made a decision. When ye return to London,” Gerard began, watching as Jeffrey’s lips lifted up a little. It was as if Jeffrey knew exactly what he was going to say before he said it. “I’ll come with ye.”
“Excellent news.” Jeffrey clapped him on the shoulder. “I wonder why, eh?” he added in a mischievous whisper, so only Gerard could hear him. “Come, let’s make the arrangements for your return.”
Gerard followed Jeffrey back to their seats, wondering if Jeffrey had brought Mr. Withers with him to Edinburgh not just because of business after all.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
“Charlotte!” Margaret called out to her before the carriage had even stopped.
Charlotte leaned toward the window, peering out at her family. They had all gathered to greet her return to the house. As the carriage came to a stop, David reached forward and opened the door, then Rose flung herself at Charlotte, embracing her before she had even stepped down out of the coach.
“You’d think I had been gone for a month, not one week,” she laughed. She embraced Rose back for a minute or more, then the two of them stepped down from the coach together.
“We have missed you,” Rose said hurriedly, helping her by taking the reticule and bonnet in her grasp.
“Yes. We’ve missed the way you like to reprimand us,” Harry said mischievously.
“Harry…” David warned.
“I was being honest. I have missed her.” Harry embraced her and they all laughed together.
“Come, into the house,” Margaret urged. She took Charlotte’s arm and steered her toward the building. When Margaret and David bumped shoulders, Charlotte was sure they would use it as a chance to spar with one another, but they did no such thing. Instead, they just smiled at one another and walked inside.
“Why are you on your best behavior?” Charlotte whispered to her mother.
“I don’t know what you mean. Now, come, we’ve arranged your favorite meal for your return.” Margaret waved her toward the dining room. As Margaret, David and Harry hurried toward the dining room, Charlotte hesitated, taking off her pelisse with Rose’s help.
“What is going on?” Charlotte whispered. “Do they not fight anymore?”
“Of course they fight.” Rose rolled her eyes. “Though if you ask me, they make a special effort these days to try not to argue so much. I’ve noticed a difference ever since that outburst of yours, where you shouted at us all.”
