Because of Rebecca

chapter Twenty-Four

“I thought you said they’d be right down?” Delaney held his cup out for Mary to refill.

“They will. You need to be patient. It isn’t like you have anywhere you must be within the hour, do you?” Rory said.

“Would you like more eggs or sausage, sir?” Mary asked.

“No, Mary. The meal was delicious.”

“I’m glad you are enjoying our hospitality, Mr. Delaney,” Jared said as he and Rebecca entered the dining room hand in hand.

Delaney stood and bowed to him. “Good morning, Mr. Hollingsworth. Mrs. Hollingsworth. Your cousin has been a most gracious host. He told me about your run in with those ruffians yesterday. It was a good thing he was there to stop them and return Mrs. Hollingsworth to you safely.”

Jared looked at Rory, who shrugged. Leave it to his cousin to retell the story with a colorful twist.

“I pray you have concluded your business?” Jared said.

“Yes. I have agreed to take the money he owed me in exchange for the plantation. After touring the grounds upon my arrival, I realized managing property this size would require more effort and energy than I have the patience for. I’m a gambler. I enjoy my freedom.”

Jared nodded and led Rebecca to the far end of the table. He pulled out her chair and she sat. “I’m glad to hear that.”

Delaney took his seat again.

Jared pulled out a chair and sat next to Rebecca. “This land has been in our family for generations and I long to see it stay for many more.” He waited until Mary filled his coffee cup before adding, “To getting what we all want.”

Delaney held up a hand. “However, there is one matter that is unsettled.”

A knot formed in Jared’s stomach at Delaney’s words and he prepared himself for what the man would say next. “What’s that?”

“I finally figured out where I know your wife.” Delaney smiled and winked at Rebecca. “By the way, congratulations on your nuptials.”

“Thank you, Mr. Delaney,” Rebecca said and reached for the coffee cup Mary sat before her

“Cut the pleasantries,” Rory ordered. “I already told Jared that you believe you bedded Rebecca in New Orleans.”

“Good Heavens,” Mary gasped. “Rory, watch your language.”

Rebecca sipped her coffee and looked up at the housekeeper. “He did not.”

“I think I did.” Delaney smirked. “Why else did you faint when I first saw you at the Exeter Hotel?”

“This is absurd.” Jared laid his hand over Rebecca’s.

“Furthermore, I married her myself in New Orleans. We spent one hell of a night together. It’s hard to forget a woman like that.”

Rory laughed. “Isn’t that the funniest thing you’ve ever heard? Rebecca and Mr. Delaney?”

“No. It’s not,” Jared barked, moving to stand behind Rebecca’s chair. He held her hand tight and squeezed her shoulder with his other hand to reassure her. “And it couldn’t be farther from the truth. I insist you stop with this idiotic nonsense at once and apologize to my wife.”

“Of course the wedding wasn’t real.” Delaney confessed studying his fingernails. He glanced up at Jared and Rebecca. “I tricked her by having a friend pose as a priest and I believe that is why she pretends not to know me. I upset her by my ruse.”

“I’m not pretending anything, sir. I never met you before our meeting at the Exeter hotel. And I fainted because…because I knew you…you held the markers to Oak Hill.”

Delaney shook his head. “I find it hard to believe you, my dear Mrs. Hollingsworth. I wonder why that is?”

“Are you calling my wife a liar?” Jared demanded, stepping toward the man.

Rebecca held his hand firmly, preventing him from harming Delaney. “Don’t let him upset you, darling. He isn’t worth your energy. He’s nothing more than a riverboat gambler who takes advantage of innocent young girls.”

Rory looked at Jared. “Am I missing something here? Is any of this true?”

Jared shook his head. “I think you’ve outstayed your welcome, Mr. Delaney. If you’ll gather your belongings I’ll have my driver take you into town.”

“Not just yet. I’m never wrong about the women I bed.”

“You’re wrong about this one,” Rebecca said. “I can assure you, Mr. Delaney, I never visited New Orleans, nor did you trick me with a false wedding at a Mardi Gras party just so you could bed me.”

Delaney jumped to his feet, knocking over his chair. “What did you say?”

“Good Lord.” Rory pushed back from the table.

“I said I never married you.”

“You said Mardi Gras. How did you know about Mardi Gras?”

Rebecca stared at their unwelcome guest. “How else would you have tricked a girl into believing a priest performed the marriage ceremony except at a Mardi Gras party?”

Jared stepped to stand behind her again. “I think you should leave, Mr. Delaney.”

“No. I’m not going anywhere until she tells me what she knows about Mardi Gras.”

Rebecca ran a hand over her face and shook her head. She’d done it now. That slip of her tongue told Delaney she knew more than she was willing to say. She pushed her chair back and stood.

“All right, Mr. Delaney. I know about Mardi Gras because the woman you mistook me for at the Exeter hotel was my younger sister. When you first asked me about New Orleans I didn’t think it was possible that you had met her, but then you said your name. And that is the reason I fainted because I knew then that you were the man who broke Mariah’s heart.”

Delaney clapped his hands together. “I knew it. I knew there was a reason I felt I had met you before. So Mariah is your sister?”

“This isn’t something to celebrate. In fact, I can’t see how you can stand before me and be so happy. You tricked Mariah into believing you married her just so you could take her innocence and then you left her to face the wrath of my aunt.”

“I went to get us breakfast, but when I returned she was gone. If anyone did the leaving, she did.” Delaney snapped his fingers. “Your aunt…I remember her. Scary woman, always carried that damn rosary. She didn’t want Mariah having anything to do with me. But I found a way around that. Do you know where I can find Mariah?”

A silence fell over the room for a moment.

“You can’t.” Rebecca closed her eyes and took a jagged breath. She opened them and glared at him. “She’s dead. She died last Christmas.”

Mary gasped and covered her mouth with her handkerchief. “Poor child.”

“Well that changes things,” Delaney said. He picked up his overturned chair and sat back down at the table.

“How?” Jared asked.

The man shrugged. “I thought I might try to find her. She was a sweet girl. Thought we might make a go of it, maybe even get married for real, but if she’s dead…can’t rightly do it now, can we.”

“Thank God for that,” Rebecca cried and ran from the room.

“Now I think you had better leave, Mr. Delaney. You’ve upset my wife and I do not wish to lay eyes on you again. Rory, see him out.”

Delaney laughed. “He acts like he owns the place instead of you.”

“He does.” Rory stood and held out his arm toward the front door. “After you.”

Delaney nodded and walked past Rory. “You’re a dishonest man, Rory Hollingsworth.”

“It takes one to know one.” Rory followed him to the front door. But before they reached the foyer, Higgins opened the door and helped a pretty blond woman with a baby inside.

“Higgins?” Rory looked from the driver to the woman. “Who’s this?”

“Excuse me, Mr. Rory, but this is Charlotte, Miss Davis’…I mean…Mrs. Hollingsworth’s maid. And this young fella is Master Lucas.”

“Well. Well. Rebecca has a son?” Rory turned around. “Jared! Jared!”

Jared was half-way up the stairs to check on Rebecca when he heard Higgins in the foyer and then Rory calling for him. He returned to find Rebecca’s fear coming to light. Delaney had laid eyes on Lucas, but the man was more interested in collecting his belongings to more than glance at the boy. At least that was in their favor.

“Charlotte? What are you and Lucas doing here so early? I was going to send Higgins into town to fetch you both this afternoon.”

“Mrs. Hollingsworth said to be ready this morning and we were. And your driver did come to fetch us.”

Jared looked at Higgins. “You did?”

“Yes, sir. I thought after the incident this morning with Mr. Rory and Mr. Delaney, the last thing you needed to worry about was getting Master Lucas here. So I went on into town.”

Jared nodded. “Thank you, Higgins.”

“D-d-d-da,” Lucas said and reached for Jared.

Charlotte laughed. “He knows you, Mr. Hollingsworth. He knows his papa.”

“So he does,” Jared said.

“I hate to spoil this little family reunion, but I believe I was being thrown out?” Delaney sneered.

“Right.” Rory said and ushered the man out of the house.

“Charlotte, Mrs. Hollingsworth is upstairs,” Jared said, getting the girl’s attention.

“Yes sir, Mr. Hollingsworth. Should I take Lucas up with me?”

“No. He can stay with me for now. We should get better acquainted.”

“Very well, sir.” Charlotte turned to the driver. “Mr. Higgins, can you bring our luggage upstairs?”

“Higgins. Just plain Higgins, Miss Charlotte.”

“Higgins,” she repeated and turned to hurry across the foyer to the stairs.

Jared turned around and found Mary standing in the doorway of the dining room with her hands on her hips, staring at him. “What is it, Mary?”

His housekeeper wiped her eyes with her handkerchief and shook her head. “You look right at home with the boy in your arms. That’s all, Mr. Hollingsworth. It does my heart good to see this day. And I hope there’ll be a day when this house is full of little ones.”

He grinned. “Whoa now, Mary. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Rebecca and I only married. Give us a little time to settle into married life. We have Lucas to raise for now and in time we might…”

“What happened with Charisse won’t necessarily happen with Rebecca, sir. Even when Mrs. Paxton delivered it didn’t happen. We have to trust that things happen when they do for a reason. Trials come and they make us stronger, preparing us for what comes next.”

Jared nodded. “The nursery needs cleaning today in preparation for Lucas. Rebecca and I will help do whatever you need. Just let us know.”

Mary nodded. “I’ll get on it as soon as I finish with the breakfast dishes. I’ve already been preparing for tonight’s meal. Will there be any additional guests?”

“I expect Rory to return.”

Mary smiled. “Thank you for coming to peace with him, sir. It was a pleasant surprise to find he’s matured while he’s been away.”

Matured. Jared rolled that word around in his head and tried to think of Rory in that manner, but it didn’t rightly fit. He was still having difficulty seeing his cousin as anything but a troublemaker.

“Will there be anyone else?” Mary prodded.

“Possibly Doctor Gordon and Rebecca’s aunt, Miss Davis. You’ve met her before.”

“Yes. I remember her. If you decide on others, please let me know and I will add another course to my menu. If you’ll excuse me now, I have work to tend to in the kitchen.”

When she was gone Jared looked at Lucas and the baby was chewing on his fingers. He pulled his hand from his mouth and Lucas gave a toothy grin.

“D-d-d-da,” he gurgled and blew slobber.

“Da-da-da. Let’s go find ma-ma-ma,” he told him walking toward the foyer again. They had reached the stairs when Rebecca appeared at the top. She lifted the hem of her skirt and descended quickly to join them. Lucas saw her and clapped his hands.

“Ma-ma-ma,” he squealed.

“How is my precious boy?” She cooed, touching his face and kissing him on the cheek. She stepped back and looked at Jared. “I couldn’t believe it when Charlotte found me upstairs. Please say Delaney didn’t see him.”

“I wish I could, but he did. However, the man paid little attention to him. He was more concerned with leaving than with Lucas being here.”

“That’s good then.” She nodded.

“Plus Charlotte did call me his papa.” Jared wrapped his arm around her shoulders and they walked upstairs. “Let me show you the nursery.”

Rebecca smiled. “How close is it to your room?”

“It’s next door to our room and there is a hidden door that connects the rooms so you can check on him any hour of the night.”

“And where will Charlotte sleep?” she asked as they reached the top step.

“If you prefer her to be near Lucas, we can set up a bed in the nursery for now. Otherwise, there is a room on the main floor next to Mary’s for her.”

“Downstairs is fine. That will give us more privacy right now.” Rebecca walked ahead of him and called to her maid, “Charlotte?”

The girl appeared in the hallway with her arms full of soiled sheets. “Yes, ma’am?”

“When you finish tidying up in here, Mr. Hollingsworth will show you to your new quarters downstairs.”

“Yes ma’am.” The girl turned to go back inside.

“And Charlotte,” Rebecca said. “Did my aunt happen to mention whether she was going to come live at Oak Hill?”

“No, ma’am. She didn’t. Though she said to tell you she and Doctor Gordon would be by this afternoon after they attend Mass.”

“Thank you, Charlotte.” Rebecca turned back to Jared, frowning.

“Maybe we can convince her then,” Jared suggested. Lucas patted his face.

“Perhaps.”