Raven broke into a wide grin, and wasted no time in giving their driver their change of destination. When they reached the townhouse, their attire was as impeccable as when they had left the ship to pay their call at the Lawtons’. They walked to the door with the same sedate pace they had used earlier, but once inside, Raven handed the startled maid his hat and gloves along with a firm order.
“Lady Clairbourne and I are not to be disturbed. We’ll be here for dinner, but not the night.”
“Yes, my lord.” The maid stood with mouth agape as the striking couple ascended the stairs with rapid steps. Raven had informed them of Alex’s death, and she could not understand why his widow was not dressed in black and heavily veiled, or what she and Raven planned to do until time for dinner. Realizing there would be no fine meal unless she informed the cook, she rushed to the kitchen to do so.
Not wanting to use Alex’s bedroom, Eden hesitated at the top of the stairs, but Raven quickly took her hand and led her down the hall to the room that had been his. He locked the door, then again removed Eden’s bonnet and unbuttoned her bodice. Her kisses inspired him to even greater haste than he had shown in the carriage, and he hurriedly peeled away all her garments and carried her to his bed. A massive four-poster, it supplied ample room for an amorous couple and he swiftly joined her in it.
With Raven, Eden had never had to worry that the strain of making love would be too much for him. Her only thoughts now were of the pleasure they shared whenever their emotions overruled their equally stubborn natures, and after the clash with her aunt, she needed the devotion he was eager to provide with his muscular body if not in prettily spoken promises.
Raven was far too hungry to possess Eden to continue their loving play for long once he had drawn her lightly perfumed body into his arms. Eagerly sharing his passion, she clung to him with a wanton grace, and the sweetness of her surrender again excited him as no other woman’s ever had. She not only drove him to the heights of desire, she gave pleasure in abundance and savored it in full measure, as always leaving him feeling wonderfully content, his soul as well as his body sated.
It wasn’t until a long while after the room was completely dark that they realized the sun had set, and having ordered dinner, they ought not to be too terribly late for it. Raven helped Eden dress, and artfully arrange her hair, and she thanked him with teasing kisses as she tied his tie. Once again as beautifully groomed as they had been upon their arrival, they walked into the dining room hand in hand but the table was not set, and there were no savory aromas wailing from the kitchen. Then they noted the house seemed unnaturally quiet, and when the butler greeted them, they jumped in alarm.
“Good evening, my lord, my lady,” Stewart called from behind them.
Raven was the first to turn toward the man who had been in his uncle’s employ for more than a dozen years. He was a humorless fellow, small, with sharp features, but he had always run Alex’s London townhouse with the same precision Jonathan Abbot managed Briarcliff.
“Good evening, Stewart. I know we gave you scant notice of our arrival and you needn’t apologize if you were unable to provide dinner. We’re sailing for Jamaica in the morning, and Lady Clairbourne and I will simply dine on board my ship.”
“I excused the rest of the staff for the evening, my lord, when it appeared you required privacy rather than their services.”
Stewart had been cordial, if somewhat stiff, when Alex had introduced him to her, but the butler’s expression was so clearly filled with disapproval Eden was insulted and felt certain Raven would be also. Then she realized why the man was eyeing them with such a contemptuous gaze. “We neglected to inform the staff of our marriage, Raven. I’d forgotten that they wouldn’t know of it when we came here.”
“Your marriage, my lady?” Stewart drew himself up to his full height, which was still less than Eden’s, and his expression grew even more hostile. “Surely I have misunderstood.”
“No,” Raven assured him with a broad grin. “With Alex’s blessing, I thought I could best provide for Lady Clairbourne’s future as her husband and we have married.”
After a lengthy and uncomfortable pause, Stewart finally chose to respond, “Alexander Sutton was one of the finest gentlemen it has ever been my privilege to serve,” he announced without a trace of a smile. “He was a man of honor, and even if he did suggest that you two marry, I can’t believe he meant you to do so before a proper period of mourning had elapsed.”
When Raven raised his hand, Eden quickly caught his arm before he could throw the punch she agreed Stewart had earned. “Please Raven, we’ve had more than enough such scenes for one day. Let’s just leave.”
Raven was not about to allow a butler to pass judgment on his actions and said so. “You served my uncle well, but if being in my employ disgusts you, then you are free to seek another position elsewhere. Don’t ask me for a reference as I’ll not give one to a man who shows me such a disgraceful lack of loyalty.”
Like many men of small stature, Stewart possessed the belligerent spirit of a bantam rooster and stood his ground. “If there is any disgrace here, my lord, it is you and Lady Clairbourne who have committed it. I don’t want a reference from you, as it would hold little value.”
Eden could not hold Raven then, and he slammed his fist into Stewart’s face. The blow knocked the butler to his knees. Satisfied he had taught the opinionated man a valuable lesson, Raven took Eden’s hand and hurried her outside, where their carriage was still waiting. His expression, however, remained filled with fury.
Chapter Twelve
August 1863
As they rode away from the townhouse, Eden laid her head on Raven’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry. That was my fault. I should have realized the people who served Alex would never understand our desire to be together.”
Still seething, Raven opened his mouth to respond with the bitter retort that had instantly come to his mind. Eden’s casual pose was so dear, however, that he did not want to upset her and softened his tone. “I realize you’ve been a countess only a few weeks, but even so you ought to understand we needn’t tolerate such insolent remarks from our servants. Stewart would never have dared speak to Alex like that. I may be young, but damn it all, I’m now the Earl of Clairbourne, and I expect to be treated with the proper respect. Alex was only nineteen when he inherited the title, and he never disgraced it.”
That Raven was still in his twenties had slipped Eden’s mind. He had such a forceful personality, she never thought of him as being as young as he was in years. She sat up slowly and turned to face him. The lamps that lit the carriage provided only dim illumination but she knew his face so well she did not need to see his expression clearly to recognize the hostility etched on his features.
“Alex and I used his health as justification for making our own rules, but I think you and I are going to have to be far more circumspect in our behavior. Are the people in Jamaica going to be as unforgiving as my aunt, Stephanie, and Stewart? They know you, of course, but all they’ll know of me is that I failed to mourn Alex’s memory for the proper length of time. Will they condemn me for it?”
“No more than once they won’t,” Raven vowed through clenched teeth.
Eden did not doubt that he would defend her, but she thought it would be more as a matter of his own pride than out
of respect for her honor. She did not want him constantly put on the defensive on her account, though. Unable to think of a way to explain their marriage that lessened the scandalous nature of it, she again sat back and rested her head on his shoulder until they reached the dock where the Jamaican Wind was moored.
Raven barely tasted the broiled chicken they were served for dinner, while Eden took only a few bites before pushing her plate away. He hated to see her again so miserable and he racked his brain for a way to introduce her to Jamaican society that would not immediately make her the object of the most tasteless kind of gossip. Finally an idea struck him that he considered not only workable, but bordering on brilliant.
“News travels rather slowly between London and the West Indies,” he began with an encouraging smile. “If I were to introduce you as my bride, and fail to mention that you were also Alex’s widow, by the time the truth reached Jamaica, everyone would have had the opportunity to get to know you. Surely they would not judge us harshly then.”