Benjamin could not have stopped the smile from spreading across his face if he had tried. But he didn’t. Letting his joy and relief show, Benjamin stood to shake the man’s hand.
“Thank you, My Lord — I mean, Stephen. I cannot tell you how much this means to me.”
“Yes, I can see that,” Lord Kent quipped, pulling his hand out of Benjamin’s and rubbing his shoulder. “You have my blessing, but that does not guarantee that Felicity will agree. It is her you must convince now. And I wish you the best of luck. I must admit, I am rather fond of you and hope we can find time in the future to have more of these talks, just the two of us. Next time, you will have to tell me about your time in the army. I am most curious.”
“I look forward to it,” Benjamin told him honestly.
“Here,” Lord Kent said, handing Benjamin a sheet of paper, “toss this in the fire. I will draw up a new one once Felicity has accepted your proposal.”
The overwhelming sense of victory coursed through Benjamin as he watched the flames eat away at the marriage contract between Felicity and Lord Roberts. Her father was right, having his blessing and her previous engagement dissolved did not guarantee that she would agree to marry him, but based on her earlier confession, he felt he had a pretty good chance of making her his wife.
* * *
By the time Benjamin had left Lord Stephen Kent alone in his study, the hour had grown late. While he knew the conversation they had had was vital to his plans, he did not care for the idea of leaving Felicity alone to deal with the aftermath of his unannounced appearance and subsequent dance. He had been counting on his mother to help shield Felicity from the brunt of it all, but even as the Dowager of Ferndown, she could not protect Felicity for as long as he had been gone.
Picking up his pace, Benjamin wove his way back through the columns and doors until he was back at the large set of double doors that would lead him into the ballroom. When he had first faced these earlier this evening, Benjamin’s stomach had been in knots. He had walked into the house with a hazy semblance of a plan and a desperate hope that it would work. Even with his mother by his side, reassuring him the entire carriage ride here, Benjamin had still been more than a little unsettled.
And then the doors had swung open, and he laid eyes on Felicity. The smile she gave him, the longing in her eyes, swept away any uncertainty he might have had about her feelings for him. It had taken time for him to fully believe that she loved him too, but when the reality of the situation settled in, Benjamin had moved into action.
Now, as the doors swung open, he felt none of the nervousness he had felt earlier. Instead, his mind was centered on getting to Felicity’s side as fast as he could. He wanted to be the first to tell her that they had her father’s blessing, and that her engagement to Lord Roberts was off. But two steps into the room was all it took for him to realize something was out of place.
Lord Roberts, his clothes and hair damp, was halfway between where Benjamin stood at the top of the stairs and where Felicity was in the ballroom. There was a wild, fuming look in the Earl’s eyes as he stalked towards Felicity.
“The Duke of Ferndown,” the butler announced loudly, silencing the room once more.
Lord Roberts swung his gaze to where Benjamin stood, narrowing his eyes.
“You are a fool,” the Earl spat the words at Benjamin, “if you think you can take her from me.”
Benjamin sucked in a deep breath, not wanting to cause a scene, knowing how much Felicity hated being the center of attention. He took three steps down before responding to the Earl.
“There is no need for this now. What’s done is done.”
The Earl matched every step Benjamin had taken, edging backwards, inching closer and closer to where Felicity stood. Her eyes were wide as they darted between the two men.
“You are right, Your Grace,” Lord Roberts snarled the last two words as if he could not stand the idea of Benjamin outranking him. “What’s done is done. And that includes the marriage contract Lord Kent signed with me. There is no undoing that. I have an agreement.”
“I am afraid you are mistaken,” Benjamin informed him, trying to keep his voice low and even as if he was speaking to a spooked horse. “The contract was never signed, only drafted. You left too many details unsettled. It can be easily broken.”
“I will not lose her!” Lord Roberts shouted, ignoring all sense of decorum. “I will not lose the Diamond to some half-brained soldier.”
Lord Roberts was in arms reach of Felicity now. He reached out, striking like a snake, gripping the top of her arm tightly in his hand. Whirling them around, Lord Roberts half dragged Felicity through the crowd to the dance floor. Benjamin did not take his eyes off of them as he charged through the crowd.
“Come now, dear, it is time for you to dance with your betrothed. Play the music!” the Earl shouted at the musicians making them and Felicity jump.
Benjamin was ready to throttle the man for his treatment of Felicity, but he could not reach her fast enough.
“That is quite enough,” Lady Kent declared, stepping from the crowd, pushing Felicity behind her.
Delilah followed closely behind her mother, rushing to Felicity’s side, staring down the Earl with a fierceness that sent chills down Benjamin’s spine.
Lord Roberts was finally silenced as he was outnumbered by three furious ladies. When Benjamin saw his mother stand on the other side of Felicity, his heart soared.
“Unfortunately,” Lady Kent announced loud enough for the room to hear, “my daughter is feeling rather faint after the events that have taken place here tonight. You will have to excuse her from the rest of tonight’s activities. But please, do not allow that to stop you. As my guests, you are all welcome to stay and continue in the merriment.”
Just as Benjamin had pushed his way through the crowd to where the ladies stood, Delilah wrapped an arm around Felicity’s waist and ushered her out of the ballroom through a side door, his mother trailing closely behind. Once they were gone, Lady Kent continued.
“Gordon,” Lady Kent said, addressing one of the footmen, “please see to it that Lord Roberts is escorted out. He is no longer a welcomed guest in my home.”