Together with Jim and Lee, Eli was sitting on a bench near the pub. He had walked up to his brothers and ordered them to come with him. They had been reluctant at first, but when Eli said they might have to fight, they gladly joined.
The three Byron sons were waiting for the right man to exit the door of the pub. They had seen him enter when their carriage arrived, but they did not want to make a big spectacle inside the building. So they were to wait for him to exit so that they could have their talk.
It might even be better if he left the pub being drunk, for that would be easier to get the truth and beat him up.
True, Eli did not need the truth anymore. Mary had told him everything he needed to know. But he still wanted to hear the words out of the man's mouth. And if he was not pleased, he would not beat him up. He had promised Mary he would not touch him. So that was where Jim and Lee came into play.
And finally, the door opened and the right man walked out. He did not falter in his steps, but he also did not see the angry man waiting for him. So Eli called for him.
"Arthur!"
The man turned around and found who had called him. Twas only now that Eli realized that the smile Arthur had been carrying, was a false one. It was a pretend smile that made everyone instantly like him. But it did not work on Eli anymore.
Arthur must not have realized the name Eli had used, for he walked to him with a smile on his face, pretending to be friends.
"Eli," he said, "I was already wondering why you were not in the pub."
"You would not be so surprised if you knew what I know," Eli said with an angry voice. Then he added: "Arthur."
The man's eyes suddenly widened, shock was obvious on his face. But then – unlike anything Eli had expected – Arthur started laughing. A low rumbling escaped the man's throat while he threw his head back.
"So she finally told you," Arthur concluded. "Are you hurt now, by my betrayal?"
Eli shook his head. "She had told me before. Twas only me who did not see the likeness between the two of you."
"Ah, so you are the dumb one."
Eli shrugged. "Tis all a matter of how you look at it."
"Oy," Lee suddenly shouted from behind Eli. "You do not get to insult our brother like that!"
"Eli, is this the moment we may beat him?" Jim asked.
Eli gave them a smile. "Not yet, brothers."
Arthur scoffed loudly. "You want to frighten me with those two children?"
Jim and Lee were twenty years old, hardly what one would call children. But seeing Arthur was probably about thirty-five, they were young to fight him indeed. But still...
"Do not underestimate two young adults," Eli told Arthur. "But no, they are not here to frighten you. They are here because I promised Mary I would not touch you. She did not say anything about my brothers."
"Do you want them to have the same reputation you have? One of ladies, drinking and fighting?"
"Oy," Lee shouted again. "We are responsible for our reputation. You do not have a say in it."
"Brothers," Eli sighed, suddenly regretting taking them along. They understood his word and remained quiet while he turned his attention back to Arthur.
"I trust Mary enough to know that what she said about you is the truth. Yet I want to hear it from your mouth."
Arthur frowned. "You want to hear from my mouth how my family banished me when I was only nineteen years old? How they were happier when I was not there? How they could live their lives like nothing was wrong while I had to fight and steal just to stay alive?"
He took a few steps closer to Eli, then kept talking. "I was a lord, the oldest son of my parents. I was set to inherit everything! And what did I get? A full view of the streets I used to avoid."
"That is very unfortunate for you," Eli calmly said. "But it does not give you the excuse to hate your siblings who did not have any influence on your parents' decision."
A frightening smile appeared on Arthur's lips. "That is the beauty of it. I do not only take revenge on my siblings who are living the life I deserve and who found it easy to forget me, I also get to see the frightful and panicking face of my mother. She is getting exactly what she deserves!"
"But you are ruining more lives than only your siblings'."
"Ah, so she told you of the Cook family, did she not?"
"And your wife."
That seemed to silence Arthur for a while, but not long. "She was collateral damage."
"Beating and abusing her is collateral damage?" Eli asked in disbelief, getting angry with the man's words. He was close to breaking his promise to Mary and beating the man up with his own bare hands.
"No, that was a side effect," Arthur said with a shrug. "The fact that I was using her – just like I used you – was collateral damage. But I assume my smug brother has also figured out why I needed her."
Eli remained silent as he looked at the man. He looked certain of himself, he looked like he had everything under control. But did he really? He had not expected Mary to be at the Byron house when he exited it, so that was one example of when he lost control.
But Eli assumed that him beating and abusing lady Adelaide was also a way for him to prove to himself that he was strong and in control. He could obey the lady to do something she did not like, and she would fear him. That fear would not go unnoticed with the Brompton family, making them fear Arthur more, and in the process increasing Arthur's feeling of being in control.
"You know," Eli said, "I pity you."
Arthur scoffed. "I do not need your pity."
Eli ignored his statement and told him: "even if things did not go the way you wanted them to go, there was still a chance at a happy life. You should have forgotten your family, forgotten your past, and restarted your life with the knowledge you had so far."
"Tis too late for that now, is it not? My revenge is my reason for living."
"Then I pity you only more," was all Eli could say. and it was true. He pitied the man who lived for revenge, and nothing else. Not happiness, not love, not a goal in life. Seeing his family hurt was what drove him, and probably also what he dreamed of at night.
Well, if that was the man's dream, than he ought to keep dreaming. For his dreams would never meet reality.
Eli motioned with his hand to his brothers and to Arthur, then let the three men alone to fight each other. With the sounds of skin touching skin and a moan that followed, he stepped inside the carriage and ordered the driver to take him to the Brompton estate.
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Mary had been quite clear. She truly did not bother about a title. If he remembered her words correctly, she even said she preferred to be a mere woman over a rich lady.
And if that was the case, then Eli ought to take his chance. He was quite certain of her feelings toward him, yet when he thought of telling her his, he feared her answer.
What if he saw her smiles as something she did not mean to express? What if he – and his mother and Ada and Ivy and Cora – was mistaken? Mayhap she truly only liked him, and nothing more. Mayhap she truly wanted them to be friends.
But Ada had convinced him that if he did not ask, he would never know. So that was why he found it a good idea to visit the Brompton estate and ask her in person.
He had also considered waiting for her to visit him, but he could not wait so long to get his response.
With shaking hands, he walked to the building where Mary had spend her youth and her present. All her precious possessions were here, and all her memories. The things she was closest to, he might see.
The front door opened and the butler let Eli inside. "Her ladyship has visitors, but I am certain she would like to see you too. Please wait here."
The man left Eli to wait in the hallway while he knocked on the door that was the closest to him. Then the butler entered the room and closed the door behind him.
Eli had to wait a few minutes – but it felt like much longer – until the door finally opened again. The butler exited the room, followed by Mary who was holding a young boy in her arms. She stiffened when she saw him, but then a smile broke through her face.
Twas a relief for Eli to see her smile, for her startled face left him fearing she did not want to see him. But that was not the case, for she quickly put the boy on the ground and said: "Louis, go back to your Mama."
The boy – Louis – nodded and obeyed, and Mary closed the door once he had entered. Then she started walking to Eli.
"I did not know you knew where I live," she told him while fidgeting with her fingers.
"I did not," Eli admitted. "But it turns out that the Bromptons are notorious enough for my parents to know and give me instructions."
Mary smiled at him and pursed her lips. There was a silence between them, the perfect moment to tell Mary what he wanted to say. The perfect moment to ask her what he wanted to know.
But he was too afraid to start the question, so Mary was faster when she said: "follow me into the sitting room. That shall be a more pleasant room to talk."
He followed her through the hallway, until she opened a door and entered it. He entered it too, and closed the door behind him.
"This is quite a big house," he said after clearing his throat. The sitting room was huge – probably bigger than Eli's parlour. But that was not what he ought to be saying to her now. So again, he cleared his throat.
"I, er... I have done what you suggested," he started. "I have put up my uncle's estate for sale."
She smiled at him, relief in her eyes as if she was happy for him. "That is great. I promise you, you will not regret it."
"I am fairly certain of that," he told her, "for I already have plans with the money I make."
"Truly?" she asked surprised. "What will you do?"
"I will buy a second estate. One I do love."
She titled her head. "Do you have anything in mind?"
"There is a house I quite like. Tis near the centre, near the theatre. Tis quite big and not too expensive."
"That sounds perfect," she told him.
He nodded. It indeed was, but there was one condition. Perfection only came when one could share its greatness with someone dear.
"Eli, I-" She took a deep breath and looked down at her hands that were fidgeting with her dress. Then she took a step closer and looked up at him. She was biting her lip, like she was nervous, and Eli wanted to take away her nerves and tell her the three words he came to tell her. But he too was nervous.
"I like spending time with you," she told him with a smile on her face. "I... You make me happy. And... I know that what happened with my brother, was not very attractive. But I hope it does not cloud your judgement over me."
"You are not your brother," he told her. "But what happened with him, does change the way I see you." Mary stiffened, and the reaction made Eli smile. "You are brave, Mary. And you would do anything to protect the family you love. And I appreciate that."
She smiled at him, and there was a glimmer in her eyes that he loved so much. She pursed her lips, then said: "you would do anything for your family too. And I like that."
"But?" he asked, having the feeling that that was going to be her next word.
She shook her head. "There is not but. There is nothing bad I can say about you." She took a few steps closer until she stood closer than she had ever stood to him. His eyes were captured by hers, and when he moved his hand forward, he was touching hers.
She was breathing hard, and he was too. If he would hold up his hands, he was certain they would shake harder than they ever had before.
He was nervous, though he knew there was no reason to be. Whatever she was about to tell him, was good. And if he would ask her the question he wanted to ask, he was certain what her answer would be. He knew it would end well. Yet there was a stupid voice in his head that told him "mayhap not".
But he ignored it, for he needed to gather all the courage he possessed and ask her.
"Eli, I-" she started, then took a deep breath and looked him in the eye. "I believe I am foolishly and madly in love with you."
Eli felt his hard try to jump out his chest, for it was burning with an intense heat that was warmer than when Mary was undressing in front of his eyes. The feeling inside him was stronger and better than he ever could have imagined.
And he liked it.
He raised his hand to caress her cheek, and she moved her head so that his hand laid flat against her skin.
"I believe I know what feeling you are talking about," he whispered. She had said the words first, answering the question he never got to ask. But he did not mind being defeated my Mary. She could own every win, as long as he could hear her say those words every day. "For I believe I love you too."
"Foolishly and madly?" she asked him, her eyes glimmering with something extraordinary – something he wished he could see every day.
He nodded, unable to not smile. "Foolishly and madly. And truthfully."
Her smile widened and the glimmering turned into a spark – a spark that he hoped would turn into a raging fire that he could extinguish with kisses.
"I have one more bet for you," he announced, finding it hard to keep his eyes off her lips.
She swallowed, but her eyes kept looking at him. "And what is that?"
He moved his head closer to her, so that his nose was touching hers. Her warm breath was on his skin, and his heart was racing like a lunatic. But he forgot all that. His mind was too preoccupied with her beautiful green eyes and her gorgeous lips. Her kind personality that was rewarded with amazing looks.
He swallowed one more time before he whispered: "I dare you to kiss me."
A smile appeared on her wonderful face, and her eyes showed an explosion of glimmering and sparks. Like this, with love all over her, she looked even more beautiful than ever before.
Her head slowly moved closer to his, and she told him: "I win the challenge."
Her hand went around his head and she pushed him closer. Her lips pressed on his, removing all space between them. Eli's heart did not skip just one beat, but ever single one. It surprised him that he could stay upright on his trembling legs, but mayhap it was fluttering in his belly that gave him strength.
Or mayhap it was the longing for her taste which was finally fulfilled that kept him standing. He wanted more, and he wanted it longer. He wanted all of her – every inch of her body, every touch of her hand, every glimmer and spark in her eyes, and every loving word she spoke.
He wanted the privilege to be the only person she told "I love you" to, and the only person to see her when she was the most vulnerable. He wanted to hold her like no other man could do, and smile at her like she smiled at him.
His arm wrapped around her waist and he pressed her closer so that he could feel her hips against him. He felt the heat from her body and it was addictive. He did not want to let her go. He wanted her in his arms forever.
He wanted her forever.
So mayhap he should ask her a different question – one that went further than "do you love me"...