The Runaway Bride by Felicity York

Author:Felicity York
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers
Published: 2023-03-07T20:49:20+00:00

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Edward

Edward Gibbon Wakefield sat in his room, tapping his fingers on the desk. All was not lost. Despite the altercation with Ellen’s odious uncle, the singularly annoying Grimsditch, and that useless prop of a Bow Street Runner, all was not lost. Turner had far too much to lose by allowing this to become public knowledge. Far too much to lose by admitting that he had been foolish enough to allow his only child to be abducted and married from under his nose. He was a proud man, a vain man. He would come around when the prospect of her ruin, and the damage it would do to his own reputation, became real.

He had come to the conclusion that he needed Ellen to leave with his blessing. That she needed to know his love was true and steadfast. It would make it easier for her to return, once she realised that her life as she knew it was over. He suspected she had no idea how savage the on dits could be, how they’d relish taking down a family with a background in trade. Once she learned that, a life in Parisian society with Edward would be more tempting than ever. Especially once he was as comfortably ensconced in its highest echelons as he’d let on … which he was firmly convinced was only a matter of time.

So, he put pen to paper, and wrote with all the passion that he could muster to his new father-in-law. This time, he was even more extravagant in his expression of guilt, accepting even the cruellest insults that had been thrown at him during the storming of his honeymoon in Calais, abasing himself thoroughly. He begged Turner to speak to anyone who knew him, as they would vouch for his love for Clara. He reiterated, quite strongly, his forbearance in not pursuing his rights as a husband, that Ellen was still unsullied and pure.

Then he again threw down the gauntlet, carefully disguised as an olive branch. He reminded him of the delicacy of Mrs Turner’s health, and the damage that a scandal could do to her, to him, to his child. He assured him that despite the nature of the methods he employed to persuade Ellen to the altar, he remained a man of honour and couldn’t bear to see the family thrown to the wolves, with their lives wrecked by the scandal that would follow should he refuse to acknowledge the marriage.

He finished with a flourish and skimmed the letter with satisfaction before sealing it. Immediately this was done, he picked up another sheet of paper and penned a missive to his brother, apprising him of the developments. He would meet James in Paris to attend his wedding on Sunday, and whilst he was there, he’d cement his position within Parisian society. He was already friends of friends with the British ambassador; all that remained was to charm him at one or two more parties. Then, by the time he returned to England as the toast of the Devonshire set, the Turners would be begging to welcome him to the family.

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