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Chapter One
After a twelve-hour flight from Seattle to the United Kingdom, with a two-hour layover at Heathrow, Ella’s final flight touched down at the Manchester airport and was taxiing to the gate.
Ella Roberts exhaled, relieved and excited to be on the ground in Manchester, her return flight not for two weeks. For the first time in years, she was taking a proper vacation over the Christmas holidays. Soon, she’d be reunited with her sister, Cara, whom she hadn’t seen much since Cara moved to the UK a year ago—with the exception of Cara’s gorgeous, intimate August wedding in the San Juan Islands.
Ella was very much looking forward to spending her Christmas holiday with Cara and her husband, Alec, at Langley Park, Alec’s ancestral home. She’d be staying in the same stone cottage Cara had last year when she met Alec, a successful, wealthy businessman who spent the majority of his time in London but did return to Derbyshire for the holidays.
Last December, Alec was Viscount Sherbourne, but with his father’s death during the late spring, he’d become the Earl of Sherbourne, making Cara a countess, which amused Ella to no end. Probably because Cara was the least pretentious person Ella knew. Cara was warm and kind. Grounded. She was someone who truly cared about the well-being of others and was no doubt the reason why Alec fell in love with her, despite Cara being American and not a proper wife for an aristocrat. These differences sent Cara home from Langley Park heartbroken last December, but then Alec proved to be a true hero and appeared in Bellingham at the Roberts family home on New Year’s Eve to win her back.
It had been a truly romantic gesture and, after a seven and a half month engagement, Alex and Cara married in a lovely American ceremony, and were now hosting a reception at Langley Park for all the friends and families who couldn’t make the actual wedding. Ella had come to represent the Robertses, as well as spend time with her much-loved big sister. She probably should have brought her computer with her and done some work. But at the last moment, Ella left it home, determined to relax for the next two weeks. She hadn’t felt relaxed in years, not since starting her graduate program. She was a half year away from earning her PhD and she had a heavy schedule of teaching and reading papers, never mind finishing her dissertation, but she didn’t have to think about any of that, not until she returned to Bellingham.
The bell chimed on the plane, alerting everyone the aircraft had parked and the seatbelt light went off. Ella rose, gathered her carry-on luggage, and joined the passengers amassing in the aisle. Ella was too happy to be irritable. She was so looking forward to exploring the area with Cara, who had bought tickets for them to tour the great houses, Chatsworth and Haddon Hall, beautifully decorated for Christmas.
It was said that Chatsworth had been Jane Austen’s inspiration for Mr. Darcy’s Pemberley Hall, and as an English literature scholar specializing in nineteenth-century fiction, specifically gender roles in nineteenth-century fiction written by women, women such as Austen and Alcott, Ella could justify an Austen-focused holiday. Last year, she’d spent time in Boston and Concord Massachusetts where Alcott had lived and later died. It only seemed fair to devote equal time to Jane Austen.
Or, she rationalized as she packed some travel books for sightseeing, if it worked out. If not, the village of Bakewell, an easy walk from Langley Park, would prove to be diverting with all of the holiday decorations.
As the queuing passengers slowly inched forward toward the plane exit, Ella turned her phone on, and checked for reception. Not yet. Cara had warned her it might take a while. Untroubled, Ella put her phone into her pocket, shouldered her backpack and changed hands on her carry-on suitcase. She’d need to collect her large, checked suitcase and then they’d be off. The Manchester airport wasn’t far from Langley Park, just an hour if there was no traffic, which meant they’d arrive at Langley Park just after noon and still have all day to talk and explore the house and village.
Ella felt a bubble of happiness fill her. Her luggage appeared quickly, and as she’d cleared customs in Heathrow, it wasn’t long until she made her way to arrivals, her gaze sweeping those who’d gathered outside security looking for Cara’s shoulder length blonde hair, and there were blondes waiting, but no one that looked remotely like her sister.
She walked more slowly through the throng, still looking for Cara, but wondering if perhaps Alec had come instead. But no, she didn’t see Alec, either.
And then she saw her name on a sign. Ella Roberts. Ella looked at the man holding the sign, and her stomach fell. Baird?
Adrenaline rushed through her, making her legs weak. Baird MacLauren was the last person she’d expected to see at the airport. She suspected he would be included in the party Alec and Cara were throwing Saturday, but that was still days away.
Heart thudding, she walked toward him, bags heavy, and getting heavier.
They’d had a thing in August, a very brief thing, at Cara and Alec’s wedding, culminating in the hottest kiss of her life. She’d heard about intoxicating kisses but had never experienced one, not until the gorgeous, sexy awful Scotsman had shown her just what a kiss should feel like.
Truly, it had been a kiss to end all kisses, the kind of kiss that came after a glass of champagne on the most beautiful summer night. She hadn’t fallen in love with him—he’d made sure of that—but those twenty minutes behind the boathouse, in the shadows and moonlight, had made her imagine a life she’d never known, a life with someone who’d passionately love her, a life with marriage, babies—
And that was when he stepped away, and apologized. Apologized.
He’d made a mistake.
He asked for her forgiveness.
He’d forgotten himself.
And then worst of all. He wasn’t exactly single. Not entirely.
One more apology and then he walked away, and she leaned against the boathouse and fought tears and rage. How dare he kiss her like that when he wasn’t available? How dare he make her feel so beautiful only to destroy it all?
She didn’t see him the rest of the evening and when she woke up the next day, head aching, eyes gritty from lack of sleep, she discovered he’d taken a water taxi back to Seattle at dawn to make a flight home.
Ella was glad she wouldn’t have to see him because she, who dated often and rarely felt anything, realized that she’d come awfully close to falling in love with the Scotsman.
“How was your flight?” Baird asked, closing the distance between them to take her two rolling bags from her.
She nodded, forcing a polite smile. “Uneventful.”
“Is this everything?” he asked, gesturing to her suitcases.
She nodded again, avoiding meeting his eyes because she felt foolish with her heart racing and her emotions swirling—so many emotions, unexpected emotions. She’d worked hard to block him from her mind and now he was here, and she felt caught off guard in the worst sort of way. She didn’t like feeling so … so everything.
“My car’s not far,” he said, walking. “But if you’d prefer for me to collect you at the curb?”
“No,” she said quickly. “It will feel good to move and stretch my legs.”
“It is a long flight,” he agreed.
She fell into step walking next to him as he led them through the crowd to the airport exit. She felt his gaze as they stepped outside and wished she could think of something to say, something to fill the silence. She needed to speak.
“This is a surprise,” she said at length. “You picking me up,” she added, mouth dry, voice low. “Because after the kiss they’d never spoken again.”
“Alec is trapped in London and is hoping to sort it all out so he can come home for Christmas. Mr. Trimble, who does a lot of the driving for the family, has a touch of a bug, and is keeping away from everyone to keep others from coming down sick.”
“And Cara? She’d said she’d get me.”
He glanced at her as they crossed the parking lot. “She hasn’t told you?”
Ella frowned. “Told me what?”
“Nothing,” he said, unlocking the trunk of his car and placing her luggage in it.
Ella wasn’t deterred. Once in the car, she buckled her seatbelt and waited for Baird to get settled. “What’s wrong with her?”
“Nothing’s wrong. She’s just…” His voice faded and he sighed. “You’ll find out when you get there.”
Ella took a slow breath, trying to calm herself. There was no reason she should feel so shaken. It was not as if she’d tumbled into bed with Baird at the wedding. They didn’t get naked. There was nothing shameful about what happened. They’d kissed. Big deal. There shouldn’t have been drama, either.
But after he’d walked away from her, he’d completely disappeared, and she’d looked for him now and then, confused, wondering how something so lovely had left her feeling so awful. As the evening came to an end, and she went to her hotel room, her heart felt battered, and her self-esteem was definitely bruised.
Why had she liked him? Why had she been so drawn to him? He wasn’t as sophisticated as Cara’s husband, nor was he dashing, but Baird was handsome in a rugged sort of way. His features were that of a man who had been in a fight or two. His nose, had a strong bump in the bridge, making her think it had been broken more than once—which she found very sexy. She liked a man that looked like a man.
Baird was most definitely a man.
His features went with his very broad shoulders and his height and his long legs. His smile was crooked, and barely there, but it still made her insides do a little curl of pleasure. Whenever he was near her, she felt a little bit lightheaded and breathless. Ella wasn’t sure if he felt the sparks, but she found him watching her, almost as often as she watched him.
Baird had most definitely not volunteered to pick up Ella Roberts from the Manchester airport.
He’d actually done everything possible to get out of the favor his best friend Alec Sherbourne had asked of him—short of offending Alec. Having been friends for twenty years now, Baird didn’t mind doing favors for his best friend as Alec was quick to help him whenever Baird needed something. But chauffeuring beautiful Ella Roberts from one place to another wasn’t something Baird could do. She’d proven to be seriously problematic in August and she wasn’t good for his sanity.
When they’d been introduced at the wedding last August, there had been immediate sparks between them, an awareness he rarely felt with anyone. He hadn’t been prepared for the intensity of the attraction, or the insistent desire, which only became stronger as the days passed. Baird didn’t want or need temptation. His life was complicated at the moment, and he’d flown to the United States for Alec’s wedding in need of some quiet and calm. But stunning Ella with her long red hair, sea blue eyes, and expressive face did not exert a calming influence on him.
If she’d been simply gorgeous, he could have dismissed her, but she was a brilliant scholar, one entering her final year of her PhD program with dozens of published papers already part of her resume.
Baird liked smart women. He loved smart, strong women. But he’d just come out of a long relationship, and he wasn’t looking to start anything new. He certainly didn’t need a one-stand affair with his best friend’s young sister-in-law, a woman Alec was already calling his sister.
So no, Ella was not for him. She was as off limits as they came. Which is why he went to great lengths to avoid her. He’d never been rude. He knew better than that. Instead, he played the role of the charming, chivalrous guest from Scotland, kind to all, but cordially distant with Ella. He’d walk her down the aisle, pose for the requisite photos, check to see if she needed a drink before slipping away. That had been the goal—slip away. Move away. Stay away. And it had worked until Saturday night’s reception when his discipline failed.
It would have been convenient to lay the blame on the glass of champagne he’d had for the toast, but he hadn’t been drunk, not even buzzed.
It wasn’t champagne, it wasn’t the warm breezy evening with the moon reflecting off the water. It wasn’t the music or the scent of roses and lilies. It was her, red curls spilling down her back, her lips curving, her smile tugging at his heart, making his body warm, making him crave a taste of the life that shone so brightly in her eyes. She was so expressive, so passionate, so alive. He wanted that, wanted her. His infamous control snapped, and taking her hand he drew her into the shadows down by the dock and kissed her as if his life depended on it. And for those few heady moments, it had.
Ella cleared her throat. “Do you know why my sister isn’t the one picking me up?
Ella’s question pulled Baird back to the present. “Why don’t you ask her when you see her?” he asked, barely glancing in her direction. He would not be drawn back into her sphere. He was not going to be attracted to her again. August was months ago. He was a changed man.
Ella’s laugh was mocking. “Do you not know the answer? Or do you just not want to tell me?”
“I just don’t think it’s my business to tell you.”
“So, you do know.”
He shrugged. “Alec is my best friend.”
She sighed heavily, clearly exasperated by him. “Is she sick?”
“We’ll be there in less than an hour.”
“So, she’s at least at Langley?”
“Yes.”
“See? That wasn’t so hard, Baird. I appreciate the straight answer.”
His brow lifted. “Do your friends enjoy your sarcasm?”
“I think so.”
He wanted to smile but he wouldn’t let himself. “Hmm. I wouldn’t be so sure.”
“Do you even have friends?” she retorted a little too cheerfully. “Besides Alec, I mean?”
“I do, and I have a close family. We see each other often. Any other questions?”
“A few.”
“Let’s have them then, and once you’re satisfied, perhaps we can just be silent.”
Ella laughed. “You sound like an eighty-year-old man.”
She made him feel like it, too. “So, what are your questions, Ella?”
“Do you have brothers or sisters? Or are you an only child?”
“Three sisters. I’m the only lad.”
“And what a lad you are.” Ella said before clearing her throat. “I was being sarcastic, too. That wasn’t a compliment.”
“Oh, I knew that,” he assured her.
Silence followed. Ella had given up.
Baird didn’t speak again until he began slowing down. “We’re almost there,” he said, pointing to the line of thick trees bordering the road. “That’s all Langley Park. The house is set back on the property. You can’t see it from the road. Those that rent the holiday cottages use this access road, but we’ll go through the main gates.”
Ella didn’t know what she’d expected, but not all these open fields with the clusters of oak and sycamore trees. She wondered if the land was pastures or for crops. “Is this good farmland?” she asked.
“No. The Peak District lends itself more to sheep and cattle, and crops such as hay to feed the livestock. Some farmers have been successful with maize or some root crops, but it’s not particularly arable. Most farms here are small.”
“So, this isn’t farmland?” she asked, pointing to the fields behind the stone wall.
“No. It’s just what we call parkland.”
Baird drove through huge gates and down a long driveway which gave quick views of an enormous red brick mansion, the center of the house flanked by two red brick wings of different heights and styles.
“Wow,” Ella whispered.
“It never fails to impress me, too,” Baird said. “The central house is Elizabethan and still has the original Tudor hall, but the exterior has been hidden by a Georgian façade.”
The staff were gathering on the front steps as Baird parked the car. The older woman came down the stairs to greet Ella, introducing herself as Mrs. Booth the housekeeper, and sharing how pleased she was that Ella was here for Christmas and that her ladyship would be so happy to see her and she was in her room now, and if Ella was ready, she’d take her straight up to her sister.
“I am Mrs. Johnson, or Cook, as the earl calls me,” the other woman said, coming forward to be introduced. “I make sure no one goes hungry here. Once you’re settled with her ladyship, I will bring you a lunch tray. Your sister did not want to eat until you’d arrived.”
Then before Ella could quite take in the grandeur of the house with its sweeping staircase that wrapped all three floors, or the glass dome topping the staircase, flooding the interior with light, Mrs. Booth was climbing the stairs pointing out things as she went. “This is the new part of the house,” she said, “and this is the formal entrance when guests arrive. The main room the family gathers in is the green drawing room and that is the first room off the entry, with the music room adjacent.”
They reached the second floor which was very high up due to the fourteen-foot ceilings. “To our right is the family wing, and to the left is the guest wing. Your sister shares the master bedroom with his lordship—”
“Is that strange?” Ella asked, rather amazed that Mrs. Booth could fly up the stairs and carry a conversation without being the least bit breathless.
Mrs. Booth stopped, expression thoughtful. “They are the first generation at Langley Park to share a bedroom, but they are a modern couple with a modern marriage.” She began walking again, hustling them down the long hallway. “If there is anything you need, anything at all, just ask. We couldn’t be happier to have you with us.”
And then on reaching a closed door on the right, Mrs. Booth gave a firm knock and when Cara called, “Come in,” she walked away.
Ella opened the door and peeked in, discovering it was a huge bedroom with an equally huge four-poster bed. The walls were papered in a rich blue, with luxurious velvet curtains of the same hue framing each of the tall windows. Cara looked like a doll in the big bed with the white sheets crumpled around her.
“What is going on?” Ella hurried to her sister’s side and gave Cara a hug. “Everyone has me so worried.”
“What have you been told?” Cara answered, hugging Ella back.
“Virtually nothing, but for you to be in bed, something must be wrong because you’re always busy, always planning something.” Ella drew back to examine her sister, but Cara didn’t look sick. If anything, she appeared rosy. Happy.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” Cara said, pushing herself up higher and used an adjacent pillow to slip behind her back. “I’ve been counting down the days. I’m so bored and I want to hear everything … unless you’re too tired?”
“Not too tired, but I do want to know what’s happened to you. You haven’t mentioned being unwell in any of our calls or texts.”
“I’m not unwell, I just have to be careful.”
“Careful of what?”
“I was going to wait until Alec was home, but he might not be home for a few days, so…” Cara smiled as she dragged out the suspense. “I’m pregnant.”
“Cara!”
“With twins.”
Ella sprang to her feet. “Cara!”
Cara laughed. “I know. I can hardly believe it myself. I thought Tom and Kristine had twins because of Kristine, but maybe it’s our family? Who knows, but Alec and I haven’t shared the news as there were some early complications, but now that I’m in week twenty they’re resolving, and the risk of miscarriage is much less than it was. The doctor is still keeping me on bedrest, though, just to play it safe. I should be up and about in the new year.”
“I’m glad your doctor is being cautious.”
“We all are. Although I had hoped to be off bedrest by now. It’s hard for me to not run around.”
“Which is probably why your doctor is keeping you on bedrest through January.” Ella laughed. “Twins, Cara. I can’t believe it.”
“I couldn’t, either. We only found out I was pregnant late September. I figured I was late due to the wedding and everything, but then I wasn’t feeling well and bought a test. I was shocked. We were going to wait for a couple of years, but apparently God had a different plan. We had our first appointment with the obstetrician October ninth, and that’s when the doctor said there were two heartbeats. I’m lucky I was already lying down. I think I would have fainted. I was beyond shocked. And Alec—his face! He was nervous about one baby, but two?” Cara grinned. “It’s been quite an eventful few months. Certainly not the honeymoon phase we expected.”
“You weren’t on birth control?”
“Almost always using protection, but there was that time on the private island. The yacht had dropped us off and—”
“I got the picture. No intimate details necessary.” But she was smiling so big. “But Alec’s happy?”
“Very happy,” Cara assured her. “He’s been so protective of me. I could be up more, but he’s insisting I stay in bed and take it easy. There’s to be no stress, he says.”
“So, you’ve cancelled your party this Saturday, then?”
Cara didn’t immediately answer. “Alec wanted to,” she confessed. “But I told him we need to have it. For his family. They’ve been waiting to celebrate us—our marriage—and they always come here for Christmas anyway.”
“That doesn’t mean you need to be throwing a party now, Cara. Wait until January. Wait until the babies are born. Then throw the party.”
“Alex said the same thing, but the Sherbourne family is so looking forward to being together again, and the neighbors are excited as well. I don’t want to let any of them down. I can be social. I just can’t be on my feet for very long. Alec will carry me downstairs for the party and I’ll sit in a comfortable chair and pretend I’m a queen and let everyone come to visit with me.”
Ella no longer felt like smiling. Her sister could be so stubborn, and this was a perfect example of her refusing to be realistic. “I think this is a terrible idea. If Mom and Dad knew—”
“But they don’t. I’m telling them on Christmas. It’s my gift to them this year, especially as I haven’t been able to do the shopping I would normally do.”
“So, when is the baby—babies—due?”
“May thirteenth, but as you know from Tom and Kristine, twins often arrive early. My goal is to make it to week thirty-eight.”
“So, who knows?”
“You’re the first person I’ve told,” Cara said. “Alec has told Baird, and the staff here knows, but that’s it. We’ve promised them to secrecy, too. And they’ve been brilliant, waiting on me hand and foot, spoiling me rotten. Once Alec’s home, we’ll share the news with his family. I’d hoped he’d be back before they arrived but he’s dealing with a lot at work and will only make it back Friday after work.”
“When does his family arrive?”
“Friday, around noon.”
“Friday, as in the day after tomorrow? The aunts and great uncle?” Ella saw Cara’s nod and Ella felt a wave of indignation. “And they’ll be here through Christmas, just like last year?”
Cara nodded a second time.
Ella jumped up and paced the elegant master bedroom. “How is Alec okay with this? You had to cater to them last year, do everything for them—”
“Only because the staff wasn’t here, and then we had that huge storm. But the staff is staying on for the holidays this year. Mrs. Booth’s adult children are coming here, they’ll have rooms in the guest wing, and I’ve heard it’s not going to be a white Christmas, which is too bad for you.”
“Oh, Cara, I’m worried.”
“Don’t be. You met Mrs. Booth, our housekeeper and manager of all things important. If you haven’t yet met Mrs. Johnson, the cook and keeper of the kitchen and all menu planning, you will. And then there’s Mr. Trimble, our head groundskeeper, who also plays chauffeur, as you’ve already discovered. He’s a lovely man, isn’t he?”
“I haven’t met Mr. Trimble.”
“But he picked you up—”
“No, he didn’t. Baird picked me up.”
“Baird? Alec’s Baird?”
“Yes,” Ella answered flatly. “I wish someone had given me a head’s up. I was caught off guard.”
“I didn’t know. Mr. Trimble was supposed to get you. That was the plan.”
“Apparently, Mr. Trimble has the flu. He’s been told to stay home and isolate so that he doesn’t get anyone else here sick.”
“Alec didn’t tell me. I’m sorry.” Cara leaned forward. “If I’d known, I would have made alternate arrangements for your arrival. I know how you feel about him.” Cara searched Ella’s eyes. “How was the drive home?”
“Fine.” Ella hesitated, some of the anger fading. She returned to the bed and sat down again. “It’s not as if I hate him. It’s nothing like that. I’m just … uncomfortable.”
“I know.” Cara reached for her hand, giving it a quick squeeze. “Believe me, if I’d known I would have booked a driver for you. I’ll speak to Alec—”
“No, don’t. Baird is his best friend, and it was really nice of him to take the time to get me. I don’t imagine he would normally be in Manchester on a Wednesday.”
“No, he’d be at his office in Edinburgh.”
“Is that far from here?”
Cara wrinkled her nose. “About a five-hour drive. If there’s no traffic.”
Ella’s heart sank. Baird had gone to a great deal of effort to pick her up. She would have to thank him—nicely—the next time she saw him. Hopefully, that wouldn’t be anytime soon.
A knock sounded on the door and then it opened. Mrs. Johnson entered with a tray and carried it to the foot of the bed. “It’s an indoor picnic,” she said, setting the tray down.
Ella suddenly felt very hungry and was so happy to see her favorite lunch, grilled cheese and apple slices. There were also two glasses of milk and slices of a fragrant spice cake that had to be right out of the oven.
Ella eased off her shoes and sat cross-legged on the bed, happily eating while asking Cara questions about everything from when was dinner usually served, and were the holiday tours still taking place at Langley because Ella hadn’t noticed any crowds or cars when she’d arrived today.
“Alec had them end early,” Cara said. “He didn’t want a lot of people in and out of the house when I was alone here. Well, not alone, as you can see, but without him.”
“Were you glad?”
“I was. It’s a lot of noise and a lot of cars parking and coming and going. I think next year I might stay in London with Alec and the babies until the tours are over.”
“Or maybe the tours can just take place on weekends, instead of every day from November until Christmas?”
Cara nodded thoughtfully “That’s a good suggestion, and it used to be that way. Maybe with young children we’ll try that next year and see how it goes. It’s not as if we can’t try and see what works best for us as a family.”
“I agree.” Ella gathered all their empty dishes, stacking them on the tray. “I’m going to take this downstairs with me and let you rest.”
Cara smothered a yawn. “I am getting sleepy.”
“Then sleep, and I’ll be back for dinner. Do I come back upstairs?”
“If you don’t mind.”
“I don’t mind.” Ella gave her sister one last quick hug before taking the tray downstairs with her.
Mrs. Booth must have been waiting for her as she came forward immediately and relieved Ella of the tray. “Let me take this to the kitchen and then I can drive you to the cottage. If you’re ready. Usually, Mr. Trimble would be here to drive you, but with him gone, we’re all filling in.”
“I’d be happy to walk,” Ella said. “The more I move, the better I’ll sleep tonight.”
“In that case, I will have one of the boys run your luggage down to you. I promise you’ll have them soon.”
“If you’re sure that won’t put anyone out?”
“Not at all,” Mrs. Booth assured her before giving Ella walking directions for the cottage.
End of Excerpt
