Honor Reclaimed (All About Honor) (17 page)

Drew was unsure how to react.
 
He was use to holding women in his
arms, but only as a means to an end.
 
He wrapped his arms around her in return and kissed her gently on top of
her head.
 
He fought hard to resist
the temptation to run his hands freely over her body.
 

This was how John found them when he
came down the hall to check on why it was taking so long for Eirian to return
to the party.
 
He stopped dead in
his tracts unable to move until his heart began to beat again.
 
He briefly felt as though his world was
crashing down around him and he thought he would choke on his jealousy.
 

It was only a matter of seconds
before Drew and Eirian pulled away from each other, neither one yet aware of
John’s presence down the hall.

“It was my very great pleasure to
have been able to be of assistance.
 
You and John are very dear to me and I am glad that I was able to assure
a safe delivery.”
 
He gave Eirian a
slight and very formal bow.

At this obviously innocent gesture
John heart, previously lodged in his throat, once again began to beat in his
chest.
 
“Ah, there you are.
 
I missed you down stairs, my dear.
 
Is everything alright?”
 
John brought Eirian’s hand to his lips
and placed a kiss upon it, then tucked it possessively in the crook of his arm
drawing her away from Drew and closer to his side glaring a warning to Drew.

“Eirian was just thanking me again
for helping her and the babies at their birth.
 
I assured her it was my honor and my privilege.
 
I want to thank you both for the honor
you bestowed on me today.
 
I will
always be there for the children as I am sure you already know.”
 
Drew was trying to smooth John’s
ruffled feathers.
 
“My agent
informs me he has found a house for me just a few blocks from here.
 
I will be moving in as soon as
possible, so I will not be imposing on your hospitality for much longer.”

“It is never an imposition
Drew.
 
You must know that.”
 
Eirian assured him.
 
John was definitely of a different
opinion.

“Well, I thank you for saying so, but
I think it is time that I establish a place of my own on this side of the
ocean.
 
I have become too
independent while living on my own in Virginia.
 
I will be close enough for us to see each other regularly
when I am in London though.”

He did move out in just a few days
time.
 
The Lewis house was still so
full of guests that Eirian barely had time to notice Drew’s absence.
 
John was relieved.

Drew finished his business tied up
loose ends at Lewis Shipping and prepared for his return to Virginia.
 

The family was gathered in the
parlor when Drew was announced.
 
“Drew, how lovely to see you.
 
I was afraid you had left for the colonies without telling us goodbye.”
 
Eirian was truly happy to see him.
 
John was less so.

“That is why I am here.
 
I sail tomorrow and I wanted to stop by
to say goodbye and to kiss my godson and his sister goodbye.
 
Can I hold the little guy for a few
minutes?”
 
Drew reached out to take
Andrew out of his mother’s arms.
 
Drew cuddled him in close and took a moment just to breath in the fresh
baby smell.
 
He took Andrew’s hand,
which was wrapped around his forefinger, and kissed each little finger.
 
“I am really going to regret not being
here to watch him grow.
 
He may be
the closest thing I get to a son of my own.”

John felt a moment of crushing guilt
watching and listening to Drew.
 
He
had to admit to himself that he had not been an altogether loyal friend to
Drew.
 
He was a party in
withholding important information from his friend.
 
He knew his first loyalty was to family, but it was
difficult at times like these.
 
He
looked across the room at Thomas who was just glaring at Drew.
 
Gwen had her hand on Thomas as if to
restrain him.

Thomas had been on his best behavior
this whole week for John’s, but primarily for Eirian’s, sake.
 
He had wanted to challenge Drew, but he
knew that Elle would never forgive him if he killed Drew.
 
For some reason she still loved him,
even after he abandoned her and left her pregnant.
 
It mattered very little to him that Drew did not even know
that Alex existed.
 
It was the way
that Drew had his way with Elle, and then just walked away without even a
thought to whether or not she suffered any repercussions.

Holding the baby in his arms Drew
felt a tug at his heart.
 
He had
held out hope for a while that he would hear from Elle.
 
He still was not sure if he wished she
had been pregnant or not as the baby probably would not have been his, but he
still would have married her to keep her from being shamed.
 
She had made it clear that she did not
want to marry him, but if she had been pregnant, she would have had to accept
his proposal.
 
He still had not
completely gotten her out of his system.
 
He was not sure that he would
ever
entirely
succeed, nor that he really wanted to.
 
He gave the babies one more kiss and took his leave.

Chapter 7

John never knew when Andrew was
going to show up.
 
They would not
hear from him for a year or more and suddenly there he would be on their
doorstep.
 
Such was the case at
this time.

After an almost three years of
absence, John’s first reaction was to be pleased to see his old friend.
 
They went so far back and had shared so
much that there was a strong and deep connection, almost like brothers.
 
Yet after he was over the initial
pleasure of seeing his old friend, he remembered that he was leaving in just a
few days for an extended amount of time in Scotland on business.
 
He was not pleased to be leaving Eirian
un-chaperoned with Andrew in town.

Last time that Andrew visited London
he bought his own Townhouse.
 
At
least John did not have to worry about leaving them under the same roof.
 
It was not that he doubted Eirian’s devotion
to him; it was just that he knew Andrew’s charm and power of persuasion.

He also knew that Andrew was,
basically, an honorable man and he never really worried about him with
Johane.
 
It was different with
Eirian.
 
Andrew was in love with
Eirian.
 
It was hard to predict
what a man in love would do.

The night before John was to leave
for Scotland he and Drew were having drinks in John’s study.
 
“How long will you be gone this
time?”
 
Andrew asked.

“There is no telling how long this
will take, but I am assuming at least four to six weeks.
 
It takes a week to travel each way and
I have several stops to make while I am there.
 
I will be anxious to return home as soon as possible.
 
I have decided that this is my last
trip.
 
We are going home for good
when I return.
 
I never wanted to
leave there in the first place.
 
Thomas is due back in London by the end of the month to replace me.
 
I cannot tell you how happy that makes
me.”

“John, have you ever wondered what
it was that drew us together as friends when we are so different?
 
I enjoy the hustle and bustle of city
life and you are a country gentleman.
 
I enjoy the party life and you are happy to sit at home in front of your
fireplace with your family around you.
 
I am a lady’s man and you are a one-woman man.
 
Where is our common ground?”
 
Drew was pondering fate while John was worried about the future.

“I really do not think we are that
different.
 
Yes, you like the city
life on occasion, but you chose to live in the colonies far from the city
life.
 
When you are here, you spend
most of your visit in front of my hearth.
 
You could be out partying and making the rounds, but you are here
enjoying the antics of my children, all seven of them, and pleasures of my
home.
 
I think you have sowed your
wild oats and it is time for you to find a woman of your own and settle down
for good.

Drew, you know you are my best
friend, and we have touched on this topic before, but I need your assurance
that you will keep your distance from Eirian while I am gone.
 
I have known you long enough to know
that you are in love with her in a way that I have never seen you be with any
woman.
 
I will remind you that she
is my wife and I will not share her affections with anyone, not even you.”

“John, you do not have to remind
me.
 
I think about it
everyday.
 
I do love Eirian in a
way I have never loved another woman, with the possible exception of one, but I
am very aware that she is out of my reach.
 
I may have a lot of faults, but I do have a healthy respect
for the sanctity of marriage and I will not cross the line.
 
You have my promise.
 
I will look after your
family for you while you are
gone, but you do not have to
worry about me trying to steal your wife behind your back.

I do think you are right
though.
 
It is time that I start
thinking seriously about looking for a wife of my own.
 
My father keeps hounding me to settle down
and give him heirs.
 
It may be time
to set his mind at ease.”
 
It was
not often that Drew spoke of such serious personal matters.
 
John was impressed.

“Drew, this may be the time to
discuss something with you.
 
In my
opinion you should have been told long ago…” Just then they were interrupted by
a knock at the door of the study.

“Enter” John responded.
 
“Hello my love, what can I do for
you?”
 
He placed a kiss on Eirian
forehead.

“Hello Drew.
 
When did you arrive?”
 
Eirian went over to Drew and allowed him
to kiss her on each cheek.

“Just a couple of drinks ago.
 
I wanted to see John before he
left.
 
Honey, I feel certain you
already know this, but if you need anything while John is gone you just need to
ask.”
 
Drew offered.

“Thank you Drew.
 
I will remember that.
 
You will be staying for dinner won’t
you?”
 
Eirian offered.

“Of course, thank you.”
 
Drew replied.
 

“I will leave you gentlemen to
finish your drinks.
 
Dinner should
be ready in about ten minutes.
 
Feel free to join me in the parlor when you have finished your
drinks.”
 
Eirian closed the door
quietly behind her.

“John, you are the luckiest man on
earth.
 
I hope you appreciate that
fact.
 
First Johane and now Eirian,
you have been living right to be so blessed.
 
Let’s down our drinks and join your wife before she gets
bored and looks somewhere else for company.”
 
Drew finished his drink in one gulp and slapped the glass
back down on the desk with a flourish.
 
John followed his lead.

They made it an early evening as
John was leaving at first light the next morning.
 
As they lay in bed that night John held Eirian close to him,
running his hands over her body as if trying to memorize the feel of her.
 
He had wanted to make love to her this
last night, but nature had other ideas.
 
It was clear she was not pregnant again as she had hoped.
 
While it still scared him, they would
try again when he returned home.
 
It was all right tonight though; he enjoyed just holding and kissing
her.
 
God he was going to miss
her.
 
He hated these trips and he
was so glad that he would not have to make any more of them.

John left early as planned, leaving
Eirian at loose ends.
 
She always
had trouble adjusting to his being gone, but it was especially difficult the
first few days.
 
She needed company
she thought.
 
She went to her desk
and wrote out a quick invitation to Drew to join her for dinner that night and
sent her messenger to deliver it.

Drew received the message with mixed
emotions.
 
He wanted desperately to
spend some time alone with Eirian, which was exactly why he should make an
excuse and refuse the invitation.
 
The messenger was waiting.
 
He had to make a decision.
 
He could not do it.
 
He
could not trust himself not to take her in his arms and kiss her until both of
them forgot their loyalty to John; it just was not worth it.

Eirian was disappointed when she
received his regrets stating that he was already engaged for the evening.
 
She was, however, happy that Drew was
making an effort to socialize with other people.
 
She often wondered if he did not spend too much time with
them.
 
He needed to find a woman of
his own to marry and settle down with.
 
He needed children of his own to love and play with.
 
He enjoyed their children so much.
 
Sometimes she felt like she had another
child when he was around.
 
He romped
and played with hers just like he was one of them.
 
It was so endearing to watch.

Several days passed before she
decided to try to invite Drew to dinner again.
 
This time he did not feel like he could decline again with
out hurting her feelings.
 
He had
also enjoyed more than his share of female company in the past several days and
felt more in control of his physical needs.
 
There was one young lady in particular who had gone a long
way towards satisfying his every physical need; in fact he was close to being
sexually exhausted.
 
That should
help him keep a tight rein on his emotions and to behave as an exemplary
gentleman.

He arrived as scheduled and was
offered a before dinner drink which he gladly accepted.
 
They visited as he finished his
drink.
 
“Yes, I did attend the ball
at the St. Martian’s on Saturday.
 
There were so many young ladies making their debut that I did not have a
chance to dance with even half of them.
 
I guess I am getting old, but most of them are mindless little twits and
bore me to death.
 
Do you regret
getting married so early and missing your debut?”

“Not at all, I never really looked
forward to it anyhow.
 
Johane did
not have a debut and she never missed it.
 
After all, the true purpose of a debut is to present one’s self on the
marriage market in order to find a suitable mate.
 
We both found our true love without the aid of the
market.
 
I much preferred it my
way.”
 
She replied with
contentment.

“I wish I could have had a chance to
meet you on an adult level before you married John.
 
Maybe I could have snagged you first.”
 
He tried to sound light hearted, but
something in his voice made Eirian look twice at Drew to determine how much
truth was in his statement.
 
It
frightened her a little, but she shook off the feeling as being a silly
misinterpretation, after all, Drew did not know how to be serious.

Dinner was wonderful as usual.
 
They discussed the fact that William
was growing up so fast.
 
Drew
offered to take him back with him at some point to visit the colonies.
 
Drew was convinced that there was a
great future there.
 
When he first
moved to the colonies, it was suppose to be a temporary diversion.
 
It was not as if Drew needed to make
his fortune there as he was heir to his father’s title and to his huge estate
here in England, but he was not willing to just sit around waiting for his
father to die so that he could be established.
 
He had prospered and had set down roots.
 
He really preferred the life he led in
Virginia to the more stuffy, socially structured lifestyle here in
England.
 
He did not know if he
would ever want to return to England on a permanent basis when something did
happen to his father.
 
He was
thinking about passing his inheritance, or at least the manor house, to his
brother who had no desire to leave his motherland.
 
He wished John would give serious consideration to joining
him in Virginia.

Drew took his leave shortly after
dinner when he felt his mind traveling to areas it had no business going.
 
He wondered what Eirian would do if he
took her in his arms and kissed
her
as he desperately
wanted to do.
 
It was definitely
time to leave.

Within minutes of Drew’s departure a
messenger arrived from Severn Manor.
 
Eirian was distraught to read that Aislinn was very ill and Galen was
requesting that she return to Severn Manor to attend her.

What was she going to do?
 
John was not here to act as her escort
and she could not just take off and travel across England to Wales without a
male escort.
 
It was not entirely
proper, but maybe Drew would act as her escort.
 
He was the closest thing she had to a male family member in
London at this time.
 
Thomas and
Gwen were due here some time in the next few weeks to relieve them to return to
the Priory, but Aislinn needed her now.
 
It would be asking a lot of Drew, she knew, but she did not think he
would turn down her request.
 
She
send a message to him immediately asking that he return to her as soon as
possible as she needed his help.