“Sounds like a very good reason to buy any place the Fords cannot reach.” Rothwell smiled cheekily in Arabella’s direction. “I like to avoid them at all costs.”

Arabella laughed. “So if I confess that your aunt quite terrifies me, you will not think too badly of me? I always wonder why she smiles at me so much when we have little to do with one another.”

Rothwell appeared startled by that revelation and glanced at Holland. They exchanged a long look, quite like one seeing a reflection in a mirror, before Rothwell returned his attention to her. “She would be hard-pressed to find fault with you, but you are wise to regard her with caution,” he said in all seriousness. “My aunt cannot help but meddle. Ah, we’re here at last.”

Arabella stared out the window. Home. As had happened so often during the journey, she’d lost track of time while speaking with Rothwell. She was just getting the man to open up and now the journey was over. She was very sorry it was. She’d love to know why he avoided his family, aside from wishing for no interference in his life. There was something he would not say. A disagreement that had never been settled, perhaps. Now there was no time to discover it, however. She needed him and couldn’t risk offending him.

When the carriage rolled to a stop before the front steps, Rothwell climbed out and then extended his hand to her.

Her butler, Mr. Piper, appeared almost instantly, hastily rushing to greet them in the drive. “My lady?”

Arabella set her hand in Rothwell’s and joined him. There was nothing like returning to the place you feel most comfortable. Despite how she must appear in the company of a strange man, she grinned at her butler to assure him she was exactly where she wanted to be. “Did I catch you unawares?”

He peered hard at her, color draining from his usually ruddy cheeks. “Indeed you did, but I am very glad to see you looking so well. The house is closed up as you requested on your departure, but I’d expected a message a few days ahead of your return so all that could be attended to.”

He turned questioning eyes toward her companions.

She did not want him to misunderstand the reason for her current company. Rothwell had done more for her than she’d dreamed he would want to. She turned to the man still holding her hand, her cheeks warming because his presence always had an impact on her. She owed Rothwell a debt that could never be repaid. “Under normal circumstances I would have sent one, but I wanted to come home. Mr. Piper, you have the pleasure of meeting Lord Rothwell. Farnsworth has sold Winslette to him.”

All the blood drained from Piper’s face. “Sold, you say?”

Rothwell released her hand, his expression growing serious as he appraised the butler with a haughty disdain so unlike his recent countenance. “Nothing changes for your mistress. You will go on in the manner she wishes.”

“It is not that.” Piper rubbed his hand over his face. “Lord Farnsworth is here. He’s looking for Lady Farnsworth. He told us she was missing.”

Arabella glanced at Rothwell nervously. Farnsworth was in her home. A place she’d been assured of sanctuary. “He should not be here. The sale was completed, wasn’t it?”

Rothwell rubbed her arms and then shrugged out of his coat and wrapped her in it. “No, he hasn’t the right to be anywhere on the place. Holland, remain with Arabella and do not let her come inside till I say so. Jimmy, you’re with me.”

Arabella caught Rothwell’s arm and kept him with her as the coachman bounded toward the door, rolling up his shirtsleeves. “What do you mean to do?”

He brushed the thumb of his free hand across her cheek gently, the same cheek Farnsworth had struck when she’d refused to do his bidding and marry Parker without complaint. This time the sensation was pleasant. One she would remember fondly forever.

“I intend to teach him the manners he lacks.” A smile grew on his face. “I’m so pleased he decided to trespass. His comeuppance is days overdue. Wait for me and all will be well.”

She let him go and watched his departure anxiously, the coachman and Piper flanking him seeming far too little support. She edged closer to Holland. “He’ll be all right, won’t he?”

Holland might have smiled, but his eyes were filled with concern. “He may claim to dislike the reference, but he is a Ford. He can handle himself in a fight when necessary.”

From within the house came a shout, the crash of wood splintering, and then a long silence. Arabella craned her neck but could see nothing through the open doorway.

When Rothwell finally strode out, his cravat was askew, his breathing hurried, but the look on his face proved he was pleased with events. He reached for his coat without a word and shoved his arms into the sleeves. “The vermin is being removed by a side door as we speak and will be escorted some distance from the house to ensure the fool leaves. I’m sorry about the table. I’ll replace it with whatever your heart desires.”

Arabella bit her lip as he smoothed his waistcoat and straightened his cravat. The fool grinned. She could not believe he could smile at a time like this. If not for Rothwell’s escort, she would have faced Farnsworth again and alone. She buried her face in her hands, overwhelmed with relief to have gone to Rothwell for aid in the first place.

After a long moment, Rothwell’s arms slowly encircled her and tightened about her. “He will not bother you ever again, I swear. You will never need to see him.”

When released, she glanced around swiftly, aware that there were servants around them and they had viewed her behavior. To her surprise, not one faced her. They had all turned away. “Thank you.”

Recalled to their audience too, Rothwell’s posture stiffened. “Holland, see to the carriage and have everything ready for our return to London.”

A rush of panic seized Arabella. For the whole of the trip she had not thought of what would happen next. She wasn’t prepared to let Rothwell go just yet. In the distant carriage house, servants could be seen rushing to hitch the horses to ensure Farnsworth’s immediate departure. But what if Farnsworth returned tonight while she was sleeping? The idea of it brought on panic. She couldn’t face him ever again. She grabbed Rothwell’s hand and held it tightly. “Surely you wish to inspect the property you purchased,” she blurted out, purely as a means to delay his departure.

Rothwell glanced around, eyeing his new possession and then the distant carriage house. He nodded slowly. “I should like that.”

Holland edged closer. “Are you not forgetting those matters in London that required all your attention before, and the other one to be attended to on our way there?”

“There is plenty of time to accomplish it all.”

Were they speaking of the special license or something else entirely? She had a nagging feeling something was to be done when she wasn’t around. The sense of exclusion grated on her nerves. Given the aggravated expression on Rothwell’s face, he didn’t want to discuss it before her. But to make use of the special license, Rothwell would have to marry before the march of time made it worthless. He had a month, or so she believed, but she did not know when the license had been issued.

To her surprise, Rothwell took her arm and threaded it through his. He led her toward the front door. “I would be very happy to have a tour if you can spare me an hour.”

It would take quite a bit longer than an hour to view the property properly. Arabella quickly tallied a list guaranteed to keep Rothwell occupied and with her for as long as possible. He should have an intimate knowledge before he left. He would probably be hungry too. Besides, any good hostess would see his appetites were fully catered to.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN