Chapter 25
Thank God there weren’t any occupants in the house, Erva thought, after Will had had a quick scan of the place. Still, she wondered if many people had seen them stalk into the house and not leave it any time soon. Taking a quick breath, she nodded to Will to open the door, and they left.
He held her hand as they walked through the street, leading her along, his head held high and his stride assured. The sun was now hovering on the horizon. Will found the horse he’d been riding, and in too fast a move to protest, had her side sitting in the saddle, while he held the reins and walked on foot. Back in the house he’d shared so much with her. It still baffled her. It honored her. It scared the shit out of her.
He’d been suicidal. Maybe that was why he’d died. Maybe he’d had enough and by tomorrow had put himself in harm’s way.
But now...
He found a sergeant that Erva vaguely remembered meeting earlier and talked with him about quartering the remaining soldiers that hadn’t gotten a tent. The sergeant kept peeking up at her on the horse, but nodded and ran off when Will ordered him to. This was another side of Will she’d wanted to see from the very beginning, the leader. When he walked the horse closer to where a band of young redcoats were relaxing, they immediately stood at attention, yet greeted him with warmth. When Will grinned at them, they beamed back. It was obvious they respected him, even liked him.
He patted the backs of some of the British troops, praising them for their courage. Then surprising her, many of them wished her and Will congratulations on their coming nuptial. Seriously, Twitter had nothing on the word of mouth or the announcement or whatever it was that was alerting everyone to their wedding. One young man shyly approached and gave her a small bouquet of wild sea flowers. Hearty little white blooms that Erva adored.
A middle-aged man with thinning long, white hair tied neatly at the nape of his neck and a widening middle approached Will, clapping him on the back.
“I’ve just heard the news, good man.”
Will nodded and smiled up at her. “Erva, darling, I’d like you to meet General Lord Charles Cornwallis.”
She tried to keep her composure, but could hardly contain her excitement at meeting one of the most feared British generals of all time. Not because the man was known as a military tyrant. In fact, his troops were severely loyal to him, almost to a breaking point. No, he was feared by the Americans for his prowess and persistence.
General Cornwallis reached a hand up to her after he’d bowed his head. While extending her fingers into his palm, she said, “General, it is an honor to meet you.”
“The honor is mine,” Cornwallis said after kissing her hand and giving it back to her. “I’ve been wanting to meet you since I’ve heard the rumors that there was a musical genius that accompanied Hill. And now I meet you under such glad tidings. Congratulations, my lady, you have selected the best man I know.”
“Oh, sir, you can’t lie to my bride-to-be.” Will joked.
Cornwallis shook his head. “My lady, I’ve only known your soon-to-be husband a few months, but already I am envious of his mind. He’s truly a genius in his own right as well. Why, this battle was won because of your man.” The general turned to Will. “I shouldn’t talk war with the lady, I’m sorry.”
Erva wanted to giggle or roll her eyes at the invasion of eighteenth-century manners, what with Cornwallis asking Will, not her, for forgiveness, but Will just beamed up at her.
“Cornwallis, you can talk war with my fiancée, for it was her idea to pinch the Continentals as we did this morning.”
Then Erva’s stomach rolled over one too many times. Oh God, she’d given him the idea to fight the Americans the way he had and to such a benefit for the British.
Cornwallis smiled up at Erva too. “Well, my lady. Your name is most applicable then. Minerva, goddess of war.”
“Goddess of wisdom too,” Will said, still smiling.
Erva tried to grin, but felt more than a little sick as she realized she’d given Will the idea for victory today. “Thank you,” she croaked.
Cornwallis clapped Will on the back again, then looked up at her once more. “But your soon-to-be husband is much more than a great general, my lady. He’s a wonderful man, kind and patient with his troops. Now, where can I send a wedding present?”
Will smiled widely. “We’ll let you know, my lord. We have not yet spoken of our ceremony, decided whether to wed here or back in England.”
Cornwallis shrugged. “Have two ceremonies, one here and another there. I’m heading back in a few months. I’m sure my wife will love to meet Lady Ferguson, soon to be Lady Hill.”
Erva tried again for a smile, but this time the effort was even greater. She knew Cornwallis’s future, and the next year would be considerably hard on him.
Will and Cornwallis, the two generals, said their goodbyes, each shaking the other’s hand as if they wanted to say more and smiling the way two soldiers can—knowing each other intimately, like brothers, yet perhaps because they weren’t biologically bound they never seemed sure how to convey their sense of love for each other.
Cornwallis promised to do the reports for Will, so he could take Erva back to their home. It was incredibly kind and considerate, and when Cornwallis finally left, she’d held his hand, wishing she could convey her sympathy to him early.
Will climbed on the horse and rode behind her, still hanging onto the reins. He said something about finding a boat at this time of the day, but Erva wasn’t paying much attention. Sitting the way she was, she easily swung his direction and wrapped her arms around his neck, letting him see over her shoulder where they were going.
“Are you well, Erva?” Will held her with one arm, but stopped the horse.
“Cornwallis is a good general, isn’t he?” she whispered in his ear.
“One of the best I’ve ever known, yes.”
“He likes you.”
Will didn’t say anything.
“He likes you a lot. He looks at you like a proud father would a son.”
“You think so? You know, he and I are much alike. He’s going to retire shortly too. And for the same reasons I am. Well, not in marrying, but because he doesn’t believe in this war. He’s going back home to be with his wife.”
She blurted it out before she could take it back. “She’s going to die.”
Will leaned back and looked down at her, his dark brows furrowing.
“She’s sick and going to die when he’s home with her. His grief makes him change his mind and come back to the war, to be with his soldiers.”
Will glanced at where Cornwallis had stood. “Good Lord.”
“I’m sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything. From what I read, he loved his wife very much.”
Will gazed at her again. “I’m so sorry for the man. I can’t imagine...Mayhap we could help her, find a way for her not to die. At the least I can talk him out of coming back to America.”
Erva nodded, getting excited about the idea. But mainly she thought of Will back in England, and not dead as history had told her. “Maybe...mayhap.”
For a moment Will didn’t say anything, but finally nodded his head. “I—I know it’s silly, but I think of him like a father.”
“Why is that silly?”
“I had a father.”
“It’s perfectly normal to find surrogates, especially when our parents fail us.”
Will blinked then nodded. “I suppose so. Did you ever find one? I mean, you said your life with your mother...I, er, this is a rather serious conversation, and we’re in Manhattan—”
She smiled. “I love your consideration. But to answer your question, I suppose I keep finding women who are more like my mother than a surrogate. I am a teacher at Harvard, but I don’t technically have my PhD yet. My supervisor—who I wanted as a friend, not a surrogate mother—has been sitting on it for two years now, holding it back. She keeps telling me to research more, write more academically, write
more, but already it’s close to two thousand pages. I know I’ve done enough. But,” she looked down, suddenly shy to admit the truth, “I—I never knew how to stand up for myself against my mother. I was always so scared she’d leave me, and I’d be an orphan. So I’d end up doing what she wanted. In a way I’m now grateful, because if it weren’t for her, I would have never learned to play the piano and sing, which, I think, got your attention.”
He hooked a finger under her chin. “You had my attention from the second I first heard you screaming through the house, little minx.” He smiled. “By the by, you’re wonderful at standing up against me. In fact, I’m fairly certain I have bruises from where you hit me earlier.”
“I’m so sorry.” She bit her bottom lip.
“Well, I think I might have to spank you a bit tonight.”
She giggled, before growing more serious. “In a way, staying here is such a relief. If I had to go back, then I’d have to stand up against my supervisor, Dr. Peabody. And I’d probably end up teaching even more classes out of it. Besides, I’m not even sure if I like teaching. I don’t know whether my students really respect me or not. There was one brat that spilled water down my front the day before I came here. I’m pretty sure he did it just to be a jerk.”
Will’s face tensed. “I’m certain he did it because he was an obnoxious beast who wanted to try to see your body better. Thank God we have more than two hundred years betwixt us; otherwise, I’d have the man’s head on a platter.”
Erva couldn’t help but smile, but she tried to temper her grin with a little dose of admonishment as she shook her head.
Will leaned closer. “You don’t see it, do you? How beautiful you are?”
Erva glanced down again, not willing to answer.
“Well, even if it takes the rest of my life, I’m going to have you see how beautiful you are. But more than that I think we should find a nice surrogate for you. How about Lady Anne? She seems rather fun. First, though, I think you need to practice standing up for yourself with me. Now, tonight when we’re in bed, I’ll pretend to ravish you, and you must fend me off.”
Erva chuckled. “I think your mind is in the gutter, sir.”
He softly laughed as he bade the horse to walk forward again. “I think so too. Won’t you join me?”
She giggled again. She’d never laughed so much, except maybe with Ben. Then a pang shot through her body, reminding her that she would never see her best friend again. But she tried to rid herself of that thought. She’d grieve later. Besides, with Will she laughed more. She loved his sense of humor, how dry but witty it was. She loved his sense of justice for her. She loved him.
She leaned against his broad and iron-tough chest, feeling more content than she ever had before. Now, she just had to get Will to stay in bed all day tomorrow, never leave her side, so he wouldn’t die. Wiggling her bottom around a little, feeling Will’s erection against her, she thought it wouldn’t be too difficult a feat.