"I have a surprise for you. Sit down on the bed and close your eyes."
She did as he ordered. She peeked once and saw him pulling clothes out of his satchel.
"Are they closed?" he asked.
She squeezed them tight. She felt him brush her hair away from her face, and then she felt something cold around her neck.
She knew what it was before she opened her eyes.
"Mama's locket," she cried out. "Where did you…"
She couldn't go on. She'd started crying again.
"It was wedged between the mattress and the headboard."
She threw herself into his arms and thanked him over and over again. It didn't take him any time at all to want her again. They fell on top of the covers and made wild, passionate love.
He knew the blissful interlude would have to last them a long time.
The storm was coming.
Mary Rose saw little of Harrison during the next week. He spent most of his days over at Belle's house, pouring over the letters they'd all sent to Mama Rose that the Adderley boys had taken. At night he sat in the library and read the letters their mother had written them. He took page after page of notes, and when he wasn't working, he sat on the porch to think and plan.
She didn't have to ask him what progress he was making. His grim expression told her everything she needed to know. She felt completely useless and powerless. She asked him every single morning if there was some little thing she could do to help him. His answer was always the same. If he thought of something, he'd let her know.
The closer to trial the more preoccupied he became. She didn't feel at all slighted, even when he would go up to bed without telling her good night. He was thinking about the case, and that was all she wanted from him.
They came together as a family on Sunday for supper. She made a promise that no matter what, the meal would be pleasant, and so, every time someone mentioned anything having to do with the trial, she quickly changed the subject.
Everyone caught on to her game. They went along with it too, and in no time at all, Travis was even able to smile about something she'd told him.
"Cole, you never asked me about Eleanor. Aren't you curious what happened to her?"
He shrugged. "Is she happy?"
"Yes," Mary Rose answered. "She went to work for my Aunt Lillian."
"The general? Eleanor's got more guts than I thought. Good for her."
Harrison smiled. "You call your aunt a general?"
"She acts like one," Mary Rose admitted. "Corrie left me a note yesterday. Would you like me to read it to you?"
"No." All four brothers shouted the word together. Then they burst into laughter.
She wasn't put off by their rudeness. "I'll be happy to read it to you, Harrison."
"Sweetheart, I've already heard it three times. Corrie wants you to bring her another book."
"And?"
"She's happy you're home. You're sure pretty when you blush."
"I'm not blushing. I don't mind my brothers laughing at me. They can't help being uncivilized at the table. Ignore them."
"I think I missed being uncivilized most of all while we were in England."
"Oh, Lord. Have I married someone just like my brothers?"
"I hope so. It would be the highest compliment you could give me."
"I told you he liked us," Cole drawled out, embarrassed by his own reaction to Harrison 's praise.
"Someone's coming up to the house," Douglas announced. "He's dressed in a suit and driving a buggy."
Harrison stood up. "It's Alfred Mitchell," he guessed. "He's the attorney we hired to do some work for us. You wait here," he told the brothers when they all started to get up. "I want to talk to him alone first. You can meet him later."
He left the room before Adam could ask him to explain the work this Mitchell fellow was doing for them. He posed the question to Cole.
" Harrison wanted to get some information about Livonia 's sons. He sent a wire to an attorney in St. Louis, asking for a recommendation, and Mitchell was suggested. The man must have ridden day and night to get here so soon. I can't imagine how he did it."
"Should we listen at the door?" Travis asked.
"We'll do no such thing," Adam dictated. "We'll give Harrison privacy."
They all heard the screen door open once again. A few seconds later, Harrison came back into the dining room.
He looked stunned.
The reason was standing right behind him.
Mary Rose staggered to her feet. "Father?"
Her brothers all stood up. Their attention was focused on Lord Elliott.
Harrison was watching his wife. Her complexion had turned a stark white, and he thought she was going to faint.
He hurried to her side and took hold of her arm.
Elliott stood there in the entrance staring at the family. He still didn't know what he was going to say to them. He'd worried about it all the way here. How could he let her brothers know he accepted them as part of his family and hoped they would accept him?
Harrison saw the worry in his eyes and decided to help the reunion along. He leaned down close to his wife's ear, and whispered, "Your father's very nervous."
He knew he wouldn't have to say another word. Mary Rose's heart immediately went out to her father. She hurried to his side, leaned up on her tiptoes, and kissed him on his cheek.
"I'm very happy to see you again."
He came out of his stupor with a start. He took hold of her hands. "Can you ever forgive me, daughter? I'm so sorry for all the pain I caused you."
Tears gathered in her eyes. Her father had spoken in such a passionate voice that she knew the words had come from his heart.
"Oh, Father, I love you. Of course I forgive you. I love Harrison, and I have to forgive him all the time. He forgives me too. It's what family is all about. I'm so sorry I hurt you by leaving."
"No, no, you made me come to my senses. You did the right thing."
Her brothers heard every word of his apology. None of them showed any outward reaction. Harrison thought their expressions could have been set in stone.
"Father, I'm called Mary Rose here."
"All right then."
"All right… It's all right?" She threw herself into his arms and hugged him.
"When you come to England to visit me, I may slip now and then and call you Victoria. Will you mind?"
"No, no, I won't mind at all."
Elliott patted her shoulder, a soft smile on his face. His worry eased away. He had done the right thing.
Mary Rose finally remembered her manners. She pulled away from her father and smiled up at him.
"Father, I would like you to meet my brothers," she announced, her voice filled with pride.
Elliott closely studied all of them. Harrison moved to stand with the brothers. Elliott realized why he'd done so. He was helping him remember what the pecking order was in Mary Rose's heart. Her husband came first, then her brothers, and finally her father. He didn't mind being last on her list because he now knew she had enough love for all of them.
The time had finally arrived for him to acknowledge her brothers as family. He didn't feel rushed. He stared at the strapping young men and suddenly felt as though he were in the presence of giants. He was both humbled and in awe of them.
They were God's answer to his prayers. All those years of anguish and terror, in the dark hours of the night when desolation threatened to devour his very soul, he had prayed for a miracle.
And all along God had already given him four.
He had been truly blessed. He had a wonderful daughter, a noble son-in-law, and now…
"It appears I have four sons."
November 28, 1877
Dear Mama Rose,
It was voted on and I got stuck writing this letter to beg you to let up. Mama, we think it's wrong for you to keep pestering us to get married. We know you think Adam should marry first because he's the oldest, but he's not going to do it, and that's the way it is. Adam likes it just fine the way things are, and so do we, so please let go of your ideas about grandchildren.