Free The Earl's Revenge by Allison Lane Page B

my neck but did not cover it. When I objected, he demanded that I spend two hours on my knees in prayer, asking forgiveness for immodesty, disobedience, and speaking out of turn. Following a supper of bread and water, he informed me that I would be married in one month and would spend the interim in London with my great-aunt.”
    “Good heavens!”
    “Exactly. He made it clear what the penalty would be if I objected. Not that I would have, for I was thrilled at the idea of marriage, believing nothing could be worse than staying at home. And that was true, though barely. Lord Staynes turned out to be a notorious rake with no intention of abandoning his pleasures. His mother was just like Father – dictatorial and delighted to administer punishment. The only difference was that Lady Bridgeport made her own rules instead of enforcing strict adherence to Biblical injunctions.”
    “I am certainly glad you came to me then.”
    “As am I. You have opened my mind to wondrous ideas. Much of what I know and most of what I believe, I learned from you, Anne. And if you had not championed my talent to Mr. Beringer, I would never have had the opportunity to make a career of my art. But what I am today began even before I arrived. I never really considered it before, but jilting Lord Staynes was the best thing I ever did. It freed me of much more than an unwanted betrothal.”
    “What do you mean?”
    Elaine frowned, trying to express concepts that she barely understood. “That was the first decision I had ever made for myself. It was terrifying, but at the same time, it was empowering. I cannot really describe the feeling. After seventeen years of doing exactly as I was told, thinking and acting on my own was a remarkable experience.”
    “Empowering,” repeated Anne. “Yes, it would be.”
    “But freedom without knowledge is worthless,” declared Elaine, embarrassed to have talked so much. “And you are entirely responsible for that. Even if many of your ideas originated with Mary Wollstonecraft, it was your teaching that brought them to life.”
    “You are putting me to the blush,” Anne protested. “Shall we eat?”
    Elaine nodded.
    She was not quite as complacent about the arrival of Bridgeport as she had claimed. Not that he had entertained the slightest affection for her. But there was one aspect of his character that she had not mentioned. He had a quick temper, especially when his consequence was threatened.
    There had been no way she could both formally break off the betrothal and escape unnoticed. She had considered sending him a note, but had not been able to do so without betraying either her plans or her direction. As a result, he would have learned of her flight from her father, an insult he would not soon forget – not that she had worried about his reaction at the time.
    She remained quiet throughout their light meal, her mind mired in the events of eight years earlier. Staynes had been such a stranger that she had felt nothing for him, good or bad. Her fears had all centered on her father. Refusing the match he had ordained was blatantly unfilial. And once she did, no one would offer for her in the future. Fury at having a despised daughter permanently on his hands would have prompted Grimfield’s harshest restrictions. And so she had fled him.
    Escape had not been as hard as she had anticipated. The other aspect of her father’s rigidity was that he would never waste time or money chasing after a sinner. All she had needed to do was escape unnoticed and leave no obvious trail for him to follow.
    Mindful of the proprieties, she’d taken her maid along. They had slipped out of the house as soon as the butler finished closing up for the night. Her aunt was not social, keeping early hours even though she lived in London. With a wedding scheduled for the next day, the household was asleep by ten.
    Elaine had been able to hire a hackney on the corner that took them to the Swan with Two Necks where, using