A Lady's Choice Read online

  A Lady’s Choice

  Elizabeth Elliot

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  About the Author

  Call to Action

  A Lady’s Choice

  Copyright © 2018 by Elizabeth Elliot

  All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Book and Cover design by www.LiteraryRebel.com

  First Edition : November 2018

  To Aunt Maureen,

  Who Loved Hunter First

  Prologue

  Newmarket, 1810

  Hunter Westbrook rode as if the devil was chasing him. Chestnut locks flew around his face and his moss green eyes were bright with sheer exhilaration. The muscles in his thighs were strained as he urged the stallion forward, a rush of adrenaline coursing through him. There was, he thought, nothing in the world as thrilling as racing the wind atop his favorite stallion. Except, perhaps, racing against Filly Barrett.

  “You are a scoundrel!”

  Beside him Filly pushed her mare harder, trying to gain the lead. If she were any other woman Hunter would have let her win, but he had never eased up when racing Filly. He would be damned if he would start now. Her blonde hair was glowing in the sunlight and the long braid she kept it in bounced against her back. Loosening the reins on her horse, Filly’s laughter filled the air, and she pulled ahead of him. Despite his annoyance at the loss of his lead, Hunter smiled. Her love of racing rivaled his own and he could not help but enjoy her excitement. With a smirk, she looked back to him.

  “You and your horse are getting too old for racing, I think!”

  Hunter’s smile instantly turned sour and, to prove her wrong, he released his reins altogether and allowed Midnight to run as free as the stallion would dare. Their finishing line came into sight and with one glorious movement, Midnight took the lead and Hunter found himself victorious. As the two finally settled their horses, Hunter tossed a grin over to his companion.

  “Not bad for an old man, I would say.”

  Filly pouted her lips at him but he could see the amusement in her eyes.

  “Being as you are leaving me tomorrow, you could have at least let me win one race.”

  The horses needed rest and he quickly dismounted Midnight and went to assist her. She hated when he tried to help her from her mare but, as he was now blocking her from dismounting on her own, she had little choice but to accept his help. He looked up to her with a grin.

  “You would not enjoy my company nearly as much if I let you win.”

  “It is my birthday as well, you know.”

  Hunter was about to respond with his usual annoying wit, but at that moment his hands came around Filly’s waist and a jolt of awareness seemed to soar through him. He did not know how it happened, but with that one touch, he was suddenly aware that Filly was everything he needed. It was such a strange and unexpected feeling, and he lost all thought.

  Filly’s whole life revolved around her stud. When she was young, it was amusing. Having no female influence in her life, Filly grew up almost as if she were a man. Right down to the way she dressed. He had never seen her in anything other than breeches and men’s shirts. She always wore a man’s cap and most people, upon meeting her, mistook her for a stable lad.

  As he lowered her to the ground, though, he was suddenly very aware that she was a woman. Before his father had passed, he had often warned Hunter that love had many ways of revealing itself. Filly had been in his life for so long he would never have imagined she would be the woman to capture his heart. Yet here he was. Completely shocked and completely in love. With his best friend. Who was staring at him entirely perplexed.

  “Are you alright? You look a bit pale.”

  He cleared his throat but when his eyes met the startling blue of hers, he forgot how to speak again. Had her eyes always been so lovely? Wide, blue and sparkling from the exhilaration of the ride. How had he never noticed how beautiful they were? As he stared at her, concern reached them.

  “Hunter?”

  Shaking his head, Hunter desperately grasped for something to say.

  “Have you always had blue eyes?”

  Filly now looked at him like he was daft.

  “Since I was born, Hunter. What has gotten into you?”

  He blushed. He could feel it. Hunter had never blushed before. He was certain of it. Then, to make it all worse, she pressed her soft hand to his cheek and brow. He could not imagine how her hands remained so soft with all the work she did on the stud. But her touch was so gentle.

  “Do you have a fever? Maybe we should go back.”

  Hunter took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

  “I am fine. Come, the horses need rest. I think the sun has just gotten to me. We can go sit under our tree and I will be right as rain.”

  She looked at him one more time and shrugged.

  “If you are sure. I mean…I know you are getting old now. Perhaps the rides out here are getting to be too much for you.”

  A slow smile came to her lips and Hunter hastily looked away from them. The last thing he needed was to start thinking about her lips.

  “As you just stated, today is actually your birthday. You are the only one getting older here.”

  They began to settle in the grass beneath an old oak tree. The routine had become so comfortable. The race. The heartfelt talks under their favorite tree. The way they always made fun of each other. For the first time Hunter realized that this was the future he wanted forever. They had already started such a wonderful life together and neither had been aware of it. Until today. Hunter inwardly groaned. The desire to lean over and kiss her was almost impossible to resist. He longed to do so.

  But this was Filly. A woman who had no interest in marriage. She had no interest in doing anything that was typical of a woman, for that matter. Hunter knew that he could not just profess his love for her. The time was not yet right. Patience, he thought. That is what he really needed. There were still some obstacles he would have to sort through before he could truly think about pursuing her.

  Filly twirled a piece of grass through her fingers and sighed.

  “I cannot possible see what London can hold that is beautiful as this field.”

  Hunter’s eyes did not leave her.

  “Although London does not have anything as beautiful as what is in my vision right now, it does hold my family. With my sister Aria coming out this season, it is important that I be there. This will be the first season we return to London since our parents passed on.”

  Filly met his gaze and smiled warmly.

  “Yes, of course.
I know you need to go, I just dislike when you are not here.”

  Hunter wished that she missed him because she loved him. He knew she did not. There were simply not many people who understood Filly in Newmarket. She was far too unusual for most to befriend. Reaching out to her, he took her hand in his and squeezed it.

  “I will miss you every moment I am gone.”

  Filly looked to him for a moment and then burst out laughing.

  “Good Lord. False flattery may get you far in London but you cannot possibly believe I would entertain such nonsense. I really think the sun must be getting to you. Are you sure you are not getting ill?”

  Hunter sighed and realized the first thing he needed was to make sure it was his brother who found himself a wife this season. Right now, there was a good chance Storm would remain a bachelor and Hunter would be the one to inherit the dukedom. Filly may be unusual here, but at least she was accepted. She could never have a life in London. Hunter knew he could not attempt to seek a future with her until his brother got married. Then he would sire an heir to pass the title to and Hunter would never have to worry about the title getting passed on to him. Releasing her hand, he lay back, defeated, hands behind his head.

  “At least while I am gone you can practice your riding skills in hopes that you will win a race when I return.”

  This earned him a lovely scowl and Hunter inwardly groaned. How on earth was a scowl lovely? If his brother did not get married soon, Hunter was sure he would go mad by the time he did. There was, he knew, only so much patience a man in love could have.

  Chapter 1

  London, 1812

  Hunter awaited the carriage with both anxiousness and annoyance. He had always been a patient man but today his patience was gone. Hunter found that he had been exceedingly patient the first year he left Filly. Very patient the second year. This season, though, the third to be spent in London without seeing her, he was restless. Hunter wanted to be married. More so than any woman in the ton at the moment. Well, perhaps not every woman. But most. And surely, he was more so than any gentleman ever was.

  “You are going to walk a hole right through that carpet if you keep pacing. What has gotten into you lately?”

  Hunter turned to face his eldest sister and could not help but smile. Bonnet did not like when things were out of sorts. Something, he imagined, he embodied at the moment.

  “I am just eager to get back to Newmarket, is all.”

  His sister raised a brow at him.

  “Have we really been so intolerable?”

  Hunter grinned at her and joked.

  “Always.”

  She glared at him but he knew Bonnet could tell he was only teasing her. The fact was, this had been one of the more enjoyable seasons so far. Of course, the fact that he was able to watch his brother fall madly in love and get married did help to lighten his mood. If Storm had not found a wife this season Hunter suspected he may have considered throwing a few punches at him.

  “Are you really going to leave the moment they arrive?”

  “Yes.”

  Hunter stopped pacing long enough to enjoy one of the sandwiches his sister had called for. Patience or not, there was always time for a sandwich.

  “You have stayed the whole season the last two years, Hunter. I just do not see why you have to hurry off. Besides, you know even when they return Storm’s mind will not be focused on finding proper suitors for his sisters.”

  Hunter laughed.

  “I would hope not. You forget, dear sister, our purpose in life is to ward off all the improper ones, and with sisters as darling as ours, that includes all gentlemen.”

  Bonnet threw her hands in the air.

  “You are all impossible.”

  “But you adore us all anyway.”

  He had debated telling Bonnet the real reason he wanted to be on his way. To tell her that he had been waiting three years to profess his love to Filly and now he was finally free to do so. Telling Bonnet, however, would only start an hour-long inquiry, and with any luck, in that time he would already be on his way home.

  It was a rather odd notion for him. Until he was two and twenty London had always been home. Then, once his parents had gone, Hunter had taken over the stud and Newmarket took hold of his heart. Despite his impressive ability to be a proper and charming gentleman in the ballrooms of London, Hunter was a part of Newmarket. He was just as much a part of the country life as life in the country was part of him. So, instead of fighting the feeling, Hunter embraced life at the stud with all of his soul and had not regretted it since.

  “Well, it is true that I adore you, but I hate when you leave us.”

  “I would think that having one less of us around would actually benefit your quest to marry off our sisters.”

  Bonnet sighed.

  “Aria and Peaches will still need their brothers to watch over them. I want them married, but I do not always mind when you scowl at some of the gentlemen fawning all over them.”

  “Which is why I stayed while Storm was on his wedding trip. You still have Blade and Coach as well.”

  His sister actually snorted.

  “Aria has Blade wrapped around her finger, and all Peaches has to do is smile sweetly at Coach and she can get away with almost anything. You are the only one to be trusted these days.”

  Hunter took his sister’s hand and wished he could stay for her sake. He was just far too excited about his own future at the moment to stay.

  “You know I love you all, Bonnet, but I do miss my life back in Newmarket. I have never enjoyed London as much as I should. It is just nice to be able to go home a bit early this season. Eleanor will make sure Storm watches over our sisters.”

  His sister looked to him a bit sadly. Although none of his siblings enjoyed when he left them, Bonnet disliked it most of all. A wave of guilt washed over him when he saw the sadness in her eyes.

  “When you talk of being home it is always Newmarket you speak of. Shall you never think of your family as home again?”

  Now that was enough to almost break his heart. Crossing to her, he placed a kiss on her cheek.

  “Bonnet, you know I love my family, I am just…not comfortable in London anymore. I feel so constricted here. In Newmarket I can just be free from all the ridiculous social expectations.”

  Bonnet nodded.

  “I know. I just miss you when you are gone and now you are leaving even earlier than normal. Everything is changing. I have never enjoyed change.”

  Hunter took pity on his sister.

  “If you promise not to announce it to the rest of the family and question me about if for hours, I will tell you the real reason I am leaving so quickly.”

  Bonnet’s eyes grew wide and she perched herself on the edge of the chaise.

  “I promise.”

  She would not keep the promise, but Hunter thought perhaps the time may pass quicker if she was firing questions about him.

  “There is a woman back home that I am anxious to return to.”

  “A woman?”

  “Yes. I have not spoken much about her because I was waiting to make sure that Storm married before I told her of my feelings. She would not suit London, and I would not force it upon her. Now that he is so blissfully matched I plan to finally convince her to be mine.”

  Bonnet smiled at him, although he could see her collecting her thoughts. Soon the questions about Filly would start. He would answer as many as she could ask before Storm’s carriage arrived. The moment it did, he would be leaving London and returning home. Finally, his sister leaned forward.

  “I want to know everything!”

  Hunter took another sandwich and collapsed into a chair. This was why he had not mentioned it before. Bonnet was never short on questions. All he could do now was pray that Storm returned soon and he could escape.

  Filly Barrett found an escape from her life at Hunter’s stud. He had left Midnight home so that he could get some well-deserved rest and Filly stroked the stallion
wondering how much longer Hunter would be gone. A month perhaps? Two maybe? Sooner, once she wrote to him. She should have already written, in all honesty. The horse neighed at her as if to signal that he missed his master as well.

  “Oh Midnight, I cannot believe my father could be so cruel.”

  With a sigh, Filly slipped an apple from her pocket and offered it to the lovely horse. He accepted it quickly and she could not help but smile again.

  “Do you think Hunter would mind if I took you for a ride?”

  The horse looked to her blankly but Filly could not deny herself the chance. Hunter rarely let anyone ride his prize stallion but Filly thought he would forgive her under the circumstances. She deserved what little happiness she could manage right now.

  As she started to saddle the horse, Filly was trapped in her own thoughts. Thoughts that she desperately needed to be distracted from. She wished her friend were home. He would offer her some solace from the events that had transpired over the last few weeks. Hunter always seemed to know just the right thing to say to make her feel better. She suspected, however, that even he could not ease the ache in her heart right now.

  “So…is this what happens when I am gone? You try to steal my best horse?”

  Filly turned toward the voice and a wave of relief washed over her. She could barely believe her eyes.

  “Hunter, Oh Hunter, is that really you?”

  Rolling her eyes, she shook her head and ran forward.

  “That was a stupid question, of course it is you.”

  Then, very much out of character, Filly threw her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. They had been friends for as long as she could remember, but she was not a woman prone to throwing herself into his arms. He had caught her instantly in his own and lifted her in the air. Filly felt a warmth spread through her as he put her down.