Victoria buried her face in Stephen’s neck and wailed. Although Anna offered to take the baby, Stephen refused to hand her over just yet. He soothed the infant, rubbing her back.

Stephen accompanied the children to their rooms, hoping that Royce would brighten with all the toys. Instead, the boy clenched one of his toy soldiers. “I want you to stay,” he pleaded with Stephen.

“I shall. But as soon as your aunt arrives, I must return to London. It will only be for a short while.”

Victoria rubbed her eyes, whining to go to sleep, and Stephen exchanged glances with Anna. The nurse nodded in silent understanding.

The baby unleashed a furious howl when Stephen handed her over to Anna, crying out, “Da, da, da!” Though he was not her father, he’d wanted nothing more than to turn around and sweep the infant into his arms. Leaving her behind would be even more difficult than he’d thought.

But it was only temporary. As soon as he spoke with his solicitor, he would try to coax Nigel into giving back custody of the children. He leaned down and touched the boy’s shoulder. “It’s late, Royce. Best get to bed.”

The boy glowered at Nigel before he took Anna’s hand and let her take him into the bedroom.

“It will take time for them to know me,” Nigel said sadly. From the look of longing on his face, no doubt he’d been disappointed by the children’s reaction.

“Indeed.” As Stephen followed a servant to his own room, he tried to dismiss the uneasiness creeping over him. This was for the best, he knew. Though he’d have preferred to bring Emily and the children together, she’d made her feelings quite clear. Only in this manner could he ensure that she made the journey.

Stephen grimaced, wishing he’d thought to take the rest of his wardrobe with him. He didn’t like to imagine the state of his shirts at the moment, given what Emily had done to his boots.

Chapter Seventeen

Emily’s body was numb, cold with fear as the coach pulled up to Nigel Barrow’s residence. The estate sprawled across acres of green fields, a stone manor with turrets similar to a castle.

Her husband had known she would come after him. In fact, he’d had a coach waiting, along with her packed belongings and the two footmen. Though she had tried to catch up to them, her coach had been mired in the muddy roads, and they’d lost several hours on the journey.

Then, too, she’d had to spend the night at an inn along the way. Even with her escorts, she’d hardly slept at all, worrying about someone following her.