Unlocking the Secrets of a Duke's Heart Bonus Scene

On their arrival in the New World, Amelia began to understand what it must have been like for Jacob to come to England.

Everything was different, from the clothes to the food to the ways in which people spoke. But she loved it.

"Oh, you're here! You're here!" Mrs Foster exclaimed.

"Mother!" Edwin said, running and throwing his arms around her.

"My son," his father said, and Edwin hugged him in turn.

Amelia hugged them both, as best she could with Jacob in her arms, and Mr and Mrs Foster ushered them all inside.

"Come, you must take a seat, all of you. Now, we want to know everything about our beautiful daughter-in-law, and all about this crazy uncle of yours!" Mr Foster said to Edwin.

"Oh, it is a long tale. A very long tale," Edwin said.

"We never wanted to lie to you," his mother said.

"I know, Mother. You took good care of me. You loved me as a son. I can hardly complain about anything now," Edwin said.

"Well, what about you, Amelia? Can we call you that? You have some kind of fancy title, don't you?" Mr Foster asked, his tone extraordinarily casual.

Amelia laughed, loving the way her in-laws spoke.

"You may call me whatever you wish, Mr Foster," she said.

"May I hold the baby?" Mrs Foster asked, before the conversation continued.

Amelia handed Jacob to her, and then began to tell them about her life, divulging anything and everything they wanted to know. It was a wonderful opportunity to get to know the people who had raised her husband and made him into the wonderful man that he had become.

As they spent time with Mr and Mrs Foster, Amelia wondered if Edwin would be willing to return to England, or if he was going to decide that he wanted to come back to America. The thought had not crossed her mind before they had come.

One evening, she decided to ask him outright what it was that he wanted.

"Do you miss it here?" she asked.

"I don't know. I guess. Sometimes," he said, his accent returning strongly.

"Enough so that you would want to move back?" Amelia asked.

"I don't think so. I mean, it is nice here, and I love my folks, but England is ... it is where I belong," he said.

"Do you really feel that way?" Amelia asked.

"I didn't before. Not until just a few months before Jacob was born. But I remember, one day, I was sitting outside and took a deep breath, and I realised that there really is something about the air of England," he said.

"The air? Like what?" Amelia asked, not understanding.

"Maybe it is because I was born there, and it is a part of me, I don't know. But when I took in that lungful of air, it just felt like home. Of course, you and Jacob are my home, wherever we might be. But I realised that day that, when it comes to where I feel I belong, it has nothing to do with the grand house and it has nothing to do with this being where I spent most of my life," Edwin said.

"So, it's all about the air?" Amelia asked, still trying to wrap her own thoughts around it.

"It may not make a lot of sense, but if you had been in my position, if you were torn between where you belong and where you were raised, you would understand," he said.

Amelia nodded and leaned against Edwin's chest, listening to his heartbeat. For her, this was home. Not a breath, not a country, just the rhythm of Edwin's heart.

"Should we tell your mother and father at dinner tomorrow?" Amelia suddenly remembered to ask him, regarding a whole separate matter.

"Yes, I think it is time," Edwin replied.

The next evening at dinner, Mrs Foster was holding Jacob so that Edwin and Amelia could eat freely. She was bouncing him on her knee, and Jacob released the sweetest laugh with the movement.

"He is just the most charming little fellow I have ever seen," Mrs Foster said.

"He certainly has taken to you," Amelia replied.

"Well, I wish we could keep you all here. If we had good money, we could even build you a place on our land," she said.

Amelia and Edwin looked at one another, and Amelia nodded to her husband.

"Mother, Father, we have something we would like to talk to you both about," Edwin said.

"Oh? What is it?" his father asked.

"We will be returning to England in two short weeks. But we wanted to tell you about something that we intend to leave behind," Edwin said.

"What are you leaving?" his mother asked.

"Amelia's family has a trade business. It has been very successful. But her brother was the only one left to run it, and he is still recovering from being so ill. He said that he did not want to return to that work anyway, once he is better. It is too much stress for him, with all that he has been through," Edwin said.

"That is very sad. It must have been so difficult for him," Mrs Foster said.

"It was. And he realised that he had no choice but to sell the business in the end. It did not make sense for him to hold onto it if he could not run it," Edwin continued.

"That was probably a wise decision. He can do whatever he wants now when he is feeling better, can't he? Is that not one of the benefits of titles and all that over there?" Mr Foster asked.

Amelia tried to hide her amusement at his words. She had come to realise that the two countries were far too different to reconcile these minute details.

"Something like that," Edwin replied with grace.

"What does any of this have to do with us?" his father asked.

"Well, in the end, it sold for a good deal of money and Jacob—Amelia's brother—gave her a third of the profits. He kept a third and gave a third to their grandmother," Edwin explained.

He looked at Amelia, urging her with his eyes to finish explaining their decision.

"So, because we do not need the money, we decided there was nothing better that we could do with it than to give it to the two of you," Amelia said.

Mrs. Foster looked at her with wide, surprised eyes.

"What?" she asked.

Mr. Foster's jaw had dropped open, but he said nothing at first.

"Is that agreeable?" Amelia asked.

"What do you mean? Why would you give us anything?" Mr. Foster asked.

"Why would we not? You raised Edwin with love. You took care of him; you are the reason that I have such a splendid husband," Amelia said.

"Well, he was always a good boy. I do not think we can take any special credit for that," Mrs. Foster said.

"Of course you can. It is because of you that he is the man he is," she retorted.

Mr and Mrs Foster continued to look completely in shock, and Amelia was prouder than ever of their decision, realising that it was going to make a drastic impact on the lives of Edwin's parents.

Later, when Amelia and Edwin retired to their room, she put Jacob down in his little crib. He slept peacefully, and she was so thankful to have a child who never struggled to sleep, unlike the children of some of her friends.

"How are you feeling?" Amelia asked Edwin, whispering so as not to wake their son.

"I am good. Why?" he asked.

"I just can't imagine how hard it is going to be to leave your mother and father again. You have had to be so brave and so strong already. But now? Saying goodbye this time?" she said, still wondering if he was trying to put on a happy face, or if he was genuinely coping.

"I know it is going to be hard. I might never see them again, for all I know," he said. "But I can handle it, Amelia. I want to get back home with you and Jacob. I want us all to be in our own estate."

"You don't like this house anymore?" Amelia asked, referring to the home that Edwin had grown up in.

"I love it. But it's not home, remember?" he asked.

"Right, of course," Amelia said.

"You are my home, Amelia. You and Jacob. Nothing is ever going to change that."

Edwin leaned forward and kissed Amelia with passion, gentleness, and the promise of the days to come.

The Next Book is Available on Our Website and on Amazon!

Read the Next Book Now!

Click on the Image or Scan the QR Code