The Possessive Lord's Contract Wife

By night, Clive returned to Thomas’s home in search of Eloise. His visit to the court had been somewhat successful, and after hours of standing outside the Hawthorne gates, but not seeing Eloise, he concluded that Eloise was not staying with Damien.

Clive went around to the neighbours, and each one claimed to have never seen Eloise as of late, until he offered money. Then the story changed, and fortunately, a carriage which looked to belong to someone important stopped before Millie’s home just as he arrived.

Clive marched up to the front door and pounded his hand against it to wake Millie and Eloise. He should have suspected Millie was up to no good from the start. Millie never knew how to stay out of others’ family business.

"Who is trying to break my door?" Millie’s voice was heard on the other end.

Clive took a step back and mentally prepared himself to face Millie.

"Who- You," Millie glared at Clive. "Have you no manners? Who knocks on a person’s door as if they want to break it?"

"I have come for my niece. I know you have her, and if you do not present her, I will send for the town guards. I have already gone to the court, so you will find yourself in hot water if you make this difficult," Clive said.

Millie placed her hands on her hips. Since learning what Clive did, she didn’t want anything to do with him.

"Listen here, you little fellow-"

"Millie?" Eloise’s voice came from inside the house.

Clive tiptoed to look over Millie. "Eloise! I have come for you. It is time to go home."

Eloise stepped outside to find a fuming Millie and a happy Clive.

"I will be fine, Millie. If you do not mind, I would like some of the bread you made to take home with me," Eloise requested, trying to separate the two.

"Fine," Milie said, reluctantly leaving so the two could talk. She planned to send Damien since Eloise couldn’t be left alone with Clive.

"I am not going home with you. I am no longer in your care, and since we both know what you did to my father, I should stay away from you. If you have any humanity left inside you, you would confess to the court about what you did," said Eloise.

Clive pulled on his coat, letting out his frustrations there. "I did not kill my brother. He is my little brother."

"That is why you shouldn’t have done it. You shouldn’t have been so cruel to kill your little brother who loved you-"

Clive grabbed Eloise’s shoulder, startling her and yelled, "I didn’t kill him!"

Eloise frantically tried to remove Clive’s hold on her. His touch was no longer the same.

Clive wanted to shake some sense into Eloise, but movement behind her caught his eye, and the sight of Damien coming towards him struck fear into his body.

Clive released Eloise, but it didn’t stop Damien from coming to the door to reach for Clive’s wrinkled shirt to pull him close. "Don’t you dare touch her," he said.

Eloise tried to wipe off where Clive touched her. All that filled her mind was that those very hands had killed her father.

Eloise’s uneven breathing was loud for a moment, which placed Clive in a bad predicament with Damien

Clive felt his feet start to dangle off the ground, and his shirt was tugging against his neck due to the way Damien held it. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"I won’t, I won’t," Clive repeated in a panic. "I have come here to talk."

Damien released Clive with a shove and turned his attention to Eloise. "Are you well?" He asked, inspecting her appearance.

If there was one hair out of place or any bruises, then Clive would be buried before his brother.

"I am well. Just startled," Eloise softly replied. She took a deep breath to calm herself, then looked at Clive. "I am no longer under your care. I am a married woman now," she said, revealing the ring.

Clive stared at the ring, but did not believe that Damien and Eloise acted so fast to get married. "This isn’t allowed. You were to seek my permission first. How am I to know that you two are truly married? Rings mean nothing."

"Then go to the court. They should have recorded our marriage by now. She is now my wife, so I would be well within my rights to hurt you if you trouble her. Run along, Clive," Damien said, though he wished to hurt the little man.

"N-No. It cannot be. When you came this morning, you were not yet married. Eloise, you must be sensible. This is the man Iris wanted to marry. She is very heartbroken by your actions. Surely, you wouldn’t have married Lord Hawthorne to further hurt her," said Clive.

Eloise could hate Clive, but Clive knew she could never hate Iris.

"I wish you would all stop acting as though I belonged to your daughter. I don’t recall ever having a conversation with your daughter for her to have fallen in love and claimed me. You are helping to hurt your daughter by not being honest with her," said Damien.

"That might be so, but one does not go after the man your cousin loved dearly. Eloise, there is still a chance for you to rekindle your relationship with Iris, but you must come with me now," Clive said, offering his hand for Eloise to take. "Come home."

"I had a home, and you killed my father for it," Eloise said, refusing to let Clive forget what he did. "I am married. You have no grounds to force me back to your home. Besides, your wife requested that I leave, so I left. I did not run off."

"Agatha has changed her mind-"

"Do you think it is fair for her to be asked to leave and then expected to calmly return when you change your minds? If you wish to make it home to your family, I suggest you get out of my way. Gage," Damien called to his guard. "Remove Mr Wilkins if he does not move before we are ready to leave."

"Yes, Lord Hawthorne."

Clive turned around to see who Damien spoke to. He gulped after seeing two men standing by the carriage.

"I suppose I will speak to the court and come again. Eloise, I hope you know what you are doing. Iris does not deserve this," Clive said, hoping the guilt would reach Eloise.

"You wish to make me feel guilty? Uncle, that is what you should feel. Before you speak to me, I suggest you confess to your sins. I will make sure that you do not know peace. When this all comes to an end, know that you are the one who will have hurt Iris the most," said Eloise.