A Scandalous Affair (Completed)

Chapter 15. 1856 

Nicholas's eyes went wide. "He does."
They watched as the Young gentleman suddenly scrambled to his feet, quickly wiping at his eyes before any tears could fall. They watched him leave the dining room, noticing that he didn't go into the ballroom with the other guests. They had no idea who that gentleman was, but it was quite clear he resembled Amelia.
Nicolas. "Shall we go into the ballroom?"
Amelia. "Yes, I believe we should."
They walked into the ballroom, knowing that they needed to stay in the present moment and be with their guests. But both of their thoughts remained focused on the young blonde gentleman who had Amelia's resemblance perfectly. They had no idea who he was, but they would eventually find out.
***
He ran through the empty hallway, his mind swimming and his eyes flowing with tears.  He had seen her, his own sister. He moved quickly into an empty bedroom, closing the door behind him and leaning against it. His heart was pounding in his chest and his body was shaking. Sinking to the floor, he buried his face into his hands and started to cry. She was beautiful, just as beautiful as the day he had been taken from her.
At the age of 23, William Gregory Morgan felt betrayed. Not only had he been wrongly removed from his home with his mother father and younger sister when he had been three years old, but that action had been done by his older half brother. Why? Because Robert was jealous of him. Jealous of the fact that their father had paid more attention to him. Jealous of the fact that William could have easily become the next Viscount Morgan.
William started shaking again, this time with anger. The memory of Robert coming into his bedroom on a cold and stormy night towards the beginning of October and throwing him out of the house without so much as a goodbye, and then telling his parents and younger sister that he had died, flowed through his mind. It was excruciating, knowing that he had been thrown out of his own home by Robert simply out of jealousy. Of course, for the last 20 years, he had been raised by a very well to do family and had received nothing but love. He had the education of a gentleman, having attended Oxford University. But he always knew there was something missing in his life.
And now, having seen Amelia, his beautiful sister who he shared both a mother and a father with, had William feeling a sense of hope. She was breathtaking, and appeared to be about 19 years old. He had left her when she had been a year old. She probably didn't remember him, he thought. But he was going to make sure that she knew exactly who he was.
Regaining some composure, William stood up from his position on the floor and walked towards the large glass window of the bedroom, sinking down onto the chaise. Taking out a folded piece of paper from the pocket of his black trousers, he unfolded and read what was written. He couldn't wrap his head around the fact that Robert was his half brother. He was older than him by a year, but he was a bastard. He didn't deserve the title of Viscount Morgan. His eyes traveled across the words that were written on the piece of paper in his hands.
Robert Oliver Morgan, born February 1834
Lord  William Gregory Morgan, born July 1835
Amelia Elizabeth Morgan, born May 1839
William smiled to himself, noticing that his father's penmanship had written the word "Lord" in front of his name and not in front of Robert's name. His heart started swelling with pride. One thing was certainly clear, Robert wasn't viscount Morgan. And he was going to prove that, one way or another.
Folding up the piece of paper and placing it back into his pocket, William stood up, fixed himself, and made his way out of the bedroom and back into the ballroom. He wasn't going to be a coward, because he wasn't a coward. He was a true gentleman. He was going to make it a point, if not that night then someday, to make sure that Amelia knew she had a brother who loved and adored her. And he was going to make sure that the title Robert held was removed from him permanently.
As his eyes wandered through the ballroom, William noticed Amelia dancing with the Duke of Richmond. His heart squeezed with pride as he saw that his sister was wearing a lovely blue diamond on her left ring finger. So it was true, she was engaged. And to Nicholas Stratford, the most honorable gentleman he knew. Thank goodness she was no longer married to George Tristan. The nerve of Robert, he thought. How could his half brother be so stupid? He knew of Robert and his gambling debt, but didn't realize the extent of what went on behind closed doors. However, everything was going to come to the surface soon enough.