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“Darling, I know you,” Georgiana pressed, her voice gentle but insistent. “You have always wanted a wedding to remember—a grand affair in front of everyone who loves you. Not… this.” Her eyes swept the grove, making no attempt to hide her disdain for the hasty setup. “Do you not want Mama and Papa there to wish you well? Do you not want to walk down the aisle with flowers strewn in your path, and all your beloved guests cheering for you?”

Daisy looked down, her hands trembling as Georgiana’s words began to take hold. “I… I had not thought of it that way.”

Newston’s grip on her arm tightened just slightly, his expression shifting to something darker.

“Daisy,” he said, “we have already discussed this. A grand affair was never an option, was it? You knew this was the only way.”

But Georgiana was not finished. Her eyes narrowed as she met Newston’s gaze.

“If you care for her as you claim, you will respect her wishes. What sort of husband forces his bride into a secret, rushed ceremony? If you genuinely love her, then let her have the happiness she deserves.” She turned to Daisy, her eyes imploring. “Are you ashamed of your choice, Daisy?”

Daisy’s gaze shifted briefly to Newston, and for the first time, she looked uncertain.

“N-No, of course not,” she replied, though there was a tremor in her voice.

“No?” Georgiana echoed in an effort to show Daisy how doubtful she sounded.

The young lady glanced at her sister as if drawing strength from her resolve. “Perhaps Georgiana is right. Maybe… maybe we should wait.”

Newston’s smile evaporated and a flash of cold anger filled his eyes as he turned to Georgiana. In a silky, menacing tone, hesaid, “Forgive me, my lady, if I say that you seem overly invested in matters that are not yours to meddle in.”

Georgiana returned his glare with a steely calm. “Daisy is my sister. I will always be invested.”

A brief silence hung between the two of them, until Daisy slowly slipped her arm out of Newston’s grasp and walked towards Georgiana.

Georgiana wrapped her arm protectively around her sister, leading her back toward the waiting carriage.

“Daisy, what in the name of—” Newston breathed out as the smoothness in his voice dissipated.

Robert stepped forward, stopping him with a raised hand and a faintly mocking smile.

“Lord Newston, I am curious—what exactly were you thinking?” he asked, his tone deceptively light. “Running off to Gretna Green? It all feels a bit desperate.”

Newston’s eyes flashed with indignation, but he quickly masked it, straightening himself.

“I need a bride, and she was agreeable,” he said flatly, crossing his arms as he watched the sisters depart.

“You mean… malleable,” Robert observed, a dangerous glint forming in his eyes.

Newston shrugged, affecting a bored nonchalance. “Let us call it what it is—a partnership, a matter of practicality.”

Robert tilted his head, his gaze sharpening as he studied Newston’s face. “Funny, though. Her family is hardly wealthy. I imagine that might be an inconvenience for you.”

For the briefest of moments, Newston’s face darkened, his eyes darting away, betraying a flash of irritation he had not managed to conceal.

“You are mistaken,” Newston muttered, but his gaze remained on the ground, his tone slipping and his charm faltering. “Excuse me.”

With an abrupt turn, he walked off.

As Robert reached the edge of the grove he saw Daisy leaning out of the carriage’s window.

“Thomas?” she called out gently.

Newston did not bother to spare her a glance as he hastily drove away.

Robert had an uneasy sense that the man was not merely foolish and that something darker lay beneath his overly polished exterior. He would have to keep an eye on him.

Especially now that he had shown his true colors.