Page 52

I was beginning to realize how lonely I was.

Felix and Rudolph were clearly happy together, Charles and Ida were reconciling rapidly, and I had made no progress whatsoever with Arthur.

It seemed I never would, that he was incapable of loving me again, and my anxiety as I waited for any sign of what was happening outside only grew the longer I waited for them to return.

I did not truly believe that he would say yes to marrying Hattie, but I hated that I could not be sure of it.

We hadn’t been able to speak about the proposed match at all due to his avoidance of me, so I had no way of knowing how he felt about it.

Was he as anxious as I was? Was he nervous or confident, annoyed or angry?

I had no way of knowing, and that alone was driving me near mad.

I’m not sure how long they talked in the garden, only that by the time they began to return the sun had risen above the forest that surrounded the estate.

Ida had finished her tea and had rejoined me, and we were sitting on the balcony where we wouldn’t be seen by anyone in the garden below when we heard voices approaching.

Arthur was barely audible, his tone measured and gentle, but Lady Wright was speaking in a loud, harsh voice and was therefore easy to hear as they drew closer.

“I do not understand why you’re being so unreasonable,” she said.

“It is not as though you have an excess of potential wives to choose from. After your engagement with Ida was broken, the rumors that have abounded make you a most unpleasant choice of a husband. I’m offering you Hattie because I’m concerned about your reputation, Arthur. Perhaps you should be too.”

They were close enough now that we could hear Arthur reply, Ida and I essentially holding our breath as we leaned forward on the balcony.

“As I’ve said, your concern is touching but unnecessary.

I believe I’m capable of making a decision regarding my own marriage, and as upsetting as it may be for you, that decision is not one that includes Hattie.

I’m truly sorry for what happened to James, but you have another son who has offered many times for you and Hattie to stay with him. You should consider doing just that.”

Relief swept through me at hearing his denial voiced out loud, and I knew Ida was looking at me to see my reaction, but I couldn’t help the smile that crept across my face.

This was quickly undone, however, by Lady Wright’s next words.

“James told me, you know. About that lawyer you keep on retainer. He said the man was a sodomite, and that was why he left so quickly after the ball. I thought you’d cut ties, but rumors are that he’s returned to the hall.

Do you have any idea what sort of shame that would bring on your family if word were to get out? ”

There was a moment of silence before Arthur spoke again.

“No more shame than that which would befall your family if it became known that James was a blackmailer,” Arthur said, measured in his anger.

“Lady Wright, I have been patient with you because you are my aunt and because I thought, perhaps, that you were not going to sink to the same level as your son. If you release information about Thomas Whitmore, I will release everything I have regarding James, and I can promise you now that what comes out about him will far overshadow anything that would come out about me and mine. You’ve made your argument, and I have told you my answer.

If you continue to push, you will not like what I have to say. ”

Ida and I exchanged glances, and I wondered if Lady Wright was foolish enough to continue to push him.

Arthur’s tone suggested that he was reaching his limit with her, a darkness in his words that only came from a man who had been doing his best to reach a polite end to an unpleasant experience and was finding himself rebuffed.

“I have never been spoken to in this way,” she said, but there was something in her voice that said she was disturbed. “What would your mother think?”

“My mother would think it repulsive that her sister had sunk so low as to threaten blackmail upon her nephew,” he said.

“Joanna, I’ve been patient today. You’ve invaded my home without invitation, have argued with me for nearly an hour regarding something I simply do not want to do, and now you are threatening me.

I believe you’ve overstayed your welcome. ”

“You’re making me leave?”

“I am,” Arthur said without a moment’s hesitation. “I need you to go. And if I hear a word against Thomas, I will know where to go to find the source.”

There was the sound of boots on cobblestone, presumably Lady Wright storming away from the conversation, and then silence. Ida and I were about to launch into a debrief of what we’d just heard when Arthur spoke again, this time louder. “I know you all have been listening.”

Ida and I startled and glanced at the balcony door, where Charles and Rudolph had been eavesdropping, and it was clear none of them were going to speak up.

Nervous but recognizing that we had to say something, I clambered to my feet before walking over to the railing.

Looking over the edge, I found that Arthur was standing there with his head tilted back, his arms crossed over his chest. “Good morning,” I said, and I could have sworn he nearly smiled before he got himself under control and straightened his face out again.

“In our defense, it does seem like you manufactured the conversation to take place just beneath my balcony.”

“Pure coincidence,” Arthur said. “Can you come down here?”

My heart stuttered in my chest, and I gripped the railing a little more tightly. “Me?”

“Yes,” Arthur said. “Leave your co-conspirators behind and come down here. And I will not have our conversation overheard if it settles you any to hear it.”

“All right,” I said. “I’ll be down immediately.” I left the railing, darting into my room with Ida at my heels. “My coat,” I said, finding it hanging over the back of a chair and shrugging it on. “Ida, what could he want from me?”

“I have no idea,” she said, seeming just as flummoxed as I felt. “You better hurry, though. Whatever he wants, I doubt procrastinating will make it any better.”