Page 32 of The Mistress (Foxgloves #1)

GIDEON

G ideon sat at the desk in his Townhouse’s study, refusing to let thoughts of Amelia overcome him as he tried to focus on the letter from his Estate manager. One his Tenant’s needed a little extra support right now. It was a welcome distraction, though he disliked any of his Tenant’s struggling. He was just pulling out a sheet of paper to direct his Estate manager on the different provisions they should make to support the man and his family when the door to the study opened and his butler, Lewis, showed Thomas into the room.

“The Earl of Coventry,” Lewis announced before leaving the two men alone.

“Thomas,” Gideon muttered, turning back to the correspondence he still needed to compose. “Pour yourself a drink, I just need a moment.”

“Take your time,” Thomas replied, but Gideon was already absorbed in the instructions he was drafting.

Once finished, Gideon looked up to find his guest reclining on the couch, drink in hand.

“So,” Gideon stood and joined him after pouring a drink of his own. He sat opposite his friend, or at least, he hoped they were still friends. So far, their conversations had focused on clearing the rumors. He wasn’t sure if he’d still have a friend at the end of all this. “What brings you here this afternoon?”

“The pleasure of your company.”

“Bullshit,” the word came out fast and sarcastic.

Thomas made a noise somewhere between a laugh and scoff. “You are right. I came to tell you that Lydia and I are getting married.”

“I knew that,” Gideon told him.

“You did? It hasn’t been properly announced yet. We’ve only told Amelia…?” The implied question hung heavy in the air.

“I surmised it from what I saw in the park the other week,” Gideon told him, taking a drink of his liquor and avoiding answering Thomas’s question directly.

No, he hadn’t talked to Amelia. And he hated himself for it. For putting them in this situation. For how he treated her. What he tried to make her. And now for keeping them apart even as Genevieve’s words constantly replayed in his mind.

“You need to make the announcement,” Gideon ignored his thoughts and was direct with Thomas. “It seems we’ve been successful in making your guardianship clear to the ton , but once you announce and hold the wedding, I am sure the rumors will finally disappear for good, even from memory. You’ll make her your sister in truth,” he couldn’t bring himself to say her name, “and that will dispel the last of it. No one would ever think to suggest, even in private, anything dishonorable of the Earl of Coventry’s family.”

“I know,” Thomas nodded, and Gideon lifted the glass to his mouth to burn away the pain left behind from talking about Amelia. “We are planning to announce it in the coming days. I thought you did not know, however, and wanted to tell you first.”

That surprised him. Thomas was being considerate and thoughtful, as if he, too, was hoping they could maintain their friendship after all of this was over. If Gideon was understanding him – though he no longer trusted himself after all the total misunderstandings he’d arrived at these past weeks – Thomas was here cobbling their friendship back together.

Still, Gideon wouldn’t make assumptions anymore. He was just going to take this at face value and leave it at that.

“Thank you,” he said sincerely. “And I offer you both my congratulations.”

Thomas smiled. There was a slight pause, and Gideon made his own attempt at cobbling.

“Would you like to stay for dinner?” he asked.

“No,” Thomas said, and Gideon felt a twinge of disappointment, which he quickly masked. “Thank you. I must be going actually.” He finished the rest of his drink and set the glass on the table before standing. “The ladies are waiting for me. They’ve thrown themselves quite enthusiastically into wedding planning, and I am sure they have plenty to bombard me with during dinner.”

The envy surprised Gideon, and he was struck by how lonely his evening, his life, felt compared to the picture Thomas painted. He wouldn’t have the laughter and love he’d witnessed between Thomas and the Bechams. He had Genevieve, but soon, she would marry and leave him. It would just be him. Alone and miserable. Which was no more than he deserved.