Page 40 of To Tempt Lady (Victorian Outcasts #10)

thirty-seven

Marcus spent the afternoon working on the broken typewriter in his bedroom. Again. Only that time, the work required more attention because one of the bars had snapped. He would need to solder it with tin and lead, being careful not to join other bars together.

Emma was busy organising the charity event, shut in a room with several matrons and ladies, while Jesse sat on the floor, playing with his train set next to him.

“Button makes a funny noise when I scratch his neck,” Jesse said. “And he loves apples, but only if you slice them for him, and I don’t mind doing it. He tickles my palm when I feed him.”

“I’m happy you like him so much.” He frowned at the typewriter.

The broken key was stuck in the machine harder than he thought. There was no easy fix for the damage. He would need to pull the machine apart, but putting it back together didn’t guarantee it would work as it did before. Sometimes fixing a damage required causing a bigger one.

“George told me that if I keep growing tall at this rate, I’ll need a new horse.” Jesse stopped playing. “I don’t want to leave Button.”

“If he’s your friend, you won’t.” He slid a pair of pincers to seize a metal fragment.

There was a quick knock on the door before Trevor entered; he looked pale and tense, but his expression softened when he smiled at Jesse.

“My lord.” Jesse shot up. “Thank you again for Button. He’s the best person I’ve ever met. After Marcus, Lady Emma, and you, of course.”

Trevor’s eyes widened, and his chest rose. “Why, I understand your sentiment. We should have a morning ride together.”

Jesse beamed. “Yes, my lord.”

Trevor returned serious as he angled towards Marcus. “Marcus, I need a word. My study.”

“Of course.” Tension charged the air when Marcus entered Trevor’s study. “What is it?”

“Close the door.”

He did as told and sat in front of Trevor’s desk.

“I met Carr to receive news on the charges against Sir Horace.” Trevor exhaled, rubbing his forehead. “There are allegations about you that discredit your credibility in regard to the evidence you collected against Sir Horace, and they have nothing to do with the fact he ruined your father.”

He shifted on the chair, already having a hint. “What are these allegations exactly?”

“They’re about you having solicited yourself for years for money.” Trevor huffed. “I’m sure this is all poppycock, but if the allegations start to become stronger, our credibility will grow weaker.”

Marcus reclined his head. “Is it known with whom I’m supposed to have solicited myself?”

“No, but it doesn’t matter because I’m sure you can prove the allegations false.” Trevor raised an eyebrow, waiting for a reassurance that would never arrive.

“I can’t,” he whispered. “They’re true.”

“Not again.” Trevor swallowed a couple of times. “What the bloody hell were you thinking?”

He clenched his fists. “Desperation and hunger aren’t the best advisers during difficult times. I did it for the same reasons as everyone desperate enough to work in a disorderly house did.”

“You’re missing the point. The women you were with won’t hesitate to blame you if their names should come out. They’ll say that you interfered with them,” Trevor half-hissed, half-whispered. “You might face more than society’s scorn.”

“I didn’t force anyone. If anything, sometimes it was the other way around.”

Trevor closed a fist in front of him as if he wanted to grasp something. “I don’t want to discuss your personal choices. My only concern is, actually, my two main concerns are Emma and our case against Sir Horace.”

“Yes.”

“I believe you’ll agree that not talking to Emma is unavoidable,” Trevor said.

“I won’t do it. This is something you should take care of as soon as possible.

On the other hand, how can we go around this obstacle?

Is there anything you can say that will convince the barrister to take the case seriously? ”

“What happens if I simply deny the allegations?”

Trevor grimaced. “I’m afraid it won’t work. We both know Sir Horace is behind the sudden surge of these allegations. The battle will turn ugly, especially for you.”

“I can make a statement and explain the circumstances of my past while reinforcing the importance of the evidence presented against Sir Horace. Besides, what does my past have to do with hard evidence?”

“It’s a matter of credibility.” A ring of tension showed around Trevor’s mouth.

“Your situation is already compromised by the history between you and Sir Horace. You might have attacked him out of spite. That’s a reasonable doubt we’ve taken into account, and which I’m fairly sure we can argue against because we have evidence.

But add to that your past, and our work is demolished. ”

Marcus didn’t say anything. He’d always thought the ladies who had been his clients would never expose him for fear of exposing themselves. Sir Horace starting the rumours had never been an option he’d contemplated, but he must have learnt the truth from one of the ladies.

“Talk to Emma, please.” Trevor’s tone was glacial.

“She already knows,” he said. “And she doesn’t care.”

“She already knows?” Trevor’s voice rose. “So I’m the last one to know? Wonderful.” He thumped the desk and stood up. “You could have bloody told me before embarking on this operation.”

“I didn’t think it mattered.”

The hard stare Trevor shot him made him feel rather stupid. “No need for secrecy then.” He pulled the rope, and Stewart opened the door. “Tell Emma I need her here.”

The butler bowed his head. “Lady Emma is entertaining her friends in the drawing room for the charity event.”

“It won’t take long. It’s an urgent matter.”

Stewart pressed lips before leaving.

A few awkward minutes passed with Trevor standing next to the window, as rigid as a statue. It would be better if he paced or yelled.

Emma entered the room, frowning. “What is it? I have only a few minutes. It was difficult to convince those ladies to come in the first place with all the rumours about me. We have almost finished with the preliminaries of the organisation.”

Trevor clasped his hands behind his back. “Sir Horace is using Marcus’s past as a paid rake to discredit his allegations, and it seems you already knew about Marcus’s past but didn’t think it was right to inform me.”

She remained straight, her chin up. “Because I didn’t think it was important.”

Trevor shifted his index finger from her to Marcus. “You two are perfect for each other. You both live in your own world where actions have no consequences. I think it was an important detail to be aware of before we involved our solicitor in a situation where credibility is everything!”

Marcus had to agree with that. “You’re right, but it’s done. I can leave today if that will make things better.”

“No.” Emma closed her fists on her lap. “I disagree.”

Trevor sat down again, dropping on the chair hard enough to make it rock. “This disaster was completely avoidable if you had talked to me, but yes, I expect Marcus to leave my house at this point.”

“No,” Emma said as Marcus said, “I will.”

“It won’t change anything,” she said, “and if we send him away, that will only prove to everyone we believe the allegations are true. And I don’t care about his past. I want to be with him forever, and I don’t care what you think, either.

You can keep your scruples and morals to yourself.

They’ll keep you company when you are here alone. ”

“Emma,” Marcus whispered.

“I won’t stay quiet.” She flushed. “The only thing he cares about is his reputation. He’s the earl, and I understand he has to think about the family’s name, but I want to marry you, and he won’t stop me. I will not consider him my brother anymore if he forbids me to follow my heart.”

Trevor’s nostrils flared. “That’s a passionate speech, if I’ve ever heard one.”

“Exactly. Passion is what you deny yourself.” Emma leant closer. “I’m not surprised Ophelia left you.” She gasped and put a hand on her chest. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say that. It slipped.”

Marcus could sense the change in the air; it turned colder and heavier.

Trevor pressed his lips together. Then his words exploded out of his mouth in a rush as if they’d waited a long time to be spoken. “Ophelia didn’t leave me. I left her when she confessed to having worked in a disorderly house for a short time.”

Emma drew in a breath, and Marcus’s jaw dropped open.

Trevor’s expression didn’t change. It remained hard and cold. “Shocking, isn’t it? After she told me, I broke the engagement and told her I didn’t want to see her again. She left London. So you see now why not knowing about Marcus’s past is problematic for me.”

Emma shook her head. “How could you? She loved you.”

“Let me finish.” Trevor clenched his jaw. “Not a day passes without me regretting my actions. That’s why I didn’t court anyone else. I miss her every day.”

“I’m sorry for your pain, but you should understand what I feel because of it.” Her voice became shaky and thin.

“I think he does.” Marcus touched her arm. “I think he won’t oppose us being together. Am I right, Trevor?”

“I’m still debating.” Trevor swallowed a couple of times.

“By giving you my blessing, I would partially atone for what I did to Ophelia. But either if I will or not interfere with your life, that doesn’t mean the allegations aren’t going to be a serious problem or that Emma’s reputation won’t be ruined.

I regret how quickly and harshly I dismissed Ophelia.

I don’t want to make the same mistake again with my sister. ”

“Why don’t you send Ophelia a letter and ask her to see you?” Emma’s tone was sweet.

“Why would she want to see me?” Trevor flashed a sad smile. He seemed aged in a second. “She must hate me. I would if I were her.”

“Is she married?” Marcus asked.

Trevor shook his head. “No, she lives with her aunt in a cottage near Bath and grows irises of all flowers. They represent hope.”

She frowned. “How do you know?”

“I have a book on the meaning of flowers. I’m not a brute, you know.”

She shot a glance at the ceiling. “How do you know where she lives and what she does?”

Trevor lowered his gaze and fiddled with a pencil.

“Trevor?” Emma narrowed her eyes.

“I paid an investigator to keep an eye on her.”

“You didn’t!” She huffed. “You complained and fought me when I wanted to hire an investigator to find Marcus.”

“Because I’d already hired one to follow Ophelia!”

“This is wrong and hypocritical of you. You treated her like a criminal and then you set a hound on her tail. Send her a letter and ask her to see her.” She was flustered. “Honestly. Every time I feel sorry for you, you do something that makes me regret it.”

“I don’t like surprises.” Trevor gestured between Emma and Marcus. “Or secrets.”

She chuckled. “Funny. I was about to say the same.”

“I just wanted to make sure Ophelia was safe, and I was ready to intervene in case she needed my help.” Trevor lifted a shoulder. “A romantic gesture. That’s all.”

Marcus cringed inwardly. “It’s not as romantic as you might think.”

Trevor held up a hand. “Enough of my personal life. I want you both to think about a solution for this damage.”

That was one damage Marcus wasn’t sure he could fix.