Thingshadchanged between them, and for the good. He had finally seemed as though he began to trust she would be around as long as he wanted her to.
But Lady Lydia… When Eleanor had written, she had not felt the surge of jealousy that she felt now. She had not been so certain then that Lady Lydia loved Sebastian, or even that she ought to worry if Sebastian loved her. Yet he had kept her letters, and though he had been kind to Eleanor now, treated her body as though he worshiped it, she could not help but be reminded of the fact that he had not told her he loved her.
She doubted hedidlove her.
She could not say the same about Lady Lydia.
If he knew Lady Lydia regretted the way they ended things and perhaps even wanted to rekindle their romance, would he sayno? Eleanor couldn’t be certain. Her hand quivered around the letter. After everything she had done to win him over, she could not risk losing him now.
“Nothing interesting,” she said lightly. “Merely a letter from one of my half-sisters.”
“I will not have them in the house.”
“Then I shall remind her of that fact.” Eleanor folded the letter up very small and put it in the tiny pocket sewn into her dress. She would consign it to the fire later. Perhaps therewasunfinished business between Sebastian and Lady Lydia, but as far as Eleanor was concerned, it would have to remain unfinished. The fear of being cast aside after learning to care for her husband so deeply was, though selfish, too terrifying a thought for her to ponder presently.
“Have you any other plans two days’ hence?” he asked suddenly.
“Two days? No. I don’t think we have any prior engagements.”
“And you are not intending to see your friend?”
“Miss Ashby? No.” Eleanor frowned at Sebastian, her heart thudding in her chest from the letter and the feeling of dread that had come with it. “Why? Are you trying to get me out of the house?”
“Not in the slightest.” He smiled, and Eleanor was suddenly, forcibly, reminded of the man who had first spoken to her at the masquerade, all teasing good fun and charm. “I have a surprise for you.”
“Asurprise?” Eleanor expelled a breath in delight, the feeling of dread lessening a touch. If he still cared for Lady Lydia, would he go out of his way to provide surprises for her? “What is it?”
“You’ll see.” He grinned. “But I think you will enjoy it.”
It transpired that Sebastian’s surprise lay at the Tower of London, something that Eleanor had never taken time out to see, although she had read about it briefly in her history books.
“Why are we here?” she asked, her arm tucked in Sebastian’s. “So we may see where former kings and queens were beheaded?”
“A gory thought. No.” He steered her to the right of the three towers by the principal entrance. “We are here to see the royal menagerie. This is the lions’ tower, and inside are all manner of animals.”
Eleanor gasped. “Is it true there are lions here?”
“Not just lions.” He waved a hand at a keeper, who came forward to accept his two shillings. “I believe there are also leopardesses, and tigers, and a spotty raccoon.”
“A raccoon?” She laughed, delighted despite herself. Her love of animals extended to the exotic, but she had never thought to come here, and she would never have asked. In fact, if Sebastian had not proposed and organized the trip, she might have thought it beneath him. Yet, as they moved through the lions’ tower, taking in the different animals, she could not help but notice the look of intense interest on his face as they listened to the keeper’s explanations of the different creatures and where they had arrived from. Miss Fanny was a lioness so ferocious that the keepers had to be careful not to lose an arm, and there was also Miss Peggy, a black leopardess, with dark fur and spots of deeper darkness. Eleanor thought she was the most beautiful animal she had ever seen.
They were not the only visitors. The king’s menagerie was evidently a place that many people visited out of curiosity or wonder, although many of these visitors were foreigners to the city or the middle class, enjoying a day out in style.
“Thank you for bringing me here,” she said, looking up into his face as they moved on from the large, unsettling wolf, its intelligent eyes following them from the room. “How did you know I would like it?”
“I had a sneaking suspicion.” He grinned down at her, and she marveled—not for the first time—how disarmingly handsome he was when he smiled at her like that. “Have you had enough?”
“Yes, thank you.” She slipped her arm through his and they emerged back into the sunlight at the end of the tour. Her heartsoared, and for a moment she thought nothing could be more wonderful than this day with her husband.
A lady emerged from the wall as they left the Tower’s walls. She wore a dress of flowered muslin caught high above her waist, and the prettiest bonnet Eleanor had ever seen. She was, beyond all doubt, the most beautiful lady she had laid eyes on.
Lady Lydia.
The other lady’s blond curls bobbed around her face as she started forward, delight evident on her face as she beheld Sebastian. Eleanor’s stomach felt as though it dropped out from underneath her.
She had never given Sebastian Lady Lydia’s note. And she most definitely hadn’t given the other woman their location and permission to come and approach them.
Not that Lady Lydia needed permission, it seemed.
