Newton purred at their feet, rubbing between them as if he missed Pippa’s aunt as much as she did. Her aunt loved the gray cat as much as her, maybe even more.
Releasing her aunt, Pippa peered at her, noticing a fading bruise over the other woman’s right eye. The blueish-tinted mark infuriated Pippa, sending a blinding rage through her, andsuddenly she wished she could cause her uncle bodily harm. “What happened?” she asked, lifting her hand to gently touch her aunt’s face.
Shaking her head, her aunt took Pippa’s hand, stopping her caress. “It’s nothing; it happened after you left. After Summerset learned you were gone, he had words with your uncle before he rushed to wed Lady Florentia.”
A gasp escaped Pippa. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Florentia Vaughn married the Duke of Summerset? A burst of melancholy flowed through Pippa for the usually spiteful lady. No woman should be bound to a cruel man, not even Florentia Vaughn, who’d never had a kind word to say about Pippa.
“Don’t worry, it’s nothing,” her aunt said before she led Pippa to the sofa. “Now tell me everything. Was he kind to you? I regret not speaking to you more on matters of the marital bed?—”
“Aunt!” she said, feeling her cheeks heat. She wanted to continue the conversation about the bruise and Florentia Vaughn, but she could tell by her aunt’s reaction that she did not wish to continue with the discussion.
They had never spoken about the marital act, although they often spoke of many things, being as close as any mother and daughter.
“You’re a married woman now. One must be able to speak of such things, especially with an older woman they are close to.” Her aunt waited patiently, picking up Newt and setting him on her lap to stroke his soft fur.
Trying to hide her embarrassment, Pippa cleared her throat several times, avoiding her aunt’s inquisitive eye. Although she was extremely close to Lady Wayford, Pippa found it difficult to discuss such intimate details with anyone.
“I-I assure you he was v-very kind.” The words stammered out of her, her mind wandering to how kind her husband had been to her every single time.
The room was stifling, her body overheating with the memory of her husband and their many nights together. Pippa’s heart ached, and she placed her hand to her chest trying to ignore the feeling.
She took a deep breath, her gaze still roaming around the room where they would often sit and talk for hours. Her aunt was one of her closest friends, a mother truly—the only mother Pippa had known for most of her life.
A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts as Ann entered carrying tea and biscuits.
“Was it a lovely wedding?” her aunt asked while Ann poured their tea, and added the correct amount of sugar cubes.
A wistful smile spread across Pippa’s lips, momentarily changing the trajectory of her thoughts. “It was. We walked to the blacksmith’s cottage; his wife and daughter were witnesses. The day was perfect, and St. Clara and I were handfasted together the entire day.” Pippa realized that she sounded very much like a besotted girl as she described the wedding day and the celebration at the inn.
Ann and her aunt listened with great interest, the maid sighing at the description of the celebration.
Once alone with her aunt, Pippa busied herself sipping her tea, trying to find the strength to discover the truth. There was only one question she wanted answered. It had been whispering in her ear, burning a hole through her since she’d discovered her uncle’s relationship with the former duke.
“Aunt, there is something of importance that I must ask you,” Pippa began, not wanting to believe that her aunt would’ve known anything about her uncle’s blackmailing activities.
“Yes, of course. You may ask me anything.” Lady Wayford took her hand, peering at her with the identical face of Pippa’s own mother.
Her pulse quickened, the ache in her chest expanding. It was still painful to be in her aunt’s presence even after so many years. When Pippa would miss her mother the most, she would forget for a moment that her aunt was not her.
“Did you know that your husband blackmailed the former Duke of St. Clara and conspired with him to keep St. Clara and me a-apart?” Her voice shook, heart hammering in her ears.
Looking down at their joined hands, Pippa waited for her answer, so afraid of what her aunt may confess. The thought of the other woman betraying the trust and friendship they had formed over the years had a dark hole expanding in Pippa’sheart.
Lady Wayford raised Pippa’s chin with her free hand so that they were eye to eye. “No, of course not.” Her aunt shook her head. “How is that possible?”
“Lord Wayford discovered that the former Duke of St. Clara had fathered a child with his maid—” Pippa began, but her words were cut off by her aunt’s cry of surprise.
“What?” her aunt asked, eyes widened in shock. “I thought it was your St. Clara who had fathered the child. That was the reason your engagement ended, was it not?” Newton leapt off the sofa, roaming around the room.
“I believed it was him as well. After all, that was what Maggie, the maid, confirmed, but we have recently learned the truth.” The truth was a weight lifted off Pippa. “It was a lie orchestrated by St. Clara’s father and uncle to keep us apart.” Pippa took a deep breath and began explaining all she and Chauncey had discovered on their journey.
“Leonard knew the child wasn’t your St. Clara’s, yet he still allowed you to end your engagement?” her aunt asked, her facialexpression blank. “Why would he do that? He knew how much the boy meant to you.” Her aunt trailed off, removing her hand from Pippa’s.
“I am not sure, but I believe he did it for the money. Once he discovered the true paternity of Maggie’s child, he used it to his own advantage.” Pippa wanted to believe her aunt, but she knew how much influence her uncle had.
“That was the Season he left us… he went to France.” Lady Wayford stood and began pacing the floor. “He started spending extravagantly, and I had no idea where the money came from.”
Pippa’s aunt walked over to the window of the parlor, watching the deserted streets of Mayfair as one or two carriages passed by. “Did you truly not know, or did you choose to ignore what he did?” Pippa’s voice rang out strong and firm, but inside, she was shaking.
