“You have a visitor, Your Grace.”
And then, in the doorway, Spencer appeared. He was holding flowers, a sheepish grin on his face. Anna did not know what to do. She wanted to run into his arms, and she wanted to curse his name for leaving her the way he had again, and she wanted to take his hand and go home all at once.
And so, she remained seated.
“I have so much to say,” he explained as he made his way to her. “But first, I need you to come home with me.”
“Of course,” she agreed. “But I– what has happened?”
“I will explain in the carriage.”
Hastily, Anna handed her embroidery to Evelina, who was grinning at her. There was a satisfaction in her eyes, as though she had been proven right, and Anna had to admit that she had. She was happy to be wrong, for it meant that she had what she truly wanted.
As they stepped out into the hallway, Anna heard Theodora squealing behind them. Anna turned to look at her, and it was then that she realized tears were forming in her eyes. She willedthem not to fall, for she did not want there to be too much attention brought onto her. She did not need sympathy; she needed to go home.
“It appears I have been proven right again,” Theodora said darkly. “Do not disappoint me again, Your Grace.”
“I do not intend to,” Spencer replied, and they left together.
Anna did not know what to say to him as the carriage pulled away. There was some anger that remained, but every time she looked into his eyes, she felt some of it fall away. She wanted to forgive him and forget that he had left again, and she would do it as soon as she heard his apology.
“I must tell you something before we enter,” he said instead, and she bristled.
“What is it?”
“Well, I do not think that you will be pleased with me. I have been keeping something from you for far too long, and now it is time that you know about it.”
Anna’s heart pounded, wondering just what his secret could be. She had always known that he was keeping something from her, but she had always wondered if there was more to it than she expected. It was not something that she expected to hear during what should have been a happy moment.
“You see,” he continued, “I have not come home alone this time.”
“I see.”
“I have brought a woman.”
Her heart went from pounding to still. She did not know what to say, nor what to even think. Nothing made sense, for he had promised her that there had been nobody else. She had believed him, for he had no reason to lie to her.
Unless, of course, he was trying to placate her until he no longer could.
“She needs us,” he explained. “I only found her again a few years ago, and I have been taking care of her since then. It became worse two years ago, and I knew that I had to protect her. Now, I need her here with us to do that.”
The words echoed in her ears, but not one of them was heard. She did not understand, and his explanation did not help her to.
“I only ask that you be kind to her. She needs some kindness, and I know that you can do that. She is a woman in need, and you–”
“You expect me to be kind to her?” she thundered. “Do you truly think that I will be pleased to open my home to her after she has had you to herself for so long?”
“It was a week.”
“And what of the year before it? What of all the time I spent waiting for you, while you stayed with her, knowing that I was alone? She was happy for me to fend for myself, so why would I want to help her in return?”
“Because she did not know about you. I have only just told her, and that is part of the reason why we have come here together. I need you not to make this difficult.”
“I cannot believe what I am hearing. I have every right to be utterly furious with you, given what you have done. I am well within my rights to make your life impossible, Spencer, and I do not understand why you think I will be happy about all of this.”
“Because it means I can tell you everything.”
“You could have done that from the start,” she argued, the tears forming again. “Nobody was forcing you to hide the truth from me. You did that all of your own accord.”
