“Excellent plan,” he said.
* * *
Necessity demandedshe ignore all sense of propriety.
And so she had—not for the first time.
Which explained why Julianna was huddled in her father’s carriage in the mews behind Shelbourne’s townhome, awaiting his arrival. Her future depended upon speaking with Shelbourne. So did Emily’s.
That was why she was here, she reminded herself.
That was why she was swallowing her pride.
Returning to the place where she had fled from in ignominy the night before.
She had chosen her arrival with care, however. This time, she had not arrived after supper. Instead, she had made certain to be here before he disappeared to his club. Or to his mistress.
The last thought stung far more than it should, even after the years separating them. Time should have blunted the pain of realizing he was no different than any other heartless society lord. But it had not. Whether it was returning to England or seeing Sidney again for the first time in so long, she could not be sure.
Whatever it was, she was not nearly as impervious as she had told herself she must be during all those days traveling over storm-tossed seas, calming Emily whilst she feared the worst, casting up her accounts in a chamber pot. During the journey spent warning herself of how strong she would need to be, of how she needed to fight for the both of them.
Of how she could never allow herself to submit to the same weakness for Shelbourne she once had, to her ruination.
The last time had almost destroyed her life and cost her everything. Before her was her second chance. Her chance to remove herself from her mother’s and father’s cloying wings. For freedom and independence, the opportunity to grow her fledgling cold cream business into something more. To give Emily the life she deserved.
There was only one component of her flawless scheme missing.
Shelbourne.
He was not at home. And there was no sign he would return any time soon. He may have chased her from his townhome the night before, but she had gathered her resolve and her determination in the hours since she had left him. And she had vowed this time, she would not be diverted from her course. She would stop at nothing.
He would hear what she had to say.
And he would agree it was for the best.
If he did not?
Well, Julianna was nothing if not determined.Nowas unacceptable. The offer she had for him was reasonable, fair, and more than generous. All she had to do was get him to listen to it.
And to do that, he needed to appear.
Damn him.
Where was he?
As the question hit her, a sleek carriage arrived and slowed.
Therehe was.
Julianna threw open the door of her own carriage and leapt into the street, not caring that the step had not been lowered. Her ankle twisted a bit on the landing, but other than that, she was fine. She was far too preoccupied with her quarry to pay it any heed. As she neared his carriage, Lord Shelbourne was descending.
Elegant, forbidding, beautiful.
Oh, how she wished the sight of him did not feel akin to a dagger plunged into her heart. But it did. She suspected it always would. All the better for them to continue their lives on different sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
He began stalking toward the rear of his townhome.
“Shelbourne!” she called, hurrying after him.
