He had been nursing the drink and his bad mood for about an hour when he heard someone call his name. Looking up, he was shocked to see Cassian making his way across the room, Vivienne not far behind him.
“Harrow, what a lovely surprise to meet you here!” Cassian said, sitting down at the table beside him. Vivienne sat down across from Thaddeus and gave him a warm smile.
“It’s a shame we did not realize that you were traveling today, Lord Hartington,” she said. “We could have all made the journey together. That would have made things much more pleasant!”
“My dear cousin, you hurt my feelings!” Cassian said, falling back into a melodramatic pose. “You make it sound as though you prefer Lord Hartington’s company to my own.” He laughed and shot Thaddeus a wink.
“Don’t say such wicked things,” Vivienne murmured, giving Thaddeus a sly smile. He sighed internally. Apparently, she had not yet given up her designs on him.
“I wasn’t intending to stay here for the night,” Thaddeus said, ignoring their banter. “Unfortunately, a wheel broke on my carriage. I shall be on my way as soon as it is fixed.”
“But surely not until the morning, at least,” Cassian said. “Which, of course, means that you shall be free to have dinner with us! We should thank the rock that broke your carriage wheel, as we owe it the pleasure of your company.”
Cassian’s joking only increased Thaddeus’s irritation with the whole affair. And he certainly did not want to join them for dinner.
Then again, he did not want to have dinner alone. He wanted to have dinner at home, in Hartington. With Isolde. He thought morosely about having dinner by himself, alone in his room, and his frustration with the day deepened. He looked at Cassian’s easy smile and Vivienne’s pleasant face and thought that perhaps it was better he did not eat alone after all.
“I would be happy to have dinner with you, thank you,” he said.
***
The dinner was an uneventful affair. Perhaps learning from last time, Vivienne kept the subjects light and amusing and didn’t bring up marriage.
She was pleasant enough company when she wasn’t needling him, but he could not forget the things she’d said at the last dinner.
Every time the conversation settled into a pleasant rhythm, something she would say or do would remind him of that other, more contentious conversation, and he would inwardly flinch.
And of course, any time he was reminded of that conversation, he also thought of Isolde. At first, with a flare of annoyance at the things Vivienne had said, but then he would get lost in just thinking about her.
Her quiet grace, her bright eyes, the way her face lit up when she smiled … He missed it, he had to admit to himself. He missed it all.
By the end of dinner, it could not have been clearer in his mind that he would have preferred Isolde’s company. He supposed perhaps he ought to be grateful to Cassian and Vivienne for helping him come to terms with his own feelings.
When dinner finished, Vivienne bid the two of them good night and retired to her room. Cassian stayed, insisting Thaddeus join him for one more cup of wine.
It was Cassian’s third or fourth cup – Thaddeus had lost count – and he had never been good at holding his liquor. His speech had started slurring a little, and he had a dangerous glint in his green eyes.
“Harrow,” he said, slinging his arm around Thaddeus and leaning in so close Thaddeus could smell the wine on his breath, “you mustn’t let yourself be defeated by this situation.”
“And what situation is that?” Thaddeus asked dryly, shrugging off Cassian’s arm.
“This whole thing, with the Fairchild woman. You mustn’t go through with it. There are better options. Real women.”
Thaddeus felt a low simmer of anger at the man’s words. Heedless, Cassian continued.
“And we both know where you can find such a woman. She’s right in front of your eyes.” Cassian gave a wobbly gesture toward the seat Vivienne had just vacated. “You and I both know Vivienne would make a much better match for you than Fairchild’s daughter.”
Thaddeus abruptly stood up, containing his anger for the sake of their friendship. He hauled Cassian up to his feet.
“You’re drunk, Cassian,” he said, voice so dark it was almost a growl. “Go to bed and let us both forget this conversation ever happened.”
He strode off before Cassian could say anything more, leaving the man calling incoherently after him.
***
Thaddeus had given his manservant strict instructions to rouse him early in the morning, so that they might get back on the road as quickly as possible.
They were up before the sun, and Thaddeus was relieved to hear that the carriage was repaired and ready to go. Not half an hour into the day, they were loaded up and ready to depart.
