‘Yes. A wedding was unavoidable, though it wasn’t much of a celebration, I’m afraid. More of a formality.’
‘Did I give my consent?’
‘Consent?’ He felt another flash of anger, grinding his teeth at the hypocrisy of it. ‘I didn’t drag you down the aisle by your hair, if that’s what you’re suggesting.’
‘No, of course not.’ She shook her head. ‘I didn’t mean to accuse you. It’s just so much to take in. Were my parents there?’
‘No.’ He took a deep breath to regain his composure. ‘Since you’d already reached the age of majority there was no need to obtain permission from your father and it would have taken too long to send a message and wait for them to arrive.’
‘But do they know about…us?’
‘They do.’ He dropped his gaze to her hands. At some point she’d picked up his handkerchief and was twisting it almost frantically between her fingers. ‘I wrote them a brief letter after our wedding, and from what I understand, you’ve written to them since.’
‘Have they replied?’
‘No, not yet anyway. However, I presume that you fully apprised them of the circumstances.’
‘Whatcircumstances?’ Her voice cracked on a note of frustration. ‘Howwere we compromised?’
He hesitated, a raft of accusations on the tip of his tongue, but now wasn’t the time. Dr Pritchard had asked him to set her mind at ease and, so far, he only seemed to be making things worse. In any case, what difference would more accusations make? They wouldn’t turn back the clock andunmarry them.
‘Now isn’t the time to discuss it.’ He pushed himself to his feet. ‘We’ll talk again in a few days when you’ve recovered your strength.’
‘I can’t wait that long!’ She thrust a hand out, grasping his forearm as he started to walk away, her voice fierce now. ‘You were going to propose to Amabel. Everyone was expecting the announcement at the ball.’
‘Everyone was right.’ He looked down at her fingers. Considering her recent ordeal, her grip was surprisingly strong. ‘That was my intention.’
‘Then what went wrong? How didweend up married instead?’
It was quite remarkable, Leo thought, looking down at the anguished expression on her face. If he didn’t know what she’d done, hadn’t witnessed it for himself, he might actually have believed that she was an innocent party in this whole mess, not the instigator of an elaborate marriage trap. She appeared to have no recollection of any of it. Somehow she madehimfeel like the villain.
Which was palpably absurd.
‘Later.’ He drew his brows together. ‘You need to rest.’
‘How can I rest knowing that I somehow ruined the prospects of my oldest and dearest friend?’ Her eyes glittered. ‘None of this makes any sense. I would never have allowed myself to be compromised!’
‘Allowedyourself?’ He wrenched his arm away in disgust.
‘Yes.’ Her head jerked backwards. ‘Why do you say it like that?’
‘We’ll discuss it later.’ He resumed his progress towards the door, his jaw already aching from the effort of clenching it so hard. If he didn’t get out of there soon he’d say something he might really regret.
‘No!’ She pushed herself to her feet so fast, her body obviously wasn’t ready. Her arms flailed in the air for a few seconds, as she tried to maintain her balance, before her knees buckled and she tumbled headlong towards the floor.
‘Look out!’ Leo reacted instinctively, leaping back to catch her.
‘Oof!’ She gave a muffled cry as her cheek landed heavily against his chest. ‘I’m sorry. I did that when I stood up before, but… I forgot.’
He didn’t answer, forgetting to breathe for a moment. In this position, with only his shirt and waistcoat and her silk nightdress between them, it was impossible not to notice how snug her body felt against his, her soft curves aligning perfectly to his hard lines. It was the first time he’d touched more than her hands and, despite everything, an unexpected bolt of heat shot through him.
‘You should be more careful.’ Quickly, he lowered her back down into her chair, ruthlessly suppressing the feeling. His imagination was already running riot at the thought of how her body might feel withnoclothes between them… ‘A bump on the head and a bad cold are enough to contend with.’
‘Just tell me one thing.’ Her eyes were wider and brighter than ever, peering up at him from beneath thick, dark lashes. ‘Does Amabel forgive me?’
He hesitated, briefly considering the potentially devastating effect of an honest answer, before turning on his heel andstalking away. ‘I’ve no idea, but I suspect that your food is ready by now. I’ll send Dr Pritchard back in.’
Chapter Three
