“Here’s a file marked Oxford,” Josiah said. “I suppose I should have a look at this since Pritchard is here.” He pulled out a piece of paper, his brow creasing. “What’s this? ‘My dearest Margot—’” He stopped reading abruptly.
Roman tensed. He cast a sideways glance toward Ellis, and their eyes met. She appeared to be just as concerned. They returned their attention to Josiah, whose face was turning a rather mottled red. Roman could count the number of times he’d seen the man angry, and it certainly seemed as though this was one of them.
Josiah looked about the room and stood, clutching the single piece of parchment whilst the folder fell to the floor. “Where is Margot, and where is Pritchard?”
“What’s wrong, dear?” Harriet asked with alarm.
“This bloody letter is wrong!”
Harriet’s hand fluttered to her chest. “What is it?”
Josiah thrust the parchment at her. “Read for yourself.”
Roman jumped to his feet. Ellis followed, setting her notebook down in her chair.
“We’ll go find them,” Roman offered, although he feared it was too late to save them from exposure. How had a letter to Margot, presumably from Pritchard, found its way into a file? Clearly, his idiot former secretary had misfiled it, and now Margot would pay the price.
Harriet’s gasp filled the room as she clapped her hand to her mouth. She handed the letter back to her husband, her face pale. “You must find them.”
“I’ll just step out and see if I can locate them,” Inman said, his face flushed. He undoubtedly wanted to be anywhere other than his office right now.
A search mission wasn’t needed, however, for Inman passed Margot on his way out. She sailed into the office, her features bright and happy, her eyes full of unmistakable ardor. Indeed, her lips were dark pink and slightly puffy, as if she’d been kissing. She glanced about the room and quickly ascertained that something was wrong. Her joyful expression faded, and wariness darkened her gaze.
Josiah handed the letter to his daughter. “Explain this. Where is Pritchard?”
Margot looked down at the parchment, then inhaled sharply. “Papa, I can explain?—”
“I’m sure you bloody well can, but your behavior is inappropriate at best, and thoroughly ruinous at worst. I can see from the date on this letter that you and Pritchard have been carrying on for months!”
“It’s not like that, Papa. We’ve only met in person once before.”
“You’ve met before?” Harriet asked, aghast.
Margot snapped her attention to her mother. “Just once, Mama, but we’ve been writing to one another for nearly a year. I had written to him about a library matter, and, well, we began corresponding. We have much in common, and we fell in love.”
“That can’t be,” Josiah said angrily.
Roman stepped forward with a soothing smile. “Let’s take a moment. I’m sure you can understand that neither Margot nor Pritchard expected this to happen.”
“But they’ve met before now, and they’ve lied to us,” Harriet said.
Josiah fixed his furious gaze on Roman. “Did you know about this?”
Roman froze.
“Yes, Papa, he knew,” Margot said. “I told him because I didn’t want to marry him. I explained I was already in love with Oliver.”
Pritchard entered just then. His features were taut, indicating he’d heard some of what was being said as he approached the office. Or perhaps Inman had warned him. Instead of shrinking away or prostrating himself, he went to Margot’s side and stood tall as he addressed Josiah.
“Sir, I should have come to you long ago,” Pritchard began in a strong, clear tone. “Margot and I were waiting for the right time to tell you about our love. It was my understanding you had hoped she would wed another.” He glanced toward Roman. “I’d hoped to find a way to prove myself to you, and I believed this opportunity in London would allow me to do so. It’s true we were not honest with you, and I regret that. We pretended to meet for the first time just last evening and planned to court so you could see the depth of our care for one another, but that was wrong of us. We should have been honest from the start. Let me do that now.
“I love Margot with all my heart. As you know, I come from a good family. I work very hard, and I think you’ll agree I have a bright future. I will take excellent care of your daughter.”
Margot’s features softened with happiness as she beamed at Pritchard.
Harriet blinked and sniffed. “They’re in love, Josiah.”
“We are,” Margot said firmly. She looked her father in the eye. “And I want to choose my husband, unlike Clarissa. She didn’t get to choose, and she wasn’t happy.”
