“Are you hinting broadly to come in?” I asked, not eager for him to leave. “As you can smell, Ella is cooking. Would you like to stay for supper? We haven’t had much sustenance since last night.”
“I will and gladly.” He slipped his hand down my bottom as I inserted the key into the lock.
“Behave yourself.” The door swung open to reveal Violet in the doorframe.
“Bernice Rose Namath, where have you been?” She threw herself into my arms before I could respond. “We have been worried sick about you.”
My stomach dropped to my feet, every nerve at attention at the use of my full name. “I am sorry. I was stuck at the office and spent the night there to weather the storm.”
She pulled back, her gaze falling over my shoulder. “Inspector. You are back.”
“Good afternoon, Violet. I can assure you that your sister was safe the entire time.” Ash spoke to Violet in a compassionate tone, which gave me hope that he hadn’t put two and two together. Not that he should.
“I will be in shortly, please go back inside.” I schooled my features, trying to play off the encounter.
With a reluctant sigh, she did as I asked.
The second she disappeared inside, he clasped my elbow once more. In a lowered voice, he said, “We need to talk.”
My stomach twisted, and I fought the weakness in my knees. My time of reckoning had come, and I needed to keep my wits about me, else everything I had built would unravel.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Inspector Liam Ashton
“Your name is Bernice Rose Natham and your sister is Eloise. The Right Honorable Eloise Natham I presume.” I stared at Birdie in the dim hallway and tried to process the information. I’d had a hunch early on that something wasn’t quite right about her story and now the pieces began to fall into place. “Youare a lady.”
“It is a complicated story.” She worried the tip of her glove, her bottom lip between her teeth.
“Then enlighten me.” I crossed my arms, betrayal cutting deep. It was unfounded because she hadn’t actually betrayedmeper se. She had fooled Moran, and her actions could jeopardize more than her position at the publishing house.
Jaw jutted out, she shook her head. “It is irrelevant. I need to care for my sisters, and being the daughter of a baron isn’t financially lucrative.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “Had you truly been married, or is that a lie as well?”
“I did what was necessary to survive.” She continued to stare at me with defiance and a touch of fear in her eyes.
“So you made up a fake husband?” Hurt mingled with my growing ire. She’d spurned my courtship with a claim of being in love with her dead husband. It shouldn’t have stung but it did.
“I did what I had to do to provide for my family,” she repeated through gritted teeth.
“You lied to Moran and to me.” I stepped closer, lowering my voice to not be overheard. “He trusted you, and you have betrayed his trust.”
“How have I betrayed him? I have proven my ability to do everything I promised and more.”
