Emily’s breath caught.Please say no. Please say no!But there would be regrets. As soon as she told him…
More clacking of balls. “Aren’t there always?”
“Where my marriage is concerned. No.” Lucky, lucky Cecily! Mr. Nottingham would even admit this to a newly married fellow. “Too late for you now, Marcus.” An ironic chuckle followed the statement.
“She entered our arrangement with a clear understanding…” Marcus did not sound nearly as sure of himself as normal. “…messier than I would have it.”
She ought to stop listening this very second. No one ever heard good things about themselves while eavesdropping.
“Perhaps this will end this stand-off with your father once and for all. It’s taken a toll on all of you. That’s to be certain. The duchess, Corinne… Lady Hartley. Your niece and nephews will not recognize you.”
“Father’s going to hate her.” Emily squeezed her eyes shut. That had been the idea all along. How would he feel now? Knowing he’d been mistaken as to his father’s crimes.
“He won’t hate her. He’s going to hate that you’ve caused him to break his contract with Lord Quimbly.”
“True.” Another hard click and more clacking. Maybe she didn’t want to hear this.
“It’s going to be priceless.” More glee in his voice. “Em, er… Lady Blakely and I will make an appearance together in London and then travel south. Quimbly and his daughter traveled to town with them. Might as well kill two birds with one stone.”
At that moment, she realized that Prescott hadn’t given her a choice, really. There was no other decision, in fact, but for her to tell Marcus the truth. No man ought to harbor so much hate in his heart.
She would tell him the facts and be done with it.
Unfortunately, he might choose to be done with her.
Perhaps Best Left Unturned
Marcus played another round of billiards by himself after Stephen excused himself to see what his wife was up to.
Blasted wedded bliss.
As he and Emily had approached Eden’s Court earlier this morning, the reality of his marriage had reared its ugly head.
For years, Marcus had sworn to never marry. Even the best of his friends looked up to him as the consummate bachelor. He’d become an icon for gents all about town.
And now he’d been caught.
Hook, line, and sinker, blast and damn.
The nature of his circumstances chafed. And yet…
His body craved hers. Having a wife at one’s fingertips proved to be rather opportune. Especially when said wife demonstrated herself quite unorthodox in the bedchamber… and the carriage… and conveniently situated gazebos…
Ah, yes, Marcus could appreciate this aspect of marriage.
For now.
Although his passion had not diminished in the least, he was bound to become uninterested eventually.
But for this moment, contemplating the image of his wife’s mouth on his… Marcus adjusted his breeches. If he were to hazard a guess, he might even believe he wanted her more now than before.
He could liken Emily to a fine scotch.
He remembered the first time he’d sampled the amber liquid. The smoky taste hadn’t impressed him much, and it had burned his chest and then his gut.
But his appreciation had grown with each exposure.
He chuckled.
