Do what, exactly?
And Greystone was willing to wager for her honor? She was tempted to keep listening but too stunned to do so. And disappointed.
By Simon, her cousin, and… herself for being gullible.
She backed away from the vent.
London had been a mistake. For Posy and for her. What had she expected to come out of her decision to have an affair with a butler?
She certainly hadn’t expected to fall in love.
That was the biggest mistake of all.
Violet pressed her hand to her chest, feeling suddenly like something very large and heavy was sitting on it.
She needed air.
She needed out of this tiny room. She fumbled at the door and stepped into the foyer.
“You’re going to have to make her an offer…”
“That’s the last thing I want.”
She hadn’t misheard.
“That’s the last thing I want…”
Tears stung the backs of her eyes. Simon didn’t want to marry her, but the salt on her wound was that Greystone seemed to think it was some sort of joke. Perhaps Posy and Susan had the right idea. If this was the way gentlemen handled their affairs, then good riddance to them.
Simon had asked her to trust him. He’d promised everything was going to work out, hadn’t he? But was his promise the same sort of promise that Christopher had made long ago? Was he only stringing her along for his amusement?
No. No.
She shook her head. It wasn’t fair to compare Simon to Christopher.
Only a few hours before, she had declared her love to him. He hadn’t said the words back, but she hadn’t thought she needed to hear them. What had he said? She tried remembering, but at the time, she’d been overwhelmed with… feeling.
She stood frozen, contemplating calling for one of Greystone’s carriages or perhaps hailing a hackney and buying a ticket on a mail coach. She could run home to Blossom Court and never return to London again.
Or she could march into the study and demand the two of them explain themselves. She imagined that scenario, one that had her acknowledging her indiscretions to Greystone and then being rejected by Simon.
“That’s the last thing I want.”
A shudder swept through her. She wasn’t ready to face either of them yet. Would she ever be? Her throat thickened but she stifled her sob.
Yesterday at this time, she’d been well in control of her life and those she was responsible for—at least she’d thought she had. And now…
The last twenty-four hours had exposed that her perception of reality was suspect. Clutching her hands at her waist, she paced across the foyer.
She almost wished Posy hadn’t left with Aunt Iris so she had someone to discuss all of this with. But Posy had troubles of her own. Violet couldn’t add to Posy’s burden.
But she couldn’t remain standing here. Fearful that Simon or Greystone might appear, Violet scurried upstairs to fetch her reticule and wrap. Only when she was outside on the walk did she stop to think.
Where could she go?
And then she realized she wasn’t completely alone. Setting off in the direction of Byrd House, Violet knew exactly who she could talk to about this.
Even if Bethany didn’t have any solutions to offer, Violet instinctively trusted her and at the very least, she could offer Violet some sympathy.
