Which meant the earl was, in fact, there. Reed paced back and forth across the room. And when a figure appeared at the door, he ought not to have been surprised to see not the earl, but West, standing there.
“I thought you’d be home with your wife,” West said. “But seeing as you’ve apparently made a mess of it already, come on back.”
“What makes you think I’ve made a mess of it?” Reed growled.
“You’re here, aren’t you?”
Well, Reed could hardly argue with that logic.
Reed followed West as he proceeded to lead him deeper into the building through a sea of cluttered desks and giant machinery. Once through the large work area, they arrived at a heavy door, which West pushed open to reveal Maxwell Black.
The Earl of Helton, reclining with his feet on his desk, wore his spectacles perched on his nose and had a cigar hanging out of his mouth.
And yet the blighter still managed to look every inch the nobleman.
“Standish,” Helton spoke around the dangling cheroot. “I understand you’re a married man now. What the devil are you doing here?” He dropped his feet and leaned forward.
“I need to annul it.” Reed rubbed the back of his neck.
Helton stared at him from over his glasses. “Why would you want to do that?”
“I can’t put her through this. Goldie—Lady Marigold—stands to lose her family.” Goldie had her own sister, a sister she obviously loved. She didn’t need his. How had he done this to such an innocent?
The earl, however, frowned. “Even if I agreed with your reasoning, it’s too late. The paper’s been put to bed. Printers are shut down, and half the delivery boys have already collected their bundles.”
“Catch them,” Reed said. “Surely—”
“It’s too late, Reed.” This came from West. “It’s done.”
“Besides, it’s a good story.” Helton reclined again, clasping his hands behind his neck. “And by marrying you, she’s out from under Crossings’ control. The old bastard doesn’t give two figs for his second daughter. The way I see it, you’ve done her a favor.”
But Reed had not done Goldie a favor! He’d used her. He ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. He’d waited too long to see the error of his ways.
“As for your little change of plans, you ought to have come to me first. Don’t double-cross me again.” Helton scowled but then handed across a folded paper. “Still, the story was front page material.”
Reed couldn’t look at his duplicity in black and white, but he stuffed it into his pocket anyway. The die was cast. He was no better than the other men in his family.
And yet he lived. He’d rule the Standish estate, provide for the women in his family, and somehow find a way to make it up to Goldie.
“We’re heading over to the club. Care to join us?” West asked. Helton rose as well, donning his jacket.
“Hell no,” Reed answered. That would only make everything worse.
Revelations
Goldie’s eyes flew open and she pushed herself up. She’d been lying awake all night, half-expecting Reed to return, to come knocking on her door, and half-wondering what would happen if she tried returning to her father’s house.
She held her breath, and there was the sound again. But it was coming from outside. Sliding off the bed, she tiptoed across her room to the window.
She didn’t know what to expect, but the sight below certainly wasn’t anything she’d have guessed.
Moonlight reflected off the blade of an axe, which her husband swung in a controlled but violent rhythm.
He’d removed his shirt, and his chest glistened from his exertions.
Freshly cut wood had been stacked neatly against the hut. Wood that had not been there earlier that day.
But that was not what caught her attention.
