“Based on that response, I’m inclined to say that it didn’t go well.”
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Rose laughed. And it felt good to do, a much-needed relief because times were hard and sometimes something as simple as laughing could do much to expel the tension and remind her that the world wasn’t falling apart even if it felt like it was.
She crossed the room to where Christopher was sitting on the edge of the bed and, without thinking, she sat down beside him.She saw him stiffen at the closeness of her body, but then relax almost immediately.
Rose eyed him, curious about her husband and the situation they’d found themselves in. For an ordinary couple, this would not be a strange circumstance at all, and it would be expected that her husband would have come to help her with this most troubling development. But as they both knew well, there was nothing normal about them as a couple.
That he is here at all is significant. And not just that he offered to come, but that I accepted it. Dammit, I wanted him here, knowing how much I would need his support.
“She refuses to listen to reason,” Rose sighed. “Convinced that her love for Julian will be enough to sustain her.” She scoffed. “As if love can keep one warm and well-fed. She is so…”
“Optimistic,” he offered.
She rolled her eyes. “Childish, is what I was going for.”
“She will come around.”
“Maybe.” She winced as she remembered the fight that she and Marianne had just had, the heated words exchanged, the very real fact that for the first time, her little sister was not willing to listen to her as she had done so many times before. It made her feel powerless and helpless in ways that she was not used to.
“Tomorrow,” Christopher said. “Let her sleep on it, and she might change her mind.”
“She better,” Rose said. “Because we are not leaving here without her. Why can she not see that I am only trying to help?”
“Oh, I suspect that she knows,” he said.
“And I want the best for her.” A tightness was felt in Rose’s chest. “That is all I ever wanted. But this is not what is best! If she would only allow me to speak to father for her.”
“She will.”
“I am not so sure…”
Rose was struggling to come to terms with how she felt about all of this. On the one hand, she did want what was best for her sister, and if marrying the man whom she loved was what Marianne saw as best, how could Rose possibly deny her that?
On the other hand, Rose was aware of all that she had done to give Marianne a chance to achieve happiness. And while her marriage to the Duke might not have turned into the great sacrifice it had been originally, that did not mean she was willing now to look the other way.
Her sister still had a chance at something real. She could still have the life that she deserved. She just needed to trust Rose.Why can she not see that?
“Tomorrow…” Slowly, Christopher reached out and took Rose’s hand. “Try again tomorrow, and if she still refuses to listen, then we might have to take a more drastic action.”
“Such as?”
He shrugged. “I will leave that to you and your infinite wisdom.”
She laughed softly and squeezed his hand back. Then she looked up and found his eyes, noticing how earnest his gaze was. He looked upon her with both compassion and a sense of pride; the look of a man who did not regret coming all this way, just as he did not regret what had led him to be here in the first place.
They sat in silence for a moment. Side by side. Holding hands. Looking at one another as they let the tension from earlier fade so that it was just the two of them, alone, and comfortable being together.
“So…” Rose cleared her throat when the silence became too much. “Is this my room or yours?”
Christopher grimaced. “Ah, yes, about that…”
“What is it?”
“It seems that this is the only room available for the evening. I insisted that the innkeeper make another available, but he was quite certain it was not possible. So, to answer your question,” He laughed awkwardly. “I guess this room is both of ours.”
“Oh…”
The room suddenly felt very small.
