“For better or worse, I cannot say, but we were different. My prejudice against him softened significantly, as my gamble had not worked, and his arrogance softened as well. He was far more regular after that.” Faith nearly spoke, not understanding, but Belle continued. “What I mean to say is, Georgie became much more human after that. He was no longer the haughty prince who was next in line to the throne. He was merely a man who, due to the circumstance of his birth, could not act like his true self or even be permitted to marry whomever he wanted.” Belle looked at Faith. “Can you imagine telling a king who he is allowed to marry?”
“No,” Faith said. “I cannot.”
“Regardless, I doubt I would have married him even if he had been allowed to do so,” Belle admitted.
“Why?”
But Belle only shook her head. She may have had to tell herself that for so long to lessen the sting of not being able to, and perhaps she had come to believe it, but Faith had her doubts.
“It’s of no matter. Still, with me, Georgie was able to be at peace with himself and the world.” Belle’s gaze turned distant again before adding, “And so was I.”
A bittersweet expression came over her aunt’s face, and Faith felt suddenly unsure. It must have been terribly unfair to not be able to be legally, officially together as a married couple, and yet, Belle and the king had found a small piece of happiness together, as immoral as it was. Perhaps because Faith was feeling particularly sympathetic or because it happened so long ago, she couldn’t quite find fault with their relationship, even though she knew it wasn’t proper.
Faith wondered how Belle had felt toward the king and wondered if it wasn’t similar to how she felt about Logan. Of course, Faith didn’t have any sort of feelings toward Logan except contempt.
Well, perhaps that wasn’t exactly true. She was grateful that he had saved her from that disastrous horseback riding incident. And while their early meetings had sparked some friction, she had to admit that she might have eventually befriended him, if he hadn’t obtained her painting. She had even begun to enjoy his company before learning about that. A part of her had even argued that it was rather forthcoming of him to admit to having it, but it didn’t matter. She and Logan were nothing like Aunt Belle and King George.
“Oh goodness,” Belle said suddenly, shivering. “You’ve made me nostalgic, my dear, but I’m not one to languish in the past. Now, I really must get back to trying to find those letters.”
Faith’s gaze snapped to the clock. A quarter of an hour left. She still needed to keep Aunt Belle from going.
“Wait,” she said quickly, just as Belle began to stand.
She turned to face Faith.
“Yes, dear? What is it?”
“Um, Mr. Harris,” she blurted out. “The elder Mr. Harris, that is.”
Belle gave her a curious look.
“Yes?”
“Do you know much about him?” she asked, uncertain. “I met him when I was at Harris House and he was very kind, but there was a sadness to him I couldn’t quite understand.” Belle’s brow quirked, and Faith pressed. “It’s only that, you know everyone within a hundred miles, and I thought you might be able to tell me a bit about him. I’m quite fond of Arabella, as you know, and wouldn’t want to broach any topics that she might find, well, uncomfortable.”
Belle’s brow lifted as she sat back down, seeming caught off guard by the question.
“Well, let’s see. I met Mr. Harris some twenty years ago, I believe. Yes. Yes, I remember because Mrs. Harris was quite excited to meet with me, although she was heavily pregnant at the time. She had been away from England for nearly a decade and longed to speak with a fellow countrywoman. I made a point to visit her upon learning about her, as she was in confinement and could not pay any calls herself, hoping to strike up a friendship. Not many of the locals particularly liked me when I first came here, but that was only because they didn’t know me.” Belle was so sure of herself that it made Faith smile. “She was one of the first friends I had in this area, you know. Although, the friendship didn’t last very long.”
“Why is that?”
“She left, only months after I came to retire. Perhaps four months? Five? I’m not quite sure. All I know is that Mr. Harriswas desperately in love with his wife, and she was desperately in love with not being in the Highlands.”
“Oh?” Faith said, a hint of guilt emerging from the depths of her memories.
Hadn’t she once told Logan how much she wished she could be away from the Highlands and back in London? A pinch of regret nipped at her senses as her hand reached around to the back of her neck.
“Yes. Unfortunately, I believe she fell out of love with Mr. Harris once she realized she couldn’t keep her Highlander in London. It wasn’t a surprise, of course, that they would have to move here, but I believe she had a different idea of what life would be like so far north.”
“Did she ever discuss it with you?”
“Her dislike for Scotland? Oh yes, almost constantly. She didn’t like the weather, the isolation, the mountains, the lochs or even the people. She was desperate for news from London and I told her all I knew, but I had quite finished with town life at that time and wished to mourn my previous life privately.”
Faith quickly did the math in her head and figured that Aunt Belle had come to Scotland not long after George had died and William had been crowned king.
“She left so soon after her daughter was born,” Faith said, pressing on. “Arabella told me as much when I was at Harris House.”
“Yes,” Aunt Belle said gravely. “And you know, my dear, that I do not cast judgment on anyone. But that particular incident did test my patience.”
