They spoke of practical things first. Arabella’s studies. A neighbor’s scandal. The state of Charlotte’s temper.
At last, Arabella set her cup down. “Do you wish to speak of it?”
Eleanor considered. “Not yet.”
“Then what do you wish?”
Eleanor met her sister’s gaze. “I wish to remain here. I wish to host. I wish to be visible.”
Arabella nodded. “And I wish to stay.”
Eleanor smiled, genuine this time. “Good.”
Arabella reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “He will regret this.”
“Perhaps,” Eleanor said.
“And if he does not,” Arabella added, “you will still have built something worth keeping.”
Eleanor straightened, the weight in her chest easing just slightly.
“Yes,” she said. “I believe I will.”
Outside, Blackmere Park settled into the afternoon, unchanged and steadfast.
Inside, Eleanor began the deliberate work of becoming a woman who did not wait to be chosen again.
CHAPTER 27
The first morning began with certainty.
James rose before dawn and rode hard, the chill air cutting through his coat as if to sharpen his resolve. He met Roderick outside the small solicitor’s office on the edge of town, a place chosen precisely because it was unremarkable.
“This is our man,” Roderick said, tapping the folded paper in his hand. “Or at least a path to him.”
James dismounted without comment. “You are sure.”
“As sure as one can be,” Roderick replied. “The footman was seen there two days after the ball. Paid in cash. No questions asked.”
James nodded. “Then we start here.”
Inside, the solicitor was nervous. He spoke too quickly, his hands fidgeting as he answered questions he claimed not to understand.
“You handled payment for a temporary servant,” James said calmly. “One hired for a single evening. Who authorized it?”
“I do not recall,” the man said.
“You will,” Roderick replied pleasantly. “You were paid well to remember.”
The man swallowed. “It was arranged through an intermediary.”
“Who?” James asked.
“I was told the name was Fenwick,” the solicitor said. “A distant cousin. No relation to Lord Fenwick, of course.”
James and Roderick exchanged a glance.
“Of course,” Roderick said. “And the servant?”
