Margaret stepped back into the shadow of the corridor before she could be seen. Her pulse had quickened without her consent. She had thought badly of him before, and had been proven wrong, but he had assured her that it would not happen again.
But here it was, another secret. Another arrival.
And this one was beautiful.
CHAPTER 21
Miss Arabella rarely waited for an invitation.
Nathaniel stood in the entrance hall as the door opened. She stepped inside with the composure of someone accustomed to welcome, as though he was expecting her. She removed her gloves slowly as her gaze found him.
“Your Grace,” she said.
“Arabella.”
Her eyes moved past him, and he followed the direction instinctively. There was nothing there, which caused him to sigh with relief as it meant Margaret had not seen them.
For a brief second, something unreadable passed across Arabella’s face before it settled into polite coolness.
“You arrive without notice,” Nathaniel said evenly.
“I believed I would be received regardless.”
There had once been truth in that.
“I offer congratulations.”
The words were correct. The tone was not.
“Of course you do. Now, what are you actually here for?”
“You know me so well,” she giggled. “I wonder if I might have a word.”
“Of course.”
It would make her leave sooner than if he argued, he reasoned. Nathaniel gestured toward his study, and Arabella followed. The door closed behind them softly.
She did not sit.
“You married quickly,” she said.
“Yes.”
“How efficient.”
“It was necessary.”
“For whom?”
“For my wife.”
Arabella gave a short, breathless laugh.
“How noble.”
He remained standing behind the desk, hands resting lightly upon its surface.
“You could have written,” she continued. “You could have informed me before the city did.”
