Loretta’s expression remained placid. “Theodore and I. He was quite taken with me in those days. Always finding excuses to visit. Lurking in our drawing room. Quoting dreadful poetry. I found it all rather sweet.”
April blinked. “You courted?”
Loretta gave a small shrug. “Oh yes. It wasn’t widely known. Lady Darnell was fond of me, and she encouraged it. But Theo… well, he was not quite ready.”
Why would he not mention this?
“And your reputation?” April asked. “I imagine it might have suffered—had people known.”
Loretta laughed. “Not everyone is privy to such things. And not everyone would understand.”
Including me, evidently.
Loretta leaned forward slightly, lowering her voice just enough to force intimacy. “Theo is a fickle man, Your Grace. He will look at a woman as though she is the only star in the sky, and then, once she begins to orbit him, he seeks a new constellation.”
April’s pulse quickened. “So that is what he did to you?”
Loretta’s smile didn’t falter. “I was the exception. He will return to me. I know him. We left things unresolved. And men rarely forget their unfinished pleasures.”
April stood. Her hands trembled at her sides. “He is married now.”
Loretta’s batted her lashed and smiled. “When has marriage ever stood between a man and his passions?”
“Honor and dignity do, though I doubt you are familiar with the meanings of such.” April turned without giving Loretta the chance to respond . Her breath constricted her chest, a tightness spreading as she walked away. She did not stumble. Her steps were smooth, but inside, a storm raged.
She is lying. Or she is mistaken. Or perhaps she is neither, and I have been a fool.
At dinner, April sat stiffly, acutely aware of every glance from Loretta and every silence from Theo.
“The baths in Greece,” Loretta said, swirling her wine, “are nothing like the tepid affairs in Bath. Marble columns, warm mineral water, the scent of oranges in the air. One truly forgets oneself entirely.”
April’s fork stilled above her plate. Gregory shifted. “Loretta,” he said through clenched teeth, “are you having too much sherry again, my love?”
“What?” she asked innocently. “I was merely sharing the delights of travel. Theo, do you recall the sketch I showed you? The one of the statues in Delphi?”
Theo’s face remained unreadable. “I do.”
Loretta’s smile widened. “You said the sculpture reminded you of a goddess.”
April focused on her vegetables as if they might rescue her from madness. Her fingers tightened around the handle of her knife. Theo offered no reply to Loretta’s words.
Gregory cleared his throat. “Theo, how fare the stables in Gloucestershire? Still aiming for the Derby next season?”
Theo turned, grateful for the shift. “We have a colt named Pharos who may be ready. He has strong legs and a clever temperament.”
“Does he start well?” Gregory asked. “Many of them don’t hold at Epsom.”
Theo nodded. “He has potential, but I’m waiting to see how he takes to the tighter turns. He’s bred from Hades, actually.”
Loretta leaned closer. “Such dangerous names. You’ve always favored the dramatic.”
“The horse earned it,” Theo said. “He never spooks. He only charges.”
April did not miss the way he turned slightly away from Loretta, toward Gregory. A small mercy, but her appetite had vanished.
She endured the rest of the meal in silence.
Later that night, she stared at the canopy of her bed, her chest tight.Ifshewas not good enough for him, then I have no hope.
