“Yes, please.”
Tess handed her cup over and tried to find something in her seemingly guileless gaze. Some hint of why she’d come. A nagging feeling told her it had something to do with Dominic.
“You’re studying me as if I’ve committed some crime and might reveal a clue.”
Tess huffed out a chuckle. “Forgive me, but you must admit this is unusual.”
“I consider it long overdue.”
“Do you? Then why did you wait to come and call?”
Priscilla stirred her tea, eyes fixed on the steaming liquid. “Embarrassment, I suppose.”
Tess’s own fingers tightened on the handle of her cup. She set it aside lest she break the dainty porcelain. She could feel perspiration on the back of her neck and had an overwhelming urge to stand and stride from her own house to avoid this conversation.
“I can see from your reaction that you feel as I do. It’s not a pleasant topic. That is why I haven’t come before.” She drew in a sharp breath. “Even speaking the man’s name seems as if I’m giving him some power he does not deserve.”
“I try to avoid any thought of him too.”
“And does that work well?”
Tess shot her a sharp look, one that Priscilla seemed to understand. She nodded. “It doesn’t work well for me either. So I thought perhaps the avoiding is what gives it power.”
Tess tipped her head back, staring up at the exposed beams of the cottage’s roof. It had always been a place of safety and comfort. She let out a slow breath and dropped her gaze back to Priscilla.
“Perhaps you’re right. I’m sorry that we share a similar history in that regard.”
“As am I.” Priscilla tipped her head as she looked at Tess. “Though I think you’ve taken a great deal more blame onto yourself than you should.”
“I was foolish. Impulsive. I let myself be ruined.”
“No.” Priscilla shook her head vehemently. “You were lied to. Seduced. Taken advantage of by a man who preyed on your trust.”
Tess didn’t disagree, but she knew the part she’d played. The warnings she’d ignored. The choices she’d made.
Priscilla shocked her by standing. Tess thought perhaps she meant to depart. Instead, she came around and settled on the settee next to Tess. Without a word, she took Tess’s hand. The gesture was gentle and completely unexpected.
“May I be potentially rude?” she asked softly.
Tess laughed. “Well, when you ask so nicely, how can I refuse?”
“I heard that Mr. Prince has left Norfolk.”
Tess’s heart leapt a little at the mere mention of his name. “Yes, for a brief time, he says.”
“Oh good.” Priscilla gave Tess’s hand a gentle squeeze.
“That pleases you?” Tess asked, side-eyeing the youngwoman who’d flirted with him rather mercilessly the day they’d met.
“Oh, not for my sake, silly. For yours.” She hesitated. “I thought perhaps you’d... pushed him away.”
Tess frowned and pulled her hand away. “I’m not certain why that’s your concern, Miss Walcott.”
“Oh, please let me explain.”
Tess searched again for any hidden agenda in the young woman’s eyes but found only seeming sincerity.
“Say what you’ve come to say.”
