“You are quite welcome, my dear, it was a pleasure to have you over for tea. We must do it again soon.” She saw Jillian to her waiting carriage. “I trust I will see you at my ball on Sunday night.”
Jillian smiled. “I shall certainly look forward to it.”
###
That evening Case joined Jillian in her garden. It was a beautiful night. The sun had just set, and twilight was upon them. Jillian handed Case a wineglass as he settled into the hammock beside her. She poured wine for them both and took a sip from her glass.
“I take it your visit went well,” Case noted.
“It was completely surprising,” Jillian mused. “She wasn’t at all what I expected.”
“She’s a good-hearted woman. She and my grandmother were good friends.”
“I assumed she would take me to task for my scandalous behavior. Instead she lent me her support. You know, speaking to her today dispelled a lot of my beliefs.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I always thought that my marriage was an aberration, some terrible twist of fate that only I managed to get wrapped up in. Instead, I learned that it was quite normal by society standards. It’s depressing to be sure,” she muttered. “If I ever gave thought to marrying again, I’ve certainly changed my mind now.”
“Not all men are bastards,” Case reminded her. “Not all men wish to exert their will over their wife. Indeed, some seek a marriage based on mutual respect and understanding.
“One day, I suppose I will settle down, marry and have children. I would certainly never mistreat my wife. I would hope we would like one another well enough, but even so, I would never abuse her.”
“But what about love?” Jillian asked softly. “You’ve spoken of respect and like, but not of love.”
Case looked at her indulgently. “People in our position don’t marry for love, Jilly. We marry someone suitable to our station, and, if we are lucky, we find trust and respect with them.”
“I find that more depressing than my marriage being normal,” she muttered.
“Jilly, Lady Bea could not know the details of your marriage. I would hardly call your marriage to that bastard normal. I know of no self-respecting man who treats his wife as Penroth treated you. True, there are men who have little regard for their wives, but most don’t go to the lengths that he did.”
Jillian took a long draught from her glass as painful memories assailed her.
“Let’s talk about something else,” Case said cheerfully.
“Well in the end, I do believe I have made a friend,” Jillian said, gratefully accepting the change of subject.
“Lady Bea is a loyal friend and a fine champion.”
“She is quite a remarkable lady,” she agreed.
Jillian lay back in the hammock gazing up at the now dark sky. “Are you planning to remain in London after the end of the month?”
“I imagine I will,” he replied. “Justin will likely spend the majority of the winter at Whittington, so I will split my time between there and London.”
Jillian smiled, knowing that Case had opted to remain in London to keep her company. She had closed Penroth and released all of her husband’sfaithfulservants, making London her permanent home. The manor awaited a new master, if one could be found, but she hoped it rotted to the ground in the meantime.
Once Lucas’s family had owned numerous estates, but they had sold all but Penroth as their fortunes waned. When Lucas had inherited the title, he had gambled the rest away, leaving him with a few hundred pounds and a pocketful of markers as his debt mounted.
Marriage to Jillian had once again filled his coffers and kept his creditors at bay. He had purchased a large, ostentatious London home on Park Lane, anxious to once again ensconce himself in the lavish lifestyle he had squandered away. He had been well on his way to gambling away most of Jillian’s dowry when he had boarded that fateful ship bound for France. Were it not for the inheritance she received on her twenty-first birthday from her maternal grandmother, she would now be destitute.
She reached for the wine bottle, intent on pouring another glass, but Case gently extricated it from her hand. He took her glass and set it to the side. She smiled ruefully, but didn’t protest.
“So are you going to tell me what transpired between you and Justin?” Case asked.
“No.”
He cocked an eyebrow and looked at her, obviously waiting for her to say something more, but she turned away from him and stared pensively into the night. It wasn’t like her not to be forthcoming with him, but she wasn’t prepared to discuss his brother. There were too many factors involved.
