When she said nothing, Reed added, “Rather than waste your time on this man who decided to come back from the dead when it suited him, I think you should focus your attentions on the man who wants to spend the rest of his life with you. You should go talk to William at once.”
Rose felt the blood drain from her face. “Can you tell me what will happen next? How long does a divorce take? Can it be kept completely private?”
She took a deep breath and added, “Does Mama have to know?”
Reed grimaced.
“What happens next is that I get Bennet’s signature that he will not contest a divorce proceeding. The divorce itself takes only as long as the time for me to create the writ of the divorce agreement and get it before a judge. As for keeping it private, it will be on the court’s docket but not necessarily in the newspapers.”
“And Mama?” she persisted.
He closed his eyes for a long moment. When he opened them, his familiar blue eyes, a mirror of her own, looked sadder.
“I think you should tell her. However, I will leave that up to you. In any case, you should speak to William first. The man has a right to know everything about the woman he loves and intends to marry.”
Again, the disappointment weighed heavily in her brother’s tone.
Rose considered her situation for the umpteenth time. “Perhaps then I will be merely the woman heintendedto marry.”
“Don’t be melodramatic, Rose. William loves you, and I doubt something that happened in your life, no matter how terrible the fact that you hid it from him, will change his mind about marrying you.”
Chagrined, she lowered her head. Still, she would have sworn that Finn loved her so thoroughly he could never have stayed away from her for years, letting her mourn as she had.What did she know of a man’s love?Acrimony twisted inside her.
“I could divorce Finn and spare William the pain of ever knowing,” she said, no longer caring if Reed thought her a coward. It was not about her, after all, but about keeping William from feeling the pain she was feeling.
“It could stay between you and me,” she added, standing up.
He crossed his arms. “It could.” Reed sounded weary.
“If it makes you think any better of me or of Finn Bennet,” she said, lifting her chin, “we didnothave a wedding night, nor did we do what would turn a woman into a wife.”
Rose should be mortified at having this conversation with her very proper brother, except she’d heard from her sisters that even Reed had had his improper moments.
His eyes widened for a second. Then he nodded.
“Legally, that may make a great difference in your divorce,” he said, his thoughtful tone showing he was treating this already as a case rather than as an emotional family situation.
In another instant, his focus was back on her. “Even if physically you did not belong to another man, you gave your hand to him and took his name and signed a legal document. Personally, I think William should know that. It is up to you, of course.”
Nodding, she sighed. “Finn lives above The Parisien. I suppose the only way for you to contact him is to go there. You can ask the staff, and they’ll direct you to his room.”
Reed gave her a sympathetic half-smile. “Don’t worry, Rose. It may not seem like it at present, but everything will work out eventually. Will you trust me on that?”
Her brother had never lied to her. “I will. May I also trust that you will tell no one until I speak with William? Not even Charlotte.”
Instantly, he looked unhappy. “Yes, but do it soon.”
***
After another evening of pondering her predicament, Rose concluded that Reed was right. She could not leave William with a hood over his head when it came to her past. Especially not with Claire and now also Reed knowing, not to mention with Finn liable to pass them on the street at any moment and speak familiarly to her. William being taken off guard was too awful to contemplate.
With her mind made up to confess, she couldn’t stand to keep the secret from him a moment longer than necessary. When he agreed to a mid-day walk through the Common during his midday break, Rose braced herself for the worst and hoped for the best.
“No, thank you,” she said, declining his offer of lemon-flavored shaved ice from a street vendor. Her stomach was already churning, and the idea of the tart cold ice hitting it only made it difficult to swallow.How to begin?She glanced across the Common in the direction of Ober’s restaurant, even though it was a couple streets away and not visible. Then she took a deep breath.
“William.”
“Yes, dearest.”
