He didn’t want anger in his life anymore. He was tired of blaming others for his own faults. Tired of sopping grudges in a bucket of ale. The time had come to ask forgiveness.
And then he was going to find Elise.
Chapter Twenty-Two
There are no unmixed blessings in life.
Irish proverb
London
Elise had slept most of the way to London, holding Tamsyn in her arms the entire time. She had believed the two of them worried together over Kit’s fate. She’d quietly assured Tamsyn that Mr. Steele’s ability to fix all problems was legendary, so he’d be able to help Kit as well.
Of course, she didn’t say this so Mrs. Banner could overhear. The lady thought Tamsyn was only a dog. She was wrong.
They changed drivers three times on their trip to London and the horses more often. Consequently, they had made excellent time.
Her sisters and Tweedie had been at the door the afternoon the landau reached the house Dara and Michael had rented. The redbrick home was in a highly respectable neighborhood.
Gwendolyn ran out to greet Elise. She held one of her shawls open in her hands as if she had anticipated Elise to be an invalid. She tossed it around Elise as she hugged her. She whispered in Elise’s ear, “Be watchful. Word has gone round that you are missing. We said you were merely visiting friends in the country.”
Elise bubbled with laughter. She’d forgotten the silly London games. And it was true. She had been out in the country. But still?
Gwendolyn answered in her hushed tone to Elise’s unspoken question. “We weren’t as wise as we should have been when we first realized you had left.”
Of course.
Elise hadn’t been thinking of returning... or of the ramifications to her sisters. “I’m sorry—”
Gwendolyn hushed her. “We are just relieved to have you home. Come.”
Elise called Tamsyn to follow and they hurried to the house.
Dara waited on the front step. Elise stopped and faced her sister.
Gwendolyn chided, “We need to go inside. There are eyes everywhere, even when we don’t believe we are being watched.”
But Elise didn’t move. Instead, she reached for Dara’s hand. They were the closest sisters. They were a year apart in age and shared the same mother. They’d always lived in the same room until Dara married. As the oldest, Gwendolynmay have watched over them, but the bond between the two younger sisters had always been the strongest, until Michael came along.
And Elise had been brutally unfair to Dara.
She looked her sister in the eye. “I’m sorry. I had no right to be angry over you and Michael.”
Only then did she realize how Dara had braced herself, expecting the worst. Her shoulders relaxed. “You loved him.”
“No,” Elise admitted, “I lovedthe ideaof him. I didn’t really know him. I didn’t even try to. I was wrapped up in myself. He chose you and, yes, I was jealous because—oh, dear, this is going to sound terrible.”
“Yes?” Dara prodded.
“Well—” Elise paused and then confessed, “I was the one who you believed would marry first. Your words, not mine.”
“I honestly thought that would be what happened,” Dara protested.
“I’m glad you were wrong. You and Michael are a good match. If I hadn’t been so self-absorbed, I would have seen that.”
Dara shook her head as if to deny it, but Elise wouldn’t allow her to. “Please, accept my apology. I shall say the same to Michael when I see him.”
Gwendolyn spoke, interrupting them. “Is this our little sister speaking?”
