“Don’t let him leave without speaking to me,” I murmured after a while.
“Of course, darling,” Delia said.
I meant to say something more in response, but I’m not sure I managed the words, as in another instant my eyes closed, and I drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 25
Iwoke gradually the next morning, feeling uncommonly sluggish. It was as if a heavy fog had descended upon my brain, and it was a moment before I recalled where I was and what exactly had happened last night. Then I opened my eyes to find my great-grandfather staring down at me in cold disapproval. I sat up with a start and realized I was still in the drawing room, on the sofa, which offered an excellent view of Lord Percival Everly’s oil portrait. Someone had made up a little bed for me on the sofa, and I had to push aside the blanket in order to put my feet on the floor. Then I dragged a hand down my face and shook my head, but the foggy feeling barely dissipated.
“Still feeling the effects of Mother’s nerve tonic?” a voice asked to my left.
I glanced over and found Jack seated in an armchair reading a newspaper. “Yes,” I rasped. “How on earth is that allowed to be sold as a tonic?”
“Damned if I know,” Jack said as he set aside the paper. “Shall I ring for a tray?”
“Please. But may I have a glass of water?” My mouth felt as dry as sand.
“Certainly,” my brother said as he rose. I watched him cross the room to tug on the bellpull and then pour me a glass of water from the drinks cart.
“Here you are,” he said, handing me the glass.
I drank it deeply in one long gulp. “Thank you,” I gasped as I gave the now-empty glass back to him.
He raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as he returned the glass back to the cart.
“Where is Mr. Dorian?” I asked, once he took the seat closer to me.
Jack hesitated, and my stomach sank. I knew I would not like what he had to say. “We both agreed that it would be best if he kept his distance from you.”
“What?” Despite my weakened state, I still managed to be properly outraged.
But Jack was unrepentant. “Not only did he put you in danger—”
“He did no such thing,” I insisted. “Last night was my idea.”
That seemed to catch Jack off guard for a moment. “Nevertheless,” he continued, “I understand that it is far from the first time you have gotten yourself mixed up with him.”
“I’m notmixed upwith him. We are … friends.”
My brother, rightly, gave me a skeptical look. “Well, he isn’t the kind of man you should be friends with.”
“That is not your decision to make,” I said through gritted teeth.
He opened his mouth to say more, but the maid came in then. We both waited in strained silence while she set down a tray laden with tea, muffins, and a dish of eggs. “That will be all,” Jack said sternly, and the poor girl fled from the room without a backwards glance.
He let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. “When I had my solicitor look into Inspector Dorian, he found nothing of consequence. But his brother was another matter entirely.”
“I am aware of his past,” I said, as I poured myself a cup of tea. “And he explained the particulars himself while we were on Corfu.” Mostly, anyhow.
She demanded an annulment within a month, in fact, but I refused. Still had a scrap of pride left.
But my brother looked unconvinced. “Do you know how a woman obtains a divorce in this country, Minnie?” Jack asked as his dark eyes narrowed. “Not only must she accuse him of adultery but also a secondary offense. In this case, she chose desertion.”
I took a measured breath. “As I understand it, the law is quite limited on the grounds for divorce and doesn’t allow for reasons besides adultery. So she had to make that accusation in order to end the marriage, but that doesn’t make it true—”
“Heabandonedher on their wedding night,” Jack cut in. I closed my mouth. Well, that certainly didn’t sound good. “And since his divorce, he’s been connected to every light-skirt in London.”
Now it was my turn to sigh. “Yes, but Mr. Dorian said it’s only gossip to sell papers.”
