Her father clenched his jaw and anger flashed in his gray eyes. “Very well, I’ll take you home. But we shall discuss your future on the way.”
Thea didn’t care. She’d won the first battle, which was to get out of Lord Clayton’s house immediately. Given the fact that she had no idea who was spreading the gossip about her, that was the first and most important thing to do. She had no intention of marrying Clayton and staying here a moment longer would only serve to make that decision more difficult to justify. Now that the news had hit the papers, no doubt the neighbors would all come to see for themselves. For all she knew, there were already some on the way.
NOT AN HOUR LATER,Thea, Maggie, and all of theiraccoutrementswere loaded into Lord Blackstone’s coach. Giles and James had put the wheelchair inside of a wagon that would travel back separately.
Thea had even managed to convince her father that they shouldn’t be seen in the foyer taking leave of their host. Instead, she promised to write Clayton a thank you letter when she was settled back at home. For now, she sent her thanks to the viscount by way of her father, who returned to the study to let Clayton know that he’d be taking his daughter home immediately.
Inside the coach, they did their best to accommodate Thea’s leg, propping it on a set of pillows and blankets. But as the conveyance traveled along the rutted country roads, the occasional bump was upsetting enough to cause Thea to cry out in pain. She gritted her teeth and tried to keep in any grunts or groans, but every once in a while, she couldn’t help herself.
Several times her father tried to broach the subject of the ridiculous engagement. At some point, Thea realized that playing up the pain in her leg kept her father from attempting to discuss it.
Meanwhile, Maggie sat tensely at Thea’s side, concentrating on her needlework and wincing every time Thea cried out.
“Theodora, we must discuss your future,” Father finally demanded when they were less than a quarter hour from Blackstone Hall. “Lord Clayton and I have—”
“Gah!” Thea cried before putting the back of her hand to her forehead for maximum dramatic effect. “My leg is throbbing and I’m exhausted. Can we not speak of it tomorrow after I’ve had a chance to rest, Father?”
“We must have a care for your reputation,” Father snapped back.
Thea clenched her jaw. “Yes, weshouldhave had that care when you forced me to remain at Lord Clayton’s house after my accident.”
That was enough to silence her father for the remainder of the ride home. Thank heavens. Thea stared out the window. The day was gray and cold, just like her thoughts. She watched as the coach passed the leafless trees, their black branches outlined against the chilly gray skies as thoughts of her time with Clayton flashed through her mind.
She did regret not having a chance to say good-bye to Phillip. He was such a nice man. Sweet and kind and thoughtful. Nowhere near as maddening as Clayton had been when she first met him. She would write Phillip to say good-bye. She would encourage him to keep riding Alabaster.
Alabaster. Would she ever be able to see the horse again? If she were to visit, the gossip might make its way to the papers.Blast. She closed her eyes. She would have to worry about that later. She was far too exhausted to worry about it at the moment.
But Thea couldn’t sleep. The pain from the ride bouncing her broken leg had her clenching her jaw, and if that wasn’t uncomfortable enough, each time she tried to rest, one horrible, confusing, surprising thought kept torturing her: Clayton had afiancée.
Afiancée. The man had been betrothed the entire time she’d been at his home and he’d never mentioned it. What sort of a scoundrel was he? He’dkissedher for heaven’s sake. He was the worst kind of cad.
He was exactly who her mother had warned her against.
Thea tried to picture Clayton’s betrothed. He hadn’t mentioned a name. Had she ever met the young lady? Was she Thea’s age? No doubt she was younger. She might even be a debutante. Eighteen years old. Had she just made her debut last spring? Did she have long straight blond hair and sparkling blue eyes like many of the most popular debutantes did? Did she do things like play the pianoforte and sing like a lark? No doubt she wasn’t ill-tempered and stubborn like Thea was. No doubt she wasn’t the type of young lady who would dress as a lad and sneak into Clayton’s stables in the middle of the night. And she probably wasn’t the type who would break her leg while doing it.
Oh, what did it matter? Thea would not—would not—marry Lord Clayton. They couldn’t force her to do it. They wouldn’t dare. Which meant soon, Clayton would be free to marry the young lady of his choosing. She of the long blond hair and larklike voice. Thea wouldn’t spend another moment wondering about her identity. It was nothing but a waste of time. She had much more important things to think about, like how in the world would she convince her father that she wouldnot,under any circumstances, agree to marry Lord Clayton. It was certain to be the biggest row they’d ever had, but she was prepared to win at all costs.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Ewan watched from the shadow of the stable wall as Alabaster jumped the low fence with Phillip upon his back. Forrester had been working with Phillip and Alabaster every afternoon for days now. According to Forrester, Phillip was improving at a record pace.
Phillip smiled and waved at Ewan. Ewan returned the gesture. It was amazing, the progress Phillip had made in the days since Ewan had introduced him to Thea. And there was no doubting it was Thea’s influence that had helped his friend so much. She’d spent hours speaking to him quietly. They’d discussed Alabaster a great deal. Thea had told him stories about the horse’s foal-hood. Ewan had heard Phillip chuckling and replying with stories of his own.
There was no denying it. In the few weeks Thea had been there, Phillip had made more progress than in all the months Ewan had been desperately trying to help him. It was nothing short of an amazing transformation.
Thea. Where was she right now? Ewan leaned back against the stable wall, closed his eyes, and expelled his breath. All he knew was that she was no longer at Clayton Manor. He should have signed the contract. If he had, there would be little Thea could do to refuse the marriage. But Ewan didn’t want her to come to him as a wife by force. Thea was beyond stubborn. If she set her mind against the marriage, even though it was obviously the only reasonable thing to do, she would never agree to it.
Asking her first was the right thing to do, of course. Ewan had even planned to drop to one knee and do the thing properly, but Blackstone had informed him that Thea was concerned with additional gossip and wanted to go home immediately. Apparently, she didn’t care about the damage that could be done to her leg. She hadn’t even given Ewan a chance to say good-bye. Those things already boded ill. Add to that the fact that she and her father were always at sixes and sevens and Ewan held little hope that she would readily agree to a marriage.
Ewan intended to pay Thea a visit after she had a chance to recover from her no doubt painful journey home. He hoped her leg hadn’t been too affected by the ride. He wanted to see her, he realized. To talk to her again.
Ewan pushed himself away from the stable wall and began walking back toward the house, leaving Forrester with Phillip. Ewan needed to prepare himself and his household for a viscountess. It was something he hadn’t planned on so soon in life, but it was happening just the same. Though admittedly with a different bride than the one he’d originally expected.
Lord Blackstone wasn’t particularly well-connected politically and a marriage with Thea clearly wouldn’t be as advantageous for Ewan’s career as it would have been if he’d married Lady Lydia. But Ewan had no regrets. There was little chance he’d ever become bored with Thea as his wife, she loved horses as much or more than he did and kissing her made his blood sing. She was also quite special. He’d learned that about her in their weeks together. Lady Theodora Ballard was one of a kind.
Ewan could only hope her father didn’t bungle the announcement so profoundly that she set her cap against marrying him entirely. Because once that happened, there was little chance she’d ever change her mind.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
