“Not much. She wanted to make sure you were all right and appeared relieved when I told her about your sprained ankle.”
“But she would have known about that if she’d read the letter Athena delivered.” He turned to Athena. “You handed it to Miss Quinn directly, did you not?”
A deep flush colored Athena’s cheeks. She shifted while biting her lip. “The shop was closed when I arrived and then Miss Starling turned up and—”
“Miss Starling?” Anthony pushed himself into a more upright position and leaned in Athena’s direction. “She was there? At the bookshop?”
Athena’s nod sent a chill down his spine. “We exchanged a few words. She mentioned being acquainted with Miss Quinn and offered to deliver the letter for me when I let it slip that I was late for tea with my friend. The traffic was abysmal – very slow going on Oxford Street in particular.”
“So just to be clear,” Anthony said, his words measured, “you gave the letter intended for Miss Quinn to Miss Starling instead?”
“With her assurance that she would give it to Miss Quinn so I wouldn’t have to wait. It was a kind offer on her part.”
“No, Athena. It was not.” Anthony muttered a curse beneath his breath and prayed for calm. “It’s my fault. I should have told you what Miss Starling is truly like so you’d know not to trust her. Still, I cannot believe you would pass your responsibilities on to someone else. This was important. What were you thinking?”
Athena wrung her hands. Her lower lip started to tremble and then a fat tear spilled onto her cheek. “I’m sorry. I made a mistake. Miss Starling is a respectable lady. What cause did I have to doubt her word?”
“None whatsoever,” Anthony admitted. He was truly starting to regret not confiding more in his sisters. If they’d only known of his problems and what they’d led to, this might not have happened. “I’ll have to visit Miss Quinn myself and explain the situation in person.”
“Before you do,” Penny said, “there’s something else you probably ought to know.”
“What?” he asked with mounting dread.
Penelope’s stiff expression wavered just enough to put him at risk of having an apoplectic fit. She sent her sister a hesitant glance before meeting his gaze, firming her lips, and saying, “When Miss Quinn came to call, she asked if what she’d heard was true – if you were indeed planning to marry.”
“How would she…” Confused by this new development, he stared at his sister. “I’ve not told her of my intentions toward her yet.”
“Right. I thought it odd too at the time, that she would be privy to something I’d only recently learned from Athena. But since Athena had mentioned the letter you’d asked her to give your intended and Miss Quinn appeared to be well informed, I told her she was correct.”
“And?” Anthony held his breath.
Penelope tilted her head. “She didn’t seem to take the news very well.”
Shit.
Anthony tossed his covers aside and pointed toward the bell pull. “Ring for Mathis. I’m going out. Right now.”
He clearly had a huge mess to clean up and it was past time he got started. Relying on others had just made things worse. Though that was a bit unfair since this massive misunderstanding might have been prevented if he’d not been so bloody secretive with everyone.
It was just that he’d wanted to ask for Ada’s hand first. He’d wanted her to be the one person he shared his intentions with, and he’d wanted her answer before he went about telling the world. What a muck-up this was. She was probably very upset at the moment and who could blame her? If she did believe he planned to marry, it could only be because Miss Starling had put that idea in her head, which meant Ada thought she was being tossed over.
Bloody hell. He could not get to that bookshop fast enough.
“I sent a footman to purchase this for you,” Mathis said, producing an elegant cane when Anthony mentioned his plan to leave the house. “It ought to take some of your weight off the ankle.”
“Thank you.” Anthony took the cane and tested it out. His ankle still ached, though not as badly as yesterday, and the cane did help. “Very thoughtful, I must say.”
After seeing him down the stairs, the butler brought him his gloves and hat.
“Would you like for us to come with you?” Athena asked as she and Penelope watched him get ready to leave.
“I think it’s best if I do this alone. But if Miss Starling stops by for some reason, do ask her to wait for my return.” He intended to give that horrid woman a sound telling off when he saw her next. How dare she meddle in his affairs with such brazen disregard for his or Ada’s feelings?
A footman escorted him to the carriage once it was brought around.
“The step has been fixed as per your request, Your Grace. It will hold your weight.”
“Thank you.” Anthony hoisted himself into the vehicle and knocked on the roof as soon as the door had been shut. As the horses pulled the carriage into motion, Anthony propped his sore ankle on the opposite bench and, with a groan, sank against the squabs.
