Page 94 of Gabriela and His Grace

“Hmph.” And with that, the viscountess looped her arm around Ana María’s and they quit the room.

The air seemed to grow thick and taut in the women’s absence, and Gabby curled her hands around the chairback to keep them from shaking. She also pressed her tongue to the roof of her mouth so she wouldn’t nervously blurt out nonsense to fill the awkward silence. Sebastian had followed her to London to speak with her, so she would let him speak.

The duke walked to the unlit fireplace, where he gripped the mantel and stared into the hearth. His shoulders were tense, his jaw like granite. At one time, Gabby would have thought him angry, but she knew him better now. He was uncomfortable. Good. She was uncomfortable, too.

After another quiet moment, Sebastian raked his fingers through his hair and pivoted to face her. “The boys are my brothers.”

Gabby inhaled sharply. It was just as the viscountess had said. A bright beam of relief pierced through her chest, but she refused to let it warm her.

Sebastian paced back and forth before the fireplace. “I only learned of James and David some eleven or so months ago, and managed to track them down to an orphanage in Dover. Their mother had placed them there after my father died and the checks stopped arriving.”

She clamped her eyes closed. Those poor boys. “How long were they there?” Gabby finally asked.

“Several years.” Sebastian’s throat bobbed. “Long enough for James to become a bit jaded. He’s fiercely protective of his younger brother, and it’s taken me time to earn his trust. I’ve been…protective of him in turn.”

His eyes shined like aquamarines, and Gabby could understand his apprehension. Wouldn’t she battle La Lechuza with her bare hands if it meant to harm her sisters?

“I’m sure getting to know each other has been a slow process.” Gabby thought of Ana María and Isabel, and how they didn’t have a relationship until they were sent to England. Forming their sisterly bonds had created the most fulfilling friendships of her life, but it had not been easy. Gabby couldn’t imagine doing it with two small, scared boys.

“It has been,” Sebastian agreed, glancing down at his feet. “If I hadn’t already had my trip to Mexico planned, I never would have left them.”

But he had, and the trip had changed everything about their relationship with each other. Gabby could never be sorry for it, even if her trust had now been broken.

“Were you ever going to tell me?”

She hated how her voice cracked.

“Of course.” Sebastian took a step toward her, his hand outstretched. He stumbled to a halt, his expression stricken. His arm fell to his side with a thud. “I had every intention of introducing you to the boys. They’ve asked frequently to meet you, especially David.”

Gabby pressed her lips together to keep from smiling.

“It just never seemed like the right time. I wanted you to have an opportunity to adjust to life at the manor.” His shoulders fell on a sigh. “I know you were hesitant to marry me, so I didn’t want to give you a reason to leave.”

Would the news have changed the way Gabby viewed him? Would it have confirmed the fears she once possessed about Sebastian and his rakish past?

The truth must have shown in her eyes, because Sebastian ran a hand across his forehead. “I had hoped that after we’d been married for a spell, perhaps your feelings for me would soften any ire you felt when you learned the truth.”

She froze, static filling her ears. “You thought if I fell in love with you, I wouldn’t feel betrayed that you lied to me?”

Sebastian’s mouth opened and closed. “I suppose…yes.”

“Well, you pompous idiot, I fell in love with you a long time ago, and I’m still livid you kept the truth from me!”

The room was as quiet and still as a tomb. Gabby couldn’t believe she had said such a thing, especially because she didn’t realize how much she loved him until the moment the words flew from her mouth.

“Ella,” Sebastian whispered. He advanced a step but paused, a bit breathless. “I love you, too.”

Tears clouded her vision, her chest so full it ached. Gabby mercilessly blinked them away. “You do?”

“Of course I do. How could I not?” Sebastian wandered closer, his blue, blue eyes glassy. “You’re the smartest, kindest, most stunning woman I have ever known. There is a smile on my lips when I awake at the simple promise I’ll see you. Hear your laugh. Exchange verbal barbs with you.”

Gabby pressed a hand to her mouth to hide how her lips trembled.

“I told myself that just being married to you would be enough. I didn’t need you to love me because I had enough love for the both of us.” He shrugged. “Because even living in the shadow of your smile would have sustained me.”

Sebastian loved her. It seemed so surprising, but hadn’t he shown her, in ways big and small, that she was precious to him?

Ignoring the tears that trailed down her cheeks, Gabby threw her arms wide. “Why then did you lie to me? You can’t love someone if you don’t respect them, and you disrespected me when you withheld the truth. When you made me feel like an outsider in my new home.”