Rowen tilted his head, thinking. “True. I guess I never thought on the matter as she is so set on being a spinster. But she is so…rigid.”
“She does not bother to show her beauty off. She would prefer everyone to be looking at her sister.”
Rowen frowned at him. “But why? After all these many years, you have done nothing but dance away from the merest thought of marriage. You have been running at breakneck speed from one place to the next for the last seven years. So why her? Why now?” Rowen stopped, clearing his throat, his voice going low. “You should know that Brianna can be…controlling. It is in her nature.”
“I am aware.”
“So why her?”
“You will think me fanciful.”
“Fanciful?” Rowen scoffed a chuckle. “The word has never even been bandied near you, much less been attached to you. I have known you for too long, my friend, to ever think you fanciful.”
Sebastian pushed himself from the desk, standing straight. “Do you recall that time, a bit more than a year ago, when we talked of marriage, talked of women, and I told you I would know her when I saw her—the woman that is meant for me? Just like I do with the horses—I know the best ones when I see them?”
“Yes. I recall.”
“It was merely bravado at the time. Putting off any discussion on the matter.” Sebastian’s words slowed with unyielding disbelief. “But then it happened. Out of nowhere. It happened. When I saw Brianna at that ball in London, even from across the room, I knew it. I knew it instantly, and I almost did not believe it myself. It is why I hovered about for weeks there. I was trying to convince myself it was not true.”
Sebastian shrugged, shaking his head. “But she is it. I want her, Rowe—no doubt in my mind. She is it. She is the one.”
“When were you planning to tell me?”
“Eventually.”
“So you have been scheming this? Scheming to trap her?”
“No. I had planned to woo her properly here at Notlund. I realized quite early that she has erected a fortress around herself like no other. So it would take time. Time that I would not be afforded in a London ballroom—but time I would be afforded here at Notlund.” Sebastian smiled. “But then fate decided to intervene today. And I could not let the opportunity pass by. I had truly only stopped to talk to her, but then Wynne appeared.”
Rowen gave another low whistle and then drained his glass. He shook his head, grabbing Sebastian’s glass from his hand and then drained that one as well.
“Anyone but you, Seb, I would have deposited with a broken jaw onto the front lawn.” Rowen sighed. “But if this is what you want, you know I am not one to ignore fate. You should know, however, that Brianna has become dear to me, and you had best not wreck her. Do remember, a broken jaw can be delivered at any moment.”
“I will remember.”
Rowen’s head tilted to the door. “Shall we enter the fray in the drawing room? Best to get this done as quickly as possible.”
~~~
All that time spent.
She had never once let her sister out of her sight in London.
It had taken the utmost vigilance, keeping Lily’s reputation above reproach. Keeping Lily free from the grasp of any scoundrel. Not letting her fall prey to an unscrupulous snare. Sequestering her from anyone with the slightest notion to besmirch her reputation.
All that time.
All that time and Brianna hadn’t recognized that very thing coming for her. Hadn’t seen the importance of protecting herself with the same vigilance. Hadn’t seen her own reputation as valuable.
Hadn’t understood any of it, until the very moment she saw Lady Newdale’s face by the riverbank.
The judgement. The scorn. The destruction of everything she had worked so hard to give Lily.
Brianna yanked a fresh shift over her head.
Lord Luhaunt. The complete and utter ass. He had set her up. And she had fallen for it.
Want her indeed.
The man wanted nothing more than to ruin her reputation, watch Lily’s suitors beg off, and then ease himself right along a cleared path to Lily. For who else would want the sister of an openly ruined woman? No respectable man, that was obvious.
Not bothering to wait for the maid that she knew would eventually appear to help her, Brianna pulled a mud-brown dress from the wardrobe, slipping into it. The muslin dress had short, capped sleeves, perfect for the hot day—but a high neckline, not so perfect for the hot day.
Damn the hot day.
She was so stupid. Idiotic not to see this coming. Not to see the plotting of the earl. He had said he had a strategy here at Notlund, and she had taken his words far too lightly. She wouldn’t be surprised if the man had invited the group to that very spot to catch them.
What had she been thinking, going for a blasted dip in the river? Nearly naked for all the world to see. All she had wanted was to not have to think for one moment. One blasted moment of reprieve. One moment in the water. A moment in the middle of everything speeding around her so her mind could sit still. One moment when she wasn’t worried about absolutely everything.
“So very easy to fool, you little wench—your simple brain is not large enough to think beyond what is in the mirror.”
Fingers tightening around her slippers, Brianna’s eyes shut tight, forcing sneered words from long ago gone—banishing them as they ruthlessly tried to take over her mind.
She sank to her bed, her body gone to jelly. Long seconds passed before she could lift her feet high enough to slide on her slippers.
If only her father were still alive. If only he hadn’t counted on her finishing what he had started. If only she could tell Lily the truth. If only she could take back what she had done to her sister.
If only.
Her sudden tornado of wallowing complete, Brianna took a deep breath and gave herself a slight shake, popping to her feet and straightening her spine.
All of those “if onlys” were not possible, so she needed to not dwell.
She needed to harden.
She needed to go down to the drawing room and devise a way for her reputation to not be so fully shattered that Lily lost all three of her suitors. And the longer Brianna stayed hiding away in her room, the guiltier she looked.
She went over to the mirror, quickly pulling her hair into a tight knot. Adjusting the lace that curved up her neck, she sighed. She had chosen the dourest dress she owned, and she hoped she looked enough the unmarriageable spinster that no one could question her innocence in the scene by the stream.
Her slippers soft on the stone floor, she silently made her way through the ancient castle’s halls. Approaching the Celeste drawing room, she slowed. She could already hear the awkward murmurs from within.
A deep breath, and she turned the corner, walking into the elegant room.
Wynne was cloistered with Lady Newdale on the settee, and Brianna could see she was trying to placate the woman as best she could. Lily, still in her prettiest mauve riding habit, stood next to the duke and Lord Newdale by the fireplace.
Lily’s eyes kept jumping nervously from Lord Newdale to his mother. Lord Newdale wouldn’t be the problem—Brianna had already seen that by the stream. Newdale found the situation amusing, nothing more dire than a discreet summer dalliance near the water.
His mother was a completely different matter, and in all the information Brianna had gathered about their family, Lady Newdale ruled her clan with a harsh fist. She was the one that would allow or break any sort of relationship between Lily and Lord Newdale.
Brianna could not blame Lady Newdale for her harsh judgement. The woman had two other daughters she needed to marry off. And if she had any chance of that, she needed a proper match for her son. Not one attached to scandal.
And then there was the last person in the room—the one Brianna had purposefully avoided looking at. Her eyes flashed to Lord Luhaunt. He was opposite her, standing by himself near the wide windows that looked out over th
e newly planted gardens on the east side of the castle.
He was the only one that had noticed her enter the room, and the side of his mouth lifted when her eyes met his. Not a smirk. More of a comforting, everything-will-be-fine half smile. Even apologetic.
She almost believed it.
The man had a strategy, she had to remember. He most certainly was not an ally.
Brianna gave a small cough. Instant silence fell upon the room, all eyes landing on her.
Her throat went dry. How did one even begin a discussion such as this? How to explain the innocence of what was seen?
“Brianna, thank you for your haste in joining us.” The duke stepped forward, saving her from bumbling words. “I understand there was an incident by the eastern stream?”
Brianna nodded. She was not about to hide from the truth. “It is true. I had stopped—”
“I would not call it an ‘incident,’ your grace.” Lady Newdale pushed herself between Brianna and the duke. “Indecent is a much more appropriate term for what we witnessed. Your charge, naked with this man.” Her forefinger flew out at Lord Luhaunt.
“Come now, Lady Newdale, we must not rush to conclusions,” the duke said. “Your accusations skirt a fine line upon destroying both Miss Silverton and Lord Luhaunt’s honor.”
“Do not patronize me, your grace. I am far too old for that nonsense.” Lady Newdale’s fists went to her hips. “I know very well what I saw, your grace. We all know what we saw. It cannot be overlooked. I cannot allow my son to be involved with your charge, if this is the type of nonsense you allow. Repercussions must be applied after what we witnessed. And if you will not do so, I will see to it myself—one way or another.”
The duke’s jaw visibly flexed. “Lady Newdale, as you are a guest in my home, I say this as politely as possible…do not dare to threaten my charges.”
Lady Newdale’s jaw clamped shut, her breath seething through flared nostrils.
“This is a matter that is best discussed with the primary parties,” the duke said. “I am sure the resolution will sufficiently assuage your morals, Lady Newdale. To that end, I would appreciate you and your son to take your leave.” His eyes did not leave Lady Newdale. “Lily, please excuse yourself as well.”
Lady Newdale spun with an exaggerated sigh, stomping out of the room. Her son silently followed.
The duke’s eyes swung to Lily, still standing by the fireplace. “Lily?”
“But I need to stay,” Lily said, her hands wringing. “Brianna does not know the damage she has done.”
“I am sure Brianna grasps the seriousness of the situation, Lily. And you have too much at stake. Wynne will stay, if it helps your concerns.”
Lily’s eyes dropped from the duke to Brianna. The sheer disappointment in Lily’s eyes cut straight through Brianna’s pounding heart.
Her head bowing, Lily turned, disappearing out of the room.
The door closed, and aside from the shuffle of Wynne moving from the settee to stand next to her husband, the silence thickened in the room. Lord Luhaunt stayed in his place by the window, oddly silent.
Wynne cleared her throat, clasping her hands together. “I am aware that I am the American in the room, so I understand the nuances of this the least, but we have a very dire situation here, do we not?”
“To put it mildly, yes,” the duke said.
“Thank you for handling Lady Newdale, your grace,” Brianna said. “I appreciate your words. And I do appreciate the awkward position this has caused everyone. But truly, you must believe me—what happened by the stream is of no concern. I was hot and I waded into the water, and Lord Luhaunt happened upon me. I had my shift on the entire time. I was extracting myself from the situation when Wynne and the rest of the party happened upon us. There was no misconduct.”
“You can remove the worry from your face, Brianna. I do believe you,” the duke said. “Seb has also assured me of the innocence of the situation.”
Relief flooded Brianna. The last thing she wanted was the duke and duchess to think her wanton. Now they could go about fixing this. “Is there any way out of this that will ensure the mishap does not taint Lily’s marriage options?”
Brianna watched as a deep frown set onto Wynne’s face as she looked from Brianna up to her husband.
“What? What is it?” Brianna asked.
“They have to get married, do they not?” Wynne asked.
The duke heaved a sigh, nodding.
“What? No.” Brianna took several steps backwards, hands up in front of her, waving. “No—no, no, no. I was hoping for suggestions to help clear the situation. Not a marriage. No.”
“Brianna, a marriage is the only thing that will clear you of this.” The duke’s face was gentle empathy. “Scandal is sure to attach itself to you, no matter what. There is nothing we can do about that. The best we can do is to mitigate the scandal with a marriage. There will be chatter, but a full scandal will not haunt you. Will not haunt your sister and her prospects.”
“But…but only we know,” Brianna stuttered. “We cannot control this? There must be something we can do. We are just not thinking hard enough.”
The duke shook his head. “If it were just the four of us in this room—all would be well. But it is not. Both Lord Newdale and his mother saw you—to be blunt—near to naked with Lord Luhaunt. There is no avoiding the scandal. A marriage is the only way we can save your reputation and quiet the scandal before it can harm your sister. If you were thinking…objectively, you would already know this. Seb has already agreed to the marriage.”
“He what? He has?” Mouth agape, Brianna’s head swung to Lord Luhaunt. He gave her a slight nod, the same half smile from earlier on his face. She whipped back to the duke. “Well, I will not. Absolutely not. I will take the scandal fully, then. I will not marry him.”
The door to the drawing room crashed open.
“You will.” Lily stalked into the room, slamming the door closed behind her. “On all that is holy, Bree, you will marry him.”
Brianna’s hands flew up in front of her. “Lily, I know that would be easiest, but I will not—you know I cannot.”
Not slowing, Lily came at her, and Brianna thought for a moment that her sister was going strike her. But then Lily stopped, only a breath away.
“How could you do this to me, Bree? You know I am hoping for a proposal from Lord Newdale—but now his mother—how could you? He will never marry me if you do not do this.”
“Lily, this is my scandal, not yours. This need not affect you.”
“You know that is not true.”
Brianna looked desperately around the room for help.
None came.
Her eyes went back to Lily’s, a mirror of her own. “My reputation has nothing to do with you, Lily. I am sure after a few days, if I just disappear, Lady Newdale will forget everything that happened by the stream. I do not think Lord Newdale cares a whit about what happened—it is just his mother. So if I go away, you can continue on with him. It will be like it never happened.”
“Blast it, Brianna—she will not forget, and you know it.” Lily’s voice turned vicious. “You have ruined my life, Bree. Again. You have done it again.”
Brianna grabbed Lily’s arms, trying to get her to see reason. “I have not. This is an overreaction. All of it is. Your life is not ruined, and there is no need for me to marry.”
“How could you do this to me, Bree?” Lily’s vicious tone spun into desperation. “You promised—you swore you would make it up to me—and now this? I finally have a chance to be happy, and you rip it from me like this?”
“No, Lils, this is just a misunderstanding. It can still be fixed.”
“You owe me this, Bree. You owe me.”
Brianna’s hands dropped heavily from Lily’s arms.
Lily was right. She did owe her sister this.
Numb, she turned from Lily.
Not about to let her escape, Lily jumped in front of Brianna. “You will do it? You
will marry Lord Luhaunt? Tell me you will do it, Bree.”
Brianna could not look at her. Could not look at the duke or duchess. Could not look at Lord Luhaunt. Slowly, she nodded, her chin falling to her chest. “Yes.”
“Thank you.” The two words, and her sister flew back out the door.
The door quietly clicked closed.
“I would presume she is off to report the resolution to Lady Newdale?” Wynne asked in a whisper.
“I imagine.” The duke grabbed his wife’s hand, setting it in the crook of his elbow. “We should follow. There will be questions.”
Eyes on the patterned maroon edge of the rug covering the wood floor, Brianna listened as the footsteps of the duke and duchess exited the drawing room.
What had she just done?
What the hell had just happened?
When, in all of that, had she so completely lost control of everything?
A hand wrapping over her shoulder from behind made her jump, and she realized Lord Luhaunt was still in the room.
He had been silent through it all. So silent, she had forgotten he was even present.
For the merest second, there was something so kind, so comforting about his warm hand near her neck. But then Brianna revolted, stumbling out of his grasp.
“What do you think on that, Brianna? We are to be married.”
She turned to him, looking up, meeting his brown eyes.
His smile had widened, still soft, reassuring, but now there was a twinkle behind it.
If she didn’t know better, she would say the devil in his smile had planned this whole thing.
~~~
“You are shaking.”
Sebastian had seen it right in the middle of Brianna’s argument with her sister. Saw the moment Brianna had started to shake. The exact moment when she lost all control of the situation.
And she was still shaking.
She shrugged, twisting to avoid his hand going to her shoulder again. “I am not.”
“Look at your hands, Brianna.”
Her quivering hands came up as her eyes dropped to them. She held them suspended in the air, staring at them trembling for a long second.
Lord of Fates: A Complete Historical Regency Romance Series (3-Book Box Set) Page 33
