“What did you three talk about?” Kitty asked.
“Most of the conversation had to do with Jackson,” Lilly replied. “Most of what I talk about has to do with Jackson. I can’t help it. He’s a big part of my life.”
“Which he should be,” Kitty said. “You went through a lot to have him, and he’s adorable.”
“All of this is making me impatient to have my child,” Emilia commented.
“Your little one will be here before you know it,” Lilly said. “Why, look at how old Jackson is already. And he’s grown so big in such a short amount of time.” Her gaze went to Kitty. “Whether you decide to make your marriage to Aaron real or not, I feel obliged to thank you. It’s nice to not feel a sense of dread when Aaron comes over to visit Roger. I never told Roger this, but I felt uncomfortable whenever he was around.”
“I’m glad Benjamin’s uncle never had any bad experiences with a lady,” Emilia added. “It would be terrible to know someone you were close to had a friend, or family member, who didn’t trust you.” She gave Kitty a sly smile. “Speaking of Benjamin’s uncle, did you happen to talk to Miss Britcher recently?”
Kitty shook her head. “I haven’t been by to see her and her family in a week. Is she all right?”
“She’s fine,” Emilia replied. “In fact, she’s more than fine. It seems that Michael’s taken an interest in her.”
Kitty blinked in surprise. “He has?”
“He didn’t say anything directly to me about it, but Benjamin said his uncle has been paying her and her family a visit every day since he first went to see how they were doing. Yesterday, Benjamin even told me that his uncle bought some flowers that were her favorite color.”
Lilly gasped. “Why didn’t you tell us this sooner?”
“We were busy talking about Jackson and what I could expect when it came time to have my little one,” Emilia told her. “I didn’t want to interrupt you.”
Kitty was still having trouble understanding what Emilia just said. “Are you saying that Michael is Gretchen’s suitor?”
“Benjamin hasn’t come out and said it in so many words, but his uncle talks about her quite a bit,” Emilia replied.
“I think that’s sweet,” Lilly said.
Now that Kitty’s shock was beginning to wear off, she was able to say, “Gretchen never expected to get married. Are you saying that Michael might marry her?”
“No one has discussed marriage yet,” Emilia replied, “but Michael isn’t spending a lot of time with her because he only wants a companion. He has plenty of friends.”
Perhaps Kitty should pay Gretchen a visit soon. She needed to find out what Gretchen thought for herself, if Gretchen would be inclined to share such personal information with her.
Jackson cooed in her arms, and Kitty directed her attention back to him. At once, she forgot all about Gretchen. She smiled at the child. Maybe, someday, she would hold her own baby, and if that happened, she would be assured that Aaron would raise the child with her, rather than taking the baby and running off with him. Lilly was right about Aaron. He was different now. That was nice. He was making a genuine effort to see her for who she truly was. And that meant that there just might be hope for a future with her own child in it.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Aaron was sorting through the books in his library when the footman told him he had a visitor. His first thought was that Kitty had decided to stop by to see him, and he was surprised by the spark of excitement that coursed through him. Yes, he had enjoyed spending time with her lately, but he hadn’t realized how much he looked forward to seeing her until this moment.
Unfortunately, the footman went on to say, “It’s Lord Halloway.”
Doing his best to hide his disappointment, Aaron reluctantly allowed the footman to bring Kitty’s brother into the room. He really didn’t want to talk to him, but since he was her brother, he felt an obligation to be civil, even if she didn’t like him any more than he did.
Aaron went to the desk and straightened the four books he thought Teddy might like Kitty to read to him. He was planning to give them to her within the hour when he was due to see her.
He lifted his gaze to the doorway as he heard footsteps approach.
“I’d offer you something to drink, but I see no reason to pretend we have a cordial relationship,” Aaron told Lord Halloway.
“Are you still upset that I arranged a marriage between you and my sister?” the gentleman asked.
“Actually, I’m not. I just don’t like being around deceptive people.”
Lord Halloway put his hand on his chest as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “I didn’t deceive you. I followed through with our wager. I gave you the twenty thousand pounds I owed you.”
It was on the tip of Aaron’s tongue to point out that marriage had never factored into the wager, but why waste his time? Some people couldn’t be reasoned with, and Lord Halloway was one of them. “What do you want?”
“Who says I want anything?”
“You came over here to see me.”
“Did I come here to see you, or did I come to see the pretty decoration you acquired on your wedding day?”
Aaron decided to ignore the amused tone in his voice. “What do you want, Lord Halloway?”
“You don’t have to be rude. I, myself, was being polite. However, since you’re not interested in having a pleasant conversation, I will get to the point.” He paused for a moment then asked, “Where is your wife?”
“Not in this room.”
“Is she in this townhouse?”
“Why do you care?” Aaron asked. “You married her to someone you hardly knew, and until today, you haven’t bothered to apologize or see how she’s doing.”
“Well, I’m here now. Maybe I came by to apologize and see how she’s doing.”
Aaron studied him. Lord Halloway hadn’t come here to do either of that. He was treating Aaron like a cat would treat a mouse. He was playing with him. “I might have fallen for your lies before, but I’m not going to make that mistake again. If you want to keep up this ridiculous charade, you can do it with someone else.”
He went over to pull the cord that would summon the footman when Lord Halloway said, “My sister was part of the wager. She went with the money. Rumor has it that she’s no longer living in this townhouse.”
“What does that matter to you?” Aaron demanded as he turned to him.
“It matters a lot since that was her dowry.”
“It was her dowry. It wasn’t yours.”
“Yes, but she was my sister, and I gave her to you. When you got her, you got her dowry. You can’t just throw her out of this townhouse and keep the money.”
“I didn’t do that,” Aaron said. “She went with the dowry.”
Her brother stared at him for a long moment as if he couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. “You sent her away from here with the money?”
“It was her choice to leave, and yes, I let her go with her money.”
“Why would you do something foolish like that?”
“I did it because it was the right thing to do. She didn’t ask to be married to me. All you wanted was to get rid of her. You didn’t care about her.”
“You didn’t, either.”
The words stung, but Aaron refused to flinch. Lord Halloway was the type of person who took advantage of someone’s weakness, and if he detected Aaron’s guilt, he would use that to his advantage. Keeping his expression neutral, he said, “She deserves that money. She didn’t need to be passed around for someone else’s convenience. She should be free to do what she wants.”
“I’ve never heard of anything so ridiculous in my entire life. Have you lost your senses?”
“She’s not a decorative piece of furniture. She’s a person with thoughts and feelings. It’s to our detriment that we didn’t take the time to acknowledge that when we should have. Is there anything else you came here to discuss?”
“I wan
t that money back.”
“I don’t have it.”
“Then give me the money from your account.”
Aaron rolled his eyes. “This discussion is over.”
“You were supposed to keep her under your roof. You were supposed to feed and clothe her like I did. That’s your job as her husband. Since you got rid of her, you owe me that money back.”
“The money isn’t yours and it isn’t mine,” Aaron replied. “It’s hers.” He went to the cord and pulled it. “We have nothing else to say to each other.”
Lord Halloway studied him for another moment. Aaron had no idea what he was searching for, but whatever it was, he didn’t find it since he shook his head. “No, I suppose we don’t, even though you’re bringing disgrace to her name.”
Aaron narrowed his eyes at him. “Are you worried about what people are saying?”
“Why shouldn’t I worry? That’s my sister they’re talking about. Some are even laughing about it.”
Ah, so that was it. Lord Halloway was afraid he’d end up being part of the gossip since everyone knew he had arranged the marriage.
“If they laugh, then it’s because you and I deserve it,” Aaron said. “That will teach both of us not to get into wagers in the future, won’t it?”
Lord Halloway glared at him.
The footman came to the room, and Aaron motioned to Lord Halloway. “Escort him to the front door.”
Aaron turned back to the books while the footman led Lord Halloway out of the room.
***
Kitty didn’t hide her surprise as Aaron set down the large stack of books on the desk in Emilia’s drawing room. “When you said you were going to bring over a few books, I had no idea you meant you’d bring half of your library here,” she commented.
He gave a playful roll of his eyes. “These wouldn’t even fill one shelf. You’ve seen how many books I have.”
“Yes, but I didn’t realize so many were for children. I assumed only a certain section of your library was from your childhood.”
“No, I have books all over those shelves. I have them sorted according to topic.”
“You do?” Why hadn’t she or Gretchen noticed that when they were sorting through his books?
“I have a section for funny ones, another for scary ones, another for the Christmas season, another for interesting people, another for interesting places…” He glanced at her. “I can’t even sum them all up. I never really gave it much thought. My grandfather was the one who started the whole thing. My father added to it, and when I find a new book I want, I bring it home to add to the collection. Some of my books go as far back as my great-great-grandfather’s generation.”
“That long?”
“We love books, and we never get rid of any we buy. You might find it hard to believe, but there are some books I have tucked away in the drawers of the desk.”
“You do?”
“These two were in one of them.” He tapped two of them. “These are all different myths from various parts of the world. They’re similar to fables, and they’re short. I think Teddy might enjoy them.”
She took another good look at the twenty-four books he and his coachman had brought in when they arrived here. She hadn’t noticed it at first, but she now realized that some were faded with time. They were all, however, in good condition, which was proof that he took care of things that mattered to him.
“If any of these have sentimental value, it might be better to keep them at your townhouse instead of letting me borrow them,” she said.
“I trust you to be careful.”
“While I appreciate that, anything could happen. What if it’s raining on one of the days I go to visit Gretchen and her family, and I trip because the ground is slippery? The book could fall right out of my hands and end up all wet.”
“I doubt that would happen, but if it did, I’d know it was an accident.”
She studied him for a moment and was touched by the sincerity in his expression. After a moment, her gaze went back to the stack of books in front of her. While he was coming by every day to pay her a visit that lasted anywhere from one to three hours, she was beginning to understand that he was taking his time to prove himself to her. He was slow to trust others. Because of that, he expected her to be slow to trust him. And that told her he truly felt bad for the way he’d treated her.
He had not only given her the dowry, but he was willing to let her stay with her friend, or even get her own townhouse, for as long as she wanted. He wasn’t going to push her. He was letting her do what she wanted, and he wasn’t going to ask anything from her that she wasn’t willing to give him.
What a welcoming contrast this was to the person she had married. Someone like this could very well make a pleasant husband.
Emilia hurried into the room with an excited look on her face. “I hate to interrupt you two, but Benjamin just told me something that I need to tell you right away.”
Noting that Emilia directed the statement to her, Kitty glanced at Aaron. “Should I ask Aaron to leave the room?”
“No, I don’t think so. Soon everyone will know anyway,” Emilia said.
“Know what?” Kitty asked, surprised that this news should be so wonderful that her friend was having trouble standing still.
“Benjamin’s uncle proposed to that lady who was chaperoning you!” Emilia exclaimed.
Kitty’s eyes grew wide, but it was Aaron who asked, “Mr. Stonewall is going to marry Miss Britcher?”
Emilia nodded. “Isn’t it romantic? The two didn’t expect their tasks to lead to a love match, but it turns out they get along beautifully.” She put her hands over her heart and let out a contented sigh. “It’s so perfect, if you think of it. Benjamin said his uncle was lonely. He has friends, of course, but it’s different from having someone you can love. I didn’t realize how much a husband could complete my life until I fell in love with Benjamin. I can’t wait to go to the wedding. It’s going to be such a festive occasion. I don’t know when the wedding will be yet. His uncle still needs to get a special license. Considering the difference in their status, he felt it best not to read the banns.”
Once she stopped speaking, a few seconds of awkward silence hung in the air. Aaron looked as overwhelmed as Kitty felt.
Kitty cleared her throat. “It’s wonderful they get along so well.”
Who would have thought something like this was going to happen when Kitty enlisted Michael’s help? But it was good for Gretchen. Gretchen had never mentioned wanting to get married, but Michael would make her a good husband, and he would give her and her family a much better place to live than the one they currently lived in.
“I know Michael wasn’t planning to meet someone he’d end up marrying when he agreed to help you,” Emilia told Kitty. “Who knows? Maybe this was all meant to be. Well, I’ll leave you two to your visit.”
After she left the room, Aaron turned his attention back to Kitty. “I never expected Miss Britcher to marry anyone. She was intimidating every time I was around her.”
Kitty laughed. “You found her intimidating?”
“Didn’t you?” he asked in surprise.
“No. I thought she was grumpy at first, but then she grew more pleasant as time went on.”
He shook his head. “She never seemed pleasant to me. I had the feeling she was strict all the time. That’s why I hired her. I figured she, of all people, made for a perfect chaperone. But I never did enjoy being around her.”
“I’m shocked to hear that since she took your side so often.” Though, now that Kitty thought of it, Gretchen had stopped doing that after she met Hattie and Teddy.
“She might have taken my side on things, but I don’t think she ever cared for me. I didn’t hire her to like me, though.” He paused then added, “How did she not intimidate you?”
“I don’t know. She just didn’t. Maybe it was because I was angry.”
“No one can blame you for being angry. I was angry when you hire
d Mr. Stonewall. I always wondered why he refused to let me pay him so he’d go away. Now I know it was because he is far wealthier than I am. What was the use of taking a paltry sum of money?”
“He did it as a favor to Benjamin. He’ll do anything for his nephew. Emilia explained the situation to Benjamin, and he went to his uncle about it. Money wasn’t important to him.”
Aaron rolled his eyes but smiled. “I paid Miss Britcher a good sum of money for her services. She charged me more since she had to stay in the same bedchamber as you. Even before I agreed to hire her, she told me she thought I was being overly cautious about everything. As I think back on it, I agree with her. But at the time, I was so upset with your brother that I didn’t care.”
“Yes, I was upset with him, too.”
“Well, if nothing else, we have our mutual hatred of him in common,” Aaron said.
She hesitated to say anything, but finally decided to. “We have other things in common. We like to read, we like to walk through Hyde Park, and we enjoy looking at exotic animals. Despite our beginning, you’re turning out to be a pleasant companion.”
He smiled again, and there was something soft in his smile that made her heart give an unexpected flutter. Feeling unexpectedly shy, she turned her gaze to the books. “I should put these in my bedchamber. Will you help me? Afterward, we can go for a walk.”
He nodded, collected most of the books, and went with her up the stairs.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Kitty scanned the ballroom from where she sat by the edge of the room. Aaron said he would be coming this evening. Emilia and Benjamin had chosen to host this ball. They thought it would be a good way to slip Gretchen into polite society. They had decided not to say anything publicly about where Michael’s betrothed had come from.
If someone were to find out, Michael had said he wasn’t going to deny it. To him, it didn’t matter what her station in life had been before she met him. All that mattered was who she was. Not everyone would see it that way, but he didn’t care. He was more concerned with being happy. “What’s the use of impressing the Ton when you aren’t with someone you love?” he’d commented.
A Deceptive Wager Page 19
