Page 68 of Bittersweet Revenge

She sighed again. “I’m not sure.”

This evasive answer angered me, but I took a deep breath, trying to rein it in. Now was not the time nor place for a discussion that was bound to end in our usual fight.

As soon as we parked in the driveway, the door opened. Sophia Forbes stood by the door, beaming at Esmeralda.

It was quite a lack of decorum she was showing. I was sure she would be told off for it by her husband, but I didn’t think she really cared. There was much more life in her face than I’d ever seen before.

I couldn’t help but look at Esmeralda with fondness as she looked at her stepmother with a kind smile of her own. She really was impossible not to care for.

Esmeralda exited the car before I even had the chance to round the car and let her out. Then she ran up the stairs to meet and hug the other woman.They whispered things to each other, but they stopped as soon as I reached Esmeralda’s side.

Sophia looked at me. She’d always regarded me with her robotic emotionless smile and dead eyes; this time was different. It seemed Esmeralda had brought some life into her as she had in me.

“Please come. Archibald and William are already waiting in the dining room.”

As she walked a couple of steps ahead of us, I reached for Esmeralda’s hand as if it was second nature. I could lie to myself and say it was all for show, but it wasn’t. Touching her was becoming something of a reflex. And the way she immediately intertwined our fingers, squeezing my hand... I dared to hope it was the same forher.

“What did she tell you?” I whispered, leaning toward her.

“She said I looked happy and that she’d been right - you weren’t a terrible match after all.”

“Oh, did she, now? And what did you reply?”

She shrugged, but I could see the little teasing smile tucked at the side of her face. “I said you were not bad and hot enough to forgo your shortcomings.”

I chuckled. “Good to know that my hotness is giving me–”

“Isn’t that adorable?!” William exclaimed as we entered the room. Any joy Esmeralda might have felt, drained in a second. Her face turned paler, guarded, and wary. I didn’t like this look on her face, not when I couldn't control it at least.

She was just frozen, her hand gripping mine as if I was a lifeline.

“William, thank you for inviting us,” I offered when I realized she was not going to talk.

Archibald, who was standing behind William, threw Esmeralda a small smile before sending me a worried look.You and I both, brother.

I nudged her. “Isn’t that what you said before, sweetheart?” I leaned down and kissed the side of her face.

She looked at me, the worry fading a little. “Ah, yes, very nice.”

William looked at our hands. “Ah, are you worried she’ll escape again?” He laughed, but it was not humorous. It was cold and calculating as if he was trying to make me angry.

I chuckled. “She is free to go wherever she wants. She is my fiancée, not my prisoner. Although I presume that is a concept still mixed together for some people.”

William’s nostrils flared. Archie turned his head to hide his grin. One for Caleb. Zero for William.

“Very well.” He gestured to the table. “Let's take our seats.”

The starters were eaten in a very uncomfortable silence. The more it went on, the more Esmeralda tensed.

“So, Esmeralda, how is life in Brentwood?” Sophia started.

I felt grateful for her attempt to ease the atmosphere. It was not something I could do. I couldn't show that the tension bothered me and most of all, not on Esmeralda’s behalf. If I showed I cared more than what I was supposed to, William, and consequently my father, would have a new pressure point against me.

Esmeralda sighed with relief. “It’s okay. I like this school. The classes are really challenging.”

William snorted. “Anything would be better than the popper school you used to attend. It was a simulacrum of education, set to create failures. Why don’t you two speak about dresses and make-up. It’s what you’re experts on, aren’t you?”

“Actually, Esmeralda is doing very well. She is in the top percentile of the class,” Archie intervened. It was his first mistake of the night, although I suspected not his last.

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