Page 59 of The Gentleman Was Right
He hadn’t saved her.
Nor had he given her freedom.
He had ensnared her.
If he hadn’t been so determined to marry her, he would have asked more questions. If he hadn’t been so stubborn when Sebastian offered to help, he would have discovered the truth well before the wedding, instead of the morning after. He’d been so eager to marry her that he’d ignored both common sense and good advice.
He had failed Violet, fully and completely.
“How was it for her own good?” he asked, trying to cool his temper.
“I already told you. I made a promise to her father—a man who was like a father tome.” Basil tapped the ledger against his thigh and mumbled, “I thought that eventually she’d get over being mad, and things would return to the way they were.” He tugged on his hair with his free hand. “She loves me.”
“Shelovedyou,” Edward said between clenched teeth. If there was one thing he was certain of, it was that she no longer had any warm feelings for her former betrothed.
Basil smirked, but it didn’t quite manage to mask the pain that flared in his eyes.
“Violet was being needlessly difficult by claiming she wouldn’t marry me, and I thought that deep down she still wanted to. I see now that I made a mistake—or mistakes—but at the time, my actions seemed prudent.” His gaze narrowed. “It isn’t as if you can judge. You obviously know how enchanting Violet can be. You married her while grasping nothing about her situation. You know as well as I do, that while at first glance she’s unassuming, once you get to know her, she’s rather lovely.” He tucked the ledger into the folds of his cloak. “There’s just something special about her.” He shook his head. “I don’t have time to continue discussing this. I must be on my way.” He took a step and then paused. “Word of advice, now that you’re married. Do not dally with other women. Violet will be more than displeased, and she isnotthe forgiving type.”
Basil ambled across the room, pulled open the door, and disappeared into the hallway.
Edward could have chased after him, but he didn’t bother. Instead, he slumped against the desk. In the span of an hour, everything had gone sideways. He had awoken happy and eager to see his wife again, but now instead of anticipating it, he was uneasy.
How could he tell her that their marriage had been unnecessary?
Would knowing alter their future?
They couldn’t reverse time.
Theyweremarried. For better or worse.
But he couldn’t help wishing thatworsehadn’t occurred the day after they wed.
Unfortunately, wishing wouldn’t change anything. He left the study, made himself as presentable as possible, grabbed the remaining scones, and exited the house.
On the carriage ride to his brother’s, he thought of nothing except how he could tell Violet the truth without dooming their future. By the time he alighted, he hadn’t made any decisions, but he’d made a single vow.
He would do whatever necessary to prevent Basil’s lies from poisoning his marriage.
ChapterEighteen
When the butler escorted Violet into the morning room at the Earl of Greydon’s townhouse, she found her sister sitting next to Belinda and enjoying a lavish spread. Emmeline, Jane, and Louisa were on the opposite side of the table, and all but Louisa—whose nose was buried in a book—turned in Violet’s direction as the butler announced her presence and then quietly withdrew.
Emmeline stood and greeted Violet before asking, “Edward is not with you?”
“He was not up yet when I left,” she replied. It wasn’t until the words left her mouth that she realized how odd it was that her new husband wasn’t at her side. She had been so singularly focused on her panic that she hadn’t considered the fact that they had only married yesterday, and she was visitinghisfamily.
“It is a rainy and dreary morning,” she added, as if that somehow made it less strange that she was there without him.
“And Edward was too weary to rise and join you?” Belinda’s lips curved slightly upward as she spoke, but Violet refused to blush at the subtle insinuation that she had tired him out.
“Uh…not at all. I’m simply an early riser and wanted to collect Isabelle as soon as possible.”
Isabelle’s brows drew together. “Did it not go well when you returned home? Did Basil make a scene? Did he refuse to leave?” Her knuckles turned white around the spoon in her hand. “I shouldn’t have stayed here last night. I should have gone with you. What are we going to do now?”
“Hush.” The obvious concern in her sister’s voice settled something inside Violet. No matter what happened in her life, her relationship with her sister remained unchanged. “I did not mean to alarm you. Basil left without a fight. He was astonished to discover that I had married, but he didn’t argue with me. Nor did he try to remain after I told him he needed to go.”
“If he left without complaint, and he’s gone now, why are you so frazzled? I expected you’d feel a measure of relief to be rid of him and assumed you’d want to bask in your success. For the first time in months, I thought you’d be relaxed…maybe even happy.”
