Page 66 of The Lady Was Lying
Her heart stopped. How could he be sure? How could she be sure? “If you ask, I’ll say no. Please spare us both the misery.”
She spun on her heel and stormed away. Out of the library. Up the stairs. Into her bedchamber.
He didn’t follow.
He couldn’t follow.
Even if he’d been willing to break his own rules of propriety, Sebastian would never let him into her bedchamber. Knowing he was unable to pursue her was cold comfort because, although she didn’t deserve to have him chase after her, a part of her wished he would.
“I’m sorry,” Greydon said after Belinda had disappeared and the two men were alone.
“Sorry?” James asked, staring through the empty doorway, his mind spinning.
How had everything gone so wrong?
And what did Greydon have to be sorry about?
“Belinda asked me to keep her away from you, and I failed. I didn’t take her warning seriously enough, and I wasn’t available to perform proper chaperonage.” He sighed. “I’m never where I need to be when I need to be there.”
Between Belinda’s reaction to his almost proposal and Greydon’s apparent guilt, James wanted to pound his head against the wall. It would be far easier and much less frustrating.
“What do you think happened here?” he asked, his teeth tightly clenched.
“I can’t begin to guess. Belinda is complicated. When I first brought her to London for her debut, I assumed she was like our mother, but I soon found that they could not be more different. Their actions are similar, but their reasons are decidedly not. Over the years, I’ve attempted to understand, but I obviously haven’t succeeded. In many ways, Belinda is as much a mystery now as she was then.”
James did not have enough information about her mother and her past to comprehend exactly what Greydon meant.
“Belinda is fiercely loyal and protective of everyone except for herself.” Greydon sighed again. “She’s been different since the ball. More agitated. Less content. I thought it was just bad memories resurfacing, but now, I think it might have been you.”
James had been increasingly tangled up in her since the night they met, so it stood to reason that she felt the same. “I like Belinda, and contrary to what you just witnessed, she likes me too. This thing between us started at Jane’s debut, before we were formally introduced, and while she might not be willing yet, I will convince her to marry me eventually.”
Greydon’s eyes widened. “You’re serious. You truly want to marry Belinda.”
“Quite serious.”
“That is…not what I expected. Hell. I promised Belinda she never had to marry, and I was truly convinced she never would. I won’t go back on my word. The only way you’ll earn my blessing is if she tells me that she has changed her mind.”
“Understood. It isn’t like I plan on forcing her.” He wasn’t even sure if it was possible. “I’ll wait as long as necessary for her to choose me.”
“As long as necessary.” Sebastian pinched his nose. “I appreciate your earnestness. It’s heartening and sweet. I do, however, feel as if I should warn you. Belinda is exceedingly stubborn, and when she digs her heels in, it’s almost impossible to get her to relent.”
James tried to seem like he wasn’t worried. Just because he had no idea how he’d change her mind didn’t mean he wouldn’t figure it out. “It might take me some time to convince her.”
“Would you like my advice?” Sebastian asked slowly.
James wasn’t in a position to decline help when it was offered. “If you think it’ll be useful.”
“Maybe it will. Maybe it won’t. But if you truly want to marry her, you’ll need a strategy that allows her to say yes without having to actually say yes. I’m not suggesting you should trick her or attempt anything underhanded, because she might be hard pressed to forgive you if you did. But the only way you’re going to get her agreement is if you convince her that you want to marry her without making her return the sentiment.”
“That is…not particularly helpful.”
“Sorry.” Sebastian shrugged. “I told you that I’ve never quite understood her. It’s easy to make assumptions about Belinda, and whether it’s intentional or not, she has a tendency to feed incorrect theories rather than deny them. You’ll have to pay as much attention to what she does as what she says.”
James nodded. He had certainly made assumptions about her when they first met. Her behavior hadn’t been what he expected from an unmarried woman, and he’d assumed that anyone so forward was not the sort of woman he’d choose to be his wife. It had taken far longer than it should have for him to realize that she was exactly what he wanted. Now all he had to do was convince her that he was right for her.
He was reasonably intelligent.
Surely he could devise a plan to win her trust.
