Page 88 of An Unwilling Earl
“I’d heard the rumors and wanted to see if they were true. I tried to hire him, you know. Your husband. I tried to hire him to find you. You ran off, and I was worried.”
“Worried? About me? I’m touched.”
“Freedom has obviously not been good for you, girl. You’re mouthy. If you were living with me I’d—”
“I know exactly what you would do, and that’s precisely why I’m not living with you.”
Charlotte blamed Jacob for giving her the courage to speak her mind to her aunt. Or maybe blame wasn’t the right word. Maybe credit would be a better word. Thanks to Jacob she finally had the fortitude to speak her mind.
Aunt Martha sniffed. “I see you have no respect for your elders. You never have.”
“Respect must be earned.”
The woman’s fingers folded into fists as if she wanted to strike Charlotte. And Charlotte, sensing her anger, braced herself for the strike.
The door opened, and Charlotte was never so glad to see Jacob in all of her life. He seemed to fill the doorway as he took in the scene.
“What’s happening here?” His voice was low and controlled, but Charlotte sensed the anger vibrating through him.
“Aunt Martha has come to call,” she said with a bright, forced smile.
His gaze flickered to her then back to her aunt as he entered the room.
“I see you’ve managed quite well,” Aunt Martha said to Jacob. “I asked you to find my niece, and not only did you find her, but you wed her.”
When Jacob pulled up a third chair and sat next to Charlotte she felt that she could finally breathe a bit easier. His presence made everything better.
“It seems you didn’t tell me the entire story of why Charlotte ran away,” he said.
Martha’s lips twitched. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“You said you had no idea why she would have run. Then later you said that she wasn’t quite right in the head.”
“Yes, well, you will find that out soon enough. The girl’s not right. Bad blood on her mother’s side.”
Charlotte clenched her fists in her lap as anger hurtled through her. But Jacob appeared calmer than ever as he studied Martha.
“Yes, I’ve heard about that. Marrying for love is such nonsense,” he said.
Charlotte looked at him quickly. What was the game he was playing?
“Marrying for love is so trite,” Martha said, shaking her head. “Such a shame. I wanted better for the girl.”
“The girl? You mean Charlotte?”
Martha sniffed and looked away.
“I think she did well enough,” he said.
“Caught herself an earl.”
Jacob leaned back and crossed his ankle on top of his knee to rest his wrist on it. “Tell me, Lady Morris, how is Edmund…I meanLord Morris?”
For a moment Martha didn’t seem to know what to say while Charlotte waited for her answer with breath held.
“The same as always. Not good for much. Like his father.”
“God rest his soul,” Jacob murmured.
