Page 18 of The Beach Hut on Plum Island
“Yeah, but did any of the dates turn into a serious relationship?” Alex questioned.
“Well, no.” Harriet shook her head. “But I went on more than five dates with a few of the men.”
“But that can’t really be seen as having a relationship, though,” Alex stated.
Harriet sighed. “No, it doesn’t count.” She rubbed her temples. “That’s why I panicked—“
“And told your mother you were engaged to Finn,” Alex added.
“Theytold you?“ Harriet hissed. “You see, this is why I don’t have many female friends. They have loose tongues.”
“No.” Alex shook his head. “They have big hearts, and they care about you.”
“Who told you?” Harriet narrowed her eyes as she interrogated him. “Jennifer, Carly, Caroline, oh…” She clicked her fingers. “Was it Daniella?”
“No.” Alex shook his head again. “None of the above.”
“Then who—“ She stopped abruptly and raised her eyebrows in disbelief. “Not Dawn!”
“I’m afraid so,” Alex nodded. “Did you forget that Dawn and I are actually besties now?”
“That snitch!” Harriet shook her head in disbelief. “Wow!”
“Dawn is concerned about you,” Alex explained. “And even more so when your other new besties,” he held up his hands indicating for her not to overreact, “decided to make a plan to help you.” He held them up higher. “But only because they don’t want you to leave and because they don’t think what your uncle is doing is right. It’s archaic.”
“No,” Harriet contradicted him. “Arranged marriages are still practiced in many cultures.”
“Not so much ours,” Alex pointed out. “And why is your uncle suddenly wanting you to marry that Duke Leon Gladstone-Jerk-Wit?” His brow creased tighter. “Didn’t he see how relieved you were to have broken up with Leon after he’d cheated on you countless times?”
“That was back then when he thought he could get Gray to marry Leon’s cousin Estelle and while Leon’s father was still in charge of the Gladstone family’s fortune and properties,” Harriet informed Alex.
“Is this marriage about money?” Alex looked at her, amazed. “I thought the Joyce family was loaded.”
“We don’t need money. As far as I’m aware, our family’s money is still fine.” Harriet shrugged. She didn’t care much about that. “I do know that the Gladstone’s fortune has dwindled rather badly since Leon’s father gambled most of it away, and Leon’s business skills are severely lacking. Leon’s father has had a severe stroke, and the Duchess, his mother, is once again in charge of the finances or what’s left of them.”
“Then why would your uncle want an alliance between the Joyce and Gladstone families if they’re in financial trouble?” Alex looked at her in confusion. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“For the same reason he tricked me into getting engaged to that philandering lout of a Leon in the first place,” Harriet confessed. “The Gladstones own not one but three extremely lucrative olive farms that all surround my grandfather’s vineyard in Greece.”
“Your uncle wants to marry you off so he can make olive oil alongside Joyce wines?” Alex stared at Harriet in disbelief. “And going back a few years… Titus tricked you into getting engaged to Leon?”
Harriet dropped her head back against the sofa and closed her eyes, sighing as her mind skipped back all those years. She looked at Alex.
“Uncle Titus was the one who got me into Oxford after you and I had our marriage dissolved. Then, when I was in England, Uncle Titus personally introduced me to his good friend’s son, Leon, who was charming and good-looking and helped me get over what happened between us.” She pinched the bridge of hernose, calming herself. “The next thing I knew, Uncle Titus was announcing mine and Leon’s engagement. I told him I didn’t want to get married, and he said just to give it a year and see how things develop between Leon and me. He went as far as to tell me that me being engaged to Leon would help you move on.”
“He said that to you?” Alex’s eyes narrowed in anger. “Why that scheming monarch.”
“Then, after a year, I wanted to end the farce of an engagement, but my uncle listed all the benefits the Gladstone and Joyce family uniting would bring,” Harriet told Alex. “At this point, my brother stepped in and told my uncle that if I wanted to leave Leon, it was up to me. He threw the other rule in his face about us being able to choose who we wanted. And my grandfather got behind my brother, which only angered my uncle, and that’s when he added that little clause I’ve just told you about.”
“But your grandfather was of sound mind back then,” Alex said.
“No.” Harriet shook her head. “What no one knows is that my grandfather had suffered a stroke that year, and that’s why he stepped back so early and let my uncle take over.”
“What?” Alex looked at her, even more confused. “I thought your uncle had only become king in the last twenty years.”
“Formally, maybe,” Harriet confirmed. “But informally, my uncle has been king for twenty-eight years because of my grandfather’s poor health.”
“Yes, but your grandfather is still very much alive,” Alex pointed out.
