Page 4 of One Wicked Secret
It felt like six years.
Living with lies made the days seem longer.
“You weren’t the only person who abandoned me on my wedding day,” she continued. “Where is Magnus? I’ve not heard from my brother since he waved me off on my honeymoon.” Bitterness coated the last word. “He hasn’t replied to any of my letters. What did you say to him?”
Daniel stood in a dark corner of the garden. The warmth from the festoon of lights and lit braziers did nothing to banish the sense of dread. He had to persuade her to return to Henley until Magnus came home.
“Magnus is in Geneva. He rented a house with views of the lake so he could write in peace.” Magnus was hiding in Geneva, not penning poetry. “He closed the house in Chippenham and paid the staff a year’s wages to secure their employment until his return.”
She froze in disbelief. “Magnus left the country without telling me?” A whimper caught in her throat. “Without visiting or saying goodbye? Why?”
Daniel wished he could haul her into his arms and ease her pain. “He needed time alone.”
“Something you have in common,” came her tart reply. “Except you’re rarely alone. You manage your investments by day, gamble, drink and whore by night. How many women have you bedded since you married me and ruined my life?”
Part of him wished he was a rake.
Then maybe he wouldn’t feel so damn guilty.
“None, Elsa.” He exhaled, his heart heavy.
Sadly, not even you.
Wherever she got her information, it was far from accurate.
“None?” Her blue eyes flashed cold like an arctic frost. “How can I believe you when every word from your lips is a lie?”
“I may have left suddenly, but I mean to honour my vows. I’ll bed no woman but you.” He’d likely die without ever knowing how it felt to bury himself deep inside her.
She touched her bare throat. The gentle hollow at the base caught his eye. He’d dreamt of kissing her there.
“And I made a vow to be faithful,” she countered, a tear tracing a lonely path down her cheek as she stood firm like a true Danish warrior. “I’ll die with my virginity intact because nothing would persuade me to invite you to my bed.”
“I thought you sought an annulment.”
“I would have to prove you’re impotent.” Her gaze dipped to the placket of his trousers. “And though I’ve never witnessed the sight myself, I’m confident you’re a virile man.” With a sad sigh, she added, “Goodbye, Daniel. Don’t try to find me.”
Elsa moved to leave, but he caught her elbow.
They both stared at his thumb resting on the bare skin just above her glove, the hitch in her breath mirroring the ragged beat of his pulse.
“I can’t let you go.” The spark of hope in her eyes forced him to hide the real reason why. “I’ll take you home, back to Henley. I don’t know what you told Clara, but she must be worried.”
With a snarl, Elsa pulled free of his grasp. “Do you think I would leave Clara alone at The Grange, hurt and confused? I know how it feels to be abandoned.”
Panic flared. “You brought my sister to London?”
“You left me no choice.”
“Good God. Where is she?” In the metropolis, danger lurked on every corner. “A blind woman wandering the streets alone is a sitting target.”
“Clara is not blind. She can see perfectly well with her right eye.”
Daniel clenched his jaw. “She needs a stick to walk.”
“Not anymore,” Elsa said proudly. “Clara just needed to regain her confidence. The accident stole more than the sight in one eye. It stole her zest for life, her hope for the future. She was so ashamed of her scar, she was in danger of developing a permanent stoop.”
His blood ran cold.
