Page 114 of In the Prince's Bed
The thought hit him like a low branch knocking a rider out of the saddle. If he gave up the fortune, arranged in the marriage settlement for the entire thing to go to her family, then she’d have no reason to balk anymore, no reason to distrust him. She would have to believe he’d meant every word he said.
And he’d forever lose his chance to restore Edenmore to what it had once been.
He could have one or the other: Katherine or Edenmore. Somehow he must find the strength to make the right choice.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Sometimes a rakehell must take a wild risk to get what he wants.
—Anonymous,A Rake’s Rhetorick
The afternoon after they’d returned to London, Katherine went in search of her mother. As she approached the parlor, the blessed numbness she’d achieved since leaving Suffolk began to fade, and the sharp bite of pain to gnaw again at her belly.
She and Mama had barely spoken since their flight from Edenmore. Unfortunately, they couldn’t continue that way forever.
Katherine entered the parlor to find her mother staring listlessly into the fire. A pang of sympathy hit her, which she squelched ruthlessly. It was Mama’s fault she’d landed herself in this fix, promised in marriage to a man she should never have considered.
Not only Mama’s fault,her conscience whispered.
She ignored it. “I spoke to the solicitor, Mama,” she said in a businesslike tone. “He says Lord Iversley will have difficulty bringing suit against us for breach of contract, since he used deception to obtain my agreement to the marriage.”
That wasn’t all his cursed lordship had used. The “love bite” he’d left on her shoulder was proof of that. The thought of it fueled her temper. How could he have feigned interest so often? Every time he kissed her and held her and called her “senhora”…
She fought back the tears burning her eyes. Lord preserve her, when would she stop turning into a watering pot every time she thought of him?
Mama was staring at her with a sad little frown. “Katherine, my angel, are you sure it’s so awful that his lordship is a fortune hunter? Perhaps you should give him another chance.”
Katherine’s anger welled anew. “Isn’t that rather odd, coming from you? You’re the one who doesn’t want to share my fortune with any husband I take.”
For the first time in days, Mama’s own temper roused. “Now see here, little Miss Righteous and Noble. You have never lived with money. Ihave.When I was a girl, we lived very well. Papa never denied us anything we asked for.”
“Until he died without leaving the money to you, the way you expected.”
Her mother rose, eyes flashing. “Can you blame me? Do you know how many years I put up with your grandfather’s carping about my poor choice of husband? I went from being his darling to being his disappointment. So yes, I wantedsomethingin return.” Her eyes narrowed. “And I wanted something better for you, too, whether you believe it or not. I wanted a husband who wouldnotembarrass you, who’d treat you better than your father treated me.”
“And you chose so well for me, too,” she said bitterly.
“I didn’t choose the earl, missy. And I certainly didn’t force you into any beds with him. You hopped into his bed all on your own.”
Katherine swallowed. That was certainly true.
“Nor am I happy to learn he isn’t rich, as Lady Jenner gave me to believe.” She frowned. “No doubt she’s another scurrilous friend of that Mr. Byrne.”
“No doubt.”
“But none of that matters now. It’s done. We must learn to live with our disappointment. And if that means you marry a man who will use your fortune to better his estate, then so be it. I should think you’d prefer that to the alternative—dying in poverty as an old maid. Which is your only other choice now. Your prospects were never that good, but now that you’ve been seen in a compromising position by Lady Purefoy in the orangery, they’re very bad indeed.”
Katherine’s chin trembled. “Surely there are still fortune hunters who don’t care about such things. We can make an arrangement with one.”
“You’d rather marry a man you don’t know than a man you know and like?”
“Yes. I let my emotions become engaged, and look where that got me. I should have been sensible, not been swayed by soft words and sweet looks. And now I’m paying for it. Marrying a man I don’t know, who won’t care about me, would be infinitely sensible.”
“But would he make you happy?”
“He’d make me happier than a man who…wholiesto me. Who made me think he wanted me for myself, when all he wanted was my fortune.”
“But my angel, isn’t that exactly what you did to Sydney?”
