Page 52 of The Brooding Duke's Fateful Letter
I will not survive seeing her with him. I know he does not love her, yet it is still as unbearable as if he had. Now he is saying that he will not marry her! I cannot bear being played with, Charlotte thought with misery, as she stayed closely behind them. Lord LeBlanc was about to approach her when Edward came closer.
“Lady Charlotte, may I escort you?” Edward asked.
“Your Highness, I would like nothing more,” Charlotte replied with relief.
“A gorgeous lady such as you should just call me Edward,” he said with a lovely smile. Charlotte returned his smile and was glad to see when Henry looked back that seeing her with Edward upset him as much as her seeing him with Bethany had upset her. More satisfying still was the look on Lord LeBlanc’s face. He had been bested and knew he could do nothing about it. A Lord could hardly compete with a king.
They walked slower as they got from the patio and closer to the gardens. “You know, I do think my brother would rather be waking with you,” Edward said in a whisper.
“That is kind of you, sir. Unfortunately, he must now soothe hurt feelings,” Charlotte tried to sound matter-of-fact. but could not hide the bitterness from her voice. She would have assisted him if only he had told her he had changed his mind.
“It is a little odd to take some duties seriously and others not at all,” Edward said. Charlotte was unsure what he had meant, yet did not ask him to elaborate. Whatever family business there was between the brothers, Charlotte would prefer to hear it from Henry.
“I am quite sure he has mine and my sister’s best interest at heart, Sir,” Charlotte replied. She had found Henry worthy of herloyalty and defense. She was not going to turn her back on him the moment a problem had arisen.
“You are loyal, Charlotte. I do hope you do not mind that I use your given name?
“Not at all, sir. It is my name, after all.” Charlotte replied with a smile.
They walked closer to Henry and Bethany when Edward spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear him. “You know Charlotte, if my brother is to wed your sister, then I shall have to take it upon myself to make you my queen,” Edward said with such charm that Charlotte was unsure if he had merely said it for an audience or if he had meant it. His unwavering smile convinced her that it was both.
Henry turned to look at her, and she smiled an uncomfortable smile. He looked both bored by Bethany’s conversation and unsettled by what must look like his brother flirting with her. Edward was leaning in close, and speaking in a hushed tone. Furthermore, he smiled at her and looked directly into her eyes.
It was as though they had been courting and had not just met one another. Henry had looked over at them no less than three times since they had left the patio. A small part of her found comfort in the fact that Henry was unsettled. Indifference would have meant that he had accepted his fate as Bethany’s husbandand that he was easily swayed. She preferred a man with a mind of his own.
Chapter 20
Henry watched as Edward performed the same old trick he always did. Growing up, it had happened from the first adolescent love Henry had experienced. He had been stronger and more handsome than Henry and had bested him in every way, whether it was academically or with relationships. Henry had thought that by giving his brother the throne, he would have felt as though he had bested Henry for once and for all.
Now, as he looked at Charlotte, his stomach turned at every smile she gave Edward instead of him.
If he takes her hand, it shall be the last thing he touches before I break it! Henry thought as his breath started to become ragged. He had never before experienced jealousy that powerful. It overwhelmed him.
“Are you alright, Your Grace?” Bethany asked him.
“Yes. I was just thinking that I had been neglecting my brother. I should spend more time with him on his visit here,” Henry answered through clenched teeth, while he wished it were Charlotte beside him.
“Do you not like your brother, Your Grace?” Bethany said with a furrowed brow.
“I love my brother. My legs are simply fatigued.” Henry replied. With Charlotte, he could speak freely. Bethany made him feel the opposite. The effort required not saying what he meant and guarding his words was harder to bear than his legs.
“Would you like to rest, Your Grace?” Bethany asked. Her words were caring, though her expression looked more annoyed.
“I would not want to ruin our walk,” Henry replied.
“As you wish, Your Grace,” Bethany said. Henry felt as though his mind had been made up for him. He did not enjoy it at all and found that it was not as easy to find affection for his supposed bride-to-be. He had hoped that she might be like Charlotte. The two were oil and water, complete opposites that would never be like the other.
“At least if I had stayed in an invalid chair, I would have been less of an inconvenience,” Henry said. He had not meant to have this conversation yet. He hated to waste time, and her uncaring manner spurred him on to ask her a few tough questions.
“You are not an inconvenience, Your Grace,” Bethany said with the least sincerity he had seen in a long time.
“As I understand it, my condition was too inconvenient for you to begin with,” Henry said plainly.
“Your Grace, that did not have anything to do with it. Charlotte came here with my stepfather, her father, whom she could get to do what she wanted. The moment we found out what they had done, we came to see you, Your Grace.” Bethany replied with her chin held high. “We are both victims in this, Your Grace. I trusted my sister, and she tried to take what was mine.”
The mere fact that her every sentence is a manipulation! Henry thought as his head started to throb.
“And what is it that is yours? Me? Is a human being owed to you? My lands and title, perhaps? You do not know me, so it is safe to assume at this point that what you feel is owed to you is financial,” Henry asked calmly. He wanted answers and not an argument.
