Page 44 of The Courtship Trap
He was watching her with an intensity that sent her pulse into a wild, desperate rhythm.
For one glorious, reckless moment, hope blossomed in her chest.
But then, reality returned like a bitter wind.
She had lied about the painting. Then there was her shameful behavior these past years for which she was attempting to make amends. If Sebastian knew the half of it, he would be repulsed by her base nature and desert her.
He was a foolish dream, a glimpse of the life she could have led if she had been a better person. And after all she had done to him in the past, he could never be so forgiving as to allow her another deception. Whatever spark had rekindled between them would be extinguished the moment he discovered the truth.
She forced a smile, though it felt brittle on her lips. “I think,” she said carefully, “we should return to Lady Wood before she notices we have gone.”
Sebastian studied her. “And I think we should make this courtship a genuine exploration of a shared future.”
Harriet stared up at him, searching for any sign he was funning her, but he seemed sincere. Her breath caught, and she nervously licked her lips. She wanted so badly to say?—
“Yes.”
She blinked, uncertain if she had truly consented. Then, in affirmation that she had indeed spoken out loud, Sebastian gave a slow nod and offered his arm. She hesitated for only a moment before taking it.
As they stepped back onto the path, Harriet forced herself to do what she had done for years. She buried the ache, smothered the longing, and vowed to enjoy the courtship as long as it lasted. Because once Sebastian learned the truth—about the painting, about her repellant entanglement with his cousin Perry last year, about her disloyalty with the duke’s brother-in-law Brendan earlier this very year—there would be no more kisses beneath the trees, no more glances filled with unspoken promises.
And she had no one to blame but herself.
But for now, every impossible dream had come true until brooding reality inevitably returned. The only man she had ever loved was courting her!
CHAPTER 9
In silence, I adore your grace,
Afraid to speak or show my face;
Yet through this verse, my heart’s revealed,
A love that’s deep and long concealed.
The New Ladies’ Valentine Writer (1821)
DECEMBER 18, 1821
“This is a terrible idea.”
Harriet sat rigid before the dressing table, watching her reflection as Belinda twisted her hair into an elegant coil. The candlelight flickered against the mirror’s surface, but no amount of flattering glow could soften the worry etched between her brows.
The last few days in Sebastian’s company had been blissful, their courtship progressing to the natural next stage—dinner with his family!
“Nonsense,” Evaline said from the nearby settee, where she lounged with a cup of chocolate in hand. “It is an inevitable idea.”
“I prefer terrible.”
“Then terrible it shall be,” Evaline said dryly. “Yet we are still attending.”
Harriet groaned, gripping the arms of the chair. “It has been years since I have dined at Markham House.Years, Evaline. And now I am to eat my supper, all smiles and good cheer, as if they have not all spent half a decadedespisingme?”
“Not all of them,” Evaline countered. “Sebastian does not despise you.”
No, he did not. But his brother, the Duke of Halmesbury, certainly did. And she did not know what to expect from the others—Lord and Lady Saunton were likely to be the peacemakers, but Brendan Ridley would be there. And Lily Ridley.
It was Lily’s curse that had set this current quest for redemption in motion. Harriet let out a slow breath, the name alone making her chest tighten when she recalled that moment when Lily had uttered those damnable words and shattered Harriet’s glib shell that had protected her from confronting the consequences of her selfish behavior.
