Page 76 of Passions of a Wicked Earl
It was early evening, and they were in the parlor sorting through other invitations that had been delivered that day. Glancing up, seeing the keen expectation on Beth’s countenance, Claire hated to disappoint her. “You have your suitor. I don’t know that it’s really that important.”
Beth gave a quick pout before smiling. “You are the one who said that I needed to explore my opportunities. This ball is supposed to be the grandest of the Season.”
Claire returned her attention to sorting the invitations. “Each week there is at least one ball that is declared the grandest of the Season.”
“Is it because of the attention she gave Westcliffe at the first ball?”
Claire snapped her head up. “You saw them?”
“They were difficult to miss.” She furrowed her brow. “I don’t know why she was licking her fan. If she was hungry, food was available in one of the other rooms.”
But Claire suspected it wasn’t hunger for food that she’d craved.
“Anyway,” Beth said, “I would really like to attend this ball.”
“I’ll speak with Westcliffe when he returns home, but do not set your heart on going.”
He arrived an hour before dinner. Claire was in her bedchamber having her hair put up after taking a relaxing bath, when he walked in, leaned against the post at the foot of the bed, crossed his arms over his chest, and studied her.
“Did you see to all your business?” she asked.
“The important business, yes.”
Seeing that her hair was as tidy as it could be, Claire dismissed Judith. After she was alone in the room with Westcliffe, she turned on the stool to face him. “What was the important business?” she asked.
“The railway.”
She was gratified that he didn’t hesitate to tell her. “Will it ever run again?”
“I’m certain it will, but we’re going to sell it to a bigger railway company.”
“Why? Because of what happened? It wasn’t your fault.”
“The larger companies have bought out many of the smaller ones. Our choice was to work to become a larger company or move on to something else. I thought the larger company that was already established could do a better job of handling the railway, so I voted to move on.”
“And you can take the money and invest elsewhere.”
He glanced down as though suddenly enamored of his shoes. “We are going to do what we can to distribute the money among those who were injured or suffered the loss of a family member.”
She’d wanted him to share with her, and as he lifted his gaze to her, she realized he wasn’t a man who cared only for money. He wasn’t like Lady Anne’s first husband. Their marriage wasn’t like hers. “It was your idea.”
“I can’t make a profit on something like this. We should have sold sooner. The larger companies have more resources. This tragedy might have been avoided.”
She could see that he wasn’t quite comfortable revealing this much about himself, his thoughts, his character. But this little peek, this little window into his soul was enough. She crossed over to him and placed her arms around him, leaning her head back and looking up into his stern, beloved face. “I love you.”
“Claire—”
“It’s all right. You don’t have to return the words; you don’t even have to feel them. It’s like Leo said. It’s enough for me that I feel them for you.”
He touched her face as though she were porcelain, easily breakable. “Pity I saw how much trouble it was for Judith to put up your hair as I’ve a mind to take it all down.”
Stretching up, she nipped his chin. “She can always put it back up.”
As his laughter echoed around them, she knew they were going to be tardy to dinner.
Dinner had been an absolutely ghastly affair, Westcliffe reflected as he lay sprawled over the bed. He and Claire had been late. Then he’d discovered that Anne had called earlier in the day to invite them to her ball personally. After a brief discussion, Beth pouted, shouted that her life was ruined, then marched off in a tantrum because he and Claire had agreed they were sending their regrets to Anne. They would not attend her ball.
He didn’t understand the girl’s behavior. What was one ball among a dozen? Claire had attended none, not a single one, before she was married, and she’d not flounced around in a fit of bad humor. At least not that he’d seen. But he couldn’t see her having done so.
