Page 80 of Ironvine

He clenched his jaw. “Georgina, you are the most positive and happy of humans I have ever met. To see you thus is killing me.” His hand gripped her thigh.

She undid the ties of her bonnet, and it fell to her feet as she wiped at her face. But the tears still fell. A droplet pooled on his hand, wet, warm. She was hurting, and he would not let this go on. He could not bear it.

He pulled the horses to the side of the road, stopping them. “Look at me.” She lifted her watery gaze to him immediately. “Oh, Georgie,” he murmured softly, stroking the side of her face, and she leaned into his gloved palm. His heart ticked up, his blood racing at seeing her in such pain.

“Your mother showed you her true self. There is no denying it. Feel her betrayal, feel her coldness. It was real. She is angry at both of us. Angry that we’ve thwarted her plans for you, for herself.” He leaned down and kissed the side of her temple. The fragrance in her hair instantly brought him back to her sleeping on his chest last night, their bodies tangled in a decadent harmony.

He swept back a lock of her hair. “But this spectacle she put on for our benefit, whose sole intention was to hurt you, was most childish, and thus, the humiliation lies with her.” His thumb wiped through the tears on the skin of her hand, stroking her flesh. “If you choose to forgive her one day, I shall support you in this decision. But for now, trouble yourself no more. You must learn to consider yourself first.”

“Perhaps that very thing was my very defect—I only considered my desires, and thus, sacrificed my family’s wishes and their happiness.”

“Is their happiness greater than yours, of more worth, simply because you are the youngest and a female?”

She had no reply. Her lips pressed together.

“I refuse to allow you to wallow in guilt over her nasty tirade.”

“I’ve never seen my mother like that.”

“Everyone hides a deep fury for whatever reason. We become schooled in keeping it bottled up, sealed inside us, and then one day, if the circumstances are all tilted in a certain way—boom—that seal is suddenly broken, and a Pandora’s box of rage is released.”

“You seem to be familiar with this Pandora’s box.”

“I am, Georgie. I am.” He let out a breath. “Think not of her any longer. The more you do, the more her spite wins and the more it ransacks your spirit.”

“Is that a command, husband?”

“It is indeed. We are married, and you are free of any obligation to them.”

They rode on in silence.

She let out a sigh. “I shall miss my brother most of all, I think.”

“Thomas is a good sort. He may come round after a time.”

“Yes. I hope so.” She averted her gaze. “I always thought of myself as a good, caring sort of person. Perhaps I am only selfish.”

“If you are selfish, then I am truly the devil.”

The urge to pull her out of this dark and sticky cobweb of feelings overwhelmed him. An idea came to him, and he changed course at the top of the hill, directing the horses to the left instead of the right.

She sat up straighter. “Where are we going?”

“You’ll soon see.” He directed the horses off the main road and onto a well-worn path through the woods. He and Brandon and Hugh had ridden through here often in their youth. Charles brought the horses to a stop and tied them to a tree. He held out his hand to her and helped her descend from the carriage. “Trust me?”

Her shoulders eased. “I do trust you.”

His chest surged with warmth, and he bowed his head to her, leading her to the nearby footpath.

“This is Wolfsgate land, is it not?”

“It is. Our friends will not mind us enjoying a stroll on their property.”

“So a walk in the woods is what you prescribe for my refreshment?”

He only laughed darkly, and the sound made her back straighten. At last, they reached the folly, a temple ruin that Brandon’s father had built for his mother when they’d first married.

Georgina let go of his arm and walked in between the faux Greek columns. “Isn’t it beautiful?”

---