Page 39 of Legacy of Roses

Rosalie stiffened, but Blythe said no more about Rosalie’s purpose at the Fosters’ home. She supposed it would have been too much to expect her not to mention it at all. As long as Blythe kept quiet about the details, it didn’t matter.

Blythe’s friends all exclaimed at her generosity and warm heart. But Blythe’s attention remained fixed on Rosalie as she gestured toward Dimitri, her smile smug.

“This is Dimitri,” she said as if they hadn’t all met in the square previously. “He’s from the manor, of course. When he dined with us, we recommended the meals here, and he wasted no time in visiting.”

She finally glanced around the rest of the group, basking in the effect of her words. Her friends all responded with the expected mixture of admiration and jealously at this indication of her apparent closeness with the manor’s heir.

Rosalie felt only exhaustion. She had no energy for unnecessary drama. In the past, she would have scorned Blythe for such obvious tactics. But her most recent interactions with her had given her fresh insight. Blythe wasn’t a heartless person, she was an insecure one. She wanted to lead the group, but she wasn’t sure she could do so on her own merits.

And Rosalie suspected the other girls weren’t as heartless as she had previously thought either. The Fosters’ fear of the Legacy had been stronger than Rosalie had expected, so maybe that was true of her old friends as well. Maybe they had once valued her friendship, after all, but their fear—or that of their parents—had proven stronger than their loyalty. After everything that had happened to her family, she could hardly blame them.

She shook her head, her eyes catching on Dimitri. Her mouth went instantly dry. He was staring at her as if he hadn’t taken his eyes from her since the moment she’d appeared. And his gaze held an intensity she hadn’t seen before. Her pulse started racing, all weariness forgotten. Apparently, her treacherous body was determined not to listen to her protestations about his character. Was it the same weakness that had led her to fall for Jace?

Daphne looked curiously between them, and Rosalie tried to ignore her. Instead, she reached for her earlier indignation, directing a glare at Dimitri.

His brow creased, his expression turning confused. Did he really not know he was at fault? How could he be so persistently oblivious?

Blythe cleared her throat ostentatiously, drawing Rosalie’s attention.

“We’ve just been discussing the improvements at the manor,” she said with a smile.

“We’re all eager to see its magnificence,” Sable added. “We’ve been telling him he has to host a gathering there soon. Don’t you both agree?”

Rosalie’s eyes flew back to Dimitri’s, horrified. He couldn’t be serious in encouraging such nonsense! There was no way he could hold a party at the castle without someone succumbing and picking a rose.

Before she could protest, however, two older couples approached. Rosalie recognized them vaguely, but their attention was on Dimitri.

“A pleasure to see you here, sir,” one of the men said, shaking Dimitri’s hand. Apparently they had already met.

The others chimed in, and Blythe swelled with importance. “Won’t you join our group?” she asked sweetly, indicating the remaining seats. “I’m sure Dimitri can be prevailed on to stay alittle longer. We’ve just been telling him how everyone in town is eager to meet him.”

The man cleared his throat before murmuring, “Indeed.” After an exchange of glances, the older couples joined the group.

Rosalie tried to remember any of their names and failed. She did remember the women were sisters, but they had only moved to Thebarton six months ago, and Rosalie had been too wrapped up in her family’s daily survival to pay much attention.

All four of them looked askance at Rosalie, and she almost flinched. Were they wondering why she was standing awkwardly beside the seated group, or did they recognize her and not want to associate with her, however fleetingly?

Impatience rose inside her as she reluctantly took a seat alongside Daphne. She hadn’t come to the inn to exchange empty pleasantries with strangers. But the more people who joined the group, the more difficult it became to raise the issue of the money with Blythe. And she couldn’t just leave either—not until she found a way to get a word with Dimitri. Otherwise, he was going to catapult half the town into disaster.

She rubbed her temples. When she looked up, Dimitri was watching her, concern in his eyes. She frowned at him. He didn’t have the right to look worried about her when he was half the cause of her stress.

“We hear the manor has already come a long way,” one of the men said, rubbing his hands together. “A good thing in my opinion. Never liked having a derelict property so close to town.”

His wife nodded agreement, but the other man looked less enthusiastic.

“I hear there’s some significant power at work.” He looked at Dimitri from under thick brows. “Worth being careful.”

Dimitri finally pulled his eyes from Rosalie, nodding solemnly as he looked between the men. “I believe my family’s estate can be an asset to this region again. The Legacy is adanger, certainly, but I don’t believe it’s an insurmountable one. I intend to be cautious.”

The first man leaned back, lacing his hands over his stomach. “Fine words, sir, fine words.”

Rosalie wasn’t sure if she should laugh or cry. Dimitri thought he was being cautious?

“All of Thebarton was sorry to see your grandfather go.” Blythe slid her chair a little closer to Dimitri. “That was before my time, of course, but my parents have mentioned it more than once.”

She didn’t notice the way he stiffened slightly, but Rosalie did. What did Dimitri know about his grandfather’s history? Anything?

“My parents have mentioned it as well,” Rosalie said softly. “When he announced he was packing up his household and moving to the capital, both my father and grandfather tried to talk him out of it. But he has distant relations there and wanted to be near them. It was around the time I was born, I believe. My father has met with him a few times when he traveled to the capital on business, but he hasn’t been back there for over five years, so we haven’t heard any updates recently.”

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