Page 70 of A Bride for the Wicked Duke

“Did you know,” she asked flatly, her tone turned sharp. “Did you know that he was involved?”

“And if I did?”

She leaned back, her lip curling with disgust. “You… you did? Howcouldyou, Gerald? How could you be friends with someone likethat?” Her eyes held him, searching for an answer which he was not willing to give. And Gerald did not respond, looking upon his sister with an open expression, his heart laid bare, the truth there for her to see, if she wished it. “Oh no…” It struck her in that moment. “Gerald, do not… surely that is not…”

“I am so sorry, Rosalind. You have no idea how –”

“It was you!” she cried suddenly as the pieces fell into place. “Aurelia! Her family… the reason that… that… that is why you and she have grown so close! You are the one to whom she owes money!”

Her voice cut him sharper and deeper than any blade. He winced and leaned away, shame crashing down on him, guilt because his sister looked upon him in a way that she never had before. In that moment, he was no longer her older brother. He was a stranger, and she loathed him because of it.

“It is not that simple, Rosalind,” he said pitifully. “If you will just let me explain.”

“Explain!” She took a step back. “How could you possibly… after everything you have said about Aurelia. How you judged her. How you judge everybody!”

“It is not that simple.”

“You blackmailed her,” she hissed. “You forced her to… to… her debts. You made her marry just so you would get paid!”

“I was wrong,” he tried. “I know that now.”

“Oh, now you do!” Another step back. “Now you admit fault, once you have been discovered. And what, I am just supposed to forgive you?”

“What? No. This is not about forgiving me.”

“Good!” Another step back. “Because this is… Gerald.” She shook her head, still that look as if she did not know him. As if he was a rodent that had wandered into her home. “This is beyond anything I could have ever…” She scoffed, disgust dripping from her tongue. “I do not even know who you are.” And with that, she turned and stormed away.

Gerald watched her go, his heart sinking, his sense of worth crashing and shattering on the floor. His entire life, all he had done, he had done for his sister. He had wanted to be someone who she could look up to, who she could admire. Dammit, he had wanted her to have a perfect life because he’d never had one himself. And now, in an instant, he had ruined everything.

He thought to leave it at that. To let her cool down so that he might explain. But what could he explain? There was no justifying what he had done. He didn’t want to do such a thing. He had erred terribly, and he deserved her venom in full.

At best, he decided that he could tell her the truth. Once again, he was sick of the lies. He was sick of pretending that he was someone who he was not. He did not think that she would forgive him, but he hoped that she might at least understand why he had done it. Rosalind deserved that, at the very least.

It’s time she learns everything. And once she does, then she can decide how she feels about me. At least that will be one less lie I need to live with…

Gerald found Rosalind in her room, curled up on her bed, back facing the door. The door was open, but the room was dark, that sense that she half wanted him to walk on by and half wanted him to come in and speak with her.

“Rosalind…” he spoke from the doorway.

“Go away,” she said, sniffing back her tears. “I don’t want to speak with you.”

“I can’t blame you for that,” he said. “If I were you, I likely wouldn’t want to speak with me ever again.”

To that, there was no answer, just the muffled sounds of her sobs. It broke Gerald’s heart to hear, but it told him that he couldn’t just leave her. What he had to say might not make her feel better, but at least it would provide closure. With all he had been through lately, that was perhaps the best he could hope for.

“You’re likely too young to remember this,” he began softly. “But our father –”

“Don’t blame our father,” she said over him, still refusing to turn around. “He didn’t make you do anything.”

“I’m not blaming him…” Gerald started gently into the room, careful not to approach too quickly. “I just want you to understand why I did what I did.”

“So I can forgive you?”

“No,” he said truthfully. “I don’t want you to forgive me. I don’t deserve that.”

She hesitated, sniffing again. “You’re lying.”

“I’m not, Rosalind…” He reached the bed but didn’t sit. “I’ve lied to you, about so many things. All I want to do now is tell you the truth. What you choose to do with that is up to you.”

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