Page 84 of Return of the Viscount
“Rowlandson says he doesn’t regularly patronize the women of the demimonde, or even the loose women he was going to bring into the house last week.”
“So you’re saying he might simply want to be with Penelope, and couldn’t find a way to do so without making a formal offer?”
Michael shrugged. “Many men have done the same.” He glanced in the direction of the drawing room. “I’m glad Talbot is still nearby. I feel better about Penelope’s safety.”
Cecilia flinched as if he’d struck her. “I hope you don’t expect me to ...warnher about something I don’t believe is true!”
“We can’t go on like this, my sweet. I’m going to need to talk to him honestly, and not just ask if he’s having a problem.”
“You want to tell him you think he’s trying to kill me?” she cried, backing away.
“His behavior is suspicious. He had decent ideas and questions when we were with his steward, but at court this afternoon, he couldn’t control himself enough to remain still. We left early. Something is very wrong, and we need to know.”
“You really think he’s the culprit?” she whispered, hugging herself, feeling a wave of despondency. “Did you ever think it’s not so much about me as it is the money and power of the estate that’s tempting someone to do these awful things? Oliver doesn’t need me out of the way to have any of it.”
“But he might think so.”
“You don’t have proof! Let’s—let’s see what happens if I back away completely, let it seem as if you’re taking my place in influence with my brother.”
He hesitated, then said slowly, “A brilliant idea. And there’s a chance it will lessen the danger for you.”
“That’s not why I’m suggesting it! I don’t want you in any danger either. But if I can prove to you it’s about the money and power, rather than about me personally, then perhaps we can find a way to prove it’s not Oliver. We can find the person trying to control the earldom, and then—and then—” She broke off, staring at Michael and realizing what was different. “You’re not using your cane at all anymore.”
“No,” he said quietly.
She straightened her shoulders. “Things can go back to normal.”
“What’s ‘normal,’ my sweet?”
She could have cried at the tenderness in his voice.
“Is it you helping your brother rather than being a wife to me?”
“You married me knowing we’d never have a real marriage, Michael,” she said desperately.
He gathered her into his arms. “This is real to me, Cecilia, you’re real. My wife, my responsibility.”
“You’ll return soon to India. Many people only see each other once or twice a year,” she insisted. Was she trying to convince herself?
“And that will be good enough for you? What if you’re carrying my child?”
She stared up at him, not knowing what to say. She wanted to beg him to stay, even if it meant giving up the career he found the most rewarding. And, eventually, he might begin to resent her for making the choice.
Wasshesupposed to make the choice? Any choice seemed unfair to someone.
He slid his hand to her stomach. “There might be life here, Cecilia, our child. We didn’t intend to feel anything for each other, but we do.”
“We respect each other,” she said at last. “Please respect me enough to know that I can’t talk about this while our family is in turmoil.”
He sighed and leaned his forehead against hers. “Our family. It sounds good to hear you say that.”
They stood holding each other for a long time. She listened to the reassuring beat of his heart, wondered if there was already another heart beating between theirs, nestling inside her body. She felt ... altered by the thought, by knowing they had responsibilities beyond themselves. That might change everything.
Chapter 20
Cecilia never imagined how difficult it was going to be to abruptly step out of the life of command she’d been living for two years. For two days, Michael dealt with Oliver, who seemed restless and distracted, while she arranged flowers, oversaw menus and the redecorating. She couldn’t remember needlework stitches and would have gladly thrown the handkerchief across the room. She felt ... useless. Of course, she was confined to Appertan Hall and couldn’t invite visitors. That made it worse, for she was used to being out among people every day. A servant followed her everywhere she went, making her feel twitchy.
In her obsession with guarding her father’s legacy, she’d let her close friends fall away. Now she wrote several letters, hoping to renew old ties. She had no close cousins, and Oliver’s precarious place in her life frightened her, and Michael would eventually return to India. She could easily be all alone in the world. Was that what she wanted?
