Page 133 of A Winter By the Sea
She shook her head. “Not this time. A more significant secret. Perhaps even shocking.”
He set down his cup and gripped the chair arms, clearly steeling himself. “Very well. Tell me.”
She looked down and considered how best to proceed. “Would you refuse to associate with a woman and her family—say, a family like mine—if you learned that one of her sisters had made a mistake? Had trusted the wrong man and now lived with the dread of that private scandal becoming generally known?”
His nostrils flared. “If Parker did anything to dishonor or—”
“No! Not Charles. This is not about me. Truly.” She swallowed. “But it is about ... another of my sisters.”
“The one in Scotland?”
She supposed it was obvious, and since he’d guessed, she nodded. “Please don’t repeat it.”
“I shan’t. You have my word.”
“I don’t know Claire’s side of the story,” Emily said. “But she eloped with a lord, believing he would marry her. He may even have intended to, until he learned her dowry was far less than he’d believed. Each of us has only three thousand pounds.” She watched his face, searching for disappointment.
His expression remained serious. Inscrutable. “Go on.”
“I won’t blame you if you are shocked. I know I was when I learned of it. Apparently, he abandoned her somewhere on the way to Gretna Green. Instead of coming home in disgrace she sought refuge with our great-aunt in Edinburgh, who is known to be something of a dragon, so probably an uncomfortable refuge indeed. This was more than a year and a half ago, and still Claire remains with her, serving as a companion. Andthatwas the only story my parents passed around. DutifulClaire, gone to assist our elderly, infirm relative. But within the family, we barely speak of her. Especially Mamma and Sarah. Father forbade them, declared she was dead to him.”
“How awful for you all.”
“Yes. It was. Is.”
He nodded slowly. “I cannot pretend it does not sadden me. And I understand why your father might have wanted to protect the rest of you from being harmed by the scandal. I imagine he thought the less said of her, the less chance of the truth coming out, and the better for all of you.”
“I don’t know that his motives were that selfless. Then again, I don’t know that they were not. He was certainly angry and frustrated, although at the time I did not understand why, as they kept the truth from me, Viola, and Georgie. Only Sarah and Mamma knew. Then Papa had his first apoplexy. After that, it was difficult for him to speak, and hard to understand him when he tried. He died two months later.
“It’s Mamma I feel the worst for. I know she must miss Claire, but she is holding fast to Papa’s edict, not to speak of her eldest daughter or even to write to her.”
“And would you welcome her back, should she wish to return?”
“In a heartbeat.”
Again he nodded. “I do not blame you.”
She tilted her head to better regard his face. “And would you condescend to be introduced to a fallen woman, if she came here?”
His serious expression softened and his dark eyes warmed. “My dear Miss Emily. Have we not all fallen short in some way?”
“Very noble. But I am not asking James Thomson, the man devoted to Christian charity. I am asking James Thomson, esquire, private secretary to the Duke of Kent, who might needto be careful about whom he associates with. A man with a future to plan and to protect.”
He chuckled wryly. “You do know my employer lived with his mistress for nearly thirty years and would likely still be living with her without benefit of marriage had the Princess Charlotte not died, compelling him to marry and produce a legitimate heir to the throne? And don’t even get me started about the behavior of the Prince Regent. No, Miss Summers, I am not shocked. Nor do I fear such an association might injure my career. Of course I do not condone immorality, but nor do I judge your sister. Who, I must say, seems to be the victim of a scoundrel.”
“I agree she was, yet we both know society holds young ladies to a much higher standard than they do men.”
“I do know. I also know that is unfair.”
He looked down at his hands, fiddling with his cuffs. “I must admit I would be grieved indeed had such a thing befallen you. But I would not hold your sister’s mistakes against you, as I hope you would not hold my brother’s against me. Though I can see that your sister’s plight and absence wound you.”
She nodded, eyes heating at his sympathetic words.
“I’m sorry. I pray she rejoins you one day soon.”
They sat quietly for a few moments longer, then he slapped his thighs and rose. “If you will excuse me, I think I will go to my room for a short Sabbath rest.”
She nodded in acknowledgment and watched him leave the parlour, still thinking over his answer.
