Page 52 of Surrender Your Grace
“I hate it, too.” He hung his head, rubbing the back of his neck. “This isn’t the homecoming I imagined. I need a hot bath and sleep.”
“Andrew—” she tried, but he had already turned.
“I can’t do this now,” he said over his shoulder, voice hollow. “We’ll talk in the morning.”
He walked out, leaving the door open, the echo of his boots sharp in the corridor.
Cici stared after him, numb. At Arendale, just a few months ago, they’d been happy. Now, there was nothing but suspicions, distance, and anger.
With tears in her eyes, she walked out, pausing briefly to steady herself against the doorframe where he’d passed. He was home, but it felt like he was a million miles away.
And this time, she couldn’t blame it all on Elizabeth.
Chapter 16
The promised morning discussion never happened. After a restless night, with sleep eluding her until the sky turned a dull gray, Cici didn’t come down until ten. By then, Andrew was already gone.
She wasn’t hungry. A pounding headache throbbed at her temples, making her queasy. Instead of breakfast, she flagged down a passing housemaid. “Could you bring tea to the salon, please?”
“We just delivered the tea cart for Lady Maggie,” Jeannette said with a polite bob. “It’s still hot, and there are lemon biscuits if you care to join her, Your Grace.”
Cici hesitated. Company was the last thing she wanted, but solitude was a luxury she seldom enjoyed in the bustling household. “Thank you. I shall.”
“You’re making a late start,” Maggie noted breezily when she entered. Then, with a dramatic wince, she added, “Gads, you look positively wrung out.”
Cici offered a weak smile. She didn’t feel like herself, and, apparently, she didn’t look it either. “That’s just what I needed to hear this morning. Thanks so much,” she murmured as she poured her tea.
“Sorry, but it’s obvious you didn’t sleep well.”
She joined her sister-in-law on the settee. “Andrew came home last night. We had a disagreement.”
Maggie reached for the nearby table and picked up a crumpled and smeared scrap of paper. “I found this on the music room floor. You confronted him about the widow, I take it?”
Cici set down her teacup and, leaning back, draped her arm over her eyes, blocking the annoyingly cheerful sunshine filling the room. “Must we talk about it? I replayed the ugly scene repeatedly in my head all night.”
“Let’s go for a ride in the park. You need a change of scenery.”
Cici let her arm drop. “I don’t know if I’m up to it.” She was weary—down to her bones.
“Nonsense. The storms swept away the heat, and it smells like September outside. You need fresh air.” Maggie stood, pulling her up with her. “I’m not taking no for an answer.”
“Are all Ashwicks so dictatorial?” she grumbled as she allowed herself to be dragged to the door.
“Yes, except you,” Maggie replied without missing a beat. “But I’m intent on fixing that. I’ll have you issuing orders and casting withering glances like a duchess in no time.”
Before she knew how it happened, Cici was seated in the back of the curricle, cool air brushing her cheeks as they turned onto Park Lane.
She sighed, tipping her face toward the sun. “It really is a beautiful day. Thank you for getting me out.”
“I needed it too,” Maggie admitted. “Being sequestered is starting to wear thin.” She smoothed a hand over her black skirts. “And James would have hated all this mourning.”
She looked down at her own lavender gown. Her bad mood would have been even more dour in mourning weeds. “I understand the honor behind it, but it seems to drag out the misery of those left behind.”
Beside her, Maggie sat up straighter. “You’re not going to believe it,” she said under her breath, “but Lady Angela Winslow has just entered The Ring. And she’s scanning for a target.”
With a flick of her fan, she indicated the direction. Cici looked, eyes narrowing as she located the lady in question. Though it wasn’t the fashionable hour, the carriages were out in force, the break in the weather bringing fresh-air seekers to Hyde Park. Traffic in The Ring moved at a crawl, guaranteeing that the widow’s carriage would soon draw alongside theirs.
“We should go.” Cici said, leaning forward to call to their driver.
