Page 12 of Snowbound with the Earl
“To an empty chamber?”
“As you can see, it was not empty.”
He might have argued that, without a fire in the hearth or any lamps lit and her hidden behind closed curtains, there was no way he would have known that, but he let it pass. “Again, I apologize. I will leave you to read in solitude.” He turned his back and started back for the door.
“Graham.”
No, keep walking,he told himself. He did not want to have a conversation with Lady Bonneville. But his legs did not agree with his brain. His feet slowed and then stopped in the middle of the room. He refused to turn and look at her, though. If he looked at her, he would never want to walk away.
“Do you not think it time we had a conversation about...our past?”
“What is there to discuss?” He stared at the door. Why could he not force his feet to move toward it? “I proposed and you refused. You married another man.”
“You know it was not that simple.”
He turned to face her. Damn it. She was so lovely in her dark green morning dress with the snow falling outside the window behind her. Her dark hair had been tied into a long tail with a green ribbon, her lace cap forgotten on the cushion of the window seat beside her. All the feelings he’d had for her came rushing back in that instant. He’d wanted her for his wife so badly. He’d ached for her when not in her company. And she’d said she felt the same.
But she’d lied.
The anger and resentment he’d held for so long bubbled to the surface, and his words spilled over. “I know you told me you loved me and not two days later you told me you’d been mistaken. You’d never loved me at all, and you were marrying Viscount Bonneville—a man old enough to be your grandfather.”
Her knees had been drawn up to her chest, and now she turned and dropped her feet to the floor. “Do you honestly think I preferred Richard Bonneville over you?”
“Perhaps you preferred his money or his title. Ten years ago, no one expected me to become the Earl of Evergreen.” In fact, his uncle, the last earl, had produced two sons, and both had married and were expected to produce offspring. His cousin’s wives both bore daughters in their first few years of marriage, and then the heirs to the earldom had decided to take their yacht out into the Channel one windy afternoon. A sudden storm had developed, and the wind and rain had disabled the vessel. Another vessel had come upon the wreck of the yacht and the drowned men’s remains. Graham, whose own parents had passed away years before, was unexpectedly declared the earl.
“I never cared about any of that. I cared about you.”
The pleading look in her eyes tugged at his heart, but he clenched a fist and steeled himself. “If that was true then you would have accepted my proposal.”
“Graham—”
“It’s Evergreen or my lord to you, madam.”
She swallowed and nodded. “My lord, my parents were against the match. They preferred Bonneville.”
“I understand them perfectly, my lady. They allowed me to court you until someone better came along. All you had to do was play the role of angler and keep this fish on the line while you cast your net for a bigger one.”
She jumped to her feet. “That isn’t true.”
“Save your words. I don’t want your explanations. Go flirt with Turlington or play the wanton widow. God knows you probably deserve some bedsport after ten years with that old man.”
Her face had drained of color, and Graham knew he had said too much. He’d lashed out and couldn’t take the words back.Thiswas why he’d wanted to avoid her. After all this time, his wounds were still raw, and he was a hurt animal snarling in a corner. Even as he realized the pain he caused, he couldn’t stop from lashing out.
Her gaze held his as she took a shaky breath. “I don’t want Mr. Turlington,” she said.
He shrugged. “And I don’t want you.”
