Page 87 of A Marquess' Season of Secrets
“Not at all,” Juliana assured her. “I could have ruined your entire basket of apples, so this is my way of apologising to you. Please, take it and buy whatever you need.”
The money would be enough to purchase several loaves of bread and keep them fed for days as long as the woman was careful with her spending. Tears welled up in the woman’s eyes as she took the coins and held them to her chest.
“Thank you,” she cried, taking Juliana’s hand and kissing it. “Thank you! To think that I cursed your head! I take it all back.”
Somewhat embarrassed, Juliana took her hand away from the woman but smiled at her to soften the movement.
“You are most welcome, ma’am. I bid you a good day.”
“No, wait,” the woman said, clumsily wiping her tears away. “What is your name?”
“Isabella.”
“And your last name?”
There lay a question Juliana had yet to answer for herself. “It’s just Isabella,” she insisted.
Hopefully, meeting the gentleman would give her back her identity, and she could finally know her own name.
“Well, Isabella, I wish you all the happiness in the world,” the woman declared. “May you be blessed and fruitful no matter what you put your hand to do. That is my earnest prayer for you.”
Juliana smiled, appreciating the woman’s words. “Thank you.”
The woman nodded and turned away, still clutching the sack to her chest. An incredible lightness entered Juliana’s heart at the thought that she had done some good in someone’s life. She enjoyed helping others and always did what she could to assist her fellow servants, be it a helping hand with a chore, an ear to listen, or an errand to run; she did them all with pleasure.
Well, that took a turn for the better. From the anger in her eyes, I thought she would hurl an apple at me, but I think it was fatigue at trying to provide for her family.
Juliana had not expected to stop in the middle of the road like that, but she vowed not to do it again; she didn’t have another sack of money to appease the next disgruntled traveller and didn’t wish to delay the meeting any further.
Continuing with the directions Lady Stratford had given her, she took three right turns and one left turn at the baker’s shop, surprised when it led into a secluded spot behind the clockmaker’s shop. Juliana looked around her, confused about the location. The duke’s sister had said the directions would take her to a tea shop where she would meet the gentleman and sit down to speak with him.
When questioned about the appropriateness of sitting with an unknown man in such a public place, Lady Stratford had assured her the gentleman would be accompanied by a woman who was just as eager to meet her.
This had led Juliana to believe that the pair might be her parents, and she had eagerly asked for a physical description of the man and woman. Lady Stratford had responded with a smile and assured her that she would know precisely who they were the moment she clapped eyes on them.
“This cannot be the place,” she muttered, turning back to where she had entered.
A dark shadow appeared in front of her before the rest of the person caught up to it, startling her. Juliana had to blink several times before her mind told her precisely who this person was.
One look at him was enough for her memories to come flooding back with force. Some were welcomed, while others left her pale and angry. The man before her was part of the latter.
“You!” she cried, taking a step back.
“How are you my, dear?” said Ralph, walking further into the light. “How I have longed to see you again, and look, I have now found you.”
Juliana stared into the cold, blue eyes of the Earl of Somersby, stumbling as more memories washed over and through her, making it too much for her to bear. She felt herself slipping— whether physically or mentally, she did not know— struggling against the involuntary closing of her eyes.
She was losing consciousness, yet this was certainly not the time. Juliana could not make herself vulnerable to the very man she had escaped all those months ago.
“You seem unwell, Juliana,” Ralph remarked. “Come away with me, and I can attend to your needs.”
Juliana held her palms out, shaking her head to clear the blackness blurring her vision.
“No,” she said firmly. “Stay away from me, Lord Somersby.”
“Is that any way to speak to your fiancé? You cannot know how distressed I was when I returned from London and found you gone. What a naughty girl you have been.”
Juliana took another step back, but her legs wouldn’t work correctly this time. Instead, she fell painfully to her knees, glad for the thick dress she wore. She was forced to shut her eyes against the spinning world around her and grew increasingly worried as her body refused to get up and run no matter how hard she tried.
