Page 65 of The Heiress in Disguise
“But now—what? You think you’re better than me because you have this fairy godmother?”
“You know I don’t think that, Jane. I don’t know what would make you say such a thing. I’ve never claimed that I was any better than you. You and I are friends.”
“Friends don’t accuse one another of stealing,” Jane said. “The only thing I can think is that you must not have any trust in me at all.”
“Jane, please don’t be this way. I’m sorry I said anything. I really just want to know what happened to my belongings. If you say that you don’t know the answer to that question, I believe you. I would believe anything you told me.”
“You were going to kiss that man from next door,” Jane said.
Ella looked utterly confused. “What?”
“That valet who came to play poker. Philip. I saw the two of you in the woods together.”
“That wasyou?”
“Tell me the truth. You were about to kiss him, weren’t you?”
“Oh… I don’t know,” Ella said, her cheeks turning crimson. “I’m not sure why you’re bringing that up.”
“I’d like you to be honest with me. I’d like to know whether you will.”
“Of course I will. I have nothing to hide,” Ella said, though her cheeks were growing pinker by the moment. “I might have kissed him. I thought about it. But we decided against it. And I think that was probably wise of us. It won’t happen again.”
“Youwantto kiss him, though, don’t you?”
“Why are you asking me this?” Ella asked. “Even if I did want that, what difference would it make? It’s not going to happen.”
“Maybe you should worry more about that sort of thing, and less about where your luxury items are.”
Ella sighed. “I don’t know why you’re so upset with me, Jane,” she said. “Things haven’t been right between the two of us for a while now, and I don’t know what I’ve done to upset you. I’m sharing my gifts with you. I’m confiding in you about everything I’ve been going through. And you just seem to get more and more angry with me. If that’s the way you feel, I suppose you’re entitled to it. But I don’t think I’ve done anything to deserve your anger.”
She turned and walked away, and Jane was glad of it. She didn’t know if she had convinced her friend that she hadn’t stolenthe gifts or not. She did know that it didn’t matter. There was nothing Ella could do. She couldn’t report Jane for theft, because she couldn’t admit to having the things that had been stolen. Lord and Lady Leicester hated Ella. They would never believe she hadn’t stolen the things herself.
They wouldn’t believe any story Ella told them… but perhaps they would believe Jane.
The idea that came to her should have made her feel shocked with herself. It was the kind of thing she had told herself she would never do. But now she felt as if she had to. Ella had had so much good luck in her life lately, and Jane had had none. The balance needed to be restored.
Feeling almost as if she was in a trance, she made her way to the sitting room. Lady Gwyneth was there on her own, holding a book that Jane didn’t think she was actually reading. Jane had never seen Lady Gwyneth choose to read a book.
She looked up when Jane entered. “What are you doing?” she demanded. “Don’t you have chores you ought to be focusing on elsewhere in the house? You’re disturbing me.”
“I beg your pardon, Lady Gwyneth,” Jane said. “There’s something I feel you ought to be told.”
“What is it, then? Be quick about it. I wish to return to my reading.”
Jane nodded. “It has to do with Ella,” she said.
“Ella?” Lady Gwyneth wrinkled her nose. “Why are you talking to me about Ella?”
“Forgive me, but I think she might be in some sort of trouble.” That might be true, Jane rationalized, in which case it was a good thing she was doing, telling Lady Gwyneth about what had been going on. Perhaps she was actually doing her friend a favor—helping her. That made all this feel a little more palatable. She took heart and pressed on. “Someone has been giving her presents.”
“Presents? Who would do such a thing? She doesn’t even know anybody.”
“I beg your pardon, but she does,” Jane said. “We’ve all seen her socializing with that fellow from next door—Philip, the valet. They may be closer than anybody realizes.”
“You think the earl’s servant is giving Ella gifts?” Lady Gwyneth sniffed dismissively. “Some sort of rubbish, no doubt. Someone like him couldn’t possibly have the money to afford a real gift.”
“No, these are real gifts,” Jane said. “These gifts seem fit for a lady.”
