Page 57 of A Sinful Viscount's Mistletoe Affair
Eleanor gasped, and Isabella realized that until that moment, her mother had been hoping to be convinced that her daughter was free from guilt and that her illustrious marriage could still go ahead. But it was clear, now, that neither of those things were true.
“It is true, then, Isabella?” Eleanor murmured, her voice barely audible.
Isabella could not say the words out loud to admit it, but she looked her mother in the eye and could tell Eleanor knew it was indeed true.
Her father sighed. “Isabella, how could you have done this to us? Our family will never recover from the shame.”
Fresh tears filled Isabella’s eyes as she sat silently in front of them, feeling their judgement and disapproval boring into her as they all stared at her.
“Well, you cannot imagine for a moment that I intend to marry her after all this,” the duke said flatly. “The deal is off. There will be no engagement.”
Isabella watched as he turned and left the room, slamming the door behind him. Perhaps there was a tiny, tiny silver lining in the whole situation, she thought. She would not have to marry the duke.
But then she remembered the sight of Sebastian and Felicity on the terrace together. She thought that the image would never leave her mind and would be with her until her dying day. How could he have done this to her? She was so sure that he loved her. And it had all been a lie.
“Mother, please might I be excused?” she said softly. “I wish to be alone.”
Eleanor nodded. “Very well,” she replied. “We will talk more in the morning.”
Isabella left the parlour and ran up the stairs to her room, desperate to avoid being seen by any guests. There was still a hubbub of noise from the ballroom, so she imagined that the party was still going on and everyone was talking about her, Sebastian, and Felicity. No doubt the guests were all waiting in avid anticipation of more news as the night progressed.
Well, she would not stay and be stared at. She wanted only to be alone, to remember the precious moments she had shared with Sebastian, and to face the brutal fact that it had all been a lie, and now she would be alone forever.
***
Meanwhile, on the other side of the house, Sebastian stood in the back parlour. It was a small room, and a servant had led them there, telling them they would not be disturbed.
With him were his mother and stepfather and Adrian. Everyone was staring at him, and he was trying to think of something to say. But he was still in shock from the events of the last hour. Felicity had appeared from nowhere, and before he had even realized what was happening, she was embracing him. And then, Isabella had appeared and called out his name, with a cry of pain that he thought he would never forget until his dying day.
She loved him; he was sure of it now. But now she must think that he had betrayed her. After what she had seen, how could she possibly come to any other conclusion?
“Sebastian, you must try and tell us what happened,” Adrian said, breaking into his thoughts. “Everyone thinks that you seduced the girl, but I know that cannot be true, can it?”
Sebastian blinked and looked at his stepbrother. He was about to reply when the door flew open, and Lord Harrow entered, pulling Felicity along by her arm. Her eyes were red and swollen, and she had clearly been crying.
“The servants told us you were here,” Lord Harrow barked. “You have some explaining to do, My Lord!” He glared at Sebastian.
“I do not know what to say, My Lord,” Sebastian replied, “other than that what you saw on the terrace is not what you think it is. Not at all.”
“How can it not be?” Lord Harrow exploded. “You and my daughter were caught in an illicit embrace! Everyone saw you! I do not know how you think that you can possibly deny it.”
“I do deny it,” Sebastian said simply. He knew there was no point in blaming Felicity for what had happened, even though she had clearly planned the whole thing. He knew that no one would believe him. All he could do was wait, see what happened next, and respond accordingly. He felt rather surprised, in fact, by how calm he felt.
“Felicity, why don’t you tell us what happened,” Lord Harrow said, pushing her forward a little.
She wiped her eyes and sniffed. “I am not sure I can even talk about it,” she murmured, looking at the ground. “It is just too terrible for words.”
Sebastian glanced at his mother, who was looking at Felicity with a horrified expression. His stepfather, too, looked rather dismayed by the whole situation. He knew that neither they nor Adrian were likely to believe that he had tried to seduce Felicity, but it seemed that this was the angle she and her father would take.
“You must, Felicity,” Lord Harrow said.
Sebastian sensed an almost threatening tone in his voice and remembered the late-night conversation he had overheard the previous night. He was now convinced that Lord Harrow had secrets to hide, just as much as George Langley did, if not even more so. And for some reason, Felicity had sought to entangle him in this scandal. He could not work it out, but the whole thing was thoroughly suspicious, and he was very much on his guard.
She cleared her throat. “I was just outside getting some air on the terrace,” she said quietly. “And he came out of nowhere and grabbed me! I was so scared; I did not know what was going to happen!” She paused dramatically and looked around the room. “And he seemed like such a nice gentleman, but all along, he was looking for an opportunity to pounce.”
If the situation had not been so grave, Sebastian would have laughed, so extreme was her performance. But he knew that no one would believe the truth – that it was she who had pounced on him. He felt a surge of anger coursing through him. He had intended to propose to Isabella this evening if she would consider forgiving him for his duplicity.
And now here he was faced with this lying woman, who was pretending to be so terribly distressed, and her conniving father, whose motives as yet remained unclear. Everything was falling apart.
