Page 77 of The Rules of Matrimony
He bent back over the letter. She squeezed her eyes shut, anticipating what was coming next.
“You have always hidden your diary under the mattress, so I was not at all surprised. I admit to reading it a time or two, but as you are not a regular writer, I gave up long ago. This time, however, what I read was purely accidental, so please, do not be angry with me. A paper fell to the ground, and on it was a sort of oath of conduct. It was written in a male hand and signed by you.”
She opened her eyes in time to witness Ian’s deep swallow.
“The oath contained three alarming details that quite shocked me and are not at all in order with a typical marital arrangement. I have raised you to be innocent and naive, so it is hard for me to say this, but I must be frank. Amie, dear, I do believe that your marriage is a hoax.
“I have already written to your uncle, begging him to employ a lawyer and hasten an annulment. Fear not, my child, I will be on the next coach to London. Together we will see this right.”
Ian lowered the letter to his lap and stared at her. “So this is why you did not come over today?”
She pursed her lips and nodded.
His tongue created a temporary bulge in the side of his cheek. “I see. And instead of telling me straightaway, you read a book to my father?”
She nodded again. It seemed all that she was capable of doing.
“I’ve never met another woman like you, Amie. Trouble seems to follow you about, wherever you go.”
She lowered her eyes to her hands now knotted together. “Indeed.”
“You are fortunate that I am your husband.”
She lifted her gaze. “I am?”
“You are. I will take responsibility for this. We will simply tell your mother and uncle, if need be, that the letter is a joke. I did not sign it, and there were no witnesses, so nothing will come of it.”
“But what if I say something by mistake? They will know it’s a lie.”
Ian tipped his head back and groaned. “It’s no matter. This is because of my foolishness, not yours. There was never meant to be a written document, and it was because of my own weakness that I put it to writing to begin with.”
Hisweakness? What did he mean by that? “But it is my fault that we are found out. If your father hears about it ...” She could not finish.
“He won’t. He is currently confined to his bed, and Mama is not ready for him to have visitors. The only news he will receive is what we bring him.”
She had been so afraid to bring this matter to Ian’s attention and had stalled all day without any answers. Instead of yelling at her, he assumed full responsibility, like some heroic knight. This ratherawkward trial hadn’t pushed them farther apart, as she feared, but had made her care all the more for him. “You are too kind, Ian, but I still do not see how we will sort this.”
“It will call for a little Rebel acting, I believe. We will have to disperse with the rules, so they know there is no truth to the paper. You didn’t add any other recent accounts to your diary, did you?”
She shook her head. “I haven’t written a single line since last Christmas.”
He frowned. “I would have thought there were some significant events you might have wanted to remember.”
He almost sounded hurt. She supposed there was their wedding and all their kissing, but right now, that seemed an impossible memory to ever forget. But that he cared about what she put in her diary at all entertained her. A small smile crept out, but she quickly covered it with a cough.
“Didyouwrite anything down?” she asked.
“Me?” Ian blinked. “No, I don’t keep a journal.”
Amie smiled. “Then, I suppose our children will never have anything to remember us by.”
Ian’s eyes widened.
Hers widened, too, when she realized what she’d said. “Which won’t be a problem,” she said hurriedly, “because of the rules.”
He lowered his gaze and laughed under his breath. “We’re forgetting the rules, remember? They’ve been pretty useless from the beginning.”
She didn’t think he meant to forget them forever, but this was certainly a step in the right direction. “Thank you, Ian.”
