Page 101 of Harpy of the Ton
“So, you won’t go away?”
Lawrence’s heart ached at the anguish in his son’s voice.
“I promise,” Bella said. “What mother would leave her children?”
“I want you to stay forever,” Jonathan said. “I love you, Mama.”
Bella kissed his forehead. “I love you too, sweet boy. I love you all—more than life itself.”
She looked up and froze as she met Lawrence’s gaze.
Ashamed at being caught eavesdropping, he pushed the door fully open. Four pairs of eyes stared at him.
“Children, it’s time you went to sleep and let your mama rest,” he said. “I’m sure she’s tired and wants some respite.
“Yes, Papa,” they chorused. Bella climbed off the bed, tucked the children in, then exited the bedchamber.
Lawrence caught her hand. “Bella…”
“You were right,” she said. “I do want respite—Icraveit.”
“Respite from what?”
She descended the stairs to the parlor. He followed and watched her tidy the room and set out the blankets on the sofa for the night—the sofa she’d been sleeping on since her arrival.
“What do you want respite from, Bella?”
She turned to face him, her eyes filled with tears. “Your deception.”
Dear Lord—was her memory returning?
“D-deception?”
She nodded. “You’ve taken me for a fool. I-I don’t know for how long—but I know it’s the worst form of deception a man can undertake.”
“What have I done?”
She reached behind the clock on the mantelshelf. “This,” she said, holding out her hand—and Lady Arabella’s ruby brooch with its huge gemstone, winking malevolently at him, like a huge red eye.
She ran her thumb along the monogram.
“A.P.,” she said. “I know who A.P. is.”
Shit.
He lifted his gaze to Bella’s, and the breath caught in his chest.
The sapphire eyes filled with disgust and betrayal were not the eyes of Bella Baxter.
They were the eyes of Lady Arabella Ponsford.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Lawrence stared atthe brooch.
“Have you been in my study?” he asked.
“Is thatallyou have to say, Lawrence?”
