Page 66 of Heartbreaker of the Ton
She nodded. “It’s delicious. Please pass my thanks to your cook.”
His mouth curved into a grin and his eyes sparkled with pleasure. “I’m so glad you like it!” he said. “I warmed it up myself.”
She suppressed a laugh at the notion of a man taking pride in something so simple as warming up a broth—a broth that, given the depth of flavor, his cook would have been simmering overnight, before straining it to remove the impurities.
Then she checked herself and smiled. Two years ago she wouldn’t have even deigned to enter a kitchen, let alone learn the art of making a good broth. She had no right to laugh at his ignorance.
After she finished the soup, he took the bowl from her hands, then poured the tea, handed her a cup, and sat in a chair opposite.
She glanced toward the window, where the sky was already beginning to lighten.
“The storm seems to have passed,” she said.
He nodded. “Storms come and go quickly here.”
“So Mr. Ham said when I passed him earlier.”
“When was that?”
“Just before the storm came.”
“And he left you to walk home?” He let out a huff. “Foolish man!”
“Your concern is gratifying, but unfounded,” Etty said. “Mr. Ham offered to drive me home in the cart, but I refused.”
“I speak not out of concern, but out of…” He hesitated.
“Friendship?”
He colored and averted his gaze. “Can you ever forgive me for what I said?” he whispered. “I didn’t intend to insult you. It was only that I was surprised to learn…”
He shook his head. “It matters not. It’s my sin to deal with. I cannot excuse it—all I can do is tell you why.”
She set her cup aside.
“Envy is the worst of the seven sins,” he said. “For it causes a man to lose his reason. The other sins can be attributed to the natural urges of a beast. Any man can rise above those urges, and if he fails, the only one to suffer is himself. But envy…” He shook his head. “Envy is the root of all the evils of this world. Envy is the one sin that drives us to harm another, to take that from another which we feel we have greater claim to—whether that be happiness, a physical possession, or even a life.”
His voice faltered, as if he were in pain.
“What can give you cause to be envious, Andrew?” she asked.
“Sweet heaven, Etty—don’t you know?” He shook his head. “When I heard about your…protector, I was consumed with envy to learn that another had claimed your affection and not I. I thought only of myself. I was angry at first, then I realized that perhaps you had little choice, that you were the plaything of another. Then I was angry on your behalf, that you have been forced to live in deceit and obscurity as if you’re a dirty secret,whileheno doubt enjoys a gentleman’s life elsewhere, being lauded for his respectability.”
She opened her mouth to respond, but the words failed her. Was this what had tormented him the day he encountered her on the beach?
He pressed a finger against her lips. “Please, Etty—permit me to finish, for my courage will fail if I stop now. I have never known what it is like to have a rival, for I have never loved or wanted a woman. But I will say this. I know my brother—and men like my brother—who believe their worth in the world is measured by the number of women in their power. When Robert regaled me with tales of his mistresses and his exploits, I’m ashamed to say that I laughed with him. But no more. And do you know why? Because, in you, I see the consequences of a man’s folly. I see a good woman imprisoned by circumstance, forever beholden to the man who owns her. I do not blame you—the father of your son must always hold a place in your—”
“Andrew, stop.”
“No, I must—”
“Stop, please!” she cried. “Donotspeak of Gabriel’s father!”
“But the man—”
“The man about whom Mrs. Fulford is spreading gossip ismyfather, not Gabriel’s.”
He jerked backward, his mouth agape.
