Page 59 of The Virgin and the Viscount

“I didn’t realize you had returned from your holiday,” Justine said as she took a seat next to Tilly.

Tilly plastered on a smile and turned to face her friend. But Justine, normally the picture of health with rosy cheeks and a ready smile, looked positively green. “Are you feeling well?” Tilly asked.

“I think something I ate didn’t agree with me. I shall be fine soon enough,” Justine said and Tilly wasn’t certain if her friend meant to convince her or herself.

But she didn’t have time to ask further questions because the rest of their small group walked in. Harriet and Agnes came in and stopped short when they saw her and then beamed at her with nearly matching smiles. That was what marital bliss looked like. She offered them a smile in return, but she’d never been particularly skilled at hiding her feelings.

They filed in and took their seats, Agnes sitting on Tilly’s other side. And then Lady Somersby entered the room and began the meeting.

Ten minutes later, Agnes leaned over and whispered through her teeth, “What has happened?”

Tilly glanced over with a frown. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You can pretend to be coy about this, but we both know that in the end I’ll get the information out of you. What is wrong?” She reached over and squeezed Tilly’s hand, then offered her a gentle smile.

And damnation if tears didn’t prick her eyes. How did she still have any tears left? She did not need to cry about this anymore, and especially not in the middle of the meeting. Agnes grabbed Tilly’s hand and pulled her to her feet, then led them swiftly out of the room. If the other girls asked questions, they’d deal with them later. For now, it seemed, she’d get to speak to Agnes alone.

Once they were alone, Agnes nodded. “Now speak.”

“He left,” Tilly said, keeping her words evasive.

“Why?”

Tilly blew out a breath and eyed her friend. The tears had begun falling, but Tilly ignored them, choosing to believe that if she didn’t acknowledge them, then Agnes couldn’t see her cry. “Everything was good. Really good. At least I thought so. Then I found a letter.” Tilly took a deep breath. “Agnes, he’s been working with Lady X. I told him I was leaving, and he said that we should be one of those couples who is married but lives separate. He said he knew I preferred London so he offered to go back to the coastal estate.”

Agnes frowned, shook her head. “I don’t understand. What do you mean he’s working with Lady X?”

Tilly paused, uncertain if she should give Agnes all the details, but then realized she didn’t owe Sullivan any of her loyalty. “I found a letter she’d sent him. She petitioned his help in ending the Ladies of Virtue in exchange for evidence that proves his brother killed their oldest brother.” Tilly released a mirthless laugh. “I was wholly unprepared for the betrayal. As I said, things between us were good. Better than I could have imagined.” She’d almost believed those tender words he’d said to her. No, she had believed them, that’s what made this so damned painful. But now she knew all of it had been a lie.

“You love him,” Agnes said plainly.

“God help me, but I do. I tried not to. I tried to find every reason not to trust him, not to fall in love with him. I thought that if I could prevent myself from loving him, it wouldn’t hurt as badly when everything ended.”

Agnes’s brows rose. “You expected it to end?”

“I suppose I did.”

Her friend was quiet for a few minutes before she spoke again. “I’m sorry, Tilly. Do you want to go back in?”

Tilly shook her head. “I think I’ll return to the townhome. I should have known it was too soon for me to come out.”

Agnes embraced her. “Nonsense. You are among friends here.”

Tilly gave her a watery smile.

“I’m sorry if anything I said about Sullivan pushed you into a union that has made you unhappy. This behavior is certainly not the man I thought I knew.”

“I would have married him regardless. It was the right thing to do to salvage my reputation. And I can’t even say that I regret it.” She didn’t. Not even a little bit. The small amount of bliss she’d had was worth it. Perhaps he never would love her the way she’d imagined he could, but she couldn’t find it in her to regret their time together.

Chapter Thirteen

He had been away from his sweet and feisty Freckles for nearly a week. The ache in his chest hadn’t subsided and he wondered again if leaving had been the right thing to do. He missed her in a way he hadn’t known was possible. Not just in his bed, either. He missed her smile and laughter and the challenging way she’d look at him.

She was clever and strong and everything he didn’t deserve in this world. And marrying him had been a mistake for her. He’d picked revenge on his brother over his wife. There was no coming back from that.

He’d made the right choice. He’d set her free. Well, as free as she could be while still carrying his name.

There was a scratch at the door and the housekeeper stepped inside. “My lord, you have visitors.”

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