Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
When Rose woke up, she was alone in bed, and it felt nowhere near as good as it should have. chest. Loneliness crashed through her chest, and her stomach dropped. She sat up quickly, looking about the room as if in fear.
That was when the door to the room opened, and Christopher walked in. He saw her in bed, and a smile reached his eyes, one that seemed to light up the room as if the sun was shining directly from his face.
“You are awake,” he said when he saw her.
“I am.” She smiled and did not care that he could see it. “How did you sleep?”
“Honestly? Better than I thought I would.”
“Me too.”
They looked at one another, and the significance of this most simple comment was shared between them. No need to elaborate on it. No need to make a fuss. They both knew how important last night was, and to draw attention to it felt unnecessary.
“I take it you will wish to speak with your sister again?” he asked.
“I will,” she said, squirming where she sat. “Hopefully, you are right, and a night of sleep has changed her mind.”
“Would you like me to come?” He walked to the bed and sat on its end. Then he looked at her, comfort found in his eyes that brought a warmth to her heart.
She did want him to come. She did want him to be there. It would not help. There was no need for it. But after last night, and with how Rose was feeling, she did not want to risk putting that distance between them again. What was more, she wanted to show Marianne what she might be missing.
“Speak to her alone,” Christopher said before she had a chance to speak. “She will not want me there, and I will likely only make things worse.”
“You won’t,” Rose assured him. “I… I want you to come.”
“And I appreciate it.” He took her hand and was still smiling; it was more common now, and it suited him far better than the scowl ever had. “But this is between you and your sister.”
It was harder to leave Christopher behind than it should have been. Rose felt a pull toward him, the urge to take his hand and never let go. It was so strange how quickly things could change. But just because it was strange did not mean it wasn’t right.
She left Christopher to pay for the room while she presented herself outside of Marianne’s room, ready for what she presumed would be another heated argument.
That was until she knocked, and Marianne answered, at which point Rose realized that giving her sister a night to herself was the best decision she had ever made.
“Oh, Rose!” Marianne threw her arms around Rose. “I am so sorry. I am so, so sorry. I should not have said those things to you. I should not have…” She sniffed back tears. “Please, forgive me. I did not mean it.”
Rose held her sister close. “There is no need to apologize, Marianne.”
“There is. You came here to help me, and I was so rude to you. I just… I love Julian, Rose. I love him, and he loves me. Why is that such a bad thing?”
“It is not a bad thing at all.”
“But it is treated as one.”
Rose gently released her sister. Then, she took her by the hand and led her back into the room, where they sat on the edge of the bed together. Marianne was already weeping, and Rose held her hand to her chest to show that she was there for her. No matter what.
“Marianne, listen to me,” she started. “The first thing I want to say is this. Whatever you choose to do, I will support you. If you choose to run away, I am behind you. If you choose to come back and face Father, I will be by your side. Nothing you do will change how I feel about you, ever, and you need to know that.”
“I know…” She sniffed back her tears.
“And times were that I might support your decision to run away.” She kissed her sister’s hand.
“You know that all I have ever wanted is for you to be happy. And if you truly think this is your only chance to be happy, then I will not stop you. But you must know that it is not your only chance, Marianne. You have options.”
“But I don’t…” More sniffing.
“You do. When I married Christopher, I felt the same as you do now. As if the world is ending. As if everyone was against me, and I was on my own. But I gave it time, I worked at it, and now…” She smiled and made sure that her sister could see it.
“Now, I am glad for what I did. And what’s more, I don’t regret it for a second. ”
“Really?”
“Whatever happens to you, I did what I did, and I would never take back, because despite what Father says, you were still given a chance to be happy. And you still have that chance to be happy.”
“But not with Julian,” she whined and wiped her nose. “Father will never –”
“Let me deal with Father,” Rose cut her off. “Please, Marianne, come home. I know that you think you must run away, but try and imagine what that will look like.”
“I know how it will look…” She didn’t sound nearly as sure as she had the previous evening.
“Think of it like this.” Rose shuffled in closer, sure to still be looking her sister in the eyes.
“If you truly believe there is no chance for you and Julian, then run away, and I wish you well. But if there is even the smallest chance that you might live together, in peace and free from judgment, then you owe it to yourself to come home. You owe it to yourself, and to Julian, to try.”
Marianne’s chin was wobbling, but Rose could see that her words were getting through to her. “Do you really think that Father…”
“He is not so hard to manipulate, if you know how.”
Marianne laughed softly. “You know…” Her eyes flicked to the doorway. “There is still time for you to… to come with us. I know you said you don’t want to, but you can.”
“No.” Rose shook her head. “I don’t think so.”
“How come?”
“Because…” She felt her heart swelling inside her chest, and it did not surprise her at all.
Not after last night. Not after everything that had happened.
“As I said, my marriage to the Duke is not nearly as terrible as I thought it would be. And do you know why?” She raised an eyebrow at Marianne, keeping the smile on her lips.
“Because I gave it a chance. I did not run. I did not hide. I accepted my fate, and I made it work.”
“But the Duke, he is so…” She grimaced.
Rose laughed. “He is not nearly as bad as you think.”
“Truly?”
Rose’s smile was as honest as it had ever been.
“As in all things, there is more to the Duke than meets the eye. When we married, I did not think there would be any connection between us. Worse, I did not want there to be. But he is different, Marianne, a better man than I could believe. I want to stay with him.”
Marianne leaned back and studied her sister as if searching for the lie. “Are you saying… No? Surely not.”
What am I saying? That I am starting to care for my husband? That I am starting to see this marriage as more than what it was? That Christopher and I have what it takes to be like Marianne and Julian? Am I really saying that?
Once, not so long ago, Rose would have denied such a claim vehemently.
Now, to say so would have been an outright lie.
Despite everything, Rose could feel herself falling for her husband in ways that were once anathema to her very being.
Her own happy ending was right there, so close that she could almost feel it, and it had everything to do with the man to whom she was married.
She no longer hated her husband. Dammit, she was starting to fall in love with him.
“I am saying that I am happy,” she said gently, kissing her sister’s hand again. “And if I can be, why not you?”
“I can be,” Marianne said, sniffing back more tears. “It is Father who –”
“Is my problem, not yours.” Rose looked pointedly at her sister. “Now, do you trust me, or don’t you? If you don’t, then I suggest that you leave as soon as Julian arrives, because I cannot help you. But if you do trust me, then come home, Marianne, and let me help you. Please.”
She knew then what her sister was going to do.
Rose was more than an older sister to Marianne. She was as close to a mother as the girl had ever known, and because of that, she trusted Rose with her life.
What was more, Rose had always seen herself as sister and mother both, and she knew there was nothing she would not do to help her little sister. All she ever wanted was for Marianne to be happy, and she knew that to run away as she meant to do would not achieve that happiness.
“Fine,” Marianne said. “I will come home.”
“It is the right decision,” Rose agreed.
“Just promise me…” Marianne took both her hands. “Promise that you will help. That you will do whatever it takes…”
“Haven’t I already?” Rose said with a smile.
Words were one thing, but her actions were what would convince Marianne. For now, her sister would trust her, and she would return to face their father, who would not bend so easily.
Rose had no idea how she was going to change her father’s mind, just that she had no choice. This was, after all, Marianne’s future that she was dealing with, and to see it secured, there was nothing that Rose would not do.
She had proven this once already, after all, so what was one more time? And hopefully, the ending to this gambit would be as fulfilling as the first time.