Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Five
Anna
“Forgive me,” I said to the woman, who’d taken Mr. Lennox’s coin and was placing the bracelet in a paper bag. Then I turned to face him.
“What are you doing here?” I demanded in a low voice, seething and stalking away from the other shoppers. Luckily, I saw no one else I knew, but that did not mean others did not know me. “I have told you—”
Mr. Lennox kept my pace, followed closely by Graham, until we were well on our own down the shoreline. “There is an urgent matter we must discuss.” His attention flicked to Graham. “In private.”
“Absolutely not,” I said, crossing my arms. Being alone with him was the last thing I wanted. “You have already inconvenienced me and my host enough. Say what you must, and make it your last, for my patience is running thin, Mr. Lennox. I cannot be seen with you.”
“You do not mean that. This, between us, is merely a lover’s spat.”
“Is that what you are telling everyone? Is that why everyone in Brighton is already speculating over what happened?”
“I said I would prove myself to you—prove that I have your best interests at heart. That I think only of you, only of your happiness. And I have.”
I scoffed and shook my head. “You cannot possibly—”
“There are others who have deceived you,” he spoke over me in an almost desperate rush of emotion. He stepped closer, his words spilling out in an unfiltered flood. “Others who have kept secrets from you. I swear to you, Anna, now and forevermore, that my engagement to Miss Clarence was purely transactional and mutually broken. Accept me now, and you and I shall start on even footing. Both knowing where the other stands, with no more secrets between us. I swear it.”
“That is quite enough,” Graham said with a dangerous edge to his voice. He’d gone entirely rigid, and I realized I’d never seen him truly angry before this moment. “Miss Lane has asked you to leave, and if you do not do so at once, we shall have a problem, you and I.”
“Sheath your sword, Everett. I need only a moment more.”
The man spoke in riddles, and I had no patience left. “Tell me at once, Mr. Lennox. Plainly. What are you saying? What secrets?”
He focused on me, one hand outstretched between us. “I crossed paths with your father in Bath.”
The silence that followed prickled against my skin. My father had been in Bath, yes. Mr. Lennox seeing him there would not be unusual. What, then, caused him to stare so solemnly at me?
“Very well.” I said, curt. “And soon he’ll be in Brighton, come to claim me. What of it?”
Mr. Lennox leaned in, watching me with a fervent interest that sent a cold chill down my spine. “He took tea with Ms. Peale in the Pump Room the very morning I left for Brighton.”
I took a step back, gaze trailing to the rocky brown shore beneath my feet as my mind raced in circles. Bath, yes, that was where my father had returned for business. Business. With Ms. Peale? I did not know a Ms. Peale.
Furthermore, why would Papa engage in business matters with a woman?
“Ms. Peale,” I tried the name, but still, nothing. Who the devil was she?
Mr. Lennox shook his head, then scoffed in evident disgust. “He has not even mentioned her to you?”
“Lennox, this is not your story to tell. Leave.” Graham stepped between us, gritting his teeth. “Now.”
But Mr. Lennox sidestepped him. “They were inseparable all morning.”
My entire body went cold, save for a burning in my neck and cheeks. My father ... and a woman?
Graham started to move between us, but I lifted a hand to stop him. He waited a step away, watching.
Mr. Lennox nodded, his eyes never leaving mine. “Indeed, I have never seen your father so encouraged. Makes a man quite jealous, to be honest.”
Graham was watching me, frowning at Mr. Lennox, denying nothing. He’d known where my father was going. And clearly, he’d known why.
My heart dropped to my toes.
I rounded on Mr. Lennox. “Are you quite certain this was my father?”
Mr. Lennox leaned in, his musky cologne overtaking my senses. “I should not be the only one willing to tell you the truth, and yet here I am. I may not be a perfect man, but I am loyal to a fault. And I always will be.
“I did not want to say anything until I knew for certain, so I immediately sought out anyone who could support my theory. I now have it on good authority from someone close to your father that this past week was not his first rendezvous with Ms. Peale. I came for you as soon as I could.”
My throat tightened, and I coughed to combat the pain filling my chest. The idea was preposterous. Ridiculous. Papa would never keep such an enormous secret from me.
My knees turned wobbly, my eyes pricking with emotion I did not know how to control. I needed to get away. I needed to think, to make sense of what Mr. Lennox had just said. But the more I thought, the fuzzier my mind became. Papa had a ... a Ms. Peale.
I stepped past Mr. Lennox, toward the emptiness of the shoreline as my breaths came in shallow wisps. Where could I go? Where could I run?
I had no one.
Not even Graham, whom I’d been foolish enough to trust. To love. He’d been playing our old games this whole time. He would do anything to win my father’s approval, even keep a secret he’d known would break me.
“Anna—” Mr. Lennox followed me, but he stopped short of reaching my side. The most decent thing he’d ever done was lend me privacy after such a blow. “You must feel incredibly betrayed. I certainly would.” The rocks shifted under his feet as he took a single step closer. Please consider my offer. Should you not wish to return with your father, you are most welcome to stay with me at my cousin’s home for the next few days. We can prepare further details together. Anything you need—anything at all—you need only send word. I am at your service.”
I said nothing, only wrapped my arms around my middle and begged the tears not to fall. Not in so public a place. Not when I had no choice but to face Graham. I would not let him see me so affected.
I felt the air change as Mr. Lennox turned to go. His offer was a double-edged sword. To choose him would be the biggest mistake of my life. It would be a life of loneliness, for he’d never be faithful. He’d never truly love me.
The rocks crunched beneath boots behind me once more. Different steps this time. Hesitant, slow. I did not turn my head, but I could feel Graham an arm’s length away, silent and tense.
I thought he might stand there forever. Or perhaps until the tide rose and swept us both away.
“Does he speak the truth?” I asked, proud of how strong my voice sounded.
Graham moved to my side, and I shifted away.
The tide crashed against the rocks once, twice, then he said, “Her name is Ms. Abigail Peale.” His words were quiet, calm, even. “She’s a widow, no children, very lovely, and very taken with your father.” Details lined up like they were statistics, figures in a business proposal. “We’d traveled to Bath to consider an investment, and they met. And, yes, we’ve visited several times since to see the investment through. There were dinner parties, dancing. Though this past week, she invited him. He didn’t tell you because—”
“Why did you not say something?” I looked up then, exasperated and surprised by the tremor in my voice, the way my heart ached and echoed sadness like an empty hall in a tall, abandoned house.
Graham’s shoulders sank; he lowered his voice. “We haven’t exactly been sharing secrets of late, Anna. This one was not mine to tell.”
He should have told me. If he had any regard for me at all, he should have told me. “How long have they been acquainted?”
Graham looked down at his boots, then kicked at the rocks between us. “Since last year. But only seriously the past few months.”
My heart fell to the ground. “A year?” I breathed.
My throat ached with emotion I could not release, and I tried to swallow it down, but tears threatened instead. Papa had promised me he would not entertain the idea of marriage before I wed. Promised that we’d always have each other. And after Mr. Lennox I’d been relying on that fact. That I wouldn’t be left to navigate Society alone.
Graham reached out again, this time handing me his handkerchief.
I took it and turned away from him to compose myself.
“Anna, I’m so sorry,” Graham started. “He should have told you. I assured him you would understand. That you’d be happy for him.”
“You assured him?” My voice cracked as I rounded on Graham. “Why are you and my father conversing privately about matters in my life that have no bearing whatsoever on yours?”
He stepped back on instinct. “You’re upset with me.”
I wiped my nose on his handkerchief, scoffing. “Brilliant, Graham. I can see you’ve used your education well.”
He raised his hands in a show of surrender. He was an island all his own, declaring no alliance, friend to all. But I didn’t want neutrality. I wanted his allegiance. I wanted the truth, or I wanted to be rid of him. I’d rather be alone than lied to.
“Try to see things from your father’s perspective. He promised you he would not marry until you did—”
“How do you even know about—”
“—but then he met someone.” Graham raked an impassioned hand through his hair. “Someone ... unexpected. What was he to do? Let her slip through his fingers? He tried to temper his feelings, I assure you, but he simply could not.”
I leaned my head back to keep the tears from falling and pinched the top of my nose. This was all too unreal. Too unbelievable. And too soon after Mr. Lennox. I’d thought everything would be well if only I’d removed myself from London, and yet, lies and deceit had followed me, even from the one man I trusted fully. I was in a terrible nightmare, and I could not wake up. I clutched my neck.
“I do not know what to do. I cannot breathe.”
“I am certain he means to tell you when he returns. In truth, in his study before we left, he nearly gave her up because he feared your reaction. He loves you.” Graham nearly pleaded.
I looked at him. I could feel the sincerity behind Graham’s words, but the frustration in my chest made me want to scream. “Why do you defend him? The only man I have ever fully trusted has hidden a whole second life from me. If you care for me at all—” I stopped myself, too hurt to be embarrassed, and lowered my voice. “You of all people should understand what that feels like.”
“I do indeed.” Graham’s features sharpened. “The difference being, my father abandoned me without a single thought. He never loved me. Never cared about my happiness, whether I was scared at night, or if I went hungry. Your father, however, loves you so fiercely he would have forfeited his only chance at real love again because of a promise he made to you when you were a child.”
My eyes welled with tears. His words felt like a reprimand, though he’d said nothing harsh or unkind. I let them sink in, tried to reason with the truth clawing free despite the pain. But my feelings were so wounded, hurt from all the gossip that continued to follow me, from my father’s choices, and even from Graham, who’d known so much and said so little. A girl could only bear so much before breaking.
“Anna,” Graham spoke gently, as though he could read the thoughts behind my eyes. “I do not defend his choice to hide this from you. I simply want you to see that everything he has done has been with you in mind.”
I shook my head. “He’s done a wretched job.”
Graham reached out, and this time I let him lightly cradle my arms in his hands. “He has indeed. And I should have told you. As soon as things changed between us, I should have told you straightaway. I’ve hurt you, and I cannot bear it. Please. Forgive me.”
I sniffed and drew up the handkerchief, hiding my wobbling chin. “I am so angry with him.”
“You should be.” He crouched down and retrieved two fist-sized rocks. He handed one to me; the other he kept for himself. “Honestly, I am starting to feel angry myself. He should not have put me in this position at all. It is not my responsibility to keep his secrets.” He scrunched his face and threw the rock far out into the sea.
We watched it fly to a satisfying plummet.
“No, it is not.” I agreed.
“I won’t,” he said, eyes serious and focused on mine. “I promise, I will never keep a secret from you again, no matter who asks it of me. And I will have some choice words for your father when he returns.”
I nodded once, heart brimming over with Graham’s sincerity.
I believed him.
I believed that he cared for my father and had subsequently, as a friend, kept his secrets. I believed that he’d also not considered how it might affect me should things come out before Papa had a chance to tell me himself. But most of all, I believed him when he said he was sorry, and when he promised to never repeat that same mistake again.
There was no false flattery. No impossible promises. Just care and devoted friendship.
And that made all the difference.
I reared back my arm, rock in hand, and threw. My shoulders fell as it landed halfway to the ripples Graham’s had made.
He stared out to the sea with a hand over his brow and winced. “We shall have to work on your arm, Anna. Or your anger.”
He looked over with a stupid grin on his face and winked at me, and somehow, that was enough.
I started to laugh, and he knocked my arm with his shoulder.
Papa had broken my heart, but somehow Graham had loosely stitched it back together. I still felt betrayed. I still could not forgive Papa. But I could smile, albeit marginally.
“Mr. Everett!” a rough voice called from the distance.
We turned, and a portly man strode toward us.
“Oh, good grief,” Graham muttered. “Brace yourself, Anna. You’re about to meet a wild man.”