Chapter Twenty-Seven
Lydia stared back at Darlington as the carriage rolled toward his residence, openly assessing him as he gazed back at her.
She’d never seen the man so…oddly tense.
She’d seen him playful. Irreverent. Teasing.
And intensely desirous. But, as they continued toward their destination, he seemed … resigned.
After a long moment of remaining unmoving under her gaze, he gave a tight smile.
Her stomach twisted.
Something was very wrong.
Was this the moment she’d been expecting since he’d first started trying to convince her of his interest? Was she finally going to learn that it was all a performance on his part? Was she going to discover his true motivation?
Though a tiny part of her felt vindicated in her wariness in trusting him, most of her just felt sick.
The carriage pulled into a small courtyard beside the earl’s home so they wouldn’t be let out on the street where a passerby might see her entering his residence. Lydia heard him instruct the driver to wait with the carriage in case it would be needed again soon.
Darlington’s tension was undeniable. His hand at her back flexed and twitched as he guided her through a side door, then along a narrow hall that eventually opened into the main entry.
There, he paused and turned to her. Again, Lydia couldn’t ignore how off-putting it was to see the reserved tension in his typically relaxed or teasingly amused features.
Even his smile, when he offered it, was forced and too flat.
“Shall we talk in my study?”
His formal demeanor was frustrating. But she’d entered into this arrangement with him knowing there was an excellent chance she’d get burned.
There was no point in back-stepping now.
Her only choice was to forge ahead and hope she might retain her dignity in the face of whatever revelation he was working up to.
“Certainly.”
His study was a typical representation of the characteristically male room. Dark woods, heavy fabrics, a large desk, with a subtle scent of tobacco and sandalwood.
“Please. Have a seat.” The earl gestured to a pair of chairs set before the fireplace before he crossed to stir the coals in the hearth, even though the room was quite warm enough.
Lydia didn’t sit down; rather, she stood between the chairs and waited for Darlington to turn around.
A hard and heavy pressure filled her chest and tightened her throat.
“You can stop with the prevarication, my lord. I’m obviously here to learn some overdue truth. Let’s just get to it.”
He slowly turned back to face her, his expression unreadable.
Ignoring the nauseous twist in her stomach, Lydia held his gaze. “The truth, Darlington. Now.”
*
Though he felt the stone wall rising between them and saw the storm in the depth of her eyes, Edmund did not flinch at the tone of her voice. “Are you certain you wouldn’t like to sit?”
“I’m certain.”
He nodded. Then, holding her gaze, he spoke as plainly as he could.
“I’ve not been fully honest with you. There is something I should have advised you of long ago.
” He paused to clear his throat. “I’m not proud to admit it, but I’d recently accumulated an embarrassingly large debt, which fell into the hands of someone with unscrupulous intentions.
Instead of demanding immediate repayment, however, there was something else they wanted from me. ”
Her gaze never flickered, but he saw the tightening around her mouth.
He forced himself to continue, though he knew it would destroy so much of what had been growing between them.
“A simple task for a man such as I,” he said gruffly before attempting a smile. “Seduce a young lady to the brink of ruin.”
Her brows arched. “The brink of ruin?”
“Yes.”
A flicker of something bright and intense moved through her gaze. “Why?”
“I don’t know.” He shook his head and took a step forward. “But the solicitor who advised on the situation stressed that it was a critical element of his client’s requirements that there was to be no scandal.”
Her gaze darkened. “I was asking why you’d agree to such a thing.”
Why, indeed. He had no answer to that but the truth. His lips twisted as he braced for her ire. “I was bored.”
She didn’t look particularly shocked as she stared back at him. Then her jaw tightened and her eyes narrowed. “Of course.”
His stomach clenched at the cold calm in her voice.
He took another step toward her. “I very quickly changed my mind and sent word that I would not do what they wanted.”
“But you agreed to it first.” Her smile was tense and flat. “I cannot say it surprises me.”
His lips curved with self-deprecation. “Right. Your opinion of me has always been quite low.”
“My opinion of you was realistic and pragmatic,” she argued. “I was right to suspect your motives.”
He desperately wanted to take another step and close the distance between them—but he held himself in place.
“My motives changed. Long before we became intimately involved. Half of the funds have already been transferred to the solicitor. The other half is in process even now. The debt is as good as paid. I swear to you, it had nothing to do with what happened between us.”
She stared back at him, her gaze searching. Her manner resistant and fiercely independent.
“I swear it,” he murmured, desperate for her to believe him.
After a painfully long silence, she nodded and gave a tight smile. “If you’ll excuse me.”
To his utter shock, she turned to walk away.
Shock jolted through him. This isn’t how this was supposed to go. The lady was supposed to rail at him. Call him names, perhaps. He wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d thought to strike him for such an unconscionable plot.
For her to just accept his explanation with a nod and a smile, then walk away…?
Reacting instinctually, he lunged forward to grasp her arm, causing her momentum to shift suddenly back toward him. As her body collided softly with his, he pulled her more firmly into his arms as he dropped into the nearest chair. With a gasp and a small grunt, she landed firmly in his lap.