An Earl's Deception_Regency Romance by Joyce Alec

Author:Joyce Alec [Alec, Joyce]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-09-28T18:00:00+00:00

9

“Edith could not be encouraged to join us this afternoon?”

Even as he spoke, Edmund realized that he should not have begun their conversation with such a question, for Lady Martha winced and turned her head, looking out of the carriage window as it made its way towards Hyde Park. He knew, of course, that there were some difficult conversations occurring between Lady Martha and Lady Edith and he should not have brought the matter up so sharply.

“I am quite sure Mrs. Stewart will be adequate company,” he continued hastily, not giving her time to answer as his gaze shot uneasily towards the older lady, who was seated next to Lady Martha. Unfortunately, the lady’s eyes were quite tightly closed, although she still somehow managed to remain seated upright.

“Edith and I…”

Edmund frowned. Lady Martha did not normally have a quiver in her voice, which meant that something had upset her greatly. A twinge of concern echoed in his mind. Although, whether it was for Lady Martha or Lady Edith, he could not say.

Lady Martha cleared her throat gently, her gaze still fixed on whatever it was outside. “Edith and I had something of a disagreement,” she said in a much clearer voice. “I am afraid it went rather badly.”

Finally, her light green eyes met his and, to his surprise, Edmund realized that they were a little red-rimmed. Apparently, the lady had been crying, and that brought him a good deal of distress.

“You are still pursuing her with questions then?” he asked, concern wrapping around his soul, as he fought the urge to reach forward and take her hand. “Lady Martha, I do not like seeing you in such distress. Mayhap we ought to put an end to this situation, so that you are no longer in such a difficult position. I can continue to pursue Lady Edith alone, I am sure.” Ignoring the twinge of pain that shot through him at the thought of being without Lady Martha’s company, he fixed his gaze on her beautiful green eyes. “Do tell me truthfully, Lady Martha, should you wish to remove yourself from this situation. You will simply have to say the word and–”

“You are very kind, Lord Weston, but I believe that this is for the best,” Lady Martha interrupted, settling one hand on his for a moment and sending a wave of heat rushing up his arm. “Edith is growing frustrated with my persistence, that is all.”

He frowned, aware of the way Lady Martha looked away from him, her tongue darting out to lick her lips. He would guess that there was something more to it, something that she was not yet saying to him, but he could not let himself pry, for that would be appallingly rude.

Clearing his throat, he touched her hand again, surprised at how his whole body jolted at the briefest of touches. “I do hope you will be able to reconcile very soon.”

Lady Martha’s smile was strained, and Edmund felt himself grow even more frustrated, wishing that he was able to do something to bring her upset to a swift conclusion.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.