“May I have some time to think about it?” she asked, unable to ignore the soft gasp that came from the corner of the room. Beatrice likely thought she was mad, too.
Furrows appeared on Roger’s otherwise smooth brow, his lips pursing. “Well, I rather hoped to announce it today, so we have three weeks to manage the banns before my house party.” He huffed out a frustrated breath. “I had the idea that it could serve as our wedding celebrations, too.”
“Please, Roger,” she urged, tapping into the reservoir of her flirtatious lessons in an attempt to delay. “I just need some time to think. It is the first time I have ever received a proposal—would you deny me the full experience of leaving you in brief suspense?”
He seemed to like that, smiling shyly. “Very well. Take as much time as you need, though if you could accept before the end of the house party here, I would be terribly grateful. It will be easier to invite everyone to our wedding celebrations, if I can request their presence in person.”
Fortunately, he did not appear to hear Beatrice’s snort.
“I will give you my response in due course, Roger,” Valeria promised.
Recovering from her stifled chuckle, Beatrice took that moment to intrude on the conversation, clapping her hands together like a schoolmaster demanding silence.
“I hate to separate you at such a wondrous moment,” she said brightly, “but I really must get my cousin to her chambers, so a physician can be summoned. It is never a good idea to make a decision while in great pain, after all.”
Roger blinked, as though he had forgotten that the younger woman was there. “Yes, of course. I have taken up enough of your time, Valeria.” He got to his feet, bowing deeply. “I look forward to hearing your reply, and I wish you a swift recovery. Once again, I am sorry about the ice. I had no idea it would melt so quickly in this heat.”
“Thank you, Roger,” was all Valeria could say.
Although she must have done, or she would be in a heap on the floor, she felt as if she had not breathed throughout the entire conversation. Once Roger was safely out of the Sun Room, she sank back against the arm of the settee, expelling a strained exhale.
“Say nothing,” she warned her cousin with a raised finger.
Beatrice clasped a hand to her chest, feigning outrage. “I was not going to say a word.” She moved closer. “Shall I help you to our rooms now?”
“No, thank you.” Valeria closed her eyes, willing her breathing to calm down. “Instead, might you fetch my father to me? I fear I must speak with him at once.”
After all, this proposal affected them both.
It will change everything for us. It will be worth the price I have to pay. It has to be.She held tightly to that thought as she cracked open one eye, watching as Beatrice rushed away to retrieve Valeria’s father.
And as her thoughts drifted traitorously toward Duncan— feeling the phantom touch of his arm around her shoulders; his forehead resting against hers like a kiss; the skim of his fingertips against her skin as he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear; the cradle of his warm palm against her cheek, his thumblightly brushing the apple of it—she reached down and prodded her bruise, letting the pain carry away any residual hope that he might burst through the door and ask her to marry him himself.
CHAPTER THIRTY
“Iknow I have said it before, but I am sorry that this has fallen on your shoulders,” Valeria’s father said miserably, hanging his head as he sipped from a cup of tea. “But… the viscount seems like a nice fellow, does he not? He certainly seems fond of you, and that is so very important.”
Nibbling on a raspberry tart to keep her hands and nerves occupied, Valeria shuffled a little closer to her father on the settee. “He is a pleasant man, Papa. And, however misguided, it appears he has something of a romantic streak—very unexpected but not unwelcome.” She mustered a dry laugh. “Iam sorry that I still need time to think. You must be terribly anxious, and you know I do not want to cause you any struggle, but?—”
“I understand, my dear daughter,” Aaron interjected, blowing on his tea though it must have been lukewarm by now. “There is no rush. This is a difficult decision, and you deserve to have the time to think on it thoroughly.”
But thereisa rush, Papa. We both know that.She did not remind him out loud; it was clear in the jig of his knee and the tapping of his fingernails against the cup and the dry skin of a chewed lip that he was fully aware of the urgency.
“I truly wish I could take this burden from you,” he mumbled, his voice catching. “All your life, I told you that you could be whatever you wanted to be, and live however you wished to, putting no real expectation upon you, letting you be precisely yourself. I have taken all of that away, and I do not know that I shall forgive myself.”
With a lump in her throat, Valeria took hold of her father’s hand and squeezed it tightly. “There is no need for forgiveness, Papa. Skeffington is part of me—it is a huge piece of my heart. If we were to lose it, it would take that piece with it. Iwantto do this, but I need the time to… steel my courage and resolve.”
They sat in silence for a while, sipping and nibbling, lost in their own thoughts. The noise of the treasure hunt continued outside the Sun Room doors, the grounds filled with distant shrieks of excitement and roars of triumph, while shadows occasionally darted past the glass in their search for clues.
“Do you love him?” Aaron asked abruptly.
Valeria swallowed the bite of tart, a crumb sticking in her throat. “Who?”
“The viscount,” he replied, squinting in confusion.
“Yes, of course—the viscount,” she hurried to say, blushing furiously. “It is so hot in here that I can barely think.”
Aaron’s expression softened into a smile. “So, youdolove him?”
