What was he doing now? It had been a week since she’d left him, and she wondered if he was still in his study.
Apparently not, if he is telling everyone our private business. That’s not at all what I would have expected from him. I thought he was a private man.
“Your Grace?”
She blinked. “Pardon me, I don’t mean to be woolgathering. I suppose it’s the early morning. Not everyone is out and about at a time like this.”
“I thought it best to visit you as soon as possible,” Lord Halbridge reasoned.
They were only words that meant nothing.
Verity studied him curiously, noting the dark color of his clothes. Tristan dressed similarly, but the color seemed very different on both gentlemen. They were calm and controlled speakers as well, but there was still something about Lord Halbridge that felt odd. If only she could put her finger on it.
“Are you well here?”
“Very much so, yes,” she replied after a pause. She tried to remember her smile. “It’s my family’s property, and my cousin is grateful for my help in managing it while he’s abroad.”
A question hung on the tip of her tongue, but before she could ask it, Lord Halbridge nodded and scooted forward on the sofa. His knee nearly brushed hers as he spoke, and she carefully shifted her leg away. “How fortunate you are to have your family. I, too, was once so lucky.”
“Oh, I’m very sorry to hear about your loss.”
He gave a sharp nod. “Indeed. Losing my cousin was one of the worst moments of my life. It hurt my very soul to see her buried in the cold earth. She didn’t deserve such a fate.”
Their conversation had taken a very quick turn.
Verity racked her brain for a way to make it more appropriate. While she didn’t care for small talk—as was expected during such visits—she couldn’t possibly manage a conversation with a gentleman she hardly knew. She considered calling for her aunt or a servant. But what excuse could she give? A married duchess in the countryside wasn’t supposed to worry about much.
“That must have been very difficult,” she said, echoing her earlier words. “Loss is… That is, grief is a very hard thing to bear.”
“Even worse,” he muttered, leaning toward her. She couldn’t look away from the hard look in his eyes. “To lose her so unexpectedly. So tragically.”
She let out a shaky breath before rising to her feet. “Dear me, it’s rather warm. Why don’t I open these windows?”
But Lord Halbridge followed her, blocking her path. “I read her letters. Her journals. The hatred she had for her foul husband. Every word warned of his coldness and duplicity. Every day was fraught with trouble for her. No lady should have died so young. It wasn’t right. It wasn’t acceptable.”
Verity paused her attempt to skirt around him. Something about the story niggled at the edges of her memory. She swallowed hard and prayed he didn’t hear it.
Tension knotted her stomach as she asked, “Did I know your cousin?”
His eyes narrowed to slits. “No. Cassandra died shattered and shredded by the man you now call husband.”
Verity felt her blood turn to ice. She blinked slowly at the gentleman as though he might tell her that this was all in jest. But he never raised his voice. He was calm and deadly serious in their conversation.
Good Lord. He lost his cousin, who was married to my husband. Why did he never say such a thing? But why is he here now? I don’t understand what he means to do here, when his cousin is already gone.
“I was not aware you two were related,” Verity admitted, forcing her voice to remain steady.
She tried to inch toward the door, but he darted around to block it from view. His shoulders were just wide enough to hide her exit.
“It was a tragic loss, indeed. Perhaps we should have some tea to calm our nerves. Or a walk through the grounds in the fresh air might do us some good.”
“Not when you can be distracted. Because you must listen to me, Your Grace.” He loomed over her, crowding her space. She smelled kippers on his breath as he grunted, “This isn’t right.”
She blinked several times. “What isn’t right?”
Lips curling, Lord Halbridge answered, “You came out of nowhere. From right here, apparently. You were here all this time… and now you’re married to my cousin’s widow. Isn’t that strange?” The knots in her stomach tightened. “You cannot simply take my cousin’s mantle.”
“I took nothing. She has been resting in peace for years. Three, isn’t it?”
