She sat on her hands, determined not to be distracted by his beauty. She had a few truths to share with him, so they both had all the facts before moving forward. And she wanted him to share with her, as he had last night. She wanted to know what had made him so skittish this morning when last night he’d been so… dominant. Confident. Determined.
But first, the truth. All of it.
“Devon,” she said, “perhaps you should let me cry off.”
“Cry off? I ask only for a lengthened engagement, not to end it entirely.”
“My father visited me this morning, and he said I could. His anger has dissipated mostly, and he wishes me to marry where I’d like and not where he forces me to. You could be free.” What would he do with this new information? She held her breath.
“We've already told my family.”
“Yes, I thought of that. They would understand, would they not?”
“You already told Littleton, which means anyone else in thetoncould know.”
“I considered that, too. I admit, it is not ideal. The offer still stands, given by my father as well as myself. If you wish to dissolve our arrangement, you may.”
“Well hell, Lillian.” He bounced off the window frame and paced toward her, his boots muffled by the thick carpeting. “I’m trying to repair my reputation just as much as you’re trying to build your own. Yes, I’m a charming rogue, more than a bit prone to flirtation. I’m obviously prone to getting into brawls, but I’m not a ne’er-do-well, a seducer of women, a reputation ruiner, as the rumors insist. I’m not about to do anything to suggest otherwise. There would be questions if we broke it off.”
“Nothing’s been announced formally. No newspaper announcement.”
He strode for the door.
She shot up from her chair. “Where are you going?”
“To put a bloody announcement in the damn paper.”
She wrapped her arms around him from behind and dug her heels into the floor. “Wait a moment,” she said through gritted teeth.
His body went limp in her grasp, and he turned in her embrace, his hands covering her jaw and lifting her gaze to his. He simply stared down at her, his large hands warm on her skin, lighting a fire in her belly with even this, the lightest of touches. What was going on inside that gorgeous head of his?
“You wish to call things off?” he finally asked, studying the corner of the room, the ceiling, everywhere but her.
“I wish you to know there are options now.”
“Noted. Thank you for telling me. Off to the papers now.” He turned.
She whirled him back around. “There is something else you must know before you make a decision.” Her mouth went dry. This was the more difficult truth to reveal. “It may change everything for you.”
“Tell me then.”
She stepped backwards until they no longer touched one another. She did her best impression of an oak in the forest, tall, strong, and stout, coursing with the wisdom of the ages.
Laughable, that.
She could not say what she was about to say with any regrets. She must stand strong. He needed to know, even though knowing may remind him he hated her.
“I wrote that letter,” she said. “The one I handed you at Christmas after pouring a pitcher of water over your head. I do not wish to marry with such a secret between us, but I realize after learning the truth, you may wish to have nothing to do with me.” She took another step back but held his gaze, commanding her chin not to quiver as she waited for his answer.
His expression gave away nothing, though he finally locked eyes with her. For one brief second, those summer blue skies of his poured into her very soul, then he tilted his head back and raked his fingers through his hair. When he rolled his head back to face her, his lips were quirked with some emotion between humor and dread.
“Oh, hell, Lil Bean,” he said, “now I have to tell you the truth.”
CHAPTER16
It was too early in the morning for this sort of emotional turmoil. And to think, the day had started out so bright. Yes, intentions and plans had changed with the wind, and here he was again, in yet another situation he had not predicted entering this day. Best to jump in with both feet and meet the consequences head on.
“What truth?” Lillian asked, her head tilted at a quizzical angle.
