Sebastian, however, seemed oblivious to her discomfort, grinning brightly at his friend.
“Come in, come in,” he urged, ushering Nathaniel into the house. “I had no idea you were planning on visiting. Caroline, darling, would you mind terribly if I absconded with Nate for a bit? We have quite a lot to talk about.”
Caroline forced a smile to her lips, tamping down the irrational surge of unease and jealousy that rose in her throat. “Of course not,” she demurred. “You two enjoy yourselves. I have some errands to attend to in town anyway. Shall I expect you for dinner?”
“Absolutely,” Nathaniel cut in smoothly before Sebastian could respond. “You must allow me to impose upon your hospitality a bit longer, Lady Caroline. I'm simply famished and I must admit that I am quite curious to get to know the woman who managed to put a wedding band around Bas’s finger.”
Caroline inclined her head politely, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach. “We would be delighted to have you, Lord Wellington.”
She was not overly fond of the manner in which the man looked at her, or the way he made it sound like she had planned her marriage to Sebastian all along. To have him now drag her husband away while she’d intended on spending the day with him was adding insult to injury.
With a final, slightly strained smile, she took her leave, grabbing her pelisse and reticule as she slipped out the door. She had been planning to call upon Beatrice today anyway, hoping that with a bit of time and distance, her sister might be more receptive to mending the fractures in their relationship.
Chapter 21
It was silly, Caroline decided, to feel so uncertain merely because her husband’s friend arrived and changed their plans of spending the day together. She was rather certain that the men had a lot of business to attend to and important matters to discuss.
Still, she could not help but be a little disappointed. Sebastian had seemed quite eager to trade her company for that of his friend.
Shaking her head to clear it of such unproductive thoughts, Caroline straightened her spine and quickened her step, determined to make the best of the situation. Perhaps enough time had passed for Beatrice to have forgiven her, perhaps they could spend some time together—she might even be able to ask some sisterly advice.
But as she approached the familiar front door of her childhood home, a sense of trepidation settled in her stomach like a leaden weight. Taking a deep breath, she knocked, steeling herself for the inevitable icy reception.
A maid answered, eyes widening in surprise as she recognized Caroline. “Lady Caroline! We weren't expecting… The countess did not mention…”
“It's quite alright, Mary,” Caroline interjected gently. “I'm afraid my visit is rather impromptu. Is my sister at home?”
The maid hesitated, glancing over her shoulder as if seeking guidance. But after a moment, she stepped back, allowing Caroline to enter. “She's in the morning room, My Lady. Shall I announce you?”
“No need,” Caroline murmured. “I'll see myself in, thank you.”
Squaring her shoulders, she made her way down the familiar hallway, her footsteps muffled by the plush carpeting. The door to the morning room was slightly ajar, the muted clink of china and silver drifting out into the corridor.
Caroline paused on the threshold, her heart lodged somewhere in her throat. Then, with a determined set to her jaw, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Beatrice was seated at her writing desk. At the sound of the door opening, she glanced up, her expression transforming from mild curiosity to icy disdain in the span of a heartbeat.
“Caroline.” Her voice was flatly unwelcoming, her eyes hard as flint. “To what do I owe the unexpected pleasure?”
Caroline swallowed hard, fighting back the instinctive sting of hurt at her sister's coldness. “I was hoping we could talk, Beatrice. It's been so long and I just... I miss you. I miss us.”
Beatrice set down her pen with deliberate precision. “There is no us anymore, Caroline. You made your choice when you married Sebastian, when you betrayed me and stole the future that should have been mine.”
Caroline flinched at the venom in her sister's voice, tears pricking at the back of her eyes. “I never meant to hurt you, Beatrice,” she whispered. “Please, you have to believe that. I was only trying to protect you, protect our family from scandal.”
“Protect me?” Beatrice scoffed, a mirthless laugh escaping her lips. “Don't delude yourself, Caroline. You didn't marry Sebastian for me, you did it for yourself. Because you wanted him, even if it meant ripping my heart out in the process.”
“That's not true!” Caroline cried, a single tear slipping down her cheek. “I didn't want any of this, Beatrice. I did not want to marry him, but I did and now… I wish I could regret it, but he is a good man, and…”
Beatrice surged to her feet, and her face contorted in angry amusement. “You are in love with him,” she asserted, then a cold laugh escaped her lips. “Oh, you poor fool. You think that this is some romantic destiny, that you will love him and he couldlove you? Oh, you poor, naive little fool. Sebastian will never love you, Caroline. Not truly, not deeply. You're nothing more than a convenient solution, a way to rehabilitate his reputation and secure the next generation of Fairchilds. But you will never be more than his second choice–the woman he married to prevent a scandal.”
Each word was like a dagger to Caroline's heart, her sister's cruelty stealing the breath from her lungs. “Beatrice, please…”
“No!” Beatrice snapped, her chest heaving with barely suppressed emotion. “I'm done listening to your hollow apologies and self-serving justifications. You made your bed, Caroline. Now lie in it. And pray that your precious husband doesn't stray too far from it in search of real passion and affection.”
With that, she turned her back on Caroline, her rigid posture a silent command to leave. Choking back a sob, Caroline fled, Beatrice's venomous words ringing in her ears like a tolling bell of doom.
Blinded by tears and heartache, she stumbled down the path away from the house, heedless of where her feet were taking her. It wasn't until a strong hand caught her elbow, halting her headlong flight, that she realized she had nearly collided with someone.
