“Then we should follow her,” Dominic answered, his lips barely moving.
Charlotte’s heart thundered so loudly, she was surprised that no one else could hear it. She did her best to keep her face neutral — she did not think she could manage to appear cheerful or excited in that moment.
How does she know? And why did she not reveal our secret to anyone?She found herself frowning as she and Dominic carefully picked their way through the crowd, towards the door. She was aware of a few people looking curiously at her and tried to smile as she pointed to her head and mouthed ‘headache’.
Dominic held the door open for her, and she slipped through. Lady Andrea was waiting in the hall for them, a mixture of satisfaction and grim determination on her face. Charlotte felt a stab of fury run through her chest, mingling with the panic.
“Shall we find somewhere a little more private?” Lady Andrea asked.
“That would be prudent,” Charlotte replied, grateful for the steadiness of her voice. “Did you have somewhere in mind?”
“I believe my rooms would be sufficient for such a discussion,” Dominic said, gesturing to the stair way. “If you would follow me.”
As they walked, Charlotte tried to think of something to say, of some way they might turn the situation around, but the more she thought on it, the bleaker the whole thing seemed.
“It’s just here.” Dominic indicated the door to his rooms and held it open for the two women. “After you.”
Charlotte moved into the room, taking in the relatively sparse decoration. She noticed only one suitcase in the room, and there was no sign of a maid.
Dominic joined her, and she saw his eyes narrow as Lady Andrea shut the door behind her. There was a beat of silence in which the three of them surveyed each other.
“What exactly do you want with us?” Charlotte asked into the deafening silence. “And what did you mean by that charade?”
“I think you both know,” Lady Andrea replied silkily.
“I should like to hear you say it aloud for any avoidance of doubt,” Charlotte said, careful not to admit anything as she tried to keep her voice neutral.There may be a chance we can salvage this yet.
Even as she thought the words, she held little hope of doing so.
“You are not who you claim to be,” Lady Andrea said, breaking the silence. “You are not a happily betrothed couple; you have been lying to everyone. You are not engaged.”
“You are mistake —” Dominic began but Lady Andrea cut him off and said, “Do not think to lie to me, Duke. I know the truth, and I know that you are not engaged. That you have never been engaged.”
“That is a bold claim to make, especially without any proof.” Charlotte said coolly even as her heart skipped several beats.I feel like I am going to be sick.
“I have proof, Lady Charlotte.” Lady Andrea went to her bedside cabinet and pulled out several sheets of paper.
Charlotte’s eyes narrowed as she saw what the other woman was holding in her hands: several sheets of paper. With a start, she realised that some of them had her own writing on them though most were covered in Dominic’s untidy scrawl.
“Are those?” Charlotte began, taking a step towards Lady Andrea but Dominic cut her off.
“How did you come by those?” Dominic demanded, his voice full of anger. “I threw them out! What kind of woman goes through the rubbish?”
“You should have burned them, dear Duke.” Lady Andrea shrugged. “It is hardly like they were particularly deep in the rubbish.”
A look of understanding and anger flashed across Dominic’s face. “That day when you told me Charlotte was looking for me. You lied to me. You just wanted to get me out of the room and ensure that I was distracted.”
“I did,” Lady Andrea admitted. Charlotte saw that there was no embarrassment on her face.
“You were the one who let my letter ‘slip’..” Dominic clenched his fists. “Why?”
Now Lady Andrea did look embarrassed. “That was an accident. I was reading it when one of you cousins came across me, and they took it before I could do anything about it. Be thankful that I had already hidden the others.”
“You could have asked for it back,” Dominic insisted though Charlotte thought it was a mulish statement.
“Hardly, it was not my letter. It would have raised far too many questions.” Lady Andrea gave him a scathing look. “Besides, I did not want them to find the drafts. You really should have been more careful with destroying them.”
“I would have been if you had not sent me on some wild goose chase,” Dominic replied hotly. “Why would I have expected someone to read through those drafts?”
