“You want to pretend to be married? To me?”
“I mean…unless you have a better idea.”
“No—it’s just—” he stammered.
The carriage jolted to a stop in front of the orphanage, and Bowen pushed open the door and exited the carriage. I stayed in my seat, gathering the courage to follow. It was my idea after all, but now I’d put it out there, I wasn’t sure how to act, and Bowen’s reaction wasn’t helping.
He paced outside the carriage, his boots pounding the gravel until he thrust his head back inside the carriage and offered his arm. “Let’s go, wife.”
I placed my hand on his arm and steeled my nerves. “Are you sure? If you’d rather the dagger idea…”
He tugged me from the carriage and tucked me against his side. “It’s too late for that now. Maybe next time.”
***
The headmistress studied us from over the brim of her teacup. Well, actually, she studiedme. Every time her gaze drifted toward Bowen, it darted away. I plastered a smile on my face even though I wanted to smack her for her rudeness.
“As I was saying, Mrs. Higgins, my husband and I have recently married.” I gripped Bowen’s hand, finding it cold to the touch. He’d gone quiet ever since we entered the office, and I could tell he was uncomfortable by the headmistress’s examination.
Mrs. Higgins set down her cup of tea. “I see, and you’re interested in adopting one of our fine children? I admit, we usually cater to older couples…but I can see why you might be interested.” Her gaze finally landed on Bowen’s face, narrowing in on the scars. She visibly swallowed.
I bristled at her insinuation. How dare she assume his disfigurement disqualified him from having children of his own. A biting remark was on the tip of my tongue, but I held it back, lest we be thrown out. I wished more and more we’d considered the dagger idea.
“Actually, this isn’t the only institution we’ve visited,” Bowen said, removing a bag of coins from inside his jacket pocket. He placed it heavily onto the desk. “We haven’t decided on where we plan to invest our time or our money.”
“Of course!” Mrs. Higgins choked out, unable to tear her eyes away from the fortune gracing her desk. “Well, Ever Haven is certainly the right place for you. We have a stellar record.”
I leaned forward and collected the satchel, noticing the way the headmistress’s gaze followed the money. “That isn’t what we’ve heard. It’s come to our attention one of your charges has gone missing. How do you explain that?”
Mrs. Higgins fanned herself, looking slightly ill. “You’ve seen the posters? We’re doing everything possible to find young Mr. Bauer. It’s not Ever Haven’s fault he’s a runaway. We’ve had issues with him in the past. He’s not representative of the other children at our institution.”
A runaway? I didn’t believe it for a second. Not if he had a younger sister at the orphanage as well. He wouldn’t have left her behind.
“We’d like to see for ourselves if you don’t mind.” I leveled her with an accusatory glare and watched the color drain from her face.
“Certainly. I’ll arrange for one of our staff members to show you around. I’m sure you’ll be pleased with what you find. You can be confident we are the right institution to invest your money—and your care,” she added as an afterthought. Rising from behind her desk, she skirted the edge and called into the hallway.
A young woman rushed into the office and dipped into a low curtsy.
“Beth, please give Lord MacKenzie and his wife a tour of the grounds and answer any questions they may have.”
“We’d like to visit with some of the children as well,” I added.
“Naturally.”
I handed Bowen the satchel of coins, and he tucked it back inside his jacket. Mrs. Higgins almost pouted. He followed Beth from the room, but I lingered, unable to shake the anger at her judgment.
If this was the type of behavior Bowen encountered whenever he went into public, no wonder he’d closeted himself away at the manor. Maybe he’d hardened himself enough to tolerate the slights and open-mouthed stares, but I hadn’t.
I picked up my steaming cup of tea and flashed her a brittle smile. “I noticed you had trouble looking my husband in the eye.” Tipping the cup over, I let the tea spill onto the lightly hued carpet, staining it a dark amber color. “There—now I’ve given you something to stare at so you don’t look like such a fool.” I tossed her the empty cup, which she juggled but couldn’t quite catch.
It landed with a thud next to the stain.
Mrs. Higgins sputtered as I left the room. I caught up with Bowen in the hallway, and he shot me a questioning look.
I shrugged. “I wanted to finish my tea. It was so delicious.”
Bowen leaned down and whispered near my ear, “Is she bleeding?”
