“Then why are you upset?”
“Lord Eastwood wrote in the letter that he had my father’s blessing for us to wed,” Arabella admitted, bringing her gaze up.
“Why does that upset you?”
“Even though Lord Eastwood treated me most terribly, my father still gave his permission for us to wed,” Arabella said. “I daresay that I am just a burden to him.”
“That cannot possibly be true,” Colin asserted. “You are not a burden to anyone.”
Arabella shifted her gaze away from his. “What if my father disowns me if I don’t marry Lord Eastwood?”
“Has he given you any indication that he would do something so cruel and unfeeling?”
“No, but I hardly recognize the man that he has become without my mother.”
Colin stepped closer to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “You don’t need to worry about your future.”
She reached up and wiped the tear that was rolling down her cheek. “That is easy for you to say.”
“It’s true,” he said. “I promise you that you will never lack for anything.”
“You can’t promise me that,” she said. “At least, not anymore.”
“Why?”
Arabella took a step back, causing his arms to drop. “If you truly meant that then we would have already been wed.”
“Bella—”
She put her hand up, stilling his words. “I would prefer if we did not speak of our past.”
“Why?”
“It is much too painful.”
He winced. “There is so much that I need to tell you.”
“Perhaps another time.”
Colin hesitated before answering, “I can agree to that.”
“Thank you,” she murmured.
He offered his arm and smiled. “You do realize you won’t get the plague if you touch me?”
“I am well aware.”
“Then why do you always hesitate to take my arm?”
Arabella didn’t dare admit that she always felt a fluttering in her stomach at his touch. “I do no such thing.”
His smile grew. “Liar.”
“It isn’t polite to call a lady a liar,” she chided as she placed her hand lightly on his sleeve.
“My apologies, my lady,” he said, clearly amused.
Chapter Nine
