Lady Elsbeth tossed her white napkin onto the table. “You know precisely what I am implying. Did you and Alfred stay friends when you were married to Father?”
Lady Isabella sighed. “We exchanged letters occasionally, but it was entirely innocent. I was faithful to your father.”
“And yet, you couldn’t wait to marry Alfred,” Lady Elsbeth said, rising abruptly. “Excuse me for a moment.”
The room fell into an uncomfortable silence as Lady Elsbeth swept out. Niles felt a pang of guilt, knowing his line of questioning had ignited the confrontation.
Lady Isabella’s voice broke the tension. “I apologize for ruining this evening.”
“Nonsense. This evening is still reparable,” Aunt Margaretsaid, pushing back her chair. “I will go speak to Elsbeth, and we will get this sorted out.”
But Niles stood. “Allow me.”
Eugenie shook her head vehemently. “That is a terrible idea. You two can’t stand each other.”
“I don’t hate her,” he said, though he tripped over his words. He didn’t quite know what he felt for Elsbeth.
With a knowing look, Eugenie asked, “What is it when two people have an immense dislike for one another?”
“I will admit that Lady Elsbeth and I do not see eye to eye, but I think I can get through to her,” he pressed.
Aunt Margaret relented with a small nod. “I will give you five minutes. Try not to make things worse.”
Niles strode from the room, hoping he could undo some of the damage he had caused. Or, at the very least, attempt to understand the young woman who never failed to rattle him.
Once he stepped out into the corridor, he saw Lady Elsbeth sitting on a chair, her shoulders hunched as she wiped away the tears streaming down her face. Her vulnerability struck him like a physical blow. This wasn’t the composed, sharp-tongued woman who had sparred with him earlier.
Softening his voice, he called out, “Lady Elsbeth.”
She glanced up, her tear-filled eyes narrowing with irritation. “What do you want, my lord?” she asked, her words curt.
What did he want?
For a moment, he hesitated, considering his options. He could leave her to her misery and return to the dining room. But his mother had raised him to be a gentleman, and that meant he always helped a lady in distress.
He approached her, his footsteps deliberate, and he came to a stop next to her. “Are you all right?” he asked, his voice low with concern.
She met his gaze, her eyes red-rimmed but defiant. “Why do you care?”
It was a fair question. Niles wasn’t entirely sure why he had come out here or why he was trying to console a woman who, truthfully, irritated him to no end. But his sense of duty overrode his dislike.
He grabbed a nearby chair and positioned it next to her before sitting down. “I’m sorry,” he said simply.
“For what?” she asked. “You did nothing wrong.”
He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I was the one who started all of this.”
Lady Elsbeth pursed her lips as she turned her gaze forward. “You couldn’t have known about my mother and Alfred’s… past.” Her voice cracked slightly, betraying the hurt she tried to mask. “I can’t believe they didn’t tell me.”
“Would it have made a difference?” Niles asked gently. “You don’t seem to think very highly of your stepfather.”
Elsbeth’s eyes hardened. “My mother married Alfred the very day she came out of mourning,” she stated. “I’m not sure what is worse—how quickly she moved on or the fact that she expects me to be grateful for him.”
“That must have been rather difficult for you.”
“Difficult? My mother believes I should be thankful for a man who has exiled us to the countryside, far from Society. But what is there to be thankful for? No one wants anything to do with us anymore. We are ruined.”
“You are angry,” he observed.
