But Lady Vivian did not move. Instead, she studied Anne for a moment longer, as if reflecting.
“I wonder,” she said, her voice quieter, “whether you believe that means something different to him than it does to everyone else.”
Anne’s patience was wearing thin, but she was not going to be troubled by an unmarried young woman in her own home. “I believe it means what he intended it to mean.”
“And what do you believe he intended?” Lady Vivian asked.
“Do you want me to tell you something astonishing?” Anne said evenly. “It is a practical arrangement, and we respect one another as well as the sanctity of marriage, so we will not be crossing any boundaries within it. Either of us.”
“Practical,” Lady Vivian repeated softly, as though testing out the word. “Yes, I suppose that is one way to describe it.”
“If you are trying to unsettle me, you are wasting your time.”
“That was not my intention,” she said in a most insincere tone. “I simply find it difficult to watch people convince themselves that practical arrangements remain untouched by everything else that tends to follow them.”
“And what exactly tends to follow them?”
“People,” she said simply. “Their feelings and their attachments. You can’t outrun it all, no matter how hard you try.”
“I think,” Anne said quietly, “you are speaking from experience rather than observation now.”
For the first time, Lady Vivian’s smile faltered. Only slightly, but enough for Anne to know that she was right.
“Perhaps we all are.” Lady Vivian took a step back. “I do hope you enjoy your evening, Your Grace. It would be unfortunate if you did not.”
“Good evening, Lady Vivian.”
She turned away first, but as she walked back to the house, she was not as straight-spined as she had been when she arrived.
Anne remained where she was for a moment longer, the cool air settling around her as though it had only just begun to register what had been said.
When she returned to the ballroom, she lingered near the terrace doors, although she did not know why. Perhaps it was out of habit or avoidance, but she did not wish to study it.
Dorian stood near the edge of a small cluster of guests, though his attention was not on them. Lady Vivian was beside him, closer than Anne had seen anyone stand with him that evening. She leaned in, as though to whisper something meant for his ears alone.
Dorian’s expression shifted in response, and then he flashed the charm that was spoken of so much. He smiled, and not in a polite or formal way. It was effortless.
Anne felt something tighten in her chest before she could fully name it. Lady Vivian said something else, almost intimate in the way she angled herself toward him. Dorian listened without interrupting, his attention entirely focused on her for longer than Anne liked. Then, as if the conversation had reached its natural conclusion, he nodded once and followed her out of the ballroom.
Anne did not move immediately. The lanternlight suddenly seemed dimmer, the night air sharper against her skin as she remained just inside, watching the space where they had been.
After a moment, she stepped back onto the terrace and headed back down to the darkened gardens. The cold felt appropriate.
For the first time that evening, she allowed herself to think something she had been carefully avoiding since the library, or perhaps since that ride in the morning. Since everything had begun to shift in ways she could no longer fully control.
She had thought things were changing between them, but it seemed she had misunderstood everything.
CHAPTER 12
Anne had slept badly. Or rather, she had not slept much at all.
She sat before the dressing table in silence while her maid moved quietly through the room, opening curtains just enough to allow weak morning light to spill across the floor.
The brightness did nothing to improve her mood. If anything, daylight only made the previous evening feel more embarrassing, humiliating even.
She stared absently at her reflection, willing herself to think of anything else. It had become increasingly difficult to avoid the truth, particularly now that the shock of the evening had settled.
Now she could say for certain that it did indeed happen.
