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‘Henrietta, he abandoned you!’
‘You abandoned Anna!’
‘That was different. I would have come back if I could have, but there was nothing I could do.’
‘And his drinking was a sickness that he couldn’t help either. You were the one who told me that. Only you were a lot more sympathetic before you met him. Now you’re just being a hypocrite. You wanted—you got!—a second chance. You abandoned your sister and you had a chance to make up for it by helping me. Well, David’s back and he deserves a second chance, too.’
‘So you choose him?’
‘What? No, Sebastian, you’re my husband...’
‘A husband you don’t need any longer. Now that David’s back, you don’t need my help any more, do you?’
‘Is that why you’re angry? Because you think his second chance means that yours doesn’t count any more? As if it’s all just been a waste of time and effort! As if our marriage is pointless!’
‘No, of course not.’ He stiffened, shocked by the expression on her face. She looked more than hurt. She looked distraught. And as if she wanted to hurt him back.
‘I think that’s what you do think.’ Her eyes narrowed and then blazed suddenly. ‘But really you ought to be glad. You did the right thing so you don’t have to make amends any more. Now you can have your freedom back and without any guilt this time. You can go wherever you want, I won’t stop you.’
She stormed up to confront him. ‘I’m sorry I married you under false pretences. I didn’t know they were false then, but they were. If I could turn the clock back for you then I would, but I can’t. We’re married now and there’s nothing we can do about that. Just know that I won’t expect anything from you ever again.’ She turned away from him to follow David. ‘We’ll leave as soon as I can pack.’
Sebastian stared after her in shock, hardly able to take in the words. She was back at her brother’s side before he could even rouse himself enough to open his mouth and then he wasn’t sure what to say. All he could do was repeat her parting words over and over in his head. He could have his freedom back. He could go anywhere he wanted. She’d be leaving as soon as she could pack... She was leaving him! As if nothing they’d shared over the past few weeks meant anything to her at all!
He turned on his heel, marching away across the lawn until he reached the lake. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem like far enough so he kept going, storming all the way around it in a large circle until he came to the top of a hill where an ancient oak tree stood like some long-forgotten sentinel all on its own. Then he stopped, relishing the feel of the cold wind biting his face. The sting of it seemed to match his mood. Hypocrite, she’d called him, talking to him as if he were the one in the wrong! Him! After he’d given up his freedom to help her! And yet...wasn’t he a little in the wrong? Hadn’t he just forced her into making a choice? Wasn’t he acting like the most boorish, resentful, jealous fool in the world?
Jealous?
His stomach lurched. Damn it all, he was jealous. And not just jealous, but terrified, too. It had been David who’d brought them together—more specifically, his departure—and it was David who had the power to tear them apart. That was the reason he’d behaved so badly, because he was afraid she might love her brother and nephews more than she loved the idea of being married to him. The very thought of it turned his blood to ice. Because he loved her, he was in love with her, and he was desperately afraid that she didn’t feel the same way.
Neither of them had ever said I love you. Until that moment, he hadn’t even put a great amount of thought into the matter. There hadn’t seemed any rush to do so. He’d been happy as they were, but now the realisation of how much he cared was making him lash out, not because he was angry at what David had done, but because he was afraid of what he could do—was doing—with his help! He could hardly have made matters any worse if he’d actually pushed Henrietta into her brother’s arms!
He slammed his palm hard against the tree trunk, sending a spasm of pain shooting through his hand and up his arm. He ought to go back and talk to her, not least because his mother had been right about the change in weather and dark clouds appeared to be closing in fast. He’d been in too much of a temper to notice before, but now he was aware of snowflakes dancing in the air around him, slowly gathering in strength.
There was a murky-looking bank of cloud on the horizon, too, like a slate-grey wall heading towards Feversham. He definitely ought to go back. Then he could tell Henrietta how he really felt and hope that she felt the same, or something similar anyway. That would be the sensible thing to do—what he would do—and he was just about to when a voice called out to him suddenly.
‘That looked as though it hurt.’
‘Peter?’ He tipped his head back, peering up through the bare branches of the oak tree until he caught sight of the boy sitting on one of the uppermost boughs, higher than he would have expected. ‘What are you doing up there? I thought you were with your father.’
‘I ran off.’ Peter’s tone was petulant. ‘I wanted to be on my own.’
‘I know how you feel.’ Sebastian leaned his shoulder against the trunk. ‘Only this might not be the best time or place.’
‘Why not?’
‘See those dark clouds? They’re coming this way.’
‘I don’t care.’
‘Well, I do.’ He looked up again. ‘Want to come down and talk about it?’
‘I can’t.’ There was a hint of fear behind the defiance now. ‘I don’t know how to get down.’
‘Ah. Well, in that case, I’d better com
e up.’ He tossed his hat to one side and started to climb, moving up the trunk and swinging his legs over a neighbouring branch in a matter of seconds.
‘That was fast!’ Peter looked impressed.
