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Sian sucked in a deep breath and swiped the last of her tears away. “Why don’t I go into town first thing in the morning? I can be there by lunchtime if I set out at first light. We can be out of here by the end of tomorrow.”
“I think that is a splendid idea. I can help Martha and Lucinda pack. But I think Martha wants to have a quiet word with Isambard while we are in town, so why don’t we all go? If we are not here for that Norman to warn, he will have to find something else to do with his time. We will be gone before he can say anything else,” Mabel confirmed.
“Agreed.” Sian offered her mother a watery smile. “For now, I am going to bed.”
“Don’t get too upset, my dear. Ryan is a wonderful man, but he has a duty to uphold, to the house, his reputation, the family name. He doesn’t really belong in our world either.” She patted the back of Sian’s hand and pressed a kiss to her forehead before quietly leaving the room. Her thoughts remained troubled because she knew just how much Sian adored the noble man downstairs. He, however, also appeared to adore her. That left Mabel with a huge problem: she had no idea what to do to help them.
“I know what I saw,” Mabel muttered. “They were two people in love. So, what has gone wrong, and what do I do?”
Being the last kind of person to pass judgement on anybody else’s relationship, Mabel suspected it was best to just get her daughters out of the area where everyone could settle down and think about what they wanted in life. If the men truly loved Sian and Martha, they would make their intentions known by not allowing distance to thwart their romantic endeavours. If neither man were heard of again, well, her daughters would find suitable suitors eventually. If not, then Sophia was going to be stuck with them all for a very long time to come.
“What do you mean ‘she left early this morning’? Where in the D
evil’s name has she gone?” Ryan slapped his riding gloves against his thigh and glared at the nervous maid.
“Miss Sian has gone into town, sir. To the coaching ticket office. Hargreaves offered her a carriage, sir, but she said she would prefer to walk.”
Ryan closed his eyes and swore viciously.
“Do you want me to go and see if I can find her?”
Ryan whirled around and levelled a glare on Norman that warned him all was most definitely not forgiven.
“No. I think you have done quite enough already, thank you,” Ryan bit out.
Shaking his head in disbelief, he raced up the stairs and slammed into Sian’s bed chamber. His gaze immediately fell on a small pile of trunks. He still stalked across the room and yanked open the dresser and cursed fluidly when he saw they were empty. He knew where Sian’s belongings were.
“Unpack them,” he ordered the upstairs maid, who came to see what all the banging was about. “Unpack all of the cases and get Hargreaves to put the trunks in the attics.”
“Yes, sir.” The maid turned to look at the master of the house only to find herself alone in the room. Seconds later, she hurried off to find someone to help unpack the trunks.
Ryan raced down the stairs and went in search of his horse. He barely glanced at Norman, who was leading his own horse out of the stables. Without speaking, Ryan saddled his horse and prepared to leave.
“Look, I am sorry, all right?” Norman snapped. “I shouldn’t have said anything. I just know how much you love her and wanted to know if she cared about you, that’s all.”
“But you made her believe she doesn’t belong here, Norman,” Ryan retorted coldly. “How could you interfere like that?”
“You are a good friend of mine. Think about what you are doing. Do you think it wise to go haring after her like this? She has just gone to town to fetch some coaching tickets, that’s all. When she returns, maybe you can sit her down and tell her how you feel. If she doesn’t return your sentiments, let her use the tickets and go. At least you won’t ever have to see her again.”
“I think you have stuck your nose into my business enough already, don’t you?”
“I am just trying to help,” Norman sighed.
“Really. By getting rid of her?” Ryan thundered.
“Don’t you think it is important to find out if the chit loves you back? Do you really want a wife who wants you for your title and wealth rather than your heart? Can you really live with a woman you know can’t and won’t return your love?”
“You have no idea what Sian feels,” Ryan snorted.
“That’s my point. Neither do you.”
“But I am not likely to bloody find out now that you have told her that she doesn’t belong here. Did you not stop to think? Did you not stop to ask yourself why you should feel the need to warn her away from here? It isn’t even your sodding house. How could you do that Norman? How could you go and let her believe that she isn’t good enough to live here?”
“Because she isn’t?” Norman sighed.
Ryan leaned forward and grabbed Norman by the cravat. “Don’t you dare ever let me hear you say that again.”
“Really. Well, you have to hear it from someone,” Norman countered, not budging an inch.
