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I’d thought visiting my relatives would calm my nerves and help me forget about him. But even that had proved fruitless. Louisa had immediately recognized that something was wrong. She’d pulled me into her bedroom, taken my hand in hers, and stared me right in the eyes.
“Is something wrong with Lord Marsden, Amelia? Something you’re not telling me?”
I couldn’t lie to her. I’d immediately told her everything… the passion I felt, and then the events of the party. How uncomfortable I’d been, and how Will had flirted with another girl.
How he was always drunk.
“I want to believe that he can be good,” I had choked out, between sobs. “But I know that I’m lying to myself.”
Louisa had squeezed my hand, her eyes full of sympathy.
“Dear cousin, don’t give up hope. You have such a capacity for love. He is a fool if he does not see that.”
At that, I had laughed bitterly.
A fool?
William Marsden was many things, but he was no fool.
I was the fool.
How could I ever have believed that he would change for me?
I had to accept what was as plain as fact: Will was a drunken rake, and he would never change. Even if, for a moment, I had sensed something deeper than just lust in his eyes.
The day was bleak and rainy, and it seemed to reflect my mood. I made my way back to Mayfair from Gracechurch Street, barely bothering to keep dry. It was as if the wetter and colder I got, the number I felt – and numb was certainly better than heartbroken.
At Will’s street, I exited my carriage into the grey drizzle, paying the driver with coins that Will had given me. The exchange of money reminded me of how I had to find employment. I couldn’t keep living at Will’s house like some half-rate courtesan. No matter what Genevieve thought, that wasn’t me. I wanted a real relationship – or I wanted nothing at all.
The street was mostly empty due to the continuous rain, and large puddles had accumulated into deep pools along the edges of the brick sidewalks. I walked slowly towards Will’s townhouse, my heart beating faster and faster. I was dreading to be reunited.
Just as I approached the sidewalk, I registered a strange movement out of the corner of my eye. I spun around, glancing towards the edge of the street where I had been dropped off. I peered through the fog. It seemed as if there was a figure on the sidewalk, partially concealed behind a lamppost.
It certainly wasn’t strange to see a man on the sidewalks of Mayfair, even in rainy weather. But there was something odd about the way he was standing… it was as if he was trying to avoid being seen.
Without thinking, I walked closer to the man, my steps brisk. As I approached, I was able to make out the outline of a hat, and below it, a man’s face. A face that looked… familiar.
I was only 10 yards away now. I squinted at his face, trying to place him –
And then, all of a sudden, the man’s eyes locked on mine.
I froze, my heart beating fast in chest.
I knew who the man was. Or at least, I thought I did.
Lord… Turley?
I opened my mouth in surprise, but before I could utter a sound, he had dashed around the corner, leaving me standing alone in the rain.
The entire situation was bizarre. I could’ve sworn it was Lord Turley – the very same man who Will had offended some months ago, starting a chain of events that led to me staying at his very townhome.
Why would he be standing on Will’s street? Why would he run away like that?
And why did I get the sense that he was… following me?
I gulped nervously.
Clearly my mind was playing tricks on me. I was just overtired from all of the stress of the last few weeks. There was really no other explanation for it. I mean, surely, Lord Turley had no business with me… right?
