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Was this love and he had merely been infatuated before? Or was it something else? Derrick wasn’t really sure.
But he did know that he wanted her around. The thought of her leaving him left him cold.
The sound of the door opening and mumbled voices reached him. Derrick sighed with relief. Ellie and her sisters were home. That was good; he could stop what he was doing and see his wife. Maybe have a cuddle in front of the fire.
It would be far more interesting than looking at letters where the words were beginning to melt together.
Rubbing his eyes, Derrick got up and left his study. Ellie was still in the foyer, Regina and Dorothea gathered around her. Derrick slowed. Even across the room, he could see that Ellie had been crying, and she looked to be holding back more tears.
He hurried over.
“Ellie? What’s wrong? What happened?”
She stiffened at the sound of his voice. Immediately, Dorothea urged Ellie away and Regina stepped between him. She glowered at Derrick so fiercely that he slowed.
“Keep away from my sister, you cad,” she hissed.
“What?” Derrick blinked. “What’s going on?”
“Don’t pretend you don’t know! We know what you’ve been doing!”
“Regina.” Ellie had a hand pressed to her chest, gulping in air. “Just… don’t.”
Trying to ignore the way Regina was glaring at him, Derrick looked around his sister-in-law at his wife.
“Ellie, talk to me. What’s happened?”
Ellie didn’t look at him. She looked to be still trying to get her thoughts in order. Dorothea shook her head, not looking happy, either.
“Lady Catherine Saxton is what happened.”
Derrick groaned. Not again. “What has she done now? I told her that she needed to stop.”
“Well, she didn’t get the message. Or maybe you didn’t tell her at all.” Dorothea’s jaw tightened. “Did you tell her to goad our sister in public? Do both of you find it funny to do that?”
“What are you talking about?”
Ellie spoke before either of her sisters spoke again.
“Look, just… go home, you two. I’ll deal with this.”
“Do you want us to pack for you?” Regina asked, turning to Ellie. “If you don’t want to be here, you don’t need to spend more time here than is necessary.”
Derrick thought he had misheard. He stared at them.
“What… what’s going on? Packing? Where are you going?”
“If you want to do that, fine.” Ellie spoke to Regina, ignoring Derrick. “But not too much. The rest of my belongings can wait until later.”
Regina and Dorothea headed towards the stairs. Derrick watched them go, very confused. What were they talking about? Packing? What had Catherine said that upset Ellie so much?
As the sisters went upstairs, Derrick approached Ellie. He reached out to touch her, but she backed away quickly.
“Don’t touch me.”
“What is happening, Ellie? I have no idea what’s going on, and you’re acting strangely.” Derrick tried to catch Ellie’s eye, but she wouldn’t look at him. “Talk to me, Ellie. What has Catherine said that’s upset you so much?”
Ellie finally looked up, and the fury in her eyes made Derrick back up a little. He had never seen her look so angry before.
