Feeling as if the wind had been knocked from her sails, Lily sat back on the bed, allowing the note to hang limply on her lap.
“What am I to do?” She looked from the note to her wedding dress as hot tears spilled down her cheeks. Everything had seemed so perfect at first, but bad luck seemed to chase her faster than she could run.
She would need to come up with a plan to rid herself of him once and for all, and hopefully, the news of her marriage would do just that.
Chapter 13
“I hope your dress is not ruined?” Julian asked as the carriage pulled up to his family home and helped her alight. “Although I must say that you look equally as lovely in this one.”
She remained quiet and offered him an awkward smile.
Julian had asked what had happened with her dress, yet she had answered stiffly. He had not pressed the matter, but it was clear to him that whatever had happened had upset her a great deal. She was colder and far more aloof than she had been earlier in the day.
Suppressing a sigh, he wondered if she was nervous about the wedding night and where they would be sleeping. The subject had not been broached, as was proper, but he knew he would have to clarify that nothing would happen that she did not want, no matter how attached he was to her. A man could want his wife, but he would never force himself on any woman.
He led her into the quiet house and up the stairs to the main chambers that would act as theirs while the house was being repaired. “I hope you like it,” he said gently as he ushered her inside.
The small room was sparsely decorated with a four-poster bed, a dresser, a cupboard, and a vanity for all of her belongings. Candles had been lit on either side of the bed, casting long shadows across the dark paper on the walls.
Her valise, along with a few other suitcases, stood in the corner, ready to be unpacked in the morning.
“It will do quite nicely for the time being,” she forced a smile and ran the tips of her fingers over the crisp white linen on the bed as she crossed the room to the washbasin beside her valise.
Julian had thought of asking for separate chambers, yet he had not wanted to involve his mother and sister in their marriage. Separate chambers would mean that the marriage had not been consummated, and that could place matters in jeopardy.
Feeling a little awkward and out of place, Julian cleared his throat. “There are a few matters that need seeing to. I shall be in my study while you prepare for bed.”
She turned to him with an odd look in her eyes, but he quickly excused himself and shut the door behind him.
What is she thinking?
He wondered again if it was more than just her torn dress that had changed her mood. Had she begun to have doubts after their dance? He had not picked up on anything during their conversation, but that did not mean that she had not taken offense to something he had said.
“It cannot be. We are both just tired.” He shook off the thoughts and entered his study, thinking of the day and how perfect everything had been despite the awkwardness of theirarrangement. If needed, he would clarify matters with her later that he never intended to press the matter of marital duties.
We are lucky enough to have escaped that fate.
The moment during their dance flashed across his mind. She had seemed slightly disappointed by his reply but had also said they were lucky to have not been faced with the age-old dilemma that was love.
Things seemed far simpler for Benedict and Arabella, who seemed to be falling for each other with every passing day.
Will we fall in love?
The question made his heart slam against his ribs as he quickly pushed it aside. It did not matter whether they would fall in love. They were partners in a business agreement, and that was all. There was every possibility that they could become friends, and that was more than enough for him.
He quickly busied himself with ledgers and documents in preparation for his meeting with the solicitor the following day.
An hour or two had passed by the time he decided to go back to bed.
Lily was already sitting on the right side with the sheets pulled over her legs when he entered. She seemed deep in thought and hardly looked up when he shut the door behind him.
“You seem ready to sleep,” he remarked cheerfully as he made his way to the screen in the corner and began to undress.
“Yes… Yes, I am,” she answered distractedly.
A frown creased his brow as he shrugged off his coat and began to unbuckle his belt while removing his boots. “Is something the matter?” He finally asked, feeling the loss of the previous ease that had been between them.
“Nothing at all,” her voice sounded anything but fine as she answered bluntly.