Julian did not answer.
"With me," she went on, "there was no confusion. We understood one another. There were no expectations beyond what we agreed, and you were never required to give more than you wished to give. You knew exactly where you stood, and so did I. That is not something you can say of your current situation. I thought that was precisely what you had wanted."
"You should not have assumed as much. I am sorry for what transpired between you and I, but I apologized at the time. I am married now, and I would prefer that you did not speculate about my marriage."
"I understand it," she replied. "Better than you would like me to. You have married a woman who does not think as you do. She feels deeply, whether she intends to or not, and she will not be able to separate herself from that. You may wish for distance, for order, but she will not allow it."
Julian said nothing. Rosamund leaned forward slightly, her voice lowering.
"She will come to love you," she said. "If she does not already, she will. That is inevitable, and you will not meet her there, at least not in the way she will need. You do not build your life around feelings; you avoid them where possible, and that is perfectly fine for some ladies, but others will take issue and end up devastated by it. You can enjoy your marriage all you like, but when it fails, it will not be you who suffers most."
"I have not once suggested failure of any kind," Julian snapped. "And I do not appreciate you speaking of my wife in this way. You do not know her. You know of her at best, based on gossip, and if we were to base ourselves on that very same thing, my wife would look a damn sight better than you."
For a moment, he thought he might actually have hurt her feelings, and though he never liked upsetting a lady, he had not known what else to do to make her leave him be. However, she quickly fixed her smile, one eyebrow perfectly arched.
"There is a simple solution to your predicament, of course," she said. "If all is as you say, then this will make no difference to you, but if I am right, then you may wish to think on this. Marriages can be annulled, Lord Harrowby. People can go their separate ways and find what they truly want."
The meaning was unmistakable.
"And do you believe that is an acceptable thing to suggest?"
"It is better than the cruelty of knowing you can never give someone what they so desperately need. With me, you would have what you have always preferred. Nothing would be asked of you that you are not willing to give."
Julian’s attention shifted inward, her words having struck something he could no longer ignore. Eleanor would not accept this treatment forever. She would not stand at a distance, untouched. She would not agree to give part of herself whilewithholding the rest. That was not how she lived, and certainly not how she had spoken the night before.
She would care, and if she cared…
"You see it," Rosamund said quietly. "You know that I am right."
Julian drew in a slow breath, his focus returning fully to her.
"No. Whatever existed between us is finished. It will not be resumed, not in any form."
She held his gaze, searching for hesitation.
"You would choose uncertainty over something you know works?"
"I am not choosing uncertainty."
"Then what are you choosing?"
"That is not your concern," he said.
Rosamund studied him for a moment longer, something unreadable passing through her expression before it settled again.
"She will suffer for this," she said. "You may not intend it, but it will happen."
"That is not inevitable."
"It is," she replied. "Because she will feel more than you do."
A brief pause followed. Julian’s voice was steady when he answered.
"You are wrong."
Rosamund exhaled slowly, as though accepting that she would not move him further.
"Something has changed," she said. "I can see that, even if you refuse to name it."