Page 43 of A Devious Secret

Marielle furrowed her brows. “Why was Stephen at the milliner’s shop?”

“Apparently, he wanted to purchase you a hat,” Gemma responded.

“He bought me a hat?”

Gemma smiled. “Yes, it has the most beautiful pink flowers.”

Marielle made a face. “But I hate pink.”

“I do not think your brother was aware of that,” Gemma responded. “I think it was sweet that he was thinking about you.”

Walking over to a table, Marielle put the music down and said, “Stephen has never bought me a hat before. I do wonder what he was about.”

Gemma walked over to the window and looked out into the gardens. “You might be overthinking this.”

“I don’t think I am,” Marielle said. “I suspect it wasn’t as much of what was in the shop but ‘who’ was in the shop.”

Not liking the direction of the conversation, Gemma asked, “Are you close with your brother?”

“Stephen is many years older than me, but he has always been my protector,” Marielle replied. “It was extremely hard on me when his ship went down, and he was presumed dead.”

“I can only imagine what you must have endured during that time.”

Marielle smiled. “If Hugh hadn’t won me in a card game, I don’t know where I would have ended up since my inheritance was tied up in probate court.”

“My cousin won you in a card game?” Gemma asked.

“My guardian wagered me and lost,” Marielle explained. “Hugh was my guardian until Stephen arrived at his doorstep.”

“I remember you saying that there was some animosity between them so how did Mr. Wycomb respond to Hugh being your guardian?”

With a laugh, Marielle replied, “He was furious, at least until he realized how well Hugh and the rest of his family had cared for me.”

Gemma moved from her place at the window and sat down on a camelback settee. “I’m having a hard time imagining my cousin being a guardian.”

“Hugh was a perfect gentleman.”

“I have no doubt,” Gemma said. “My cousin may be many things, but he has always treated women with the utmost respect.”

Marielle looked through some sheet music before she selected one. “Before I met Hugh, I was determined to run my father’s shipyard and I had no intention of marrying.”

“What changed your mind?”

A reflective look came to Marielle’s eyes. “I fell in love with a man that values me above all else.”

“Then you made the right choice.”

Marielle took the sheet music over to the pianoforte. “Every day I wake up with Hugh by my side. I know that nothing but our love matters.” She sat down on the bench. “It is a wonderful feeling to be in love.”

“Yes, it is,” Gemma readily agreed.

Moving her hands to rest above the keys, Marielle said, “I have learned that love is always worth the risk.”

Gemma sat back as Marielle started playing the pianoforte and she decided to stop overthinking everything. She didn’t know what her future held, but she shouldn’t be trying to run from it.