Page 55 of The Lady No One Noticed

“I do not remember,” Jack replied and started laughing once again. When Ian didn’t join in the laughter, Jack tried to stand up straight instead. “I came to tell you that you have done very well, Ian. I am proud of you, my friend.”

Ian had no idea what to say. He knew what Jack meant but didn’t wish to acknowledge it. He was ashamed of himself for the reasons he had first courted Esther. He couldn’t believe that he had stooped so low because now he could never imagine doing anything of that sort to her or any other woman.

“You have managed to find yourself a perfect wife, Ian. A woman like her will be so happy you married her that she’ll let you have as many mistresses as you want. Though you must wait till a son is born. She is prettier than I thought she was, so it shouldn’t be too much of a trial getting her with child, eh?” Jack tried to elbow Ian in the ribs at his jest but lost his balance and fell back against the railing. “Once you have an heir, you can pack the chit away to rusticate in one of your country houses and then you can roam around London freely getting under any skirt you fancy. It will be just like old times, Ian,” Jack slurred, and Ian felt disgusted with both Jack and himself.

It was true that not so long ago Ian planned to do just that, but it sickened him now. He had been terrible, but he was glad that he had changed. Esther mattered to him so much now, and he wanted to have a happy and successful marriage with her. Nonetheless, he knew Jack would never believe him, even if he tried to explain it.

Esther tried her best to follow where Ian was heading too, but to no avail. The ballroom was crowded, and he walked so quickly that he disappeared from view within seconds. Despite that, she continued looking all around her, trying to find him.

Has he gone to meet Lady Lisa in secret?

She once again looked around the crowd but quickly spotted Lisa standing right beside Adam. They were busy in conversation with another couple. The sight provided Esther with some relief since she now knew that Ian had gone after someone else.

She had no idea what had caught his attention so quickly. She kept going about the ballroom trying to look for Ian, but people kept stopping her, wishing to converse or congratulate her. The once invisible Esther had suddenly stepped into the light, and she was disliked the attention immensely. However, she was certain about one thing, and that was that Ian was nowhere in the ballroom, so she made her way out. As she walked further into the mansion, the crowd disappeared, and she sighed at the solitude. Gilendale Mansion was massive, and there were a plethora of places that Ian could be. He could have been anywhere and finding him might be difficult, but Esther was determined to look for him.

The only reason she had been excited about the engagement ball was having the chance to interact with Ian. The last week without him had felt so empty, and Esther wished for his company. On top of that, she was now worried for him because he had disappeared right after she had seen a troubled expression appear on his face.

The staircase closest to the ballroom opened up on a terrace, and Esther climbed to reach the top of the stairs. She knew she was going in the right direction when she heard voices. The voices grew louder as she continued climbing and finally reached the top, where a door opened let to an expansive terraced that it overlooked a lovely rose garden.

Ian’s back was to her, and he was facing another man, who seemed about his age. He was dressed rather simply, and his eyes and face indicated that he was drunk. Esther had no idea who he was and didn’t even remember seeing him at any of the events of the ton.

She was just about to walk forward to reveal herself when the man started speaking loudly, and Esther stopped. She was standing just behind the door of the terrace and was not visible to either of them.

“You have managed to find yourself a perfect wife, Ian. A woman like her will be so happy you married her that she’ll let you have as many mistresses as you want. Though you must wait till a son is born. She is prettier than I thought she was, so it shouldn’t be too much of a trial getting her with child, eh? Once you have an heir, you can pack the chit away to rusticate in one of your country houses and then you can roam around London freely getting under any skirt you fancy. It will be just like old times, Ian,” the man said, and Esther stared at him with widened eyes.

For a few seconds, she felt as if the world around her had stopped revolving. She had no idea what the man was saying. How could he say something so crude about her and Ian? Daggers went through her heart at his words, and she couldn’t move.

“I am not the same man any longer, Jack, and Esther is not simply a means of keeping my allowance. All that is in the past. In the time that I have known Esther, I have come to understand how perfect she is. I have come to care for her, Jack. She means so much to me. I will not allow you to talk about her this way,” Ian said. Esther had no idea what to believe or what not to believe.

His words seemed honest although his words clearly indicated that it was a feeling that had changed over time. That earlier, his motives towards Esther had been different. Her breathing increased with every second that passed, making her feel as if she would swoon. It was simply too much for her heart to handle.

To Esther’s utter horror, Jack started laughing loudly at Ian’s words. The man was highly intoxicated but still seemed to be in his senses as everything he said made perfect sense. Esther strained her ears to listen to what Jack had to say. The conversation was unfolding in front of her like a pandora's box of revelations.

“Who are you lying to, Ian? Me or yourself? You are only saying that so you can convince your conscience that you are not a bad man. But the truth is that you are just as bad as everyone else out there. You might be dressed in expensive clothes and live in this pretentious mansion and be the heir to a dukedom. However, inside here, you are still just a man like us all,” Jack said tapping on his chest as he continued speaking.

Esther felt as if she had stopped breathing entirely. Her world was toppling upside down, and she had no idea how to prevent the damage from happening.

“Every single man is driven by power and money, and no matter what you say, we both know why you are marrying that meek little wallflower. You might try to satisfy yourself by claiming that you care for her, but it is not true. You are only marrying her because your father commanded you to. If it weren’t for that, you would still be out there somewhere dallying with any number of willing women. It’s who you are, man. Embrace it!” Jack said and started laughing manically once again.

Esther felt tears escape her eyes as Jack continued speaking. She gasped loudly and she knew that the sound was loud enough that both men heard her, but she did not care any longer. All she wanted was to get home as soon as possible. She knew that Ian had turned around and spotted her and was moving towards her. She distantly heard him calling her name and saying how he wished for her to stop so he could explain everything. He said that she was misinterpreting things and whatever she heard was not the complete truth.

Though her brain didn’t register anything. She kept running when she felt someone hold her hand tightly but in her state of frenzy she snatched her hand away. Her balance was lost, and she had no idea what happened next because the last thing she remembered was falling down before darkness engulfed her entirely.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Ian had never felt angrier. Every word that came out of Jack’s mouth pierced him but he knew there was no point in fighting over it. Jack was drunk and had no idea what he was saying, but his words still had the desired effect. Ian was already beating himself up because his guilt had been constantly whispering to him about telling her the truth.

As Jack stopped speaking, Ian suddenly heard the sound of an agonized gasp come from behind him. He turned around, and his eyes fell on Esther, who stood just outside the terrace doors.

“Esther,” Ian whispered, his eyes wide with horror. The tears on her face were a clear indication of the fact that she had heard every word that was being said. He could see the hurt in her beautiful brown eyes and Ian felt as if his heart had broken all over again.

He watched in a state of shock as Esther quickly lifted up the skirts of her gown and swiftly ran back towards the stairs, and Ian had no choice but to run after her. He had to stop her. This was his only chance to explain to her what the complete truth was, or else no force would be able to stop them crashing apart.

“Esther, please wait, please listen to me,” Ian called, wanting her to stop. But who would stop after listening to such atrocious truths?

“Esther, I can explain everything to you. You are misinterpreting it all,” he tried once again, his voice rising an octave. He knew that she was hurting, but he was hurting just as much. The fact that he had become the cause of Esther’s pain made him feel like the most miserable and worthless man in the world.

Ian finally caught up with her just as she reached the top of the staircase and took hold of her hand, willing for her to stop. She turned around to look at him, and he saw how her beautiful face was a broken mirror of despair. To Ian’s utter horror, she snatched away her hand angrily as if his touch scalded here but the force with which she pulled it away caused her to lose her balance. Ian saw how her foot slipped on the top stair before she went plunging down the entire set of stairs.