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“Oh, yes, yes,” Margaret soothed. “I shall leave you to it. I will only say one more thing, and this is not about his shoulders. Nor his broad back or thick forearms, or the fact that he was in the military when she was eighteen and single-handedly⁠—”

“Mother!” Nathaniel snapped.

“My dear, I don’t know how the French act, but we English have better manners than that.”

“I wish to hear all about Lord Westcott, but I must finish this discussion with His Grace first.”

“Then I will let you get back to your discussion,” Margaret said. “I was only going to say that if Lord Westcott looks at me one more time with those beautiful eyes and cheeky smile, I fear I might become another scandal, if you know what I mean.” She looked directly at Eleanor.

Eleanor felt as if she couldn’t breathe. She brought her fingers to her lips and tapped on them as if that might stir her into talking. Her eyes darted between Nathaniel, Gabriel, and her mother. Gabriel stared at her with steely eyes that commanded her to be quiet.

She couldn’t; it was impossible. The words were blurted out. “Who else knows?”

“Who else knows about what?” Margaret asked.

“The scandal,” Eleanor seethed; that should have been obvious.

“My dear, I don’t have the faintest idea what you are talking about,” Margaret said as she pushed the cart further into the room, the maid trailing behind.

Eleanor realized at that moment the mistake she had made, and she tried to compose herself as she turned to face her brother, hoping that he didn’t say anything more about it.

When she saw his face, she knew she had let the cat out of the bag.

“How about we start again?” Nathaniel suggested, his anger barely held back behind gritted teeth. “I would like an explanation.”

CHAPTER 30

Gabriel had felt bad about lying to his best friend about the nature of the relationship, even if most of what he had said was true, and he felt even worse now that an additional truth was coming to light.

“Mother, what did you mean about a scandal?” Eleanor asked softly.

“Oh, you know,” her mother said, waving a hand through the air. “I don’t wish to fall so hard for Lord Westcott that I do something foolish and become the talk of the town. I don’t want to become a scandal at my age.”

“And by another scandal, you meant…?” Eleanor asked.

“Just that,” Margaret clarified. “You hear all the time about women getting themselves into awkward situations, and I’m sure that there are many more who could be scandals if people knew about them. I don’t wish to become another.”

Gabriel took Eleanor’s hand and held it tight. He tried to convey a message through the way he gripped it: You don’t need to say anything else.

“Don’t worry, you’re not to blame for any of this,” Gabriel whispered.

“I’m sorry,” she muttered, her voice shaky.

“I should have told the complete truth, and I chose not to,” Gabriel told her. “This is all on me.”

“Enough of the whispering and secrets!” Nathaniel demanded. “If I have to ask once more for an explanation, I will leave here with my sister, and she will not set foot in this residence ever again.”

“All right,” Gabriel said firmly. He pulled on Eleanor’s arm and positioned her behind him slightly as if he might need to protect her. “The only reason I have not told the complete truth is to protect Eleanor, but nothing I have said to you has been a lie.”

“This is becoming insufferable,” Nathaniel lamented. “All I want is a simple explanation, and then I will decide what must be done next. It is not too late to annul the marriage.”

“That will not happen,” Eleanor interjected.

Gabriel turned and looked at Eleanor. He appreciated her confrontational nature, but now was not the time.

“I stood by Eleanor’s side and watched as other men approached her,” Gabriel recounted. “It is true that none of them was good enough for your sister, and as I spent more time with her, I developed feelings for her. There was one serious suitor, and I let my jealousy get the better of me.

“I kissed your sister, not for any other reason than I wanted to. I didn’t want to take advantage of her, nor did I. I didn’t do anything she didn’t want to do, and while I was careful to protect her reputation, I was not careful enough. The suitor who pursued Eleanor found us in a compromising situation. He will⁠—”