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“I have spent more time with that man than you have,” Lady Susan reminded Amelia of a fact which may very well have been true. Amelia wasn’t certain how long they were courting or betrothed, but it was most certainly true that Lady Susan knew him longer than she had.
“It is not the length of having had someone’s acquaintance but rather the quality of it,” Amelia shot back, feeling her cheeks hot with rage. She had not come here intending to argue with this woman, but it was obvious that a normal conversation was impossible. Perhaps it was a good idea to cease speaking to her while they were still being civil to each other.
“Truly spoken like a woman blinded by love,” Lady Susan spoke mockingly.
“I see there is no talking reason with you,” Amelia snarled through clenched teeth, still keeping her wits about her although she was dangerously close to telling this woman exactly what she thought of her. “Which is why I shall bid you good day. There is no need to see me out.”
With those words, Amelia headed for the door which was left open. All she needed to do was walk through it and out of the house. This had obviously been a mistake. Amelia was wrong thinking that she could make Lady Susan see reason.
Just as she was about to leave the drawing room, she heard Lady Susan call out to her, “Duchess!”
Amelia’s new title reverberated in the room around them. For a moment, it felt foreign. It felt like it didn’t belong to her, and that was all because of this woman. Lady Susan did not want Amelia to be the bearer of this title. This realization only made Amelia want it even more.
It was hers. It belonged to her. Arthur belonged to her, just like she belonged to him. No one would deny her the love that she found so unexpectedly, so surprisingly.
She stopped in the doorway, but she didn’t turn around. She merely listened.
“Do you truly trust him so much that you would bet your life on it?” Lady Susan asked, careful with each word she had chosen to formulate this question.
“Yes,” Amelia shot out her answer as certain as the sun rose in the east and set in the west. There was no doubt about it. She trusted him with her love, her heart, her life. Then, she turned around, her eyes shooting daggers at this woman who dared to hurt the man Amelia loved. “I trust him with my heart, and I shall make sure that everyone knows you are nothing but a liar.”
Before Lady Susan could say anything to that, Amelia stormed out of the house, rushing back into her carriage which blasted its way out of the stifling confines of Harding Estate. Amelia wanted to go home. To Arthur’s home. Toherhome.
She knew that he was still upset with her. He would probably avoid her this evening as well. Perhaps even tomorrow. But she was willing to face such a punishment. She was willing to face everything for him.
CHAPTER23
Arthur had been standing by the door for the past fifteen minutes… at least. It could have been longer. It probablywaslonger, only he refused to admit to himself that he had been standing so long with his hand on the doorknob like a madman, just waiting.
He was angry with himself. In fact, he was angry with the world that it showed him that there was a woman who could love him for the man that he was – the broken, hurt and almost destroyed man. Only, he was too dumb to recognize how precious she was. Instead of understanding her curiosity regarding the only thing which he could still not talk to her, not in the way he would really like to, he blamed her for being mistrusting and even accused her of betraying him.
He sighed heavily. He shook his head at himself disapprovingly, unable to move from the spot where he was positioned. He had two choices. The first one was to simply go back to bed. He knew that he would not be able to sleep, but that was irrelevant right now. He would at least be in bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking about the following day and how he might start a conversation with Amelia. His second choice would be to actually keep going on this path where he had started this evening. Open the door finally, tiptoe down the corridor and knock on the last door that separated them, the door to her chamber. She might open, and she might not, but he would be there by her side.
He was torn, almost frozen. He wondered if she even wanted to see him. If he knocked on her door, would she even open it? He would not blame her if the answer to that was a resounding no.
A part of him wanted to break down all the doors that separated them, but another part of him assured himself that Amelia was a sensible young lady who would see reason. They both needed to sleep on this. After all, morning was wiser than the evening. The sun would shed light on everything. They would understand each other better after they both slept well.
Only, he was certain that he would not be able to sleep. He wondered if she would be able to. He should just leave her be for the time being. He had done enough. Then, why wasn’t he able to let go of the doorknob?
He remembered how apologetic she sounded when she admitted that she read his diary. She could have lied. She could have, yet she didn’t even though she must have known how he would react.
Perhaps, it was his fault. He should have told her the whole truth when she asked him about it, not only tidbits which were beneficial for him. The truth was that he was afraid she would think him a monster, just like everyone else. Because… he killed his parents. Accidentally or not, it was still his fault. Something like that was never forgotten. It never left his psyche. It was a crime he would atone for as long as he lived. It was a crime he would take to the grave with him.
Arthur did not expect to receive forgiveness. Only his parents could provide that forgiveness, and they were not there. As forthe ton,he had stopped caring about their opinion a long time ago, but that was before he had a wife. A wife whom he loved. A wife whom he wanted to see happy and content. He wanted her to feel proud to be his wife even though that was impossible. That was why he had tried to keep the truth hidden for as long as possible, but he should have known that truth would always find a way to come to the surface.
Finally, he made up his mind. His fingers gripped at the doorknob more firmly than before, and he pushed the door open. Darkness welcomed him, and it took his eyes a few moments to adjust. Within seconds, he could see the path that led to the guest chambers. Without a slightest hesitation in his mind, he headed towards Amelia’s room.
His heart was beating wildly. Once again, he was so close to happiness, but there was always an unexpected end to it every time he dared hope that he deserved to be happy just like everyone else. This time, he would not surrender so easily. He would fight for Amelia. He would show her that there was more to him than this tragic, broken man, the image he had presented to the world. Somehow, she managed to see past it. That was what made her so special, the ability to see what others could not.
He stopped right in front of her door, lifting his hand to knock, but the moment he did that, he smelled a familiar scent. A dreadful scent. A scent that awoke fears of the worst kind. Frantically, he looked about. The entire house was asleep. There was nothing amiss. At least, that was how it all seemed, but his nose had never steered him wrong. Not about something like this.
He inhaled deeply. Unmistakably, he recognized the smell. He could never err as to what it could be. The smell of fire had been branded so deeply in his mind that he could recognize it under any circumstances.
His hand instantly pulled away from the door, and instead of knocking, he pushed it open, almost tearing it off the hinges it stood on. Amelia stood right in the center of the room, obviously heading towards the bed. Her eyes widened in shock upon seeing him.
“Arthur… what–” she started, but she wasn’t allowed to finish her statement.
He rushed inside towards her. “Quickly, we don’t have a single moment to spare!” he urged her. From the sound of his voice, she knew that something terrible was going on, but obviously, she could not smell it. There was no smoke yet, but it would follow shortly. He only hoped that he would be able to get everyone out in time.
