Haunted Hearts

12

The corners of his lips twitched with restrained mirth. "Please feel free to tell me when you know for certain."

Elphi nodded, hesitating before asking, "Were you at all worried your theory might be wrong?"

"Yes."

She frowned. "But then why did you go through with it?"

Rufus held Elphi's gaze, his body swaying with the motion of the carriage as it maneuvered its way into town toward Rosalind's home for what would become their wedding dinner.

He was quiet for so long that she began to think he wouldn't answer, making her feel she shouldn't have asked the question in the first place.

It was a question better left for later when they were infinitely more comfortable with one another, and sharing secrets came as easily as breathing.

"There were several reasons," Rufus admitted, at last, as the carriage rolled to a stop in front of Barkston Hall.

She blinked and frowned, almost forgetting the question that prompted his response. "Care to elaborate?"

When he remained silent, she whispered, "On one of those reasons, at least?"

Rufus looked at her for a moment before quietly stating, "It was a risk worth taking."

Dinner proved to be a laborious affair with awkward attempts at conversation that no one seemed capable of maintaining.

Especially after Reggie turned to Rufus during the soup course and said, "Forgive me for dredging up the past, Treadway, but I thought you swore off all women after your experience with Edwina."

"Reggie, darling," Rosalind quickly interjected with a pained smile as she cast an apologetic glance at Elphi and Rufus. "Perhaps a different topic would be more appropriate."

"Dear me," Reggie frowned. "I've done it again, haven't I?"

Rosalind nodded.

Rufus glanced at Elphi sitting directly across from him next to Rosalind. She sat frozen in place, her spoon laden with pea soup suspended mid-air, and her gaze locked on the area directly in front of her.

He could only imagine what she was thinking, the questions she would have—questions, if he was honest, belonging to topics he'd hoped never to have to broach in the first place.

Leave it to Reggie to ruin those plans.

If there was one thing in life Lord Reginald Keating excelled at, it was sticking his foot in his mouth. But he was such a genuinely kind person that it made it supremely difficult to hate the damned man despite such a glaring flaw.

Rufus scowled at Reggie, more than tempted to dump the entire contents of his soup bowl in his brother-in-law's lap. Heaven knew the man deserved it, and Rufus sat in the prime position for it to happen without impediment or danger of splattering anyone else by accident.

However, in the end, Rufus took a calming breath and silently reminded himself Reggie never spoke with malicious intent. "I did. But upon meeting Elphi, I simply couldn't help myself."

"Proof that women are splendid if not sometimes a terrifying and magical species, aren't they?" Reggie said as he smiled and raised his glass to his lips.

Rufus hesitated, then decided a simple nod was the wisest course of action to take in such a situation, for all their sakes.

The pauses between Reggie's attempts at polite questions followed by the equally polite if not strained answer lengthened until none came at all, and everyone—by some unspoken mutual agreement—set about eating their meal in silence.