“They never included me in their business details.” I stepped forward cautiously, raising myself out of my cowardly stance. “Father handled all the finances. I was only taught to look for quality in our products. The rest was kept away from me. If they are truly indebted, they never told me. I promise you.” My desperate eyes caught his. A rush of emotions seemed to pass through him all at once. When he turned back to me, his eyes still appeared sunken with disappointment.
“There’s another thing...” his voice lowered haggardly, “I know the Dugal family.”
My face turned ashen. The lie I had told earlier, about Theodore being a terrible man... Elias knew him?
“Theodore,” he crossed his arms, “he’s a close acquaintance of mine.”
I gulped. He must know I lied then. My blood turned to ice as his gaze froze me in place. If he was angry, it was rightfully so.
“Oh,” I squeaked out meekly.
“His family is quite respectable,” he continued. “But Theodore isn’t the most kind of gentlemen.” His face softened.
“Is that so?” I questioned quietly, not willing to raise my confidence yet.
“Well, he isn’t what I would call ‘horrible.’” He shot me a knowing look. I felt my cheeks redden from shame at my quoted words. “He does have a bit of an ego, but his parents are a respectable few.”
I watched as his brow furrowed. A moment or two of silence passed between us until he finally looked up at me. A new expression adorned his kind face as remorse overtook his gentle hazel eyes.
“I’m sorry.” He sighed apologetically. “I should have never raised my voice at you. I should have considered that your family wouldn’t share their hardships with you”
I remained silent for a moment, feeling entirely shocked that he would apologize for such a thing. His anger was valid, plus he had hardly even shouted. My family used to raise their voices at me all the time, and they considered it beneath them to apologize for such a thing afterward.
“You don’t have to apologize to me,” I said softly. “You don’t even know if half the things I say are true. You owe me nothing.”
A fire lit in his eyes as a sudden worry filled me that I had angered him further. “I owe you the decency of being a proper man. Raising my voice at a struggling young lady is unacceptable.” He took a step closer, dropping down to one knee, taking my hand with a gentle touch. I permitted him to hold it as I allowed his eyes to fixate on mine. “Please forgive me for not giving you that respect.”
My breath caught. What was he doing? A noble never belittled themselves, especially the heir to a wealthy lord. My heart threatened to beat out of my chest, and I mentally cursed the blasted organ for being so finicky. A thousand responses flooded my mind, but when I opened my mouth, only one came out.
“No forgiveness is necessary for I never took offense.” I smiled, gesturing for him to rise. “But I do wish to thank you for the consideration of my feelings... It means a lot.”
He smiled back at me as he stood to his feet, still gripping my hand. “I promise to watch my temper from now on. You did not deserve to be the receiver of my frustrations.” His cheeks turned pink for a moment, and I followed his gaze to my hand. He dropped it instantly, likely having forgotten that he was holding it.
“There is no need to sound so remorseful,” I giggled and tapped his arm playfully. “To be fair, I did lie to you about having met Theodore. I was worried that you wouldn’t find my reasoning for leaving valid. So, I admit to adding a little more spice to the story.” I shrugged ingloriously.
“Spice?” He crossed his arms, appearing slightly humored by my phrasing.
“Yes, a little extra spice.” I nodded matter-of-factly. “You know, to give my story a little extra kick, much like a well-seasoned stew. Well, in a sense. I suppose it does sound silly now that I say it out loud, but I’m afraid I have already spoken it, so I must own up to my words.” I cleared my throat. “Yes, I admit to trying to spice up my story in mimicry to a fine stew. I do hope you will forgive me.”
He stared at me utterly befuddled for a moment. A half smile snuck across his lips until he started laughing whole-heartedly. “Has anyone told you that you’re a peculiar woman?”
“Quite a few people, actually.” I beamed proudly. “It’s likely the reason why Mother never wanted to introduce me to my betrothed before he proposed. It might have changed his mind.” I shrugged, and Elias continued laughing in response. The sound was so delightful that I didn’t want it to stop.
“Now that I know your betrothed is Theodore, I cannot say I disagree.” He paused in thought for a moment. “I believe I can now fully agree that your parents arranged this marriage with only selfish intent. Knowing both you and Theo, there is no possible way you two would have made a suitable match. I would bet that your compatibility was not even a topic for consideration amongst the matter.” He looked at me sympathetically.
“I assumed as much.” I sighed, seating myself on a padded bench. “They have never been the considerate type.”
“Most noble families aren’t,” he lamented. I slumped back against the wall, acknowledging his truth. We remained silent for a moment as I scratched Bear’s ears when suddenly, Elias’s eyes lit up. “I think I have an idea for getting you away from here.” His eyes held an inspired look. “The hunter is inspecting the estate grounds right now, correct?”
“Yes…” I replied, slowly rising to my feet.
“That makes it the perfect time to leave! Grab your things quickly.” He scuffled around the room, producing a canvas bag from a deep wooden trunk. I simply stared at him with my feet planted.
“The perfect time?” My voice was loaded with skepticism. “It might be the perfect time for me to get caught, but certainly not to run.” I crossed my arms, expecting him to come to his senses, but he remained half-buried in the trunk.
“That’s where you’re wrong,” he mumbled from inside the storage piece. “If the hunter is on our grounds, then we know where he is. That means we know how to avoid him, plus I possess home territory advantage.” He lifted himself from the trunk and produced a dusty wool cloak.
Dust particles stirred in the air and between coughs, I rasped. “Do you really think I could get off the property unnoticed?”