As the hours passed, my stomach began to growl impatiently. Elias hadn’t been able to bring me breakfast since we snuck out so early, and I most likely wouldn’t receive lunch until after the Dugal family left, which would be hours from now.
I sat back against the wall with a soft groan, trying to distract my mind from its hunger. Before I could get too buried in my thoughts, a soft patter of feet alerted me that someone had entered the room. My body froze instinctually at the sound, until something caught my attention. That sounded like an awful lot of footsteps for such a quiet visitor.
I carefully peered between the hanging fabrics. The sight before me quickly cleared up my suspicions. No wonder there had been so many steps, the visitor had four feet! I poked my head fully out of the curtains to catch Bear’s attention, and the sweet beast lit up at seeing my face and quickly rushed over.
“Hi, Bear. Did you miss me?” I let out a soft giggle as the dog licked my cheek. I scratched around his ears and neck when a strange texture caught my attention. My fingers brushed past the silky object once more before I recognized that he was wearing a ribbon as a collar.
My hands skirted around the edge of the ribbon until they landed on a small silk pouch. Curiosity propelled my hands into undoing the knot around Bear’s neck, dropping the pouch into my palm. It was then that I noticed a tiny piece of parchment attached to the cinched top of the bag.
In case you get hungry, I know it’s going to be a long day.
-E
My heart fluttered with joy as I opened the pouch to find it filled with pieces of dried fruit and jerked beef—Elias truly thought of everything. I gave Bear an extra scratch behind the ears for being such a wonderful courier. My stomach rejoiced as I inhaled the precious snack. Loving warmth filled my heart as I settled back into the drapery.How did Elias always know what I needed and when?
My fingertips stroked the soft silk ribbon that had delivered my gift. It was a beautiful golden yellow color, and long enough to grace the neck of an actual bear. I sized up its length to the width of my head and was delighted to find that it worked perfectly has a hair piece. I tied a dainty bow onto the top of my head. The color both perfectly suited my hair and my yellow dress—yet another example of Elias knowing just what I needed.
It took a few more hours before the Dugals finally arrived. Their initial greetings were polite, but brief. I tried to peek out the side of the curtains to glimpse Theodore, but his rather broad father was standing between us. Lord Dugal looked pretty much how I envisioned a stoic businessman to look. He wore an emotionless expression, had graying-brown hair, and acted far too busy to bother with unnecessary formalities.
Another period of waiting ensued as the group moved to the dining room for lunch. I briefly considered sneaking to the closet I had once eavesdropped from, but then decided against it. My ankle would slow me down far too much to move with any diligence. So instead, I waited.
It took nearly an hour for the party to finish their meal. The adults lingered toward the back of the house where the office was located, while Elias led Theodore to the parlor. I anxiously awaited their arrival as they finally stepped into the lavish sitting room.
Once I was certain they were both seated, I peered through a gap in the curtains. My eyes first fell on Elias who was seated on a couch facing me. As I cast my gaze farther to the right, I finally caught sight of my almost-husband. Well, the back of him at least.
Elias must have chosen the seat facing me so Theodore would have to sit with his back to me. It was a clever idea on Elias’s part since it limited the chance of Theodore noticing me. However, I was a little disappointed that I couldn’t see his face. The top of his head sat high above the chair, so he must have been tall, and his hair was a cleanly combed, bright blonde. It was much like my own color, actually. He sat with pristine posture, and his hands rested modestly upon the arms of the chair. I could already tell he was far more polished than I was by his demeanor alone.
“I hope life has been treating you well, Theo.” Elias settled into his seat, his gaze carefully avoiding the drapery. “Especially after all the chatter circling your betrothed.”
My hands twisted my skirt. I hadn’t expected him to dive into the topic so early.
“Ah, yes,” the young man retorted. “I suppose you’ve been keeping up on your local gossip, haven’t you?” Theodore’s voice was deeper than I had imagined. He spoke with a highness to his words that wasn’t due to pitch, but more in representation of himself.
“What can I say,” Elias smiled complacently, “the news was quite attention grabbing.”
An irritated sigh escaped from Theodore as he moved his hand to his face, presumably to rub his forehead. “The girl might be more trouble than she’s worth,” Theodore said in vexation. “I admit, she has some attractive attributes... her face is pleasant and she’s not too tall. But in all honesty, it’s her family’s business that I’m truly marrying her for. My father insists upon this alliance, so I intend to follow through.”
My mind ran over his words a dozen times. Did that mean he wasn’t personally interested in the marriage? A small spark of hope flared inside me.
“Attractive attributes, huh?” Elias questioned with the slightest huff. “I wasn’t aware you had even had the pleasure of seeing your betrothed.”
What?I flinched in surprise, taken aback by Elias’s sudden tone. Why was he asking if he had seen me? It’s not as if it mattered in the grand scheme of things. My eyes fixated on Theodore as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. I looked back at Elias, expecting him to retract his question from the sight of his uneasy guest, but he only continued to glare with intrigue.
“I have seen her once,” Theodore stated frankly. “Her father arranged for it. She was out in town doing some shopping, and I saw her on the streets—I didn’t want to meet her in person until the engagement. Once I saw that she was pretty enough, I agreed to request her hand. If I had spoken to her, it may have changed my mind. Women are such finicky things.” He waved a hand in dismissal.
Alright, now I wanted to slit his throat.
A frustrated anger burned up in my throat, threatening to let out an onslaught of slander at the pompous man. The pretentious brat had managed to break down every one of my societal boundaries in a matter of sentences. I had half a mind to show him how “finicky” I could really be. Alongside my new disgust of Theodore, my anger simultaneously stemmed to my father, who had permitted this nitwit to spy on me. Not only had he arranged for Theodore to see me, but he had never once offered his own daughter the same courtesy of seeing her betrothed. My seething anger was so blinding, I almost missed what was happening with Elias.
I sucked in a quiet breath as I noticed his trembling hands. His face was set firm into a stiff smile, but his eyes held a fire that rivaled mine. My hands tightened on my skirt as I secretly wished he wouldn’t say anything foolish. As much as I appreciated his sympathy toward my injustice, I knew that a screaming match would only hinder the situation.
Elias took in a calm breath. “How fortunate for you to have had that opportunity.” He spoke in a level tone, but I caught a glimpse of his teeth grinding. Fortunately, Theodore didn’t seem to notice.
“Yes, her father is quite an adept gentleman,” he replied smoothly. “It was his idea to unite our families, and my father has been elated about the proposal ever since. That is, until the wench ran off. Now we have to track down the blasted woman before the end of the season.”
Elias calmly folded his hands into his lap, appearing more collected. “The end of the season? Is that when the wedding is scheduled?” The word “wedding” stuttered off his lips for a moment, as if he dreaded having to say them.
“Yes, at the moment,” Theodore confirmed. “If we locate her before then, we will move the date sooner. Wouldn’t want to risk her running out on me again, am I right?” He laughed at his own twisted humor, and Elias merely gave him a feigned chuckle.