Page 101 of Discovering Her Earl

Hearing of Elaina’s pain made his stomach clench. He was responsible. He shouldn’t have even kissed her when he knew they couldn’t be together. Everything they’d done, everything they’d shared, had given him an ample supply of memories. But what good are memories if they caused too much pain to recall?

“Time heals all wounds,” Julian said though he wasn’t sure he believed it.

Lord Darlington nodded in agreement.

“I suppose so. Maybe a little longer for a young woman in love.” He shook his head. “I shouldn’t have shared that, but I guess it wouldn’t hurt for you to know, she fancied you. She was upset that she wasn’t good enough to be a countess. Unrequited love is quite difficult to recover from.”

Julian couldn’t swallow. The weight of the man’s words crashed around him.

Lainey thought she wasn’t good enough to be his wife.

He knew well enough what that felt like—to not be good enough—and he wouldn’t want anyone to experience such pain, especially not the woman he loved more than anything.

The woman who was perfect for him. The woman he realized he couldn’t live without. No matter the repercussions. He would do whatever needed to be done, but he’d do it with her by his side.

“It isn’t,” he said quietly in answer to Lord Darlington.

“Oh, I daresay, it is. That thing about loving and losing or never having loved at all,” the man attempted to explain unrequited love, but Julian was shaking his head.

“No. I meant it isn’t unrequited. I love her, Henry. I thought I needed to follow my father’s rules and marry a proper countess, but I can’t do it. Not when I love her and want to spend my life with her.”

The man blinked a few times before a wide grin split his face. “Rose was right. There will be no living with her when she finds out, but it will be fine with me so long as you can make my niece happy.”

“I will do everything in my power to see that she is. In fact, I must go tell her right now. I can’t let her think for another moment she isn’t perfect the way she is.”

He would find a way to take care of the miners and their families. He hadn’t come up with a plan as of yet, but he had to believe he would find a solution as long as Lainey was by his side.

“Oh.” Henry winced. “There is a bit of a problem.” The seriousness in the man’s words made Julian stop in his tracks.

“What problem?”

“She isn’t here.”

“Where is she?”

“Egypt. Or rather she is on her way.”

As was his way, Julian began pacing in the small area near the man’s table.

“She needed to get away and I allowed it.” He tapped his chin for a moment then perked up. “She only left this afternoon. They will be stopping in Calais to load cargo. I can send a message to the captain to wait until you arrive. You could catch the ship there.”

“Yes. Please. I have to catch her, Henry.” And with that he ran out of the club much happier and determined than when he’d arrived.

He nearly bowled Hale over as the man was reaching for the door.

“There you are,” Hale said as if Julian had been intentionally avoiding him.

“Yes, but I must go. Elaina is leaving for Egypt and I must catch her.”

He turned to go, but Hale stayed him by gripping his arm.

“What I have to say will only take a moment, I promise and then you can track her down with a plan.”

Julian glanced toward the street wishing to be on the move, but relented. Henry would hold the ship in Calais. Julian would catch up to her. And if he didn’t, he would find another ship going to Egypt and find her.

“Go on.”

Hale released Julian’s arm and stood straighter.