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“Ye ain’t got the foggiest what she’s been through,” Finch continued, her voice thick with conviction. “Ye don’t know ’ow hard she’s worked to turn things ’round. So if ye’re just ’ere to muck about with ’er, ye can turn right ’round an’ shove off out that door.”
Sebastian did not so much as flinch at the scolding. Instead, he inclined his head, as though he had expected no less from the formidable woman. “I assure you, I do not intend to toy with her.”
A delicate throat-clearing sounded beside Finch, and Lady Wood, ever the picture of grace and refinement, clasped her hands before her.
“My lord,” she said, her voice smooth and composed but no less resolute, “it is not simply a matter of whether you intend to cause pain but whether you are prepared for all that loving Harriet entails.” She tilted her head, scrutinizing him with an assessing gaze. “You may think you know her, but people change. Life changes them. You have spent years apart, and now you have only had a handful of days together. Are you certain you understand what you are asking for?”
Harriet’s heart pounded. Evaline’s words, spoken with quiet authority, struck true.
Did he truly understand?
Sebastian was silent for a moment, his expression unreadable. Then, at last, he spoke.
“I know her well enough to understand that I love her,” he said.
A ripple of reaction passed through the room.
Harriet inhaled sharply, her stomach twisting into knots.
He loved her.
Finch and Lady Wood exchanged glances, but before they could respond, Belinda Cooper stepped forward, her gaze piercing.
“And yet you did not trust her,” Belinda pointed out, her words laced with skepticism. “You accused her of unfaithfulness. You stormed out.” She raised a brow. “What has changed?”
Sebastian’s jaw clenched. “I was angry.”
“That much was clear,” Belinda murmured.
His gray eyes darkened with something unreadable. “I was angry because I have spent years trying to forget her. And the moment I stopped resisting, the moment I allowed myself to believe in a future with her, I discovered she had deceived me again.”
Harriet winced. He had every right to say it. Every right to hold that grievance close to his heart. But his next words made her breath catch.
“I left because I was afraid,” Sebastian admitted, his admission settling over the room. “Afraid that I would never be able to trust her. Afraid that she would never trust me. Afraid that after everything, I had come back for a dream that had already crumbled.” His voice turned hoarse. “But I was wrong.”
A hush fell.
Harriet swallowed past the lump in her throat.
Sebastian took a step forward.
“Harriet, I know we cannot erase the past,” he said. “I know we have made mistakes. Both of us. But I also know that I am not willing to let you go. Not again.”
Jem, standing by Harriet’s side, her little hands balled into fists, finally spoke, her young voice quiet but firm.
“Then don’t.”
Sebastian turned his gaze to the girl. Jem met his eyes without flinching.
“If ye love ’er, then stay.”
The simple words, spoken with such certainty, sent a fresh wave of emotion crashing over Harriet.
Stay.
She looked to Sebastian, her heart hammering. The room was silent, waiting. Waiting for her to decide. Waiting for her to believe. She took a shaky breath. And then, voice trembling but firm, she spoke.
“There are things I have done. Things you do not know about.”
