Chapter 14

Violet had never felt so low.

She had been through many terrible things in her life, but this was the worst. The sadness was so intense, it was hard for her to work up the energy to do anything.

Anything at all.

She might have been trying to go through the motions of life, but it was hard for her to disguise the feelings of dejection racing through her.

"Oh my goodness, Violet. I am sick of looking at that frown on your face."

Unfortunately, Paul had no sympathy for her.

He seemed utterly determined to make everything so much worse.

"You are truly ungrateful. I am so unimpressed by you. I cannot believe you are acting this way when I have gone out of my way to help you. To help us. To make all of this better."

Again, Paul was acting like he was not the one behind all of this. That it was not his gambling that had put them both in this situation.

But Violet was too exhausted to argue that with him again.

"Are you even listening to me, Violet?"

All of a sudden, Paul was up in Violet"s face, yelling loudly at her.

"I am sick of all of this. I have been working so hard for the family, while you sit around and do nothing. Nothing at all. You do not even work around the house anymore. You are useless."

Violet wanted to argue, she wanted to insist that Paul was wrong, but it was like his eyes had turned black.

She had never seen him like this. So filled with intense rage.

She was a little fearful, which silenced her.

"You have always been this way, Violet. It makes me regret traveling around Europe and leaving you to care for Father. It is probably your fault that he died because you are so useless, you could not even care for him properly. You killed him…"

"What is happening here?"

William"s icy cold voice shook the room.

Even Paul fell into silence.

They both turned to look at William, and immediately Violet was struck by how angry and red he looked.

Paul"s words had pushed her too far, but it seemed like they had pushed William over the edge as well.

"You do not talk about this in my home…"

"Eagleton Manor is mine," Paul cried out, but his words trailed off because there was no arguing that the home did not belong to Paul any longer. They were only still there because of Violet"s plan.

"You do not speak to anyone like that, Lord Eagleton, so I would like for you to leave. Now!"

Violet could hardly breathe.

Was this really happening?

She darted her eyes between both men, trying to see which way this was going. How would Paul react to this? Would he fight?

But instead of saying anything, he muttered expletives under his breath and left the room, allowing Violet to catch her breath.

Not that she was sure she would ever be able to breathe again.

"Do you really want this marriage?" William demanded, his voice screaming for the truth from Violet.

Something about that made her blow up. "Of course this is not what I want! You know this is not what I want."

"Then why are you allowing your brother to dictate your movements?" He threw his hands in the air in frustration. "I cannot understand it. I cannot understand why you are allowing him to control you so much."

Violet was scandalized. "What other choice do I have?"

William rested his hands on her shoulders, making her body freeze. "Do not accept it. The control, the wedding, all of it."

Violet scoffed.

How could he say this so simply as if it was that easy?

It was ridiculous.

"Life might be that simple for you, but I am a woman. I am not a man with a title who can do as he pleases. I have to take what life throws at me."

"You know that you have another option," he reminded her. "I have already said that you can marry me."

Violet froze.

"But… you were not being serious…"

"I am being deadly serious, Violet. I have been serious the whole time."

Violet did not know what to say.

She wished that she could challenge him on this, but her throat seemed to have closed up.

She was literally speechless.

"But if you agree, Violet, I have a condition."

"What do you mean? What condition?"

This worried her.

How was this man going to toy with her now?

"It shall be a marriage on paper only." Violet stared at him in shock. "Whatever has happened between us must stop. The kisses, the touches…" As if he needed to highlight his point, he removed his hands from her shoulders. "That has to end. We can only touch when it comes to making an heir, because obviously that is very important."

What on earth was William talking about?

Why would he kiss her when they were not married, but not afterwards? It did not make any sense.

The confusion must have shown on her face, because William continued. "That is my deal. That is the way it shall go. If you would like that, instead of Mr. Cook, then I am here."

Violet parted her lips, unsure of what she should say.

She had to admit that as she tried to write up a quick pros and cons list, it was a far better prospect to marry William for the paper and the life that would come with it, than Charles who had already tried to put his hands all over her, even though she did not want him to.

"You do need to decide now, Violet," William reminded her. "Time is ticking. Our agreement is coming to an end."

"I have to choose right now?"

William nodded.

She really was going to have to make a choice that would affect her future right now which was incredibly intimidating.

"Then yes…" she whispered. "I accept."

* * *

What have I done?

Violet was in shock as she perched on the edge of her bed, trying to get her brain functioning again, to process what had just happened.

She might have been hoping for a miracle, something to take her away from the dreaded marriage to Mr. Cook, but she was not expecting this.

Was this any better?

She truly could not figure it out.

William had been something of an enigma from the very first moment she met him. He was dark and mysterious, and she could never quite tell whether his words were serious or not.

But even for him, this was crazy.

Why did he want to marry her? What was he going to get out of it? Much as she had been swept up in the desire buzzing between them, he did not seem too concerned about it ever.

He was always the one to pull away first, and to leave her stuck and confused, which was why she had assumed she was a pawn in his strange chess game.

But now, he had tilted everything upside down.

Not only had he offered her his hand in marriage, he had suggested that there would be no more caving to temptation. No more teasing, no more flirting, no more kissing…

It did not make any sense.

Yet she had agreed to his offer now, so the choice was whipped away from her. And what other option did she have really? Being a bride to Mr. Inappropriate Cook? She could not imagine anything worse.

Imagine having to turn up to events of the Season with him on her arm, behaving like a buffoon. It was not fathomable.

So, she was going to have to work out how to be a wife to William, and what that would entail.

Right now, she had no idea…

"Violet!" The door to her bed chambers burst open and Paul raced in, completely uninvited. She had not even been aware that he was even still at Eagleton Manor. "You better tell me that I have been lied to. I do not want you to confirm what the duke has just taken great delight in telling me. I am about to lose my mind here."

Uh oh.

This was a confrontation that she was thoroughly unprepared for.

"I… I do not know what you are talking about…"

"So, you have not agreed to marry that imbecile?" Paul"s words were almost screaming now. "You have not given him your word that you will be his wife? Already knowing that I have plans for us."

This enraged Violet. "He is a duke, as you have just said yourself. Would it not be better for all of us for me to marry a man with a title?"

Paul"s cheeks shone with an angry red. "You should not even think about marrying him. He is a terrible person. One of the worst."

"Might I remind you, Paul, that I was not the one who brought him in to our lives. You are the one who gambled everything away."

Paul rolled his eyes dismissively at her. "You must stop harping on about that. It is the past, it has happened. We simply must find a way to move past that, which is what I have done by securing you a match."

"A thoroughly unsuitable one."

Paul let out a nasty laugh. "So, you are telling me that you would rather be the bride of that brutish duke?"

"I think that is what Father would have wanted."

Paul sneered. "You have no idea what our father would have wanted, Violet. You could not. I am a man, I understand him, and I know he would have wanted you to marry the better prospect. The man I promised you too. You are ruining absolutely everything that I have built for you."

"That you have built for me?" Violet was incredulous, but that did not stop Paul on his rant.

"I have given the man my word, just before he sets of for Italy. For a month long business trip. How is it possible to make this right?"

Violet cocked a knowing eyebrow. "I did not promise anything to anyone. I would not do so without being certain, so I have no idea how you are supposed to get yourself out of this mess. But since you are the one who got yourself in to it, I am not too sure what you expect of me."

It felt so good to be able to say this to Paul.

To be able to stand up for herself, knowing that she was in the right.

While Violet might not have been sure about William, just as much as Paul was not, she would not let that show.

For once, she felt like she had the upper hand, and that was something that she intended to embrace.

"You are going to regret this, Violet," Paul warned. But he was backing away from her, and that was all she cared about. This would be over soon enough. "I promise you, you will regret defying me. That is not something anyone does and gets away with."

In the past, his threats had always worried her. She was never sure if he would follow through with them or not. But this time, it did not bother her. There was nothing that he could say to bother her because she was finally a little bit more in control of her own destiny.

Not fully, but enough for now.

"This is a mistake, Violet, and I hope you realize that before it is too late. I hope you understand what you have done in time, before you ruin your reputation and put Charles off ever wanting to marry you."

Well, if that was the worst consequence that she was going to have to face, then Violet was not worried at all.

Not having to marry Charles was the whole reason she had agreed to this!