32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

Jethro immediately regretted his behaviour. He shut the study door behind him and slumped into his chair. With his elbows on the desk, he propped up his head with his hands.

There was no use pretending. He was jealous of Mr Barnes. She was his wife—not the curate’s. No one else had a claim to her affections. She had promised.

Every mention of Mr Barnes had pushed Jethro nearer the edge until he couldn’t stand it anymore. Consumed by bitterness, his tongue had taken on a life of its own, lashing out at Cassandra, pushing her away.

He was not used to minding his words with anyone. His tart responses were well known in the business community. He said what he meant and didn’t dress it up. People respected that.

But Cassandra deserved better. He must master his jealousy and learn to control these outbursts before they eradicated what little regard his wife still had for him.

Her brother would be able to give her emotional support. His gut ached at the thought of her sharing her disappointment with him as a husband, but if she wanted to divulge her secrets to Alexander, so be it. He would not stop her.

But first, he needed to repair the damage his unkind words had done. To do that would require honesty, and that wouldn’t be easy. Because it would mean confessing how possessive he felt whenever Mr Barnes was mentioned.

He dreaded the conversation. Somehow, it would make her feelings for the curate more real to talk about them with her, but it had to be attempted if they were going to reach an understanding. A way forward, in a marriage which they’d come to without love on either side.

There was always the chance he was reading too much into it. Was it so surprising that Cassandra should feel something for a man she knew so well? Better than her own husband.

It mattered not a jot that she would have preferred to marry the curate. She was married to him, and that was that. They needed to find a way to make it work. For both their sakes.

The following morning, Jethro lingered at the breakfast table, rather than heading for the warehouse as soon as he had finished eating. “Would you like to take a walk along the seafront?”

Cassandra narrowed her eyes at him. “Now?”

“Why not?”

“Doesn’t your business need you?”

“Are you trying to get rid of me?”

“No. It’s just that there’s so much to do, getting ready for Xander’s arrival.”

Cassandra was not making this easy for him. “I’m sure Mrs Timms has it under control.”

“Very well. Let me fetch my hat and pelisse.”

They hadn’t walked more than a hundred yards when Cassandra yanked her hand from his hold and hurried toward a man walking in their direction. A man in a captain’s uniform, whom Jethro guessed must be her brother.

The sailor dropped his bag and opened his arms to her, and she ran right into his embrace. He spun her in a circle as if she were a giddy schoolgirl rather than a married woman.

Jethro’s chest tightened. How would it feel if Cassandra ran into his arms like that and he twirled her around?

The captain put her back on her feet, and she took his hand and led him to where Jethro stood.

“Xander, allow me to present my husband, Mr Hunt.”

Alexander bowed to him with notable restraint. The hostility was almost tangible.

Jethro’s hackles rose. How dare Cassandra’s brother show up six months after his father’s death, full of animosity toward the man who had saved his sister from destitution? The man who was also opening up his home to him.

He was about to utter a withering comment when a glance at his wife stopped him. Her face was alight with joy at being reunited with her brother.

To please Cassandra, he would be civil to Alexander, though it went against the grain. He must try.

With that goal in mind, Jethro extended his arm. After a moment’s hesitation, the captain took his hand and shook it, but the wary look in his eye did not bode well.

Cassandra seemed content with the way Jethro had greeted her brother, shooting him a brief smile before linking arms with Alexander and heading back toward the house.

Her walk with him was forgotten. She didn’t even glance behind her to see if he was following.

“Where’s Julia?” Alexander asked.

“At work. She couldn’t arrange time off to meet you, because we weren’t sure when you would arrive. It was the merest chance you met Jethro and I out walking this morning. It is not our normal routine, I can assure you.”

The captain jerked his head around and glared at him before turning his attention back to his sister. “And why not? You should walk along here every day. It does a person good to watch the waves. There is something timeless about the sea that warms a man’s soul.”

“I know what you mean. I couldn’t face the thought of living anywhere else.”

Jethro supposed he should be thankful. No doubt, if she had been willing to leave Weymouth, she would easily have secured a role as a companion. She would not have needed to marry him.

“I’ll send word to Julia,” said Cassandra. “Perhaps she’ll be able to join us for dinner.”

Jethro doubted it. Her sister had not dined with them once since their marriage. Cassandra had never said as much, but he thought it was because Julia disapproved of him. It seemed she had that in common with her stepbrother .

He hoped they would not poison his wife’s thoughts against him more than they already were.

“Some officers I serve with are due to join me in Weymouth while my ship is being refitted. I’ve promised to show them my hometown. You’ll like them. A merrier bunch of fellows you’d be hard pushed to find. Or a more good-looking one,” he said with a nudge. “They’ll bring a bit of animation back to your face.”

“I’m sure Jethro and I will be pleased to meet any friends of yours.”

“Ah yes. I remember. You’re a married woman now.”

Jethro trailed behind them, an unwelcome third, as they talked non-stop, interrupted from time to time by an exclamation or a raucous burst of laughter from the captain.

He shuddered. It was going to be a long six weeks with this man in his home,

At least Alexander would be gone before Mr Wade came to town, now that his investor wasn’t coming until July. It would be challenge enough to move confidently in the society that still felt so alien to him without his aggravating brother-in-law disturbing his peace and commandeering his wife’s time.

Aware his irritation was rising, and he might say something cutting if he stayed, Jethro decided to leave Cassandra and her brother to their reunion. The warehouse was a haven, where he could lose himself in his work, and quell the feelings of inadequacy that bubbled up inside him at the captain’s thinly veiled hostility.

When they reached the house, he held back.

At last Cassandra turned her attention to him. “Aren’t you coming in?”

“No. I’m going to the warehouse. I have business to attend to.”

“I understood from what you said you were free this morning. Won’t you join us?”

“No. I had thought I didn’t need to work, but I made a mistake. I’m sure you and your brother will do very well without me.”

With a brief bow, he hurried down the street toward the harbour.

Jethro refused to glance back. He couldn’t bear seeing the delight on his wife’s face—a look he had failed to produce. He was clearly lacking.

If Alexander could make her that happy, he owed it to her to let her enjoy his company without his disruptive presence.

He would leave them to it. Six weeks was not a lifetime.

Jethro just hoped the captain would not have turned his wife completely against him by the end of it.