Chapter 19

S he is better off without me…

Aaron stared blankly at the pieces of parchment in front of him on the desk. He had been trying all morning to focus, yet he could not bring himself to think of anything other than Marina and his unborn child.

A week had passed since she had gone back to her mother and felt the need to remind himself every day that she was better off than she was at his side.

"Your Grace, there is a Miss Prudence Wallace to see you." The butler's voice interrupted his thoughts as Aaron blinked a few times and looked up. Out of all the people he had thought would come to see him, Marina's mother included, Aaron had never expected Prudence.

The butler came back in no time at all, emerging from the hallways with a stern-faced Prudence behind him.

The girl seemed to have shot up a few inches since the last time he had seen her, yet that was normal for someone of her age. He bitterly wondered how often he would see his child; even if it was from a distance, the child needed to know who he was, but that did not mean that he intended to see them very often.

"Are you done being stubborn?" Prudence asked him without so much as a ‘How have you been?' Her little cherubic face somehow seemed more mature as she glared at him from across the room.

"You may leave us." Aaron dismissed the butler who left and shut the door behind him.

Prudence rolled her eyes before shaking her head in disapproval. "You can spare me the lecture, Your Grace. I have ventured across London without a chaperone in secret. Considering the fact that you are my brother-in-law, I doubt that my presence in your house can cause much of a scandal."

Sitting back in his chair, Aaron frowned and looked the girl in the eyes. She seemed to be on a mission, and he was not about to stop her until he knew what it was.

"Before you go ahead and ask any questions such as why I am here. I would like to know why you have abandoned my sister?" The stubbornness in her eyes was all too apparent and she stomped her foot on the carpet and placed her hands on her hips.

Humoring her, Aaron sat forward again and interlaced his fingers in front of him with his elbows on the desk. "And what business is it of yours? You are a child."

Her green eyes narrowed angrily at him as they flashed with indignation. "I will be fifteen next month. I hardly think that makes me a child; in two more years I will be a debutant."

Aaron nodded in amusement, enjoying the way she was carrying herself despite her meddling. He briefly hoped that if he was blessed with a daughter, she would have the gumption to stand up to any man like Prudence was doing. "Go on then, state your case."

Prudence jutted her small chin in the air before continuing. "I may be considered a child in your eyes, Your Grace, but I am old enough to know that my sister is not happy. I have spent the last week lying awake at night while she cries herself to sleep. She is unhappy, despite what she may tell our mother every morning."

The amusement suddenly left his body as Aaron thought of his wife crying herself to sleep at night. He had wanted a better life for her, not this.

"When will you be coming to collect her? At the risk of sounding too selfish, I would like a good night's sleep, plus I think she is in love with you." She stated as a matter of fact.

"And what do you know of such things?" he asked her more seriously, taking note of the way her eyes changed with the question.

"I will say it again, Your Grace, I may be a child, but I know a thing or two about unrequited love. It can make a person sick with longing." Her voice was softer as she avoided looking at him.

Aaron gave her a moment to compose herself when it looked as if she were about to cry. "And what do you suppose I should do? I know that you like to eavesdrop, you are aware of the way that everyone speaks about me and my scars. Your sister is better off away from me."

"Is she allowed a say in her happiness?" She looked at him with a serious expression, standing her ground as she refused to be brushed aside.

Rubbing the tips of his fingers against his thumb, Aaron kept his gaze fixed on hers, sizing her up as they challenged one another.

"I know that I have not made the best impression when it comes to you, Your Grace. My little joke with the fish eggs was childish, but when it comes to the happiness of my sister and mother, I do not jest. They are all that I have in this world." Her bright green eyes filled with tears as she sighed, her shoulders slumping forward.

"Let's say that I decide to bring your sister back, how do you think she would deal with the onslaught of scorn and ridicule that will undoubtedly be flung in her direction?"

Cocking her head to the side, Prudence glared at him. "Did her reaction at the ball not mean anything to you, Your Grace? Marina is a strong woman, if you can't see that, then perhaps you do not deserve her. Heaven alone knows why she loves you, but she does."

Her words cut deep into his chest, making his heart clench painfully.

Is she right?

Did Marina actually love him while he was far too stubborn to see that he was hurting her? Even if he was trying to protect her, he was failing miserably by the sounds of it.

"If that is not enough to convince you tell help me, you should know that the Baron of Wallace has been harassing us." She said more defiantly, pulling herself up a few inches.

"How has he been harassing you?" Aaron sat up straight and took more notice. The situation with the baron had been plaguing his mind ever since his conversation with Adam. If the man would go to such devious lengths to get revenge, then there was no telling what he would do in the future.

"He has been coming to our house, demanding money and threatening us with scandal if we do not give it to him. Just this morning, he showed up at our house screaming and shouting about how we owe him for where we are. Believe me when I say that he will not stop at anything. Even if it means hurting us or causing a scandal." Her eyes shimmered slightly with tears, hinting at the fact that she was scared despite her behavior.

What would the baron do if he did not get his way? Would he resort to harassing them into submission, or something worse?

"And has your mother given him any money?" Aaron asked, intrigued by the turn of events.

Prudence shook her head. "No, we have turned him away, but he will not put up with that for very long. This morning, he said that we would pay with our lives if we kept on refusing him. He… he had a gun with him." Her eyes were concerned despite the brave front that she was showing him.

With their lives?

Her words made him sit up a little straighter as he wondered if the man had been drinking. Even if he had not been in his right mind, it did not sit well with Aaron that he was willing to make such threats.

"I see," Aaron answered, feeling as if he understood the feisty young girl and her need to protect her family. She had been pushed to his door out of fear more than anything else.

"Please, Your Grace, I am asking you to help us. You have done so much for my family already, but only you can help us. Marina needs you." Her voice was pleading as she wrung her hands in front of her.

The door to the study suddenly opened, revealing Adam as they both looked up.

Aaron instantly noticed how the girl began to blush, acting more shyly as she rolled back and forth on the heels of her shoes.

"And what do we have here? You did not tell me that we were expecting such a lovely young guest." Adam winked at the girl, making a wave of heat fill her cheeks.

Unrequited love.

Aaron watched the interaction with interest as Prudence suddenly seemed to have swallowed her words. He was not certain how it had come about, but he was certain that Prudence had been referring to Adam.

"Miss Prudence has come to inform us that the Baron of Wallace has been pestering them for money. He has made a very concerning threat." Aaron decided to spare the girl any more embarrassment as it seemed as if she wished to sidle toward the door.

"Is that so?" Adam's demeanor instantly dropped as he looked from Prudence to his brother.

"That, and my sister is in love with the duke," she mumbled under her breath before shifting her gaze away from Adam.

Looking at Aaron, Adam nodded with a look of understanding. "Well, we can't leave those matters as they are. We will need to act at once, especially if Her Grace is in love with you." He forced asmile and winked at Prudence who seemed to have lost all of her previous gumption.

Love can make fools of us all.

Aaron took pity on the young girl and decided to put her out of her misery before she melted onto his carpet. "Prudence, would you mind finding the housekeeper, and asking her to bring us some tea? I think there is a lot for the three of us to discuss."

Nodding eagerly, with obvious pleasure at being included, Prudence skipped from the room in search of tea, pausing for a second in the doorway. "I will hold the fish eggs this time." She met Aaron's gaze with a pleasant smile for the very time and then proceeded to skip down the hall.

"Fish eggs?" Adam asked while keeping his gaze on her.

"It is better not to ask," Aaron grumbled.

Adam watched her leave with a smirk before turning back to his brother.

"The girl seems to think that she is in love with you." Aaron watched his brother closely, wondering how it had all come about.

"She will soon learn that seeing me as a hero is far from the truth. She is still young; she will soon grow out of her infatuation. They all do," Adam grumbled and shook his head.

"Is that why you jilted Marina? Was there another woman who outgrew her infatuation?" Aaron asked the question before he could stop himself. The new-found relationship between him and Adam was still new and he was not quite sure what that entailed.

Adam's face darkened slightly as he licked over his lips. "That is beside the point. What we need to focus on now is the Baron of Wallace. We need to confront him and put an end to all of his shenanigans."

"You are right. I did not peg the man as someone who would resort to violence with women, but if Miss Prudence is to be believed we, must act quickly. Apparently, he showed up at their house with a gun this morning." Aaron pushed his questions aside, thinking of how they would go about confronting the man without making life more difficult for Marina and her family.

Adam raised his eyebrows at the new information but did not venture an opinion. "I think I may have the perfect opportunity for us to confront the old boy."

"Go on," Aaron glanced at the open door, ensuring their privacy before continuing.

"It just so happens that there is a hunt to be held in two days. I declined the offer, but I think it would be a good opportunity. Among the names mentioned to me, was that of the Baron of Wallace. If he wants to play with guns, then perhaps we can show him his folly." He held Aaron's gaze with a knowing look.

Nodding his understanding, Aaron sat back in his chair. "Is there enough time to accept the invitation? Will they not have finalized their numbers for the party by now?" He went over all the possible hurdles that could face them. Joining a hunting party at the last moment after declining the invitation would certainly seem suspicious unless they knew the right people.

"The lord hosting the little trip is a good friend of mine from our days in the Navy. He owes me a few favors and will not mind me asking." Adam seemed confident.

"It is settled then. We will join the hunt and confront Baron Wallace. How he will react I cannot say, but something needs to be done."