Chapter Twenty-Four

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

T here was one person Gemma could talk to. One person who would keep her secret, not judge her, and never attempt to talk her out of it. Which was why Cecily Grundy was the only person Gemma had told about her desire for a divorce.

It was impossible not to love Cecily. She was a sweet girl with the very best intentions and love in her heart for everyone. She was also easy to talk to. And over the last year, since Grovemont had been gone, Gemma had spoken to her friend at great length about her marriage. With Cecily, Gemma knew her secrets would go no further. Cecily was the only person who truly understood how unhappy Gemma had been since the moment she’d married Grovemont. Oh, Mrs. Howard and Mr. Warwick suspected, but Gemma had never dared share her unhappiness with the two trusted servants. They were Grovemont’s servants, after all. They owed him their loyalty.

But Cecily was Gemma’s friend. The two young women had forged a bond during their first Season. Gemma had become the champion of the wallflowers against awful Lady Mary. United against a common enemy, Gemma and Cecily had grown especially close. Cecily came from a genteel family who’d lost its fortune, which meant she was a decided wallflower.

But then darling Griffin had stepped in and danced with Cecily at one of the balls, and the girl’s dance card had remained quite full ever after. She’d even received a handful of proposals. Unfortunately, her Mama had refused them all due to the fact that Cecily’s older sisters weren’t married. It was a problem Gemma and Cecily had spent many hours discussing over scones and tea.

Today’s problem called for more scones and more tea.

“And then I told him he had two choices,” Gemma reported as she lifted her cup to her mouth in Cecily’s mother’s drawing room. Thankfully, Cecily’s two obnoxious older sisters and her overbearing mother were at the milliner’s for the afternoon. Cecily had feigned a megrim to skip the outing.

“You didn’t!” Cecily exclaimed.

“I did.” Gemma lowered her voice. “I told him he could claim the marriage was never consummated.”

“Oh, but that’s not true!” Cecily interjected, her bright-blue eyes going wide and her round cheeks turning red.

“No, it’s not true, and he made that same point,” Gemma continued, “but I said he could claim it was true.”

“What was the other choice you offered him?” Cecily asked.

“I will admit to crimcon.”

“Crimcon!” Poor Cecily went pale as milk.

“Yes,” Gemma replied, nodding and smiling.

Cecily drew her hand away from her mouth. “But that would mean you… you…”

“Had lain with another man,” Gemma finished for her in a loud whisper.

The bright pink in Cecily’s cheeks deepened.

“I’m sorry if I’m upsetting you, dear,” Gemma said, suddenly quite aware that she was speaking of things she probably shouldn’t in front of an unmarried lady. But neither of them was uneducated. Gemma had shared all she knew with Cecily. “Ignorance is dangerous,” Meredith always said.

Cecily plucked another scone from the silver tray in front of them. “No. It’s quite all right. I’m only sorry you’re being forced to make such a drastic choice.”

“It’s my own fault,” Gemma replied with a sigh. “If I had just had the patience to wait for Grovemont to come out of the study at Griffin’s wedding, I wouldn’t be in this predicament.”

“And he wouldn’t either,” Cecily pointed out with a sigh of her own.

Gemma pursed her lips. Hmm. Cecily was right. Grovemont wasn’t to blame either. Not for the marriage, at least. He was, however, decidedly to blame for being an ass. But if Gemma hadn’t made such a mistake in the first place, they wouldn’t be married, and she wouldn’t even know how big of an ass he was. Oh, dear. Was that guilt tugging at her conscience?

“Do you think you should ask him if there is any other way?” Cecily bit her lip.

Gemma blinked at her friend. “Any other way to what? Justify a divorce?”

“No. To live together. Perhaps declare a truce?”

“A truce?” Gemma blinked again. “It’s not a war. At least it shouldn’t be. I simply don’t want to be his wife.”

Cecily pulled the tip off one end of the scone. “Perhaps you could go to the country. I would miss you terribly though.” She frowned.

“I do plan to go to the country,” Gemma admitted. “But only until the scandal dies down.”

Cecily popped the bite of scone into her mouth and chewed and swallowed before adding, “You could divide the house, stay out of each other’s pockets.”

Gemma scowled. “Divide the house? How would that work?”

Cecily waved her hand in the air. “Oh, my mother and father do it. They’re quite adept at the practice. Though I doubt they have ever formally spoken about it. Upstairs, Mama stays to her rooms and ours, and Father stays in his. Downstairs, Mama occupies the breakfast room and the drawing room, and Father remains in his study. It’s quite efficient.”

Gemma’s scowl deepened. She’d never heard of such a thing. “They never speak?”

Cecily shrugged. “Oh, we have supper together, and I’m certain I’ve heard them exchange words at the dinner table upon occasion. But otherwise, no. I can’t say I see them speak.”

Gemma shook her head. That was not how she understood marriage to be. It was not the way Griffin and Meredith behaved with each other. They both talked and laughed all day in each other’s company. Or they sat in the same room reading and sipping tea, content to be quiet together. It was lovely. And it was precisely how Gemma wanted her own marriage to be. Only she’d ended up stuck with Grovemont, who preferred a newspaper in his face.

“Even if we divided the house, the second half would still be occupied by an ass,” Gemma finally explained. “No. I definitely want to divorce.”

Cecily looked a bit sad but nodded. “If you think that’s best, Gemma. I support your decision wholeheartedly. But if you are divorced, Mama won’t allow me to speak with you, you know?”

“I know.” Gemma frowned. She knew how serious divorce was. Only a handful had ever been granted. And the accompanying scandals were legendary. “We’ll still be able to write though, won’t we?”

Cecily expelled her breath. “Before you decide for certain, you may want to speak with someone who knows about scandal.”

Gemma cocked her head to the side. “An expert in scandal?”

“Yes,” Cecily replied, nodding sagely. “You should write to Lady Clare Handleton.”