The Lady Who Saw Too Much. Thomasine Rappold
she said. “I married into it, and soon you shall too. Albeit under quite different circumstances,” she muttered, as though unable to help herself. “Since the invitations for the garden party you and Alice planned have already gone out, we will announce the engagement then.”
The woman had managed to spin a proper twist on what might have been the scandal of the season. Gia couldn’t help being impressed.
“The wedding will take place one week from Sunday,” Clara said.
Gia’s heart lurched. “So soon?”
“Not soon enough, if you ask me, but more talk with ensue if my nephew were to marry before announcing an official engagement.” She released a quick sigh. “But at least it’s not May.”
Gia hadn’t considered a woman like Clara to be so superstitious. Marry in May and rue the day. The old adage seemed more than appropriate to this particular occasion.
“The fourteenth of July will suffice.” Clara fixed a stern gaze on Gia. “The two of you fell madly in love during the weeks since you arrived. That’s to be the story of the marriage.”
Gia said nothing. What could she say?
“The wedding ceremony will take place here, at the house, followed by a simple cake reception.”
Clara rambled on about details of the wedding, but Gia focused instead on more important issues. She had to stop Landen’s death from happening. Putting this feat to the forefront, she pushed thoughts of marriage from her head and tried to concentrate on the details of the vision and what might lead to it happening.
Unlike anything she’d ever felt during previous visions, the pervading sense of malice that had gripped her at the sight of Landen’s lifeless body in the water led her to suspect foul play. Was there someone out there who’d want to hurt him? He hadn’t amassed a fortune by being reckless or stupid, but perhaps he’d entered into some business dealings that had gone bad. This seemed the most likely direction in which to follow.
There were so many lakes in the area. Gia was no expert in the field of limnology, but she knew enough to deduce there’d be several creeks flowing in and out of them. Gia would scope out all of them in search of the scene of her vision. She would walk until her feet bled, but she would find the creek in which she’d seen Landen floating. What she’d gain from locating the site of the vision, she didn’t know, but she had nothing else to go on. Perhaps her presence at the site might prompt another vision that would lead to a clue.
“You haven’t touched your breakfast,” Clara said, snapping Gia back to attention.
“I’m not very hungry.” That was an understatement. The physical effect of her predicament suddenly became such that the mere smell wafting up from her plate made her queasy.
“Eat,” Clara said. “You must keep up your strength, Gianna. There is much to be done over the next week, and you’ll need it.”
The reminder did little to help. But Clara was right. With a nod, Gia picked up her fork. She forced down a mouthful of poached eggs, and her stomach roiled in protest. Fearing she might retch, she reached for her coffee cup and took a deep sip. The warm brew did little to settle her tremulous nerves. She felt Clara watching but paid her no heed. Gia had all she could handle at present; she couldn’t worry about Clara’s scrutiny. Gia pushed away the breakfast plate as the thought of eating another bite made her feel ill.
Almost as ill as marrying a man who despised her.
* * * *
Upon entering the house, Landen had been summoned to the parlor where Aunt Clara had been waiting for his return from Troy. He was hungry and tired as hell. The last thing he felt up to was a conversation with Aunt Clara.
“You have to speak with Gianna, Denny,” Aunt Clara said. “The girl isn’t well.”
He shrugged off his coat, then sank to a chair. “That makes two of us,” he muttered, running a hand through his hair.
She frowned. “I am serious. She’s barely eaten in three days. And from the look of her, she hasn’t slept either. She puts up a brave front, but I can see plainly her fear.”
“And what am I to do about that?”
“She is frightened of you.”
Good, he thought as he stretched out his legs. The little liar had planned this from the start. He hadn’t set eyes on her since that day in the parlor when she’d sprung her trap, and he’d had three long days to think. To ponder how he’d make her pay for what she’d done to him.
He would be a terrible husband to her. He’d carouse and cheat. Perhaps he’d start back up with Charlotte. That is, if she’d have him. Charlotte had been upset when he’d broken it off with her, but she’d be furious when she found out Landen was marrying another woman.
Although he’d made clear to Charlotte at the start of their affair he had no inclination to marry, he knew she’d hoped to change his mind. Her mother’s incessant pushing had only made matters worse. Charlotte began appearing wherever Landen happened to be, even going so far as to take a suite at the Misty Lake Hotel for the summer, hoping he might propose. Instead, he’d broken it off. And now he was marrying Gia.
He cursed under his breath. For years, he’d lived his life as he’d dictated, as master of his own fate, only to be led to the altar by a scheming chit he barely knew. Oh, yes, he would make Gia suffer. He would avoid her by day, and by night he would make love to her until she begged for mercy.
The pleasure he derived from the thought of this particular form of retaliation made him angry. Despite his loathing for Gia, he remained physically attracted to her. His weakness at harboring any feelings other than hatred toward his future bride disgusted him almost as much as what she’d done.
“She’s an orphan, you know,” Clara said.
“If that information is intended to soften my opinion of her—”
“For goodness’ sake, Denny, stop acting the martyr.”
“Your immense enjoyment of the situation makes that difficult,” he ground out.
With a huff, she waved off his observation and pressed on. “She’s your fiancée now. You must reassure her that you’ve accepted the marriage and will treat her kindly.”
“I’ll do no such thing.”
Clara drummed her fingers on the arm of her chair. “Then we may be forced to postpone the wedding until she adjusts to the situation. In the meantime, we’ll announce the engagement and hope that’s sufficient to quiet the talk.”
Landen considered this for all of a moment. He refused to accommodate Gia in any way. If he had to adjust to the situation, so should she. “No. We marry as planned.”
Clara nodded triumphantly. “So, you’ll speak with her, then?”
He frowned. It was bad enough Gia had tricked him into marriage, now he had to make her feel better about it? Ridiculous. “She’ll come around without my assistance.”
“No, Landen. She will not.” Aunt Clara leaned forward. “We are announcing the engagement at the reception on Saturday. How will it reflect on you if your future bride appeared looking despondent? Have you given thought to that?”
He hadn’t.
His aunt’s targeted strike hit with expert precision. His mother’s erratic moods and chronic bouts of melancholia had affected them all. His chest clenched at the painful reminder of his childhood with a mother who had turned him and his father inside out.
“Come, now, you are a charming man,” Aunt Clara said. “Use that charm on your fiancée. If not for her sake, then for your own.” She patted his knee. “For your family.”
* * * *
Gia stared out the window at the carriage parked in the drive. Landen was home.