Bella adjusted her skirt, finishing wiping off a speck of dust she’d overlooked. “My brother and some hunters searched, and yet, the panther was not found.”
“Rest assured,” he reached over and patted her arm, “we’ll find the animal.”
The feeling of déjà vu came over her again, and this time, she couldn’t shake it off. “Mr. Wentworth? From your recollection, has the panther came to this town before?”
The older man remained silent for a few moments as he stared at her. Bella hoped he could recall a time the animal had been here. She didn’t think she was losing her mind like her father was.
“During the months that we have lived here, I haven’t heard of any spottings. However, we don’t live here all year long, so perhaps the wild animal has come before.”
Bella received the distinct feeling that he wasn’t completely honest with her. There was something in his eyes that told her he was hiding the truth.
Inwardly, she seethed. She dug her fingers into the material of her shawl and bunched her hands. Why had people been treating her like a child? She was nearly twenty-three, and yet, even her brother treated her as though she was still young.
“Well, then,” she sighed deeply, “I suppose I’ll have to locate my brother and ask him.”
Mr. Wentworth nodded. “I’m sure he’ll know more about it.”
She took steady breaths, trying to calm her ire. Andrew had better know, and he’d better give her some answers.
THE COOLER WEATHER today brought more aches to Terrick’s leg, and the more he walked on it, the more it hurt. But he also knew that not exercising his leg would make it stiffen up and more difficult to use. At least he had a leg. After the accident, the town’s physician wanted to amputate. Terrick wouldn’t let the so-called professional. Terrick was warned that keeping his leg, he’d be in pain for the rest of his life. He hadn’t cared. He would be able to do more with a limb than without one.
He stayed in the library this morning, mainly to keep the heat in the room since that helped his leg, but he also wanted to read. Knowing that Bella had returned to the estate to help his sister eased Terrick’s mind considerably. After his confession last night, he worried it might have scared Bella off.
Only dressed in a shirt, trousers, and boots, the room was too warm to wear a vest or suit jacket. And it was too warm to wear the scarf over his face. He only did that when other people were around, anyway.
Leaning heavily on his cane, he slowly paced the floor in the library, as he tried to read a book. Most of the time, Terrick was able to concentrate, but once the plot started boring him, his mind wandered. A wandering mind only led to one thing. Bella.
And regrets.
He stopped at the hearth and stared into the fire. He’d blamed his father for a lot of things, but Terrick blamed himself for actually following his father’s advice to separate from Bella for seven years. If it weren’t for Lucinda’s plea for her daughter to enjoy her single life, Terrick probably wouldn’t have given in. Now he wondered if the woman had done the right thing for her daughter. It hadn’t been just his life their parents ruined. It was Bella’s as well. At least she had the luxury of not remembering, since nearly every day for seven years, his broken heart had yearned for Bella.
“Excuse me for interrupting.”
Bella’s sweet voice jerked him out of his thoughts, and he spun to look at her. His heart leaped with excitement, finally being able to see her beautiful face today. But, when he noticed her gaze studying his whole face, his chest tightened.
Spinning around, he hid his scars from her. “I’m... not covered.”
“Terrick?” Her voice was gentle and steady. “Your scars don’t scare me.”
Slowly, his heart began to melt, but he didn’t dare let his guard down. If she saw his face clearly, she would cringe. He doubted she saw him completely.
“Please, Bella. I’m not comfortable with people looking at me.”
He listened for her footsteps to leave the room, but nothing happened. As the seconds ticked by, he finally heard her heeled boots clicking on the wooden floor... but they were coming toward him, not away. Soon, he felt the warmth of her hand touching his arm.
“Terrick, please. If we once loved each other, I would look past your scars to your heart.”
“I didn’t look this way when we were falling in love.” His breathing turned ragged, but it was because of her genuine sweetness, reminding him of why he’d fallen in love with her all those years ago.
“I fear that since you don’t remember me, you won’t be able to look to my heart.”
Her hand stroked his arm slowly. “I had been watching you stare into the fire for a few minutes before I made my presence known.”
He stiffened and held his breath.
“Terrick, your face isn’t as bad as you think it is.”
As much as he didn’t want to frighten her, he did want to look into her eyes to see if she was telling him the truth. The Bella he remembered had never lied to him. He prayed that woman was still inside her, fighting to break through.
He inhaled deeply and then slowly released it as he turned to face her. His heartbeat pounded against his ribs, and he wondered if she could hear it. As he peered into her eyes, her gaze moved over his face again. They were closer, which meant she could see more.
Terrick waited for her to cringe or to show signs of withdrawal, but so far, she was calm. It was all he could do to restrain himself from taking her in his arms and holding her. A different rhythm pumped in his
