Another ache pierced through his limb, so he viciously rubbed it, trying to stir warmth inside to ease the pain. Why his father had done this to him, Terrick didn’t know. This was a cruel joke, indeed. Unfortunately, his controlling father had always made Terrick follow the rules.
He lifted from his chair and hobbled to the fireplace. Using the poker, he stirred the embers before throwing another log on the fire. As he trudged back to the chair, he grabbed a blanket laying across the end of his bed. Returning to his cushioned chair, he stuffed the wool material around his legs.
Terrick took the end of the telescope and peered through it toward the location he’d been watching for two days straight. Bella Walsh’s estate wasn’t as lovely as he remembered. Before her mother died, the yard had been tended, the flower garden was always in bloom, and the trees and bushes were manicured to perfection. Slowly over the years, Bella’s father’s health declined, taking along with it the beauty of his lands.
Terrick had watched from afar for these past seven years, wanting to do something to help, but he couldn’t. He’d promised his controlling father, and Mrs. Walsh, that he’d not pursue Bella for seven years... seven very long years without being in her life. But seven years would come to an end next week, and Terrick couldn’t wait to show himself again.
Well, he wasn’t actually himself anymore. Instead, he’d have to show Bella the beast of a man his accident had shaped him into. Hopefully, she’d see beyond the man behind this scarred face and crippled body. He wasn’t too excited about having her look at him in such a state, but nevertheless, it needed to be done. To finally complete his life, Terrick must bring back Bella’s memories.
He looked forward to this challenge. Terrick had been in love with her for all that time. She had been only sixteen when they fell in love, but being five years older, Terrick knew he must give her time to mature and live life. His father had wanted Terrick to sow his wild oats and build up the Wentworth Empire. Being the obedient son, Terrick did as his father wished. Even Bella’s mother had asked him to wait until she was mature enough to wed.
Frowning, Terrick sank back in his chair. Would Bella remember him at all? Would she remember how she had loved him, too?
Frustrated of sitting in the chair, he stood and limped to the window. Rain pelted the ground as the wind whipped through the trees. The furious weather was a lot like his mood today – anxious and damp.
He’d anticipated this day for a while, and now that it was finally here, he couldn’t do a blasted thing about it. Growling, he turned and paced the room, trying not to wince when a sharp pain pierced through his leg.
As he passed a mirror, he caught his reflection and stopped. Bunching his hands into fists, he cursed under his breath. His accident had made him less than a man, and yet, his father still expected Terrick to win Bella’s favor. How could that happen when it was difficult for him to see his own reflection? Women screamed and ran away when they looked at him. How could he get Bella to voluntarily talk to him or come to his home for a visit?
Pushing his fingers through his mop of wavy black hair, he glared at his reflection. He resembled the man he’d been before the carriage accident, but only his hair and gray eyes were the same. The other features on his face had been distorted into something ugly. Scars marred his face badly, and one large scar slashed across his bottom lip.
He had always been robust, but now his shoulders seemed bulkier, which of course, made him look deformed. Even his fingers appeared gnarled as though they belonged to some kind of animal. And to top off his deformities, he had this pain in his right leg, which caused him to limp.
Thanks for nothing, Father! Terrick’s carriage accident had been his father’s fault. His old man had taken the good carriage into town and left Terrick, the one that was in the process of being repaired. Terrick had a meeting at the railroad he co-owned, and during the journey, the wheel spun off, rolling the carriage down a ravine.
A knock came upon the door, and he swung his gaze in that direction. “Enter.”
The door squeaked open, and his younger sister, Anastasia, stepped inside, holding a tray of cakes, a teapot, and a cup. “It’s time for tea,” she said, smiling at him.
“Ana,” he said sweetly, “you don’t have to keep doing this, you know.”
She nodded and moved closer. “I do, actually. Since Father and I returned to the estate, I’ve been lonely. I think all of my childhood friends have forgotten about me.”
“Nonsense. How could they forget a sweet girl like you?”
Anastasia set the tray on the nearest table and began pouring. “I’ve been into town a few times, but nobody talks to me. They look as if they don’t know who I am.”
His heart tugged with sympathy. “I blame our father.”
The seventeen-year-old with long, curly black hair looked at him with her big, gray watery eyes. “Terrick, you need to stop blaming Father for everything.”
He sighed heavily. “Perhaps in time, but for now, it helps me during my sulking moments.”
She walked to him and placed her hand on his shoulder. “You need to get past this.”
“I know, but... I don’t know how.”
“Maybe, if you focus your efforts on helping someone else, you will forget about your infirmities.”
He studied her lovely
