He blew out a heavy breath, as if she was being a nuisance. “From your dour expression, it’s clear you’re about to launch into a diatribe about his faults. You don’t seem to realize that marriages are a mystery. A wife can live with a husband for decades, and he’ll still be a stranger to her. If you’re feeling anxious, it’s only natural. Every bride suffers qualms before her big day.”
“They’re not mere qualms,” she said with uncharacteristic vehemence, “and I would appreciate it if you would actually listen to me for once.”
“I constantly listen to you, Caroline, but you’re young and you’re a female. You’re not always the best judge of a situation.”
“Don’t patronize me. I’m not stupid, and I’m not a fool. I most especially am not blind or deaf.”
“No, you are not blind or deaf, so what precisely are you so eager to confide? I’m sure, whatever your comment, I’m already aware of the problem.”
“Gregory is here so rarely that we just catch glimpses of his bad habits. Yet each occasion he’s back, they’ve grown more entrenched.”
“I guess that’s an accurate assessment.”
“He’s a drunkard.”
“That accusation is a little harsh. Every man drinks.” He lifted his glass and snidely toasted her with it. “It’s an enjoyable hobby.”
“He gambles to excess.”
“Again, Caroline, all gentlemen gamble.”
“It’s more than that, Uncle Samson. He’s holding parties in a rear parlor, with his London friends, after you and I go to bed. He can’t bear for a night to pass where he’s not wagering. He’s that addicted.”
“I’ll speak to him about it.”
“He’s heavily in debt, to an amount that could imperil our ownership of Grey’s Corner. He could fritter it away with a roll of the dice or a fall of the cards! Who could stop him?”
Samson scoffed. “He wouldn’t jeopardize the property. He can be frivolous, but he’s never reckless. I must inquire as to where you heard this rumor about his debts. I hate to think you’re gossiping about our private family business.”
“It doesn’t matter where I heard it,” she said.
“It matters to me. Who was it? Who would spread such a foul lie?”
“It was Mr. Ralston. Gregory is a member at his club. I assume he would have a valid idea of how much money Gregory has lost—since it sounds as if he’s lost most of it to Mr. Ralston.”
“First off, you shouldn’t be so cordial with Mr. Ralston. I have it on good authority that he was kicked out of the navy for being a thief.”
“He was not.”
“Second of all, if he’s told you this sort of privileged information, you’re spending entirely too much time with him. He’s a handsome, dashing scoundrel, and you’ve been very sheltered in your life, Caroline. You shouldn’t be socializing with a fiend of his status and low repute.”
She bristled with annoyance. “Don’t change the subject by placing the blame on Mr. Ralston. We’re discussing Gregory and his conduct. Mr. Ralston is an innocent bystander.”
“There’s nothing innocent about him, and if you imagine there is, you are greatly deluded.” Her uncle snickered in a nasty way. “Will that be all? Have we covered your list of grievances?”
“I haven’t raised the worst one.”
“What is it? What could possibly be worse than his being a drunkard and gambler?”
She braced herself, recognizing—once she uttered the words aloud—she would be walking down a new path. “He has a mistress to whom he is incredibly devoted.”
He froze, then frowned. “He does not.”
“It’s Mrs. Starling. Lucretia Starling? She’s a guest. Apparently, he’s so attached to her that he couldn’t leave her home for a week. He brought her to his wedding, and at every activity I have arranged as hostess, she has stood by his side while I ran about managing the servants as if I were a servant too.”
“Why would you believe such a shocking tale?”
“I saw them kissing, right out on the verandah in broad daylight. I saw them with my own two eyes.”
“Are you certain you’re not mistaken about what you observed? I mean, the sun may have been—”
She slapped a palm on the desktop to cut him off. “They are a dedicated couple! I asked Mr. Ralston about them, and he apprises me that they’ve been together for years. They live together openly in town!”
“They cohabitate?” He smirked dismissively. “That can’t be true. It would be a grave sin, as well as a public insult to you and me.”
“Mr. Ralston offered to speak directly to you about them, but I insisted I could do it myself.”
“You’re being very clear, very blunt, but it’s difficult for me to accept these wild allegations.”
“She is his wife in all but name, which definitely has me curious as to why he’s marrying me instead of her. If she’s pretending to be his wife, what am I supposed to be?”
A lethal silence descended as they stared, their minds whirring. Samson rose and went to the sideboard to fill his glass with more brandy, then he returned and sat down. He sipped it slowly, studying her over the rim.
Eventually, he said, “I have to explain a delicate issue for you, and after you hear what it is, you must promise you won’t fly off the handle.”
“I can’t promise you that. My reaction will depend on what you are about to tell me.”
“You won’t like it, but I’m going to share it with you anyway.”
“Fine. What is it?”
“Men have affairs, Caroline. They have mistresses and sire bastards. They revel in disgusting amusements that offend the conscience of decent people like you and me.”
“Is that your answer? Men have affairs?”
“Gregory has resided in town for twelve years. He has friends and hobbies you and I would never countenance. But you have to remember this: Whatever his relationship with Mrs. Starling—and I’m not admitting there is one—their liaison has nothing to do with you. If
