The image of the Spinsters with a capital S gathering in a gentleman’s club and fitting right in, however, was something he was not going to forget for some time. He couldn’t wait to tell Charlotte.
He frowned at the habitual thought. It was things like this impulse that he needed to adjust, or he would never find a life away from her. He’d be the fool adjusting the lace on her bonnet on her wedding day, watching her walk down the aisle of the church to marry some classically handsome prat she thought good enough to give up her independence for. He’d be godfather to at least one of her children, and always be invited to her family events, which would eventually irritate her husband and cause some deeply seated resentment and thinly veiled threats.
Good heavens, that was where his life was headed. He could see it clearly before him, and it was pathetic. Completely and utterly pathetic.
He returned his attention to his drink, wondering if he should down the whole thing at once, or behave like the gentleman he was supposed to be in this club.
“What, may I ask, did your drink do to deserve such a scowl?”
Michael looked up at the sound of the almost familiar voice, his mind scrambling to place it. Nothing could have surprised him more than to see Hugh Sterling standing there, looking far more kempt than Michael had seen him in years. He was thinner, yet more robust, his clothing fine without any sense of opulence, and his smile was hesitant.
Had he not known it was Hugh Sterling, he would not have recognized him as Hugh Sterling. He’d heard about the change in him but had yet to see it.
Now he had.
Michael managed to smile back. “It failed to give me adequate answers.”
Hugh winced playfully. “I have yet to find a drink that appropriately answers anything, and I’ve tried my share of them.” He gestured to the seat opposite Michael. “May I?”
“Please,” Michael replied with a nod.
It was pleasantly disconcerting, if such a thing existed, to have a changed Hugh Sterling at the table. They had never been friends, though they had certainly been acquainted, but Michael had certainly heard enough from Charlotte on the subject of Hugh. He knew every perceived sin the man had committed against the Spinsters, against his family, and against any member of Society.
He also knew that Elinor had softened enough towards the man to actually fall in love with him. Given where the girl had come from in her opinions of him, that had been no small thing, and well worth considering when the subject of Hugh came up. As far as Michael was aware, Society as a whole had yet to pass judgment on the change, or even on the couple, as they still kept to themselves more often than not.
Even seeing Hugh here in the club was something unexpected, though Michael could very well say the same for himself. Perhaps there was some significance in that for them both.
“I haven’t seen you in here for some time,” Hugh remarked as he leaned back in his chair, surveying Michael with some interest.
Michael lifted a corner of his mouth. “I was just thinking the same of you.”
Hugh shrugged with a nonchalance that bore no superiority. “I haven’t any friends remaining with my change of perspective. You?”
“I haven’t any friends that are not Charlotte Wright.” Michael offered a bland smile as an accompaniment to his words.
“Ah.”
The simple word held an entire existence in its syllable.
It conveyed that Hugh understood the weight of the statement. That he saw the reason behind its utterance. That he saw Michael in his well-established role and could infer the necessary details without further explanation. Perhaps he believed that either Michael was more pathetic than he’d originally thought, or Elinor Sterling had confided a certain announcement to her husband.
Perhaps both.
Yet Hugh said nothing further, which bore witness to his increase in wisdom. The version of Hugh Sterling that Michael had previously known would have begun to berate Charlotte, if not Michael’s behavior, in an attempt to form some show of solidarity. It would have failed miserably, but he had never been one to keep his opinion from the ears of others.
Now he was the opposite.
Oddly enough, Michael found himself actually wanting to discuss Charlotte and his present situation. He might not have considered Hugh a potential candidate for a listening ear originally, but opportunity made for strange adjustments.
“Your wife told you,” Michael stated without inflection.
Hugh tilted his head ever so slightly. “Told me what?”
He rolled his eyes. “Marvelous. Now you both have learned the value of reserve?”
That earned him a rueful smile. “It’s a wonder, is it not? Marriage has matured both of us.”
“I doubt marriage is the reason for it,” Michael muttered. He took a quick sip of his beverage. “Has Elinor told you what Charlotte has decided?”
“Oh, that?” Hugh’s smile remained, and he nodded once. “Yes. Took me by surprise, but Charlotte usually does.”
Michael snorted in derision, opting to keep further remarks to himself.
“It must have been quite a shock for you.”
Michael’s nod was slow, and it was also a blessed relief. “Yes. She’d never said anything about actively pursuing marriage, though it was always possible, and after all this time…”
Hugh grunted softly. “Is she in earnest? She loves a laugh, you know.”
“Oh, she’s in earnest,” Michael assured him, “and when Charlotte sets her mind to something, she’ll make it come to pass. I have no doubt she’ll be wed by Michaelmas.”
Saying the words aloud made the whole fearful scenario real, and Michael swallowed with some difficulty.
Charlotte being wed.
He’d had nightmares about this, but he’d always been able to comfort himself that the dreams had not been real. There was no comfort now.
“And this is a problem for you.” Hugh offered a sympathetic look. “I take it you have feelings for her.”
Michael laughed limply. “Feelings would describe it well. I was the first to propose to Charlotte Wright, Sterling.”
Hugh’s expression did
