Much Ado About You

Confused, I thought of the small farmhouse. “Your home . . .”

He flinched. “Evie . . . the farmhouse once belonged to the estate manager. That’s Bobby now and he didn’t want it. So I took it over. My parents’ home is significantly larger. It’s on the land where we do our arable farming. And our farm is larger than I let on. We’re quite a substantial commercial farm with many employees.”

Realization dawned. That’s why he didn’t take me to that part of the estate.

“Is there anything else I should know?” I asked, my bitterness clear.

“The maintenance on the holiday homes . . . it’s a much larger company than I let on. We cover all of Northumberland. Thousands of holiday home owners pay us to maintain their properties, and the revenue for that accounts for a good portion of our income. Moreover, we own properties we let out, as well.”

All the business conversations he’d had on the phone, the ones he disappeared downstairs to take, came back to me. I’d thought he was being considerate. He wasn’t. He just didn’t want me to guess there was more to his business than I’d thought.

Then there was the guy whom Roane had pulled us away from at the Alnwick Garden. Not because he was chatty, no. It was probably because he wasn’t a villager in on the deception, and Roane was afraid he’d mention something about the truth.

Not to mention those times when permits and visas got pushed through quicker than I’d expected. Possibly because Roane had political connections?

And then Erin today.

What a catch. I mean, of course, you are too, but he is easy on the eyes and you’ll never want for anything.

I stared down at the blinding diamond engagement ring.

“You’ve got money,” I surmised.

Roane crossed the room toward me, and I tensed. “Evie.” He reached out to me but halted at my warning glare. “Evie, I’m still the same man.”

A sob burst forth before I could stop it, unexpected and forceful, and I stumbled away from his attempts to comfort me. Once I could speak, I stared at him through blurry vision. “Don’t you get it? It’s not what you lied about, Roane . . . it’s that you lied at all. You lied, not omitted, lied. And you didn’t trust me! You think I would have cared about your age or that you had money based on some reckless drunken comment I made about my past relationships? Do you think because I had a couple of bad experiences dating younger men and because of Chace, I would have held that against you once I got to know you? Do you know me at all?

“Because all this time I thought I knew you better than I know anyone . . . and a whole village was laughing at me because I got engaged to a man I didn’t even know!”

Anger darkened his expression as he gripped my biceps, bending his head to mine. “You do know me,” he promised. “You know what counts.”

I shook my head. “You’re not the same man.” My heart broke all over again, the pain too much as I sobbed. I didn’t even care that I accepted his comfort as he wrapped his arms around me and begged me to forgive him.

But it was so clear to me now that I’d been living in a fucking fantasy. I’d done with Roane what I’d done with Aaron. I was so desperate to find love that I’d rushed in, given myself over to a man I didn’t know at all. Because if he’d lied about this . . . what else had he lied about?

My tears soaked Roane’s shirt as I bawled like a baby.

I bawled for a future I’d been so excited about.

I cried for a life that would never be mine now.

Pushing away from him, my jaw, my cheeks, everything aching with grief, I stared at the man who had caused it. Hating him for it. “I can never look at you the same way. I . . . can never trust you again.”

Fear exploded across his face as he took in my meaning. “Evie, no, we can get through this.”

Shaking my head, I looked down at the glittering diamond on my finger and felt my face crumple again. Sucking in a breath to stop another hysterical meltdown in front of him, I pulled the ring off my finger and held it out to him.

He glared balefully at it, refusing to take it.

I placed it on the counter instead, my hands shaking.

“You don’t mean this,” Roane whispered hoarsely. “We love each other too much. We’ll figure this out once everything has calmed down. I’m sorry I kept this from you, angel. I’m so sorry, but they’re not malicious lies. It was just stupid omissions that got out of hand. Let’s just talk about it and you’ll see: I’m still me.”