To Pleasure a Lady (Courtship Wars)
Arabella couldn’t keep the bitterness from her voice. “After four years without even a word, you suddenly care how we are faring?”
“I have always cared. It is wonderful to see you again, Arabella.” Victoria patted the seat cushion beside her. “Will you come and sit with me?”
“I prefer to stand, thank you.”
A small, sad smile twisted her mother’s mouth. “I knew you would not forgive me. I told him so.”
“Him?”
Victoria sighed. “Lord Danvers.”
Arabella’s brow furrowed. “What does he have to say to the matter?”
“He is the reason I am here. His lordship sent a ship to France this week to escort me home to England. His secretary met me in Dover yesterday, and his carriage brought me here today.”
Marcus had hunted down her mother in France? Arabella wondered, a little stunned. “Whatever for?”
“Because he has hopes that I can reconcile with my daughters. At the very least, he is determined that I explain…and apologize to you for what I did.”
Her eyes widened as she stared at her mother. “What explanation could you possibly give that would excuse abandoning your children the heartless way you did? You walked out of our lives, Mama, without even a single word of farewell, and then left us to deal with Papa’s death all alone.”
“I am so very sorry, Arabella.”
Her mouth tightened. “Isn’t it a bit late for apologies? It all happened a long time ago, so I’m not certain there is any point in even discussing it.”
Wincing, Victoria held up a hand. “Please, won’t you at least listen to my side of the tale?”
“Very well,” Arabella said finally.
“You had best sit down. It is a long story.”
Reluctantly, she moved to claim a wing chair across from the settee. Her mother searched her face for a long moment before finally saying in a low voice, “Truly, I am sorry for ruining your life, Arabella. I never meant to hurt you and Roslyn and Lilian.”
“But you did, Mama.” A savage ache tightened her throat. “More than you can imagine. We were all devastated by your leaving, especially Lily. She cried for weeks afterward.”
“I…know. I should have considered how my conduct would have affected you. I should have put my daughters first. But once I took the first step, my actions became irrevocable.”
“I don’t see how.”
Victoria bit her lower lip. “You have to understand how bitterly unhappy my marriage to your father was.”
“Oh, I understand,” Arabella responded. “How could I not after watching you and Papa fight so savagely for so many years? But your unhappiness hardly justifies adultery.”
Victoria winced again as if from a blow. “Perhaps not, but I was terribly lonely. I am sure you know that your father kept a series of mistresses.”
“I could hardly be ignorant of the fact,” Arabella said, her tone acrid.
“Charles once was discreet about his affairs, but when he began flaunting his mistresses in my face, I couldn’t bear it any longer.”
“So you took a lover because you wanted revenge.”
“It was not that simple, Arabella. I suppose I wanted revenge, but mostly I wanted…intimacy. I met Henri Vachel in London. He had come to England as a boy, after his parents were guillotined during the Terror. His mother’s family was English, so he lived with them in Surrey. Henri was so gentle and kind… After your father’s neglect, it is not surprising that I responded to him.”
When Arabella remained silent, Victoria plowed ahead doggedly. “When your father found out, he was furious about being cuckolded. It was perfectly permissible for him to make a mockery of our marriage vows but not his lady wife. Charles demanded that I leave England and never show my face again, and he threatened to kill Henri if I didn’t. I knew he would, Arabella.”
She gave a skeptical frown. “That is not what Papa told us. He said you developed a violent passion for your lover and fled to France to be with him.”
“Of course Charles would claim so, since he wished to make me the villain. But it wasn’t true. I didn’t love Henri. Not then. And I only left because your father compelled me to do so.”