Free Good Earls Don't Lie by Michelle Willingham Page B

congenial mood.
    “Yes it would,” Lily insisted. “I am not going to join the debutantes who wear white and send simpering smiles to unwed men. Matthew will return, and then I will wed him.” A softness stole over her sister’s face, for she had never given up on the man she loved.
    But there was something else in her tone that made Rose stop a moment. “Did he already ask you to wed him before he left for India?” This was the first she had heard of such a thing.
    Lily paled and straightened her shoulders. Quietly, she reached for a silver chain around her throat and withdrew it from beneath her gown. At the end of the chain was a small gold ring.
    But more than the ring was the look of steady faithfulness in her sister’s eyes. It was clear that she loved the Earl of Arnsbury with all her heart.
    “When did he give you the ring?” Rose asked.
    “Two summers ago.” Lily returned it beneath her gown, but in her blue eyes, Rose saw the veiled pain. And whether or not Lord Arnsbury ever returned home, her sister would not marry another man. Especially if she was already promised.
    “Have you told him that you would marry him?” she asked Lily.
    The young woman nodded. “So you understand why I cannot be the one to marry. At least, not until Lord Arnsbury returns.”
    Rose let out a sigh. “I cannot marry, either. Not until I can walk again.” She clung to that wish, for the idea of being unable to walk for the rest of her life was a horror she couldn’t face.
    Lily reached out to squeeze her hand. “You will. And perhaps we’ll find a new physician in London who can help you.” She helped lift a morning gown over Rose’s head and began buttoning her up the back.
    Rose had little faith in physicians and dismissed the idea. “I do not intend to go anywhere until I can walk again.” She preferred to remain here, where she could heal in peace and shield her mother from idle gossip. “And Mother isn’t well enough to return. You know she would cause a scene.”
    “The difficulty will be in convincing her that we cannot go,” Lily pointed out. “She seems determined to return to London, no matter what I say.”
    “Tell her I cannot walk or dance,” Rose pointed out. “It is the truth.”
    “Which she forgets all the time.” Lily sighed. “You do realize that we would not be in this situation, had you not been so distracted by that man. ”
    Rose mustered a slight smile. “Forgive me.” Though, to be fair, any woman would be distracted by Iain Donovan. Not only because of his interfering, flirtatious manner—but also because he was handsome, in an unrefined way.
    And because he’d been half-naked when she’d first laid eyes upon him.
    And maybe because he’d kissed her forehead.
    “What are you going to do about the Irishman?” Lily was asking. “We cannot simply send him away if he truly is an earl.”
    Rose shrugged. “I don’t know. Possibly we could let him stay one more day whilst we make inquiries. And if we find out he is lying, then we’ll send Mr. Donovan on his way. That will be that.” She straightened and reached for the bedpost to try standing up again. This time, she would hold the post closer to her waist, and that might help.
    But Lily rested a hand upon her shoulder. “Rose, don’t. You already fell once this morning. You’re not ready.”
    Not ready? And when would she be ready if she didn’t keep trying? Never, that’s when.
    She ignored her sister, and gripped the bedpost. “Then ring for Calvert. He can help me up after I fall on my face.”
    “I don’t want you to hurt yourself. Especially now, when Mother is so ill. Just . . . wait a little longer before you try again.” Though Lily’s voice held concern, she caught a hint of impatience. It was as if her sister was taking care of two invalids instead of one.
    Rose’s fingers clenched and the frustration rose up inside her, spilling over into anger. “Lily, I’ve been unable to walk for months. Do