Merton’s lips pressed together tightly and his gaze darted around the room before he met Peter’s. “Best not to say. I’m thinking she should take a trip up to the Lakes district. Mother and Father will be glad to have her home and we have relatives there she hasn’t seen in a good long while.”
Relatives, but no mention of friends. It would not surprise Peter to know the harpy had none. “Will your cousin go as well?”
Miss Long lived in her cousin’s shadow. It would be a shame to have her sent away too. “I think not. Teresa gives me far less trouble than my own sister. She’s of a practical, but sentimental, heart and doesn’t care to gossip about friends.” Valentine shrugged. “Besides, the air here by the sea is better for her health than at the Lakes. It would be cruel to disturb her.”
Peter glanced down at his hands. What a bind to be in. He didn’t envy Valentine that discussion with Melanie. The girl had a tongue of acid and could speak cruelly of others without a second thought. She would not
take kindly to expulsion from Brighton. If Walter hadn’t forgiven her for remarks she’d made at Imogen’s expense then perhaps it would be better if she spent some time away. Disagreements between friends could end friendships if not resolved and it was worse when family became involved. Having already come close to losing Hawke as a friend, he well knew the damage problems would cause.
Once he and Imogen were married for a while, any gossip about impropriety before their marriage would have run its course and become meaningless. He smiled at the bright future unfolding before him. He felt lighter, more sure than he’d been in years. A home, love and companionship, and complete trust. K.D. Brahms could continue to write fascinating stories in the complete privacy of their home, and he would strive to be everything Imogen needed in a husband. If her sight failed again, they would accommodate the change together.
For when a man’s heart was involved, he had no option but to follow where it led when granted a second chance to be with the love of his life.
THE END