Ian shifted his gaze to the youngest Loring sister and found her fixing him with an accusing stare. “I assure you, I did not drive my wife away,” he began bitingly before conceding he had done precisely that.
“But you have made Tess unhappy,” Lady Claybourne pressed. “Can you deny it? What else would send her rushing back to London without you when you are supposed to be enjoying a wedding journey?”
Ian sent her a sharp glance, while Fanny—who was looking uncomfortable at the unexpected altercation—stepped toward him. “No doubt you wish us to speak in private, your grace. I have a smaller parlor upstairs, if you will follow me.…”
However, their departure was forestalled by Lady Danvers entering the conversation. “As it happens, we were just discussing you, Rotham.” Her tone sounded authoritative, possibly because as the eldest sister, she was accustomed to taking charge.
“Yes,” Lady Claybourne interjected again, “we were debating whether to call upon you. I wanted to give you a piece of my mind, but Roslyn dissuaded me.”
Ian halted. “Oh? Why would I deserve a piece of your mind?”
“I thought you needed to be reminded of the consequences of mistreating Tess. You will answer to us—and her cousin, Viscount Wrexham, as well. Perhaps threats of retaliation made by mere women will not move you, but Damon is another matter. He will protect Tess to the death, I promise you.”
Ian eyed Lady Claybourne piercingly. “All I have ever wanted was to protect Tess.”
Her delicate chin jutted out with a stubbornness that reminded him of Tess at her most determined. “I beg to differ, your grace. You compromised her so that she was forced to wed you—”
“Pray calm down, Lily,” the Duchess of Arden interrupted in her serene way. “You go too far.” Roslyn then offered Ian a smile and an apology. “Forgive my younger sister, your grace. Lily has yet to learn that not all noblemen are foes. She only just recently wed, and Claybourne has not yet totally convinced her. Please, will you be seated?”
Ian hesitated, then settled in the only vacant chair left, while Fanny resumed her place on the sofa.
Yet Lily would not give up, it seemed. “Just what are your intentions toward Tess, your grace?”
His mouth twisted with a mix of exasperation and ire. “What is this, an inquisition, my lady?”
“Perhaps it should be. Are you afraid to explain to the friends who love Tess dearly just why we should not come to her rescue?”
“I am here, aren’t I? In point of fact, I came to seek Miss Irwin’s advice on how to win Tess.”
His declaration took the wind right out of the marchioness’s sails. When she stared, slightly slack-mouthed, her middle sister Roslyn smiled again and said sweetly, “I commend you for braving the four of us together, your grace. We can be like mother lionesses when it comes to our close friends.”
Ian nodded in appreciation, while Arabella asked curiously, “What do you mean about seeking advice on how to win Tess?”
“I love her and want her for my wife,” Ian admitted with far more ease than he’d expected.
A look of glee claimed Fanny’s features, and she clapped her hands together. “This is beyond famous! I knew it! I have a good instinct for these things. Have you told her of your love yet, your grace? That is the first step, you know.”
Ian met her gaze evenly. “I don’t believe it is so simple.”
“I think it is. Tess fears you will only cause her more pain, so she needs to know how you feel before she will risk returning your love.”
“Yes,” Lily agreed. “She believes you will break her heart, and she has already had it shattered once.”
Ian grimaced. “That is a large part of the trouble. Tess is still in love with my late cousin. Richard was a saint in her eyes.”
“Whereas you are a devil,” Arabella commented in an audible undervoice.
“Just so,” Ian said dryly. “But it is beyond time for her to move on with her life.”
“Tess was prepared to move on with the right man,” Lily pointed out, obviously still skeptical. “Perhaps you are not the right man for her.”
Ian turned a blazing glance on her, but said nothing.
When he remained silent, Lily searched his face intently. “You are positively certain you love her? You have no doubts?”
“No doubts whatsoever,” he said emphatically.
Her expression softened a tiny measure. “You will have to prove that you will be a good husband to her.”