not perfect because that would ruin the happy little dream you’ve concocted. I knew something was wrong from the start, but I kept stepping back, trying to give you what you wanted—”
“Oh, sure, giving me what I wanted,” I cut off his tirade, shaking my head. My fists flexed. That was pure Clive. Now that he thought marrying Sassy was a mistake, it was all my fault. Not that I agreed with him about it being a mistake, but my temper was soaring. “Because sharing a wife was some great sacrifice on your part, you’ve been suffering terribly—”
“It doesn’t matter.” He slashed his hand through the air as if that would be the end of the argument. “I’m going in to ask her some questions, and this time, she is going to answer.” He stepped forward, but I didn’t move. I braced myself, feet apart, muscles tensed, and head lowered.
“Like hell. You want to question our wife, you’ll have to go through me first.”
“Don’t do this, William,” Clive warned, taking another step toward me, his dark eyes glinting with barely repressed violence. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
Arrogant bastard. Of course, he assumed he’d win in a fight.
“Then turn around and walk away until you come to your senses,” I snapped back.
“Why the hell are you still defending that lying whore?” he snarled.
That did it. Lunging forward, I slammed my fist into his chin.
11
Sassy
* * *
Why the hell are you still defending that lying whore?
I stood frozen on the side of the house, heart pounding and tears welling, Clive’s vicious question echoing in my head. I’d been in the garden and had come back to the house when I’d heard raised voices. When I got to the back of the house, I’d recognized Clive’s and William’s voices and heard what they were saying.
Knew they knew.
Knew William either didn’t care or was hiding it from himself that he did.
Knew Clive cared deeply. That he felt betrayed. Lied to. And he should. I had done both, hadn’t I? Now, I’d set them against each other, without even meaning to, and I could hear them fighting. Hear the grunts of pain, fists slamming against flesh.
I should have run out there and tried to stop them. I should have accepted whatever castigation Clive wanted to heap on me. I should have told them I wasn’t worth fighting over, and Clive was right.
But I couldn’t face them.
Couldn’t bear to see Clive turn away from me.
Couldn’t bear to see if William looked at me differently, despite his words.
Couldn’t bear to see them fighting because of me.
So, I did what came naturally—I turned tail and ran. Ran past the henhouse and the vegetable garden, past the well, and over the hill, until I couldn’t hear them anymore, then fell to my knees, sobbing as though my heart was breaking… because it was.
Had I really thought I would be able to hide my past from them forever?
Had I really thought they would accept my past?
William didn’t seem bothered, a little voice whispered in my head. It didn’t matter, though. It clearly bothered Clive, and he and William were partners. They’d been partners for far longer than they’d known me. I would never expect William to choose me over Clive, wouldn’t even want him to. The two of them needed each other, balanced each other.
I had just hoped I could be part of that balance, had thought maybe they would come to love me the way I already loved them.
But it was too soon, far too soon to hope any feelings they did have for me could last in the face of my past.
Thief.
Whore.
I could not deny the charges. I was both.
I was also a woman who had fallen in love. It didn’t matter I had not known them long, I’d fallen in love with both of them. Had thought I might have even found happiness with them.
I should have known better.
Since when had any part of my life ended happily?
Slowly, my tears ran out, leaving me drained. Empty. Hopeless.
My knees were beginning to hurt, the ground hard and rocky under my skirts, but I had not noticed until now. I slowly got to my feet, staring off into the distance, the endless fields…
I could keep running.
It wasn’t Lord Carmichael I wanted to run from, though, it was my husbands. My husbands who deserved an apology from me, at the very least, even if they were unlikely to remain my husbands for much longer. They should know I was