Page 77 of An Unexpected Earl

“This makes no sense,” she muttered, reading it again, this time much more slowly in search of any details she’d missed. Why would Freddie had been making contracts with Aaron so soon after meeting him?

“Amelia! What on God’s earth are you doing?”

Her gaze darted to the doorway, where Freddie glared at the mess on the floor. And at her.

Her mind whirled to find an excuse. She couldn’t tell him the truth—not yet. Not until she’d discussed it with Pearce. And not until she’d come up with a good argument to convince Freddie to go along with her plan. Or a good way to coerce him, if logic failed. After all, she still held the key to keeping the blackmailer at bay and keeping Freddie out of prison. He would owe her for that…and she was certain that he would gladly be rid of her by handing her over to an earl.

Judging from the furious look on his face, not a moment too soon either.

He stepped into the study. “You’re going through my private papers. You broke into my cabinet!” His eyes narrowed on her. “What’s that in your hand?”

Freedom.“My marriage settlement.” She held it up. No point in attempting to hide it.

He frowned, bewildered. “What do you want with that?”

“Pearce.” That was the God’s honest truth.

He froze, except for his face which paled. “Sandhurst knows about your marriage?”

She swallowed. Hard. And lied. “No. The turnpike. He wanted to make certain that I had ownership rights to Bradenhill, that I could consent fully to the trust without worry that someone else might have a claim to it.”

“But you refused the trust.” His eyes gleamed darkly as he slowly approached her. “Quite publicly, too.”

“He changed my mind.” Surprisingly, no guilt accompanied lying to her brother. Only regret that they were so suspicious of each other that she couldn’t even trust him with something as potentially wonderful as this. “He made me realize that I’d be able to help even more women with the revenue a turnpike would bring.”

A knowing smile broke across his face. “Finally you’ve listened to reason.”

No. Finally she’d listened to her heart. “He wanted to make certain that the decision would be completely and freely mine,” she echoed his words from last night’s ball. “That was when I remembered the marriage agreement. I wanted to make certain that Aaron couldn’t make any claims against the property. I wanted—” She looked down at the paper in her hand and took courage in it. “I wanted to make certain that the property was listed in the agreement as part of my dower. That way, if he ever does return and attempts to take it, I can use the intent of the agreement to make my argument to keep it.”

“Intent is worthless under the law. That agreement wasn’t signed by both parties, andthatwas what allowed him to steal all your money. That’s what all the lawyers I hired told us when we tried to retrieve your money, remember? Every last one of them.” He crossed his arms and glared down at her, the look of a prefect scolding a misbehaving student. “You were impetuous and acted without thinking, and we’re suffering because of it.”

With a scowl, he grabbed up the papers she’d tossed onto the floor and shoved them back into the tallboy, then picked up the key from the floor and locked all the drawers. Instead of putting the key back into his desk, he slipped it into his breast pocket.

Guilt began to rise in her throat—

No. He wouldn’t make her feel awful this time, as he always had before. She wouldn’t let him.

Pearce was right. She’d gone into her marriage with love, and the lies and treachery Aaron committed werenother fault. She could never have foreseen what he’d planned. No woman could have. She wouldn’t blame herself any longer.

Now, she would take back the life she’d been cheated out of.

“I found something else.” She held up the other document. The contract Freddie had made with Aaron. “What is this?”

Frederick took it and heaved out a sigh as he glanced over it. “Nothing to concern yourself with.” He added in an irritated mutter, “Like every other document in this cabinet that you have no right to rifle through.”

Despite his anger, she held on to her resolve and pressed, “You paid Aaron five hundred pounds. Why?”

“I don’t remember. That was so long ago. I’m sure I had good reason.” He shoved it into his jacket breast pocket. “But you’ve nothing to fear about Bradenhill, I assure you.” With a pleased smile, he crossed to the liquor tray and poured himself a glass of cognac from the crystal decanter. “Aaron Northam won’t be able to take your land, and he won’t be able to stop the trust now either. No one can.”

Alarm twisted in her belly. “What do you mean?”

“Sandhurst finally agreed. Told me himself just this afternoon at Boodle’s.” He returned the stopper with a soft clank, punctuating the significance of the moment. “Wants to push it through as quickly as possible, in fact, before the current session of Parliament ends.” He lifted the glass to her in a toast. “Congratulations, Amelia. We’ve got our turnpike trust.”

Her breath hitched. Pearce agreed?Impossible.He said they were together in stopping it, in discovering who was behind the blackmail. He would never have agreed without consulting with her first…would he?

Shame heated her cheeks, and she silently castigated herself for doubting him. She’d questioned Pearce’s love for her for so long that even now her first reaction was distrust.

But she wouldn’t let suspicion win. Not this time. He loved her, he wanted to protect her, he wanted to marry her… That was where she’d put her trust now. In Pearce’s heart.