Her intent gaze searched his face. “And did you?”
“Would you believe me if I said no?”
“Yes,” she answered slowly. “I think I would. I don’t put much stock in rumors. Last spring my bro-a dear friend of mine was accused of being a murderer and sentenced to hang, but he was entirely justified in his actions.”
She had surprised him once again, Kell realized, with her novel attitude. He would have to learn not to underestimate the unconventional Miss Kendrick.
As for answering her question, however…he had no intention of divulging the truth, although he was indeed suspected of murder. The dark rumors about his past had followed him from Ireland where his uncle had died, and Kell had never made any attempt to deny them.
“I think I can safely say that my uncle’s death was justified,” Kell replied enigmatically.
She nodded slowly, then rose to her feet to pace the room again. At length she stopped and clasped her hands together, possibly to still her agitation. “Perhaps you are right,” she said, looking at him. “Marriage is my only option. I am facing ruination. I will be branded a total pariah in society if I don’t find a husband at once.”
Kell didn’t care for her reply at all. “Keep in mind that your family will have fierce objections to our
marriage. Your great-aunt thinks me a criminal.”
Her mouth twisted briefly in a grimace. “The fact that my aunt holds you in aversion is frankly an argument in your favor.”
“And you would wed an unsuitable husband just to spite her?”
“No, of course not. But I won’t allow her to dictate to me.”
The rebellious flash of heat in her eyes struck another chord in Kell. He understood rebellion; he was a rebel himself. But that didn’t mean he wanted to encourage her to accept his offer.
He gave her a measuring stare, deliberately trying to unsettle her.
In response she squared her shoulders. “No matter how notorious your reputation, Mr. Lasseter, you would still be immeasurably better than no husband at all. Unwed, I stand no chance of ever showing my face again in society. I think it vastly unfair, but it is a fact of life. And I am hardly in a position to be overly discriminating.”
“Yet you just told your aunt you refused to marry.”
“No. I said I refused to accept her choice.”
“There is a difference?”
“A tremendous difference. It is a long story but…my mother was compelled by her family to marry a man she…disliked. And I have no intention of following in her footsteps.”
Her blue eyes were filled with pain, Kell noted. “Still, there must be other better marital candidates than I.”
“I can think of no one on such short notice. Even if I were to try to find someone willing to wed me, I run the risk of exposing myself further. If I were turned down…there would be no possible way to keep my circumstances a secret.”
“You could leave the country, as I suggested earlier.”
“And live as an outcast? That is even more repugnant to me than being compelled to wed.” Her voice dropped to a murmur, but it was filled with trembling anger. “My mother spent most of her life preparing me to join the society she was denied, and she would have been devastated to know she’d failed in her life’s goal. And I’m certain my grandfather will rest easier if I can manage to avert disaster. My aunt as well.”
Kell raised a skeptical eyebrow. “After your aunt’s virulent display of sympathy, I fail to comprehend why you would want to comfort her.”
“Because I don’t want my family to suffer because of me. But to have any hope of shielding them, I will have to wed immediately. The servants have already witnessed my return, and they will not keep quiet for long.”
Denial was Kell’s first impulse, but he couldn’t refute that her points were good ones.
“You appear to be regretting your offer already,” she said when he was silent.
Kell shifted uneasily, not knowing which was causing him more discomfort, his injured thigh or the knot that had formed low in his belly. “I am a bachelor, Miss Kendrick. You’ll understand if I’m not eager to hang in the parson’s noose.”
Her brow furrowed, and she hesitated a moment before asking, “Do you have someone in mind you would prefer to wed?”
“No, vixen, I don’t,” Kell said dryly. “I hadn’t intended to wed at all. Certainly not anytime in the near future.”