Rose in Bloom (Sex and the Season #2)(26)

“Cam?” Her blue eyes widened.

“Now, Rose. I…I’m tired of this.”

“Tired of what? What are you talking about?” She sat up.

He swallowed, willing himself to be strong. “Tired of you, Rose.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I am serious. I…you and I…we don’t belong together. We never did.”

“Of course we do. You’re not thinking straight, Cam. You’re worried about Kat. I don’t blame you.” She stood and reached for him.

He used every ounce of strength he possessed not to rush into her arms. “That’s not it. I mean…of course I’m worried about Kat. But, I…we…can’t continued this…tryst.”

“Tryst?” Her eyes glistened.

“Of course. That’s all it was. A tryst. It could never be any more. We both know that.”

“Cam, you’re not making any sense at all. I…we just made love. You…you came to me. You needed me. I need you.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I’m not being ridiculous.” She sniffed. “ Let me help you. I’ll do anything I can for you and for Kat.”

“For God’s sake, I’m perfectly capable of taking care of my own family.” He swallowed. “Now I want you to get out of here.”

“All right, Cam,” she said, turning. “If that’s what you want, I’ll leave. But I’ll be at Laurel Ridge, and I want you to come if you need me.”

“I won’t. It’s over, Rose.”

“But—” Her eyes filled with tears. “You said you loved me!”

Cameron looked away from her. Her tears hurt him more than a thousand punches to his face. “I…I lied to you Rose.”

“No, you didn’t,” she sobbed.

“Yes. I…lied to you so you would sleep with me.” He shut his eyes, unable to look at her. He deserved to burn in hell for this.

“No. You love me. I felt how much you love me. You wanted to take me to Gretna Green.” Still naked from their lovemaking, she grabbed him around the waist and buried her face in his strong shoulder. “I love you. You can’t mean any of this. You can’t!”

Filled with self-loathing, he wrenched her body away. “Cover yourself. Then leave. Your carriage is waiting out front.”

“Cam, don’t do this!”

He turned, walked toward the door, and opened it. Without looking back at her, he said, without emotion, “Go back to Xavier, my lady. I don’t want you.”

Then he left, the sound of her crying still hammering in his head, even when he was beyond hearing distance. He stood in the stables for a half hour, watching from a small window, waiting until he saw Rose step into the carriage and drive away, Begonia trotting along behind.

Only then did he sit down in the hay and sob.



When she returned to Laurel Ridge, Rose went straight to her chamber. Her eyes were swollen from crying, and her body ached with yearning for Cameron. Cameron, who was no longer hers. Who maybe never had been.

His cruelty had hurt, yet she still loved him, and she wanted to help him and Kat. She found her reticule and dug out the one hundred pounds she kept for emergencies. She hastily scribbled a note to Dr. Blake, asking him to please use the money for Kat’s care and not to tell Mrs. Price or Cameron about it. She could trust Blake. He was Daniel’s personal physician and he had taken excellent care of Lily after her fall. She called for a maid and asked her to give the envelope to Crawford and have it delivered to Dr. Michael Blake in Bath.

There. She had done all she could for Cameron. He was on his own now, as he wished to be. Rose curled up on her bed and cried some more.



The next few days passed in a fog for Rose. Sophie and Alexandra tried to engage her, but she spent most of her time in her chamber, feigning illness. Finally, the morning Evan and his father were due to arrive, she forced herself to go down and join the others for breakfast in the ladies’ sitting room.

“Rose, dear,” Aunt Iris said, “it’s so good to see you up and about. I trust you’re feeling better?”

“Yes, much,” Rose lied. “I didn’t want to be ill for Lord Evan’s visit.”

“Yes, that would certainly break his heart,” Lucinda Landon, the dowager duchess’s sister, agreed. “He hasn’t missed a weekend with you yet, has he?”

“No, not since the house party ended.” Rose didn’t want to talk about Evan. “Has anyone heard anything about young Katrina Price? I’ve been thinking about her.”

“No, dear,” Maggie, the dowager duchess, said, “but Crawford can send an inquiry if you’d like.”

“Thank you, I’d appreciate that.”

A servant brought Rose a plate of smoked salmon with tomatoes and capers, a scone with lemon curd, and a hardboiled egg. Rose mumbled her thanks and forced herself to eat. She needed strength to deal with meeting Evan’s father.

“Oh!” She clasped a hand to her mouth. “I’m so sorry, Aunt Lucy, Aunt Maggie. With Kat’s illness and then my own, I forgot to tell you. Lord Evan is bringing his father this weekend to meet me. I hope that won’t be any trouble.”