Chapter 310: Last warning [2]
"You made that one quite obvious. Thought you could trap me? I saw you walking with him earlier. Let go of him," Damien ordered Gage. "I wonder what a man of the court is doing in a place like this. Accepting bribes, or drinking?"
"You could get kicked out of the court and arrested for accepting bribes," Damien recited the law. "As for drinking, if you make a fool of yourself in town, you could lose your position. I think you were here plotting with Hayden."
"Don’t be absurd. I’m just as surprised as you are that someone was eavesdropping," Hayden said, shifting the blame onto Damien with practised ease. "For all I know, this could be an act on your end. I wouldn’t put it past you."
Gage released the man he’d been holding and watched him back away before shutting the door behind him.
"This doesn’t change that you almost killed my wife and then turned Jane against her. You know how much my wife adored Jane, like she was her very own daughter, but then you went and poisoned her mind," Hayden accused Damien.
"I hope you invest good money in the upbringing of my cousins so they gain some sense. It scares me to think they could turn out just like their parents," said Damien.
"Well, at least I have children," Hayden countered with a smug expression.
Damien sighed. "There goes my point. It takes months to have a child, and I haven’t been married so long. I know men don’t like involving themselves in the business of women, but surely you know how a baby comes about."
"Enough with talk that doesn’t matter. I know you and your wife have been speaking of my marriage. Be bold about it," Damien advised, folding his arms. "Then I might just respect it."
"Yes, we spoke of your wife and your marriage. We have every right to, just as anyone in this town does. If you didn’t want people speaking of your marriage, you should have married a woman more suitable for you," said Hayden.
Hayden wanted to get under Damien’s skin, so he pressed further. "There were plenty of ladies suited to you, yet you went for a servant. I do understand a man like you wanting to be served."
Damien moved to open the bottle on the table, wanting a small sip before he’d inevitably have to break it over something or someone. "You chose a woman you deemed suitable for you, yet you’re never at her side. Always out of town, as though there’s some empire you run."
"I might not be a lord, but I am a very busy man. I pray you aren’t about to lean into rumours that I’m cheating on your aunt. Can’t all of you come up with a new lie?" Hayden asked, bothered by the lies.
"I don’t recall anyone on my side speaking of it. Though it doesn’t surprise me that others would think it," Damien replied, watching Hayden’s composure change.
"I love my wife. I wouldn’t have married her, wouldn’t have had children with her, if I didn’t. You must stop assuming every marriage, but your own, is imperfect. I stay away from my wife because I want the time alone. That’s all," Hayden admitted, though it wasn’t convincing.
In truth, Hayden couldn’t bear his children needing him so constantly, nor Camille pressing him toward things that held no interest for him, so he left simply to breathe and to remember what life had felt like before marriage.
"It isn’t unreasonable for a man to want time away from his family. You’re newly married, so you won’t understand it yet. Give it time, and soon enough you’ll be running off to one of your other homes for a break," Hayden said.
"A break?" Damien chuckled, though there was no real humour in it. "You only have yourself to blame if your marriage is so dull you need a break from your own wife and children. Have you ever told Camille why you’re away so often?"
"My wife knows her place in our marriage. She doesn’t step out of line to question my affairs. Go on and tell her, if you wish. My wife knows I love her," Hayden said, certain Camille wouldn’t dare be angry. "There’s no lover for you to uncover."
"You can love her and still wound her with what you’re doing. The two of you thrived on your marriage being seen as perfect. I urge you to go and share this little tale with her yourself. Better yet, let me be the one to share it," Damien said.
He longed to see the exact moment Camille’s expression shifted once the truth landed. He wondered how she’d take it.
A lover, Camille could rid herself of easily enough. But how would a woman face a husband who simply wanted distance from her? How was she meant to make herself, or her children, more worth staying home for? Was she meant to stay silent, just to give him his peace?
"I don’t care, Damien. I have full control of my marriage, so a bit of meddling on your part won’t change anything. My marriage is stronger than it looks. I wish I could say the same of yours," Hayden remarked.
"This will be the only time I warn you about speaking on my marriage. If you want your business to thrive, so you can keep feeding your children, I suggest you tread carefully from now on. Since you claim so much control over your wife, warn her too," said Damien.
Hayden laughed, having no intention of heeding Damien’s advice. He rather enjoyed the town gossiping about Damien and his marriage. "You must stop trying to control me. I’m not your aunt, nor your siblings. You’re still just a boy playing at being a man."
Damien picked up the glass he’d poured and took a slow sip, letting the wine sit on his tongue before swallowing. He set the empty glass down "The next time you or your wife speak of mine, there won’t be any more talking on my end. Just action."
"I’ll speak as much as I please, Damien. If you wanted me dead, you’d have done it already. You know which men to toy with. I’m not one of them," said Hayden.
"No, I know which man likes setting traps by having his peers eavesdrop for him. You’ll have to do better than that. I hope you have a safe ride home to your wife. The roads are dangerous this time of year," Damien said, rising from his chair to leave the room.
Hayden kept his smile fixed in place, but beneath it, there was unease over what Damien might have waiting for him by the time he finally set off for home.