the strength seemed to leave him too and he collapsed into the closest chair.
“Oh, God,” he uttered, looking stricken.
“So it’s true?” May felt tears prick her eyes. She hadn’t disbelieved Lucy but at the same time, she had always idolised her eldest brother.
“No!” he answered , with such vehemence that her heart swelled with hope, that maybe this could all come good in the end
“I think you’d better start at the beginning,” May said.
Max wiped a hand over his face, as if washing without water. He had dark circles under his eyes, as though he hadn’t slept in weeks.
“She was my mistress,” he admitted, “but I swear on our mother’s life that I haven’t slept with her since the wedding.”
May nodded coolly. “Go on.”
“She works at my club and a handful of the members there support her , but she always said I was her favourite. After the wedding, I felt bad about not supporting her that is, so I continued to, although I’ve been avoiding the club at night because she can be a little… clingy. Anyway, the day before, she was at the club in the daytime and begged me to meet with her the next day, saying she had a business proposition for me.
“I would love it if she could earn a respectable income, so I agreed to meet her in her rooms. It turned out she wanted me to finance the production of a play and insisted we read it through together.”
May ’s jaw dropped open again as she realised why Max had said those things.
“It was so excruciatingly bad that we didn’t even finish Act One.”
“So you don’t have any illegitimate children running about then?”
“What? No! Of course not!”
“Oh, thank G od.”
“But what was Lucy doing there? She’s never even met Marie, much less knows where she lives.”
“She has met Marie actually; she came to the orphanage before your wedding, probably to size up her competition.”
“She what?” Max shot to his feet.
“And on that day, Lucy received a note purporting to be from our father, asking Lucy to meet him urgently.”
“That scheming little-” he just stopped himself from swearing in front of his sister. “She planned the whole thing. She’s the reason our baby is dead.”
“You’re the reason your baby is dead, Max. What were you thinking, continuing to meet with your mistress?”
“There was no harm in it, nothing happened.”
“Except that Lucy knows her perfume and probably knew every single time that you saw her.”
Max knew that overpowering scent well , but he had become so accustomed to it that he hardly even noticed it now.
“Dear Lord!” he sat down again, realising what a fool he’d been to trust such a woman. He couldn’t blame Lucy for being so withdrawn from him. Right now, he didn’t want anything to do with himself.
“Why couldn’t you just tell Lucy the truth?”
“She said that after we were married, she never wanted me to speak about my mistresses.”
“I meant about the fact that you love her, idiot!”
“I do tell her!”
“When?”
“When…” he thought for a moment then sighed. “When we’re in bed.”
“It’s easy to be overcome with emotion then,” May insisted. “Have you ever said anything when you weren’t naked?”
“ May!”
“Well have you?”
“No,” he admitted.
“Oh Max.” He looked so forlorn that she came up to him and put an arm around his shoulders. “She loves you too, you know.”
“Then why doesn’t she ever say so?”
“Probably because she thinks you don’t mean it, but she was so upset at the thought of you having a mistress, that she couldn’t see straight to walk downstairs. If she didn’t love you, she wouldn’t care.”
“She loves me like a sister, I’ll admit-”
“Max, for God’s sake, just go and tell her what really happened that day.”
“She won’t believe me,” he said, sounding downhearted.
“You have to try. You can’t let her go on believing that you only married her for her money and
“Oh, God,” he uttered, looking stricken.
“So it’s true?” May felt tears prick her eyes. She hadn’t disbelieved Lucy but at the same time, she had always idolised her eldest brother.
“No!” he answered , with such vehemence that her heart swelled with hope, that maybe this could all come good in the end
“I think you’d better start at the beginning,” May said.
Max wiped a hand over his face, as if washing without water. He had dark circles under his eyes, as though he hadn’t slept in weeks.
“She was my mistress,” he admitted, “but I swear on our mother’s life that I haven’t slept with her since the wedding.”
May nodded coolly. “Go on.”
“She works at my club and a handful of the members there support her , but she always said I was her favourite. After the wedding, I felt bad about not supporting her that is, so I continued to, although I’ve been avoiding the club at night because she can be a little… clingy. Anyway, the day before, she was at the club in the daytime and begged me to meet with her the next day, saying she had a business proposition for me.
“I would love it if she could earn a respectable income, so I agreed to meet her in her rooms. It turned out she wanted me to finance the production of a play and insisted we read it through together.”
May ’s jaw dropped open again as she realised why Max had said those things.
“It was so excruciatingly bad that we didn’t even finish Act One.”
“So you don’t have any illegitimate children running about then?”
“What? No! Of course not!”
“Oh, thank G od.”
“But what was Lucy doing there? She’s never even met Marie, much less knows where she lives.”
“She has met Marie actually; she came to the orphanage before your wedding, probably to size up her competition.”
“She what?” Max shot to his feet.
“And on that day, Lucy received a note purporting to be from our father, asking Lucy to meet him urgently.”
“That scheming little-” he just stopped himself from swearing in front of his sister. “She planned the whole thing. She’s the reason our baby is dead.”
“You’re the reason your baby is dead, Max. What were you thinking, continuing to meet with your mistress?”
“There was no harm in it, nothing happened.”
“Except that Lucy knows her perfume and probably knew every single time that you saw her.”
Max knew that overpowering scent well , but he had become so accustomed to it that he hardly even noticed it now.
“Dear Lord!” he sat down again, realising what a fool he’d been to trust such a woman. He couldn’t blame Lucy for being so withdrawn from him. Right now, he didn’t want anything to do with himself.
“Why couldn’t you just tell Lucy the truth?”
“She said that after we were married, she never wanted me to speak about my mistresses.”
“I meant about the fact that you love her, idiot!”
“I do tell her!”
“When?”
“When…” he thought for a moment then sighed. “When we’re in bed.”
“It’s easy to be overcome with emotion then,” May insisted. “Have you ever said anything when you weren’t naked?”
“ May!”
“Well have you?”
“No,” he admitted.
“Oh Max.” He looked so forlorn that she came up to him and put an arm around his shoulders. “She loves you too, you know.”
“Then why doesn’t she ever say so?”
“Probably because she thinks you don’t mean it, but she was so upset at the thought of you having a mistress, that she couldn’t see straight to walk downstairs. If she didn’t love you, she wouldn’t care.”
“She loves me like a sister, I’ll admit-”
“Max, for God’s sake, just go and tell her what really happened that day.”
“She won’t believe me,” he said, sounding downhearted.
“You have to try. You can’t let her go on believing that you only married her for her money and
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