The Possessive Lord's Contract Wife

"Why am I a fool? Am I to keep chasing after a man who cares so much for Eloise that he married her overnight? We must admit that I was never going to succeed in getting his attention," Iris said, yearning to move on.

"So you think what she did was right?" Agatha asked, starting to lose faith in Iris.

"No," Iris shook her head. "I would have liked for her to speak to me before she appeared at his side. If she told me that she had loved him all along, I would have stopped speaking about him and rooted for them. I am upset only by the manner in which she did it."

"I fear I cannot get through to our child, Clive. She does not see all the problems Eloise has created for this family, and how Eloise might have ruined her season. What do you think of Eloise accusing your father of murder? He could be arrested," said Agatha.

Iris frowned, puzzled as to why her father would be arrested. "Wouldn’t he only be arrested if there was evidence he killed Uncle Thomas?"

"W-Well," Clive stuttered.

"Eloise is now married to a very powerful man. It would be easy for Lord Hawthorne to pin this on your father. You know how much your father loved his brother. We know she is mourning, but it isn’t right to throw out these accusations," Agatha said, saving Clive from making a fool of himself.

"I find the accusations to be odd, but this doesn’t feel right. Eloise was well before we went to the ball. She had been excited to see her father-"

"Iris!" Agatha raised her voice. "It is time to stop speaking about this matter. You are upsetting your father."

Iris looked to her father. His face was pale, and it appeared as though he wasn’t getting enough sleep.

Iris didn’t mean to upset her father, but now that she had time to think, none of this was making any sense.

"Father, how long has Thomas been dead?" Iris asked, an unsettling feeling starting to form.

Agatha set down her fork. "Iris," she said in a warning tone.

"No, I must know. How long has he been dead, father? If you answer me, I won’t question you any further," said Iris.

"Was Uncle Thomas dead before we went to the ball?" Iris asked and avoided her mother’s heated gaze. "Please be honest with me, father. I have always trusted every word you spoke without doubt."

Clive glanced at Agatha. She shook her head, not wanting him to speak, but he could not.

"He was dead before the ball. I did not want to spoil your night," Clive explained, hoping this would satisfy Iris.

"I see. Were you going to plan a funeral for him after the ball?" Iris asked, remaining calm to not draw suspicion.

"I was considering it, but in my emotional state, I had his body burned. The vase is no longer in his home, so Eloise must have found it and taken it with her. I intended to sit her down and tell her after the ball," Clive promised.

Iris took a deep breath.

"Had the two of you not plotted behind our backs, we would not be in this predicament. You would have had your dance with the gentlemen there and be expecting suitors this morning. It is partially my fault for welcoming her into our home," Agatha ranted.

Iris stayed silent, letting her mother rant.

’She found him,’ Iris thought.

Iris knew it had to be heartbreaking for Eloise to find her father’s ashes. All this time, Eloise had been looking forward to seeing her father while not having the slightest clue that Thomas was dead.

It was unfair to Eloise.

’We should have missed the ball,’ Iris thought.

What sense did it make to ignore a death in the family to attend a ball?

There were going to be more balls throughout the season.

Iris dug her nails into her arm as she tried not to let her emotions show.

"Father, have you reconsidered letting Eloise have her father’s home? Surely, Uncle Thomas left it to her," said Iris.

Iris needed Clive to have a good answer.

The only good answer was to give Eloise the home she loved so dearly.

"That home will go to your father. It is the only reasonable answer. I will go today to look through what is there and get rid of what is not needed. We can sell some of it, and what is important will come here," said Agatha.

"Mother!" Iris whined, put off by her mother’s plans. "You cannot get rid of what is there. Eloise’s belongings are there. Her parents’ belongings are there, and their memories. To sell their memories would only push Eloise further away from us."

Clive tried to reach for Iris’s hand. "Iris, we must take care of the home."

"Would it not be best to keep the warmth there a little longer? For Eloise to enjoy the feeling as though her father is still there?" Iris argued.

"Enough!" Agatha yelled, slamming her hand on the table. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Iris leaned back on her chair as the table shook. "If it were my father, I would be against moving around his belongings. I would hate anyone who tries to sell them."

"Eloise hasn’t made the best decisions as of late, and I understand you are upset with the accusations, but you two are older. You are the ones who have to push your emotions to the side and act in a sensible manner. She has lost her last living parent," Iris reminded Clive.

Iris took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "I think we have all handled this wrong. Wouldn’t you agree, father? There is some grace to be given to Eloise since she has lost her dear father."

"She took Damien from you," said Agatha.

"I only ever loved him from afar. He never noticed me, and truly, I have cried more at the thought of losing Eloise. She is more dear to me than every gentleman in town, and now, I am starting to understand her," Iris confessed.

"Go to your room," Agatha said, pointing to where Iris was to go.

Iris stood up, welcoming the chance to be alone so she could think. "Father, I hope that you speak the truth that you did not kill my uncle. I hope not to be blindsided by evidence in the future because I have always trusted you. I have always thought of you as an honest man."

Iris noticed her father’s hesitation to look her in the eye. It pained her that there was truth to the allegations. Her father wasn’t a saint.

Iris walked away before her tears could show. She desperately needed to speak to Eloise.