BY THE TIME AMELIA — with Edward beside her — went back inside, she was feeling far more rational about the situation at hand. No matter what her heart did every time she looked at Arthur now, theirs was a political arrangement. They had agreed on that from the start. And such arrangements required negotiation. This was merely a part of that.
She could hear voices coming from the room where she had left Charlie as soon as she turned the corner into the hallway. Edward immediately fell back a few paces.
“I didn’t write it,” Arthur’s voice came through the door. “And it’s to protect her at least as much — if not more — than me.”
“You could have chosen someone else,” Charlie retorted angrily.
Amelia stood outside the door, hand raised to knock. She wondered whether she should wait and con
