THE DISAGREEABLE DUCHESS

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

"Annabel," Colin was surprised to see her. "What are you doing here? Are you alright?"

"I've received a letter from America yesterday," she said. "Papa passed away."

Seven years ago, Marco Wentworth, Annabel's father was an influential man. Being a viscount, he kept his reputation clean, as well as his family's. He refused the young lover's love that he had arranged for Annabel to marry an Earl with a reputation for being a rake and even threatened Colin's life once. The man had power and influence as a viscount, but now he's passed. He can never threaten a soul anymore. He can never hinder to what was once a forbidden love.

"I'm sorry," Colin tried to console Annabel's grief. "Marco was a great man, he will be missed."

"No," Annabel objected to his words. "You and I both know that Papa was a ruthless man, he was cold, even to us, his own family. All he ever cared about was his reputation."

He approached Annabel who was shaking in rage to her father. "You shouldn't be like that, he is your father even if he wasn't affectionate about it." He tried to put some sense into her system. "You loved him once though."

"I never stopped loving him, Colin." Annabel hugged him, sobbing in his hold. "Never have I once lost the will to love my father, I never gave up. That's the reason why I gave you up, Colin. I wanted him pleased, I wanted to show that he can be proud of me. To show him that I wasn't a bother. I left because I love him, and I didn't want to hurt him."

"Do you think that I didn't hurt? Annabel, I lived in misery when you left me." Said Colin. "I was as good as dead."

"Then, do you still love me, Colin?" She asked, looking right through his eyes.

"I never stopped." He honestly replied. "I love you Annabel, it's just that..."

"Just what?"

"I love Olivia more." He gently pushed her away. "If you're in need of a friend, I'll always be here for you, Anna. But that's to the extent of what I can offer you now."

"I understand." She nodded in agreement. "I just thought that you were using her to forget me..."

"What?" He asked, quite surprised. "Annabel, I love Olivia. I care for her and our unborn child."

"I know that, it's just that maybe..."

"No, I'm sorry." Colin returned to his desk. "You can always count on me and you know that, but right now Annabel, I need you to leave. I have patients waiting outside."

"I'm sorry." Annabel apologized. "Maybe I should return when you're not busy."

"You should." Colin replied coldly. "Goodbye, Annabel."

"Goodbye." Annabel opened the door and stepped outside.

Not even a minute after Annabel left, Colin heard another knock coming from the outside. "Come in." He said.

"Colin, can you spare me a minute?" Asked Matthew.

"Of course, what is it?"

"We were astounded to see your wife, she's very beautiful, Colin." Said Matthew. "I thought she was an angel."

Colin was yet again surprised. "She's not my wife, Matthew. You're mistaken." He tried to correct a misunderstanding. "She's an old friend who was visiting from America."

"I see... Is she married?" Matthew straight-forwardly asked.

"No, but she was engaged once, long ago..."

Annabel wanted to faint in shame as he was exiting the building where Colin has been working. She thought that he would console her for her loss, she thought that he would be by her side, but she was mistaken. Her eyes were swollen and red, so she kept her head down the whole time.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, bumping into someone. "It was my fault." She admitted.

"Annabel," surprised that the person knew her, she looked up to see Olivia dressed in a pale blue gown with a basket of food, alone without a chaperon to escort her. "What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I was visiting Colin, how about you? Are you feeling better?" She asked, trying to look away.

"Much better, I thought of surprising Colin with lunch..."

"I see, but is it alright if I steal you away for a quick walk to the park?"

Olivia looked inside the clinic, seeing if Colin was outside as well. "Why not?"

"So, Annabel, what do you want to talk about?" Asked Olivia, walking beside Annabel with a basket full of food.

"Do you love him?" Annabel asked back.

"Who?"

"Colin." Said Annabel, looking at Olivia curiously. "Do you love Colin?"

"What? Of course I do." Olivia honestly answered. "Why do you ask?"

"Nothing, I was just curious." Replied Annabel. "Has Colin told you about me? Or has he mentioned from which part of his past did I come from?"

"No, I don't think I have the right to ask..."

"But your his wife..." Olivia cut her off quickly.

"And that's his choice, Ms Wentworth." Olivia raised the tone of her voice at the statement. "If he doesn't want to tell me, then fine, but I do not intend to meddle with what's his."

Annabel suddenly stopped talking, she stopped walking as well. When Olivia noticed that she was no longer beside her, she turned to see Annabel watching her and re-approached her. "Colin and I," Annabel said quietly. "We love each other."

"You love each other? Do you still love him?" Olivia asked.

"Yes, that's the reason I came back to London." Annabel looked around to see a bench nearby and sat down, patting the space next to her, offering Olivia the spot. "We grew up together, we were friends. Then we developed feelings for one another. We loved each other, purely so that Colin and I rebelled against my father who at the time refused to give us his blessings, and he forced me to accept an Earl's proposal instead. But I turned the Earl down that my father was furious with rage, he threatened to kill Colin, so I ran away... I ran to Colin who suggested that we go to Gretna Green in Scotland, but my father caught as escaping the country...." Olivia sensed the fear in Annabel's voice, she saw regret in remembering the events that day. "I saw him, Olivia, how mad he was. He brought a gun with him and threatened to kill Colin once more, but this time it was for real, and he gave me an offer, an offer that would spare his life. He asked that I come to America with him to start a new life, that's it. It was my decision to either take the offer and leave immediately, or leave the offer with a corpse by my side. I knew my father, he wouldn't hesitate to kill him, so I agreed to go with him. Colin begged me to stay, he wanted to fight for us, but I couldn't bare to see him killed because of me." Annabel was already on the verge of tearing. "So I left... I left with the thought of one day returning for him, and here I am seven years later." She said, smiling at Olivia.

"Why are you telling me this?" Asked Olivia.

"I'm going to be honest with you Olivia," Annabel gave her an evil smirk. "I want you gone."