A Closed Heart Oster, Camille (ebooks that read to you .txt) đ
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âNo. Why would I have?â
Julius shrugged, thinking that there could have been the off chance that Jane had come to London to see Eliza. He didnât even have an address for her. Not that he would write. What would he say? What was there to say?
âIf you donât mind, Iâll send Atticus over to spend some time with your children. He does enjoy time with his cousins.â
âYou brought him to town?â Octavia said with surprise.
âI promised to show him the zoo.â
âWe could go together,â Octavia suggested.
His instinct was to fob the task onto Octavia, but that went against his intention to spend more time with his son. Going to the zoo wasnât something he wanted to do, but he was being accommodating. Although having Octavia there might make it easier to bear, or she would berate him the entire time. One never knew with her.
âWhy do we have such a combative relationship?â he asked.
âBecause we were both raised to be difficult people,â she replied, putting her teacup down. âPerhaps itâs in our nature.â
That was true. They had been raised to lead, to defend the family, and to never let themselves be taken advantage of. Perhaps that had had repercussions on the choices they made in their lives. It had also made them unbending in many ways, maybe even blind to finer feelings and compromises that smoothed things over.
âJane Brightly isnât the only woman in the world. Not to mention, as I said, entirely incongruent with your lifestyle. You should turn your attention elsewhere.â
Except he didnât want to. He wanted Janeâthe intimacy theyâd had. Truthfully, he couldnât think of opening himself up like he had to another person. It was Jane that inspired him. Except, sheâd never intended to stay, which now left him in a position of missing and craving her. Even with her absence he still held her close by carrying on conversations with an imaginary version of her. Then at night, he dreamt of her, to wake to the realization she was gone, and the only evidence of her ever being there were memories and a painting he struggled to look at.
It felt as if he couldnât breathe properly.
Chapter 28
THE STUFFY OFFICE OF HIS solicitors usually had a comforting air of somberness, but it felt uneasy today as Julius waited to conclude their business. The man had gone to retrieve some documents that had just arrived.
âWe are ready to proceed,â the solicitor said. âIt should be a relatively straight forward procedure as your wife isnât contesting it, and her adultery is well known. A divorce trial is never an easy thing. The public tends to take great interest. The scrutiny can be difficult to bear, even as the change in marital law has made the process easier in most senses. For that reason, it would be advisable to schedule the trial during the summer.â
âNo, I want it done as soon as possible.â
Mr. Carter gave him an assessing look. âWe can file earlier, of course. My understanding is that Lady Hennington will not be attending the trial at all. Unfortunately, the date of the trial will need to be communicated with her, allowing for sufficient time for her to attend, if she should so wish.â
âIf that is necessary.â
âLegally, it is. A divorce proceeding can be contested on that very point. Which also lends itself toward a summer court date.â
With a sigh, Julius resigned himself. It wasnât what he wanted. Ideally, he wished to snap his fingers and this divorce would already be in place, and improvements withstanding, it was still a cumbersome process. âFine,â he relented. This also meant he had to come back during the summer, which he absolutely didnât want to do, but this simply needed to be born.
âI will confer with Lady Henningtonâs solicitor. He may have instructions that can allow us to proceed sooner. It is, of course, easier when both parties wish to proceed. The issue of support can be contentious.â
âGive her whatever is reasonable to make this happen.â Having to support her while she lived in another manâs house grated, but at this point, there wasnât much point thinking what was right and just. It was better to do whatever was necessary to conclude this. Cressida and her character were her own business.
âI will attempt to make that support as little as possible,â the man said. It seemed he took the quest personally.
âExpediency is more important to me.â
âIf you donât mind me saying so, expediency hasnât been one of your requirements so far. I take it that your circumstances have changed?â
In actuality, they hadnât, but something had changed. Jane had changed things.
âYou have your instruction,â Julius said and rose from his chair. This was business he didnât like dealing with, so whatever he could do to get this over with quickly, he would, but he didnât have control over the courts. Still, Mr. Carter suggested that due to his wife deserting him entirely to live with her paramour, the case wouldnât be difficult to proveâeven more so if she chose not to attend.
Although he didnât actually know his wife well, he knew her well enough to understand she preferred to ignore unpleasantries entirely, and this would definitely be unpleasant. Something unfortunate to sweep under the carpet.
Saying a quick goodbye, he left his solicitorâs office and returned to the carriage waiting for him down on the street. Hopefully this would happen with all expediency possible. The streets passed by with their constant activity, seeping into the stillness inside the carriage. Again he wondered what Jane was doing. Maybe Eliza would know.
*
âThere you are,â Eliza said, standing at the entrance to the zoo at Regentâs Park. She looked bright and excited on
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