Chapter Thirty-One
Tick. Tick. Tick.
There was silence in the dining room at Gisborne Ghast. Edward sat between Guy and Marian found himself continuously staring at them and trying not to burst out laughing. They were really just like little children.
After the meeting that afternoon, Marian had explained to her father exactly what had happened and he had been torn between the urges to tell her off and hug her, he had found that he could multitask and do both at the same time.
He had tried to find Guy a little later to apologise to him about Marian's behaviour and to thank him for protecting his daughter. When he had found Guy, the latter had refused his thanks, claiming that he knew of no reason for them. However, as the older man had turned to leave he had asked, "Is she alright?"
"A little shaken up, but yes, I believe basically alright", Edward told him kindly.
"So, you will both be coming to my house for dinner tonight, as planned?" Guy asked, hesitantly.
"Um, yes I suppose so. To tell you truth, I was not sure that we would be welcome after Marian's … indiscretion", Edward explained.
"You are both always welcome in my home", Guy said, awkwardly.
With a smile, Edward clapped him on the shoulder, "Don't worry, if that is the case, she will be there". The level of tension that seemed to dissolve from Guy made Edward's heart go out to the poor boy, Marian would definitely be there that night.
Getting Marian to see that she must go had not been easy, she was ashamed of what she had done and did not want to face Guy. She had been ready to go and talk to him just after he had saved her, but the more time passed the more she felt that she simply could not do it. How was she supposed to look up at the man who had caught her spying on him, believed such terrible things about her, told her that he loved her and saved her?
"I don't know, but my girl, you are going to do it", her father had said and for once Marian did not dare disobey her father. She had the feeling that if she tried it he would drag her over there anyway, and more to the point, she knew that he was right; she did have to see Guy and thank him in person for what he had done for her.
Marian had fussed with her attire for much longer than normal that evening. She had never been so displeased with her appearance before. When she put her hair up, she looked too formal and old, when she put it down she looked too young. She finally settled for tying wisps of it back and did her makeup to match, but that her wardrobe was an even bigger problem. They only had five minutes before they had to go when her father came in to find her standing in her wardrobe staring at five different dresses.
"Go for the blue", he advised, "Guy will like it".
"Thanks", Marian mumbled and dashed into her bathroom to change. When she appeared a few moments later her father tried to give her a big smile, "My poor little poppet. You haven't had a very good day have you. I will ring Robin's neck for getting you mixed up in all this, but you will feel better once you have seen Guy. You know that he is not an ogre who is going to try to eat you up".
"I know", Marian said, sniffling a little.
Luckily, Marian managed to keep her composure as they went next door, although it felt as if it took an age. She was fairly certain that her legs had never moved that slowly, although judging by her father's pace, she was going no more slowly than usual.
They got threw the basics of handing over their coats to the waiting maid and being offered a drink whilst they waited for the master to come down and for dinner to be served.
Guy had appeared so soon after this that Edward was sure that he had been waiting for their arrival just around the corner, he had been fairly certain that he had heard a gasp as Marian took her coat off to reveal her blue dress.
The master of the house had been all pleasantries but had not spoken once directly to Marian, at first everything had been aimed at them both, but when Marian had not taken the opportunity to include herself in the conversation Guy had turned his conversation towards Edward while his eyes remained fixed on Marian, who in turn kept her gaze fixed on her glass of Ribena.
It was a relief when dinner was announced and they were seated, but he had been several minute now, the starter had not yet been served and there was still no conversation.
"I hear that you changed the name of this old place to Gisborne Ghast", Edward started conversationally.
"Yes, I wanted to honour my parents".
"I know, I was pleasantly surprised when Marian told me that you had been able to buy both houses and that this was the one that you had chosen to make your home. Far more scope for improvement here, fewer bad memories", Edward continued, hoping that Marian would jump in here.
"Those were exactly my thoughts", Guy admitted, although he did not add "and I thought that it would please your daughter".
"Quite, quite. I know that Marian was very taken with this house and your ideas about how to modernize it", Edward tried again, pleased to notice that Guy was now looking directly at Marian.
"You were?" He asked her.
Marian looked uncomfortable and did not look up, but answered, "You know that I was".
Guy raised his eyebrows, "I thought that I knew a lot about you, I have been proved wrong it would seem".
This got Marian's full attention. "If you ever thought that I was the kind to read what that monster … to read about the way in which people were being treated in that company and not do my best to find out what was going on then you were very much mistaken".
"That is what you were doing there? In my office, I mean. You were looking up whether what you read in the Sheriff's files on me was true?" He asked.
"I had to know", Marian said, raising her chin higher. "I thought that you were my friend, I wanted to help you if I could".
"I am your friend, you are the one who betrayed me, not the other way around", Guy growled.
"I did not betray you, I betrayed Vaisey", Marian shouted. "I went in there to prove that it was Vaisey that was ripping people off, not you! And then I read his file on you and I had to know, so I went into your office. I am sorry, I know that it wasn't the right thing to do, that I should have just gone to you and asked you but you wouldn't tell me the truth about Blake and I had to know. I know that that doesn't excuse it but …"
"I didn't lie to you about Blake".
"No, but you didn't tell me the truth either".
"You didn't tell me why you were really in my office", he pointed out.
"You didn't give me the chance", Marian retaliated.
"No, I was too busy saving your ass", Guy roared.
"Oh look, here comes the soup", Edward said, as the maids came in with the steaming bowls of liquid.
"I didn't need your help", Marian muttered under her breath, but judging by the thunderous look Guy was giving her, he had heard her perfectly.
There was silence once again as they eat their soup, until Guy seemed not to be able to take it any longer. "Okay, so how were you going to get out of jail?" He demanded.
"I would have thought of something", Marian sniped.
"Oh brilliant, well whilst you were thinking of something your father would have been out of work and worried. Or do you think that your precious Hood would have fixed that too?" Guy sneered.
Marian looked ashamed of herself, she had come to apologise, not to fight and she knew that she had put her father in danger but his comment about Robin was too much. "Oh, so that is what this is really all about? You are jealous of Robin. I don't love him, half of the time I don't even like him. Yes, I did what I did today partly to help him, but mostly because I hate to see the way that Vaisey treats you and I thought that if there was a way to get rid of him, then you would be free. I did it for you, because I love you, you great git! Although God only knows why".
"You love me?" Guy repeated, sounding shocked. He had dreamed of her saying those words, but never like this.
"Yes, sorry was that not the right way to tell you? Should I perhaps have locked you up in a room, scared and alone for hours on end and then told you that I loved you but that I was willing to let that all go because of one minor indiscretion?"
To his credit, Guy looked ashamed. Edward just looked interested.
"I was angry", Guy said.
"Yes, well so I am but I am not ready to give up on us", Marian retorted.
"Should I clear away the soup?" A maid was asking as the second course was being brought in. Guy did not seem able to answer, he was just staring at Marian.
"I should say so", Edward answered for him, "I'm ravenous, and I am sure that these two are as well." Then, trying to lighten the mood and make the maid look a little less scared, he added in stage whisper, "Missed their lunch and you know how children cranky children get when their feeding schedules are interrupted".
"I brought her food", Guy groused, "she just threw it all over the floor before trying to make me believe that she had escaped out of the window".
Edward raised an eyebrow.
"I never tried to make you think that I had escaped through the window, I just opened the window because I was too hot. What would make you think that I would climb out of a window and put myself in danger like that?" Marian demanded.
Now Guy raised an eye brow, and gestured with his head to Marian's father.
"Oh, well that was different".
"I take it that I am not meant to know anything about that", he continued cheerfully.
"Why did you try to run away?" Guy continued.
"Because I saw an opportunity and I wanted to get out of there, I had to see my Dad and tell him that I was okay but that I was going to need a lawyer", Marian said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"You could have used the phone in the office and he knew nothing about it, no one did", Guy shouted.
"Well how was I supposed to know that?" Marian shouted back.
"Because I would never have let anything happen to you!" He roared.
Once again there was silence.
"Have you noticed that it is all your favourite food?" Edward inquired, as he cut into his grilled vegetable frittata.
"Yes, I had", Marian admitted. More silence, and then she asked, she had to know. "Even after everything you said? Everything you thought that I had done? Everything I actually did?"
"Of course", Guy looked earnest.
"Hate to dine and dash, but I am going to take this into the kitchen, to be nearer the pudding. Seeing as you have saved her from incarceration today I am sure that I can trust you to get her home safe and sound", Marian's father excused himself, whispering as he passed Guy "Don't blow it!"
Guy took this advice to heart and moved around to Marian's side of the table and knelt in front of her, taking her hands in his.
"Marian, I was furious today. I admit it, I doubted you and everything you had done, but you were never in any real danger. I had instructed the fake policemen to ensure that you were cleared and that Harold got the blame – he has been embezzling so he had it coming anyway – when I was at my most angry. I never made the choice to save you, whatever I told myself at the time, there was never any other choice", he looked at their fingers laced.
Marian believed him. She took one of her hands from his and when he looked up at her with his sorrow filled eyes she brushed his hair gently.
"Without you my world might as well turn to ash. It all means nothing without you. There are things that I cannot tell you at the moment, for your own safety, but I swear to you that I will never lie to you and I swear on the memory of my parents that I will never betray you or your father", his voice cracked with emotion. "Whatever you tell me now, you will be safe. Do you love Hood, or is it true that you love me?"
"Please, say that it is me you love", Guy begged in his head, almost certain that she would still say Hood's name. If she did, that did not mean that she could not learn to love him.
"Oh Guy", Marian threw herself off her chair and into his arms, "Of course it is you that I love".