An Earl’s Broken Heart by Ella Edon

Chapter Eleven

The letter Alexander sent to Isabel was enough proof that their marriage would be a disaster. She could not count how many times she had read it, but it soon began to replay in her head.

Isabel,

I shan't be a part of the wedding preparations as I have businesses to tend as the newly appointed Earl. The weight of my workload grants me no freedom to be a part of anything else. Inform me of the wedding progressions once all is done.

Alexander

The letter had been so sharp and cold. He had showed no emotion in it. He had not even bothered to acknowledge her properly. Worse was the content of the letter. He wished to not be a part of the wedding preparations in any way. All he wanted was to be informed after everything was settled. Before that letter had arrived, Isabel had nursed hope that she and Alexander could be a proper couple, that they could find their way back to each other again. But it was apparent that he did not even want that. She could not believe that her second marriage was about to be a disaster just like the first one had been. With her, everything found just the right way to be a mess.

Surely, she had not been fooling herself when she had been thinking about the situation in a positive light. The signs that Alexander still cared for her had been there. It had all been there. Isabel shook her head angrily. She wondered why he was treating her like this even after her effort to make things right. She had thought that speaking to him would change things, but it only made everything worse.

She knew that not showing up as they had planned had angered him, but she had made efforts to set everything right. She had spent the seven years regretting what she had done. She wished he could see just how remorseful she was and forgive her. Her marriage to Lord Barnes had been consequence for what she had done. If only Alexander knew, maybe he would understand that she had no choice back then.

She was aggravated by the occurrences in her life. Another added problem was her father. He still bore his hate from years ago. Her conversation with him the day before had not gone well. He had been angry, and he did not fail to express it. But Isabel was no longer that little girl who was weak and could not fight for herself. She had let her father know this.

"Lord Carter and I shall be wed and that is final, Father," she had snapped.

"I still cannot believe you shall be wed to that man, even after all these years. I avoidedthis occurrence in the past. You know this. Look at the life you have now. Look at all you acquired just by being wed to Viscount Barnes. You have me to thank for that!" her father barked.

She had nearly laughed at the irony. Her father thought that he had given her a good life, whereas her life was terrible. If not for Elizabeth, Isabel was certain she would have lost herself a long time ago. Many times, she had sunk into depression and had been at the risk of taking her own life, but with Elizabeth by her side, she had persevered.

Her father had been the reason she suffered years of abuse and had no escape. Although she wished many a time to tell him of the damage he had done to her, she did not. She did not know why, but her heart could never bring her to do it.

She barely even saw her father as the years passed. She did go on to visit him on rare occasions, but that was when her husband needed her father for something business related. Isabel had served as a medium, nothing more. She had known right from the start that the reason her father had married her off to Phillip was so he could form a strong alliance with him. Wealth mattered to her father more than his own family.

"I did not come here to tell you because I needed your opinion," she had said coldly. "I only wish for you to be aware."

Their conversation had ended there. Isabel had left after that, not wanting to be agitated any further. Perhaps she should have let her father's harsh words about Alexander get to her. The letter she got from him would have been more bearable with the memory of her father's words.

Isabel's attention was soon called by the appearance of Mr. Simon. He walked through the threshold and bowed before her. "My Lady, Lady Hampton is here to see you."

"Let her in," Isabel said quickly. She could not be happier that her sister had come to visit her. She was desperately in need of her sister's presence. She needed someone to speak to and the only person she could trust was Elizabeth.

No sooner had Mr. Wilson walked out than had her sister walked in. She bore a broad smile. Isabel rose to embrace her sister. Elizabeth held on to her tenderly.

"How do you feel today?" Elizabeth asked, still smiling.

Isabel knew her sister always wanted to make light of even the darkest situations. And if she had not received that letter from Alexander, perhaps she might have let herself be affected. But she had.

When she revealed to Elizabeth that she would be getting married to Alexander, she had been excited, thrilled, and had made confessions of how she had hoped that that would happen since his return. Just not under pressure and fear of rumors that were already spreading. Irrespective of the situation, Elizabeth was quick to give Isabel some encouragement and this did not surprise Isabel. Her sister had always been her light. "I am certain that Alexander would be no abuser as Phillip was."

Isabel had agreed in her heart, but somehow, she felt that marriage to Alexander would be more painful because she was well aware of what she was missing when it came to him. With Phillip, her late husband, she already expected the worst. With Alexander, she faced the prospect of an eternal cycle of hope and despair.

"Have you heard any news?" Isabel asked. She wanted to know just how much rumor had spread.

"None at the moment, but Lady Greyweather was quite... herself at the tea party I attended yesterday. She asked of you." Elizabeth revealed.

"Alice is taking her time. She wants to know just when to give the information she has. Perhaps when she has to trade something for something, she would make use of it.” Isabel said.

She knew Lady Greyweather too well. Their husbands had been in business once and it was during those moments that they became acquainted. Isabel never considered her a friend. Alice was ruthless and she did not hesitate to betray anyone.

"Well, let us leave that aside. Has Alexander sent word? What are his plans and preparations on his end?"

Isabel scoffed and took a seat. Elizabeth settled beside her, brows creased. "What is wrong?"

Isabel sighed. "Alexander sent me a letter. He wants no part of the preparations."

Elizabeth sucked in a breath. Isabel nodded and went on. "Alexander does not believe in this marriage. He despises me for it."

A lot of thoughts began to form in Isabel's mind. This was her second marriage, and she was supposed to be happy about it. She was supposed to carefully choose the man she wanted to be wed with. After the terrible marriage to Lord Barnes, she had promised herself that she would do better, when and if she wanted to be wed for a second time. But to her detriment, it seemed, she was doing the same thing again. Her eyes welled up and all she wanted to do was cry and feel the impact of what she had caused.

"Sister." Elizabeth called, saving her from her overthinking, but not from the effects. A tear slid down her cheek. Her shoulders sagged and she sniffled.

Elizabeth pulled her close and held her. "Do not cry, Isabel. Please..."

Isabel pulled away and dabbed the side of her eyes. She needed to express herself. She began. "My wedding to Lord Barnes was unhappy. I did not love him, and I was terrified of the future we would have together. Everything was the exact opposite of what I expected my marriage would be, Elizabeth. There was no love, no friendship, no connection, nothing. Just a cold man who saw me as a means to an end. Phillip never wanted to be wed. He wanted an heir and when I could give none, he despised me." She breathed out. "When he passed, I promised myself that if I were to be wed again, I would do better. I would fall in love, and I would make sure that I am happy," she cried. Her sobs clouded her words so she waited a bit to catch her breath. Elizabeth reached out and took her hand in hers. She squeezed it. Isabel went on.

"I wanted to do it right this time." Isabel breathed. "I hoped that I would. But now with Alexander, I know that nothing would get better. He loathes me and would do anything to be as far away from me as possible."

"Oh, Isabel." Elizabeth moved in and embraced her. "That man has scarred you and now you see no hope in anything! "

Isabel cried now. She let her tears overflow. She let herself be vulnerable.

Elizabeth whispered to her ears the same way she used to when Isabel was younger and she could not sleep. "Everything would be alright, Belle. Everything would be alright. Alexander is a good man, and he would not be like Phillip. He will do right by you. You had loved each other once, very deeply if I might add. Do you not think that those feelings can be reignited?"

Isabel pulled away from her sister and creased her brows. "What do you mean?"

Elizabeth smiled and said, "I think you should just show Alexander how truly sorry you are and make him understand that you had no choice. If there shall be no love between you both, there should at least be friendship."

Isabel had never thought of it that way. She had always aimed for being cordial with Alexander once he forgave her. With the marriage added, she might have been thinking quite farther than friendship but Elizabeth was right. The best thing to do was to try to be friends with Alexander first. She looked at her sister and smiled a bit. "Thank you. I shall do just that."

Elizabeth grinned. "Now put on a smile. We have a wedding to plan."

Isabel could not help but do so. Elizabeth's happiness had always been infectious, and Isabel was happy to feel some. The wedding preparations became a good distraction for Isabel. Despite the circumstance surrounding the wedding, she began to invest her time to putting everything together. Elizabeth picked out the decoration for the carriage they were to take and asked that Isabel made a note of what she would like to be served for her wedding breakfast which would take place at Carter Manor.

Elizabeth was Isabel's pillar throughout the planning process. With Elizabeth by her side, Isabel made light of the situation. And although a part of her kept wishing that Alexander would eventually send her a letter asking her how she was and expressing that he wished to be let in on the plans, he never did. Her hope crushed each time. For this reason, her nervousness grew with each passing day that brought her closer to her wedding.