“Yes, I gathered,” he replied, pleased that he did not feel the least bit uncomfortable under her stare, unless one counted the slight twinge in the smallest toe on his right foot. “But there was no question associated with it, so how was I to reply?”

The sound she made was delightfully guttural for being so high in pitch. Rather like a snarling canary, really.

“You are impossible,” Adelaide snapped.

“So I have been told.” Harrison nodded without concern. “Is there something I can help you with, Lady Basset?”

Her upper lip twitched as though she would actually snarl at him. “Yes, as it happens. I would like to know why your sister is not on the list of guests for our party.”

Harrison’s brow snapped together. “She is. I am certain of it.”

Adelaide waved the guest list pointedly in the air. “No, Basset, she is not! There is no Miss Basset anywhere on your list! I recognize she must be allowing us time to ourselves in Trevadden after the wedding, but at some point, she will return here to her home, and as far as I am concerned, that could be now. Surely our party would be the perfect time to welcome her back, and yet she is not on this list! Have you two fought?”

It was not immediately evident to him what his wife was talking about, but after a moment’s replaying of her rant, it became abundantly clear. He had yet to inform Adelaide of the nature of his relationship with Emblyn, or of her birth, or of their arrangements. And it would appear that now he must do so.

He prayed the walls of Trevadden might withstand the fallout.

“No,” Harrison told her with a slow exhale, the muscles of his back beginning to tense in apprehension. “We have not fought. And yes, she is on the list. Her name is Emblyn Moyle. Not Basset.”

Adelaide blinked, the corners of her mouth pinching. “Why is her surname not Basset?”

Harrison rested his elbow on his desk, gesturing faintly with his fingers. “Her mother is not my mother.”

“Which does not explain the differing surnames,” Adelaide said, narrowing her eyes. “Unless…”

There was nothing to do but wait for the connections to be made.Harrison smiled very tightly as he waited.

His wife’s eyes widened to an almost alarming degree. “Basset, is your sister illegitimate?” she asked in a hushed voice, as though someone in the house might not be aware of it. “Your half-sister… your father’s daughter… your—”