That was probably true. But how could anyone prove that?
Tad patted his shoulder. “Get rid of Stephen. Whether it be marriage or sending him out of London, find a way to get rid of him so that you can be the kind of husband you want to be.” He glanced over at Lord Worsley, who was passing by the door on his way to another room. “Do you want to join me and a couple of gentlemen for a game? We plan to discuss a possible investment afterwards.”
Brad glanced at his pocket watch. It was almost three. He couldn’t believe he’d been at White’s for most of the day. Had he really been sulking in misery for the past six hours?
Tad was right. He needed to get a handle on things because if he didn’t, he was going to end up living here. It was bad enough Stephen had managed to spoil so many things for him. He didn’t need Stephen to run him out of his own townhouse because he didn’t know how to handle things with Ava.
“No,” Brad replied as he stood up. “I need to get home.” And deal with Stephen. The sooner he did so, the better.
“If you ever need someone to talk to, you can talk to me,” Tad offered.
“Thanks.”
While he appreciated the offer, there were some things Brad would rather do alone, and managing things with his brother was one of them. Before he could follow the book’s advice, he had to get Stephen out of the way. Trying to do anything productive with Ava wasn’t going to happen as long as his brother was around to put doubts in his mind. He’d already avoided Ava for two days. The longer he put off consummating their marriage, the harder it was going to be.
With a newfound sense of purpose, Brad left White’s. He was going to find a way to get rid of his brother for the night so that he could spend some time alone with Ava. He’d figure out what to do with Stephen on a permanent basis later. For tonight, he was going to send Stephen out of the townhouse.
***
Upon returning to his townhouse, Brad learned that Ava wasn’t there. “Will she be here for dinner?” he asked the footman.
The footman nodded. “She promised to be back before dinner.”
Dinner wouldn’t be until six. If she came home in enough time before then, they would have time to talk. The book had insisted that the most important thing a gentleman could do was talk to his wife. Lovemaking, it had read, means very little to a lady unless her husband sincerely cares for her, and the only way a gentleman can care for her is by getting to know her. Since Tad promised that the book’s advice was sound, Brad had high hopes that spending time talking with Ava would be the best thing he could do. And, quite frankly, he was relieved. He could manage a conversation much easier than he could manage pleasing a lady in bed. Perhaps if they got along this evening, she would be inclined to overlook his lack of experience.
First, he had to get rid of Stephen for the evening. “Is my brother here?”
“Yes, my lord,” the footman replied. “He’s in the den.”
The den? Brad frowned. That was supposed to be the one room, besides his bedchamber, that was only for him. He hurried to the den, afraid of what Stephen might be doing there. Was Stephen rearranging his books? Was he going through his drawers where Brad kept all of his business investment information in careful order?
As it turned out, Brad found Stephen lounging at the chair, feet plopped up on Brad’s desk as he read through Brad’s ledger.
“What are you doing in here?” Brad snapped as he rushed over to him.
Stephen glanced up from the ledger. “Why do you act like you have no money? You have much more than most gentlemen I’ve talked to.”
Brad grabbed the ledger and studied it to make sure Stephen hadn’t added or deleted anything. When he was assured that everything was as it should be, he closed the ledger and placed it under his arm. “I will be poor if you manage to spend all of my money.” He glanced around for the key which he used for the thin box he kept the ledger in. “Where is the key?” he asked when he couldn’t find it.
Stephen shrugged. “How would I know?”
“You got into the box that I had my ledger locked in.”
Stephen looked over at the box that was on the desk. “I didn’t unlock it with a key. I removed the lock myself.”
“You did what?!”
“There’s no need to yell.” Shaking his head, he put his feet on the floor. “It wasn’t easy, but I managed to use a couple of tools to remove the lock.”
Brad took a closer look at his box, and sure enough, the lock had been removed. By the looks of it, the entire lock was ruined. He was going to have to buy a new box.
“I have every right to know if there’s really money available or not,” Stephen said, taking on the self-righteous tone that Brad had come to expect from him.
Brad was ready to argue back when he realized it was pointless to do so. Stephen would never admit he was wrong. He never thought he was wrong about anything. All arguing ever did was make Brad more frustrated. This evening, he didn’t want to be frustrated. He wanted to be as relaxed as possible so that he could be good company for Ava.
“We’re going to put this particular discussion aside,” Brad said. “Instead, we’re going to talk about this evening. I want you to leave this townhouse, and I don’t want you to come back until well past midnight.” He took a deep breath then forced out, “How much is it going to take for you to do that?”
Stephen smirked. “Afraid that Ava is falling in love with me?”
Brad blinked in surprise. “No.” Ava would have to be daft to do that. Ava was an intelligent lady. If she was going to fall in love with someone, it would have to be someone who didn’t act like a spoiled five-year-old. “I don’t want you around because you annoy me. How much is it going to take to get you out of here for the next twelve hours?”
Stephen put his fingers under his chin as he gave the matter serious thought. “Hmm… You seem determined to have me gone.”
Brad hid his exasperation. Why was his brother doing this to him? He already had a number in his mind. Why didn’t he just come out and say it?
“I suppose I could manage to be gone for that long if you gave me five shillings,” Stephen finally said.
“Five shillings?” Brad nearly yelled. “That’s an absurd amount of money for one evening.” He paused. “I’ll give you one shilling.”
He stood up and shook his head. “I’m going to need more than that if you expect me to be gone for the next twelve hours.”
“You could get by very well with one shilling.”
“Sure, I can…if I don’t want to have a good time. But I want to enjoy myself.”
“You can enjoy yourself with one shilling.”
“No, I can’t. You could probably spend all day sitting in a room and not get bored, but I require a lot of activity in order to be entertained.” When Brad gritted his teeth, he added, “If I don’t get five shillings, I’m staying here, and if I’m here, I’m going to delight Ava with my company.”
“Fine. I’ll let you have two shillings.”
Stephen thought it over. “Make it two and a half shillings, and you have a deal. The half shilling will guarantee that I won’t make it back here at midnight.”
With a groan, Brad nodded. “All right. Two and a half shillings it is. I’ll go to my bedchamber and bring the money back down.” He almost told his brother to stay in the room but thought better of it. “I’ll meet you in the drawing room.”
Relieved when he saw his brother leave for the drawing room, Brad hurried up to his bedchamber. After hiding his ledger, he retrieved two and a half shillings then paid his brother to leave.
Chapter Sixteen
When Ava arrived at the townhouse, the carriage driver followed her, carrying the box that contained the new gown she had just purchased. It had taken her longer to select something, mainly because she wanted to make sure she picked out something that would complement her as well as what she’d bought yesterday without paying more for it. Given Stephen’s warning about how frugal Brad was, she
didn’t dare risk spending more than she had yesterday.
Her hope was that she might be able to sneak the gown into the townhouse without Brad noticing. She knew she had to tell him about the expenditure since he would get the bill soon, but she was hoping to put it off until she could tell him she was a member of Ladies of Grace. Only then could she explain that the expense would soon pay for itself.
After she walked through the entryway, she turned to the carriage driver, ready to instruct him to take the box up to her bedchamber. But before she could even get the first word out, she heard someone call out to her. Her eyes grew wide, and she whirled around in time to see Brad heading in her direction.
Oh dear. At once, her hopes plummeted. She couldn’t hide the gown now. To think of all the times she hadn’t seen Brad in this townhouse, this would be the one time she did. She wanted to jump in front of the driver so she could block his view of the box, but doing so would only make her look guilty.
Brad headed over to her, and, just as she feared, his gaze went right to the box. “Did you have a good shopping day?”
Her gaze went to the box. “Oh, well…”
She glanced back at him. He was smiling. She wasn’t sure what to make of it. It seemed like a pleasant smile, but was he really happy to find out she’d spent more of his money?
He gestured to the driver to give the box to the butler. “Take that to Lady Youngtown’s bedchamber.”
As the driver handed the butler the box, Brad returned his attention to her. “We should discuss this in private.”
She tried not to let her apprehension show as he took her by the arm and led her to the drawing room. Well, she supposed it was nice that he didn’t want to embarrass her by criticizing her in front of the servants. But when they reached the drawing room, he didn’t close the doors. He brought her to the settee and sat next to her.
Before he could say anything, she blurted out, “I’m done shopping for the month.” If she remembered correctly, Miss Wilmington had told her Lady Eloise only had her social gatherings once a month, and she had no reason to buy another gown before then.
“I’m not upset that you got another gown,” Brad assured her.
Surprised since he and Stephen had had such a heated argument about money yesterday, she studied him. “You’re not?”
“No. Shortly before you came home, the maid asked me when your aunt would be sending the rest of your things here.”
“She won’t because everything I have is already here.”
“That’s what I thought. I hope you don’t mind, but I took the liberty of going to your bedchamber and looking at your armoire. Your gowns only take up one-third of the space inside it.”
“My aunt has to be careful with her money. Some of it has been allocated to me, my brother, and my sister, but she has to live on it, too. My family is not as well off as some.”
“Yes, you explained that, but I didn’t realize you had so little to wear. I would have allowed you to buy enough gowns to fill up your armoire. You should get more gowns. Get some slippers, bonnets, and other things while you’re at it.”
“I don’t know. Stephen made it clear that you don’t like to spend money, and during dinner last night, I got the impression you weren’t happy with the spending he and Loretta did.”
He rolled his eyes. “If only you understood how much they spent, you would understand why I was so upset. Loretta did get better about her spending over time, but Stephen never did. For instance, this evening Stephen needed two and a half shillings to go out.” He shot her a pointed look. “That’s just for one evening.”
“One evening?” she asked in disbelief. Surely, he’d misspoken.
“One evening. Right before I met you, I was giving him twenty shillings a month.”
“Twenty shillings?” And every single month? Now she could appreciate why Brad was frustrated with his brother. That much money every month should have been more than enough to make him happy.
“The problem with Stephen is that he never appreciates what he has. No matter how much he gets, he wants more. And he can’t keep any of it. As soon as he gets it, it’s gone. This has been going on for two years, and I finally decided I’d had enough. He’s upset with me because I stopped giving him his allowance.”
“I applaud you for doing that. If he’s going to spend all of that money every month, you can’t afford to keep giving it to him. My family never had much money, but at one time, my aunt had a generous dowry that went to my uncle upon their marriage. My uncle was a duke, and he was looking for money. He married her because of it, but they fell in love. My aunt was good at managing money, but my uncle wasn’t. He wasn’t as wasteful as Stephen, but he did go through a lot of the money she provided him. After his death, she’s been careful with everything he left. She spends more on me, Timothy, and Dinah than she does on herself, but she still tries to be careful about it. That’s why she asks if she can get an item for less than what the original cost is. It helps her hold onto the money she still has.”
“Did your aunt take you, Timothy, and Dinah in because your parents died?” he asked.
“Yes. Growing up, I lived in the country. There was one winter that was particularly harsh. Both of my parents took ill and never recovered.”
“I wouldn’t have guessed that your family wasn’t doing as well as other families in London. The gowns I’ve seen you in speak of wealth and affluence.”
“That’s because we don’t want anyone to know the truth about our situation. It’s hard enough for a lady to secure a betrothal in her first Season even with money.” So that he wouldn’t misunderstand her motivation for wanting to be with him, she added, “It was important to me that I be with someone I wanted. There’s no denying that money makes things easier, but my hopes were more aligned with marrying someone I could have a good relationship with. My mother and father didn’t have much in terms of physical things, but they loved each other very much. Growing up, I never felt like I lacked anything important.”
“I can understand that,” he replied. “My parents loved each other, too.”
“They did?”
He smiled in a wistful way. “They were happy. Genuinely happy. You don’t see many couples in London who are genuinely happy. On the surface, it seems as if everything is pleasant, but despite their smiles and laughter, they’re really miserable.”
Ava had been so busy worrying about how she looked and how she conducted herself in public that she hadn’t paid attention to the way couples were acting. She knew that Opal and Lord Steinbeck both enjoyed good marriages. She had just taken it for granted that other couples enjoyed them, too.
“I’m surprised to hear that more couples don’t enjoy their marriages,” she told Brad. “I’ve been more sheltered than I realized.”
“Being sheltered isn’t a bad thing. I wish that Stephen was more sheltered. As soon as he started getting an allowance, he’s sought every bit of pleasure that London has to offer. Those pleasures are fleeting and empty. They don’t last, and they don’t satisfy. I’m afraid it’s changed him for the worse. Believe it or not, there was a time when he and I actually got along. He wasn’t always caught up in his own selfish pleasures. He used to have a good heart.”
Detecting the self-condemnation in his voice, Ava asked, “Do you blame yourself for the way he is now?”
“If you were in my position, wouldn’t you?”
She thought over his question, and maybe if she was in his position, she would. After all, it was difficult to be objective when a person was directly involved in something. But, since she wasn’t involved, she could see things better than he did.
“I probably would,” she admitted. “I’m not you, though, so I can tell that you’re not to blame for the way he is. Everyone has to make their own choices. All you did was give him an allowance. You didn’t make him go out and seek those fruitless pleasures. He did all of that on his own. I know it’s hard to accept because you’re the older brother, and yo
u’re used to taking care of him, but it’s the truth.” Then, in hopes that he would feel better, she continued, “There is a part of that goodness still left in your brother. I saw some of it last night.”
Brad’s eyebrows furrowed in a way that indicated her comment had bothered him.
“I only said that to give you hope,” she hurried to amend. “I didn’t mean to trouble you further. Your brother has some goodness within him, but it’s buried deep down inside of him.” She could tell by the worried expression on his face that she hadn’t succeeded in easing his fears. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say.”
“Do you…” Brad shifted uncomfortably. “That is to say, do you prefer my brother?”
“Prefer him to what?”
Clearly uncomfortable, he cleared his throat, and despite the fact that his cheeks were getting red, he forced out, “To me. Do you prefer him to me?”
“Of course not! What gave you that idea?”
“Well, you were speaking so well of him just now, and you have been around him more than you’ve been around me since we married.”
“I’ve only been around him more because you’ve barely been here at all.”
He looked as if he was ready to comment but then hesitated. After moment, he nodded. “You’re right. I’ve rarely been here since the day we got married.”
“To be fair, that was only three days ago. It’s not like you’ve been away for months.”
He glanced at her as if he didn’t realize they’d only been married for a short time.
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