Intentions of the Earl (Scandalous Sisters, Book 1)

by Rose Gordon

  This was worse than Brooke thought. In a way it seemed silly, but in another way, she knew her sister very well. Liberty never spoke to anyone this way, not even her. “Is this when Mr. Grimes said she was cold and callous?” Brooked asked, not sure if she could take much more.

  “Yes, although I do believe he said she was cold and had a callous heart.” Madison looked surprisingly unsettled by the whole exchange. “I know I shouldn’t say this, and do not tell Liberty what I’m about to say, but I think she deserved to hear the things he told her. Maybe not from a stranger, but all the same, I don't believe the words were undeserved. She made some very unkind remarks.”

  “Yes, she did,” Brooke agreed, thinking of what she was going to say to Papa. This was no little incident that could be swept under the proverbial rug. At some point, he was going to find out about it. It might as well be sooner rather than later.

  Brooke stood to leave, but when she got to the doorframe she turned back to her sister. “Madison, do you know what sorts of issues Mr. Grimes is dealing with?”

  “I've been wondering the same all morning,” Madison confided. “I tried to ask Mama, but she immediately changed the subject.”

  “She knows then,” Brooke mused. “I suppose it’s unimportant just now. We'll need to find a way to sort this out. I’d better be on my way.”

  ***

  Paul spent the better part of his morning in a private sitting room staring blankly at an open book. Every time footfalls thudded in the hall, he assumed it was John Banks coming to put an end to their arrangement. It wasn’t anything less than he deserved for the hateful things he’d said to Liberty, but he still wanted to avoid it if possible.

  He thought about the conversation again. It wasn’t that he had intended to be mean to her. He’d wanted to let them know of his presence, then she got angry at him, then before he knew what he was doing, the words just poured out. He should have just left, but he hadn’t, and now it was time to deal with the consequences.

  With a sigh, he stood and left the room to search for the bane of his existence. There was no time like the present to atone for one’s sins.

  He walked out of the house and went to the lawn where he saw her sitting in a lounge chair close to where other guests were playing lawn bowls. Her brown hair was neatly pulled into a bun on the top of her head. A few wisps of brown hair fell down beside her face. Her arms were crossed and she was impatiently kicking her feet back and forth. Her face was no more inviting than her posture. Her hazel eyes appeared hard as stone and she was baring her teeth in a way that could pass as a smile or a sneer.

  “I have been searching for you,” he said, approaching her from the side. “Would you mind if we talked for a moment?”

  Liberty nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard his voice. “I have nothing to say to you.”

  “I think you do, it’s just nothing nice,” Paul teased gently. He had learned last night this young lady always had something to say. “I wanted to apologize to you. I am entirely to blame for the unfortunate conversation we had this morning. I should have ducked back out of the room when I saw you and your sister were in there alone.”

  “We have finally found something about which we both agree,” she replied stiffly.

  “Yes, well, the matter is that I did not.” He took a seat next to her, watching the player rolling the bowl. This was harder than he had anticipated it would be. “I have come to make amends. I said some very harsh things to you, and I shouldn’t have. As a man of integrity and as a man of God, I should have known better. I spoke before thinking, and I offer you my heartfelt apologies.”

  “Apology not accepted,” Liberty said simply, glancing at the profile of his rigid face. “Sir, I understand that you and Papa have some work to do. I shall not be in the way of that. I have no desire to tell him about the events of this morning, and I advise you not to mention it, either. If you do, he shall take my side, because I am his daughter after all, and you will once again be looking for a mentor.”

  “Very well,” Paul replied. Coming to his feet, he accepted what she said and decided not to press her. He had no intention of being fast friends with her at this point. But the advice of her father was invaluable, and the thought of losing him as a mentor had been part of what had compelled him to seek her out to do the right thing.

  “Why do you need the help of my father, anyhow?” she asked, her tone considerably softer.

  “That is a confidential matter.” There was enough going on in his life with the vicious lies, rumors, and gossip, he had no intention of adding to it by telling anything to her. She could ask all day, and he still wouldn’t tell her.

  Then without so much as a fare-thee-well, Paul vanished.

  ***

  Alex was sitting alone in his library making a list of materials needed for his upcoming experiments when the door opened.

  “May I join you?” Andrew asked, taking a seat before receiving an answer.

  Alex shrugged.

  After the tour this morning, Alex had done exactly what he had told Andrew he would: he locked himself in the library and read his latest scientific periodical. There was a writer named E. S. Wilson who wrote some of the most fascinating articles for the magazine. For nearly two years Alex had tried to get information about this writer, but the publisher adamantly told him the writer was a recluse whom he himself had never met.

  He’d finished the article earlier, but was still thinking about it. He made a mental note that he would have to order some new trees in order to do the experiment outlined in the article. Not that he didn’t trust this E. S. Wilson fellow, but he liked to do the same experiments to make sure this unknown writer’s facts were straight.

  “Did you have any success convincing Brooke you have no interest in Lady Olivia?” Alex asked after a few minutes. He knew the reason for Andrew’s visit had to do with Brooke. He wasn’t sure just how interested Andrew was, but it only took him thirty seconds of Brooke’s blabbing the night before to surmise she was in love with Andrew. Alex liked both Brooke and Andrew, and saw no reason to stop them if they intended to make a match.

  “I believe so,” Andrew answered. “She has agreed to go riding with me tomorrow.”

  Alex sat bolt upright and opened his mouth to object, but Andrew cut him off with a wave of his hand. “You’re not required to join us. I believe we shall stay close enough that a chaperone is not necessary. If we do wander off, I’ll secure a groom.”

  Alex relaxed. He liked them both, but he did not condone Andrew compromising her, even if he had suggested that very thing to Brooke the night before. What had he been thinking to suggest such a thing? “As long as I don’t have to be trapped with Lady Olivia, I don’t care how you conduct your courtship. Within reason,” he added with a glare. His eyes were piercing into Andrew, trying to communicate a nonverbal message saying: do not push this too far.

  “Of course,” Andrew confirmed. “Thank you for keeping Lady Olivia occupied. She can be such a nuisance at times.”

  “At times?” Alex scoffed. “Try all the time. I was about ready to tear my own heart out of my chest just to put myself out of misery during that hour I was trapped with her.”

  “It’s good you did not take such drastic measures,” Andrew said dryly. “It would be a waste to throw your whole life away because of something that would be over soon.”

  “That’s what you think. You didn’t have to suffer her annoying habits for an hour,” Alex said, screwing his face up in distaste.

  “It couldn’t have been that unbearable.”

  “It was. Not only did she jabber on and on about you, but the only time she talked of anything else, she threw my past sins in my face.”

  Andrew smiled. “Your past sins? What could those be?”

  “I had her and her cousin, Caroline, thrown out of the Society of Biological Matters back in London. I did it at Lord Sinclair’s request, but it had to be done in a way they wouldn’t suspect he was behind it. There
fore, I became the scapegrace and she will forever blame me for it.”

  “You lied to her about why she couldn’t belong to the Society of Biological Matters?” Andrew asked dubiously, his eyes narrowing.

  “Yes. I know it sounds bad.” Alex thought about it a minute. “All right, it not only sounds bad, it is bad. I should not have done it. But I had good reason to do it.”

  Andrew’s face took on a look of deep contemplation. “Are you saying you agree with lying if the outcome is for the greater good?” Andrew asked.

  “I suppose that’s what my actions would suggest,” Alex admitted. He never had liked to admit his mistakes, and this was the closest he’d ever come to doing so.

  “I’m glad you think that way,” Andrew informed him. “Well, I must be going then. I need to make a quick visit before dinner is served.”

  Alex watched his friend leave. That was the most bizarre conversation he’d ever had. Andrew’s reaction to his lie and the following questions made him wonder if Andrew was up to something. If he was, Alex had no idea what it was.

  ***

  Brooke was on her way to go speak with Papa when Mr. Grimes intercepted her.

  “Mr. Grimes,” Brooke said, startled. She hadn't expected to see him. He was now a houseguest at the party and they would run into each other at some point, but not so soon.

  “Miss Banks,” he said cordially. “If you’re looking for your father, he’s downstairs.”

  “Thank you,” Brooke returned. “I shall not keep you then.”

  Brooke had barely walked past him when he spoke to her. “Miss Banks, if you’re going to speak to him about the events of this morning, I would like to beg your silence”

  Brooke turned around and was face-to-face with Mr. Grimes. “Beg my silence? But why? I love my sister, but what she said was inappropriate.”

  “I agree with your ascertainment, but I must ask that you not say anything. I responded to her words in an equally inappropriate manner. I have asked her forgiveness. She has refused to give it, of course. However, we have come to an agreement that we will not speak of the event again, nor mention it to your father.”

  “But…are you…” Brooke stammered. She couldn’t help but wonder why he would allow Liberty to say such harsh remarks and not want vindication for it.

  “Yes,” Mr. Grimes answered for her. “I am certain I do not wish to involve your father in this. Not that I have anything to hide. I would admit to any of the things I said if need be, but I do not wish to cause any trouble for Miss Liberty.”

  Brooke nodded. She wasn’t sure why he wanted to spare Liberty the tongue-lashing she deserved, but who was she to dissuade him?

  Chapter 18

  Brooke was relieved to find dinner that evening was a lot more enjoyable than it had been the night before. She would have preferred to sit next to Andrew, but he wasn’t present, so she sat with Mr. Thomas, Madison’s gossipy dinner companion from the night before.

  Brooke and her sisters sat closer together this time, with Mr. Grimes and Lady Olivia seated as far away as possible.

  When the men rejoined the ladies after their gentlemen’s pursuits, Andrew was still missing.

  Brooke was not the only one to notice. “Where’s Townson?” asked Mr. Cook, taking a seat in a chair close to where Brooke and her sisters were sharing a settee.

  Alex shrugged before taking an empty chair on the other side of the girls. “I haven’t seen him for several hours. The last time I saw him, he mentioned something about a meeting or some such. I don’t recall exactly.”

  “You don’t seem to recall much unless it has to do with science,” his father gently teased him.

  Alex gave a lopsided grin. “What can I say? Science is fascinating, whereas Townson’s whereabouts are not.”

  “Hear, hear,” the Duke of Gateway said, holding his glass up in a mock toast. Some of the ladies who had tittered at Alex’s remark burst into full giggles at the duke’s.

  Brooke didn’t think it was so funny. “Should we send someone to go look for him?” she asked with a pointed glance to Alex.

  “No,” the duke answered in a dismissive tone. “He’s probably out visiting his mother.”

  “His mother lives ‘round here?” Mr. Cook asked curiously.

  “Yes,” the duke answered again.

  “I always thought she was a recluse,” Mr. Cook mused.

  “She is,” the duke confirmed.

  “Hmm…I wonder why that is?” Mr. Cook ventured.

  Lady Algen and Mr. Thomas both looked as if they were about to burst at the prospect of spreading gossip. However, Lady Algen spoke first, and because Mr. Thomas was a gentleman, he didn’t interrupt her. “She was always a recluse. Her family, whoever they may be, had kept her hidden and away from society until she was of marrying age. Her parents bought her a husband while she was still hidden away in the countryside. Townson brought her to town only on their wedding day. But shortly after they were married, he packed her off to the country where she’s remained ever since.”

  “Why?” Lady Olivia asked, her voice full of wonder.

  This time Mr. Thomas was quicker to speak than Lady Algen. “When the old earl agreed to take her as a bride, he was lied to by the gel’s family. The details have always been hushed up, but I believe that it is not necessarily about her, but about her real family. Either way, the earl was displeased, stowed her off in the countryside, and sought an annulment. Before the marriage could be annulled, it was discovered the countess was with child. Therefore, the annulment was called off. Townson then filed for a parliament divorce, but couldn’t prove adultery, nor could his reputation handle such a blow. So he did what any man would do in his situation: confined her to an old, dilapidated estate in the middle of nowhere.”

  Brooke’s stomach lurched. The man she’d come to care deeply about, and even would consider marrying, had such a terrible past. Not that any of it was his fault, but still it was clear that nearly everyone in the room was listening very intently to the gossip about his family.

  Brooke sat with her hands in her lap and idly chewed on her bottom lip. She just heard snatches of what was being said around her “…Townson’s a bastard, then?” “…no other children…” “…seen her in London once…” her head was swimming with all the accusations and questions. How could people be so cruel about someone who wasn’t even there to defend himself?

  Brooke’s head throbbed and she looked around to see if she could find strength in her family’s presence.

  Liberty surprised Brooke when she reached over and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze just as Madison leaned over and whispered, “Don’t take all of this to heart. People will gossip about anything. You know that.”

  Brooke tried to respond, but her brain couldn’t think of what to say, so she just squeezed Liberty’s hand back in a way to let her know she appreciated her support.

  After a few minutes and several more unsavory comments, it was time to leave. She slipped away virtually unnoticed, as everyone was too absorbed with talk of Andrew’s family to care that she was leaving. She could have sworn on the way out the door she heard some reference to his having an unusual attachment to his mother even when he was a boy at school.

  She had almost made her way down the hall to the staircase when Alex called after her, “Brooke, wait.”

  Brooke didn’t stop or turn to face him, but she did slow her steps.

  “Brooke, Andrew and I have been chums for a long time. He’s really a good fellow. You cannot let his past shade what you think about him now,” Alex said

  Brooke knew he believed he was helping the situation, but he wasn’t. “But don’t our pasts make us who we become?” she asked flatly.

  “Well, yes, but you cannot hold his mother’s past against him,” Alex said in defense of his closest friend.

  “I’m not.”

  “Then what part are you holding against him? The part about his strong attachment to her? That’s of no consequence now. It
was fifteen years ago, nobody cares about it anymore,” Alex said, his voice full of conviction.

  “No, I am not holding against him that he loved his mother when he went to school. It’s only natural that a child loves his mother. But to say that nobody cares about it is false. I can show you a whole room full of people who still care about it. They’re in there right now, laughing at his expense over it.” Brooke paused. In the past few seconds Alex’s eyes had changed. For some reason, there was a light shining in them now. She blinked, and then continued. “That’s not important, nor is it the reason I left. The reason I left doesn't have to do with him entirely. I just didn’t wish to listen to malicious gossip any longer, that’s all.”

  Alex gazed at her skeptically. He looked like he was going to say something more, but didn’t. Instead he just smiled, turned, and whistled while he walked back to the drawing room.

  Brooke walked into her room and closed the door. Numbly, she went to the bed and laid face-down across it, burying her face in the pillows. Then before she knew it, tears poured from her eyes so fast no amount of blinking could dam them up.

  Brooke was rarely one to sob, but today was an exception. She couldn’t understand why people would say such cutting remarks about another. She remembered the speculation that Andrew was born on the wrong side of the blanket. Or the accusations that Andrew’s mother was nothing more than a common whore who had been lucky enough not to have any more children.

  She pounded her pillow, asking herself over and over again how people could be so unfeeling.

  ***

  Andrew left the meeting with Willis, his estate manager, with an optimistic outlook for his finances.

  Since he’d come into the title and land eight years ago, he’d failed to earn any kind of profit from any of his estates. All the money that was made went to the upkeep of the earldom and to pay down the debts left by his father. Now all the other estates were long gone, sold to pay off debt, and all that he could hope to make money with was Rockhurst, which was entailed.