“Your wisdom continues to amaze me, Gordon,” she said with a laugh.
“Then might I add, ma’am, that life, even in moments like this, is rarely perfect. Men in particular are, by their very nature, imperfect creatures.” Gordon paused to choose his words. “All men, even those who are in the throes of love, or perhaps especially those who are in the throes of love, make mistakes. Sometimes dire, tragic mistakes, often when they truly believe they are doing what is right for their family or business or country. Such errors in judgment may seem unforgivable at first but rarely are.”
“And obviously all men think alike.” She shook her head. “Lord St. Stephens and I have had a very similar discussion about forgiveness.”
“Indeed? Well, it’s no doubt a good thing to keep in mind,” he murmured. “Probably can’t be mentioned often enough.”
“Probably.” She paused for a moment. “There is something else I wish to speak to you about. When St. Stephens and I return from Italy there shall be a great many changes.”
“I thought as much, ma’am.”
“He has a house in town he has never seen, although I don’t quite understand that, but it all has to do with the recent death of his brother and the inheritance of his title and property. In addition, he has an estate somewhere. What I am trying to say is I doubt that I, or we, shall continue to live here.”
“I am certain the rest of the staff and I can find suitable employment elsewhere, ma’am,” Gordon said with the oddest note of what might be relief in his voice.
“Don’t be absurd.” She stared at him in disbelief. “You can’t think I would turn you and MacPherson and Mrs. Miller and the others out on the streets?”
“I didn’t —”
“I have no intention of letting any of you go. Good heavens, you especially have become like a member of my own family. Gordon, I fully intend on your being in my employ for however long you want. And when the time comes that you wish to retire from service, I also intend to find a cottage on one of the estates, my family’s or my husband’s, where you may live out the remainder of your days in comfort.”
He stared in silence.
“What? Nothing to say, Gordon? No astute observations? No words of wisdom? Have I shocked you into silence?” She grinned. “I rather like that. It’s as good as beating you in backgammon.”
He shook his head slowly. “I simply don’t know what to say, my lady. I am touched by your kindness.”
“Nonsense, Gordon, you have been far more than an employee to me.” She placed her hand over his. “You have been a friend when I truly needed one. I can never repay you for that.”
“Thank you, my lady.” He gently pulled his hand away and she tried not to smile. The dear old man would share a brandy with her but would only go so far past that ever-present barrier of mistress and servant. “I am most grateful.”
“However, I am not entirely certain our games can continue.” She searched for the right words. “St. Stephens has declared himself to be stuffy and narrow-minded and I daresay he would think our sharing brandy and playing backgammon was not entirely proper.”
“Then perhaps marriage is not a good idea,” Gordon said loftily.
“Come, now, I should think you of all people would understand that attitude,” she teased. “Indeed, haven’t I heard you refer to yourself as stuffy and narrow-minded?”
“In my case it’s entirely different.”
She laughed. “Why?”
“It’s my place to be stuffy and narrow-minded.” He paused. “Might I suggest, my lady, we play once more, in defiance of the stuffy and narrow-minded?”
“Excellent idea.”
He opened the drawer on the side of the table and removed the game pieces, placing them on the board. His gaze was on what he was doing and the tone of his voice was offhand. “Are you happy, then, my lady?”
“I would not have thought it possible a few months ago…” She shook her head, still not able to fully grasp all that had changed in her life. “I have been given something of a second chance, I think. My mother would say my stars have realigned themselves. As odd as it sounds, I might well believe her right. I do feel as if something, some unknown hand, has guided me to this point.”
“Fate, you mean?”
“I suppose. I really don’t know and I don’t especially care.” She shrugged. “Regardless of whether it was fate or the stars or something entirely different that brought me to this point and St. Stephens into my life, I shall be forever grateful.
“So, to answer your question” — she met his gaze firmly — “I am indeed happy. You see, I have found a man who loves me in spite of my faults and my mistakes. I suspect such a thing is exceeding rare in this world.
“Given that, I can’t imagine being anything but happy for the rest of my days.”
Chapter 20
The muscles in the back of his neck tensed the moment Tony stepped over the threshold of the library at Effington House. Instinct told him he’d just stepped into a well-laid trap. His very life might well be at stake, or at least his future.
“Don’t just stand there, St. Stephens, come in.” The duke leaned on the edge of his desk, Delia’s father at his side, both with a glass in hand. A trio of younger gentlemen stood a few feet away. “I daresay, no one’s armed.” Roxborough sipped his drink. “At the moment.”
Tony adopted an air of relaxed confidence and strode into the room. It would not do to show fear to this particular gathering.
“Whiskey or brandy?” The duke gestured at a footman standing beside a tray of decanters and glasses. “Or whatever else you might like. It’s probably the right moment for it.”
“I’ll have whatever they’re having,” Tony said smoothly.
“Very good.” The duke chuckled. “I don’t know if you’ve met anyone here, with the exception of my brother, Delia’s father, Lord William Effington.”
“Indeed, we met under rather unusual circumstances.” Lord William studied him in an assessing but not unfriendly manner.
Tony sent a silent prayer of thanks heavenward that he’d been listening when Delia’s test was proposed and had asked her father if he might call on her. Or rather call on Miss Effington.
“St. Stephens, allow me to introduce my sons.” Lord William nodded at the younger men, who had shifted their position to form what could well be described as a united front. A suspicious, threatening, formidable united front. “This is Leopold, Christian and Andrew.”
The brothers shared a distinct family resemblance with their sisters, although none were quite as fair. They did have Delia’s blue eyes, even if hers were not nearly as steely and cold. All three were of a like height and build to Tony’s, and a single look told him they were the kind of men one wanted to have by one’s side in a battle. Loyal and fierce and steadfast. He suspected a match between him and any one of them might well result in a draw.
“Gentlemen,” Tony said coolly. His gaze shifted from brother to brother. “Your sister has told me a great deal about you all.”
“Has she?” Leopold’s eyes narrowed. “How intriguing, as I cannot recall her speaking of you.”
“Really?” Tony accepted a glass from the footman and sipped thoughtfully. Whiskey. Scottish, and of an excellent quality. He suspected he would need it. “My name has never come up, then, when you’ve called on her?”
The men exchanged uneasy glances.
“I spoke with her at Effington Hall,” Christian said staunchly. “And she did not mention you then.”
“Of course not.” Tony smiled pleasantly. “We had just met.”
“Then perhaps it’s far too soon to marry.” Andrew crossed his arms over his chest. “Don’t you think it would be prudent to wait at least until her period of mourning is at an end? It’s only a few months more.”
“No, in truth, I don’t.” Tony hardened his voice. “I understand your concern is born of affection for your sister. However, Delia is of age, highly intelligent and knows her
own mind. I wish to marry her and she wishes to marry me. It’s really quite simple.”
Christian glowered. “We would hate to see her involved in another scandal.”
“We would feel it necessary to do something, should that occur,” Andrew added, a definite warning in his voice.
“I do hope that is not an idle threat, as there is bound to be some scandal simply because this is her second marriage in a year,” Tony said mildly. “She is aware of that and prepared for it, as am I.”
“My brothers are a bit more” — Leopold’s gaze locked with Tony’s — “vehement than is perhaps necessary at this point. You must understand we knew nothing of Delia’s involvement with Wilmont until after the fact. We certainly would have taken matters in hand or, at the very least, discussed her welfare with him in advance of their nuptials had we been aware of their intentions. Do you have sisters, my lord?”
“No.” Tony would have wagered a great deal that Leopold and the rest already knew the answer to that question, as well as virtually every other detail there was to be found about the new Viscount St. Stephens. He resisted the urge to smile at the knowledge that there was not a great deal of information available.
“Then you cannot understand how, oh, responsible we felt when Delia ran off with Wilmont,” Leopold said.
“We should have kept a closer eye on her,” Christian muttered.
“Or any eye on her.” Andrew snorted in self-disdain. “We were too busy watching Cassie.”
“And we have no intention of allowing her to make yet another mistake.” Leopold smiled. “Do you understand?”
“No, I’m afraid I don’t.” Tony sipped his whiskey thoughtfully. “I fully intend to marry Delia within the hour. If you consider that a mistake” — he shrugged — “so be it.”
Leopold looked at his father.
Lord William shook his head. “Don’t turn to me for assistance on this. We are not of one mind. I think marrying St. Stephens might well be the best thing your sister could do. I’m really quite pleased.”
Christian’s brow furrowed. “Why?”
“First of all, my brother has vouched for St. Stephens’s character, as well as his family and the respectability of his title and his fortune.” Lord William glanced at his brother with an odd look of respect and curiosity. “I have no idea how he does it, but in my experience, his information is never wrong. Furthermore, when Delia impersonated her sister —”
“What?” Andrew stared.
Leopold rolled his gaze toward the ceiling.
“We were definitely watching the wrong sister,” Christian muttered.
“As I was saying, when Delia attended a party pretending to be her sister, St. Stephens asked me for permission to call on her. I was, quite frankly, impressed. And impressed as well that he has obviously forgiven her for her masquerade.” Lord William cast him a rueful smile.
Tony smiled weakly and resisted the urge to meet the duke’s eyes.
“Beyond that, I have always felt that my children, upon reaching a certain age, should be responsible for their own actions, for good or ill, and should be allowed to make their own decisions.”
“Still, Father” — Leopold shook his head — “her decisions, especially regarding men, have not been particularly astute.”
“It seems to me your own decisions have not been particularly astute when it comes to women,” Lord William said casually.
Christian and Andrew traded glances and grins.
“That’s an entirely different thing.” Leopold lifted his chin in a gesture exactly like Delia’s. “After all, I’m a man. Therefore my mistaken judgments regarding women are forgivable. Society judges the mistakes of females far more harshly. Indeed, it is up to men to protect women from the frailties of their own judgments, as they are ruled more often by emotion than intelligence.”
“I’d like to hear him say that to Grandmother,” Andrew said in a low aside to Christian.
“You do understand, my lord” — Leopold turned his attention back to Tony — “we have nothing more than our sister’s best interests at heart.”
Tony met his gaze directly. “It’s a bit late for that, don’t you think?”
“Of course not,” Christian said with a frown. “We may well have failed her once, but we shall not fail her again.”
“When you say once” — Tony chose his words with care — “are you speaking of Wilmont?”
Andrew huffed. “Of course.”
“How interesting.” Tony considered the brothers for a moment. “I thought perhaps you were speaking of the time following Wilmont’s death, especially since her return to London, because, to my knowledge, not one of you has called on her. Nor have you sent her a note or gone out of your way whatsoever to assure yourselves that she was well. As touching as your worry about your sister is now, I find it rather hypocritical.”
“We understood she was fine.” Leopold glared. “We assumed she would let us know if she needed anything. Indeed, we expected her to call on us should she require assistance of any sort.”
“What you expected was that she would sit in her dead husband’s house for a full year and reflect on her sins.” An anger he hadn’t realized he had toward these men welled up inside him. “What you assumed was that Delia was safely set aside and you needn’t give her a second thought. And what you so conveniently understood was in error. She was as much in exile in that house of hers as she was in the Lake District.”
“I say, that’s not fair.” Indignation sounded in Christian’s voice. “Each of us went up to see her while she was gone.”
“How very thoughtful of you.” Sarcasm dripped from Tony’s words. “Yet now that she is but a few minutes away, none of you have had the time nor the inclination to call. Do you have any idea how alone she has been? Save for her sister and myself, she has seen no one but her servants. Good God, her closest friend these days, her confidant, is a bloody butler!”
Tony glared with disgust. “She speaks with pride of all of you, of all the endless numbers of Effingtons and how close you all are. Family is extremely important to her, yet her family, particularly her overly protective brothers, have as much as abandoned her.
“I have no family to speak of and I have, up until this moment, been a bit apprehensive about joining yours. It seemed a great responsibility to be an Effington, even by marriage. Now I see that I am well up to the job, because it appears all I really need to do is make an occasional threat, squawk a bit like a peacock and ignore anyone who inconveniences my well-ordered life.”
“Well said,” the duke murmured.
Lord William bit back a smile.
Delia’s brothers stared in stunned silence.
“I don’t think that’s quite fair,” Christian said in a defensive manner.
“Although,” Andrew said slowly, “it is more accurate than I would care to admit. We haven’t been as attentive as we could have.”
“We haven’t paid her any attention at all since she returned to London. We’ve left her to be entirely on her own.” Leopold blew a long breath. “He’s right. We’ve shirked our responsibility to her now as we did before.” He considered Tony carefully. “We shall not do so again.”
Tony met his gaze firmly. “Nor shall I.”
They stared at each other for a long moment. Tony had the oddest sensation that this was a man he could call friend, given the right circumstances. Possibly even, someday, perhaps, brother.
“You love her, don’t you,” Leopold said, his words more statement than question.
Tony nodded. “Yes.”
Leopold nodded. “And you do intend to go through with this wedding?”
“I do indeed.”
“Then there is nothing more to say. However, before we welcome you to the family, you should understand that my brothers and I have decided” — Leopold smiled a pleasant sort of smile; Tony didn’t trust it for a moment — “should Delia bear a child in less than nine months from now —”
“We shall be compelled to throttle you.” Andrew grinned.
Leopold’s eyes narrowed. “And should you ever hurt her, we will —”
“Have to kill you,” Christian said in a cheery manner that quite belied his words. Or perhaps emphasized them.
“Why am I not surprised?” Tony murmured.
“Now that that’s settled, I suggest we join the others.” The duke started toward the door, followed by Delia’s brothers.
Lord William lingered behind and moved to Tony’s side. “It’s Anthony, isn’t it, my boy?”
“Tony, sir.”
“Well, then, Tony, welcome to the family.” Lord William leaned toward him and spoke low into his ear. “You do understand, Tony, we all feel responsible for Delia’s previous disastrous marriage, and regardless of my words here, should you indeed hurt my daughter I shall join my sons in making you regret the day you ever saw her. Do keep that in mind. Now then” — Lord William slapped him on the back and beamed at his soon-to-be son-in-law — “I believe we have a wedding to attend.
———
“Do you think I have made a mistake?” Delia sipped her champagne and surveyed the group milling about the Effington House parlor in advance of dinner.
It was a simple event, with mostly family present, and probably did not seem at all simple to anyone not used to a family the size and close-knit nature of the Effingtons‘. There were perhaps twenty people present, including her brothers, the duke and duchess, uncles and aunts, and a varied assortment of cousins and their respective spouses. It was a pity Grandmother could not be here as well, but there was neither time to contact her nor time for her to travel to London. Besides, she rarely left Effington Hall these days. The only one here not a relation of some sort was a Lord Kimberly, who was apparently an acquaintance of both Tony’s and the duke’s. Given Tony’s lack of family and even friends, no doubt the result of the clandestine nature of his past profession, she wondered how her new husband would adjust to the boisterous, overwhelming and more than a bit intimidating Effingtons.
Cassie shrugged. “It’s not for me to say. I am simply glad to be included.” She paused to add emphasis. “This time.”
The Lady In Question Page 28