Lydia winced, her heart thundering in her chest. “What have you done to him? Why have you taken this from him? If you have?—”
“I am not a monster, Lydia. I have not hurt your brother. But I will not let him keep taking advantage of you.” Archer ran a hand through his hair.
“You said it was my money to do with as I liked.” Lydia felt her blood boil. “My brother is on the verge of being thrown in prison. What else was I supposed to do?”
The Duke took her by the hands and sat her down gently. “If you needed money, you should have come to me.”
“I can look after my own family,” Lydia said stubbornly. “Why must you take what meager cash I could provide my brother?” Lydia gestured to the chest. “He needs this far more than I do.”
“No, he doesn’t.”
“But—”
The Duke pressed his hand lightly to her lips. “God, the both of you won’t let me finish. Is interrupting people something that runs in the family?”
“Sorry.”
“Now, I’ve arranged for your brother’s debts to be paid off fully. In exchange, I will have him work for me until his debts are repaid. If he can listen to sound business advice and practices, he should easily pay it off and learn enough to garner some independence.”
“Oh,” Lydia grasped her chest, relief flood her entire body. She did not realize how worried she had been. She almost wept with joy. “Thank you. You are far too kind and generous to us.”
“Do not think I am. Know that if your brother falls into lowly habits again, I will cut him off completely. As will you. Duchess, I swear if your brother comes begging for money again, he will not see an ounce of kindness. If he fails, you are not to give him any financial assistance whatsoever. Am I understood?”
“No, Archer. How can you ask that of me?”
“I am not asking. I’m forbidding you. In my family, under my roof, your wellbeing is my only concern. Heaven knows that is why I gave your brother a job. But from this moment on, you will not give way to your brother’s emotional blackmail. Nor will you give up on your dreams. He is his own person, and if he is to learn to be a man, it will have to be without.”
“Now it is high time you stop living for him and start living for yourself.” Archer took her hand in his, and Lydia felt her heart thunder against her chest.
She licked her lips. “What do you mean?”
His amber eyes flashed, looking at her with such intensity it was like he saw through her. “I mean, I want you to go after what you want. To chase whatever dreams you have.”
“What if I do not have any?” Her voice was small.
He gave her an amused smile. “Then I am the Queen of England.”
“You would look rather fetching in a dress,” she teased.
He squeezed her hand in his, his expression serious once more. “And you are avoiding the topic. What are your dreams Lydia?”
“I… I want to be a partner. An equal partner in a business. I want to be taken seriously and respected and for my opinions to hold value and weight.” She looked at him, expecting him to make fun of her, to tell her that women didn’t do that sort of thing.
“Go on.” He gave her an encouraging nod, and Lydia felt her heart sing.
Energy flooded through her, and she could not remain sitting. She leapt to her feet, pacing around the room and letting all that she held back break free. As though a great dam had burst within her. “I want for people to see me for my mind. To praise me for my business sense. I want to have fun, goodness knows, but I told myself all I wanted to do was to run the estate, and that is not true. I want to go out dancing, to watch plays with friends and put on balls. I want to laugh. To travel. I want to live.”
She turned to find Archer looking at her, nodding sagely. “That can be arranged.”
Chapter Sixteen
“How would you feel about journeying to London for a few days?” Archer asked her a few days later over breakfast.
Lydia frowned at him. “But Juliet, Cora, and Iris have only just returned from the city. I doubt they want to go back again.”
Archer shook his head and leaned towards her. “I meant just you and me. Cora and Juliet can handle Iris for a few days.”
“But why do you want to go to London?” Lydia asked.
