Her hand tightened on his, and Michael fell silent.
That silence fell on them all until midway through the fish course. Philip cleared his throat and turned one of his brightest smiles on his daughter.
“Beth, are you ready for your first season?”
Robert glanced at Thomas, one eyebrow raised. Thomas shook his head once.Don’t tell them what you’ve heard. They’ll never let her out of the house.He looked down and took a sip of wine. When he looked up again, his mother was staring at him. She looked from him to Robert, then back. Thomas looked away, then leaned back in his chair and gave a half-smile as the footman took away the remains of his fish. His mother’s scrutiny had always been on the brutal, omniscient side.
In the meantime, Beth had covered the first four balls and three musicales to which they had been invited, the gowns she and Emalyn had bought for the occasions, and two afternoon soirees, which would be the heart of the season’s gossip, she was positive. Thomas couldn’t help but smile at his baby sister, who was more than a decade younger. Her enthusiasm was contagious, and her blonde hair and bright eyes sparkled with anticipation. Unlike her brothers, whose dark hair and skin reflected their mother’s looks, Elizabeth had inherited their father’s light eyes and golden hair, which hung in a long braid down her back. It reminded Thomas she was barely out of the schoolroom, having turned seventeen only the previous September.
Beth’s offhand remark about all the handsome gentlemen she hoped to meet resulted in a cynical snort from Robert.
Emalyn cut her eyes at him. “Robert, do you have something entertaining to interject into this conversation?”
He put up both hands. “Absolutely not. I cannot think of anything less entertaining than balls and soirees.”
“Interesting,” Philip said, his voice low and commanding, “since you will be attending all of them this season.”
Thomas froze, then turned to his mother. Emalyn took a sip of wine, watching all of her children, her expression distinctly noncommittal. Beth fell silent, staring at her plate, and her hands fell to her lap. Whatever was about to happen, his little sister already knew. Thomas turned a wary gaze on his father.
Michael, who apparently had taken a few moments to grasp Philip’s meaning, straightened a bit in his chair. “I’m sorry. What do you mean by that?”
The baize door near the head of the table opened and the butler stepped out with a silver tray laden with meat in some sort of white sauce. Philip waved him back. The man’s eyes widened, but he retreated, shooing the footmen in front of him, and pulling the door shut. Philip sipped from his goblet, waiting until the servants had cleared the room, then turned to his sons.
“It has become apparent that I have failed my duty as your father to bring you into manhood in a responsible and mature way. I thought giving you time to explore your options and interests would give you greater insight into the way the world works, but I can see I was wrong.”
“Father—” Michael started.
Emalyn flogged him with her serviette. “Do not interrupt.”
Thomas almost smiled. Their parents had always presented a united front to the family. He had known them to disagree just once, and that was only because he had overheard the fight behind closed doors. His mother would violate all sorts of protocol to stand beside her husband. It was one thing he admired about them. Philip and Emalyn Ashton had made a love match unparalleled in their generation, and it had endured a wealth of trials. Apparently, that now included the behavior of their sons.
Philip cleared his throat and went on. “As a result, I will be making some drastic changes to the management of the family’s finances for now and in the future.”
“Not good,” Robert muttered.
Taking a cue from her mother, Beth threw her balled-up serviette across the table at her brother. “Listen!” she hissed.
“Starting today,” Philip went on. “Your allowances have been cut by three-fourths.”
Robert straightened, his blue eyes flashing. “What!”
Philip didn’t pause. “You most likely cannot continue to live as you do on that amount—which will be in place at least until the end of the year. So you will have to make some changes. Your allowance will return to its normal level if, and only if, you each find a bride and marry before our Christmas ball in December.”
Thomas stared at Emalyn, whose face remained calm. “Mother?”
She did not respond as Philip continued. “In addition, I have changed my will. While your individual allowances will continue after your marriages, the bulk of my estate and properties will be bequeathed to the first of you to deliver a male heir.” He nodded at Beth. “This includes your sister.”
Thomas stood as a flush of anger rushed through him. “You cannot do that!I’mthe heir!”
Robert laughed bitterly. “Not as much the golden boy as you thought, eh, Tommy?”
Philip rose to his feet and faced Thomas. “Sit down.” His tone allowed no other option.
Thomas slowly did. Philip did not. “You are correct. I cannot strip you of the title or the properties entailed to the title and estate. But you will receiveonlythe income from those properties if you are not the first with an heir.”
Thomas went through the list in his head and what little he knew about the business of the estate. “But they don’t make enough income to sustain them. The estate is only profitable as an entity. A whole.”
“Then I suggest you get busy and figure out how to make those properties self-sustaining. Unless you intend to bring your new bride into an impoverished title and no status.”
