“Valid point,” Marcus said.
“I’ve met you before, lad. As I recall your da introduced us at a club some time back.”
“Yes, Your Grace. Life was very different then.”
“You never know what is in the hearts of men. My own da is a prime example. Hatred had him trying to kill my Mara and my lad. I’m sorry for the course your da put you on.”
“He wasn’t alone in it, I’m convinced of that. Hopefully soon we’ll have answers.”
Althea approached and touched her brother’s arm. “Come, let me introduce you both to my new family members.”
Esme knew those of the Trewlove clan by reputation only—they often filled the gossip sheets and were nattered about. No one sneered at her or gave any indication they considered her beneath them, but then when born out of wedlock or married to someone who was, one tended to have a more accepting nature. They welcomed her and Marcus as equals, and she imagined that in the future he would spend a good bit of time in the company of these people. He’d no longer be the lone wolf set on retribution. He would be further embraced as a member of this family. She wanted that for him, wanted him to once again belong.
Chapter 21
Marcus had forgotten what it was like to be welcomed into the home of a nobleman, to have servants with whom he was not familiar at his beck and call, to sit at a table with an abundance of people and to carry on a conversation with no one making snide remarks about his parentage or his family’s fall from grace. To be accepted. To have new acquaintances show genuine interest in anything he had to say.
But what brought him more satisfaction was that they were equally accepting of Esme. And it had to have been so much longer since she’d received such kindness. They’d been given adjoining rooms. Without Laddie about, Marcus had slipped into her bed. He wasn’t certain how their relationship might change if they met with success that evening, and he wanted as much time with her as possible.
Following breakfast, they were strolling over the grounds that included rolling hills, the occasional tree, and fields of heather.
“Was your family’s ducal estate anything like this one?” Esme asked quietly.
“Not quite as wild. The manor house is more a Jacobean style, huge, built for entertaining, with one wing devoted exclusively to the use of royalty. Apparently, a few of my ancestors were quite favored by their king.”
“Did Victoria ever visit?”
“No. May have been for the best, all things considered. Everything about the estate spoke of privilege. In addition to the immense gardens, we had three parks. One was actually fenced off and contained lions. My grandfather had been responsible for their captivity, so they’d been there for a while, twenty years, I think, by the time I came along. I was allowed only to watch them, not play with them. I was about five when the first one died. I thought it a shame that he’d had so many years of not being able to run wild. I began mapping out a plan to set the remaining two free, but alas, my plan was dependent upon my growing up a bit and being stronger. They didn’t wait on me before succumbing to old age.” He couldn’t prevent the disappointment and sorrow he’d experienced at the time from weaving their way through his voice now.
“That must be why you’re so good at strategy, having started so young.”
He grinned sadly over at her. “When I was oldenough and strong enough, I took one of my ancestor’s old battleaxes to that fence.”
“Were you punished?”
“Oddly no. I’m not even certain Father noticed.”
“When you were much, much younger, did you dream about what you would like to do if you were not destined to be a duke?”
“It’s what I was born for. It never occurred to me to be anything else. I think that’s part of the reason it took me a while to find my way through the quagmire once it was no longer my destiny.”
“Youwantedto be a duke?”
He furrowed his brow. “Why would I have not?”
“It just seemed to me that being an heir defined one’s future, prevented a man from pursuing other occupations for which he might be better suited. What if you wanted to perform upon the stage, for example? Lords do not become actors. Or physicians. Or chefs, for that matter.”
“I never saw all the responsibilities that would come to me as a burden. I relished the thought of one day being duke. Not because of the prestige or the power that came with the title but because of what I could have accomplished for the tenants of the estates, for the estates themselves. They were all languishing under Father’s care. He lacked imagination when it came to managing them. Another reason I know he was not the mastermind of this plot.”
“I didn’t realize an imagination was required of a lord.”
“It’s not a requirement but without it, how can one see the potential?”
“What did you see?”
“Ways to improve the lives of the tenants. With education and teaching them more modern methods of farming. Training their children for occupations in the cities. Ensuring there was a path to avoid poverty for the next generation and they were productive members of society. What the land could provide was changing and we needed to change with it. Just as I’d done with the lions, I began planning only this time I was in search of a means to move us into the future. Part of the reason that the Crown taking everything came as such a devastating blow was because I’d sought out no personal avenues of income for myself. I was concentrating on what would one day be mine, unlike some friends who were pursuing their passions until the title came to them. I was so damned anxious to hold it, to be ahead of the game... and then my father’s actions changed the rules and I lost at the game.”
“Perhaps if all goes well tonight, Victoria will consider returning the titles to you.”
