“Go change your things for supper and in preparation for your obligations to Mr. Sustar. The boy and I will explore some of the rooms together.”
“But I…”
“Should not reject a helpful hand,” he instructed. “Where, by the way, is Mrs. Sullivan?” he asked the lady while he gently bounced the baby.
Miss Whitchurch called as she rushed away, “She is late in her return from her half day off.”
To the child, he said, “People should never be late, for it is a mark on their work ethic.” The boy’s hands kept time with Benjamin’s words.
Benjamin rose on his toes to watch the lady’s retreat, again enjoying the sway of her hips as she made her way down the long hallway. To the child he said, “Now that is a part of the female anatomy of which we should have studied more thoroughly in medical school.” The child gurgled, whether in approval or not, Benjamin was not confident. “Trust me. Someday, you will wish you could appreciate the action yourself. For now, let us have a look at the room,” Benjamin announced as he carried the child close to the nearby window. “This bit of fluff is called ‘a tie-back’ or as we men call it ‘a gold tassel.’ Women always prefer the more sophisticated names.” He teased the child with the gold threads until the boy finally caught them and attempted to put them in his mouth. “No, let us find something more appropriate. I am convinced these have yet to be cleaned.”
Benjamin continued to stroll around the room’s perimeter, pausing periodically to pick up an object and show it to the boy. “Candlestick,” he said, “but missing a candle.
Your aunt’s sewing basket.” The child reached for the basket and the colorful thread, but Benjamin kept it out of reach. He could only imagine what a child might do with such a temptation. They stopped before a stretch of cloth hanging over the back of a chair. Benjamin did not know exactly what the item was, but he thought it might be the sleeve of a woman’s dress. “Your aunt is very handy with a needle.”
As they made their way about the room, Benjamin stopped at each portrait and held the child so the boy might see the images. Finally, they had circled the room, and Benjamin shifted the child in his grasp so the boy could lie along Benjamin’s forearm. “That is better, is it not?” The babe fussed until he caught Benjamin’s finger. His small hand encircled the finger, holding on tightly as he jabbered sounds no one would call words, but sounds that delighted Benjamin, nevertheless.
“Perhaps we should consider a position for you as a solicitor or a barrister,” Benjamin said with a smile. “You will mesmerize all the judges. I guarantee it.” He sighed, “Though, in truth, I would not mind the idea of your studying to be a surgeon. One better than I am. By the time you are of age, I am confident my skills will seem like something the Celts would have used to treat wounds and burns and such. There are so many wonders in science and the means to save another person’s life. I wish I could return to the classroom and learn it all over again.” He glanced down to the child, whose fussiness had quieted, but the boy’s eyes were still on Benjamin’s features.
“What do you see, Boy? Sometimes I wonder what the world sees when they look upon me. I am not speaking of whether they consider me handsome or not. I am not one who knows conceit when I look in the mirror. I leave that up to my brother Beaufort. Just, when someone first takes my acquaintance, how does he perceive me?”
“I can answer,” a very feminine voice responded, and Benjamin looked up to view Miss Whitchurch standing in the open doorway.
“There is no need,” Benjamin said in embarrassment, for he had been caught in a bit of whimsy. “The child is going to sleep again.”
However, the lady ignored his protest. “You are a man who loves his family, both the one with whom you share blood and the one who adopted you. The way you hold the child speaks to your devotion and your humanity.” She smiled, and her eyes spoke a language Benjamin did not yet know. “Your mind amazes me. How it can separate ideas. Analyze them. Keep them all straight and available with a blink of your eyes. Your mind never stops, and sometimes I fear interrupting you, for I would be denying humanity of a man with a great vision.”
“I would not call my vision ‘great,’” he protested. “Assuredly my vision is not as great as the goodness of your heart. However, though I still hold my doubts, I will take your words as a compliment. It is difficult for one to evaluate his or her own strengths and weaknesses,” he said as he observed her slow, steady approach.
“That heart which you have praised,” she said with a sigh, “often leads me into chaos. Just as it did earlier when I charged into my sister’s dilemma, without thoughts of the boy’s future. Someone must be here for him.”
He corrected, “I disagree. Your ‘heart’ permits you to enjoy even the smallest of life’s pleasure. You feel joy in the moments that others would ignore or consider them as an annoyance. I envy you in that manner. If my wishes were to be granted, I would wish that you would never change.” Feeling uncomfortable from speaking so honestly, he suggested, “The boy is falling asleep again. Bring along his basket. We may keep a close eye on him while we enjoy our meal.”
As they walked through the halls together, Benjamin added this moment to his memories of when he and she were perhaps more than acquaintances or even simply friends.
When they stepped into his portion of the double house, her gaze darted up to catch his, and he felt the warmth of her hand through his sleeve. “I am happy to claim your notice, my lord, but please set thechild’s safety before mine. Both the child and Cassandra require your attention more than do I.”
“I am capable of protecting both you and the boy, but I cannot do so if you regularly go racing after shadows. Having an element of London attempting to pull you away at the least provocation places both you and the child in more danger. Please, in the future, demand that the shadows come to you and announce themselves without an element of secrecy. You must know by now, surely you must know, what I do, I do all for you.”
They had justsat to their meal when a knock could be heard at the main door.
“Expecting company, my lord?” she asked as she reached for the child’s basket in preparation for a retreat.
Benjamin caught her hand to stall her withdrawal. “I am not ashamed of your presence in my home,” he told her. “In fact, it is a better place since your arrival.”
He rose, and she followed, as Patterson led two of Benjamin’s brothers into the room.
“We thought you might wish to supper with us at White’s,” Beaufort announced with a lift of his eyebrows. “But I see you have company enough.”
Benjamin hoped Beaufort’s insinuation did not mean they all thought he was having an affair with Miss Whitchurch. Benjamin meant to propose when the time was right and pray the woman would accept him. “Assuredly, I did not expect you, but you are always welcome in my home.” He gestured to the lady. “Beaufort, you recall Miss Whitchurch, do you not?”
“Naturally. It is pleasant to encounter you again, Miss Whitchurch,” Beaufort said with a bow.
The lady shot Benjamin a quick glance, but she responded as would any well-bred lady. “A pleasant occurrence for me also, my lord.”
“And another of my brothers.” Benjamin gestured to Aaran. “Lord Graham, Miss Whitchurch.”
She curtseyed again. “An honor, Lord Graham.”
