Three heads swivelled towards him. ‘Do you actually want our help?’ Freddie couldn’t have sounded more shocked if Tobias had asked him to help him rob the Bank of England.
‘As much as it pains me to admit it, yes.’ His fingers curled around his glass, but he did not take a sip from it. It was possible his three married brothers might be able to provide some guidance. It couldn’t hurt to at least have their perspective. In turning down Grace’s suggestion and offering her marriage instead, he thought he had done the right thing, and yet, he clearly hadn’t.
There was a long silence after his pronouncement. All three of his brothers stood stock still before sharing glances.
‘Actually, forget it,’ said Tobias, pushing himself to his feet. If they were going to insult one another and then not help him, he would take himself elsewhere.
‘No.’ Freddie dived across his desk to grab his arm. ‘No. Stay. You took us by surprise, that is all. You have never admitted to needing help before. We want to, though.’ He looked to the other two, who nodded vigorously. ‘We will even call a truce. No getting at one another for the duration of this meeting. Agreed?’
‘Agreed,’ said the other two simultaneously.
‘Fine,’ said Tobias, sinking back into his chair. He was out of options; he might as well humiliate himself further.
‘You and Grace have been getting along well and now you seem not to be talking. What happened?’ asked Edward.
Tobias stared at the mantlepiece, wishing it were possible to spontaneously disappear.
‘We swear this will go no further, Tobias.’ Christopher rarely sounded this sincere; dragging his gaze to look at his youngest brother, Tobias saw a sweetly earnest expression on his face, one he usually only shared with Sophia. ‘We will not even tell our wives.’
Tobias closed his eyes.
‘You realise we can still see you, yes?’
He snapped them back open. ‘I am not Charlotte. Of course I realise you can still see me.’
Christopher raised his hands. ‘I was only checking.’
Tobias sighed. He was committed now. He might as well get this over with. As succinctly as he could, he explained what had passed between him and Grace. At the end of it, all three stared at him with open mouths, their drinks temporarily forgotten.
Finally, Freddie said, ‘To be clear, Grace offered to be your mistress and you turned her down.’
‘I did.’
‘Right,’ said Freddie, in a tone that suggested he thought Tobias was dicked in the nob. A sentiment with which Tobias could not argue.
‘Because…?’ Freddie waved his free hand around to prompt Tobias into explaining the unexplainable.
‘He clearly wants her to be his wife,’ said Edward. ‘He said as much and it has been as plain as day to the rest of us since they first set eyes on one another, that this was where it was headed. Pay attention, Freddie.’
‘I understand that part.’ Freddie scowled at Edward, who did not look contrite. ‘And while the initial refusal to be his wife at first seemsproblematic, we have to be grateful that she is not after him because she wants to be duchess.’
Tobias’ three brothers nodded sagely. If his very future wasn’t at stake, he would find it amusing.
‘I do feel,’ continued Freddie carefully, ‘that Tobias may have been better able to achieve that state if she was happy in his b… arms, rather than the situation we now find ourselves in, in which she is refusing to look in his direction.’
‘He did the right thing,’ maintained Edward, although he did not sound so sure.
‘How do you figure that out?’ Christopher crossed his arms across his chest, looking genuinely confused.
Edward shrugged. ‘That is the advice given to young women, is it not? Do not become someone’s mistress. Make sure you marry them before you give away your body.’
Tobias glanced at the window; even if he had been small enough to climb out of it, his brothers would catch him and drag him back to this excruciating conversation.
‘Are you suggesting that Tobias is a debutant in this scenario?’ At least Freddie seemed shocked rather than amused. Tobias wasn’t sure he could take it if they found this situation funny.
Edward had the decency to look slightly embarrassed. ‘No.’ A pause. ‘Yes, I suppose I am.’
Tobias suppressed a groan. His brothers meant well, but as yet, they were not helping.
