“You are.”
“I am not,” he repeated, more firmly.
She smiled faintly, though it contained no warmth. “Then you will have no objection to my meeting her immediately.”
Gabriel stepped back toward the desk, deliberately putting distance between them again. “You will meet her at dinner, and that is the last time I am going to say so. You are in my household and will abide by my rules, and it does not escape my attention that you have demanded to see the governess but not the children.”
That earned him a faint huff of amusement from his aunt. “Well… I am tired, and the energy of a small child will be too much for me.”
Gabriel’s gaze flickered toward her. “You are tired?”
“I am exhausted,” Lady Provie replied at once.
“You are,” he said. “You have traveled and spent the last ten minutes insulting my household.”
She lifted her chin. “I have enough energy to observe what is necessary.”
“Clearly,” he said dryly, “though apparently not enough to greet your relations.”
Her expression tightened. “Do not be absurd, Gabriel. Of course, I intend to see the children.” Lady Provie exhaled sharply. “Perhaps after I have rested.”
He watched her closely, noting the contradiction with mild irritation. She had the energy to dissect his choices with surgical precision, but apparently not enough to engage with the children.
“Excellent,” he said, turning away. “I shall inform them of your arrival.”
Lady Provie sipped her tea again. “And Miss Shirley?”
“At dinner,” he repeated firmly.
She did not look pleased, but she did not argue further. As Gabriel left the parlor, he heard her voice behind him, faint but pointed.
“You have changed, Gabriel.”
He paused briefly in the doorway.
“No,” he said evenly. “I have simply acquired more responsibility.”
And more problems.
As he walked down the corridor, his mind did not linger on Lady Provie’s judgment or London’s gossip. It lingered, inconveniently, on the fact that Amelia Shirley’s name had now reached places it should never have touched. And on the growing certainty that whatever his aunt intended to do during her visit, it would involve far more disruption than he currently had patience for.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Amelia had spent the better part of the afternoon trying not to think about Lady Provie. Unfortunately, the harder she worked to ignore Gabriel’s aunt, the more anxious she became. By the time six o’clock approached, she had convinced herself that the woman would either despise her from the start or interrogate her until she confessed to crimes she had never committed. Neither possibility seemed particularly appealing. Taking a steadying breath, she smoothed her skirts, checked her reflection one final time, and made her way downstairs toward the drawing room.
The moment Amelia entered, conversation faltered. Gabriel stood near the hearth with a glass balanced loosely in one hand while Valerie sat elegantly upon a sofa and David sprawled on the carpet beside Shadow, who appeared entirely unconcerned with social expectations.
Lady Provie rose from her chair at once and fixed Amelia with an assessing stare that made her feel as though she had been summoned for inspection.
“Well, it is about time,” Lady Provie declared, clasping her hands together as Amelia crossed the threshold.
Amelia blinked before sinking into a polite curtsy. “My apologies, Lady Provie,” she replied, straightening carefully. “I hope I have not kept anyone waiting.”
“Have you not?” Lady Provie asked, circling her with surprising energy for a woman who had spent the day travelling. She tilted her head as she studied Amelia from every angle. “I was beginning to wonder whether you had become lost somewhere within the house.”
Amelia resisted the urge to point out that she had arrived precisely at six o’clock as requested. Instead, she folded her hands neatly before herself and endured the inspection. The experience felt remarkably similar to being evaluated at a livestock auction, and she found herself wondering whether she ought to neigh politely or trot in a small circle to complete the performance.
At last, Lady Provie stopped and released a dramatic sigh. “Oh, dear.”
