Page 52 of The Widow’s Christmas Surprise

“Kersey wanted his son to marry you, my lady.” Lord Kinellan obviously was not a man to mince words. “And when you showed no interest in him, he likely gave instructions for Wetherby to make the marriage happen any way he could.”

With a gasp, Maria grasped her throat. “The day in the woods gathering greenery. Lord Wetherby . . .” She dropped her gaze.

“He tried to ravish you, according to Mr. Granger.” Kinellan shook his head. “It’s a wonder Granger didn’t beat the man senseless then and there.”

“I lied to him, my lord. I too was afraid of what Mr. Granger might do if he knew the true circumstances.” Trying to make herself small on her seat, Maria clasped her hands in her lap and stared fixedly at them. “I believed Lord Wetherby simply wanted to have his way with me. I never thought he was trying to force a marriage.”

“Because you didn’t know you had anything of value in your possession, my dear.” Grasping her hands, Jane turned to Mr. Clarke, who’d been following the exchange with a look of shock on his pale face. “Can you please tell my cousin what her husband left her, Mr. Clarke?”

“As I said in my letters, which I am sorry you did not receive, my lady, the bequest is substantial.” From the folder before him, Mr. Clarke withdrew several sheets of blotched foolscap—blotted and crossed out passages abounded—that had been folded and sealed, although the seal was gone. “Thanks to the canny purchases of the fifth Earl of Kersey, your late husband’s uncle, three properties were acquired during his lifetime and were therefore not part of the earldom’s entailment. In addition, that same earl was a great collector of artwork, all also not bound by the fee tail.” Mr. Clarke looked directly at Maria, who grasped Jane’s hand. “All told, my lady, with land, jewels, and artwork, I would estimate the bequest includes at least half the earldom’s assets.”

Unable to say anything, much less move, Maria stared at Mr. Clarke, waiting for Jane or Kinellan to do something. The silence continued, however.

“My lady?” Quickly, Mr. Clarke rose and went to the door and opened it. “Mr. Gaines, a pot of tea and four cups as quickly as you can.” He returned to his chair behind the desk. “I know this may be a shock, Lady Kersey, but the tea will be here shortly.”

“May be a shock, Clarke?” Lord Kinellan’s voice finally rang out.

The spell broken, Maria turned to Jane, sitting ashen beside her. “Is it really true, Jane?”

“Oh, I assure you it is, my lady,” Mr. Clarke broke in. “I cannot give you exact figures as to the value of everything, but I daresay it is close to fifty thousand pounds.”

Silence resumed until the clerk entered with the tea.

Mr. Clarke hastily poured, and once Maria had sipped the brew, well sugared against the shock, the world came back into focus.

“What must I do, Mr. Clarke? I have no idea how to go on.” She looked at him blankly.

“Today there is little you need to do. If you wish to continue to be represented by this firm, there are several documents to sign. You will need to establish a bank account. I can make suggestions or perhaps his lordship can. Do you stay long in London?”

She hadn’t thought about that eventuality because she’d never dreamed she would need to take care of such matters. If only Hugh were here, he would know what to do. “Lord Kinellan? What are our plans?”

Taking out his pocket watch, the marquess glanced at it and sighed. “I had hoped we could finish this business today and leave early tomorrow. Will that be possible, Clarke?”

“I believe we can finish by this afternoon.” He smiled at Maria and his eyes behind his spectacles gleamed. “Let us begin with a formal reading of the will, my lady.”

* * *

“The snow seems to be holding off.” Giving a great yawn, Maria stretched as best she could in the swaying carriage. “Do you think we will arrive at Kersey Hall before dark?”

Because Lord Kinellan had feared bad weather, they had left London at the ungodly hour of seven o’clock. No wonder she was tired.

Beside her, Jane too stifled a yawn. Her cousin apparently had gotten less sleep than Maria. She and Jane had shared a room last night, so it had not been hard to miss her cousin slipping out of the room when Maria had been drifting off to sleep. She’d not returned until just before the inn’s maid had arrived with warm water.

Lord Kinellan, opposite them on the backward facing seat, seemed to be hiding a yawn as well. “I beg your pardon, Lady Kersey. What did you ask?”

Maria had to bite back a smile. “Only if you thought we’d arrive before dark.”

“We have had good roads with little traffic and therefore have made good time.” He peered out the window and nodded. “With a little more luck, we may arrive in time for tea.”

“Not that I wish to take tea with any of the Kersey family.” Fuming again at the thought of Lord Kersey’s perfidy, Maria gritted her teeth and wished she could at least plant Lord Wetherby a facer. Why should men be able to have all the fun? “We shall need to stop at the inn in Sudbury to make arrangements for the night. I will not spend one more hour there than I have to.”

“Did Lord Kersey think it strange that we were going to London?” Staring with wide-open eyes, trying to stay awake, Jane’s head drooped occasionally in a doze.

“I didn’t tell him where I was going. I simply asked the nursemaid to bring me Jane and told Hatley to pack for two days.”

Kinellan’s brows shot up and he grinned. “Our little Maria has learned how to stand up for herself. I like that in a woman.”

“I don’t know how much I can stand up to anyone.” Drawing the lap blanket more snugly around her, Maria sighed. “I may have a great amount of property now, but I don’t know anything about them at all. I don’t even know where the properties are located, although I have the directions written down. Nor do I know where the art is stored.” Beseechingly, she turned to the marquess, whose head was beginning to droop as well. Certainly a marquess would know what to tell her. “What do I do, Lord Kinellan?”