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“Very well, then, tell me about Wexford. I’ve never been to your part of the realm. Is it very green?”
James smiled. “Now you’re just humoring me. Everywhere in England is very green.”
The girl grinned and James’ heart turned over once more. It was becoming most vexing. He wondered if he should invite his family’s doctor to attend him when he returned to Town.
“You are still dithering, Your Grace. It makes me wonder if you’re trying to hide something about your estates. Are they not as profitable as the gossips let on?”
James heard the teasing in her voice and loved it. The girl was resilient to say the least. He had thought she would hate him forever after he made her relive her worst experience, and here she was trying to tease him into a smile.
“What have the gossips been saying?”
“Well, besides your coronet, which, as you know, would make you highly eligible even if you were a pauper. But you might be forced to fend off more cits if that were the case, of course. But I digress. The gossips love to count your coin. I never could discover how the gossips think they know the contents of all the gentlemen’s purses, but it is often bandied about how many thousands this gentleman has per year, and how many tens of thousands this one has.”
“And where am I purported to fall?”
“Definitely in the tens, I would expect.”
“Tens only?”
“I thought the thousands were implied, Your Grace,” she answered, her tone still mocking the joke.
“And how do the gossips suppose I acquire such largesse?”
“Mining, I suppose. I haven’t dug too much into the topic, seeing as I’m not in the market for a coronet. It seemed churlish to merely seek the information for information’s sake.”
James laughed loudly, bringing a flush to his companion’s face.
“Well, it’s good to know that all my business isn’t being aired around Town.”
She shrugged. “Only most of it,” she agreed with a smile. “So, tell me. Is it mines? Or wool? Or horses? My father has recently taken to breeding horses. Gorgeous creatures. I don’t like to visit the stables terribly often now, as I cannot bear to think of growing attached to them and then he sells them.”
“Your heart is surprisingly soft for one who has made such an effort to harden herself.”
He found her awkward shrug endearing. “Horses have never harmed me. But why are you still dithering, Your Grace? You cannot convince me that there is nothing to tell. Are the gossips all lying? Are your estates actually languishing into ruin and no one has heard a breath of the scandal? Do tell.”
She put her elbows on the table and her chin in her hand as though in anticipation of a vivid tale. James grinned over her display but finally launched into a description.
“I could answer you with one word – yes. But then you’d make eyes at me as though I had kicked a puppy and demand to know which question the yes answered.” He paused to appreciate the grin she gave him. “But the yes would actually answer most of your questions. Yes, we mine, yes, we have wool, and yes, to the horses as well. But I keep my horses for sale well separate from my own stables, as my sister wanted to keep every single one of them. My stables were bursting at the seams, as she didn’t want to let a single one go. I sent her away for a year of school, had new facilities built, and rearranged my stables before she returned.”
“Oh dear, was she terribly heartbroken when she returned?”
“I also made sure there was a puppy in residence before her carriage arrived.”
The nod of approval she offered him was strangely gratifying.
“You are just as I imagined a big brother ought to be.”
“Did you imagine it often?”
“Of course,” she answered simply, before chiding, “But don’t leave the subject at hand once more, Your Grace. Tell me about your mines. Is it tin? Ore? Silver? Do you ever go down in them? I cannot imagine, as the thought of going underground makes me feel a little green, but I suppose you are made of sterner stuff.”
James appreciated her confidence in him but wanted to both nod and shake his head at once.
“I have gone down in them, but not often. As I’m sure you can imagine, my presence is not conducive to productivity. But I need to be sure that my men are being treated properly. I like to see for myself, even though I trust those I’ve hired to oversee everything. I can’t say that I love it down there, but I am filled with admiration for those who are willing to do the work.”
“I suppose you reward them for that willingness.”
Her tone was light, but James caught the speculative gleam in her eye. He actually felt heat staining his cheeks.
“Are you turning into a reformer now?” he teased. While she began to bluster, he laughed and assured her. “Of course, I pay my miners a fair wage. I profit significantly from their labour. It would be churlish of me not to.” When she smiled at him with approval, James was inclined to preen but managed to restrain the impulse.
“Now, you tell me about Glendale and Sherton.”
“But you still have so much to tell me about Wexford.”
“I’ll show you sometime,” he promised. He was suddenly filled with an intense desire to have her see his home. And just as suddenly, he realized he was allowing the day to get out of his control. “Perhaps we should continue this conversation while we drive back to Town.”
