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“I said, do you hear me?” the earl demanded, crossing his arms over his chest. His father had been a jolly, smiling man upon entering the room, yet now his expression was stormy at best. Philip knew all too well how easily his father’s mood could change, and it was clear at that moment there would be no arguing with him.
“Yes, Father,” Philip sighed, adding quickly, “though, in my experience, I have come to find that young women rarely have a true interest in learning.”
The way that his father’s face broke into a pleasant and amused smile surprised Philip more than words could ever say. It was a rarity for him to see and only ever seemed to happen whenever his father had been drinking. Yet this smile looked genuine, and it unnerved the earl’s son.
“I think, Philip, that you may well be pleasantly surprised,” the earl announced, and a shiver ran down Philip’s spine. He did not wish to be surprised. In fact, he hated surprises. He would much rather have simply got on with his own studies and forgotten about this entire conversation.
If only his father had drunk more at the ball, perhaps he could have anticipated him forgetting the entire thing. Yet the earl did not look nearly as drunk as that. He was steady on his feet and glaring down at Philip with a pointed expression that said there would be no taking no for an answer.
“Is this truly what you wish me to do, Father?” Philip asked with a deep sigh. Already, he knew he need not ask the question, yet he couldn’t help hoping there might be some way to get out of it.
Why did you have to promise the duke anything?Philip wanted to yell the words at his father, but instead, he bit his tongue.Maybe the duke was drunk enough to have forgotten.
Though Philip guessed from the few times he had met the man that the duke was not the kind of man to forget things easily. He was a businessman, nobleman, and family man just as Philip’s father was, and that meant that when it came to his children, the duke did not accept no for an answer.
The Earl of Elgin stepped forward at that moment and laid both his hands on his son’s shoulders. He squeezed gently and looked Philip directly in the eye. “Son, you will do this for me, or we shall be having words about the profession you have decided to take up.”
Though it was a gentle reminder that his father could and would change his life path as easily as he could click his fingers with one letter to the head of Oxford University, Philip knew that deep down, his father would never be so cruel and vindictive.That isn’t a risk I am willing to take,he thought, finally nodding his agreement.
“I will do as you wish, Father,” he assured him, silently adding to himself,though I will never agree to be happy about it.
As his father gave him a pat on the shoulder and departed to join his wife, Philip began to wonder whether he might just be able to put Lady Lockhart off his tutoring sessions entirely.
It would not be the first time he had managed to manipulate a young woman into believing him undesirable. As the son of an earl, he was all too used to young ladies and their families sniffing around in the hopes that someday they might be able to connect themselves with his great house.
This is different,he reminded himself;this is education.Yet he also reminded himself that it would not be the first time a young lady tried tricking him into educating her on important matters just so that she could get close to him.
“The sooner we get this over with, the better,” he thought aloud, returning to his books because the truth was that after his father’s bombshell, he had lost all willingness to sleep. He was certain that the moment he took himself to bed, he would lie awake wondering how he could get out of this foolish situation.
If only his brother were around to talk about it, even if it were only for him to moan about his father never giving him any choice. Yet he knew well what his brother would say. He would say they were merely the sons and were honour-bound to obey their father.
“Urgh! I hate it when you are right!” Philip declared as though his brother were right there in front of him. Their closeness had dwindled over the last few years, and his brother grew more and more determined to make his father proud.It looks like it’s time I follow in your footsteps, brother.Philip sighed deeply, though he wasn’t sure how tutoring some self-centered heiress would make his father proud.
Several days later, Philip arrived at the Duke of Balfour's townhouse in Summertown. As expected for a duke, his home was ostentatious and the architecture quite beautiful. Perhaps if Philip hadn't been so anxious over his reason for being there, he might have admired it much more.
As things stood, he would rather not get lost in distraction and stood on the porch with his gaze averted to the white stone step beneath his feet the moment he knocked upon the thick wooden door that had been polished to a dark mahogany.
The door opened all too quickly to reveal a stern and elderly butler who barely offered a smile, bowing before he asked, "Mr Radcliffe … Mr Radcliffe?”
Philip bit the inside of his lip, fighting the urge to say no and tell the butler he had the wrong address. His feet itched to turn around and run back home, to go back to his studies and forget about this horrid situation his father had so awkwardly put him in.
Instead, he nodded and smiled. “Yes. I am here for Lady Daisy Lockhart’s …”
“We have been expecting you, sir,” the butler put in, cutting him off before Philip could finish his sentence. The man looked over Philip’s shoulder as though checking that nobody was in earshot, and Philip suddenly remembered that his father had insisted on his discretion.
“I am here to visit Lady Daisy Lockhart,” Philip corrected himself, offering the butler a knowing smile. The man remained stern and stepped out of the doorway, gesturing Philip inside.
“May I take your coat, sir?”
“No, I am fine as I am,” Philip responded. Shaking his head, he thought,I shan’t be here long enough to warrant removing it.The quicker he was able to get out of there, the better.I am only here to keep my father’s promise,he reminded himself, almost certain that the moment he met Lady Lockhart, she would assure him that she had entirely forgotten ever having mentioned a wish to go to university to her father.
“Lady Lockhart and her maid are awaiting you in the parlour, sir,” the butler explained, gesturing with an inclined head for Philip to follow him. “Please, follow me this way, sir.”
Lady Lockhart and her maid, urgh …Philip thought one woman was bad enough, but having the watchful eyes of a maid on them throughout the entire awkward affair would be excruciating.I am here to teach her. What exactly are they afraid I might do when I do not even wish to be here?
Yet Philip knew as well as anyone else that it was expected. He could not sit with any unchaperoned young lady no matter the situation. It simply wasn't proper.And neither are university studies for a lady of the ton,Philip reminded himself grimly as he was led through the excellently decorated townhouse to join Lady Lockhart in the parlour.
Philip waited anxiously outside the parlour door while the butler entered to announce him. The moment he heard his name, he stepped into the room. The first face he saw was that of the lady's maid dressed all in black and white standing adjacent to the door.
