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“I would have loved to be in business with him, but he never showed any interest,” she said, blinking in surprise. “He has always spoken of being a solicitor, though he has moved beyond that in recent weeks.”
Hawthorne looked thoughtful. “The estate manager at Hawthorne Towers has been talking about retiring in a few years. He could use a shrewd young man with legal training as his assistant for the time being, with the opportunity to become the next steward if he proves capable of it. Your boy seems of an age with my nephew. If they get along, it may be a good idea for them to grow into their positions together. Gives them someone to trust besides us old folk.” His tone was wry. “What do you think, Annie? Do you think young Robert might be a good fit? It would be your decision, of course.”
Letty saw Robert and Edward talking in the corner, laughing so hard over champagne that Robert was nigh doubled over.
Anne smiled. “It sounds perfect.”
Letty couldn’t have designed a better ending for her work at Hawthorne House if she had tried. She had ended up with everything she could have dreamed of.
She gazed at Anne.
And so much more.
Chapter Three
Hawthorne House was a stately townhouse in Mayfair that soared four stories high. Tall wrought-iron gates guarded it from the street, and bare-branched trees marched alongside the path cut into the front lawn to the door. The chance to see the inside of a ducal mansion was an opportunity that Letty might never have again, and she felt a rush of excitement as she strode up to the door with its imposing lion’s head knocker.
The butler who enquired after her business looked almost ducal himself with his nose in the air. Letty was accustomed to such looks from people who considered themselves her betters, eying her style of dress with displeasure. It didn’t change her affinity for cravats and a smart beaver top hat with her velvet skirts.
She gave the butler her hat and her cloak. She wished she could keep her walking stick with her as she had a habit of tapping it whilst thinking, but she relinquished it after the barest of hesitations.
Letty gazed around the drawing room in which the butler had deposited her. It was easily twice the size of her entire apartment. White marble columns carved with leaves and fruit were everywhere, and heavy gold curtains hung from the windows. If she shouted, she rather fancied that she would hear an echo.
She doubted the pair of dour-faced footmen stationed at the doorway would be amused if she attempted such a thing.
Hawthorne House was by far the most elegant building that she had ever set foot in. Her friends’ encouragement last week,nursed along with a pint or two, had bolstered her confidence. But now, looking at the sheer scale of the estate, she wondered if she actually had a chance. She didn’t often feel nervous, but her palms felt sweaty inside her leather gloves.
If Letty considered the house to be the height of elegance, it was nothing compared to the woman who glided into the room. She was tall, slender, and commanding, with sharp cheekbones and a firm chin and lips that looked like their natural state was to be pressed together into a mild frown. Not a strand of her pale blond hair dared to stray from its swept-up coiffure studded with emerald-tipped pins. Letty’s hair would never look like that, not even if she had an army of maids to fuss over her every morning.
She supposed the woman’s dress might be considered plain by her peers, unadorned with embroidery or jewels. But to her it represented months of good salary—the heavy satin was rich and shiny, and the tailoring was impeccable. Letty knew that simple things done to perfection were often pricier than showpieces.
The showpiece before her in the pricy dress could only be the Duchess of Hawthorne.
“Miss Barrow, I presume?” the duchess asked, with a slight incline of her head as she took a seat by the fire, the full skirt of her dress falling into place around her like Letty supposed everything was wont to do.
She curtsied. “Yes, Your Grace. Thank you for agreeing to see me.”
“I will tell you up-front, Miss Barrow, that everyone that I have interviewed thus far has more extensive experience than you have.” Her voice was cool and light.
Letty thought about the wealthy men who would be vying for the same job. But she couldn’t change the circumstances of her birth any more than Richard could change his, and she had not been born into fortune. “Good taste does not always come from experience. I consider my work to be the equal of any that you may have already reviewed.”
“Equal? I have a duchy to uphold, Miss Barrow. It demands asuperiortouch.”
Letty wanted to roll her eyes. How had she forgotten the snobbery of the nobility? It had been too long since she had been before anyone with a title, preferring to avoid them altogether. Maybe she should let the job go to one of the architects who felt the same way as the duchess. Then she felt the itch of her ambition, coupled with the thought of her empty coffers. “I can assure you, Your Grace, that I can provide better service than anyone else you are considering.”
The duchess gazed at her. “Yet you have no prestigious credentials. You are no architect, I presume?”
“Is it so laughable that a woman could be an architect, if she wanted?” Her temper flared, and she struggled to leash it. This was no way to win the job. She found it within herself to smile. “You are correct. I build nothing. But I guarantee that I can satisfy you. I can give you exactly what you need.” There was a little tingle in her abdomen as she realized what she said. The duchess was an attractive woman, and under other circumstances, she would very much like to satisfy her. Was she mistaken, or did the duchess’s eyes widen slightly? Interesting indeed. She cleared her throat. “Along with letters of reference, I brought sketches of my recent designs.”
The duchess nodded, and Letty spread open her black leather portfolio. She flipped each page, pointing out details and discussing materials that she had used in each renovation, her enthusiasm growing the more she spoke. The duchess let her explain without interruption, a thoughtful look on her face, but those lips were still turned down at the corners.
“What was it that you were thinking of having done here at Hawthorne House, Your Grace?” Every room that she had glimpsed on her way to the drawing room had been flawless. Perhaps they were planning an addition. Or maybe there was water damage somewhere, and a room or two needed to be repaired.
“Everything must be redone,” the duchess announced. Although she was smiling now, the intensity in her eyes was frightening.
“Everything?” Letty blinked, and then glanced around at a fortune’s worth of furniture that showed no obvious signs of use. The antique Aubusson was as vibrant as if the carpet had been woven that very morning.
“I do not make a habit of repeating myself, Miss Barrow.”
