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His butler let me in and directed me to the parlor, where he sat with his young son over their tea. “Care for a cup?” he asked, then sipped from his rose-painted teacup softly.
“I would, thank you.”
A maid stepped forward and prepared tea for me before passing it over.
“Run along,” Claverley said to his son, and the fire-haired boy put his unfinished tea down on the short table and ran from the room, no doubt grateful to be dismissed from whatever lessons he’d been partaking in.
I took a sip of my hot tea. “He’s an obedient lad.”
Claverley snorted. “Of course he is. He’s my son.” He drank the rest of his tea and set the cup down, signaling to the maid to refill it. Most meetings I attended with men were chiefly supported by port, brandy, or the occasional whisky. This tea was a nice change.
“Bumpton Hall is for sale,” Claverley said, getting right to the point. “My man inquired, and they’ve lowered the price by two thousand pounds because it won’t sell. Take from that what you will. I’ve heard the roof needs repairs, but the problems could be far more extensive.”
“That is near the Westmorland border, is it not?”
Claverley nodded. “Too far, I take it?”
Was it? It was still relatively close, though I would not consider them neighbors. I hadn’t thought deeply about how close I wanted to remain to Bakewell. James and Felicity would stay at Chelton always, and Mother, too, I wagered, but it was impossible to know what Henry would choose to do with his life. The man could be depended upon to either be found on a horse or with his nose stuck in a book, so conversations were few and far between. He’d inherited our hunting box, Sedwick Lodge, after my father’s death, but heaven only knew what he intended to do with the place.
“You aren’t to repeat this to anyone,” Claverley said, lowering his voice. He rubbed his chin and watched me, waiting for a confirmation. I nodded, and he continued. “I have it on good authority that Kellinger Park will be up for sale in the next month or so. They are remaining very quiet about the matter, for Mrs. Browning wants to be removed from the house before buyers are traipsing through it and ruining her peace. Or so she says.”
Kellinger was a beautiful house situated on the road between Chelton and Sedwick Lodge. It was closer to the hunting lodge, and we often passed it when traveling from one of our houses to the other. It was difficult to miss, even from the road, as it was set on a hill so its grandeur could be seen and admired from afar. It was a tasteful house, not too large, though perhaps a little bigger than I could afford. The inheritance left to me by my father would be enough to purchase an estate, if I so chose, which I believed to be his intention with the money—but I would have nothing left to invest in the land or animals to make the estate profitable.
If I chose an occupation, though, the money would provide enough to help me set up whatever career I chose.
I tore my mind away from memories of my father before his demise and conversations we’d had about my future. I’d been young then and hadn’t wanted to discuss it. Now I wished I had listened better.
“When does the family plan to leave?” I asked.
“As soon as they determine where they are going.” Claverley shook his head, his chin wobbling. “It is an utter mess. Mr. Browning’s debts are too numerous to count and his creditors have been at his door since March. It’s a miracle, really, they haven’t carted him off to prison already.”
“The Brownings must be doing something to stay out of it,” I said.
“Selling off the family jewels and the like, naturally. A few marbles were sold only last month—Roman, or some such thing—but surely they’ve nothing left to sell. Whoever buys the house will receive a veritable shell.”
“There is nothing wrong with that. It allows the new owner to decorate easily to their own tastes.” If they possessed the money to do so, of course. Which, after the purchase of an estate, I doubted I would.
“Hmm.” Claverley drank another cup of tea. “If you’ve any interest in the place, I can arrange a meeting. Only to walk through, mind you, to see the estate. We can see Bumpton, too, if you’ve the stomach for repairs.”
I certainly had the skill. James and I had fixed all manner of things on his property, and we had been doing so since we were lads ourselves. James enjoyed the physical exertion, and I didn’t mind helping him. He liked to joke that it was my way of paying for the privilege of living in his house, but we both knew I was happy to be of service and that he considered Chelton our family home, that he would never expect me to think of it ashis.
But, itwasJames’s house. The longer I considered the idea of striking out and finding my own estate, the more I felt it held merit. I wanted to raise a family in my own space, and I was certain Felicity would desire the same thing once she found herself in the family way. Henry could move into his hunting lodge, but I needed somewhere of my own, too.
I raised my head and smiled at my cousin, who now frowned into his teacup as though wondering where his drink had gone.
“I’m interested,” I said, garnering his attention. “If your man will set up the meetings, I would be grateful to tour both estates.”
“Of course.” He gestured for the maid to fill his cup once more. “Now, when will Miss Northcott be on her way to me?” Claverley watched me with such expectation, such little artifice, that it occurred to me at once what he was doing. He was making me beholden to him so I would feel obligated to assist him in what he wanted.
“You will have to ask my mother that, my lord.” I did my best to sound lazy, as though Thea’s location and plans were the least of my concerns. “Last I heard, Miss Northcott was planning to attend the Season under my sister-in-law’s care. It is only reasonable, I suppose, for the girl to wish to remain with such a dear friend.”
Doing it a little too brown, I thought. I hoped Claverley did not pick up on that. Thea had only met Felicity just over a week ago, but my cousin did not necessarily know this.
“We had a deal,” he said tightly, “and I expect Thea to uphold her end of the bargain.”
“A deal?” I asked, bunching my eyebrows as though I was unaware of the bargain he’d struck with my mother.
Claverley grew agitated and rubbed his palm over his forehead and then down his pant leg. “I suppose I ought to visit your mother. But—” He looked to the clock on the mantel, then out the door. “We are to set off for my mother-in-law’s house for a fortnight. Blasted relations.”
