“No, I shall have this house party first. The moment I step foot in London, the deuced invitations will start arriving. Nor will I put it past my well meaning parents, or Daisy and her family, to contrive occasions to match me up with some peahen they deem suitable for me.” He regarded her steadily. “It is a matter of battle tactics, Viola.”
She tipped her head and regarded him in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“I do not control the London battleground. So I need to bring the enemy into my territory where I shall have greatest advantage over the outcome.”
“Finding a wife is not a battle, my lord.”
“This is where you are wrong. Has the marriage mart not been described as exactly this? I am in command here and in full control of my surroundings. Here is where I shall live with my wife, so it is important for me to see her in what is to be her home. I want to know how she behaves around my servants. I intend to get a full report from my housekeeper, Mrs. Lester, at the end of each day.”
“That is quite devious of you.”
“Not at all. It is a matter of protecting myself.”
“And what of your friends and family? Will you ask for reports from them, too?”
He shook his head. “No, but they will toss in their opinions anyway. They will deem it important that I should know their thoughts. However, they will only see the false face any of these diamonds want them to see. It is the opinion of my staff that will matter most to me, for they are the ones who are likely to be dismissed and mistreated. Servants do not count as people, you see.”
“That is awful.”
“It is the way of thetonand why I prefer to live in Ardley. Any potential wife of mine had better like it, too. I do not intend to change my ways and settle in London.”
She cast him a wry smile. “Another reason why I am so wrong for this task. I have never been to London. Oxford and Coventry are the extent of my travels.”
“We’ll have to remedy that.”
“Oh, I suppose I will get to London eventually. It will be a while yet. I do not dare leave my father. Besides, it is beautiful here. Why should I ever want to leave?” But she would have to settle elsewhere eventually. Perhaps her next position would be as cook in a London household, or she might seek a situation in a grand estate overlooking the sea. She’d heard from several parishioners that Cornwall was lovely.
She hoped not to have to think about this for a very long while.
But once her father was gone…where would life take her?
And would she ever see Alexander Dayne, third Viscount Ardley, this man of her dreams, again?
CHAPTER 3
“LADY SYBIL’S FATHERis a duke,” Viola muttered, scribbling notes on a sheaf of paper while seated at the small writing desk in a corner of Alexander’s parlor several days later. The task of whittling his choices down to three was proving harder than expected, especially since he was enjoying Viola’s company far too much and was in no hurry to see their time together end.
“Is this supposed to impress me?” Alexander drew a chair close and now studied her as he settled in beside her. She looked quite pretty seated there, so earnestly attending to their project. The desk had belonged to his grandmother, Lady Eloise, purchased when she was young and newly married to his grandfather, both of them residing in marital bliss at Ardley Hall.
“Your offspring would have a duke for a grandfather. One of them might even inherit his title.”
“Do not be impressed by titles,” Alexander said, picking theDebrett’sup from the small writing table and perching it on his lap. They had been pouring over the gossip rags and whatever books on heritage and heraldry found in his extensive library for several hours now. “Lady Sybil’s father is the Duke of Preston, an intolerant blowhard and an arse, pardon my language. All that can be said of him is that he is a boor to everyone, nobleman and servant alike.”
“All the more reason his poor daughter must be eager to get out from under his thumb.”
“Or she might have inherited his ogrish ways.”
“Invite her to your house party and we shall see.”
“But that would require inviting her parents as well.”
Viola turned to him, her dark eyes wide and so prettily framed by long, dark lashes. “Oh, I see your point. Well, let us set her name aside for now. But I do want to return to her before we finalize your list. I hate to think of her as having been browbeaten all her life by a bullying windbag of a father. She might thrive under the guidance of a loving husband.”
Alexander knew he should keep an open mind, but there was no way in hell he was going to attach himself to the Duke of Preston. “Who’s mentioned next in that gossip rag?”
“The Earl of Chartoff’s daughter, Marianne. That is a lovely name.”
“The man is an utter dimwit. So is his wife. Not a functioning brain between them. I hope his daughter does not take after them.”
