Stifling his snort of impatience at his father, he took advantage of the opening. “I may have a touch of my father in me, then. I also feel too much sometimes. I have never allowed you to witness the tremor in my hand when I signed a document with significant impact on our family or the estate. But Charlotte saw. More, she helped me recenter myself, and regain my strength whenever I wavered. She is as much or more of a partner to me as Father was to you, and I cannot do this without her, Mama.”
“William, no. It cannot be, my dear.” Ruth’s mouth pursed, although he could not tell if it was sorrow or anger. “You need heirs.”
“Without Charlotte, there will be no heirs anyway. I will not shackle myself to some chit merely for children—or money. Do you recall the conversation when I gave you that brooch?” He gestured to the starling she wore every day.
She nodded.
“Who do you think helped guide me to those investments? Charlotte is smarter than me, perhaps even smarter than you, Mama, without so much as a day at Oxford. She researches and evaluates opportunities and then directs her man of business to invest where she wants. All I did was follow her suggestions, right down to using the same investment manager. Without her help, we would have been far worse off when father’s latest investment failed. We would have been selling properties, as you know from reading the ledgers.”
“But—”
“No buts. I thank you for sharing your story with me. I know it must have been difficult to tell, but it clarified my priorities. I will wed her, or not at all. And that is final, as earl.” He swept out, intent on getting to Charlotte to have the same conversation with her as quickly as possible.
* * * *
William continued to knock on Charlotte’s front door. After the first five minutes, the butler had opened the door a crack and asked him to remove himself from the premises, that the lady of the house was not at home, nor would she be for the foreseeable future.
Quite sure that was a bluff—Charlotte always preferred London after all, no matter what the season—he shrugged and said he’d keep knocking until she changed her mind.
He caught curtains twitching at two of the neighbors’ homes and smiled over at them as he persisted, switching hands to alleviate the soreness.
In the brief pause, voices exchanged muffled words just inside.
The door opened all the way, the butler stepping back just in time to avoid William barreling into him.
Following his Mistress’s skirts as they turned into the parlor, he declined to wait to be announced, following her with rapid strides.
She turned to glare at him.
“Mistress, thank you for seeing me.”
“You are ever so welcome, William. How polite you are.” Her lips twisted sardonically.
Ignoring her sarcasm, he grabbed her hand and pulled her in for a cheek kiss. He released her easily when she tugged her hand back.
“Mistress—”
“William—”
“Ladies, first.” He sketched a shallow bow.
“I am very sorry for your loss.”
His lips twisted in a half smile. “So you said in your letter. Anyway, as you know, my father was lost to me a long time ago.”
“Yes, but he was still your father. I also meant the loss of your freedom. I realize you had expected to have that for quite a few more years.”
His face softened at her understanding. “Interestingly, I have come to a realization. That is why I am here.” He followed her over to their customary seats. Glancing at the footstool for her chair, he rejected it for the settee. Today was not the day for blind subservience.
When he did not continue, Charlotte prodded, “I assume you came to actuallysharethat idea with me…?”
“I have concluded that being an earl gives one rather more privileges than being the son of a misbehaving earl.” His smile was grim. “I have come to see that I had all of the responsibility but none of the benefits before. Now I have both.”
“I suppose. I still do not understand.”
“Y’know, my title requires me to do all sorts of things. I must wed, I must fix the family’s financial predicament, I am required to produce heirs. But,” he took a cleansing breath. He needed her to see how serious he was. “Not every earl does those things. Not every earl has the ability to invest wisely, or the friends to help him do so…” He nodded at her. “Not all marry or have children, or some end up with only girls. There are more ways than one to dig for money. And to keep an earldom in the family.”
“William, have you spoken with your mother about this?” Charlotte asked, a note of concern in her voice.
