McCloud grinned. “She is a handsome woman,” he said. “Val… I do not suppose you would let me return to Selborne to keep company with your mother, would you?”
Val almost laughed; he was actually quite thrilled over the request. To have McCloud court his mother might make his life more bearable, not to mention making Margaretha happy. Nay, he couldn’t imagine anything more wonderful. But he couldn’t resist teasing the man.
“For what purpose?” he asked innocently.
McCloud cleared his throat as if embarrassed. “Well…,” he said, struggling, “I rather like your mother’s spirit. There are not many women my age who are as fine as your mother, and widowed, so I was hoping… I know it is a foolish thought, but…”
“Go,” Val interrupted him, waving him on. “By the time you finish telling me that you want to court my mother with the consideration of marriage, I will be an old man. Go and tell her how much you fancy her.”
“Then I have your permission?”
“God, yes. Best of luck, McCloud. You will need it.”
McCloud snorted, relieved that he had Val’s permission to pursue his interest with the man’s mother. He wondered if his glee showed overly, trying not to feel guilty that his intentions were not altruistic. He had no intention of harming the woman, of course, and he would be kind to her. But the fact that her money was the most attractive thing about her him feel as if he was betraying Val somehow.
The truth was that he was.
But he pushed aside the guilt as he headed towards Margaretha, who by now had come down off the stairs and was heading in their direction. When he was halfway to his intended target, Val turned to Vesper.
“I thought he would never leave,” he said, a glimmer in his eye. “Now I may speak with you privately.”
Vesper had been watching her father as he headed towards Margaretha, thinking terrible thoughts about him. Pretending his intentions were honorable when they weren’t. She couldn’t believe he’d been so bold to say what he had but, in hindsight, nothing about him surprised her any longer.
Looking at Val, she resisted the urge to tell him everything she knew. But in the same breath, she knew that telling the man that her father was preying upon his mother, and the reasons behind it, would kill whatever warmth Val had for her. It would destroy her family and it would destroy her future; she knew that as surely as she knew the sun would rise on the morrow.
God, it was all so disheartening. As a person of undying honesty, it was mortifying to Vesper to realize that she was related to a den of immoral characters and, in that sense, she felt trapped. Trapped because she was unable to tell Val what was truly going on and guilty as hell because she was being selfish in not telling him.
To tell him would be to lose that gleam in his eye forever. Instead of telling him the truth, she simply replied to his statement.
“You and your mother have been such wonderful hosts,” she said. “I do hope we shall see you both again soon.”
Val cocked an eyebrow. “Sooner than you think.”
“What do you mean?”
A smile played on his lips. “My lady, I am not entirely sure if you are aware that you have captured my attention since the moment I returned to Selborne yesterday.”
Vesper knew what he meant. It only confirmed her father’s observations. She was thrilled to hear it from Val himself.
“I… I am not entirely sure how to answer you,” she said, the familiar mottle creeping into her cheeks. “I feel that if I admit I have, you might think me arrogant in my assumption.”
He chuckled. “Your modesty is admirable, but unnecessary. I have done everything but throw myself at your feet, so surely I have made it obvious.”
She looked at him. “Then I might have noticed.”
That wasn’t exactly what Val was looking for. She seemed rather noncommittal about it and his male pride was about to take a hit. “Is it something that has pleased you?” he asked. “If not, all you need do is say the word and I shall not pursue you further. I do not want to be persistent if it is not welcome.”
Vesper’s heart was thumping against her ribs, excitement and happiness she’d never before experienced. She never imagined that on this terrible trip home, she would find something redeeming and lovely about it. Something utterly unexpected but utterly wonderful. Truthful as she was, she couldn’t toy with him.
“It is welcome, Val.”
His breath caught in his throat. “I have never heard my name sound quite so beautiful,” he murmured. “Your voice has such a beautiful quality about it.”
Her smile broadened. “I have never in my life been so flattered as when I met you.”
“You will hear it quite often from me. You had better become used to it.”
“I believe it is something I could grow quite accustomed to.”
