Bishop’s brows rose. “Today, Your Grace?”
“Yes. Is there something wrong?”
“No, only that your solicitor, Mr. Frobisher, arrived from London last night as you requested. He is staying at the inn in the village.”
Colin ground his teeth. He had forgotten that he asked Frobisher to come. “Very well,” he sighed. “I shall postpone my trip. Send word to him to come to the manor, and also fetch Dr. Quentin.” He wanted Anna to be examined so he could be sure she was not hurt by their activities the night before. He was realizing that he disliked anyone knowing if she was in pain, and that might have come from the abuse she had endured.
“Yes, Your Grace. Shall I have a bath drawn for you?”
Colin nodded, glancing at his closed bedchamber door. He wished Anna would awaken now, but he also dreaded it.
“Thank you for arriving on such short notice, Frobisher,” Colin said as he walked into the salon.
“Of course, Your Grace.” Frobisher bowed, and Colin gestured for him to sit. Frobisher had been his most trusted solicitor since Colin became a duke at nineteen and dismissed his father’s solicitors.
“I called you regarding my estate in Northumberland,” he said without preamble. “I wish to have the manor repaired as quickly as possible.” He sat in a chair opposite the solicitor’s. “I have not been there in years, but you have, and you can tell me what condition the place is in.”
Frobisher cleared his throat and shifted in his seat, which was never a good sign. “The repairs needed are significant.”
“I reckoned. How long will it take?”
“A year, at best. The weather has been unkind, and being situated atop a hill has not favored it either.”
“And at worst?”
“Two years, I believe. I can only be certain if I check the place again.”
Northumberland had always been intended as his wife’s final destination, but Colin had thought he could have her stay in his property in Norfolk before the manor in the north was repaired. Now that Anna was his wife and she had managed to slip into his innermost being, he knew Norfolk was too close.
“I should travel there and see for myself,” he intoned, his mood fouling by the moment. No man who had enjoyed a passionate night with his wife should ever feel thusly, yet he did.
“That would be most ideal, Your Grace.” Frobisher regarded him curiously then. “Might I inquire why you wish to repair the manor now?”
“The Duchess will appreciate the change of scenery.” Colin saw that Frobisher was not convinced by that statement. Nor should he be for it was well known he owned other estates that Anna could enjoy. “She wants it restored to its former glory.” Frobisher nodded, but he still looked concerned. “Is something the matter? Will the repairs put a dent in my fortune?”
“Certainly not, Your Grace. They will not make any difference in your fortune. It is just that…” His thick dark brows furrowed. “May I speak freely?” Colin responded with a slight nod. “Edinfield Hall is all but abandoned. I am surprised that you wish to revive it now.”
Edinfield was his childhood home, but Anna did not know that, and she likely would not, unless someone told her—but everyone who knew had sworn to take what had occurred there to their graves.
“A lot has changed in the last week.”
“Yes, that is quite understandable, Your Grace. Will you be traveling there soon?”
“Yes, I believe I will.”
“Very good, Your Grace. I shall travel immediately so that I may draw up a plan for the repairs before you see it.”
“Thank you, Frobisher.”
Frobisher stood. “Have a good day, Your Grace.”
“You, as well.”
Colin remained in the salon after the solicitor’s departure, contemplating whether he should leave for Northumberland immediately. It would give him the time he needed away from Anna, yet something deep inside him made him hesitate, and it was as if that part was seeking her permission.
The door opened as the notion turned in his mind, and Nathaniel walked in. He hung his head the instant he saw Colin. “Bad morning?”
“No,” Colin denied. “You are back early.”
