The butler had to be in his seventies, but he looked spry enough and gave her a clever smile. “Your Grace. I must say, it will be nice to have a lady in the manor once more.”
“Yes, that’s what people have said to me,” Caroline agreed.
“Well, it’s very true. The duke would never say so, but he does get lonely in this big estate, and it will be a fine thing for him to have a companion.”
Caroline nodded. She didn’t know what else she could say. A companion seemed less than an adequate description for a wife, but it also seemed like farmorethan what Caroline actually was. Companion? He’d hardly said two words to her since she’d arrived, unless you counted the scene in his bedroom. By no definition were they one another’s companions.
“This is Bethany,” Mrs. Mays went on, beckoning a girl younger than Caroline herself to step forward. “She’s been taken on as your lady’s maid. Inexperienced, but her mother has served in this household for a long time. If you would prefer someone else, we can of course move her to a different placement within the manor, but we thought…”
“No, I’m happy with her,” Caroline said quickly, for the girl looked rather nervous. “Good day, Bethany. I’m so happy to meet you. I could use a friend—I hope you’re able to be that.”
“I—I’ll do my best, Your Grace.”
Caroline smiled, hoping to put her at ease, and reminded herself to have a talk with her about the formality. Of course, the members of staff felt the need to address her appropriately, but with a lady’s maid, it could be different. She needed a friend, so maybe she could just be Caroline to Bethany—when they were alone, at least.
“What would you like to do today, Your Grace?” Mrs. Mays asked.
“Perhaps we could begin in the sitting room,” Caroline suggested. “I agree with what you said about it—it really does need a renovation. Maybe we could begin by examining the furniture and seeing what might be dispensed with and replaced. I did notice that it didn’t seem to match.”
“I don’t believe those furnishings were chosen with any great care,” Mrs. Mays agreed. “Some of them were inherited, andsome were purchased more recently by His Grace, but I don’t think there was ever any sort of plan about them.”
“Well, there ought to be,” Caroline said firmly. “I’m going to choose some pieces that actually look as if they belong together. Let us see if anything in the current set is worth saving.”
They went to the sitting room, but almost at once, the effort was set back by the discovery that the duke was already there. He was sitting on a chair by the window with a tray of food in front of him—his breakfast.
“You took your breakfast in here?” she burst out.
He looked up at her, frowning. “I often dine in this room,” he said.
“No, you don’t.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“You don’t. Look at this place. Except for the chair you’re in and the table before you, nothing in this room has been touched in months. You’re here because you didn’t wish to eat breakfast withme.”
She planted her hands on her hips and raised her eyebrows, daring him to deny it.
He didn’t. “What are you doing here?” he wanted to know.
“I’m here because I’m planning to renovate this room.”
“Oh, you are, are you?” He shook his head. “Less than a day here and you’re already changing things to suit yourself.”
“Oh, no.” Caroline squared her jaw. “You aren’t going to do this to me again.”
“Do what to you again?”
“Make me feel like I’m foolish for having misunderstood you when the real problem is that you don’t speak clearly. You told me to tend to this household,” she reminded him. “You told me that was the duty of a wife to which you referred. Well, that’s fine—I’m going to do it! But don’t come back now and try to convince me that you never wanted any such thing. We both know that you did. You made it clear.”
He laughed. “You’re very strong-willed, aren’t you?”
“I’m glad you find it amusing. Why don’t you just let me know what my budget for renovations is going to look like?” she suggested.
He raised his eyebrows. “Your budget? I don’t recall asking you to do any renovations, and now you expect me to fund the project?”
“As your duchess, I’m sure I’ll be allotted some amount of money for my needs,” she said. “You surely meant to do that much.”
“You may spend whatever you would like,” he told her. “I don’t have any reason to stop you. Mr. Brown will assist you with getting access to the books.”
