“I tried, but he wanted to wait for you.”
“How’d you know I’d come home?”
“Because you’re my son. You may have been knocked down, but you were not out for the count. When John proposed to Holland, it was only a matter of time.”
“Am I so predictable?”
“If by predictable you mean a man who loves his family, a man who is bound by his duty, then yes, you’re predictable, and all the better for it. You saw we have a family dinner tomorrow night and a portrait sitting on Friday?”
“I assume Granny will be at dinner.”
Mum arched her brow. “Unless I want to incur her wrath, yes.”
“Will we have to dissect my life? Starting with being left at the altar?”
Granny kept her royal roots buried in the old days and the old ways. She resented and complained about Mum’s modernizations. She preferred the rules and rigidity of her day when Grandfather was king and she his queen.
“One day we Blues won’t be any different from the people. We’ll be extraneous.”
“I’ve already told her dinner is a celebration, not an inquisition.”
“You think that will stop her?” Gus raised his cup. The hot and creamy tea served in the familiar family china was another bit of home anchoring him in place. He never found a good tea in Florida. Especially at the Captain’s Hideaway. Helene had the most horrid brand.
“Probably not, but you don’t have to answer her.”
“Why not? I’ve nothing to hide. Coral left for her own reasons, and there we are. Robbi and I weren’t right in the end. Then John suggested I go away to recuperate. Charles offered his Florida place. I couldn’t see a reason to turn him down.”
“You didn’t have to stay away so long. You missed the entire renovation of Hadsby Castle, which was your brainchild, by the way.”
“My part was done. I lent nothing to the actual work. You said so yourself. But it’s complete now, sparkling new for John’s wedding ball.” Hopefully any residue of Gus’s wedding ball was removed by hammers then swept away. “I’ve seen pictures. The renovations look spectacular.”
“You can see for yourself. I’m sending you up there next week.”
Gus startled away from the window. “Serious? I just returned and you’re shipping me off? What happened to ‘the prodigal has returned’?”
“You’re not a prodigal. I thought going north would be a simple way to ease you back into your duties. Besides, you love Hadsby. Why not enjoy it before it’s overrun with ball guests and the media?” She set her teacup on a side table and retrieved a folder. “This was just finalized this morning. A copy has been sent to Stern. It’s a list of appearances and visits while in Dalholm. The Youth League and the Berkshire School are very excited you’re coming this year. They’ve missed their patron.”
Gus flipped through the folder. Mum had respectfully filled his diary with weekday duties, leaving his weekends free. A walkabout through the old city, a visit to a new tech company, meetings with the mayor and police commissioner over the influx of guests and tourists arriving for the ball. A day with the Youth League and another with the Berkshire School.
And the crème de la crème. Wedding ball planning. This would be his true test. Had he really healed in Florida? Or would memories of his wedding ball surface?
“Are the planners the same as, well, mine?” He sat in the chair opposite Mum’s desk.
“Yes. The Northton Planners. It’s all there. They’ve done all the preliminary work. You just have to—”
“Make it about John and Holland.”
“Are you okay with this?” Mum’s gaze softened. “It’s been two years since your ball. But no one can demand a heart move on if it’s not ready.”
“I’m fine. I can do this. Have the invitations gone out?”
“Just. I worked with the designer on them but everything else will be up to you. Music, food, wine, flowers, lighting, the china and crystal.”
“I’ll need to inspect the rooms since they’ve all been redone.”
The dining halls, media rooms, drawing rooms, libraries, and the suites. As the host, he was the one to ensure everything went off without a hitch. Another House of Blue tradition.
“John did a smashing job for me. I won’t let him down.” Gus settled the folder under his chair and finished his tea. “Funny though, I can’t seem to remember much of anything except standing there in Clouver Abbey like a chump.”
