Grimes stepped forward and froze when he caught sight of me. He blinked before glancing uncertainly back at Montoni. “My lord?”
“Ah,” Montoni grinned, as if savoring my humiliation. “Hadn’t you heard, Grimes? Our valet here is actually a marquis in disguise. Like something out of one of those silly novels the ladies read these days. Rather shocking, isn’t it?”
Grimes stared at me and seemed to turn an odd shade of green before he bowed.
“Oh, none of that,” I said.
“Nonsense,” Montoni said, rising from his seat himself. “We should all rise to greet Marquis St. Aubert.” He turned to my aunt, who sat beside him. “Except for Madame Cheron, of course.”
Aunt Cheron inclined her head as Blanche stood, a tight smile in place. Her eyes bled sympathy as she watched me approach the table and take a seat beside Henri.
“You must have had quite a few adventures,” Montoni observed as he seated himself once more and picked from a plate Grimes offered him.
“Quite,” Aunt Cheron agreed. “You chose a roundabout way of seeing the world if that’s what you intended, nephew.”
I lifted my chin. “I’ve learned quite a bit in my travels, actually. Count Montoni’s household has been very generous. I learned to fasten buttons, sew, clean boots, and even light a fire. Do you know how difficult it is to light a fire?”
Cheron frowned at me. “Why on earth would a marquis wish to learn to build a fire?”
I smiled thinly at her. “Sometimes it’s nice to know that I’m capable of performing a task a child can execute.”
Blanche chuckled, then did her best to cover it up with a cough. It wasn’t very convincing. I noted Montoni’s fingers digging into the table.
“Is this real gold?” Aunt Cheron asked, picking up a fork and looking it over. “I didn’t realize your household was so well off, Count.”
“We have our resources,” Montoni said, clearly relieved to have the topic changed. “We wish only for the best, should a beautiful woman find herself a guest at Château le Blanc.”
“Oh,” Cheron blushed and looked away demurely.
I stared at her. Really? She was flirting in front of me now? I was going to have to be subjected to this? Perhaps being institutionalized wasn’t such a bad option, after all.
“So,” Montoni straightened in his seat. “Emile will inherit the late marquis’s fortune when he comes of age. And you oversee it in the meantime?”
Cheron took a sip of her wine. “Indeed. Of course, I have my own household to oversee. I married well, you know.”
“Aw, and your husband is …?”
“Passed on. Over ten years ago.”
“I am sorry to hear that,” Montoni said, although he hardly seemed it. If anything, he looked quite the opposite. I could practically see money signs flashing in his eyes. Once a gambler, always a gambler, I supposed, and a widow was the perfect purse to continue to feed the filthy habit.
Cheron turned to me, and I cut at my food, pretending to be eating, although I had no appetite. “Of course, I had to leave La Vallée empty in the marquis’s absence. There was no need to staff the house when it was vacant.”
I looked up and blinked. “La Vallée stands empty?”
“Oh, yes. The entire staff has been dismissed.”
I let my fork clatter to my plate. “But you can’t do that.”
“OfcourseI can do that.” Aunt Cheron’s eyes narrowed. “I am in control of your finances, and I am not going to bleed money while you play servant.”
I clenched my jaw and glanced over at Henri. Henri’s green eyes were waiting. They conveyed to me that he was with me through this trial. I felt myself calm at his attention, an odd sensation, and continued to stare at him. His hair was falling into his eyes, and I resisted the urge to reach out and push the stray lock back. He was a friendly face in a sea of enemies, I supposed. I needed that right now. Maybe he wasn’t so bad after all, I mused. He’d been manipulative and had taken advantage of my position since meeting him, but I was the same, was I not? I actually rather admired his cunning. Perhaps we weren’t so different in the end.
Conversation resumed around me as I watched Henri pick at his food. I followed his example, continuing to observe him throughout the meal. I didn’t have much else to say, and Aunt Cheron seemed content with the company of Montoni.
By the time dinner was over, I was exhausted again, but I was happy that I’d borne it. Henri had had a big part in that. I couldn’t overlook his kindness, even if this situation was partly, if not mostly, his doing.
We left Aunt Cheron and Montoni to themselves. While walking back to our rooms, Blanche took my arm and leaned into me, her head nestling onto my shoulder. “So, you helped your mother get ready forrealballs and dinner parties.”
