“Charmed, Your Grace. I’d heard my dear cousin was walking out with a beautiful woman, but the gossips of thetondo not do you justice.”
To West’s horror, Priscilla blushed deeply at his words. He’d honestly thought she was above such ridiculous flattery.
“Oh, you do talk sweetly, don’t you? We’re among friends here, there is no need for the formality of Your Grace, please call me Priscilla.”
“Only if you will call me Eli,” he responded while shooting West a victorious look.
So that was it then, why Cumberland would dain to make his presence known here in Northamptonshire. West knew Cumberland was trying to get under his skin by taking his shot with Priscilla as he had threatened a few weeks ago at the club. Well, let him try. He couldn’t take something that West never truly had in the first place.
Nevertheless, he would intervene if his cousin took things with Priscilla too far during their stay at Hampton House. A man like Cumberland would be no good for Priscilla in the long run, only bringing her heartache and ruin after running through her fortune.
West wanted to make amends and bring Elias into the family. However, that didn’t mean he must approve of him entirely. It should prove to be an interesting week.
Priscilla looked around her at dinner as she observed the Beaumonts. It was an interesting dynamic. They were truly a family with all that implied. On the one hand were shared smiles and jokes, but on the other, the banter could turn the slightest bit nippy as family history lent the knowledge to irritate one another with precision. There was also a sense of uneasiness as these people became reacquainted after so many years apart,though she could tell that at the end of the day they cared deeply for one another.
West clearly looked up to his uncle. They’d been having an animated conversation all evening and now he was laughing warmly at something his uncle had said. Conversely, John and Nathalie were the quieter members of the group, discussing a novel that she had just read, a smile lighting up her face as John mentioned a library tour after the meal concluded. At the end of the table, the two matrons of the family were clearly getting to know one another as they were deep in conversation, Colleen jumping in from time to time while her husband glowered, clearly not wishing to be at the birthday celebration.
The final member of the family was the biggest mystery. Priscilla had heard of the Earl of Cumberland before, and with his reputation, quite frankly, she was surprised he joined the gathering at all. Based on what West had shared with her about his family previously, she didn’t imagine he would be eager to get to know the rest of the Beaumonts simply because West was now the head of the family.
He'd been charming earlier and continued to flirt with her throughout dinner; however, she knew better than to take what he said at face value. He was only trying to get into her good graces, and she wasn’t blind to the fact that she was considered a valuable prospect to many men in theton.While her supposed relationship with West had helped defer most of the attention, she had still had men approach her and try and entice her away from the marquess from time to time so that she might buffer their coffers.
She might bask in Cumberland’s attention because it was always nice to be admired, but she knew not to take anything he said seriously. Interestingly, she had felt some prickliness coming from West when she was first introduced to the earl. Maybe she could use his attentions to her advantage.
The group moved into the parlor once dinner finished and the group moved into the parlor. Because it was a family gathering, she being the only exception, it was more informal and the tradition to separate men and women for a period was disregarded. Priscilla sat on the fringes, near the fire to continue observing.
Looking around the manor house, both when she had arrived and scanning the parlor now, she could see evidence of the family’s financial strain. While they could clearly still keep a decently sized staff as the place was spotless, the wear and minimalism around her were indications of the lack of funds. The curtains were pale from the sun, faded over the years but not replaced, the rugs were threadbare along the well-trodden paths throughout the room, and the settee she sat on was beginning to fray near the leg. She suspected a few items of value had been sold over the years, as the tabletops were bereft of trinkets and large swaths of the walls were empty, leaving behind saturated spots on the wallpaper where paintings used to perch.
Seeing it all made Priscilla sad but also helped her understand West’s drive to be successful in his new business ventures. She admired his determination to separate the family from business associated with slavery even more, knowing it was the steadiest source of their income until now.
It certainly shed light on the amount of strain West had been experiencing lately, trying to make the family secure again while preserving the family name. Priscilla was sure he did not see the similarities with his father in their drive for the Beaumonts to be respected, nor would he welcome the comparison. But nonetheless, both men tried to do what they believed was best for the Beaumonts, even as their approaches greatly differed.
Soon the older generation bid their good nights, leaving the siblings and cousins in the parlor. The atmosphere becamemore relaxed and the conversation more serious as Elias poured spirits liberally for all who wished to partake.
When John and Nathalie excused themselves to head for the library, leaving a more intimate group, it didn’t take long for Haven to speak up again about his displeasure with the changes West had been making.
“I understand you are trying to be some kind of reformer by taking on a Black man as a valet and cutting business ties with the slave trade, but have a care for how it looks to polite society. It’s much better not to stray from the norm when they are still assessing you as the new Hampton.”
“You forget that I don’t care what polite society thinks of me, I care about doing what is best,” West replied to his brother-in-law. His tone was calm, but Priscilla wasn’t fooled. She knew below the surface he was seething that Haven would bring up the subject yet again. At least this time he had the sense to do so in a private setting rather than a ballroom brimming with members of theton.
“Well, you should care,” Haven persisted, either not picking up on the general air of frustration in the room or not caring. “Your father understood that with only a few generations under the title, he needed to appear respectable within the aristocracy if your family were to be looked upon favorably. I took a gamble when I agreed to marry your sister, tying my own lineage to yours, but I trusted your father to maintain propriety and ensure nothing bad could be said about the Hampton line outside of its origins. You are now messing with that, and it could reflect poorly on all of us.”
“I’m sorry to disappoint you,” West responded dryly. “But as I have told you before, my valet is indispensable and the business of divesting our holdings from the transatlantic trade are already complete.”
“And a good thing too,” Ethan said, raising his tumbler of scotch in salute.
“I’m sorry you are concerned about our family’s good name, but remaining in the business was not an option,” West continued, still agitated by his motives being questioned. “It’s the absolute hypocrisy of it all that rubs at me the most. If it were truly the business practices that our peers objected to, that would be understandable. But it’s not. What they don’t like about us is that the title is purchased and that my grandfather had the gall to climb above his position, not how he earned the money to do so in the first place.ThatI cannot change, so I’ll not kowtow to them as my father did—I’ll do what I know to be right.”
“What do you think of all this, Priscilla?” Elias asked slyly. “As you might soon become a member of this family, surely you have an opinion on how they are perceived?”
Oh, the rat. Trying to stir up trouble. Well, Priscilla wouldn’t let him. “I agree whole heartedly with West. Until a few more generations have passed, you’ll not be able to change how some in the peerage regard you. That being the case, I think doing what is morally right will always be the best option. And I’ve witnessed how diligently West is working to ensure other streams of revenue. In fact, I admire his commitment to improving this place and securing the future of the family and its tenets.”
West gave her a genuine smile, and her body warmed. She knew he appreciated her defense, but it wasn’t just for show due to the parts they were playing. She genuinely believed in what he was doing and admired him. Priscilla knew his motivation lent more toward wanting to defy his father than anything truly altruistic at times, but overall, she admired him. Making it that much harder to deny her ever growing feelings.
CHAPTER 21
The next morning, West headed to the stables, readying Shakespeare for a ride around the estate with his cousin. He’d asked Ethan to accompany him and take a look at the property today as he was eager to hear his ideas on innovative farming techniques. West personally thought it was a shame his cousin was bound to a desk in his work as a lawyer as he obviously had a passion for working with the land and agriculture.
He was also looking forward to the fresh air and time away from the house, needing to cool down. All last evening during dinner, and then again this morning, he had watched as Elias flirted with Priscilla and she teased him right back. Didn’t she know how it looked? Except for his mother, everyone believed her to be courtinghim,not that scoundrel. Scowling, he yanked on Shakespeare’s saddle strap. He had sent the groom away, needing a task to take his mind off of his ridiculous jealousy, but as Shakespeare let out a whinny from his rough treatment, he forced himself to calm down.
