“It’s a practiced skill. I’ve had to fine-tune it if I ever wanted to have a client trust me,” he said matter-of-factly with a shrug. “I never really knew your father, but I’m sure he was quite at ease with this set as well. It is part of the business.”
“A part of the business I’m clearly not acquainted with.”
He looked at her again—reallylooked at her. Physically, she appeared so delicate, but her personality seemed too big for her small frame.
How odd it must be for her.
If she were a man, she’d undoubtedly have a flourishing business of her own. But as she was a woman, those doors were firmly shut for her. He thought of his travel and the experiences he’d had. If he’d been born a lady, those opportunities would have been closed to him.
“You’ve not asked my advice, yet I will tell you just the same,” he offered. “Everyone here—every single person in that drawing room—is driven by fear. Fear of being alone, fear of not beingaccepted, or fear of being without money. For the most part they all enjoy financial security, but at any moment it could all be snatched away from them.
“Mrs.Milton, for instance. She was one of the most respected, wealthiest women in society, and she and her husband poured their entire lives into building this place, only to have it pass out of her hands. If you’re able, try to find the humor in it. They are all vying for attention, and whether you believe me or not,youare the foremost threat to them all.”
She scoffed adamantly. “I’m hardly a threat.”
“Well, from what I’ve heard, no one knows if you are a rich heiress, a nobleman’s illegitimate daughter, or a stowaway.”
She finally gave a little laugh. “I’m none of those things. And only you and Mrs.Milton know the truth.”
“Well, we know the truth about each other, then.” He tried not to stare but noticed how the breeze caught a long lock of light brown hair and blew it over her forehead. How he longed to smooth it back into place.
“Do you remember the night our fathers parted ways?” Lucas asked, unwilling to let their conversation end.
“How could I not?”
“You were very young.” He adjusted his position to lean with his elbow on the railing’s edge.
“I wasn’t so young that it didn’t leave an impression. I’d never heard my father shout prior to that night. And I never heard him shout after it.”
“No doubt you also recall the source of that argument,” he prompted. “The Vienna painting.”
Miss Brannon shifted, making it difficult to read her reaction. “Yes, I’ve heard it mentioned a few times.”
The sarcasm in her tone amused him. “I’m sure you have.”
It was an odd sense of connectedness, to share such a poignant memory. Did she feel it, too, or did he alone struggle to resist the magnetic pull between them? “I suppose we’ll never know what that partnership could have grown into.”
“It happened so long ago. Everything that has happened since then has made us who we are.”
A sharp bout of laughter echoed from the drawing room. Her preoccupied expression returned. “Mrs.Milton will notice I’m gone. I should rejoin the party.”
She turned, as if preparing to leave the veranda, but he could not resist one last thing.
“For what it’s worth, you say you don’t belong here. But I believe you are the rival of any woman in the room. And I daresay you are infinitely more interesting. There is something about a woman who can think for herself that is quite intriguing.”
Chapter27
Was it possible for a person to change the core of who they were in just a few days’ time?
The question rattled around Olivia’s mind when she awoke the next morning, challenging the sound of autumnal thunder and pelting rain just outside the Blue Room’s windows.
The events of the last few days—not to mention her conversation with Mr.Avery the previous night—were conjuring doubts about things she’d always accepted as truths. They’d challenged her perception of right and wrong and her view of herself and her abilities. In such a short time she’d witnessed coldness and selfishness, but she’d also encountered benevolence.
How odd was it that an Avery had been one to show kindness—who offered support without taking advantage? He had nothing to gain by being kind to her. But other people, like Mr.Fielding and Mrs.Milton, behaved as if Olivia owed them something, merely because she was here.
With her thoughts as her companion, Olivia spent that morning with Tabitha, Mrs. Milton, and Louis in the China closet, keeping a close and careful eye on the paperwork and matching it up tothe items as she evaluated them. Because of the incessant morning rain, the ladies’ afternoon activity of archery had been canceled, so Mr. Romano requested to paint Olivia’s miniature during that time. A headache, brought on by the change in the weather, confined Mrs. Milton to bed during the afternoon hours, leaving Olivia to make her way down the corridor to meet Mr. Romano alone.
On her way to the formal parlor on Cloverton Hall’s first floor, Olivia passed the gallery. She’d not been by the space since the night of the concert, and through the open doors she spied the Cavesee Vase.
