Familiar heat crawled over Graham’s skin. He hated this part of the story.
“Willie and his brother were very poor players, but then, Mr. MacKinnon was rather good. We played back and forth for several hours. I put up as collateral all of my jewelry, a stable of royal horses, and even a vineyard in Italy that Willie had bought me as a gift. He wasn't very pleased about that, but he dared not stop me.” She bobbed her head at Graham. “Mr. MacKinnon was eager to win that vineyard. So, he put up Lismore Hall. We laid our cards down and I won.”
“And your father lost,” Hope said quietly as she turned to face Graham.
Graham remained still as he listened. Hope's genuine reaction unnerved him, and while he told himself he didn't need her sympathies, he felt rather grateful for them.
“Did you remove the MacKinnons?” Faith asked.
“Heavens no,” Lady Belle said. “I clean forgot about my winnings until a year or so later, when I received the deed by post. His solicitor had found the deed, which had been signed over to me, while going through Mr. MacKinnon’s papers after his death. You see, darlings, the very night of the card game, our friend Graham here was born. Unfortunately, his motherdied in childbirth and his father, so ashamed at having lost the only thing left to his family, drank himself to death only months afterward.”
“Oh goodness no,” Hope said, her hands flying over her mouth.
Graham didn't appreciate the pity he heard in her voice. All three sisters were observing him with various amounts of commiseration, and he hated it. He had long made peace with the fact that his father hadn't been strong enough to hold himself accountable, but Graham wouldn't be subjected to their pity.
“That's enough, Lady Belle,” he said, his tone rougher than he would have liked. “They don't want to be bored to death about histories long since passed.”
“But you became friends?” Faith asked, swiveling her head between her aunt and Graham. “So, there is a happy ending, isn't there?”
“Well, that depends on when you believe the story ends,” Belle said. “But Mr. MacKinnon is right. It's been a rather boring friendship since he came back to Scotland ten years ago.”
“Where did you go?” Grace asked. “Or were you not raised in the area after the deaths of your parents?”
“My uncle—my mother’s brother—took me in, and I was raised not at all far from here. But I never had reason to return when I was a child, and once I was grown, school took me away and then business,” he said. “I returned ten years ago.”
“Where do you live now?” Faith asked.
“When he’s not in Glasgow to see to his business affairs, Mr. MacKinnon occupies the estate's old hunting lodge, some miles north of here,” Belle said just as Hope stood up unexpectedly.
“If you'll excuse me,” Hope said, obviously distracted as she left the room in a hurry.
Concern tugged at Graham’s chest as she left. He thought he had seen her wipe at her cheek. He faced Belle who only shrugged and then back to the others who were giving each other a knowing look.
“What is it?” he asked them. “What's wrong with her?”
An unspoken conversation seemed to transpire between the sisters. Grace nodded and Faith twisted to face Graham.
“Mr. Pennington dropped Hope a little under a month ago,” Faith said, uttering the man's name with disgust. “I believe she’s just realized why it was so easy for him to do so.”
“But what could my father’s story have to do with her courtship troubles?”
“Nothing,” Grace assured him. “But Mr. Pennington was very concerned with what was proper. He must have known something about our…” she shot Belle an apologetic look, “…colorful family history,” she continued, “which would explain why he stalled so much when it came to making Hope a proper offer. And then I suppose the latest scandal was the final straw that made him wash his hands of her for good.”
“Men,” Belle huffed, clicking her tongue against her teeth. “Fools, the lot of them.”
Graham ignored her and continued his questioning.
“What scandal? Did Miss Sharpe do something?”
“No, it wasn't Hope,” Grace said quickly.
“Grace,” Faith warned.
Some secret was being kept from Graham and though he hardly wanted to be involved with these women, he evidently didn’t have much of a choice.
“What happened?” he asked with authority.
Grace and Faith faced one another other. Grace swallowed hard and shook her head while Faith rolled her eyes and sighed heavily.
