Mrs. Winston curtsied in Stone’s direction and then brushed her hands together efficiently. She never failed to be in the middle of some task or another. “What may I do for you, Mr. Stone? Did you wish me to have Cook add something special to the menu this evening?”
“Whatever she prepares will be heavenly, I’m sure,” Stone assured her. “But for now, I need assistance in locating Lord Hawthorne’s trunks.” He gave her a description of the items he’d stored for his old school friend and the approximate date when they’d arrived. Before he finished talking, Mrs. Winston was nodding. “They are on the third floor, I believe, in the farthest of the servant’s quarters not currently being used. Last room facing the back.”
Stone thanked her and headed for the servants’ stairway. Natalie followed him anxiously.
“Is he not something of a rake, Stone? After this nasty business with his father, ought you to continue associating with him?” Natalie persisted, taking up the conversation where they’d left off. She’d not told anyone how Lord Hawthorne hadstopped her in Hyde Park the other morning. Whenever she recalled the encounter, her conscience niggled at her. Notwithstanding Garrett Castleton’s suggestive behavior, the brief meeting had left her ashamed of her own.
Stone stopped and turned to look down at her. His light brown hair was mussed, but his features looked earnest. He seemed to consider his words carefully before speaking. “Not all families are like ours. We have caring parents, aunts, and uncles. We have each other, Natalie. Not only did Garrett lack a mother growing up, but his father was a madman. You can’t imagine…” Stone’s jaw set, and his eyes narrowed. “My friend did not have a normal childhood.”
Remembering how Lord Hawthorne had taken hold of her hand and refused to step aside for her, Natalie bristled. “But the earl acquired his own reputation! He must be nearing thirty. He wasn’tforcedby his father to become such a rogue. He’s made these choices as an adult!”
Stone sighed in exasperation and resumed climbing. After they’d ascended a few more steps, he spoke again. “Lord Hawthorne is a good man, and Father agrees. You, my dear Nat, must stop giving so much attention to what so-called polite society says about him. What are they saying about you, my dear sister? That you are a flirt? A jilt? Not woman enough to keep Cortland happy? Is any of it true?”
“Of course not!” Natalie nearly exploded in her denial. How cruel for Stone to rehash such gossip!
“I know that. But just asyouwish some benefit of the doubt, I ask you to do the same for my friend.” He paused again, searching for the right words. “Try to be sympathetic, Nat. Garrett Castleton could have only wished his father dead sooner.”
Still reeling from her brother’s words, it took a moment for Natalie to contemplate what Stone asked of her. Could she possibly consider the meeting in the park objectively?
She’d known the earl’s identity at once, having surreptitiously watched the former viscount from afar on a few occasions. Of similar height to Cortland, but leaner, he exuded a hint of danger. His face was narrow, his chin strong, but his sable eyes could be downright offensive. By flicking them up and down her person, he’d aroused a curious sensation deep inside her.
More than once, he’d stared at her with what seemed like vulgar familiarity. Having been warned to steer clear of him by other respectable ladies, she’d avoided him. Society only received a man such as Castleton due to rank and wealth. He’d never made any attempt to gain society’s approval as a gentleman. Could he be anything other than the man she’d already determined him to be? The thought unnerved her.
“Consider the possibility, little Nat, that the man was, in fact,rebellingagainst his father. You wouldn’t have any notion of what’s that like, now would you?”
She ignored his insinuation. “Please, Stone, do not call me that. It sounds as though you are referring to some sort of a bug.” Little gnat, indeed. Her brothers tortured her with that nickname since they were children. Apparently, it was to follow her into adulthood.
Natalie arrived at the landing short of breath and picked up her original train of thought. “So you are saying he flouted the rules of society to get back at his father?” When she’d been forced to greet him in the park, he had been disheveled, his black hair hanging in his face, his eyes bloodshot and shadowed. But there had been something else…If she had she not been forbidden to speak with anyone and had she not been running late, shewouldhave been friendly. She would have!
Stone grinned. “Youarean annoying little bug sometimes,” he said, ignoring her question.
“Do be serious.” She lifted her chin haughtily. Surely Stone would not invite a menace into their midst? And yet, if she wasnot to avoid the man, then what exactly was she to do with him?
“He’s not had an easy time of it, Nat. Won’t you trust me? I wouldn’t invite him into our home if he was capable of half the things he’s rumored to have done.”
“So he is coming here?” Natalie resisted the urge to bite one of her fingernails as they arrived at the last door. Stone pulled it open and walked into the shadowed room. Curtains blocked all but a few slivers of sunlight, and heavy cloths were draped over the furnishings. He pulled a few of the coverings back in a careless manner before discovering what he looked for. There appeared to be a variety of different-sized crates, along with a few trunks.
Ignoring her question again, Stone explained the crates. “The Hawthorne seat, Maple Hall, is in ruins, but the dower house is intact. He’s coming to retrieve these and will store them there now that he is the earl.” Shuffling about and folding some of the large sheets of canvas, he inspected the condition of the crates. “He was concerned his father would destroy his mother’s effects, given the chance. Wise decision. If left in his father’s care, they would have burned with everything else.”
“He is coming to Raven’s Park to retrieve them, then?” Natalie stood with her hands on her hips, regarding her brother in exasperation.
Stone looked up, giving her his full attention once again. “Indeed. He will arrive sometime this week.” He put a foot up on one of the trunks and leaned an arm upon his knee. “And,for me, will you try to remember he isn’t the same person as the old earl? I convinced him to take a short holiday here. I’ll keep him out of your way, hunting and fishing and whatnot. But if you run into the man, will you please not give him the cut? Treat him as an esteemed guest in our home?”
Natalie leaned thoughtfully against the doorframe. “Fatherknows? Father finds his presence here acceptable?” This information gave her considerable pause.
Stone nodded. “Of course. It was at his behest I invited him. Father understands Hawthorne is his own man.”
“Well then.” Natalie pursed her lips in thought. “In that case, I will be my normal delightful self. But if he says anything unfitting, I shall not hesitate to go to Father.”
Stone rolled his eyes heavenward. “I’ll keep him well out of your way—” He paused with a grin and then added mischievously, “—little Nat.”
AFTER SEVERAL DEPRESSING DAYS
After several depressing days going through the charred remains at Maple Hall, Garrett was grateful to leave it behind.
Stone had predicted rightly. The estate’s dilapidated condition nearly overwhelmed him. After inspecting that which was still intact and beginning repairs to what was left of the stables, Garrett was more than ready for a reprieve. Although he refused to grieve his father’s death, he lamented the condition of his birthright.
The damage from the fire was expected; the godawful tenant conditions were not. Good, hard-working men were living in dilapidated shacks with their families.
