“Alexander Fitzgrant, at your service,” he said in a deep voice that rolled with a thick Scottish accent.
“Your Grace. Welcome to our home. Lady Violet Ravendel, at yours and your family’s service.”
“That would be an easy service, there’s only me,” Alexander said with a flashing smile.
Violet found herself smiling in return, drawn in by the fierce, joyful energy of the Duke’s face. Lillian gave a slight cough and Violet remembered where she was. She stood with her hand held by the Duke and the two of them had ignored the rest of the room as their attention was focused on each other.
“My cousin, Lillian Ravendel. She will show you all to the dining room where the Viscount, my uncle, awaits you,” Violet said.
Alexander inclined his head in a small bow and joined the Viscount Holmesley and his wife as they were led away from Lillian.
What a remarkable man. And I had resolved to play matchmaker between him and Lillian. Oh well, family comes first. I promised Lillian to help her find her way in the Ton and a potential husband. A promise is a promise.
Chapter 4
“Your Grace, I flatter myself that I know the names, if not the faces, of many of the highest-ranking men and women in our country,” Violet said. “But, I do not recall ever meeting you. Are you perhaps new to London? Or perhaps with estates in Scotland?”
The assembled guests were seated around the long dining table, George at its head and Violet opposite him. Lillian sat to her left and Alexander to her right. The other guests were arrayed between. Violet had taken pains to seat her guests to ensure a good mix of conversation, ensuring that all had someone close by whom they either knew or, based on what Violet knew of them, had something in common with. It was her hope that this deliberate planning would lead to an enjoyment of the occasion by all, without realizing that it had been so artfully arranged for them.
“I have lived in England since the death of my father, five years ago,” Alexander said. “My estates are in Hampshire but I was living in Scotland prior to ascending to the Dukedom.”
“Oh, well that explains it!” Violet said brightly, smiling. “Did you live in Edinburgh by any chance?”
“No,” Alexander said. “Glasgow.”
Violet did not let her confusion show on her face. Her knowledge of British geography was far from perfect but she knew enough to know that Edinburgh was the cultural capital of Scotland, home to an ancient city, a magnificent castle, and a royal palace. Glasgow was more of a working city, like Liverpool. Merchants, traders, industry, and ships. It had never struck her as the kind of place where the son of a Duke would make his home.
“Glasgow, really? I must profess my ignorance. I know more about Paris or Rome than I do such a close and important British city. Tell me about it.”
She focused her attention on Alexander. Since arriving, he had been curiously reticent to be drawn into conversation other than pleasantries. He did not converse much with those around him or with his hosts. There was an aloofness about him that Violet found challenging. But she could not get over his remarkable appearance. He was handsome, but could have passed for a highwayman with his wild hair and beard.
Perhaps this is how Scottish men look? But the Viscount Holmesley is Scottish too and he is not much like the Duke.
“Glasgow is known for its river, the Clyde. For its ships and shipbuilding and its heavy industry. Steel, smelting and the like,” Lillian said. “Is that not so, Your Grace?”
“If you mean is it the kind of place to make you bauk when you breathe in too deeply. Then aye, it is that,” Alexander replied.
Violet frowned, not recognizing the word but puzzling out the meaning. “It sounds like the worse parts of our own docklands here in London,” she remarked.
“My lady, Glesga is black as the Earl of Hell’s waistcoat most of the time. The lums…pardon me…the chimneys make the air black and stain the very stones of the buildings. It makes London look like a gairden paradise.”
Violet fought to follow his broad dialect which changed the sound of certain vowels. It fascinated her, this man did not sound like any Duke she had ever met.
“So, how did you come to be living in such an awful place? Your pardon but you make it sound awful.”
“I didnae choose it, my lady. It was chosen for me,” Alexander said.
That did not make it clearer. Violet nodded as though she understood, trying to imagine a father sending his son away to a far-off city, and a hellish one at that, if Alexander’s account were to be taken at face value.
“I see. That is a shame.”
“I should like to see it one day. It is one of our commercial hubs after all. Like London, Bristol, and Liverpool,” Lillian said.
Alexander gave a brief nod. “Aye, it is at that. I am not too educated on that subject, I’m afraid. The role of Duke is new to me.”
“You are most welcome to our company. And I’m sure I speak for everyone here in what is known as the Ton,” Violet enthused. “I often wish for a new viewpoint in conversation. A new face.”
“Aye, my viewpoint is certainly unique. As I’ve been finding out,” Alexander said drily. “I thank you for the kind words, Lady Violet.”
