There was the sound of voices in the foyer, and then Tony was there in the doorway. Her heart stumbled at the sight of him. He smiled at her, and she wanted to cry. Why did he not love her? Things would be so much simpler if he did. Wishes and dreams were not for her, it seemed.
“I have something that I am sure you will be happy to have back.” He held out his hand, a folded letter in his hand.
“If it is a letter from my grandfather, I will read it later. You can just leave it on the table there.”
“It is not a letter from Shorten.” He sauntered over to her and placed it in her palm. Confused, she unfolded the paper. She gasped. Her mother’s hair!
She jumped up. “Where did you get this?”
“Why from Lord Dunstan, of course.”
“You went to see him?”
“He had something that was not his. I simply asked for it back.”
“Oh! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She threw her arms around him in a hug, and she felt his strong arms hug her back.
“Lucinda?” Marianne asked. “You did not tell me he took that from you.”
Realizing she was still hugging Tony, she pulled out of his embrace and stepped back to face Marianne and her mother. “I only noticed it when I got home. He had taken them out of their frames for some reason and this,” she held up the lock of hair, “was missing when he returned them to me.”
The dowager frowned. “My dear, why would he take them out of their frames?”
“I can answer that,” Tony said. “He explained it was to take measurements so that when he transferred them to the larger canvas it would be exact. I am not sure if it is true but that was the justification he gave. He also gave me this.” He handed her the note Dunstan had penned.
She took the note and opened it. “It is an apology.”
The dowager said, putting down her book, “I should think so!”
“What did he say?” Marianne asked. “Unless you do not wish to share it.”
Lucinda handed her the note to read for herself.
“Short and sweet and full of the appropriate adjectives but, Tony, was he sincere when you demanded the lock returned?”
“I did not have to demand it. He said it was simply an oversight when putting it back in the frame.” They did not need to know of his suspicions.
Marianne looked down at the note again. “But did you believe him?”
Ah, did he tell them what he really thought and perhaps sour Lucinda’s opinion of the man for good? Or would they all think he was making him out as insincere because they all knew he did not like Dunstan?
“He did not supplicate but he did seem worried he had upset you.”
Lucinda nodded. “How will I get it back into the frame without ruining the new glue?”
“I will do it for you,” said the duke from the door. “I see you have got it back in one piece.”
Tony was beginning to think his brother just liked to make late entrances on purpose.
Lucinda smiled at the duke and clapped her hands together. “Oh, thank you, Your Grace. I will run upstairs and fetch it for you.”
Once Lucinda was out of the room, all four Ashtons gathered, all asking questions of Tony at the same time. He put a hand up to halt them. “I have told you all I know. Did I think he kept it on purpose? No. Would he have returned it on his own? Probably.”
“So, should we still be thinking him a suitable match?” the duke asked.
“It was not as though he did it on purpose, as Tony said.”
“True, Marianne, and I did ask him if his intentions towards her were honorable and although he said he was not ready to propose right now he did not rule it out either.”
