He studied me for a moment and then nodded. “I won’t pressyou any more on the subject. You just let me know what I can do to help. Do you know where you want to live?”
“I’m not certain,” I conceded, “but I don’t think I’ll stay in the city. I’m drawn to smaller towns and villages, and I miss the ocean already. I’ll know the place when I find it.”
Mother Wells appeared at the top of the stairs and paused as she looked down at us. Our gazes locked, and my old insecurities tried to gain control of me again. I forced my chin up and my shoulders back. The entire voyage across the Atlantic, I had anticipated this moment of reckoning, for that was precisely what I had in mind. I did not intend to remove my hat or gloves until I addressed the past. It was the only way to move beyond the pain and heartache she had brought into my life.
Something in her gaze shifted, and she frowned. Had she noticed the change in my attitude and demeanor? Did she recognize the determination in my eyes?
She descended the stairway in regal style. “Hello, Elizabeth,” she said when she reached the bottom.
“Hello, Mother.” There was no affection between us. Like my father, she had aged, but she wore her age with grace and dignity, carrying herself well.
“And is this Henry?” she asked.
“I call him Teddy.”
She let out a puff of air. “Oh, you and your pet names. I don’t see why you would name him one thing and call him another.”
I smiled to myself. “Yes, me and my pet names.”
Mother didn’t offer to take Teddy, but she did put her hand on his head. “He is a beautiful child.”
“Thank you.”
“He looks like you.”
I didn’t know if she realized she had complimented me, but I decided to accept it as one.
“How long do you plan to stay in America?” she asked.
“Indefinitely.”
Her eyebrows rose. “You won’t return to Cumberland Hall?”
“There’s nothing there for me. One day, if Teddy chooses to return, I will gladly go with him and visit, but I want to make a life for us here.”
“Whatever for?”
It was remarkable how much had changed in me since I left here almost two years ago. No longer did Mother Wells have control over my future or the plans I made. And no longer did I worry about what she thought of me. She couldn’t win any more battles.
“America is home,” I told her. “This is where I belong and where I want my son to grow up.”
“But he’s English.”
“He’s Teddy,” I amended. “And he will be free to choose whatever he wants to be.”
Mother huffed at my statement but could not refute it. The first battle had been won.
“You’ll live here with us, of course,” she said next.
“Only until I find my own home.”
“You are welcome to stay here as long as you like,” Father said, handing Teddy his watch fob, a grin on his face.
“There will be so many luncheons and social engagements for you,” Mother said. “Everyone will be eager to host the Marchioness of Cumberland.”
I wasn’t eager to attend those functions, but I would if it meant building connections with people at the forefront of causes that mattered to me. Now that I was in charge of my own fortune, I would have the luxury of donating to the organizations that did the most good. But I wouldn’t limit my work to writing a check. I planned to be in the places where people gathered and where they needed help.
“I will attend the events that suit me,” I said.
