Sarah gave Mr. Moulton a polite smile and, tipping her head, pointed to a chair. He sat stiffly on the edge of it, and she took her own place on the settee.
Picking up the teapot by the handle and spout, Sarah poured two cups of steaming tea. She handed the first to Mr. Moulton across the table. His gloved hands were large. They had probably known physical labor, unlike those of any of the gentlemen she had previously claimed as suitors.
He accepted the tea with a firm “Thank you.” There was a roughness in his manner that Sarah found quite intriguing and not at all unattractive.
She picked up her own teacup and sipped delicately. “I suppose you are wondering why I am still here.”
“I understood from my solicitor that the hall was vacated,” Mr. Moulton said and added a gruff, begrudging, “my lady.”
Sarah liked the sound of his deep voice and cockney accent. She felt herself flushing. “I stayed to ensure that everything was in order for you, sir. And I hope you will find all at Manderfield Hall to your satisfaction.”
Mr. Moulton looked around the room. “I am sure I shall.”
“May I ask an impertinent question?” Sarah said, taking another sip of tea.
He set his teacup on its saucer and placed it on the coffee table. “I do not know why you are still here.”
“I want to know why you have bought Manderfield Hall,” Sarah said, ignoring his previous comment and bad manners.
The stranger grunted. “I don’t know what business it is of yours.”
“Are you married?”
“No, I—”
“Do you mean to enter local Society?”
He gripped his cane tightly and said through clenched teeth, “My business ismybusiness.”
Shaking her head, Sarah smiled. “Do you mean to join thetonin London as well? I suppose you must, for you have bought a fine house and estate.”
She took a long sip of her tea and watched Mr. Moulton’s face as he struggled to answer her civilly. If he had held his teacup as tightly as he did his cane, he would have shattered the delicate porcelain.
“Your Ladyship,” he said at last, “I promised my father I would find good matches for my sisters, and I mean to keep my word. If that requires entering local or London Society, then I will do so.”
Sarah nodded and nibbled a biscuit. She chewed it slowly before saying, “Wealth and a fine estate will take you only so far, Mr. Moulton. What you really need is noble family connections, which I have in abundance. I am the daughter of an earl and the granddaughter of a duke, with the additional benefit of being related to half the aristocracy of England.”
“Bully for you.”
She crossed and then uncrossed her legs; her hands were jumpy in her lap. “I propose we marry. I will be a perfect chaperone for your sisters, and I can introduce them to the highest members of Society. I can even ensure they are presented before Queen Charlotte—my mother was one of herladies-in-waiting. No door in London, nor all of England, for that matter, is closed to me.”
His expression changed from shock to incredulity, his eyes wide and his mouth slightly open.
Sarah took a long breath and then released it. Glancing at the door, she knew that she could not afford to lose her nerve now. Mr. Moulton examined her with a familiarity that she would have resented in any other circumstance. Her neck felt hot. She hated when people found her flaws.
Rubbing his beard, he said, “I do not know what to say, Your Ladyship. I do not even know your name.”
She tried to smile but faltered. “My name is Lady Sarah Denham, and you need not answer right away. Actually, I would prefer that you didn’t. One should not make such an important decision without some thought.”
He nodded and then looked at her again with those penetrating gray eyes. “Why me?”
“Why do I wish to marry you?” Sarah clarified.
Mr. Moulton grunted. His free hand curled into a tight fist.
Sarah’s heart beat rapidly as she bounced her knee. “I want Manderfield Hall. It is my home, and I love it. You and your sisters wish to enter good Society, and I can make that happen. It seems like a good bargain on both sides. We both get what we want.”
He tapped his cane against his boot for a few awkward moments before saying, “I will consider your offer, Lady Sarah Denham. But I make no promises. I never planned on making a grand marriage for myself.”
