“A visitor…” Evander frowned and cast his thoughts to today’s schedule. “I have nobody scheduled to meet with today.”
“It is an impromptu visit, Your Grace,” the footman said with another bow. “I told her that she ought to have sent ahead –”
“Her?”
“Lady Redgate, Your Grace,” he said. “She has arrived just now and is rather insistent.” The footman’s lip curled. “I sense that she is not one used to being told no.”
“Lady Redgate…” Evander considered the name. “Did she say what she wanted?”
“Only that she must speak with you at once.”
Lady Redgate was a name that Evander recognized, even if he was not wholly familiar with its owner. From what people said of her, she was a snob as well as a recluse, the type who was rarely seen in public, for which most people seemed grateful for.
In fact, Evander had only met the woman officially the one time, that was last week at the Opera. He remembered how rude she had been toward Miss Finch, and how he had been forced to step in and remind the elderly woman to keep her opinions to herself.
Her late husband, on the other hand, was a man who Evander had met on a number of occasions. It was years ago now, when he was still a teenager, but he remembered the man for how cold he was, how self-righteous, just as he remembered his own father praising Lord Redgate as the very embodiment of how all members of the peerage ought to hold themselves.
I can only think of one reason why she might have come all this way… which is the exact reason why I ought to deny her.
No doubt, she had concerns about Miss Finch and Evander’s relationship. And the fact that she thought it was her right to come here and express them directly…I think I will rather enjoy putting her in her place.
“Send her to me,” Evander said. “Now.”
The footman bowed and hurried from the room.
Evander took the next few moments to center himself and prepare for what he was sure would be a tiring exchange. How Lady Redgate thought it was any of her business to stick her nose into his personal affairs was beyond him. But she would know soon enough about the consequences of such things.
So it was that a minute later, Lady Redgate swept into his office.
“Your Grace,” she said politely as she entered. She walked with a straight back, a pointed chin, and a look on her face that suggested she was the center of all things. A typical Lady, really. “Thank you so much for agreeing to speak with me.”
“I do so wish you had sent word ahead, Lady Redgate,” Evander said coldly. “I am not in the business of having my schedule interrupted like this.”
“I thought to do so.” She approached his desk and took a seat without asking. She did so slowly, as if to emphasize her age and frailness. “But there are times when I have become somewhat impatient. When you reach my age, you will better understand.”
Evander said nothing at first, watching the elderly lady as she settled.
She had sharp features and sharper eyes. While her skin was wrinkled, while her frame was bent and frail, and while she was small of stature and withered, there was an undeniable power to her. Even as a duke, Evander felt the need to be cautious.
“If that is the case, then I suppose there is no point speaking around the subject,” he said once she was settled. “You came here for a reason, so I insist you get right to it.”
She smirked at him. “A man of action, just as I have heard about you.”
“Dare I say what I have heard about you?”
“Oh, I am sure all manner of things,” she said, waving him down. “Few of which are true, I assure you. As is the way, most of it can be attributed to my husband, and his legacy is one that is not so easily scrubbed clean.”
Evander scoffed. “And yet here you are, picking up right where he left off.” He made sure to look right at her, wanting the elderly lady to know that he was onto her. “You are here about my governess, no doubt.”
“So, you are as sharp as you are handsome.”
“Whatever it is you wish to say to her, you may say to me,” Evander said. “Although I would not waste my breath, Lady Redgate. Miss Finch is my governess, and while she is that, she is under my protection. You can judge. You can bemoan. Youcan start whatever rumors you like. But be warned, I have a long memory, just as I have a very short temper.”
Lady Redgate frowned as she studied him. “Your Grace, I do not know what you think this is –”
“Yes, you do,” he cut over her. “You saw Miss Finch and I at the Opera last week, and now you wish to…” He scoffed. “I am not even sure. Warn me? Give me advice that I did not ask for? Whatever it is, I do not care.”
“Is that what you…” Lady Redgate looked confused. “Your Grace, I think there has been a horrible misunderstanding. Once again, you seem to be mistaking me for my late husband.”
