My heart did a strange little lurch. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah,” he said. “You’ve been here for… all of it.” His mouth twisted. “Consider this part of your package deal.”
Before I could respond, Sophie turned. Her green eyes widened when she saw us, then darted between Noah and Lady Beaumont’s figure moving slowly across the lawn behind us.
Lucas straightened, his usual lazy charm fading into something more serious.
“Is everything okay?” he asked.
Noah slipped his hands into his pockets, the letter tucked safely inside his jacket.
“A letter has been found,” he said. “From Edward. To my dad.”
Sophie went completely still.
Her fingers gripped the stem of her wine glass. “What… what did it say?”
“It said,” he began slowly, “that he believed he and your grandmother had a child they were never allowed to claim. Thatif that child, or their children, ever appeared, they were as much the Langston family as I am.”
Sophie’s face crumpled with emotion.
“And it said,” he went on, “that while he left Langston Estate to my dad, he wanted the other branch of the family honoured.”
Sophie made a small choked sound. Lucas shifted closer, his hand brushing her back lightly.
“So,” Noah said, voice thick, “Your father may not have known. But Edward did. Your grandfather knew. And he wanted you to be part of his family.”
Tears spilled over in Sophie’s eyes, sliding down her cheeks unchecked.
“I don’t… I don’t want to take anything from you,” she whispered. “I never did.”
“I know,” Noah said. “And you’re not taking anything. That’s not what this is.”
He nodded towards the dark outline of a small building at the far end of the vines, a squat stone structure surrounded by old fig trees.
“Do you see that cottage?” he asked kindly. “The one by the north ridge?”
Sophie wiped her cheeks, squinting. “The… the one the staff use for storage? With the pretty windows?”
“That was my grandmother’s place once,” Noah said. “She used to paint there before the estate swamped her time. The light there is incredible. Edward always said it was wasted on ledger books and old equipment.”
He turned back to Sophie, his gaze warm.
“If you’ll take it,” he said, “I’d like it to be yours. Properly. Not as a guest, not as a borrowed corner. Yours. An art studio. A space that belongs to you and your work. And…”
He hesitated, swallowing.
“And I want you to design the labels for our future releases. Officially. As the in-house artist. We’ll put your name on them. ‘Sophie Beaumont for Langston Estate.’”
Sophie stared at him, and then openly wept a little more.
“That’s… that’s too much,” she managed. “You don’t have to…”
“It’s not enough,” he said gently. “But it’s a start. Edward wanted you at the table. This is me pulling out a chair.”
Lucas made a small, reverent noise. “Mate,” he said hoarsely, “that’s… actually quite cool.”
“Don’t sound so shocked,” Noah muttered with a smile.
