Page 118 of Kathryn

“I thought dressers were supposed to do the moving, not manhandle their employers?”

Becky did not take the bait to bicker. “Lord Jasper is in disgrace with the countess and has been banished to a cottage on her estate. Evidently, he has run through all his money and came back to beg for more.”

“Perhaps Lady Grimsby did not leave him much to begin with,” Katie said, not that she believed it.

Becky shook her head. “That is not what I heard. He might not be inheriting the title, but he is her heir when it comes to everything else.”

Katie’s eyes widened at that. “Are you sure?”

“He boasted of it at The Sleeping Boar.”

Katie knew that was the village pub.

“He is supposed to live on an allowance until the countess dies. She is evidently extremely wealthy in her own right and owns not only Elm Hall but two other estates. The Earl of Grimsby—who is Lord Jasper’s cousin—inherited Grimsby Park and very little else. In any case, this afternoon dunners showed up from London looking for Lord Jasper, and Lady Grimsby was furious. That is when all the servants learned that Lord Jasper was on the estate. The countess paid off the bill collector but told Lord Jasper that was the last one. Can you guess what he said?”

Katie was astounded, and a little horrified, by the sheer amount of detailed gossip. “I can guess that somebody has been listening at keyholes at Lady Grimsby’s house.” She stepped out of her skirts and turned around to face her servant. “I certainly hope our own household affairs are not so widely or accurately broadcast.”

“Of course not!” Becky said, affronted.

“I know, Becks. I was just teasing.” But not entirely. After all, somebody had told Jasper where to find her three days ago.

Becky grunted and disappeared into the dressing room. A moment later her voice drifted out. “Lord Jasper said he would take his daughter away if the countess did not give him what he wants.”

“Take her where?” Katie asked, pouring hot water into the basin and washing her face, neck, and arms.

Becky reappeared holding one of Katie’s favorite gowns, an antique gold silk with green and gold beaded embroidery around the hem and puffed sleeves.

“Does it matter where he would take the little girl?” Becky asked.

“No, I suppose not.”

“Poor Lady Grimsby dotes on the child. Besides, what would a widower know about taking care of a baby girl?”

“I suspect the countess will give him what he wants rather than risk his threat.”

“As do I.” Becky cast a worried glance toward the connecting door, as if Gerrit might have his ear pressed against the door. “What did Lord Jasper want from you?” she whispered.

Katie pondered lying but dismissed it. There were already enough lies for her to clear up; it was time to stop adding to the problem. “Although he did not come out and say it, I believe he wants to resume our association.”

Becky gasped. “Why, that devil!”

That was one word for Jasper, and far kinder than the ones Katie could think of. The man was a pathetic, greedy, manipulative, shallow cad. She liked to believe that if she had met him for the first time three days ago, she would not be taken in, but his act was quite convincing. Probably because he believed in it himself. He saw himself as a thwarted lover, his choices stolen from him by cruel fate. If what Becky had just said about him was true, then he’d frittered away the money he’d been given—at cards, horses, women it hardly mattered—and was now using his daughter as a weapon to extort more out of his grandmother.

Becky slipped the gown over Katie’s head. “What did you say to him?” she asked, meeting Katie’s gaze in the looking glass while she tugged the gown this way and that before commencing to fasten the numerous tiny buttons that ran up the back.

“I told him to leave me alone.”

Becky looked gratified. “Did you now?”

“Well, not in those exact words, but close enough.”

“What are you going to do if he accosts you again?”

“I’m going to do my best to make sure that does not happen until he leaves.”

“You think he will leave?”

“I think he will be off like a shot the moment he has money.”