Page 17 of A Shadow Amongst the Roses

Clara’s expression softened. “Then we’ll keep it so.”

Eliza nodded once.

She did not say what she understood now, with a clarity that did not require anger.

Hartleigh could be kind.

And Hartleigh could also, without cruelty, attempt to move her pieces as if she were part of its arrangement.

She would remind them, gently, steadily, that she was not.

As she left the morning room, she glanced once more toward the garden.

Thomas had already vanished behind the hedge, absorbed into his work.

But the knowledge that he was there, unchanging, unperforming, unclaimed, settled into her like a quiet brace. Not rescue. Not refuge. Just steadiness.

And she knew she would need it before the day was done.

Chapter Eight

The meeting was held in the smaller withdrawing room, not the study.

Eliza noted the choice at once.

The study belonged to the duke. The withdrawing room suggested conversation rather than command. A softer space for firmer decisions.

She arrived to find the steward already present, papers meticulously arranged with care. Nathaniel stood near the mantel, one hand braced against it as if the room required anchoring. Ashwood occupied a chair slightly apart, his posture attentive without being deferential.

Eleanor was seated by the window.

Not at the head. Not beside the steward. Simply present.

“Eliza,” Nathaniel said, turning with practiced ease. “Thank you for coming.”

She inclined her head. “You wished to review the accounts.”

“Yes,” the steward said promptly, rising. “There’s a matter concerning the Hartleigh tenant holdings along the west ridge. A proposed adjustment to the agreements, meant to simplify matters going forward.”

Simplify.

Eliza crossed the room and took the chair nearest the table, not waiting to be offered one. She placed her gloves beside her and folded her hands loosely atop the papers. The meeting could start now.

Eleanor watched. She did not move.

Hollis continued, outlining figures, terms, and efficiencies. Nathaniel added context when prompted, speaking of modernization, of precedent, of long-term benefit.

Ashwood listened.

Eliza listened more closely.

When the steward finished, there was a brief pause, the kind that invited Eleanor to speak.

She did not.

The silence stretched just long enough to claim the room.

Eliza lifted her gaze. “These tenants were re-leased after the last flood, were they not?”