“Good gracious, has his lordship not arrived yet?” another noblewoman called from a nearby settee.
A moment later, Evie’s aunt rounded the corner and let out a gusty sigh of relief upon seeing her.
“My dear girl, thank goodness I’ve found you.” Aunt Lydia’s cheeks were flushed, and her voice held that thread of anticipation it always did as a social event she hosted got underway. “I take it you’ve ticked everyone off the list? Lady Bellmere and her daughter were the last to arrive, yes? And that should be everyone.”
Evie frowned. “There is one very significant guest missing.”
Surely, her aunt was as concerned that Rothwell hadn’t arrived as the debutantes who’d come hoping to snag an offer of marriage.
“Oh goodness, no. Who have we missed?” Aunt Lydia’s dark eyes widened.
“Rothwell,” Evie whispered, lest she add to the guests’ rising panic about the marquess’s absence.
“No, no, he’s here. Arrived nearly half an hour ago. Went straight up to speak with his father.” Aunt Lydia drew a step closer. “I need you to go up and hurry him along.”
“Hurry him along?” Evie’s stomach tightened at the notion that she would have to face Rothwell so soon. “If his father detains him, what right do I have to interrupt them?”
“Titus wishes this house party to be a success. Therefore, he will understand that Rothwell must greet his guests.”
“A footman could go up to fetch him,” Evie suggested, hoping her aunt wouldn’t sense her unease.
“A footman is too easy for the Duke of Carthwaite to ignore.”
From what Evie had heard of the man, he wouldn’t take kindly to being interrupted by anyone.
“Gray will listen to you,” Aunt Lydia said in the tone that indicated she would not be dissuaded. “And if I send you, he’ll know the matter is urgent.”
“Very well,” Evie said as a fizz of anticipation made her voice pitch higher. “I shall go.”
CHAPTER2
The rift with his father meant that every meeting between them was a battle, and Gray had long ago realized the futility of daring to disagree with his father. As a result, he hadn’t visited Carthwaite in years.
But he knew the way up to the tower by heart, and at the top of the stone stairs, he proceeded down the narrow hallway that led to the door of the ducal suite. With each step, his heartbeat picked up speed. Then his throat began to tighten as if approaching his father’s rooms was slowly squeezing all the air from his lungs.
Pull yourself together, man.
Gray fought the urge to reach up and tug at the cinch of his tie.
He wasn’t choking, and he wasn’t a child anymore. He was a grown man with duties to fulfill—the heir to a dukedom, for God’s sake.
The aged carpet under his feet—some elaborate faded design of vines and violets interwoven with their family motto—seemed endless. No matter how many steps he took, the door to his father’s chambers remained far off. As if he would be on this journey for the rest of his days.
Then he smelled the scents of camphor and sickness and was suddenly close enough to reach out and turn the latch.
He curled his fingers around the worn metal, hesitating. Sweat gathered at his nape. Breath rasped from his lungs, frantic and unsteady.
Don’t let him see what you feel.He put on the emotionless mask that was his only defense against the old man. Then he swung the door open and held his breath, desperate not to make a sound.
“My goodness, you’ve grown, my lord.” His father’s nurse, Mrs. Reed, greeted him at the threshold and then stepped outside the sickroom, shutting the door behind her.
She was a kind, unflappable woman, a stark contrast to the patient she tended. The last time he’d visited, a handful of years ago, Gray had regretted leaving her alone with his father, fearful the duke would treat her the way he did Gray. But the nurse wielded a calming power over his father—something about her long-suffering manner quieted his rage.
“He’s as bad as I’ve seen him,” she said in hushed tones. “Won’t admit it. At least not to me, though perhaps he has to himself.” She studied Gray for a long moment, her eyes as gentle as her voice. “I suspect that’s why he’s summoned you.”
“Thank you for all you’ve done for him.”
With wide eyes, she nodded. “Of course, my lord. And I won’t leave his side. I shall see him through to the end.”
