Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

T heodore Harrington, Viscount Thornton, spurred his gelding up the curved drive of Hartley House, glad to see the warm lights in the windows of the earl’s mansion. It had been a cold, uncomfortable afternoon of riding, and as the gray day blended into early evening, he could think of no better place to be than a stone’s throw from a comfortable, well-appointed house.

As he drew near, movement in one of the lower windows caught his eye—the figure of a woman, mostly in silhouette. She turned away, and the lamplight illuminated her face for a moment, revealing her to be Ash’s sister, Lady Holly Belham.

Had she been watching for him? He found that curious, as the young lady in question hadn’t seemed particularly interested in catching his attention. Indeed, rather the opposite, if her behavior at their last meeting was any indication.

He’d encountered Lady Holly in a somewhat disreputable quarter of London earlier that fall, accompanied by her ladies’ maid. She’d seemed quite flustered to see him, and had quickly excused herself, with some story about losing her way while searching for a new apothecary’s.

A story that had rung false to his ears, though he’d all but forgotten it until that moment.

Theo’s brows drew together at the reminder. That area of London was home to several gaming halls, one of which was known to cater to certain gentlewomen with a too-strong attachment to wagering (though most of the ton pretended such a vice only existed among men.)

Was his friend’s sister inclined toward gambling? He’d have to say something to Ash—though perhaps he should ascertain the truth for himself before stirring the pot.

A groom met him at the front steps to take his horse, and a footman his scant luggage. Divested of his mount and saddlebags, Theo strode up the three wide steps leading to the front door of Hartley House. Although the mansion was a large, square building, the rosy brick fa?ade and double rows of lit windows made it welcoming, rather than imposing.

Or perhaps it was simply the fact that he was finally about to step out of the relentless rain.

Theo sheltered beneath the arched cornice above the door and lifted the ornate brass knocker, patterned with a weaving wreath of vines and flowers encircling a stag’s head. He let it fall, the thud echoing into the two-storey great hall he knew lay just inside.

A moment later the butler, Mr. Chauncey, opened the door.

“Lord Thornton, welcome.” The man bowed in greeting, the top of his balding pate shining slightly in the light of the tall windows and the candle-festooned crystal chandelier high overhead. Theo shrugged out of his greatcoat and gave it a brisk shake before stepping inside and handing it to the fellow, along with his very damp hat and gloves.

The Italian marble fireplace in the hall boasted a crackling fire, and Theo edged closer to the warmth.

“Is Lord Ashby about?” he asked.

“Of course, my lord. We’ve been expecting you. Your usual room is at the ready, if you’d like a servant to show you up.”

“No need.” Theo grinned at Mr. Chauncey. “A year hasn’t dimmed my memory, I assure you—no matter what stories you may have heard of my dissolute ways.”

“None at all, sir,” the butler said impassively.

Theo resolved to try harder to tease a reaction from the fellow, though he had to admit that with Ash about, the bar was set rather high. No one of his acquaintance had a sharper wit than Lord Ashby. Theo nodded to the butler, then made for the sweeping staircase that rose majestically on the other side of the grand hall.

Just before he began to ascend, a thought struck him. He glanced to the door, but Mr. Chauncey had already disappeared with Theo’s dripping outerwear. Just as well—it wasn’t the done thing to seek out his host’s sister without a proper chaperone nearby, but the questions he meant to ask wouldn’t take more than a minute or two.

He veered for the archway on his right which, if memory served, opened to a hallway leading to several parlors and drawing rooms. One of which certainly still contained Lady Holly, unless she’d dashed upstairs while he was dismounting. In which case, he’d find another opportunity to quiz the lady on her propensity for gambling.

The travertine floor gave way to a rich blue and red carpet that muffled his footsteps as he passed through the archway from the great hall. Navigating by instinct, he went by one doorway, then paused at the second. The white paneled door was slightly ajar, and he pushed it wide with his fingertips.

As he’d hoped, Lady Holly was inside. She stood before the fireplace, an embroidery hoop in one hand and a pensive look on her face. The lamplight struck gold threads from her brown hair, and her lips were slightly parted, as though whatever she was thinking of made her wistful.

Theo rapped softly on the parlor door, and she whirled to face him, eyes widening.

“Good evening, Lady Holly,” he said. “I beg your pardon, but might I have a word?”

The softness of her mouth hardened into a straight line. “Lord Thornton. Do you think it amusing to creep about and startle the members of this household half out of their wits, before anyone even knows you’ve arrived?”

“You saw me ride up,” he said, stung.

“I wish I hadn’t.” Skirts swishing, she marched over to where he stood in the doorway and brandished her embroidery at him. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some matters to attend to.”

“Lady Holly.” He lowered his voice and didn’t step out of the way. “Before you go, I have some questions for you?—”

“Thorn!” His friend Ash’s voice echoed from the great hall.

Theo turned, and Lady Holly took the opportunity to slip past him.

“I owe you no answers,” she said, her tone quiet but fierce.

Then the opportunity for private conversation was gone, as Ash strode up to where they stood, followed by his youngest sibling, Lady Rose.

“Welcome,” Ash said, clapping Theo on the shoulder. “Rose said she saw you come up the drive. How was the ride up from…where did you leave from today?”

“Doncaster,” Theo said. “And it was wet. Sometimes I wish the family estate were closer to London than the wilds of Yorkshire.”

“But the hunting’s better.” Ash grinned at him. “Depending on what game you’re after, that is.”

“Holly,” the young lady said, glancing at her sister. “Whatever are you and Lord Thornton doing, standing about in the hallway?”

Lady Holly blinked twice, so quickly Theo barely caught the motion. “I thought our guest would like a cup of tea beside the fire as soon as he arrived. He looks chilled. I was just about to ring for you.”

“Tea?” Ash shook his head. “I’m sure he’d prefer a brandy in my study. Better way to get warm, too. What say you, Thorn?”

“That seems a superior plan.” Lady Holly inclined her head before Theo could speak. “I’ll leave you gentlemen to it.”

“But…” Rose caught at her sister’s arm as Lady Holly swept past.

The lady nimbly evaded her younger sister’s grasp and continued down the hall without a backward glance.

She was nimble-witted as well, Theo thought, to have such a quick answer for why they’d been caught together. He’d have to be clever about questioning her, or she’d evade him at every opportunity.

“Might I join you for a brandy, as well?” Lady Rose asked, giving her brother a persuasive smile.

“Not a chance,” Ash said cheerfully. “Go see what has your sister in such a temper. Did she keep jabbing herself with her embroidery needle or somesuch? I noted that you two were in that parlor all afternoon.”

“Just working on Christmas surprises,” Rose said. “Although, if you keep being so rude, you’ll get none of them.”

“It’s not rude to keep you from the vice of strong drink,” her brother said. “It’s my duty.”

“Speaking of Christmas,” Theo said, “I plan to go out tomorrow to cut my tree.”

“Lord Thornton, don’t say you’ll be leaving us so soon!” Lady Rose clasped her hands beneath her chin. “Can’t you stay a few days, at least?”

Her brother gave her a quizzical look, but Theo shook his head.

“I’m already later than I’d hoped, and Viola will have my head if I don’t bring a tree for baby Sarah’s first Christmas. Not that the infant will notice, being practically newborn.”

“A baby.” Lady Rose let out a little sigh. “How precious.”

“Spoken like a true youngest child,” Ash said, with a superior air. “You don’t have the memory of a screeching, puling baby sister annoying you at every turn, as I do.”

Theo smothered his laugh, then had to apologize when Lady Rose turned to him, frowning in annoyance.

“Forgive me, Lady Rose—but the two of you remind me a great deal of my own brother and sister.”

“I’m sorry you grew up with a terrible bully for a brother,” she said tartly. “It’s most unpleasant, isn’t it?”

“In our case, the roles are reversed,” Theo said. “Viola is the one who thinks she knows best, and isn’t averse to telling everyone around her what to do.”

“But you’re the youngest, too, aren’t you?” Lady Rose looked pleased at the thought. “We have that in common.”

“Rose—are you setting your cap for Lord Thornton?” Ash asked in a tone of curious amusement. “I thought you already had a beau.”

She swatted her brother on the arm. “Of course I do, as you well know. Oh, you’re impossible. Go off and get tipsy with Lord Thornton. Just don’t embarrass yourselves at dinner, or you know that Mother will scold and Papa will glower.”

With that, she tossed her head and went down the hallway.

Ash chuckled. “Sisters! You’re lucky to have a brother, at least, to mitigate the effect of so much feminine foolishness.”

“Lady Holly seems levelheaded,” Theo remarked, still thinking of her quick response.

“To the point of unyielding stubbornness.”

Theo nodded in commiseration. “Viola is much the same. Come, pour me a drink and we can discuss the merits of any new mounts you’ve added to your stables of late.”

Preferably close to the fire—the cold of the road still clung to his shoulders, and his thick hair always took a damnably long time to dry after a wetting.

“Are you really going to hare off so quickly?” Ash asked as he led Theo back out to the grand hall. “At least wait for the weather to improve.”

Underscoring his words, a spatter of rain dashed against the high windows. Theo grimaced.

“It’s December in Yorkshire. The weather’s not going to get any better. The sooner I procure my tree and make for Dovington Hall, the sooner my journey’s done.”

He trailed Ash across the echoing space and to the other wing of the house, which housed the gentleman’s studies—Ash’s father, Lord Hartley’s, being much larger of course—the smoking room, and billiards room.

Ash pushed open the door of his study and indicated the leather armchairs drawn up before the fire. “Sit—I’ll bring you a tumbler.”

He went to the mirrored sideboard and began clinking about, and Theo gratefully took one of the chairs. The study was cozy, the gold-shaded lamps illuminating shelves of books and Ash’s desk, which he kept quite tidy, in marked contrast to Theo’s own habits. Of course, like himself, Ash’s main residence was in London, where the parties and fun were to be had.

“How goes the viscountcy?” Theo asked, as his friend handed him a glass of amber liquid.

Ash settled across from him and took a sip of his brandy. “Well enough, though Papa insists on having his solicitors keep their hands in everything, and constantly advises me on how to proceed.”

“I imagine he wants you to be ready to take over the earldom, when that inevitability arises.”

“Another difference having a brother makes.” Ash grimaced. “You don’t have the specter of a dukedom looming ahead, and can simply enjoy being a feckless viscount for the rest of your life.”

Theo raised his glass in a mock toast, then took a swallow of brandy, letting the fire trail down his throat. In his opinion, Ash took his duties a tad too lightly, but it wasn’t his place to say so. And though he didn’t want to admit it, the prospect of spending the remainder of his days as a gadabout was beginning to lose its charm.

“You must forgive Rose,” Ash continued. “She’s a silly girl, but soon to marry, which ought to settle her down. I’ve no idea why she was so set on flirting with you.”

“Women.” Theo shook his head. “Even having sisters doesn’t give us much of an advantage in understanding, I fear. But what of Lady Holly? Is she likewise planning to wed?”

“She says not, despite Mama’s constant harping that Holly needs to make an advantageous match. Being a spinster bluestocking isn’t the choice I’d make, but as I said, my sister’s stubborn.”

That didn’t square with Theo’s notion of a young lady in the throes of a gambling addiction. Such a woman would be rather desperate to snare a wealthy husband in order to fund her vices, not the opposite—unless she was playing some sort of long game. Thoughtfully, he swirled his brandy in its tumbler, the spinning liquid mirroring the whirl of his thoughts.

“Marriage seems to have agreed with my sister Viola,” he said. “Although that may be because she has her husband and a new household to manage, and is therefore less intent on meddling in her brothers’ lives.”

“Egads, Thorn.” Ash’s gaze sharpened. “You’re not thinking of getting leg-shackled? I dislike the notion immensely, myself.”

Theo shrugged. “If I met the right lady, I wouldn’t be opposed to the prospect of matrimony.”

“If this is what comes of one’s siblings marrying, perhaps I should support Holly’s spinsterhood, after all! I’d thought you immune to such sentimentality as home and family.”

“Says the man spending the holidays with his parents and sister.” Theo gave his friend a pointed look.

Ash let out a bark of laughter. “Very well—we can agree to disagree on the subject. What time do you plan to go to Knavesmire tomorrow?”

“I’ve arranged a cart and driver to meet me on the main road from York at ten in the morning.”

“Keeping country hours, now?” Ash sighed. “I suppose I’ll roust myself out of bed to accompany you. I’ll tell the footmen to sharpen the saw and be at the ready.”

“A wise idea. If we get it cut early enough, I’ll head out for Harrowgate after lunch.”

The previous year, the saw had been dull and it had taken an inordinate amount of time to fell the large evergreen Theo had picked out for Dovington Hall’s Christmas tree. When the pair of footmen had flagged, Theo and Ash had stripped out of their coats and helped with the sawing and finally the fir tree had succumbed.

“To sharp saws.” Ash threw back the rest of his brandy.

“And sharper wits.” Theo drained his glass in turn.

He had a limited time to get to the bottom of whatever Lady Holly was hiding, and he suspected he’d need every ounce of guile he possessed to ferret out his answers. In truth, he rather looked forward to the challenge.