Chapter Five #2
Timothy straightened, a spike of hope tightening his chest. “If she were willing. Travel long distances is not easy for men and much harder for women. I have not met many willing to leave harbor.”
“Do you have places you would still like to visit?”
“Many. Gordon and I are planning to expand our enterprises into Brazil. When I left, he was searching for someone to teach us Portuguese.”
“Would you not prefer an interpreter?”
“We will probably do that as well. But Gordon has discovered that business moves much smoother if our hosts know that we understand their language, that an interpreter is there for clarification when we do not hear or speak as fluently as a native speaker would.”
“What would you do with my dowry?”
He had not expected that question. He glanced at Mrs. Dove-Lyon, then back to Lady Elspeth. “I am not sure I understand the question. My contract with Mrs. Dove-Lyon specifies that a percentage will be used to pay her fee.”
“But how would you disperse the rest?”
Timothy shook his head. “I had not given it much thought, to be honest. I do not need it in my own accounts, so I supposed I would relinquish it to you for your personal use.”
The room fell silent. Lady Elspeth licked her lips, then chewed the lower one for a moment. “Would you be willing to turn some of it back to my father as either a gift or a loan?”
A sudden understanding flooded through Timothy, and he gasped as he leaned back in his chair.
Mrs. Dove-Lyon had explained to him the urgency of this proceeding—that Lady Elspeth was being forced to marry a man she greatly disliked.
She had not told him, however, why—after all these years—her father had resurrected his financial and social control over his daughter.
Now the pieces fell into place. Viscount Godwin had the triumvirate of qualities desired in a Society suitor—money, title, and position. Especially money. And the Earl of Inmarsh clearly needed a boost to his estate.
His voice dropped to a whisper. “He is selling you?”
Her eyes glistened and her grip on her reticule crushed it into a ball. “I am sure Society would not see it that way.”
“To hell with Society.”
“Timothy . . .” Luke’s voice growled a warning.
Mrs. Dove-Lyon held up her hand, silencing him.
Timothy shook his head. “My dear lady, we cannot let this happen. Win or lose, we cannot let this happen.”
Mrs. Dove-Lyon pulled a handkerchief from her desk drawer and slid it to Lady Elspeth, who took it with a grateful smile, wiping her eyes. She then swallowed and forced her fingers to release her reticule, spreading them on her thighs.
“I only have one more question for you. What is the rarest flower you have ever seen?”
Timothy blinked at the shift but answered without hesitation.
“So far, the shoals spider-lily. Hymenocallis coronaria. It only grows in the United States, in the southern territories like South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama, where I believe they call it the Cahaba lily, after the river where it sees the most growth. It grows mostly in and around shallow fast-flowing water. It has a ruffled center, with star-shaped spikes that grow away from the center. Mostly white with a light green center. It only blooms at night, then the blossom lasts for one day. William Bartram first observed it in 1773, and he described it in—”
“His Travels!” Lady Elspeth bounced in her chair, her eyes bright.
“Yes! You know it?”
“Of course. My mother gave me a copy for my fifteenth birthday. It is so lyrically written, not at all the dry stuff of most naturalists. Have you met him? I heard that he lives in Philadelphia.”
Timothy scrubbed his mouth with his hand. “No. But the gentleman has passed eighty, and I hear he is mostly a recluse.” He paused. “Also Philadelphia is more the three hundred miles from Boston.”
Elspeth’s mouth gaped. “That is from here to Scotland!”
“America is a large place and getting larger all the time. It is almost one thousand miles from Boston to Charleston, South Carolina.” He grinned. “We usually take a ship.”
“Does Ella go with you?”
“She did, rather a lot, at first. She adored sea travel. You know they have two sons now?”
She nodded. “She wrote me to that effect.”
“Mostly she stays home with the boys, but so does Gordon. I handle most of the business travel at the moment. When their youngest is older, they plan to travel as a family. It is merely too risky right now.”
Lady Elspeth looked down at her lap again, tears returning to her face. “I miss her.”
After a moment of quiet, Mrs. Dove-Lyon spoke. “Lady Elspeth, does this conclude your interview with Lord Timothy?”
Lady Elspeth wiped her face again, took a deep breath, and nodded. “I believe so.” She smiled at Timothy as he stood, accepting his dismissal. “Thank you for agreeing to this. I know it is somewhat nerve-racking.”
He bowed as he stepped away. “I suspect more so for you than for the gentlemen. Whatever the outcome, I wish all the best for you.” He smiled. “And God’s blessings.”
Lady Elspeth chuckled. “Thank you. The same to you.”
Timothy and Luke left without an escort, and as soon as the door closed to Mrs. Dove-Lyon’s office, Timothy stopped, leaning heavily against the wall. “Dear God in heaven, I may have to kill my competitors.”
Luke looked around, alarmed. “Brother, do not say such things. In place like this, they take statements of that nature rather seriously.” He looked around again, even though everyone else in the room was at some distance and intricately occupied. “But why?”
“Because I am not leaving London without that woman as my wife.”