Chapter 4 #2
“By fabricating an engagement,” Lionel said. “A bold choice, even for you.”
Victor’s gaze cooled. “You would have preferred I left her distressed?” he asked.
Lionel hesitated. “No,” he admitted. “But this solution presents its own complications.”
Victor resumed walking. “Then we shall address them as they arise.”
Lionel followed, his expression thoughtful. “Do you intend to bring Miss Brown back?” he asked.
Victor did not hesitate. “I gave my word,” he said. “I shall keep it.”
Lionel studied him more closely now. “How did she come to leave so abruptly?” he asked.
Victor’s jaw clenched. “She found the position… unsuitable,” he said.
“That is rather vague,” Lionel observed.
Victor’s expression hardened. “It is sufficient.”
Lionel’s gaze sharpened. “Are you attracted to her?” he asked suddenly.
Victor let out a short, humourless laugh. “I am not in the habit of forming attachments to my employees. Nor is she the type of woman I spend time with in such diversions.”
“That was not my question,” Lionel replied.
“And I have answered it,” Victor said coolly. “She is… unremarkable in that regard.”
Lionel crossed his arms. “You are a poor liar,” he said.
Victor’s eyes narrowed. “I do not lie,” he said.
“No,” Lionel conceded. “But you omit rather strategically.”
Victor’s patience thinned. “What I think of Miss Brown is of no consequence,” he said. “She is stubborn, impertinent, and entirely too inclined toward moral judgement.”
“And yet,” Lionel said mildly, “you intend to bring her back.”
“For Grandmother,” Victor said sharply.
Lionel held his gaze for a moment, then nodded. “Very well,” he said. “So long as you resolve the matter.”
“I shall,” Victor replied.
Lionel’s expression softened slightly. “Try not to antagonise Miss Brown further,” he added. “It would be… counterproductive.”
Victor scoffed quietly. “She requires no encouragement in that regard,” he said.
Lionel smiled faintly. “Then perhaps you should attempt something different. You have a talent for creating complications,” Lionel remarked, though his tone held more fatigue than reproach.
Victor arched a brow, folding his hands behind his back once more.
“And you have a talent for stating the obvious,” he replied. “We each contribute in our own way.”
Lionel exhaled softly, as though deciding the argument was not worth pursuing further.
Footsteps approached, and a maid passed them with a quick curtsy, her gaze lowered.
“Hannah,” Lionel called, stopping her at once. She paused, turning back attentively.
“Yes, my Lord?” she asked.
“See that the dowager is prepared for an afternoon in the garden,” Lionel said. “She would benefit from the air and sunshine.”
Victor stepped forward slightly, his tone smooth but decisive. “And ensure that tea is laid out as well,” he added. “His Lordship will be joining her, and I believe her favourite cakes would not go amiss.”
Lionel glanced at him. “I am,” he said simply.
Victor inclined his head. “Indeed,” he replied. “You saw how distressed she was; we should like the remainder of the day to be as pleasant as possible.”
Hannah nodded quickly. “At once, Your Grace,” she said, before hurrying off.
A brief silence followed, broken only by the distant echo of her retreating steps.
Lionel regarded Victor with a faintly narrowed gaze. “You are making an effort,” he observed.
“I am being practical,” he said. “A content grandmother is far easier to manage than a distressed one.”
Lionel’s lips twitched faintly. “If you say so.”
Victor turned slightly, his gaze drifting toward the far window. “You disapprove,” he said.
“I question,” Lionel corrected. “There is a difference.”
Victor allowed himself a quiet huff of amusement. “Then continue to question, if it amuses you,” he said. “I shall continue to act.”
Lionel studied him for a moment longer. “And Miss Brown?” he asked. “Will she find such arrangements equally… agreeable?”
“She will return,” he said. “Whether she finds it agreeable or not remains to be seen.”
Lionel nodded slowly. “You do enjoy a challenge.”
Victor’s expression cooled slightly. “I do not seek one,” he said. “But I do not avoid them either.”
Lionel’s gaze lingered on him, thoughtful and faintly sceptical. “No,” he said at last. “I suppose you do not. Now if you will excuse me.”
Victor said nothing in return as Lionel walked away, though his thoughts had already turned, unhelpfully, back to Charlotte. Not to her departure, nor her defiance, but to the way she had looked at him when she had declared her intention to leave.
As though she had expected me to stop her. Should I have done so?
He frowned slightly, pushing the notion aside with deliberate force. It was irrelevant now. What mattered was restoring order to the household, to his grandmother’s peace of mind, and, if necessary, to Miss Brown’s inconvenient sense of independence.
She is infuriating. So how do I convince her to return?
Stubborn, principled, and entirely unwilling to bend, qualities he had long avoided in favour of something far less complicated. And yet, there had been a moment, standing far too close to her, when the world had seemed to narrow to something dangerously simple.
He frowned slightly, pushing the thought aside.
She was everything he had no desire to entangle himself with, earnest where he was detached, steadfast where he was indulgent, and entirely too concerned with matters he preferred to ignore. It was precisely why she unsettled him.
But how? Will more money do the trick?
“For Grandmother. I must figure out a way.”