Chapter 34
Chapter Thirty-Four
Baroness Percy’s visit gave Perry the perfect excuse to leave on a secret mission.
He sat in the baron’s drawing room, where the butler left him in search of his employer.
The Honorable James Townsend’s steps slowed as he strode into the room.
His light brown eyes, not unlike his daughter’s, locked on Perry’s.
The Earl of Winchester stood as his new father-in-law approached, reaching a hand to clasp his.
“Welcome to our home, my lord,” James addressed him, giving his hand a mighty shake.
He wore a sharp gray tailcoat and tan breeches, with a starched white cravat at his neck.
The man had aged well; his dark hair, tinged with gray at the sides, was the only indicator that time had passed.
He and the baroness made a handsome couple.
“Please, call me Perry.”
“Won’t you sit?” The baron asked. “Let me have the maid bring us some refreshments.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Perry said with a wave of his hand. “I came here to clear the air. I want to start my marriage off properly.”
“Ah, yes.” James nodded, his face dropping. “I understand.”
Perry cleared his throat. “Upon learning of the deception afoot between yourself and my father regarding my secret daughter, it was imperative that I make amends to your daughter. I am a man of honor, and I care deeply for Charlotte. I wanted you to know I understand the circumstances were difficult, but I wish you had not kept me in ignorance of Aurelia’s existence. ”
The baron sniffed, turning away from Perry’s gaze. “I need a drink. Won’t you join me, please?”
Bowing his head in acquiescence, Perry watched as James strode to a cart with glasses and bottles and poured each of them a dose of burgundy liquor.
He paused for a moment with his back to Perry, his shoulders drooping.
Straightening, he returned to hand his son-in-law a glass.
James took a long drink and blew out a slow breath.
“I apologize for my part in it. I believe it is dishonorable to make excuses for how you were clearly wronged. However, I will say that my interests lie in protecting my daughter and the family reputation above everything. The decisions we made were the best at the time for all parties.”
“I heartily disagree,” Perry said, glaring at James. “This was not the best decision for my child or my wife.”
“Oh? As a newly married man, would you have acknowledged the child? Trotted her out before your first wife as your illegitimate daughter. Would she have taken kindly to the child and raised her? I think not,” James scoffed.
“I would not have boasted of my daughter having lost her virtue to a man who took advantage of her innocence. Using the funds your father provided for the child allowed us to give Aurelia the best life possible in the country, with no knowledge of the circumstances of her birth.”
Perry winced, taking a sip from his glass.
James was not wrong. The situation would have been extremely challenging for all if he had known.
It would have ruined Charlotte publicly, when her escape to the country under the guise of illness kept her reputation intact.
Well, until Perry forced her to return with him.
He scrubbed a hand over his face in misery. “I understand that it wasn’t a simple situation. Yet it aggrieves me to only now learn of Aurelia’s existence.”
“Then, please, make the most of the time you have. I believe we are both in need of forgiveness and perhaps a new beginning. If you care for my daughter and granddaughter as much as you say you do, then all is forgiven. I would hope to earn the same clemency from you some day.” He flicked his gaze back to his glass, exhaling a heavy breath.
Perry eyed the older man, who stood to look out the window.
The baron seemed contrite, though there was much blame to go around.
The arguments for why they had kept Charlotte in the country were valid.
Perry could only blame himself for leaving her with few choices.
His daughter had obviously lived a very safe and secure childhood at Fermoy with her mother.
While his own father had betrayed him, the old duke had taken care of Charlotte and Aurelia in his own way.
Though it galled him, Perry realized he could no more blame the baron for the situation than he could himself. He was the one who had taken liberties with Lottie. He was the one who failed in making her his wife back then.
Perry stood, walking soundlessly to stand next to the baron.
“I will not have this hanging between us. I offer you my forgiveness, as Charlotte seems to have so graciously offered it to me. We are family, after all. As you know, my parents are gone and I would have Aurelia grow up knowing the love of her living grandparents. She deserves that much.” He reached out a hand to James.
The baron sniffed, swiping the back of his hand under his eye and took the offering. “I am grateful. It never sat well with me to send her away for so long. But it seemed that we had no other choice.”
“There is one more thing I would have from you,” Perry said, the words hanging in the silence between them.
The baron watched him, waiting for Perry to continue.
“It would please us both if you would bless our union. We married in haste for expediency and propriety, and it would mean a great deal to us if you gave your approval, even if it is after the fact.”
A wide smile stretched over James’s face as he blinked back fresh tears. “Of course,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “It is as it should have always been, I believe.”
Perry coughed, his own eyes growing damp. “Indeed, it is.”
He left the Townsend home walking with a skip in his step. A heavy weight had been removed from his shoulders. Perry was more than ready for that new beginning James had wished for all of them.
And he knew exactly how to make it happen.