Chapter 6
Nellie stepped out of the carriage, then made her way up the walk nearly at a run. She rapped on the door, and when Lord Wythers’ butler opened the door, she stepped inside. Thankfully, he realized by her mode of dress that she wasn’t someone of common birth and let her enter, then closed the door behind her.
She’d been awfully cavalier about her reputation, but still, Nellie couldn’t afford to be seen entering the house of a single man at this hour of the night. If she was . . .
She clutched her gloved hands at her waist and turned to face the butler.
“I’ve come to see Lord Wythers,” she announced. “He isn’t expecting me, but I’m quite certain he won’t mind.”
“His lordship is preparing to go out for the evening,” the butler said. His voice was stern, as if he wasn’t quite convinced it was all right for her to be here.
“Please, tell his lordship that Lady Annalise is here and would like to speak with him for a few minutes. I won’t be long.”
The butler considered her words, then showed her to a receiving room done up in pleasing shades of plum. The room was warm and inviting, but Nellie still felt a chill of dread race down her spine.
“If you’ll wait here, my lady, I’ll tell Lord Wythers you’re here.”
“Thank you,” Nellie said, then began pacing the room.
It had been four days since she’d last spoken with Lord Wythers. Two days since she’d overheard her sister cry her heart out. And for those two days, Nellie had done nothing but worry herself to pieces.
She couldn’t let Franklin take her sister so far away from them that they’d never see her again. Especially when she was increasing. If anything happened to Colette, and Nellie and her sisters weren’t there to help with the birthing, she would never forgive herself. Not when she could provide a solution.
And if Franklin and Colette moved so far that none of her sisters ever saw Colette again, Nellie couldn’t bear it. How could she tear their family apart by refusing to give over the management of the estate?
How could she enjoy managing the estate in the future when she knew her selfishness had destroyed the close bond she had with her sisters?
She couldn’t.
Nellie paced the room again, then came to a halt when the door opened and Lord Wythers entered.
Her heart stuttered and her breath caught. If she thought he was handsome when she’d seen him before, those other times didn’t compare to the way he looked tonight. His butler said he was getting ready to go out for the evening. He was dressed in formal black. His cravat was tied to perfection, and he looked more stunning than any man had a right to look.
“My lady. What a . . . surprise,” he said. “Is something wrong?”
Nellie tried to appear calm. She tried to seem at ease, even though her heart was racing like a hummingbird.
“Not exactly,” she lied. “I would appreciate a moment of your time, however, to ask you some very blunt . . .” She cleared her throat. “. . . and very personal questions.”
A deep frown furrowed his forehead. “Perhaps we should sit, then,” he said, pointing to two chairs before the fireplace that faced each other.
Nellie sat in the nearest chair.
“Would you like something to drink? I could ring for—”
“No. Thank you. I won’t be here long.”
“Very well,” he answered, although the creases didn’t leave his forehead. “Perhaps you’d care to begin.”
Nellie swallowed hard. “Yes. Of course.” She clutched her hands in her lap and was thankful she wore gloves. She thought he might notice how white her knuckles were.
Nellie took a deep breath, then began. “I would appreciate your word that nothing said between us will be repeated.”
“That sounds very serious,” he said.
“Not serious as much as private.”
“I see.”
“The other day when you came to see me, you mentioned several . . . things of interest.”
“Such as?”
Lord Wythers’ features darkened, and Nellie knew she needed to get right to the point before he started to get the wrong idea for her being here. In the home of a notorious and wealthy bachelor. In the evening. Unchaperoned. “The first point you made was that you have a genuine dislike for country life and prefer not to have to live there.”
“That’s true.”
“The second was that your father gave you the title to Red Oaks Estate to provide you with enough income to live a life in London, but that you have no experience in managing an estate.”
“Yes.”
“Do you have a steward now who oversees Red Oaks?”
“Yes, but he is used to receiving orders from Father or my brother, and he continually asks for instructions from me.” He smiled. “Since I don’t have the vaguest idea of what to tell him to do, he'll wait a long time before he hears from me.” Lord Wythers rose from his chair and walked from one side of the room to the other. “Just today, I received three ledgers and a box of invoices and receipts.” He paused and looked at her. “Even if I knew what to do with the ledgers, it would take me until Boxing Day to finish entering the numerous items he sent. And . . .”—he dropped back into the chair—“I don’t have the first idea how to enter the papers into the ledgers.”
“What if I offered to assume all those duties for you?”
The silence that stretched between them terrified her. His expression didn’t offer any hope. Nellie gathered all her inner strength to sit calmly until he answered.
“Are you offering to take care of my ledgers, Lady Annalise?”
“N-no,” she stuttered, then shook her head. “Actually, I’m offering to do more than keep your ledgers. I’m offering to assume management of Red Oaks for you.”
There, she’d said it. And from the shocked look on his face she’d said the last words he’d expected from her.
“You want to what?”
“Manage Red Oaks for you.” Nellie rose. “When we last spoke, I hinted that I helped my father manage our estate. That wasn’t exactly true. Since Mother died, Father has lost his desire to do anything but live in his world of books. His lack of interest in the estate was gradual at first. But over time, it was obvious he cared less and less what happened to the land and the tenants. He was late paying bills, later still ordering supplies we needed, and sometimes he completely forgot to give instructions to our steward. I had no choice but to take over for him and manage the estate on my own.”
“I see. So now you want to manage Red Oaks instead of Lyman Estate? What caused you to consider that?”
“It’s come to my attention that my sister Colette’s husband is searching for property to manage. We share the same love for the land, and since there are no properties near here looking for management, he is considering taking my sister to an estate far to the north, near Scotland.” Nellie paused when her throat grew thick with emotion. “I cannot allow that, my lord,” she continued. “I can’t let my brother-in-law take my sister away from our family where we might never see her again. Not when here is where they truly wish to be.”
“So you’ve decided to sacrifice the love you have for the land to keep your sister near you.”
“It’s not such a great sacrifice. Keeping my family safe and happy is worth any price.”
Lord Wythers leaned back in his chair. He was considering her offer. That was at least a good sign.
“Are you certain you can manage an estate such as Red Oaks?”
Nellie smiled. “I am certain. If in three years’ time you are not satisfied with the running of Red Oaks, I will tender my resignation and return home.”
Lord Wythers rose from his chair and walked to a window overlooking a garden. He stared into the darkness as if looking for something. Or waiting for something. Nellie thought that perhaps that something was an answer to what she proposed. She knew she needed to provide more incentive for him to accept her offer.
“I give you my word that if you allow me to manage Red Oaks, you will always have enough money to live the lifestyle you are used to living. And you may be assured that you will never have to spend as much as one week in the country, or even one day. All our correspondence will be done by post.”
He turned. “What do you get out of this?” he asked.
Nellie smiled. Even though her eyes filled with tears, the smile on her face was genuine. “Everything I’ve always wanted, my lord.”
“Everything? You do not want a home of your own and children?”
Nellie felt her cheeks warm. “Those are not things that were ever within my reach. I have resigned myself to that fact. Now I will be satisfied if I can spend my time in the country and be useful.”
He turned back to the window. “Will you give me until tomorrow to make a decision?”
“Of course, my lord. That is more than fair.”
Nellie rose from her chair and walked to the door. “Thank you, my lord.” She curtsied politely, then left him. She couldn’t look back. She refused to take the chance that he might see the tears she couldn’t keep from spilling from her eyes.
Hugh stood at the window and watched Lady Annalise make her way down the walk at a fast pace. He knew she wanted to avoid being seen leaving his townhouse. He knew she wanted to avoid any form of gossip.
A carriage turned the corner and stopped. She entered the conveyance unassisted, and Hugh watched until the carriage carried Lady Annalise out of sight.
When he was alone, he pulled from his neck the cravat his valet had taken such pains to tie and removed his coat. He threw the coat over the back of a chair and followed it with his waistcoat, then went to the sideboard and poured himself a snifter of brandy.
It surprised him that even though the lady had left some minutes earlier, he still felt her presence most vividly. Her stunning proposal was responsible for that, he supposed.
With glass in hand, he walked to the wing chair before the fire and sat. He stretched his long legs out before him and watched the flames flicker in the grate.
“Do you require anything, my lord?” his butler asked from the doorway behind him.
“No, Bentley. Tell Timms he can put the carriage away. I won’t be needing it tonight.”
“Very well, my lord.”
The door closed behind his butler, and Hugh was alone with his thoughts. He had to admit that was frightening. He seldom allowed himself any amount of solitude in order to keep self-contemplation at a minimum. In his experience, thoughts that surfaced in contemplative moments were rarely thoughts he wanted to consider. Such as now. He didn’t want to let his mind wander where he knew it would go—to thoughts of Lady Annalise.
He lifted the snifter and took a swallow of the fine liquor. It was an unexpected challenge, trying to pretend she didn’t affect him, trying to tell himself she was far too plain and ordinary for him to notice in a personal way. And yet, he had noticed her. Not only had he noticed her, but he had swiftly come to admire her.
She’d endured three Seasons and had been ignored and rejected each of those Seasons. She’d come to terms with the fact that she would never marry or have a family. Yet, Hugh saw no sign of self-pity or gloominess. The sparkle in her eyes was evidence enough that she enjoyed life. The frequent smiles on her face were proof of a happy disposition. And she appeared to be one of the most capable women he’d ever met.
Hugh took another nip of his brandy. She’d come to apply for a position. Not a staff position. Not a companion position for an ailing relative, nor the position of governess for a child in his care, but that of land manager of his estate. She’d offered to manage Red Oaks with the promise that it would yield a large enough profit that he could remain in London and live his life with contented abandon. She’d assured him that she would do as admirable a job as his father had done. That managing an estate came naturally to her.
Hugh threw the remainder of brandy to the back of his throat and rose to refill his glass. And what reason did she have for wanting the position? Not for herself, but for her family, in order to make the management of their estate available to her sister’s husband. All as a very practical solution to keeping him from taking her sister away from the rest of the family.
Hugh stopped in front of the fireplace and braced his outstretched arm against the mantel. There seemed to be no end to things the good lady was willing to give up for her family.
She’d sponsored her sisters in Society, even though she hated being in London. She’d cared for her father as if she were his parent instead of his child. She’d looked after the estate after her father went into a decline following his wife’s death. And now, she was willing to leave the safety and security of her home and her family so that one of her sisters wasn’t forced to move to the far northern reaches of the country and be unhappy for the rest of her life.
Hugh pushed himself away from the mantel. Was there no sacrifice she wouldn’t entertain where her family was concerned?
Hugh paced the room, eating the space from one wall to the other. When had his opinion of her changed so? How had he so quickly come to feel comfortable in her presence? And to look forward to the possibility that he might have a few moments more with her?
It seemed preposterous how easily he’d come to enjoy congenial banter with Lady Annalise. When had she ceased being the plain-looking spinster he’d first met and turned into the gentle-spoken woman whose cheerful nature and formidable compassion were far more engaging than Society’s simpering females?
Practicality dictated that he couldn’t turn down her request. But beyond that, she deserved what she’d asked for and so much more. She’d offered him everything he desired. She’d promised him the lifestyle he was in danger of losing. She’d provided him the perfect solution.
Yet, he knew he couldn’t give her what she wanted.