“Indeed.”
“If I may be so bold, my lord, why would Mother have said you have amends to make if you do not?”
“Because women always want more.”
Tossing back the last of his wine, he studied the sky. The sun had commenced its descent and the bells for sext had sounded some time ago. Springing to his feet, he wandered over to a nearby cabinet and poured himself another wine before the footman could.
“You’ve spirit, young lady, I’ll grant you that.” Turning around, he raised the goblet to me and drank. “Beauty does strange things to men, Mistress Sheldrake, very strange things . . .” His voice lowered and his eyes remained fixed on me. “Things for which, if we’re not careful, we’ll pay for the rest of our lives.”
I turned away, finding the waning day preferable.
“Delightful as this has been, Mistress Sheldrake, I really cannot spare you any more time. Tempting as your offer is, I have to decline. As I’ve made clear, I owe you—and your family—nothing. My debt is paid.” He offered me his hand. I stared at it, and tears threatened. I blinked them back furiously. “Take Mistress Jabben and Master Makejoy’s offer. It’s the best you’ll receive . . . for now. I’m sure a woman like you will be courting all kinds in the near future.” About to say something more, he changed his mind. “Master Underwood will show you to the door. James,” he alerted one of the footmen, “Mistress Sheldrake is leaving.”
“Wait,” I said, rising to my feet, ignoring his hand, which was rapidly withdrawn. My heart was thundering, my palms began to sweat. “I’m not finished.”
Aggravated, Lord Rainford clicked his tongue. “What now?”
“Despite what you say, you do have an obligation to me, Lord Rainford. You say you’re a man of business—well, I’m here to collect my debt.”
“I’m beholden to you? How? In what possible way?” Impatience clipped his voice. Anger flickered in his eyes.
“You’ve not compensated me for what I was forced to endure as a consequence of your liaison with my mother.”
“My liaison? That’s what you think?” His words rang. He shook his head. “I see.” His voice was quieter, calmer. “Tell me then, how could what happened with your mother have affected you?”
“In every conceivable way, your lordship. My father worked hard to ensure you profited while, in the meantime, as his daughter and eldest child, I can record only losses.” I used my fingers to count them off. “The love and attention of my father, the presence of my brother, the death of my mother—”
“You cannot blame me for your mother’s death!”
I stepped closer to him. “Perhaps not. But I can blame you for my father, for what he became, a hollow version of his former self. I can blame you, my lord, for how everything between my mother and father was irrevocably altered from the moment Tobias was conceived. From that day forward, I lost one if not both parents. I certainly lost a father and the woman my mother once was. Tell me, if not you, then to whom do I attribute these losses?”
He failed to hold my gaze.
I continued. “Then there are the twins. They lost a father long before he ever died and that was due to you, your lordship.” My breasts were heaving; a trickle of perspiration traveled between my shoulder blades. My head was buzzing. I didn’t know where this rush of courage came from, but I used it. “For those losses, your lordship, I call you to account. For all of this, I demand compensation. As you said earlier, this is business.” I lowered my voice. “I ask that your debt to me be repaid in time and thus money—in the form of a loan. If, by the end of a period upon which we’ll agree today, I cannot meet my liability, then I’ll leave Holcroft House and you’ll never hear from me again.”
I stood before the window, the sunlight warming my spine. My nerves were strung tight.
One arm folded behind his back, Lord Rainford walked to the next window and stared out.
Over his shoulder, I could see the large courtyard below. Maids carried pails from the washhouse to the kitchen. Chickens scratched in the gravel, dogs chased each other toward the stables, where a beautiful black destrier pranced. My eyes grazed his lordship’s velvet spine and I willed him not only to consider my offer, but to agree to it. His shoulders were broad; his fingers, stroking each other against the small of his back, were long. In his youth, he would have been a handsome, if somewhat inflexible, man. The resemblance Tobias bore to him was astonishing. How hard must it have been for Father to see them together, to be reminded every time he looked into Tobias’s face of Mother’s . . . No wonder he sent Tobias away so soon. I marveled that my mother had . . . with this man.
Lord Rainford turned. Embarrassed by the direction my thoughts had taken, I brushed an imaginary stray hair behind one ear.
“You’re even lovelier than your mother,” said Lord Rainford quietly.
There was a movement in the doorway. “Ah. Master Underwood.” My heart sank. I was to be escorted from the estate after all. “Is Master Makejoy still on the grounds? He is? Good. Fetch him immediately. Tell him to bring parchment and inks.”
I didn’t dare breathe.
Lord Rainford closed the distance between us, standing so near I could feel the heat of his body, feel the penetrating intensity of his gaze. I could smell wool, leather, horseflesh, and sweat. “I’ll give you the time you ask for, Mistress Sheldrake.”
Joy filled my chest, expanding out to my limbs. I felt light, weightless almost.
“A contract will be drawn up today.”
I released a long, quiet breath.
His lordship continued. “I confess, I’m more than a little interested in how, given the circumstances, you will fare. You have until Hocktide to meet the fees required for the leasing of Holcroft House. That gives you around six months. That should be more than adequate.”
My heart soared. Six months! It was more than I’d dreamed. I just hoped it was more than I needed.
“If you fail to meet the terms of our contract,” continued Lord Rainford, “then, as was originally intended, you’ll leave the house. If, however, you succeed, then perhaps we will speak again.”
“Thank you, my lord.” I offered a curtsy. “I won’t disappoint you.”
“Disappoint me? I don’t think you could. But you can fail and, Mistress Sheldrake, while I’ve gone against my better judgment in this instance, I’ll not be so easily persuaded by a pair of beautiful green eyes or”—his eyes traveled my body—“anything else.”
I didn’t know what to say. Like a startled fawn, I couldn’t move.
“But trust me when I say, I can be ruthless, Mistress Sheldrake.” He smiled, but there was no warmth behind it. “I keep a close eye on all my investments. So, while I have to return to the king’s side, I’ll ask my son”—he gestured to the portrait I’d noticed earlier—“to . . . let’s say, keep abreast of your progress. When he returns from France, he can confer with Makejoy, examine the accounts, and keep me advised. And, when the time comes”—he chuckled at his little joke—“he’ll see that the terms of the contract we’re about to sign are met in full. Are you prepared to meet my conditions?”