Page 74 of His Stolen Duchess
“You didn’t. Thank you for the brandy.” Lysander turned to Georgina. “I shall try to liven up the conversation if I can.”
“Good luck,” she replied.
Lysander took his brandy over to the small group of men, and as he approached, he saw Francis eyeing him eagerly.
“Your Grace!” Francis bellowed, looking and sounding like he had already enjoyed a few drinks. “A pleasure to see you again.”
Francis held out his hand, and Lysander shook it firmly. There were more introductions and greetings with the men, but much less frantic than Francis’s. He might not need to have a large family around him, but he had to admit that it was fine to be in the company of a group of his peers.
“Your Grace,” Francis said after the introductions had been made. “I have two things I must talk to you about.” He gestured with his arms, his drink swishing in the glass, to say he was now addressing all four men. “It is such a proud day for me to see all four of my nieces with husbands. And not only with husbands, but with good men, too. I am so glad to have you all as a part of my family.”
Lysander followed the others in raising his glass to the warm welcome from Uncle Francis. When he looked around at the other three men who were included in the toast, he realized he didn’t know all that much about them. Still, he knew they were good men. He was an astute judge of character, and he considered them to be decent.
“Now, to the second thing,” Uncle Francis said. “The last time we spoke, we were having a conversation about the war, and I wasfascinated to hear your take on it. When we last met, you told me that you fought in the Napoleonic War.”
“Yes, your information is correct, but that is something we spoke of already and is not worth revisiting,” Lysander countered. He had no inclination to discuss the war with anyone, least of all someone who had not been to war and was fueled with liquor, which would only give him a thirst to hear more about its atrocities. “I have something I need to consider, and I hoped you might help me.”
“Me?” Francis asked.
“All of you, really,” Lysander continued. “It concerns some of my business interests, and I assume you all have some business holdings and have faced all manner of problems over the years. It is nothing really, but I’d like to bend your ear on it in any event.”
Francis puffed out his chest again. “Oh yes, of course.”
The business problem was merely a distraction, but it was a problem he had been considering for a while. Any advice given might not change his decision, but he would certainly take it into account.
“Careful,” Oliver warned. “I have already been told by Ava that my conversations with other lords are utterly dry and dull. Now, a new member of the family has joined us, and he wants to talk about business. You are doing my reputation for dullness no favors, Your Grace.”
“Yes, but if we turn the conversation to something more interesting, they will have nothing to tease us about, and we all know how much our wives love to do that,” Lysander offered.
Vincent laughed first. “An astute observation, and one I shall drink to.”
“Don’t look, but some of them are looking over here,” Oliver commented. “They heard you laugh, Vincent. They might think our conversations are becoming more interesting. We must turn it back to business as quickly as possible.”
“Before that,” Lysander cut in. “I noticed the lack of formality when addressing each other.”
“You needn’t worry.” Ambrose was also a duke. “We have agreed upon informality, but it’s only because we have known each other for some time.”
“Then let’s skip ahead,” Lysander suggested cordially. “I have no plans to rid myself of my wife, so we can accurately say that I will also know you for some time, and the formalities will be dropped. Let’s not waste precious time and cease the formalities now. I don’t wish to be addressed by anything other than my first name going forward. If it is good enough for all of you, then it is good enough for me.”
“That is something else I can drink to,” Vincent said.
The five men raised their glasses, held them aloft for a moment, then took a drink.
“Before we get into business,” Oliver said, “I have taken to organizing a game of whist when we are all together. Now, and bear with me, Francis, but I would like to extend that invitation to Lysander tonight as we have a perfect foursome with all ladies married. Of course, that would mean having you sit out, Francis.”
“Oh, don’t worry about me,” Francis said. “It is a dream come true to see all four ladies and all four gentlemen get on so well, and I would be more than happy to sit out and watch the game. I am sure the match will be all the more hotly contested with additional young blood in the mix.”
“I’m grateful for the invitation.” He nodded in gratitude to Oliver. “I will accept, though I might be a little rusty. Some time has passed since I last played.”
“Then I certainly don’t want to partner with you,” Ambrose said. “Ionlyplay to win, and I will gladly do just that as long as you are rusty, Lysander.”
“Then I will partner with him,” Oliver said. “And teach you what it is to be a gracious host in the process, Ambrose. Not only that, but I have a feeling my superior skills will show through, and we will beat you both comfortably.”
“Superior skills, huh?” Vincent asked. “Have you been somehow hiding that from us all these months? I would love to see some of that skill that you talk about.”
“Who’s to say that I am rusty after all?” Lysander chimed in. “Perhaps I am bluffing.”
Oliver smiled broadly as Ambrose and Vincent studied Lysander, trying to work out if he had been bluffing or if he was bluffing now.
