Page 47 of Falling for a Forsaken Marquess
“No, do not bother, Stevens,” said William, dusting the dried grass off him. “I’ll remove the worst of it by hand. Is my mother in her parlour?”
Stevens maintained his disapproving frown as he nodded. “Very well, My Lord. Yes, she is currently in her parlour. Your brother was just with her, but he has since departed.”
Stevens knew him so well that William didn’t have to ask if Jacob was around.
“Thank heavens for small mercies,” William muttered. “The last thing I need is an audience with my brother.”
William could feel it in his very bones that his brother was up to something. Jacob seemed too smug and cheerful these days, which was never a good combination. When questioned about his jovial strut about the house, the younger man simply stated that it was his prerogative to feel however he wished and had every reason to be happy.
Of course, anyone was entitled to some happiness, but not at the expense of others. Perhaps he had latched onto Miss Philips and was enjoying his time with her, but William doubted it. Shaking his head, he continued to the parlour, giving a brief knock on the oakwood door before entering.
“You have finally come, dear,” his mother said by way of greeting. “Have a seat beside me.”
The duchess patted the settee, disturbing the pearls she had likely removed from her neck. She wound them around her wrist like a thick bracelet and kicked off her slippers before tucking her stockinged feet beneath her. The woman was rather limber for her age and took great pride in showing her seemingly never-ending youth, but never in the presence of visitors.
“You seem radiant this morning, Mother,” William commented, adjusting his waistcoat before sitting.
“Do I?” the duchess asked, grinning. “It must be because I am full of joy.”
“And what has caused this joy?”
The woman gave a little chuckle as she pinched his cheek. “Do not profess not to know the cause of my gladness, son. But if you truly do not know, I must reveal that I am delighted with our Agnes. Tell me, what do you think of our charming lady?”
The duchess’ reason for wanting to see him had just been uncovered, but William wasn’t at all astonished. It was only natural for his mother to enquire about the woman matched with him, but William didn’t have a clear answer for her. However, he needed to be careful with whatever he said because he still wasn’t keen on getting married, but William would be lying if he stated he was not interested in getting to know Agnes better.
“Agnes is not like other women,” William began. “She is ... different.”
He could have said she was a delightful woman with a marvellous mind, but that was asking for trouble.
“She certainly is not like Charlotte!” his mother exclaimed. “Good riddance.”
William gave his mother a frown, but he had to admit that he felt the same way. “While I would prefer her name not to come up in conversation, I will confess that Agnes surpasses Charlotte in all the ways that count.”
“Agnes is better in every way,” the duchess stated. “Her quiet beauty is preferable to the loud, ostentatious beauty that Charlotte had taken such pride in. Agnes’ heart is also far purer.”
“It’s amusing how readily you speak against Charlotte when you barely offered up a word against her when it was most welcome,” said William.
“I did not wish to distress you further, son,” his mother explained, laying a heavily jewelled hand on his arm. “I believed it would be better if I offered my support rather than speak against Charlotte. However, we are not discussing the past but your future with Agnes. Is she not the perfect fit for our family?”
William scratched his head and looked away, his eyes slightly bulging with mild panic. His mother would see him married by the end of the month if that were possible! Getting her mind off this topic was his safest bet to get out of the conversation and save himself. He jerked away as the duchess lightly slapped the hand, still scratching his head, startled by her action.
“What on earth did I do?” he asked.
“You have ignored revealing your thoughts and feelings about Agnes one too many times, William Sculthorpe,” the duchess declared.
“And I say that I will no longer take it. You cannot keep your opinions close to your chest, not when this marriage will affect the whole family. I understand you need more time with her, but surely you have at least an initial opinion to provide?”
William nearly snorted. His mother would not want to know what his initial opinion of Agnes had been. He had shrunk away from Agnes’ liveliness at first, but now he rather liked watching her eyes light up with an idea or hear her talk about the sort of things that most people didn’t think about.
Her sunny disposition lightened the air around him and gave him a different world view that was entirely alien to the one he had created four years ago. There was the threat that spending too much time with Agnes might destabilise all the effort he had put into maintaining the mental wall built to protect himself, but William wanted to know just a little more about the intriguing woman before making any final decisions.
“Goodness gracious, William!” his mother snapped, throwing her hands into the air. “You do more thinking than you do talking! I would greatly appreciate a word or two.”
William pulled his head back a bit, almost smiling at the impatience stamped across the duchess’ face.
“Will you fight me for such a small matter?” he asked, amused. “If you must know, I think Agnes a good woman who puts her family first and does not allow her troubles to overtake her. Is that good enough?”
The duchess’ irritation soon changed into a grin, her smile stretching from ear to ear. “I see that we have the same opinion, and while you have not told me all I wish to hear, I will give you a little more time to become more acquainted with her. By the by, I’ve invited the Humphries to dinner this week. They will likely be home in Lydney by the time we have our start of the hunting season ball, so I’ve decided a dinner will give us some time with them.”
