Page 20 of The Jilted Duchess
Alexandra smiled innocently. “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, Mr. Laroux. I trust your judgment implicitly.”
Mr. Laroux coughed. “I appreciate your faith, Your Grace, and be assured that I strive to never steer you or His Grace wrong. It is still my opinion that Mr. Drake and Mr. Hopsted should be consulted on your plans for trees and ponds.”
“Oh, never fear, Mr. Laroux. I already laid out my plans to them yesterday. Mr. Hopsted had some concerns regarding roots being too close to the main house, but we managed to arrange things to his satisfaction. I believe Mr. Drake is going to organize the works next weekend.”
Mr. Laroux blinked in surprise, and Alexandra fought to suppress a pleased little grin. “You seem surprised, Mr. Laroux. Did you not think I would be competent in such matters?”
He hastened to reassure her. “Not at all, Your Grace. I suppose I was just wondering why you requested my opinion on the proceedings, if you had already asked the relevant men and set things in motion.”
“Ah. Yes. I’m afraid you rather have me there.” She paused to inspect one of the beautiful rosebushes lining the paved pathway. Leaning forward, Alexandra closed her eyes and breathed the heavy scent of greenery and floral notes. When she opened them again, Mr. Laroux was standing beside her, head bowed slightly, waiting for her to speak again.
She sighed. “Mr. Laroux, may I ask you a question? One that would stay between us, if it is possible.”
“I- well yes, Your Grace. What should you require?”
“Tell me about the Duke of Murray.”
“I’m sorry, Your Grace. I think I’m not quite sure what you mean.”
Alexandra bit her lip as she studied the roses, not meeting his eyes. “I don’t know much about Hec- The Duke. He seems altogether different from the gentlemen I have known growing up. I am not asking you for gossip or scandal, Mr. Laroux, I give you my word. But I should like to know more about him and I think he is-” She broke off, unsure how to word her musings. “He is rather busy at present, is he not? So I thought you might be able to tell me more about him.”
She was aware that what she was asking of the butler could easily be misconstrued, and for a moment, she wondered if Hector would be angry if he knew she had been fishing for information in this manner. But whether it was because of her vulnerability or merely because she was his employer, Mr. Laroux began to speak before she could think better of it.
“You do not know of the former Duke of Murray, His Grace’s father?” He waited for her to shake her head before he continued. “The deceased Duke of Murray was a, ah, decent gentleman.”
“You don’t sound very sure, Mr. Laroux.”
“It is just difficult to explain, Your Grace.”
“Mr. Laroux, I give you my word that what you say won’t be repeated outside of us two. I have no intention of discussing this with His Grace.”
Mr. Laroux chuckled. “The former Duke had very good thoughts. He was a grand man and he enjoyed a grand gesture. Florid declarations of bankrolling the businesses of his friends, insisting on raising his servants' wages by pounds and pounds as thanks for our loyalties. However, like a lot of grand gestures, he tended not to be able or willing to bring them to fruition.”
Alexandra sighed. “That must have been quite frustrating to live with.”
“Hmm. He was an appreciative man. He was a fair employer. But he was impulsive to a fault and did not believe in thinking through the consequences of his actions before he took them. You will, of course, also not know of His Grace’s mother. She was, or so I am told, a rather poor but enticingly beautiful woman. The Duke’s father met her in Scotland and was enraptured with her immediately. Evidently, she felt the same for they married almost immediately.”
“That sounds romantic.”
“Romantic, perhaps. But foolish, certainly. This common woman was not suited to be a duchess, and His Grace would surely have known that all along. Evidently, they lost track of one another. I believe the woman died. This is not common knowledge, you understand.”
“Of course.”
“The Duke of Murray married the now Dowager Duchess and she was a very competent woman. Towards the end of his life, the Duke discovered the existence of his elder child up in Scotland. It was quite the shock for everyone, you understand, not least the Duchess and the former Marquess of Polwark.”
“I can imagine,” Alexandra murmured.
“Of course, the Duke could have left His Grace up there in his home in Scotland with his businesses, never suspecting the truth of his birth. But as I have said, subtlety and forethought were never my Duke’s strengths.”
“He made Hector his heir.”
“Yes, Your Grace. He was a fair man in the end. He wanted to give the son he didn’t know something to know him by. He wanted to do right by him.”
“I suppose the Marquess of Polwark and his mother were rather unhappy about this turn of events.”
“That would be an understatement, Your Grace.”
“Well. I suppose I can understand that.”
