Page 96 of Charming Artemis

Rose opened the door all the way and motioned the visitor inside.

Adam.

Worry filled her on the instant. Adam was not known as the Dangerous Duke for no reason. He wouldn’t hurt her or be cruel—she knew him well enough to not worry about that—but she had not known him to be terribly empathetic. Indeed, the two of them had been at odds more often than they’d been allies. And he could be very impatient when he thought someone was being overly emotional or lacking in backbone.

Rose slipped out once more. Adam turned his sights on Artemis.

She stiffened her posture and firmed her resolve. She would wear indifference like a shield. Without it, even a moment of criticism or lecturing would break her.

He moved directly to her and, to her shock, pulled her into an embrace. “I am sorry, Artemis. I know what it is to lose a father.”

She’d braced herself for censure—she could have deflected that—but kindness from a man known to be harsh tore open every wound she had. She threw her arms around him and wept.

He held her, just as she’d always wanted her father to,preciselyas Papa had. He held her with tenderness and caring, with every indication that he would protect her and look after her.

“I wish you’d told me,” he said gently. “I could have helped you sort the mystery.”

“He was dead by the time I became your sister-in-law. You couldn’t have changed that.”

“No, but Persephone and I could have softened the blow of his loss. And I knew the late earl. I could have told you about him.”

She shook her head. “Bowing acquaintances in Society is hardly the same thing.”

Adam put her a tiny bit away from him. “Fetch your wrap. We’re going to go for a walk while I tell you a story.”

“The Duke of Kielder doesn’t tell stories,” she said, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand.

“The Duke of Kielder also doesn’t rush across counties, yet here I am.”

“Whyareyou here?” It was testament to her distracted state that she hadn’t even pondered how odd it was that he was at Lampton Park.

“Your mother-in-law sent a missive telling me you were in distress and needed your family.”

Mater had done that for her? “But how did you get here so quickly from Northumberland?”

“I was in Lancashire, at Daphne’s home.”

She lifted a shoulder, a well-worn gesture of dismissal. “Trading Daphne for Artemis is quite a comedown for you.”

“None of your theatrics.” He motioned her toward the door. “I mean to be very forthright with you. I expect you to return the favor.”

They were soon walking along an outer path on the back lawn. Artemis didn’t think she’d ever “gone for a walk” with Adam before. He didn’t ignore her as her father had done, nor did he treat her like a nuisance. They didn’t always get on, but he was never unkind. Still, this level of personal interaction was not common between them.

“My father died when I was seven,” Adam said without preamble. “I was sent to a boarding house adjacent to Harrow where other young boys not old enough yet for formal enrollment were housed and educated whilst awaiting the passage of the necessary number of years. I’ve never felt more alone in all my life.” From Adam, easily the most private person she knew, this amounted to a shockingly personal confession. “Harry became my friend after I’d been there almost a year, he also having been shipped off early, but nothing came close to filling the hole left by my father’s passing.”

“This is not helping,” Artemis muttered but not petulantly. His retelling was breaking her heart further, and she wasn’t certain she had the strength to endure more pain.

Adam was undeterred. “Mere weeks before my father’s death, I made the acquaintance of a newly married couple who came to Falstone Castle to attend a ball. They showed me particular kindness. I received a letter from them shortly before my departure for Harrow expressing their condolences at my father’s passing and a wish to see me again. My mother had received many correspondences, though she did not remain at the castle for long after Father’s funeral. They were the only people who wrote tome, and they continued doing so. I heard from them regularly while I was away.”

Artemis had heard none of this history.

“When I returned to Falstone Castle at the first term break of my school career, I did so alone. Harry had not yet made himself my friend, and my mother was, as always, away. An invitation arrived from this heaven-sent couple to spend a bit of time with them at their home, which was not terribly far from Falstone. Arrangements were made, and I trekked to Cumberland to spend time with them. The lady filled the role of mother that I needed so desperately at that time. The gentleman managed the perfect balance of older brother and father figure. I don’t know what I would have done without them in those early years.”

He, too, had found solace and reassurance in the kindness of an assumed father. “Did he remain a part of your life?”

“After a time, life took them away from the home they had been living in, meaning they were not so nearby and not as able to visit or have me visit them. We did not see each other as often, but they never neglected me. I continued to receive letters. They even looked in on me at Harrow on more than one occasion. The gentleman visited me at Oxford, knowing from his own time at university that fathers often spent time with their sons during those formative years. He made certain I was not left out of that tradition.

“When I finished my schooling and began going about in London, my substitute father, for want of a better description, stood me for membership in his club, he introduced me to those people I most needed to know. As the time approached for me to take my seat in the House of Lords, he tutored me in the on-goings and politics of that body without ever attempting to substitute his judgment or viewpoints for my own.”

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