Page 56 of Beauty and the Rake
He unfolded his lean body from his chair and leaned over to kiss Roxanne. “He has ten minutes.”
“Yes, well…”
“I don’t like people wanting to speak about business by coming to my home without an appointment or invitation.” He turned and hurriedly walked to the door and disappeared.
Roxanne thoughtfully bit into a piece of cheddar. Why did the name of this man Graham had gone off to see sound familiar? She knew she had heard it before but couldn’t put a face with the name. Perhaps he was also a friend of Arthur’s and that’s why the name was familiar to her. It would make sense since her brother and Graham ran in the same circles. Whatever the reason, it frustrated her. Normally she had perfect recall, but not with this. Perhaps she hadn’t been paying attention to one of their conversations. It wouldn’t be the first time she hadn’t had total recall about something she’d overheard her brother speak about. Though fascinating, men could be quite boring in the waythey spoke. It frustrated her, making her more determined to find out who this man was.
*
Graham walked asquickly as he could towards his office. He couldn’t believe the audacity of Crenshaw. To show up unannounced simply wasn’t done except in the case of an emergency, and there was nothing in his and Arthur’s dealings with Crenshaw to warrant such a bold move.
As he entered his study, Graham was met by a footman the butler had placed to keep watch of the stranger. Graham nodded at the man to let him know he could leave his post.
To his disbelief, he found Crenshaw seated in front of his desk with a glass of whiskey in his hand. A move Graham found to be bold.
“Crenshaw, you’ve got some nerve. In the future, make an appointment. You’ve got five minutes to explain yourself.”
The man shifted uncomfortably in his well-worn leather chair. “A second ship of mine has arrived in port this morning. She wasn’t due back for another week.”
“This is the one we discussed?”
“Yes. She would pair very nicely with the other.”
Graham ran a hand through his thick locks as he contemplated the man’s words. “And you thought this something that couldn’t wait?”
“There is another gentleman who expressed an interest some time ago. As he’s out of the country and I have not heard from him as to how to proceed or if he’s interested, I thought I’d approach you and the duke.”
“Have you spoken with the duke?”
“No. I was nearby and decided I’d take a chance to let you know about this other ship.”
Graham tapped his finger on the desk. “The duke lives close by. You could have gone and given him the news. Not that it matters.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. I was unsure how to proceed so I just took a chance. If you hadn’t received me, I would have gone to the duke’s residence.”
“Get a proposal to me on the sale of both ships. In the meantime, I will inform the duke,” Graham said.
“Very well.”
“I’ve given you ten minutes so if you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to my guests. My man will see you out.”
Looking Crenshaw straight in the eyes, Graham left the room. Rather than immediately return to Roxanne, he stood in front of one of the front-facing windows just out of view to make sure Crenshaw really left and which direction he would go. The man turned as he went out the gate and stood, staring at the house as though knowing he was being watched.
Graham studied the man. He hadn’t been completely comfortable with the man, considering the history Crenshaw had with Arthur and Roxanne’s family. Now he was beginning to doubt everything about the man. Even the sale of these ships. He needed to think this over carefully before he brought up his doubts to Arthur.
When he stepped foot back onto the terrace, he found Roxanne close by admiring one of the flower beds near the steps leading to the gardens. It took her a moment to acknowledge him. She smiled warmly and met him at the bottom step. She lit up his life just to be near her, making his heart full.
“You seem disgruntled. Didn’t your meeting go well?”
“It wasn’t enough to warrant an unscheduled visit. What he had to tell me could have waited.”
“He sounds ambitious, a risk taker.” Roxanne linked her arm with his and began to talk. “A turn in the gardens might help alleviate some of your stress.”
Graham closed his eyes for a moment to take in her essence. Vanilla and oranges was burnt into his being. He felt himself calm as she led him along the crushed shell path. “How do you do it? I feel better already.”
“It’s something I taught myself. I found whenever Casper was in residence, which wasn’t often, that the tranquility of the garden alleviated whatever stress I felt.”
“I found a good ride on horseback or a walk to the lake on the Kent estate helped me immensely.”
