Page 6 of Now & Forever
Of course, James worried about her. How could he not? She was his partner! She may not yet be mother of his children, but she was as good as his wife after seven years, and he cared enough to note the difference whenever his parents harangued him for still being unmarried in his thirties.
Soon, Patrick would be old enough to understand that his parents were not married, and that his father had another woman he lived with. Would they get along? Would GwenwantPatrick in their colonial manor as he grew up, even if it were just on the weekends? They knew how to keep their bedroom business private around a child, but the Welshes probably would not be impressed to know that the father of their heir liked his kinky games. It was one of the things that had attracted Gwen!
There are other things they won’t like about my personal life.No, it had nothing to do with James’s reputation as a heartful prankster, although he hadn’t indulged in any games for two years. It had everything to do with the whispers that he might be too queer to be around a growing young gentleman of the American peerage.
I need this boy to grow up with me, otherwise the Welshes will turn him into another shell of parroted opinions and harmful anecdotes.That was less acceptable these days, especially when the common man became wiser to the ways of the rich and closed-off. The last thing James needed was another young man growing up without the ability to think for himself, espouse empathy, and get along with people outside of his group. James had known that would be his realm of parenting the moment he saw the way Sarah Welsh bundled Patrick up and sing one of the most racist nursery rhymes James had heard in decades. Naturally, Madam Welsh didn’t understand the problem.
She also didn’t understand that James would prefer to have a wholehourwith his son.
“There you are.” That clipped and snooty tone summoned James from the floor, where he sat with Patrick and built blocks into colorful towers. Sarah Welsh sauntered into the playroom, uncharacteristically dressed in trousers and a long-sleeved blouse that left the top button undone. Her recently coifed hair was more reminiscent of modern Dame Helen Mirren than a traditional Jayne Mansfield style that Sarah so usually loved.It’s the grandmother look, isn’t it?No offense to Ms. Mirren, of course. James merely assumed this meant that Sarah Welsh was updating her look to match that of a young gentleman’s sporty grandmother.
He always greatly disliked this woman. He greatly disliked her even more when he discovered the ongoing affair between her and his father, a discovery made when James was in college and realizing that his parents weren’t the infallible gods of morality. That was solidified last year when he realized his father was the one who conspired with Madam Welsh to get the grandchild of their dreams, since James refused to be attracted to his childhood friend Cassandra in the waytheypreferred. In their day, a betrothal would have sealed James’s fate, and that would’ve been it.
But this wasn’t their day anymore.
“Such a lovely Monday, isn’t it?” James asked. He stood, carefully shadowing his son while the vulture circled.
“Absolutely gorgeous,” Madam Welsh said without a hint of a smile. “Care to enjoy it in the salon with me? We have something to discuss.”
“Five more minutes with Patrick, please.”
Sarah said nothing as she patted her grandson on the head and showed herself out of the playroom. That suited James fine. He might even taketenmore minutes with his son, Sarah’s wishes be damned. Quality time with a boy he sometimes only saw once a week was worth more than an audience with a woman he could hardly stand to look at.
Irene re-entered the playroom in time for Patrick’s nap. Perfect timing, since the boy was falling asleep in James’s arms and occasionally kicking up a fuss because he wanted his favorite stuffed toy and blanket. James reluctantly passed him to the nanny, who absconded with him upstairs to his nursery. James remained in the hallway until he could no longer see the head of his son’s dark head.
To the salon he must go.
Sarah Welsh awaited him at her usual table by the window, where the sunshine was strongest on summer days and visitors enjoyed a view of the gardens Madam Welsh had overseen for the forty years she had lived in Welsh Grove. It was also conveniently close to the main kitchen, which allowed a collection of tea and cookies she couldn’t help but consume every time she sat down in the salon, guests or no.
“Tea, James?”
He sat across from her. “No, thank you.”
“You must try my new chef’s no bake cookies. To die for.”
“I’d rather get right to what you wanted to talk about.”
Sarah snorted. “In a hurry, James?”
Yes. To get away from you.There were many reasons to thank his lucky stars for never falling in love with Cassandra, and never having to deal with this woman as his mother-in-law was one of them. Gwen’s parents were absolute delights compared to the Welshes, and they had the education and conversational properties of ten-year-olds.
“I have obligations later this afternoon.”
“Very well.” Sarah took a sip of her tea before saying, “It’s about your relationship with Ms. Mitchell.”
The corners of James’s mouth already twitched. “Dare I ask what you’ve heard this time? Why you think it’s any of your business?”
“It became my business once you decided to involve yourself with Patrick’s upbringing.”
“The boy’s already a bastard.” One of the worst things a poor boy could be, according to the society James grew up in – and often escaped. “What I do hardly correlates to how he’ll be treated beyond that.” Besides, it was the twenty-first century, and America. Nobody cared aboutbastardsanymore.
“He is already at a disadvantage, yes. Which is why I am invested in making his transition into society the easiest possible. The last thing I want for my grandson is for him to be surrounded by rumors from his father’s camp.”
“You’re best buds with my father. What else could you ask for?”
“Your compliance when it comes to your love life.”
James could no longer hide the frown crowning his complexion. “Come out and say that you find Gwenyth distasteful.”
