Page 70 of Wedded to the Beastly Duke
“Why did you call me here?” Nicholas asked, lounging in the chair before the desk with his customary careless grace. “Is it so I can apologize to your wife?”
“No,” Adam said, steepling his fingers, “although perhaps you ought to.”
“Perhaps. Insulting her was not my intention.”
“Well, if you see her on the way out, then please do. But I had called you here to speak with you about a different matter.”
Briefly, he explained the circumstances under which Emmeline had found Rickard the previous night. Although he had not confessed his thoughts to her, not wanting her to worry or cast undue suspicion, he had his own concerns about Rickard’s motives for being there.
Nicholas clucked his tongue. “It seems I truly do owe your wife an apology.”
“Do you trust Rickard?” Adam asked.
“I hardly know him well enough. Do you?”
“Likewise. He’s come here claiming to be my brother—and I do not doubt the veracity of his claims for an instant. But I do not know his character well, and considering he is claiming to be my brother… Do you suppose he had anything to do with William’s death?”
Nicholas stilled. His gaze sharpened. “Is that what you believe?”
“I think it’s certainly likely, and it would be foolish to discount anything at this stage.”
“Yes, indeed,” Nicholas murmured. “And it certainly would be foolish to discount an unknown brother who has emerged from the woodwork shortly after William’s death.”
“And if therewasfoul play, it would explain why there was no body.”
“I agree.” Nicholas leaned forward, his eyes narrowed at a point in the distance as he thought. “But there is no proof.”
“No,” Adam conceded. “I have nothing but conjecture and my suspicions.”
“Well then, we must wait to see if proof emerges. And in the meantime, I advise keeping him away from the Duchess as much as possible without alerting either to your intentions.” Nicholas nodded slowly. “It would be better not to share your suspicions with her, I think.”
Adam chewed on his lip, dissatisfied but unable to articulate precisely why. Emmeline was his wife, and although he knew it was not customary nor necessary for husbands to confide in their wives, keeping a secret of this magnitude felt wrong, somehow.
Then again, if she knew, what would she do? She had shown a desire to take care of him, and when it came to these sorts of scenarios, taking care of him would likely involve confronting Rickard.
Adam was not convinced Rickard knew anything about William’s death—but he was not certain that he was innocent, either. And he would not risk his wife on the chance that hewasinnocent.
“I agree,” he said, after giving the matter some consideration. “Let us bide our time and see if we can discover anything.”
ChapterTwenty
Emmeline gathered the roses she had collected from the garden. The summer heat had brought them into full bloom, and they were fragrant and lovely—and would be especially lovely on Adam’s desk. It would be a reminder of how he had come to teach her how best to weed the rose garden and she hoped it would brighten up his workspace. He was currently in London for business, as he had been for several days, and would return tomorrow.
When he did, she wanted to remind him of her, and these flowers would be the perfect way to do that.
She briskly made her way back to the castle, pausing in the doorway to let her eyes adjust to the relative gloom, and made her way to the east wing.
Adam hadn’t mentioned his rules again to her, and considering the number of times she visited his study, she doubted he minded. Every time, at least, he greeted her with a smile.
The east wing, being the oldest section of the house with the thickest walls, felt cooler, and she sighed in pleasure. Before she reached Adam’s desk, however, she saw a figure dart away ahead of her. Puzzled, she hiked up her skirts and hurried after them.
“Who is it?” she called, turning the corner to find Nicholas very much the same way she had found Rickard, looking at her with a frown. She matched it.
“Your Grace,” he said, bowing.
“Nicholas? What brings you here? Adam is away.” What was more, NicholasknewAdam was absent because Adam had mentioned it the last time he’d visited. “Are you looking for something?”
“No.”
