Page 70 of Trapped with the Forbidden Duke
Lucien nodded. “Along with some of my income, yes. It also funded the renovation of Montgomery Manor.”
“Very nice. Very nice, indeed. The Duchess must be quite impressed,” Jasper remarked pointedly.
“Impressed? No. I did not do this to impress her. This was all to ensure that she did not carry the burden of her brother’s addiction and its effect on their family. I want to see Nicholas be the man he once was. He deserves it. Edwina deserves to have her brother back. If any of this can achieve that, then I will be happy.”
“You are honorable, Lucien. You have been so bitterly angry with Nicholas for a long time.”
“And now I am starting to understand. Finding out about his struggles does not entirely resolve everything, but… I am willing to give him a second chance.”
“In that case, I am rather looking forward to my reunion with him. It has been a long time. You said you have set him up for rehabilitation?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“In one of my smaller estates, not far from here. It is on the other side of the village. Once he is well enough, Edwina will be able to visit him.”
“That is smart, keeping him close.”
“I hope so. He has his aunt there, looking after him.”
“What will you do regarding the remaining creditors? The unknown ones?”
“I have my solicitor doing more digging, and I shall do some on my own when I am back in London. I cannot attract too much attention, however. I have already attracted enough by asking about his whereabouts back when he kept disappearing.” At Jasper’s questioning look, Lucien shook his head. “It is a long story.”
Jasper finished his drink in one gulp before he rose from his chair. “Go to your wife, Lucien. Be with her. No matter the circumstances of your marriage, it sounds as though shehas endured a great deal of loneliness and could do with the company.”
The advice struck Lucien, for as much as Jasper could be a large pain in his backside, he could sometimes impart more than solid advice.
“Thank you.”
“Now, I am off to see a man about a horse. Quite literally.”
“Another, Jasper?”
“Yes. I must have one in preparation for wooing the lady I have set my sights on. Her father, apparently, is fond of horses. I am looking into purchasing a top war horse as a gift.”
“Let us hope you like her to that extent.”
They bid each other farewell and left the study. Jasper nodded his goodbyes to Edwina, while Lucien averted his gaze, knowing she had questions.
But Edwina followed him down the hallway and caught him before he reached the study once more.
“Lucien,” she called out.
He did not answer and only stepped back into the room. Edwina followed him inside and closed the door, trapping them in the dark room.
He rarely opened the curtains in there, preferring to keep the room dark as it often helped his mind remain focused. There was something about working in the evening that had always agreed with him. Perhaps it was due to his adolescence, some of those long months spent in a curtained room with little sunlight.
He shook the thought away and sat behind his desk, only to glance up and find Edwina looming over him.
“Well,” she huffed. “Last night, you could not touch me enough, and now you cannot even answer me or glance back when I call out to you. Are you back to avoiding me?”
“No,” he answered. “I have work to finish.”
He picked up his quill and began to work out a plan to track down the rest of Nicholas’s creditors. If he could note down the places he had checked and use them as a starting point to find names, then?—
“Indeed, but you also have a wife now.”
