Page 2 of The Baron Takes a Bet
“Mr. Armstrong has arrived, my lady,” Mr. Jorden said, followed by an unreasonably tall and thin man.
Mr. Armstrong was a pale fellow with thick black hair atop his oval head. He wore a pair of thin-rimmed spectacles and nodded at Holly and her siblings before entering the room. Walking around the short coffee table between the settee and a couple of chairs, he sat, his knees high over the table. He was obviously too long-framed for the delicate furniture, but he didn’t comment as he brought the leather satchel he had been carrying onto his lap.
“My lady. It is a pleasure seeing you again,” he said, searching his bag.
Though he appeared to be a bit scattered, Holly had no choice but to trust him. After all, he had been one of the witnesses at her wedding and had been entrusted with John’s last will and testament.
“Mr. Armstrong,” Holly said with a tight smile. “Was your journey pleasant?”
“Eh, it wasn’t terrible,” he said, pulling out a thin leather book. Opening it on the table revealed several dozen papers that didn’t appear to be bound. “Finding the new baron was more troublesome though.”
Holly frowned. She had learned bits and pieces of John’s heir over the years. His name was Mr. Gavin Winscombe and he had worked for a time in banking, which was odd for a man set to inherit a title. She also knew John’s nephew also loved to travel and was often out of the country. He supposedly possessed a touch of wanderlust.
Leaning slightly forward, Holly spoke.
“Was he not in London?”
A part of her had expected that Gavin would come to Kingston House for the burial of his uncle, but he hadn’t. There was little love lost between the two men, from what John had said. Still, it irked her that Gavin hadn’t had the decency to at least pay his respects to the man whose home he would inherit.
“Well, he had only just returned, you see,” Mr. Armstrong said, flipping through his pages. “He has been on the continent for six months and only arrived in London the day before last. I was practically camped out on his front steps until he returned.”
That explained why he wasn’t at the funeral. Holly supposed she couldn’t fault his absence since he had been out of the country.
“Oh. Perhaps, all things considered, that is rather fortuitous. John always said they weren’t very close,” she said, swallowing a lump in her throat. Lord, how it pained her to talk about her dearly departed friend. “Did you explain to the new Lord Bairnsdale the, um, situation here?”
Initially, she had been worried that he would think poorly of her when he discovered the circumstances of their marriage, but John had assured her that his nephew would understand whythey married and that he would adhere to the promises John had made.
Mr. Armstrong was bent over the table, but his eyes lifted, catching her gaze.
“I did.”
Holly waited for him to elaborate, but he didn’t as his sight fell back to his pages. Her sister gently elbowed her side to prompt her to speak.
“Did Lord Bairnsdale come with you?” Holly asked.
“No.”
“Oh.”
“I came with him.”
Holly sighed, annoyed. Why was this man being intentionally obtuse?
“Well, then where is he?”
“He asked if it would be all right to inspect the stables for a bit.” Mr. Armstrong’s brow lifted as he found the paper he was searching for. “I couldn’t think why it would be a problem.”
Hollycould. There were pressing matters to attend to. Lord Bairnsdale had an entire lifetime to examine his new home. Was he not aware that it was discourteous to keep people waiting?
“And you explained to him that my marriage to John was indeed a legitimate one? That John insisted on it?”
Having married John on his deathbed, Holly knew a dozen arguments could be used to delegitimize their union—especially the consummation, or rather, lack thereof.
“Do not worry, my lady. Everything is set up to the former baron’s explicit instructions,” Mr. Armstrong said.
Holly leaned back slightly and bit the inside of her cheek as nausea churned in her stomach. What would this nephew think of her? Would he believe she had coerced a dying man into marrying her? Everyone knew John had been asking for her hand for nearly a year. There were witnesses all overLincolnshire who could attest that John loved her and that their relationship, while not romantic, was sincere. But the new baron was largely a stranger here. Would he give credence to the accounts?
She tried to calm herself. Her anxiety over the situation was making her paranoid.
