Page 78 of My Own True Duchess
“Because Moira finds fault with him, no matter how flawlessly he does his job. She never compliments, she only criticizes, always in the name of the tyrannical owner. She’s hiring younger dealers who haven’t the temperament for a club of The Coventry’s caliber, and she wants to dress the ladies like strumpets. Take an inventory of the wine cellar now or prepare to learn the joys of swilling gin.”
Jonathan sat on the sofa next to Frannie, shoved two pillows out from under his bum, and passed her the baby.
“You are describing scenes from my worst nightmares. Turning The Coventry into a cheap hell, where decent patrons would never go when sober and the food isn’t safe to eat.”
“Boodle’s is trying to woo Armand away, but he’s stubborn and even Moira knows not to touch his wages. Then too, Armand, like Battaglia, knows who you are, and Moira is aware of that.”
Armand was a genius, albeit a temperamental one.
“Frannie, can you manage the club?”
“No. I’m not…” She waved a hand about her person. “I’m a mother.” She kissed the baby’s fussy head. “Anybody can see that I’m a mother, and I have no interest in games of chance.”
Despite the domestic surrounds—perhaps because of them—Jonathan battled outrage. Frannie had been with him from the first, and she had a family to support. Armand had five children. Battaglia was the sole support of at least three maiden aunts as well as his own children.
The dealers, the kitchen staff, even the charwoman depended on Jonathan to maintain The Coventry as the foremost establishment of its kind. Then too, Jonathan supported other enterprises with the revenue from The Coventry, and that resulted in more people and employees who were indirectly dependent on the club.
“Moira is sabotaging my majordomo, my chef, my dealers, my staff, my bookkeeper, and that’s not the worst of it.”
Frannie rubbed the baby’s back. “What could be worse than all of that?”
“She’s marking the cards, Frannie.” And nobody save Sycamore Dorning had made Jonathan aware of that, but then… Frannie was right. Jonathan came and went like a ghost, peered down at the gaming floor from a hidden perch, and kept his identity secret. He’d built the scaffolding for his own execution out of prudence, privacy, and discretion.
Also misplaced trust. “Once a cheat, always a cheat.”
Frannie rose, the baby in her arms. “Who said that?”
“Oddly enough, my father, and he was right.”
“Will you close the club?”
“Of course not.”
Delphie hopped into the room, a gray, floppy-eared rabbit clutched in her hand. She wiggled her nose at Jonathan, then hopped up onto the sofa. In his mind’s eye, he pictured another little girl, one with Theo’s blue eyes and Theo’s brown hair.
“I have dependents,” Jonathan said. “People have placed their trust in me, and I cannot fail them. The club’s problems are mine to solve, and when I’m through, Moira Jones will be lucky to get a job scrubbing floors at a drovers’ inn.”
Frannie held the baby over her head, which inspired much waving of tiny fists and grinning.
“Be careful, Jonathan. Get a solid hold of the situation before you charge in and act the duke. Moira has allies on the staff now, and there’s no telling what other trapdoors she’s put in place. You really might be better off selling the whole thing to her.”
Frannie meant well, and thus Jonathan ignored the river of anger her suggestion sent coursing through him. “I will never sell The Coventry, but it’s time I managed the place like a responsible owner and not like Moira’s dupe.”
“You’ll sack her?”
“Not immediately, but yes. She will be sacked, and I won’t ever again allow another that much authority over my club.”
“Best of luck,” Frannie said, nudging the duck from the center of the carpet with her toe.
From the sofa, Delphie waved her rabbit. “Tally ho!”
Jonathan collected his damp coat and bowed. “Tally ho. I’m off to catch a fox.”
Chapter Fifteen
* * *
Thursday took an eternity to arrive, and Diana apparently sensed that Theo’s anxiety about inspecting the ducal residence was mounting. How grand a household would it be, and would the staff receive Theo graciously or with subtle disdain?
