Page 23 of The Wise Daughter
Not missing her meaning, he leaned forward and placed his hand on hers. “I do not consider you a stranger, Nora.”
His touch was gentle, his skin warm and dry, but it was too new to be entirely reassuring. She may have been wearing his coat, stayingin his castle, and even wearing his ring. Yet, she could not say the same thing about him.
Either way, she had committed to helping him. Her mind set to work, thinking about all the household troubles she had settled over the years in West Riding.
“Let’s start with the servants, Your Grace. I’ve seen the damage a dissatisfied servant can do. First, there’s the inefficiency of half-hearted work, then the poison of rumors that turn others against you. Combine that with lowered wages, and I’d say the risk for thievery rises.”
“Lowered wages? Among my staff?” He leaned forward. “Have you discovered something already?”
Without mentioning Janie, Nora did her best to explain her reasoning. “With so many recent changes, you must examine whether your servants are being paid fairly. How are they treated?”
His brows knit together. “I’ve always assumed all was well with such matters, but you’re right. I need to look into this. I should be more informed about such things.”
“You should do more than be informed.”
Nora thought of a time when she was twelve when influenza had swept through their household. Most of the staff had contracted the illness along with Nora, confining more than half of those who lived and worked with the Lacys to their beds. Nora’s father had arranged for the doctor and apothecary to treat everyone while her mother and housekeeper and anyone else well enough to help had seen to everyone’s care.
When the sickness had passed, leaving a great deal of work to make up, Nora remembered overhearing a conversation between her parents. Her father was worried about the work and money they had lost and proposed a more strenuous schedule with added responsibilities. Her mother, however, had been absolutely against such a solution. She had proposed they celebrate everyone’s recovery. Their spirits needed lifting, she insisted, while they regained theirstrength. In the end, she prevailed in her opinions. A week later, their house filled with music, dancing, cakes, drinks, and laughter. Though Nora was young, she remembered her elation at being allowed to join in the festivities.
The love and loyalty that grew among their household after that was unparalleled, and work resumed more efficiently than before. When Nora was old enough to run the household, she realized it was one of the best things her parents could have done.
If Aaron’s household had undergone similar burdens while the late duke was sick, Nora could easily imagine that their spirits might need some lifting too.
“Your Grace, I think you should hold a ball.”
He put down his teacup and looked curiously at her. “A ball? Well, yes. I suppose we will at some point to honor you.”
“Not for me. I think you should hold one entirely for the servants.”
“For the servants? Why would they need a ball?”
“It isn’t that strange a notion. Only consider it. What better way to thank the army of people who help you day in and day out? Why, even the most honest of them are bound to become weary and disgruntled from time to time, especially if they feel their efforts are going unnoticed. Give them a holiday. Show them you appreciate them.”
His lips turned to a pensive frown. “It sounds like a great deal of trouble and expense for little help in discovering the thieves.”
“Perhaps, but it may help those who are not thieves develop some loyalty to you. That is where its true usefulness lies.” She emphasized her point by sharing with him the experience among her own household in West Riding.
He pressed his lips together, his brows growing thoughtful. “I’ll consider it, Nora, but I’m not sure it’s the best course of action right now.”
“Then what is, Your Grace? What do you suggest?”
The corner of his lip rose slightly, his green eyes assuming their startling intensity. He stood and offered his arm. “That you do not leave my side today.”
Nora swallowed as she took his arm. “If you insist.”
Chapter 9
The pit of Aaron’s stomach tightened and swelled much more tumultuously with Nora by his side and her graceful hand lightly resting on his arm. He was pleased to see his signet ring on her thumb. The fit was loose, but it looked at home on her hand. Now if he could somehow help Nora feel at home in the castle.
He was encouraged by their morning together thus far, excepting the fact that she had tried to avoid him to begin with. He had watched her talking to herself for a few moments before interrupting her. Sunlight streaming through windows had cast a warm glow around her, accentuating her pale, blonde hair and cream complexion. Her playfulness as she talked to the paintings lightened his heart and reminded him of more carefree days. He tried not to feel too discouraged with how quickly her reservations returned. All he wanted was to restore that light in her.
He led her through the corridors, wide and narrow, long and short, with all his assumed confidence, but the truth was, his insides quivered. Beyond his own apartments and study, he had hardly ventured deeper into the castle since his return, and it was still strange to wander the corridors knowing his father wasn’t somewhere nearby.
Thieves were.
And it was stranger yet to sometimes doubt his own sense of where he was going. He knew this castle. He had explored every inch as a child, but returning to it after years of living abroad was like seeing a childhood friend as a grown adult, familiar but changed. He could not count on everything being as it once was. In his absence, someone had rearranged portraits and furniture, hung new curtains, and removed carpets.
Most unsettling were the signs of neglect. There were small things that could easily be repaired or replaced, a loose banister in need of polishing, dusty shelves, or moth-eaten curtains, but as they wandered past older parts of the castle that had not been inhabited for several decades or more, he saw deeper, more concerning signs of neglect from broken windows to charred walls.
