Page 25 of A Rogue to Resist
Drake’s jaw tightened. “I’ll make them support it. These people deserve safe homes.”
“I don’t disagree,” she said, surprising him. “But practicalities must be considered. The late Earl left Greythorne’s accounts in a precarious state.”
“So I’m discovering,” Drake replied grimly. “Though I’m curious how you come to be so well-informed about the estate’s current financial situation.”
A slight flush coloured her cheeks. “I still maintain connections with certain staff members. And Mr. Thompson was kind enough to answer some inquiries I made after our visit last week.”
“You’ve been investigating my finances?” Drake felt a flare of indignation.
“Not yours,” she corrected. “The estate’s. I have a vested interest in Greythorne’s stability, given my offer to assist with the mill repairs.”
It was a reasonable explanation, but Drake sensed there was more to it—a deeper attachment to Greythorne than she was willing to acknowledge.
“Your offer was unexpected,” he admitted. “And unnecessary, as it happens. I’ve secured funds to begin the most critical repairs, including the mill.”
“From your personal fortune?” she asked shrewdly.
Drake didn’t answer immediately. He had indeed transferred a significant sum from his American investments to shore up the estate’s depleted coffers. It wasn’t information he’d intended to share.
“The source is irrelevant,” he said finally. “What matters is that work will begin immediately.”
Lady Katherine studied him for a long moment, her blue eyes disconcertingly perceptive. “A noble gesture, Lord Greythorne. Though as a businessman, surely you recognize the impracticality of continuously subsidizing an unprofitable enterprise?”
“Greythorne is not unprofitable by nature,” Drake countered. “Only by neglect. With proper management and strategic investments, the estate can and will support itself.”
“And the western fields would aid considerably in that goal,” she concluded, bringing their conversation full circle to the unresolved dispute.
Drake inclined his head, neither confirming nor denying her assessment. “The fields are one piece of a larger puzzle.”
Mrs. Collins emerged from the cottage then, her father leaning heavily on her arm while the children struggled with bundles nearly as large as themselves. Drake immediately moved to assist them, taking the old man’s other arm while signalling a labourer to help with the children’s burdens.
To his surprise, Lady Katherine was already there, kneeling before the youngest child, a girl of perhaps four years, and gently taking the overstuffed sack from her tiny hands.
“What treasures are you carrying, Emily?” she asked, her voice softer than Drake had ever heard it.
“My dolly and blanket,” the child whispered. “And Papa’s picture.”
“Very important things indeed,” Lady Katherine agreed seriously. “Shall we carry them together? They’ll be safer that way.”
The little girl nodded solemnly, slipping her hand into Lady Katherine’s with complete trust. The simple interaction revealed a side of the Dowager Countess that Drake had not glimpsed before—a gentle kindness that seemed at odds with the sharp-tongued, business-like woman he’d encountered in London.
As they helped the family to a cart that had arrived to transport them to the gamekeeper’s cottage, Drake found himself watching Lady Katherine with grudging admiration. She moved among the tenants with natural grace and authority, yet also with genuine concern. When the elderly grandfather became distressed about leaving his home of fifty years, it was Lady Katherine who calmed him, promising that they would preserve the small garden he had tended for decades.
“The rosemary bush your Elizabeth planted will be carefully protected, Mr. Taylor,” she assured him. “I’ll speak to the gardeners myself.”
The old man patted her hand gratefully. “You’re a good girl, just like the previous countess. The old earl chose well.”
Drake raised an eyebrow at this statement and watched Lady Katherine accept it as comfortably as she could manage. The old man’s words cast her marriage to Edmund in a new light—a highborn lady wed to an earl would have been considered an excellent match by Society’s standards, regardless of the private reality.
Once the family was safely loaded into the cart, Drake gave instructions for their care and temporary accommodations. As the cart pulled away, he turned to find Lady Katherine in deep conversation with Wilkins, the carpenter.
“...reinforced with oak beams, not pine,” she was saying. “The extra expense is justified by the longer lifespan of the repairs.”
Wilkins was nodding in agreement. “Aye, my lady. As we did with the Miller cottage. Those repairs have held beautifully.”
“And ensure proper drainage this time,” Lady Katherine continued. “A culvert to direct water away from the foundation would prevent similar problems in the future.”
Drake stepped closer, intrigued despite himself by her evident expertise. “You seem to have given this considerable thought, Lady Katherine.”
