Page 12 of An Unconventional Gentleman (Willenshires #2)

“And you’re sure about the blue waistcoat, Edward?” Henry asked anxiously. “It’s not too gaudy?”

The valet blinked, probably taken aback by his master suddenly displaying such an interest in the clothes he wore.

“Well, I don’t think so, your lordship,” Edward managed at last. “The gold thread is very subtle, and the blue isn’t too bright.”

Henry smoothed out the rich brocade of the waistcoat and sighed. He felt like a fool fluttering over such fripperies, but today was an important day.

The partnership between the Fairfaxes and himself was finalized, of course, but there was another document – an irrelevant one, really – which he would sign in front of all the shareholders and management as a symbol of their new partnership.

Of course, Eleanor Fairfax would be there.

To Henry’s absolute horror, his heart really did seem to skip a beat when he thought of her, a phrase he’d assumed only existed between the pages of a novel.

Try as he might, he hadn’t been able to speak to Eleanor after dinner at the ball, mostly due to the Redfords monopolizing him, and the simple fact that he couldn’t find her. Neither had William found his mysterious, blue-dressed, locket less lady.

Add that to the losses Alexander had racked up at the card tables, the night had been a disaster for all, except possibly the Dowager, who fondly imagined that her two eldest sons would soon be marrying the ladies she had picked out for them.

The Redfords had left a calling card for Henry at the Dunleigh family home, and Henry allowed himself a moment of relief that they did not know where he lived. It was clear that they were intending to pursue him, which was going to make the rest of the Season more tedious than he had expected.

There was a tap on the door, and both men flinched.

“Go and see who that is, Edward,” Henry ordered, unable to banish the uneasy image of the three Redfords on the doorstep, beaming .

He needn’t have worried. Alexander stepped inside, smothering a yawn.

“Oh, it’s you. Morning. I have to go out soon, you know. Business,” Henry added. “We can’t all laze around all day like gentlemen of leisure, you know. That will be all, Edward, thank you.”

The valet bowed, barely able to conceal his curiosity, and shuffled away to the kitchen. Alexander rolled his eyes. “What a comedian you are, Henry. I won’t be long. Goodness, you look fine.”

Henry tried not to show how pleased he was at the compliment.

“As I say, it’s just business. With the Fairfaxes,” he added, glancing over at his brother.

Alexander coloured. “Actually, that’s sort of related to why I’m here. I’m here to apologise, Henry.”

Now that was a surprise.

“Apologise? Whatever for?”

Alexander snorted. “What do you think? I made some rather unkind jokes yesterday morning. About William and Lady Victoria, and… and about you and Miss Fairfax.”

Henry swallowed. “Oh, yes. I remember. I… I wasn’t angry at you.”

Alexander hung his head, not meeting his brother’s eye. “Yes, I know. You rarely are. You’re entirely too good for me, Henry. But I shouldn’t have said what I did, shouldn’t have teased you the way I did. Katherine gave me quite a scolding afterwards, I can tell you. It wasn’t kind, and not at all proper. So, in future, I shall keep my teasing away from the dinner table.”

Henry chuckled, shaking his head. “I shall hold you to that.”

“Well, Katherine will, rather. So, what business has you dressing up so fine?”

Henry hesitated, wondering briefly if he ought to make something up. Alexander wasn’t indiscreet , exactly, but he tended to let his tongue loosen when he’d had a few cups of wine. The partnership with Fairfax would be announced soon enough, but that didn’t mean that Henry wanted it to be the talk of London’s commercial centres. Not yet, at the very least .

“I’m visiting the Fairfax offices and factory today,” Henry admitted, in the spirit of brotherly love. “I’m going into business with Charles Fairfax and his daughter.”

Alexander nodded slowly. To his credit, he didn’t make any mocking comments, which was progress. Henry eyed his brother, not pleased at the waxy pallor of Alexander’s face. Had his eyes always been so sunken? They were red and bleary, like he hadn’t slept. Henry had seen the pile of Notes Acknowledging Debts in William’s study, too, all with Alexander’s signature scrawled on them. He knew that their older brother was worried, as was Katherine, but none of them could seem to keep Alexander away from the card tables. Neither of them could convince him to take more water in his wine, or dispense with wine, whiskey, and port.

It was always you that Alexander listened to, pointing out a snide voice in the back of Henry’s mind. You two were so close. Perhaps he would have listened to you. But it’s too late now, because you went abroad, and left him to manage as best he could. Too late.

Henry blinked, waking up from his reverie. Alexander had gotten to his feet and limped across the room, stiff as an old man.

“Present for you,” Alexander said with a half-smile. “I thought you might like it. It’s not new – it belonged to some great-uncle or another – but I thought of you right away.”

It was a cravat pin. The pin was simple and elegant, styled in the fashions of at least fifty years ago. It was topped with a huge, irregularly shaped ruby. The colour was beautiful, rich and glittering, seeming to change when the light danced over it.

“It’s beautiful,” Henry confessed.

Alexander smiled wryly, and deftly secured the pin in the depths of Henry’s simply arranged cravat.

“I thought of you the moment I saw it. You suit red, you know. I don’t – it drains me.”

I imagine most colours drain you now, Henry thought, with a sickening rush.

“Thank you,” he managed at last. “That’s kind of you, Alex.”

His younger brother nodded, turning towards the door.

“I’ll let you go, then – since you have such an important business meeting to look forward to. ”

“Wait,” Henry called impulsively, before Alexander could reach the door. The younger man paused, looking back inquisitively, and Henry flushed.

“I’m sorry I’ve been gone for so long, over the past few years, Alex.”

Alexander flinched. “I don’t blame you for any of that.”

“Be that as it may, I don’t intend to abandon my family again. I’m here to stay, Alex. I promise.”

Henry held his brother’s eye for a long moment, then nodded slowly.

“Very well. Thank you, Henry. That means a great deal to me.”

And then he was gone, and Henry was left alone with a new feeling of nerves and foreboding. He turned to inspect himself in the mirror again, lifting a trembling hand to the new ruby cravat pin, glittering like a drop of blood amongst the crisp, white folds of linen.

I mean it, Alexander. I’m going to see all this business through to the end.

***

The Fairfax offices were full. The usual workers were there, of course, the factory proceeding as usual, but the shareholders and their attendants had also arrived, cramming into the large meeting room and talking in a constant stream of muted babble.

It took Henry almost half an hour to get from one side of the meeting room to the other, where the tea things were, on account of everybody wanting to shake his hand and speak to him.

“It’s about time there was some young blood in the Fairfax enterprises,” a stocky man with a bristling white moustache confided. “Mr Fairfax is not getting any younger, and his health is not good, you know. His son-in-law shows no interest in the business, which is a pity. A younger person is exactly what we need. Bring in some fresh ideas.”

Henry smiled tightly. “Younger blood? Why, Miss Eleanor Fairfax has been involved in the day-to-day running of the business for years, as I understand. She has a great deal of responsibility. ”

The moustached man spluttered. “Yes, well, Miss Fairfax is a nice enough girl, in her way, but this is business , Lord Henry.”

“Yes,” Henry answered smoothly. “It is. I’m not sure I take your meaning.”

“Well, Miss Fairfax is, as I say, a nice girl, but she certainly cannot handle running a business like this one.”

“Is that so? I believe she is already doing that, to be frank, on account of poor Mr Fairfax’s bad health. Have you never spoken to Miss Fairfax about the business? You’ll find her quite knowledgeable.”

“No, no, I don’t believe I have… in all truth, sir, I believe it’s better to keep the ladies out of the offices, don’t you think? Once marriage and children inevitably come along, they will lose interest quite rapidly. The ladies don’t altogether have a head for business, don’t you find?”

Henry tilted his head to one side. “No, actually. I haven’t found that.”

The man spluttered some more, managed an excuse, then drifted rapidly away. Henry sighed in relief, and pushed on the last few steps to the tea table.

Miss Eleanor Fairfax stood there, unobtrusively in a corner, sipping a cup of tea and looking at nothing in particular.

“There you are,” Henry said, standing beside her. “I don’t believe I’m making a good impression on our shareholders.”

Eleanor almost imperceptibly stiffened.

“I should be careful, if I were you,” she said acidly. “Two people have already hinted at you and I making a match of it, so that you can inherit the business when Papa dies.”

Henry flinched. “Make a match of it? You mean, marry? Who would ask such an impertinent question?”

“The shareholders, of course. Our shareholders.”

There was an odd inflection placed on that word, something almost bitter. Henry glanced sideways at her, frowning. Something was up. The light, sincere Eleanor Fairfax of the party was gone. In her place was a stiff, unfriendly young woman who wouldn’t even look his way.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, as if sensing eyes on her, only to snatch her gaze back immediately .

“Is something wrong, Eleanor?” Henry found himself asking. “You don’t seem yourself today.”

She took another determined swallow of tea. “Much as it pains me to correct you, my lord, I think I must insist on a little more formality. Miss Fairfax would be more appropriate.”

He flinched. She was right, of course.

“I beg your pardon,” he muttered. “That wasn’t proper. But really, Miss Fairfax, you do not seem yourself.”

“Really? How odd. With the greatest respect, Lord Henry, I don’t believe you know me well enough to know whether or not I seem myself.”

He reeled again. Something was wrong. She was angry at him.

“Miss Fairfax,” he managed, as soon as he recovered, “Have I done something to offend you?”

“Why would you think that?”

He snorted. “I’m sure you can guess what might have given me that impression. Please, I don’t want to upset you. If I have said or done something, I know it was unintentional. Tell me what the matter is, and I’ll remedy it as soon as I can.”

She glanced up at him, just briefly, then away again, shaking her head.

“Nothing is wrong.”

She was lying, of course. Henry didn’t consider himself a great connoisseur of human nature, but he prided himself on being able to identify a lie easily enough.

“I see,” he said at last, when it was clear that she wasn’t going to add anything else. “Well, if I have done something to offend you, I apologise. Truly, I…”

He broke off as a dumpy, middle-aged pair descended on them, a couple who were clearly brother and sister, dressed in similar black satin and pearls. A widow and a widower, Henry guessed.

“Lord Henry Willenshire!” the woman gushed. “What a pleasure. I was just saying to my brother how fine it was that Mr Fairfax has finally selected an heir.”

Henry pursed his lips, shooting a nervous, sideways glance at Eleanor. She wasn’t looking at him, and the pair showed no intention of talking to her .

“I am not Mr Fairfax’s heir,” Henry said, as politely as he could manage. “I am his business partner. Should anything happen to Mr Fairfax, his shares in the business will go to his daughter, Miss Fairfax. At least, so I assume. Isn’t that so, Miss Fairfax?”

That got Eleanor’s attention. She eyed him seriously, and her expression was unreadable. The middle-aged pair were forced to pay her attention at last.

“You look very pretty today, Miss Fairfax,” the woman added, glancing at her brother for support. “I hear that you are joining the Season. It must be a relief to have Lord Henry here, to alleviate you of your responsibilities.”

A cold feeling trickled down Henry’s spine, and he began to realize why Eleanor was so cold to him.

“I’m not here to replace Miss Fairfax,” he said at once, before she could respond. “Let me make that abundantly clear. Miss Fairfax will have just as great a share in the business as she did before.”

The pair exchanged knowing glances.

“One cannot tell what the future holds,” the man said sweetly.

“No, indeed,” Eleanor said, seeming to wake up. “I can agree with that wholeheartedly. I, for instance, had no idea that Lord Henry Willenshire was joining us as a partner, until my father announced it over the dinner table. We had entertained his proposal, but I had no idea it had been accepted.”

The couple were starting to look more and more uncomfortable. Henry stared at the toes of his boots, wishing the floorboards would open and swallow him up.

“What a fine surprise it must have been,” the woman managed at long last.

“Indeed,” Eleanor said, voice cool and level. “Do excuse me, everybody.”

Without waiting for a response, she sailed away into the crowd, never once looking back. If she felt Henry’s eyes boring into the back of her shoulders, she showed no signs of it.