The Virtuoso (3 page)

Val rode on in silence until the manor house itself stood before him.

“Oh dear,” Darius said softly, “and that is an understatement.”

The house lay north-south in orientation, so the full impact of the westering sun hit the entire façade. The southern wing and the center section were unkempt and dilapidated. Shutters hung crookedly, windows were missing panes, porch bricks had come off and tumbled to the grass.

The northern wing, however, was a complete shambles. The slate roof was visibly sagging near the soffit in the front corner, three of the chimneys were on their way to becoming piles of mortar, the north-facing porch was listing hard to port, and as Val watched, bats flew out of the missing attic windows.

“Well, come on.” Val swung off his chestnut. “The light won't last forever, and I've a mind to look around.”

For Val, there was an incongruous sense of pleasure just looking at the place. Last year when he'd been ostensibly looking for property to purchase, he'd needed a key to gain access. This year, any number of broken ground-floor windows afforded the same privilege. Many a boy had obviously tested his aim against mullioned panes without thought to the cost of replacing them. Still, as Val gazed upon the wreck fate had dumped in his lap, he had the thought:
She's waited for me
.

In the mellow evening sunbeams, the house held on to a kind of dignity, despite disrepair, neglect, and abandonment. The native stone blended beautifully with the surrounding wood, while patches of wildflowers splashed color in unlikely spots around the yard. Opportunistic saplings were encroaching, but a liberal use of imagination put the former serenity and appeal of the place within sight.

“The stables aren't bad at all,” Darius said as he caught up with Val at the back of the house.

“A silver lining for which the horses will no doubt be grateful.” Val's gaze traveled toward the largest outbuilding. “And the springhouse looks large and sound, and the carriage house nearly so.”

“Where is your home farm?”

“That direction, being worked by a tenant most likely.”

“You're fortunate to have stone walls.” Darius frowned as he turned slowly where he stood. “They'll take some effort to repair, but the materials are at hand, and most of your tenants should have the skill.”

“It so happens, while in Yorkshire enjoying my brother's hospitality, I acquired the skill. It's more a matter of wearing gloves, cursing fluently, and not being able to walk or rise from one's seat the next day.”

“And who wouldn't enjoy such an undertaking as that?” Darius smiled as he spoke. “Are we going inside?”

“Not tonight.” Bright morning light would serve better for an inspection, and Val had seen enough for now. The place still stood, and that was what mattered.

Though why it mattered escaped him for the present.

“Let's peek inside the carriage house, though, shall we?” Val suggested. “There might be usable quarters above, and the first thing we're going to need is a stout wagon to haul supplies and debris.”

“You're staying?”

“Think of the privacy.” Val's smile widened at the incredulity on Darius's face. “The insipid teas and dances we'll miss, the scheming young ladies we won't have to dodge under the arbors, and the unbearable stink of London in summer we won't have to endure.”

The
pianos
he
wouldn't have to abstain from playing. Hot cross buns… Hot cross buns…

“Think of your back hurting so badly you can hardly walk,” Darius rejoined as he crossed the yard beside Val. “The endless small talk at the local watering hole, the pleasures of the village churchyard on a Sunday morning, where no man escapes interrogation.”

“You're not”—Val paused in mock drama—“
afraid
, are you, Lindsey?”

While giving Darius a moment to form the appropriate witty rejoinder, Val pushed open the door to the carriage house. No doubt because vehicles were expensive and the good repair of harness a matter of safety, the place had been built snugly and positioned on a little rise at the back of the house. The interior was dusty but dry and surprisingly tidy.

“This is encouraging.”

Darius followed him in. “Why do I have the compulsion to caution you strenuously against going up those stairs, Windham? Perhaps you'll be swarmed by bats or set upon by little ghoulies with crossbows.”

“Oh, for God's sake, what could be hiding in an empty old carriage house?”

***

Ellen had meant to take herself off for a little stroll in the dense woods separating her cottage from the crumbling manor, but the chamomile tea she'd drunk must have lulled her to sleep. When she awoke, Marmalade was curled in her lap, the kneading of his claws in her thigh rousing her even through her skirts and petticoats.

“Down with you, sir.” She gently put the cat on the porch planks and saw from the angle of the sun she'd dozed off only for a few minutes. Something caught her ear as she rose from her rocker, a trick of the time of evening when dew fell and sounds carried.

“Damn them,” Ellen muttered, leaving the porch with a swish of skirts. Bad enough the village boys liked to spy on her and whisper that she was a witch. Worse was when they ran tame over the old Markham manor house, using it as a place to smoke illicit pipes, tipple their mama's brandied pears, and practice their rock throwing.

“Little heathen.” Ellen went to her tool shed and drew a hand scythe down from the wall pegs. She'd never had serious trouble with the boys before, but one in particular—Mary Bragdoll's youngest—was growing into the height and muscle for which his brothers and father were well known. By reputation, he could be a sneering, disrespectful lout, and Ellen was more afraid of him than she'd like to admit.

She tromped through the woods, hopping over logs to take the shortest path, until she came out of the trees at the back of the old house. That view was easier to look on than the front—the roof wasn't quite so obviously ruined.

When Francis had been alive, this property had still been tidy, graceful, elegant, and serene, if growing worn. The years were taking a brutal toll, leaving Ellen with the feeling the house's exterior represented her own interior.

Time was slowly wearing away at her determination, until her reasons for going through each day without screaming and tearing her hair were increasingly obscured.

“You have started your menses,” she reminded herself, “and this is no time for silly dramatics.”

The voices came again from the carriage house, and Ellen's eyes narrowed. Heretofore, the encroaching vandals had left the carriage house in peace, and their violation of it made her temper seethe. She marched up to the door, banged it open with a satisfying crash, brandished her scythe, and announced herself to any and all therein.

“Get your heathen, trespassing backsides out of this carriage house immediately, lest I inform your papas of your criminal conduct—
and
your
mamas.
”

“Good lord,” a cultured and ominously
adult
male voice said softly from Ellen's right, “we're about to be taken prisoner. Prepare to defend your borders, my friend. Sleeping Beauty has awakened in a state.”

Ellen's gaze flew to the shadows, where a tall, dark-haired man was regarding her with patient humor. The calm amusement in his eyes suggested he posed no threat to her, while his dress confirmed he was a person of some means. Ellen had no time to further inventory that stranger, because the sound of a pair of boots slowly descending the steps drew her gaze across the room.

Whoever was coming down those stairs was in no hurry and was certainly no boy. Long, long legs became visible, then muscles that looked as if they'd been made lean and elegant from hours in the saddle showed off custom riding boots and excellent tailoring. A trim, flat torso came next, then a wide muscular chest and impressive shoulders.

Good lord, he was taller than the fellow in the corner, and that one was a good half a foot taller than she. Ellen swallowed nervously and tightened her grip on the scythe.

“Careful,” the man in the shadows said softly, “she's armed and ready to engage the enemy.”

Those dusty boots descended the last two steps, and Ellen forced herself to meet the second man's face. She'd been prepared for the kind of teasing censorship coming from the one in the corner, a polite hauteur, or outright anger, but not a slow, gentle smile that melted her from the inside out.

“Mrs. FitzEngle.” Valentine Windham bowed very correctly from the waist. “It has been too long, and you must forgive us for startling you. Lindsey, I've had the pleasure, so dredge up your manners.”

“Mr. Windham?” Ellen lowered her scythe, feeling foolish and ambushed, and worst of all—happy.

So inappropriately happy.

Valentine Windham continued to smile at her, an expression of concentrated regard that formed a substantial part of Ellen's pleasurable memories of him.

“Mrs. Ellen FitzEngle.” Mr. Windham's gaze—and his smile—remained directed at her. “May I make known to you the Honorable Mr. Darius Lindsey, late of Kent, come to assist me in the assessment of damages on my newly acquired property.”

Lindsey fell in with the introductions with the smooth manners sported by any well-bred fellow.

“You've bought this place?” Ellen kept both the hope and the dread from her voice, but just barely.

“I have acquired it, and apparently just in the nick of time. Do you often have to shoo away thieves and vandals?”

Ellen glanced at the scythe in her hand. “It's worse in the summer. Boys wander around in packs and have not enough to keep them busy. There's a very pleasant pond in the first meadow beyond the wood, and it draws them on hot days.”

“No doubt they are responsible for my broken windows. Perhaps they'll be willing to help with the repairs.”

“You're going to restore the house?” Ellen asked, though it was none of her business.

“Very likely. It will take a good deal of time.”

“Where are my manners? May I offer you a pot of tea, gentlemen, or a mug of cider, perhaps?”

“Cider.” His just-for-you smile broadened. “An ambrosial thought.”

“I take it you live near here, Mrs. FitzEngle?” Mr. Lindsey interjected as they left the carriage house.

Ellen gestured vaguely. “Through the wood.”

“Well, darkness approaches,” Mr. Windham said. “Darius, if you'll bring the horses along down the track, I'll escort Mrs. FitzEngle through the wood.”

“That won't be necessary,” Ellen replied. “I know the woods blindfolded.”

“You wound me.” His smile—and worse, his green eyes—put a hint of sincerity in the words, leaving Ellen to feel a little flip of excitement in her vitals. Oh, God help her, her tame, tired memories of his single previous visit did not do him justice. Either that, or Mr. Windham had become even more intensely attractive in the year of his absence. Dark hair slightly longer than was fashionable went with those green eyes, and if anything, in the year since she'd seen him, he'd grown leaner, taller, and better looking than was decent.

“Despite the fact that periodic wounding keeps him humble,” Mr. Lindsey spoke up, “I must ask you to humor my friend's suggestion, Mrs. FitzEngle. He will only want to inspect his wood come morning, in any case, so you are the ideal guide.” He spun on his heel and strode off toward the front of the house.

“You are looking well,” Ellen said, dusting off her long unused skills with small talk.

“I'm tired. Road weary, dusty, and probably scented accordingly. You, however, look to be blooming.”

“You mustn't flatter me, Mr. Windham,” Ellen replied, not meeting his gaze. He offered his arm, as he had once long ago, and she took it gingerly. “I did steal a nap after my supper.”

“Did a handsome prince come kiss you awake?” he asked, matching his steps to hers. “Darius is convinced we've fallen into the land of the fairy, what with the rhododendrons, the bats in the attic, and the air of neglect.”

“You're less than three miles from that thriving enclave of modern civilization, Little Weldon. I will disabuse your friend of his wayward notions.”

“Oh, please don't. He's having great fun at my expense, and the summer is likely to try his patience if he bides with me for any length of time.”

“You can't think to live at the manor.” Ellen frowned as she spoke. She didn't want him so nearby, or rather, she did, and it was a stupid, foolish idea.

“We'll put up in the carriage house. It's clean and serviceable. There's a small stove upstairs for tea and warmth, and the quarters are well ventilated.”

“And the roof is still functioning,” Ellen added. They were passing through the woods on one of the more worn bridle paths. Nobody maintained the paths, but game used them, and Ellen did.

And nasty little boys did, as well.

She walked more quickly, all too aware that in these woods the man beside her had kissed her, only once, but endlessly, until she was a standing puddle of desire and anticipation. With nothing more than his mouth on hers, he'd stripped her of dignity, self-restraint, and common sense, probably without a backward thought when he'd gone on his way.

“Are we in a hurry?” her escort inquired.

“I would not want to leave Mr.…” Ellen searched frantically for his name. Good lord, she'd just been introduced to the man.

“The Honorable Darius Lindsey,” Mr. Windham supplied as they walked along. “His papa is the Earl of Wilton, with the primary estate over in Hampshire.”

“I see.”

Mr. Windham must have heard the cooling in her tone at the mention of a title, because as he and Mr. Lindsey sipped cold cider on Ellen's back porch, he quizzed her on the tenants, the neighbors, the availability of various services in the area, and the likelihood of finding competent laborers in the immediate future, keeping well away from any remotely social topic.

“You'll have to wait until the hay is in,” Ellen said as the shadows lengthened across her yard. “There's help to be had for coin. Tomorrow is market day, so you can start getting the word out among the locals, and they'll spread it quickly enough. How are you fixed for provisions?”

“For provisions?” Mr. Lindsey echoed. “We rode out from Town with saddlebags bulging, but that's about it.”

“I can keep you in butter, milk, cheese, and eggs. Mable presented me with a little heifer calf not a month past. I was giving the extra to Bathsheba, since she's nursing eight piglets, but she can make shift without cream and eggs every day. I've also been working on a smoke-cured ham but not making much progress.”

“You were feeding your sow cream and eggs?”

“Eight piglets, Mr. Lindsey, would take a lot out of any lady. It was either that or much of it would go to waste.”

“We'll be happy to enjoy your surplus,” Mr. Windham cut in, “but you have to let us compensate you somehow.”

“I will not take coin for being neighborly.”

“I didn't mean to offend, merely to suggest when the opportunity presents itself, I would like to be neighborly, as well. I'm sure there's some effort a pair of strong-backed fellows might turn themselves to that would be useful to you, Mrs. FitzEngle.”

His voice was a melody of good breeding and better intentions, an aural embodiment of kindness and politesse. Just to hear him speaking left Ellen a little dazed, a little… wanting.

“We'll see,” she said briskly. “For now, enjoy your cider. Moonrise will be early this evening, and if you're staying in town for now, you'll want to get back to The Tired Rooster before the darts start flying.”

“Tame gentlemen such as ourselves will need to be up early tomorrow,” Mr. Windham said, rising. “We'll be on our way, but thank you for the cider and the hospitality.”

“Until tomorrow, then.” Ellen rose, as well, pretending to ignore the hand Mr. Windham extended toward her.

“Tomorrow?” Mr. Lindsey frowned. “Here I was hoping to malinger at the Rooster for a couple weeks waiting for building materials to come in from London, or darkest Peru.”

“Lazy sot.” Mr. Windham smiled at his friend. “I think the lady meant she'd be in town for market day, and we might be fortunate enough to see her then.”

“Until tomorrow.” Mr. Lindsey bowed over her hand and went to collect the horses, leaving Ellen standing in the gathering darkness with Valentine Windham.

“I am glad to have renewed our acquaintance,” Mr. Windham said, his gaze traveling around the colorful borders of her yard. “Your flowers make an impression.”

“I am glad to see you again, as well.” Ellen used the most cordially unremarkable tones she could muster. “One is always pleased to know one's gardening efforts are memorable.”

“Until tomorrow.” Mr. Windham took her hand and bowed over it, but he also kissed her knuckles—a soft, fleeting contact of his mouth on the back of her hand, accompanied by a slight squeeze of his fingers around hers. And then he was swinging up on a big chestnut, saluting with his crop, and cantering off into the darkness, Mr. Lindsey at his side.

Ellen sat, her left hand closed over the knuckles of her right, and tried to think whether it was a good thing her flowers had left an impression on Mr. Windham.

It was a bad thing, she decided, for Mr. Windham was a scamp, and a scamp as a neighbor was trouble enough, particularly when she liked him, and his every touch and glance had her insides in a compete muddle. And while he might recall her flowers, she recalled quite clearly their one, very thorough and far beyond neighborly kiss.

***

“You are going to trifle with the widow,” Darius predicted as the horses ambled through the moonlight toward Little Weldon. The night was pleasant, the worst heat of the day fading to a soft, summery warmth made fragrant by mown hay and wild flowers.

“She is a widow,” Val said, “but I don't think she's that kind of widow.”

“What kind of widow would that be?”

Val ignored the question, more intent on a sweet recollection. “I was out here last spring on an errand for David Worthington, supposedly looking at rural properties that might be for sale. I accompanied Vicar Banks on a courtesy call to what I thought was an elderly widow who'd missed the previous week's services. I saw a floppy straw hat, an untidy cinnamon-colored braid, and bare feet before I saw anything else of her. I concluded she was an old dear becoming vague, as they say.”

“Vague does not apply to Mrs. FitzEngle. Just the opposite.”

“Not vague,” Val agreed, He'd kissed the woman before taking his leave of her on that long-ago afternoon, an impulse—a sweet, stolen moment with a woman whose every feature left a man with a sense of warmth. She had warm brown eyes, a warm sprinkling of freckles across the bridge of her nose, and hair a warm shade exactly midway between auburn and blond—cinnamon came to mind rather than chestnut. “She isn't dreamy or given to flights but there is something…”

“Yes?”

“Unconventional,” Val said, though that term wasn't quite right either. Her hands on his body would be warm too, though how he knew this, he could not say. “Ellen could be considered eccentric, but I prefer to think of her as… unique.”

Darius said nothing, finding it sufficiently
unique
that Valentine Windham, son of a duke, wealthy merchant, virtuoso pianist, and favorite of the ladies, would think of Mrs. FitzEngle as
Ellen
.

***

Val peered over the soffit as several slate tiles slid down from the roof on the newly constructed slide and bumped safely against the cloth padding the bottom of the chute.

“It works,” he said, grinning over at Darius, the only other occupant of the house's roof.

“Of course it works.” Darius sat back on his heels, using his forearm to wipe the sweat from his brow. “I designed it. I don't recall you ordering another entire wagonload of goods from town.”

Val followed Darius's gaze down to the yard, where a farm wagon pulled by two exceptionally sturdy horses came to a halt before the house. A handsome black saddle horse was tethered behind, not one Val recognized. Val and Darius both availed themselves of the slide to get from roof to yard, causing the lead horses' ears to flick and the occupants of the wagon to start whooping with glee.

“Settle down, you two,” barked the driver. “Lord Valentine will think he's set upon by savages.” The man hopped down, along with the two lanky adolescents who'd been so enthusiastically cheering the sight of grown men sliding to the ground.

“Axel Belmont at your service.” The driver grinned, swiped back his blond hair with one hand, and stuck out the other. “Though you might not think so when I warn you my sons Dayton and Phillip have invaded your undefended borders with me.”

Val extended a hand, recognizing the tall blond fellow from his friend Nick's wedding to Darius's sister Leah just a few weeks past.

“Good to see you, Professor,” Val said, “and may I make known to you the Honorable Darius Lindsey, late of the roof, but whom you might have met at Leah and Nick's wedding. How fares your dear wife?”

Belmont's smile softened. “She's much better, particularly now that I've taken the heathen off the property. Nick wrote that you were working on a project not an hour's drive from Candlewick, and I have come to inspect progress.”

“We're still very much in the planning stages,” Val said, though this further evidence of Nick Haddonfield's friendly meddling was mentally noted. “We're also glad for some company. Darius fears we're going to be kidnapped by elves.”

“Boys!” Belmont's offspring stopped in midpelt toward the house. “Get this wagon unloaded, and mind you put the contents in the carriage bay where they'll stay dry. The first son of mine on that roof without Lord Valentine's permission gets his backside walloped and has to learn how to tat lace.”

Loud groans, followed by reluctant grins, saw the boys reversing direction and heading for the wagon at a decorous pace.

“Spare them no sympathy,” Belmont warned. “Not by word, deed, or expression. Abby is teaching them how to charm, and between that and their natural guile, they are shamelessly manipulative.”

“They're also at an age where they can eat entire horses, tack, and all,” Val mused. “But run all day, as well.”

“In the opposite direction of their parents, unless it's meal time,” Belmont said, eyeing the house again.

“Come along, Professor. I'll give you the tour. Dare, you want to come?”

Darius shuddered dramatically. “I've had the privilege. I can work on calculations while you lie to your guest about the potential of the place. Mr. Belmont, a pleasure to see you again.”