Page 25 of Joy to the Earl

The butler’s brown eyes bulged, but he obediently perched on the edge of a high-backed chair. “He looked exactly like you. Same blond hair, same unique eyes, although not quite your height and build, of course. But he was an only son, so there was no appalling banishment…oh, my lord, I do beg your pardon. But I’ve hidden my anger for nearly three decades, and it seems I cannot a moment longer. If you wish to dismiss me—”

“No, I don’t wish to, Griggs. Go on. And don’t spare any detail.”

“Very well. He was an exceedingly smart man. Invented all sorts of gadgets, loved getting his hands dirty. And he read. My word, did he read, everything he could get his hands on. Left Cambridge with a double first in mathematics and languages. Then he met your grandmother. Charming, lovely woman. But she wasn’t of noble birth, and his family explicitly forbade the match. Your grandfather was of age, so he ignored them, sped north to Gretna Green with her, and stayed there in a cottage until a child was well lodged in her belly. Such a scandal!”

Jack tilted his head. “The scandal passed, though.”

“They always do, my lord, given time.”

“You said my grandfather liked to read? That is something I also enjoy. I never knew how we acquired the books when we were so poor, but…” Jack’s voice trailed off as the truth hit him. “It was you, wasn’t it? You sent them to Northridge.”

Griggs nodded reluctantly. “Your grandfather left me some books as a bequest, which I sent to Mrs. Reynolds. However, I must confess to crimes. As the years went by, I took other books from this library. I’m sure his lordship watched out for me from above, as I never got caught, not even close.”

Emotion clogged Jack’s throat, and he looked away. Someone had cared. This man, not even related to him by blood, had for years smuggled him the books that kept him going. Well, not the journal, obviously, but all the others. “Griggs…you have a position here for as long as you want it, and will receive a substantial rise in salary effective immediately. I will see to it personally.”

“That is not necessary, my lord—”

“Yes,” he said implacably. “It is.”

A sharp knock sounded before he could say anything further, and Lady Lynthorpe strolled into the room. He couldn’t think of her as his mother, not even in his mind. Beth Reynolds might not have shown affection like Rosalind did with Felicity, but she had kept him fed and clothed and warm, taught him numbers and letters, and obviously co-conspired with Griggs about the books, so had cared for him in her own way. This woman openly hated him.

Jack inclined his head. “Countess.”

She raised an eyebrow at Griggs and the man scooted from the room. Then she turned and regarded him with a cool gaze. “Lynthorpe. Settling in, I see.”

“It is,” he said quietly, “my library now.”

“By the cruel whims of fate alone. Your father and brothers didn’t spend a great deal of time in here. They were men of action. Men respected in the highest echelons of power.”

His heart sank at the veiled reference to the family seat in the House of Lords. Another responsibility looming as soon as his inheritance was confirmed. “I wouldn’t know.”

The countess scowled. “Do not think to take that chiding tone with me. No woman could be expected to raise a gargoyle in her own home.”

“I have different colored eyes and a limp,” he said, anger gouging his insides. “Hardly a gargoyle, madam. Actually, one thing I have been wondering, what did you tell others when I disappeared as a toddler?”

“Your father and I discussed the matter at some length. I favored announcing you had died, but the legalities were quite overwhelming. So we decided on a tale that you were abducted by a deranged woman who couldn’t have any children of her own. Naturally we hired an investigator to search for you—he provided false tidbits of gossip on leads until the ton grew uninterested in the story. You were only a third son, after all.”

Jack shook his head with incredulity, resisting the urge to vomit. The woman was truly made of ice. “So, what now?”

“I will publicly proclaim the miracle of your return and accompany you to private events so you are accepted as the true heir. You will wed Lady Marianne and secure the line. She was to marry your eldest brother, but her parents and I decided uniting our two great families should still happen despite his tragic death. Once an appropriate mourning period is over, you will do your duty to the title, and she will do hers.”

“And what does Lady Marianne have to say about it?”

Lady Lynthorpe blinked. “I don’t see how the girl’s opinion is relevant. But I suppose you could ask her if you wanted. She is downstairs, awaiting you in the gold parlor.”

Unable to spend one more moment in this woman’s company, he inclined his head and made his way to the parlor. Lady Marianne sat alone on a chaise, a pretty, slender brunette wearing a pale pink gown and looking utterly despondent.

“Lady Marianne,” he said, bowing awkwardly. Yet another thing he had to master.

“Lord Lynthorpe!” she squeaked, leaping to her feet and bobbing a curtsy, a false smile on her lips. “How lovely to see you.”

Jack snorted. “Come now. You have no wish to see me anymore than I wish to see you.”

Her pale blue eyes widened. Then unexpectedly, she laughed. A genuine laugh that lit up her face and sent her from pretty to beautiful. “You are frank, my lord. I like it.”

“No, not Frank. Jack. You can call me that if you wish, I’ve had enough my lording for one day.”

“Very well. Then you may call me Annie. That is what my brothers and sisters call me. Oh, Jack, I think I could like you very much, but I don’t wish to marry you at all…blast, I shouldn’t have said that. Do not worry, I will do my duty,” she finished, covering her mouth with her hands.