“Do you know where she went?”
“Home to her family, she said. Her aunt is ill.” A frown lined the fine-drawn face that retained traces of youthful beauty. “It’s odd. I thought she was an orphan.”
“One can be an orphan and have aunts,” Leath said, trying not to squirm. His mother had always guessed when his younger self was up to no good. Not that he’d been much trouble. Family expectations had weighed too heavily. “You must miss her.”
His mother didn’t smile. “Of course I do.” She paused. “But nonetheless I’m glad she’s gone.”
Shocked, he tugged free. For the first time since Eleanor’s disappearance, her whereabouts weren’t paramount in his mind. “What the devil?”
His mother tapped his cheek in fond reprimand. “James, my life may be restricted, but I’m not blind.”
He stiffened, even as dismay knotted his gut. It seemed he was no better at keeping secrets from his mother than he’d been as a lad. Still, he tried to cover his tracks. “I liked Miss Trim.”
His mother finally smiled. “Not at first.”
“I was worried at how quickly she gained your confidence.”
“James, I’ll say it
again—I’m not blind. Nell made an unlikely housemaid, but her heart was true. I believe because her heart was true, she left.”
Leath had a sinking feeling that was the case. She’d seen those incriminating letters and decided she’d tossed her chastity away on a rake. But he wouldn’t give her up without a fight. Once he bloody well found her. “You think the aunt is a lie.”
“I think that Nell recognized what was happening between you and made the only choice she could.”
James hid a wince. “I—”
His mother raised a hand. “Don’t bother prevaricating. The air all but sizzled.”
“She didn’t encourage me,” he said uncomfortably.
“No, but that didn’t mean she was unaffected.” Regret tinged his mother’s voice. “I’m not so old that I can’t remember temptation. I blame myself for flinging you together. By the time I’d realized what trouble I’d caused trying to get you to acknowledge Nell’s qualities, it was too late.”
“I’m a man of principle.” What a liar he was.
“Yes, I thank God that you are. If you were like your uncle, I’d despair for the title. But sometimes attraction is too strong, even for a man of principle. You’ve never chased the servants before, James.”
“I didn’t chase her,” he said uncomfortably, feeling like he’d been caught stealing bonbons from the larder.
“No.” Her voice hardened. “Because you understand that the only role Nell can occupy in your life is as your mistress.”
“Mamma, a man doesn’t discuss such—”
She made a dismissive noise. “Don’t treat me like a fool. Eleanor Trim is no man’s temporary bedmate.”
“You’re right.” All last night, he’d lain awake, holding the precious woman who had given herself with such wholehearted joy, suffering similar qualms.
“And you can’t marry her.”
With a low growl, he surged to his feet and strode across to the window. He rattled the curtains aside to reveal the storm. What was the point of lying? His mother had apparently known for weeks that he had a yen for Eleanor. “She’s the most exceptional woman I know. She should have the world at her feet.”
“I agree.”
Surprised, he turned away from the depressing weather. “I don’t understand.”
His mother’s body might have failed her, but her spirit remained strong. The stare she leveled on Leath cut to the soul. “She’s not for you, James.”
He gritted his teeth and spoke the words that had beat in his head like a drum since last night. “She’s intelligent, beautiful, perceptive, generous, conscientious. In everything but her humble birth, she makes the perfect marchioness.”