Quest of the Highlander (Crowns & Kilts #5) - Cynthia Wright Page 0,78

going away on journeys, and that year I escaped to the distant Isle of Mull to purchase sheep from Laird MacLean.” He paused to sigh deeply. “I arrived at the forbidding Duart Castle to find another guest: your extraordinary mother, Eleanor, with her bold little son, Ciaran. I think we fell in love the moment we met.”

Nora sensed the acceleration of Lennox’s heartbeat as he listened to his true father supply the missing pieces that connected their two lives.

“I wished with all my heart that I could change my circumstances…and those of your mother,” the duke continued. “But we were both wed to others. We had children born of those marriages, and I carried the weight of my obligations as a duke.” He paused, looking off as if he could see something the others could not. “So, you see, Eleanor and I stole those summer days, and nights, knowing we would have to make them last a lifetime. It was as if we had found another world, outside of time.”

Lennox lifted a hand to rub his eyes, perhaps hoping that would help him to see more clearly. “Ye could be speaking of someone I never knew. When I was growing up on the Isle of Skye, my mother seemed content enough with her lot.”

The duke shrugged, looking pained. “I surmise your parents worked through their differences, as I endeavored to do with my own wife. But I never forgot Eleanor. I sent her letters.”

“Aye,” Lennox said. “Da told me that’s how he uncovered the truth when I was four. He found a letter from her lover, signed with an R.”

The duke colored slightly. “My Christian name is Richard. Except for my close family, your mother was the only person who ever called me Richard.”

“So, if ye signed an R, no one would suspect the writer could be the Duke of Hastings,” said Lennox. Nora could guess how hard this must be for Lennox, yet she saw compassion in his gaze.

“There is so much more for us to talk about,” said the duke, leaning forward. “My son, I hope you will agree to come with me to Greythorne Manor, my country estate in Surrey. I only ask for your time, long enough for us to become better acquainted…and discuss the future.” He cleared his throat. “Perhaps you have heard that I lost my only child, Charles, just a few months ago. I’ve been lost in a sea of grief. As you may imagine, your unexpected appearance in my life feels akin to a gift from God.”

Lennox nodded slowly. “Aye. I would like to go with ye to Surrey. But—” He looked toward Nora.

“Of course, Mistress Brodie is welcome to come with us,” the duke hastened to say, every inch a gentleman as he sent Nora a polite smile. She could feel the man’s questions in the air between them.

A shadow passed over her heart. “You are very kind, sir, and I deeply appreciate your invitation. However, I have business to attend to here in London. And in truth, I would not want to intrude on your time with your son.”

From Weston House came the sound of Percy barking, followed by the happy voices of Susan, Tessa, and Alison. Nora looked over to see them emerging from the manor, hurrying out across the lawn. Seconds later, Micheline came into view behind the girls, utterly lovely in a jonquil-yellow gown.

Everyone began to rise, and Sandhurst went to join his family. Watching them move about on the clipped lawn with the River Thames as a backdrop, Nora reflected on the rarefied, often idyllic world of the English aristocracy. Was it possible that Lennox might find a place among these people, enjoying such pleasures on a regular basis? She imagined him traveling to Europe, studying painting with some of the gifted artists the Duke of Hastings would know. It was not a world Lennox would have chosen for himself, but perhaps he might find himself fitting in better than he could now imagine. And clearly, the duke had a great void in his life that only a son could fill.

The two men were standing close together, still conversing, clearly sculpted from the same block of marble despite the differences in their garb.

“How pensive you look,” a feminine voice said near her shoulder.

Nora turned to find Cicely standing there, enchanting in a leaf-green gown and a fashionable French hood set with topaz. “I didn’t see you.”

“No doubt because your entire future is passing in front of