Blame It on Bath Page 0,16
a full and accurate picture of her situation. I haven’t time to query you for hours in search of what I need to know, and I must make my decision soon.”
“Very good, Captain,” replied Tyrell, unruffled. “But Lady Howe is a very wealthy woman, with little experience of managing her own affairs. You must understand, in my position as her solicitor and as executor of her father’s estate, I wish to protect her interests as much as possible—including, of course, from fortune hunters.”
“Didn’t she mention it?” Gerard asked in a silky voice. His patience was all but gone. “She proposed marriage to me. If anyone is in danger of being deceived, I suspect it is I.”
Finally a moment of surprise flickered over Tyrell’s face. “Ah.”
“Indeed. As she herself explicitly acknowledged, her fortune is a factor in my decision, but far from the only one. And as far as the fortune itself . . .” He lifted one shoulder. “I have every expectation of a substantial inheritance of my own.”
“So I understand,” said the solicitor, proving himself acquainted with London gossip.
Gerard pushed his family’s problem from his mind to focus on the question at hand. “So the money is hers, but there is a problem—over a loan, I believe.”
“Yes.” Tyrell’s eyes narrowed on Gerard. He was quiet for a moment, glancing down at something on his desk. Lady Howe’s letter, most likely. When he looked up, the easy but opaque expression was gone from his face. He looked at Gerard with frank appraisal in his gaze. “Very well,” he murmured, then said in a normal voice, “Before the late Lord Howe’s death, he borrowed a large sum from his father-in-law. Mr. Hollenbrook was reluctant to lend the money; he did not have a high regard for the viscount’s economy, but for his daughter’s sake, he made the loan. My client wasn’t a foolish man, however, and he demanded security. Lord Howe was quite desperate, for he agreed to stake a prime, unentailed, piece of his land as security. The note was written so that if Mr. Hollenbrook died before it was repaid, the balance would be forgiven as part of Lady Howe’s inheritance. No doubt this is what Lord Howe anticipated, as Mr. Hollenbrook was in declining health by then. If Lord Howe predeceased Mr. Hollenbrook, however, the note endured, and the security could be seized at any time if payment was not made. This is indeed what happened, and thus Lady Howe became the holder of the note against her late husband’s estate.”
“A curious agreement between a man and his son-in-law.”
Mr. Tyrell’s smile was flat. “Mr. Hollenbrook had come to regret his daughter’s marriage. Mrs. Hollenbrook, I believe, was the force behind it. She comes from a higher society than her husband and was quite keen for her daughter to marry well. Howe held an old and respectable title, with a very pretty estate in Sussex. He was also in dire need of money. Miss Hollenbrook brought him twenty thousand pounds as dowry, and within five years every shilling of it was gone. Hollenbrook confided to me that he no longer trusted Lord Howe, which was why he insisted on such terms in the note.”
Gerard nodded. That also agreed with what Katherine Howe told him. Her proposal was sounding more and more ideal for his needs. “How much is the note for?”
“Ten thousand pounds. In addition, half of Lady Howe’s dowry must be returned, since she was left a widow with no children. Mr. Hollenbrook crafted a very exact marriage settlement. I highly doubt the new Lord Howe has the funds to pay it, even in increments. There is a mortgage upon his estate, and if he loses the land held in security, he’ll probably not be able to pay his mortgage.”
And there was the reason Lucien Howe wanted to marry her. Not only to gain the balance of Lady Howe’s money but to keep his estate solvent and intact. From what she said, the man hadn’t been very clever or tender in making his offer. Of course, she’d been neither of those things when she made her shocking proposal to him, either, but Gerard was coming to understand that better.
“What sort of man is Lucien Howe?” he asked.
“Young,” said Tyrell. “Arrogant. Greatly annoyed to discover just how indebted he is to Lady Howe. He called upon me soon after his uncle’s death, claiming to be Lady Howe’s guardian and demanding I relinquish control of her funds to him.”
“I doubt