Henry.'
'She came to see me in my study,' Henry said. 'You were still sleeping. Now come along, sweet.
You'll understand after you've…'
'Henry, she has red hair!'
'Yes, dear,' Henry agreed as he prodded her up the stairs.
Gweneth started to laugh. 'And green eyes, Henry,' she shouted in order for her husband to hear her.
'I noticed her green eyes right off, Henry.'
'How very astute of you, Gweneth.'
Jade stared after Caine's parents until they'd reached the hallway above the stairs. 'The fat's in the fire now, isn't it, Sterns?'
'I do believe that is a most accurate evaluation, mi'lady,' Sterns agreed. 'But have you noticed the blessed lack of noise?'
'I have,' she replied. 'They've killed each other.'
Sterns shook his head. 'My employer would not kill your brother,' he said. 'I believe I shall fetch the decanter of brandy for the two gentlemen. I imagine they're quite parched by now.'
'Not parched,' Jade wailed. 'Dead, Sterns. They're both dead.'
'Now, mi'lady, one must always look on the bright side.'
'That is the bright side,' she muttered. 'Oh, go and fetch the brandy then. I'll guard the doors.'
'I trust you to keep your word,' he announced.
She didn't want to go inside now. She was furious with Caine and her brother, and so humiliated because the Duke and Duchess of Williamshire had strolled right into the middle of the brawl, she wanted to weep.
And just what did she care what Caine's parents thought about her? She was leaving, and that was that. She would have gone upstairs to pack her satchel then and there but she didn't want to take the chance
of running into the Duchess again.
When Sterns returned with the crystal decanter and two glasses, Jade opened the door for him. Both she and the butler stopped when they saw the destruction. The lovely room was in shambles. Jade didn't
think there was a single piece of furniture left intact.
Sterns found the two men before Jade did. His initial surprise wore off much faster, too. The butler straightened his shoulders and proceeded over to the far wall, where Caine and Nathan were seated
on the floor, side by side, their backs propped up by the wall.
Jade stumbled after the butler. Her hands flew to cover her mouth when she looked at the two warriors. Neither looked victorious. Caine had a jagged cut on his forehead, just above his right eyebrow. Blood trickled down the side of his face, but he seemed to be oblivious to his injury. God's truth, he was grinning like a banshee.
Nathan looked just as defeated. There was a deep cut in the corner of his mouth. He held a handkerchief against the injury, and damned if he wasn't grinning, too. The area around his left eye was already beginning to swell.
Jade was so relieved to see that neither Caine nor Nathan appeared to be near death's door, she started trembling. Then, in a flash of a second, that surge of relief turned to raw anger. She became absolutely furious.
'Have you two gentlemen resolved your dispute?' Sterns inquired.
'We have,' Caine answered. He turned to look at Nathan, then slammed his fist into his jaw. 'Haven't we, Nathan?'
Nathan hit him back before answering. 'Yes, we have.' His voice was gratingly cheerful.
'You children should be sent to your rooms,' Jade snapped. Her voice shook.
Both men looked up at her, then turned to look at each other. They obviously thought her insult was highly amusing because they both burst into laughter.
'Your brother sure hits like a child,' Caine drawled out when he could control himself.
'Like hell I do,' Nathan countered. 'Hand me the brandy, Sterns.'
The butler knelt down on one knee and handed each man a glass. He then filled each goblet with a full portion of the rich liquid.
'Sterns, are you thinking to get them drunk?' Jade asked.
'It would be a marked improvement, mi'lady,' Sterns replied dryly.
The butler stood up, bowed, and then slowly scanned the ruins. 'I believe I was correct, Lady Jade.
It was the settee that hit the wall.'
Jade stared silently at the remains of what used to be a tea cart.
'Sterns, leave the bottle,' Caine instructed.
'As you wish, mi'lord. Would you like me to assist you to your feet before I leave?'
'Is he always this proper?' Nathan asked.
Caine laughed. 'Proper? Never, not Sterns. If I'm a minute late for supper, he eats my portion.'
'Promptness is a quality I've still to teach you, mi'lord,' Sterns said.
