stopped trying to write to their mother.
“What does it say?” Lady Winstead asked, even though Marcus was still breaking the seal.
“Let him open it first,” Honoria admonished. It was on the tip of her tongue to say that they ought to leave the room to allow him to read the letter in private, but she could not bring herself to do so.
Daniel was her only brother, and she’d missed him so dreadfully.
As the months had gone by without even a simple note from him, she’d told herself that he hadn’t meant to ignore her. His letter surely had been lost; international post was notoriously unreliable.
But right now she didn’t care why she had not heard from him in so long; she just wanted to know what was in his letter to Marcus.
And so they all stood there, staring at Marcus with bated breath.
It was beyond rude, but no one was willing to budge.
“Is he well?” her mother finally ventured when Marcus finished the first page.
“Yes,” he murmured, blinking as if he couldn’t quite believe what he was reading. “Yes. He’s coming home, actually.'
“What?” Lady Winstead went pale, and Honoria rushed over to her side lest she need support.
Marcus cleared his throat. “He writes that he has received some sort of correspondence from Hugh Prentice. Ramsgate has finally agreed to let bygones be bygones.'
As bygones went, Honoria could not help but think, this one was rather large. And the last time she’d seen the Marquess of Ramsgate, he’d nearly gone into an apoplectic fit at the sight of her.
Granted, that had been over a year earlier, but still.
“Could Lord Hugh be playing a trick?” Honoria asked. “To lure Daniel back into the country?'
“I don’t think so,” Marcus said, looking down at the second page of the letter. “He’s not the sort to do such a thing.'
“Not the sort?” Lady Winstead echoed, disbelief making her voice rise in pitch. “He ruined my son’s life.'
“That’s what made it all so very strange,” Marcus said. He was still looking down, reading the words on the paper even as he spoke. “Hugh Prentice has always been a good man. He is eccentric, but he is not without honor.'
“Does Daniel say when he’ll return?” Honoria asked.
Marcus shook his head. “He is not specific. He mentions that he has a few matters to take care of in Italy, and then he will commence his journey home.'
“Oh, my heavens,” Lady Winstead said, sinking into a nearby chair. “I never thought I would see the day. I never even allowed myself to think about it. Which of course meant that I thought of nothing but.'
For a moment Honoria could do nothing but stare at her mother.
For three years she had not even mentioned Daniel’s name. And now she was saying that he was all she had thought about?
Honoria shook her head. There was no point in being angry with her mother. Whatever she had done or been these last few years, she had more than redeemed herself in these last few days. Honoria knew without a doubt that Marcus would not be alive were it not for her mother’s nursing skills.
“How long does it take to travel from Italy to England?” Honoria asked, because surely that had to be the most important question.
Marcus looked up. “I have no idea. I’m not even sure what part of Italy he’s in.'
Honoria nodded. Her brother had always had a habit of telling stories and leaving out all the most important details.
“This is very exciting,” Mrs. Wetherby said. “I know you’ve all missed him terribly.” For a moment the room went silent. It was one of those comments that was so obvious that no one quite knew how to agree. Finally, Lady Winstead said, “Well, it’s a good thing we are already planning to leave for London tomorrow. I should hate to be away from home when he arrives.” She looked over at Marcus and said, “We shall take our leave for the evening. I’m sure you wish to get some rest. Come along, Honoria. We have much to discuss, you and I.”
What Lady Winstead wished to discuss, it turned out, was how they might celebrate Daniel’s return. But the discussion did not get very far; Honoria sensibly pointed out that there wasn’t much they could do if they did not know the date of his arrival. Her mother managed to ignore this for at least ten minutes, debating small gatherings versus large, and whether Lord Ramsgate and Lord Hugh should be invited, and if they were, could one be certain that they would decline? Any reasonable person would do so, but with Lord Ramsgate, one never could tell.
“Mother,” Honoria said again, “there is nothing we can do until Daniel arrives. He may not even want a celebration.'
“Nonsense. Of course he will. He—'
“He left the country in disgrace,” Honoria cut in. She hated to be so blunt, but there was nothing else for it.
“Yes, but it wasn’t fair.” “It doesn’t matter if it wasn’t fair. It is what it is, and he might not wish to remind anyone of it.'
Her mother looked unconvinced, but she let the matter drop, and then there was nothing to do but go to bed.
The following morning, Honoria arose with the sun. They were to depart early; it was the only way to make it to London without having to stop for the night along the route. After a quick breakfast, she made her way to Marcus’s room to say good-bye.
And maybe more.
But when she arrived, he was not in his bed. A housemaid was there, however, pulling the sheets from the mattress.
“Do you know where Lord Chatteris is?” Honoria inquired, hoping that nothing was amiss.
“He’s just in the next room,” the maid replied. Then her cheeks went a bit pink. “With his valet.'
Honoria swallowed and probably turned a little pink herself, understanding quite well that this meant that Marcus was taking a bath. The maid departed with her bundle of linens, and Honoria stood alone in his bedchamber for a moment, wondering what to do next. She supposed she would have to say good-bye in writing. She could not wait for him here; it was beyond irregular, beyond even all the other irregularities they had committed in the past week.
There were certain rules of propriety that could be bent when someone was deathly ill, but now Marcus was up and about, and apparently in some degree of undress. There was no way her presence in his room could lead to anything other than complete ruination.
And besides, her mother was most impatient to be off.
She glanced about the room for paper and pen. There was a small desk by the window, and on his bedside table she saw— The letter from Daniel.
It lay where Marcus had set it down it the night before, two somewhat wrinkled pages filled with the small, tight writing people used when they were trying to save postage. Marcus hadn’t told her anything that was in the letter other than the fact that Daniel was coming home. Which was of course the most important thing, but even so, she was ravenous for news. It had been so long since she’d had any information of
