The Importance of Being Wicked. Victoria Alexander

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СКАЧАТЬ just think she’s right.” Gray shrugged. “I think it’s the way of the future.”

      Win snorted. “Or it could be a passing fad.”

      “Parts of London as well as New York are already lit with electricity,” Gray said mildly.

      “Father?” Win turned to the earl. “Do you intend to vote against me as well? Not that we are voting,” he added.

      His father shook his head. “I have no intention of voting. I said this was your decision and I meant it.”

      “Well, that’s something, at any rate.” Win looked from his father to Gray to his mother and finally to Lady Garret. “As much as I think it’s wiser to bide our time and see where electricity may lead us . . .” His jaw clenched. “I will consider this and make my decision by tomorrow.”

      “Good.” His father glanced at Lady Garret. “I, for one, quite approve of what your Mr. Tempest has done here. I look forward to seeing these plans come to fruition. Now, I have other matters to attend to. Good day.” He turned and strode from the room. In the back of his mind, Win noted with more than a little relief how much more vigorous his father now appeared than he had in the days after the fire.

      “Uncle Roland.” Gray started after him. “Might I have a word?” He paused and smiled at Lady Garret. “It was my pleasure, Lady Garret. I daresay we will meet again before the last nail is driven.”

      “No doubt, Mr. Elliott. It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” She smiled what appeared to be a genuine smile. Good God, he was beginning to recognize the termagant’s smiles.

      “Lady Garret.” Gray nodded, cast Win a chastising look, then hurried after his uncle.

      “Electricity, how very exciting.” Mother beamed. “I must say, I can’t wait.” She inclined her head toward the younger woman in a confidential manner. “I know my son claims to be a progressive sort, but in truth he does have a tendency to be something of a stick-in-the-mud.”

      “Mother!”

      “Don’t take that tone with me. You know full well it’s true.” Mother sniffed. “Not that I’m not pleased that you value our heritage, but, Winfield, dear, you do need to move with the times.”

      Win’s jaw tightened. “I do move with the times.”

      It was obviously all Lady Garret could do to keep from laughing.

      “Well, we shall see.” Mother cast him an affectionate smile that did little to take the sting out of her assessment of his character. One could certainly value tradition without being a stick-in-the-mud. “Lady Garret, I know you and Winfield have matters to discuss, but would you join me for tea before you take the train back to London? I know your mother, but it’s been a very long time since I’ve seen her.”

      The younger woman hesitated, then nodded in a gracious manner. “I should like nothing better.”

      “Excellent. When you are finished here then.” She glanced at her son. “Do try to be pleasant.”

      “I am being pleasant!”

      “My mistake then. I thought you were being rather stiff and stodgy and annoyed and just the tiniest bit outraged. I’m sure no one else noticed.” His mother traded amused glances with the younger woman and took her leave.

      He turned his attention to Lady Garret. “Wasn’t I being pleasant?”

      “I am sorry, my lord,” she said at precisely the same time.

      “What?” He stared at her.

      “I was offering you my apology.”

      He narrowed his gaze. “For what?”

      “I put you in an untenable position with your family even if that was not my intention.” She shook her head and sighed. “I had no idea you would be so averse to the idea of modern—”

      “I am not averse to the idea of modern anything! I wish all of you would stop saying that!” he snapped, then caught himself. What was this woman doing to him? She had him ranting like a lunatic. He inhaled deeply and mustered his composure. “It is I who owe you an apology. You simply caught me off-guard, that’s all. I had never considered the idea of electricity at Fairborough Hall.”

      “And are you considering it now?”

      “Yes, I suppose I am.” He shook his head. “But I have any number of concerns about this.”

      She nodded. “To be expected of course.”

      “There is the danger of fire to consider.” Good God, did he really sound that pompous? It was a logical concern and yet his tone was decidedly, well, pompous. “I mean, we must think about safety.” Oh yes, that was better.

      “I cannot guarantee nothing will go wrong in the future, but I can tell you there are strides being made almost daily to improve the safety of wiring in a house.”

      “That’s something, I suppose.”

      “Admittedly, there is always a great deal that will be unknown about a new endeavor.”

      “Indeed there is.” It struck him that she was very much a new endeavor and there was entirely too much unknown about her. “I am not the sort of man to blindly plunge ahead into the unknown.”

      “I never imagined that you were.”

      “I admit, there was a time when I perhaps made decisions in a particularly hasty manner when I should have given matters greater thought. When I plunged ahead when I should have considered said plunging rationally. But I have learned any number of lessons on the foolishness of rash decisions.”

      She nodded. “And a wise man learns from his mistakes.”

      “One can only hope.”

      Her gaze met his. He could have sworn her eyes were brown. Today they were definitely that elusive hazel color. It was the lighting in the library, no doubt. “But isn’t something new, something unknown, even something that one fears might be a tiny bit dangerous, isn’t that worth the risk? Why, one could say that is what makes life exciting.”

      “One could say that.” He smiled, albeit reluctantly. “I fear I am leaning—no, I have decided—in favor of electrification. God help us all.”

      She laughed. It was surprisingly delightful. “I daresay—”

      He held up his hand to stop her. “If you were going to say God has more to worry about than electricity coursing through the walls of my ancestral home, I would most heartily disagree. I would hope God could spare a moment or two to keep us safe from the ravages of progress.”

      “I should think God would be amenable to that, especially as electricity is one of God’s creations and man is simply harnessing it.”

      “That does sound simple,” he said wryly.

      “But I didn’t finish my apology. I am sorry that I pitted you against the СКАЧАТЬ