Passion and Propriety (Hearts of Honour Book 1) (17 page)

“And to be treated with the utmost respect on the express instructions of His Lordship, Viscount Blackthorn.”

The obsequious-looking gentleman spoke as if he was making an announcement in court, and Hannah barely stifled a snort. Although she couldn’t help being pleased to hear William had spoken of her so highly.

Naomi had told her about the visitors to Hartley who had travelled with her on the coach from Thornton. Major Loring had come to accept the position of estate manager, accompanied by his sickly looking young son. He was a handsome, fair-haired gentleman, and Naomi had thought him stuffy but tolerable. There were also a gentleman from a London bank and an odd little fellow William had employed to assist him with correspondence and paperwork.

“Lord Blackthorn’s new personal secretary, I presume?” Hannah didn’t imagine there were too many newcomers to the village with bald heads rimmed by rust-coloured hair.

“Mr Longbottom at your service.” He repeated his bow.

Embarrassed by her less-than-presentable appearance, Hannah offered him a token curtsy.

“Please, let me offer my sincerest and most humble apologies for appearing at your door at this unconscionable time of the day. Although His Lordship did say you are an early riser—an admirable attribute, if I may be so bold as to comment. As time is short, and I’ve so very much to accomplish, I thought I would take the risk of approaching—”

“It’s not a problem.” Hannah recognised a long-winded speaker when she met one. “What can I do for you, Mr Longbottom?” Frowning, she glanced at the group of men accompanying him. She couldn’t possibly fit them all inside the parlour and was at a bit of a loss how to proceed.

“It’s what
we
can do for you, Miss Foster.” Mr Longbottom beamed. “I’m here to take an inventory of whatever repairs, renovations, and extensions are needed on the church and vicarage and to see them carried out immediately. His Lordship has instructed me to put the best team on the job and has stated
your
needs are his number-one priority.”

Hannah wasn’t used to being rendered speechless, and it took her a moment to gather her wits.

“Extensions?”

“Yes, subsequent to your approval, of course. His Lordship remembers the vicarage as being rather modest. He suggests a new kitchen, indoor bathing room, and he imagined a sun lounge built along the southern wall would be to your liking. He would also like to extend an invitation to your family to stay at the manor whilst the work is being undertaken. You’re not to worry about the distance from your father’s parishioners, as a carriage will be put at your disposal. If you would like some time to consider his offer, I shall set the team to work on the church, which His Lordship suggests could do with a proper vestry and meeting hall—along with a new roof, of course—if the vicar is in agreement.”

“The vicar is in astonishment,” Hannah’s father said, coming to stand at her side. She hadn’t heard him approach and reached for his arm for support.

“What’s this about a sun room?” Rachel asked, and Hannah looked over her shoulder to see her sisters standing on the path behind their father, drawn by the commotion. They were wearing their robes and slippers and should have known better than to come outside when there were visitors about. Under the extraordinary circumstances, Hannah let it go.

In somewhat of a daze, she watched while Mr Longbottom made the introductions. In no time, the vicar was engaged in conversation with the construction manager who had stepped forward from the crowd.

“Do you mind if I go over to the church?” Hannah’s father asked her, eager to begin making plans.

“Not at all,” she murmured in the direction of his retreating form before turning back to William’s new secretary. “Could you please let Lord Blackthorn know we’re extremely grateful for his kind and generous offer, but I think I’d rather give him my reply in person . . . after I’ve had opportunity to discuss the matter with my father.”

“Certainly, Miss Foster.” Mr Longbottom bowed again.

She found his manner grating and wondered why William had employed the man. But when he went to retrieve a small bag he’d left near the garden gate, she noticed he walked with a limp.

“Mr Longbottom, did you, by any chance, serve with the viscount in the military?”

“I did, indeed,” he said, returning with a pile of envelopes in his hands. “I was his chargé d’affaires before injury forced my early retirement. However did you guess?”

“Just a hunch.” Hannah took the envelope he extended and saw her name written in William’s bold script on the front. Hesitating, she was torn between wanting to read it in private and opening it immediately to find out what it contained.

“His Lordship asked that you read his letter before I hand out the rest of the envelopes,” Mr Longbottom said, giving Hannah all the permission she needed to break open the wax seal.

My Dear Miss Foster,
she read and almost dropped the sheet of parchment.

Without the
My,
she would have thought nothing of the appellation, but those two little letters changed the context entirely.

“What does it say?” Rachel tried to read over her shoulder, and Hannah spun away.

“Give me a minute, and I’ll find out.”

My Dear Miss Foster,
she read again, forcing herself to breathe evenly.

I do hope you are in excellent health, well settled, and enjoying your reunion with your family. I would beseech you not to work yourself too hard, though I fear my supplication will have arrived after the fact. Mr and Mrs Potts have enlightened me to your difficult familial circumstance and the many sacrifices you have been forced to make during the years of my absence. I deeply regret the added sorrow and strain inflicted upon your family by one who was charged to act as my ambassador. In the light of this revelation, and as a small measure of my gratitude for your assistance with my recovery, please accept this token of my esteem given with the purest of intentions.

My offer of a place for your family to reside whilst the vicarage is temporarily uninhabitable is made with the utmost respect. Please forgive the repetition, but if ever there is anything I can do to be of service, my hope is you would not hesitate to ask.

Sincerely yours,

William Blackthorn

He had written
Sincerely yours
rather than
Yours sincerely,
as well as included his Christian
name
,
and Hannah had no choice but to walk across to the garden bench and take a seat. Continuing to stand unaided was not an option.

“Are you all right?” Naomi would have taken the letter if Hannah hadn’t held it tightly to her breast.

“Yes, of course. I’m just feeling a little dizzy,” she admitted quite truthfully, scrambling to come up with a suitable excuse. “I must have stood up too quickly. I’ve not eaten yet this morning, and I’ve been working in the garden since early.”

Naomi eyed her with bemusement, but Mr Longbottom took her litany of excuses seriously.

“Oh, dear,” he said. “His Lordship will be most displeased to hear I’ve kept you from breaking your fast. Let me give you these letters to distribute, and then I shall take up no more of your time. I can drop back later in the day if you would like to send a reply.”

“Thank you. That’s very kind.” Hannah accepted the thick bundle while wishing their audience would leave them in peace. Despite Mr Longbottom’s assurances, he continued to hover.

Staring at the letters, she couldn’t for the life of her imagine what William had to say to her sisters and father. After handing the girls the envelopes addressed to them, she opened the one with her name written across the front to discover crisp new notes inside to the sum of one hundred pounds.

“Good Lord.” She stared in shock at the extraordinary riches. Rachel’s and Naomi’s squeals had her fearing the worst but, thankfully, they had
only
received ten and twenty pounds apiece. Still exorbitant sums, it was more money than either girl had ever held in her possession. What was William thinking? Mr Longbottom and his associates made for a very curious audience, and Hannah could only imagine that news of the viscount’s generosity to the vicar and his daughters would be all over the village before noon.

“The viscount says the money is in gratitude for my assistance with the hiring of his staff.” Naomi’s blue eyes sparkled. “And I’m to speak with him about the orphanage’s needs at my earliest convenience. He wants to support it
fully
.”

“Mine is to thank me for putting up with your absence.
Ten
pounds for you to go away for a month. Imagine what I’d have received if you’d stayed up there for a year?” Rachel’s eyes were like saucers. “How much did he give you for taking care of him? I bet he paid you thirty pounds. You could buy an entire wardrobe of gowns with new shoes and bonnets and everything!”

Hannah let silence be her answer, having no intention of disclosing the size of William’s gift.

“What’s in the last envelope?” Naomi asked, and Hannah turned it over to reveal their father’s name. “Do you think it’s a reduction in the rent? What an answer to prayer that would be.”

A vicarage was normally provided at no cost as part of the living, but the previous viscount had not viewed the church favourably, and the rent her father paid was one of the highest in the village. To add to the family’s woes, her father’s wages—along with those of all the other workers in the district beholden to Blackthorn—had not been paid since Mr Grantham had absconded. More than a month without income, and their straits were dire indeed. William’s gift to Hannah, if she dare keep it, would go a long way towards solving their immediate concerns, but explaining her windfall would be difficult. A bonus paid to their father would raise fewer questions.

Over a meagre breakfast of tea and toast, her father read his letter from William while Hannah and her sisters looked on with bated breath. The colour slowly drained from his cheeks, and he paused several times to take large gulps of tea before continuing. When he’d finished, he said not a word but slowly counted out one hundred and fifty pounds upon the kitchen table.

“It’s back payment for the increases in my wages that were never passed on,” he said with a voice that shook. “Lord Blackthorn says I’m no longer required to pay rent,
and
the glebe is to be returned to us. The fifteen acres behind the church are now mine to manage as I see fit, the profits to supplement the parish income.”

“The man’s a saint,” Rachel whispered. “And to think, when he first arrived, I thought he was a monster.”

“Rachel!” Hannah was horrified her own sister would say such a thing.

“Well, you have to admit he did look rather frightful when he first arrived in the village,” Rachel persisted unwisely. “I was quite terrified when you insisted on introducing us, but he cleaned up surprisingly well, in a dark, foreboding sort of way. The scar on his face isn’t
too
dreadful, I suppose.”

“It’s not dreadful at all, and I won’t allow you to speak about the viscount in such a vile manner.” Hannah rose from her seat and stormed out of the room, leaving her family to stare after her, their mouths agape.

Chapter 16

Defence

Once she’d calmed down, shame replaced Hannah’s fury. She had come close to losing her temper several times since arriving home, an uncommon occurrence for someone renowned for her unflappable nature. Not yet ready to face her family and apologise for her outburst, she decided to spend some time in her room writing a shopping list, as the larder was still woefully bare. When a knock came a little while later, she steeled herself to face her father’s censure. But when she bid her visitor enter, it was Grace who came through the door.

“You won’t believe what the viscount gave me for treating him, Hannah.
Thirty pounds
with the promise of funding for a permanent nursing post in the village, a generous stipend, and an offer to pay the wages for any apprentices I should choose to train.”

“Truly?” Hannah sat forward, letting fall from her lap the list she’d been staring at unseen for the last half hour. “It’s everything you’ve dreamed of—”

“But never imagined possible.” Her friend’s expression was a little dazed. “You should see what’s happening in the village. It’s like Christmas, and Lord Blackthorn’s secretary is Saint Nicholas . . . or maybe the viscount is Saint Nicholas, and his secretary is his emissary?” Uncharacteristically befuddled, Grace shook her head.

“I take it the overdue wages have been paid?”

“With generous bonuses. Maintenance crews are inspecting the cottages, shops, and civic buildings, making lists of all the repairs that are needed. The neighbouring villages are to receive similar treatment, but
Hartley comes first. Also . . . there is word all over town that the vicar and his daughters are receiving preferential treatment.” Grace paused to give Hannah a pointed look before continuing, thankfully not demanding a response just yet. “I saw the viscount’s new estate manager ride past. An impressive-looking fellow with golden hair and a splendid beard, though a little proud for my liking. I was reliably informed he was off to inspect the mines and discuss safety measures with the foremen. Can you believe the viscount is acting so decisively?”

“It’s what he said he would do.” Hannah strove to keep the defensiveness from her tone.