Kenneth pursed his lips and glanced at Leonard. “Would you mind waiting in the parlor while I handle this?”
Leonard nodded, his expression curious yet respectful. “Of course, Kenneth. It was a pleasure to see you, Madam.” He quickly retreated to the parlor while Kenneth led his mother to the drawing room.
“Jones, please have tea brought up for Her Grace,” Kenneth instructed and then followed his mother, who’d already taken her seat on the chaise.
As always, the Dowager Duchess sat with her back straight and her head held high as though she were the Queen herself. Kenneth glanced up at the painting above the fireplace, which depicted a younger version of his mother. She still looked the same, yet she’d changed. It wasn’t because age had placed wrinkles on her face or because she had lost weight over the years, which caused her cheeks to become sunken. The young woman in the painting had something in her eyes that this current version of his mother had lost.
Joy.
He swallowed hard, aware that his mother’s life had never been easy. Married to a hard man who hadn’t cared about her well-being at the best of times, the Dowager Duchess had done her best to be a good mother to Edward and Kenneth, but Edward’s death had changed her irrevocably. Still, despite all of this, or perhaps because of it, she remained a force to be reckoned with in Kenneth’s life so much so that her visits did not always invoke warm feelings in Kenneth’s heart.
“Kenneth,” she said once Jones had walked away, “I do not appreciate the way you spoke to me in front of Leonard.” She blinked at Kenneth and pursed her lips.
Kenneth took a deep breath, realizing that the way he’d addressed the situation had been a little rude. He wasn’t usually the sort of son who showed disrespect, but he had had a difficult day.
“Mother, I am very busy, and I was expecting company. May I ask what brings you here?”
His mother crossed her legs at the ankles. “You must know why I am here. You promised me last week that you’d see Mrs. Huckleberry, the matchmaker. Imagine my surprise when she told me today over tea that you had not done as you promised.”
He groaned inwardly.
Not this again.
Ever since the mourning period had passed, his mother had pressured him to marry, to continue the line—something Kenneth had no desire to do. His parents’ marriage had been a shame, and both had been desperately unhappy all the years they were shackled together. He would not make the same mistakes. And if the title passed to his distant cousin, Admiral John Murry, upon his death, then so be it.
“And I will not call on her. I told you I would not. I will not marry, and you know it. My focus is on rectifying the financial mess my father left behind, not attending social events and finding a wife.”
Diana’s features remained composed, but there was a subtle persistence in her gaze. “Kenneth, you can’t evade your responsibilities forever. The estate needs stability, and that stability comes from a legitimate heir.”
Kenneth, his patience wearing thin, countered, “I’ve made it clear, Mother. I won’t be pressured into a marriage I have no desire for.”
The air intensified as Diana broached a sensitive topic. “What about Edward? He would have assumed these responsibilities if he were alive.”
Kenneth’s eyes flashed with anger and pain. Edward, his older brother, was a sore point, a wound that hadn’t fully healed.
“Don’t bring Edward into this,” he retorted sharply.
Even after all these years, the mentioned of his beloved brother’s death and the role he’d played in it caused searing pain to rush through him. Indeed, Edward would have been a better duke. He was born into the role—he would have thrived. He’d have been married by now, providing the heirs their mother so desperately wanted. Alas, he was gone, and no matter how much Kenneth wished it, he would never return.
“He would want you to fulfill his role,” Diana continued.
Kenneth took a sharp breath. “I am. I took on the dukedom. I am taking care of Father’s affairs, his charity—everything. I have no desire to have a wife or sire children, and if you value your relationship with your only son, you will respect that.”
He glared at his mother, hating that he had to be so blunt, so direct with her. Alas, there was no other way with her.
Diana took a deep breath and nodded once as she rose. “I see. Well, I hope for the sake of you and your dukedom that you will change your mind. And I’d like to remind you that threatening the only family member you have left is beneath you. Good day, Kenneth.”
She walked out of the drawing room and toward the front door of the manor that had been her home for so many years, leaving Kenneth behind. However, at the door, she turned back, and she approached him once more. Her visage, when it came into view, was a little softer.
“Do keep in mind that not all marriages are like the one your father and I had. Some are happy. Very happy, indeed.”
This time, when she turned to leave, she did not look back, and Kenneth was left to shake his head, for no matter what his mother said, there was one thing he was certain of: Marriage was for fools, and while he was many things, he was no fool.
Kenneth marched into his study, where he found Leonard in front of the sideboard, about to refill his glass. Judging by the color, he’d had brandy and was about to indulge in a second glass, or perhaps a third.
“Drink?” Leonard asked when he saw Kenneth entering. “You look like you need one.”
“A double,” Kenneth said and stepped beside his friend, who grinned at him.
