Chapter 63
“This is Miss Claire Gordon, Mr. Gordon’s second daughter. And this is Miss Diane Bernard, Sir Bernard’s eldest daughter. She’ll soon be Mrs. Oscar.”
“Carol, that’s still ages away!”
“Even so, it’ll happen within two years, won’t it?”
Watching Miss Carol and the women face one another and giggle softly, Sasha waited until their laughter died down, then greeted them with proper courtesy.
“I’m Sasha Grayson. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Sit over here, Sasha. Wasn’t it hot on your way here? I’m already dying from the heat.”
Miss Carol gestured for Sasha to sit on her right as she spoke. Naturally, it was a place that put her among the three of them. Sasha did not bother refusing and took the seat Miss Carol had offered. Miss Carol sat to Sasha’s left, Miss Gordon to her right, and beyond her, Miss Bernard.
Their conversation, which had briefly halted with Sasha’s arrival, resumed naturally once more. Their praise for the tea they were drinking soon moved on to methods of obtaining high-quality tea leaves, then circled back to discussing the café’s location and business prospects.
Miss Gordon and Miss Bernard were just as business-minded and ambitious as Miss Carol. That must have been why Miss Carol was especially close to them. And the fact that Miss Carol had deliberately introduced these two to Sasha carried considerable meaning as well.
“This area will continue to be developed from now on. Before long, it will catch up to Walton Street in no time. So listen to me and buy land here in advance, Miss Gordon.”
“Carol, not that again. Even if I wanted to, I don’t have the money. I’m already overwhelmed just managing the factory I bought half a year ago. Allen was so confident when he suggested we go into business together, and now he’s completely washed his hands of it. I’m doing everything from start to finish.”
“Just in case, get your brother to sign a waiver of rights. I’ve seen a few cases where someone neglects everything like that, then when it’s time for him to marry, he abandons his family and gobbles it all up.”
Miss Carol spoke decisively, then glanced at Sasha as if seeking her agreement.
“Isn’t that right, Sasha? You also had trouble not long ago because of a male relative.”
Miss Gordon and Miss Bernard looked at one another in bewilderment, as if they had not expected Miss Carol to ask such a direct question so suddenly. Sasha looked at Miss Carol with a calm expression, then smiled.
“So that’s what you were curious about when you invited me?”
“No. Of course, I can’t say it wasn’t that at all, but I was curious about how you were doing. Lately, even when I sent letters, your replies came terribly late. Some people said it was because you were wrapped up in some love affair.”
“Would you tell me exactly what rumors about me have been going around, Miss Carol?”
Without showing any sign of discomfort, Miss Carol kindly told Sasha everything.
“They say that you were too busy going about amusing yourself to fulfill your duties as a noble, so your cousin, the young duke, tried to admonish you himself. And that, like a spoiled child, you not only beat your cousin but clawed him as well. Geoffrey Grayson has been going around every party openly showing the scratches on his cheeks and neck.”
“Ah, I see. Geoffrey must not have gone out of his way to explain those questions people had.”
By word of mouth, rumors were bound to spread in one way or another.
The duchess must have done her best to suppress rumors between her son and her niece, but in the end, word had spread somehow that there had been a dispute between the two of them. There were far too many people who came to mind. The two men and two women who had been staying with Geoffrey in the annex. Sasha had only seen them in passing, but to her eyes, they had not seemed particularly loyal types.
In any case, Geoffrey had done his best in his own way to protect himself by not responding to the rumors that had already spread.
Rather than have the truth revealed—that he had had his friend draw obscene pictures resembling his cousin for his own amusement—it was far better for the reputation of the cousin already out of favor to plummet. To him, it must have been a welcome solution.
“So, did all of you believe that rumor?”
“Half believed it, and half didn’t.”
At Sasha’s question, Miss Gordon answered honestly.
“There have actually been rumors like that about Miss Grayson all along. That you’re preparing to marry some soldier...”
“And that the soldier is that gentleman, famous among the people who know him.”
As Miss Gordon spoke vaguely, Miss Bernard added with clarity.
Miss Bernard opened her mouth again and said to Sasha,
“But in any case, the other party is that Geoffrey Grayson. Everyone knows what a flawed character he has. Geoffrey Grayson, who at his age has never done a thing to improve himself, who spends every day relying on his family name, guzzling liquor, and causing trouble.”
At Miss Bernard’s unrestrained words, Miss Carol looked straight at her and shook her head slightly.
Only then did Miss Bernard calm down a little and quickly glance around.
“I’m sorry. The truth is, my fiancé and the young duke are not on good terms. Strictly speaking, my fiancé was the one he picked a fight with one-sidedly. In any case, I... I didn’t believe it at all when I heard that story.”
“Whatever the reason, thank you, Miss Bernard.”
At Miss Bernard’s sincere apology, Sasha smiled generously. Just as Miss Bernard was about to speak again, a smartly dressed waiter approached and placed an appetizing cake among them.
Miss Gordon naturally changed the subject and began talking about the cake. Perhaps because her fiancé had been mentioned, Miss Bernard, who had been rather agitated, finally calmed down a little and responded to Miss Gordon’s talk of cake.
“In any case, Miss Grayson.”
When the atmosphere grew quiet again, Miss Carol opened her mouth.
“Whatever happened, I want to tell you that it is fortunate your marriage to that cousin has fallen through. As your friend, truly and sincerely. When I heard the news, I actually thought it was a relief. The late Lady Rosalyn would have welcomed it, too.”
“Yes. Grandmother never trusted Geoffrey.”
When Sasha agreed, Miss Carol nodded.
“At any rate, don’t worry too much. Rumors die down quickly, and that noble duchess will have no choice but to seek you out again. No matter what, you are family.”
‘Ah, so this is the second rumor going around about me.’
At Miss Carol’s words, offered as though to comfort her, Sasha nodded with the face of someone who had calmly realized something.
Unless one openly argued in front of others, rumors of discord in this world tended to spread in ways such as so-and-so has been distant from so-and-so lately, or so-and-so was not invited to the last party.
Moreover, the other party was the duchess. The duchess’s tea parties, to which she unfailingly invited only those close to her at least once a week, were so renowned that nearly every noble wished to attend at least once.
In Sasha’s case, after Lady Rosalyn’s death, she had been invited to every single one of those tea parties without exception. It was no different from announcing to everyone just how attentively the duchess was looking after her niece, now left alone, and that the niece was already under her influence and protection.
Attending without fail had, in truth, been rather troublesome, but Sasha still thought it had not been a bad experience. In fact, there she had learned quite a bit of the etiquette, gestures, and ways to smoothly handle situations that she had previously known only in theory.
However, after the incident with Geoffrey, the duchess had stopped sending Sasha even letters asking after her well-being. By maintaining a quiet silence, she was imperiously conveying to Sasha the message that her son’s mistake should be treated as though it had never happened. In her own refined way.
“Yes. Before long, she will generously accept you again.”
Miss Gordon chimed in as though comforting Sasha.
In other words, rather than the rumor involving Geoffrey, the discord with the duchess was what interested them most. That was why they had called her here—to ask about it.
Unlike Geoffrey’s case, the rumor concerning the duchess was more ambiguous, so they had intended to summon the person involved and confirm it.
“Of course. The family gathering is only a few months away. You needn’t worry too much.”
‘The truth is, I don’t care what happens. All I intend to do is marry quickly, as if getting it over with, take the money, and leave.’
Instead of saying that frankly and cuttingly, Sasha smiled and answered ambiguously, as though adequately resolving their questions.