All About Seduction(51)
“He’s not going to divorce you, Caroline,” exclaimed the man, Robert—he must be her brother or he would not be calling her by her given name.
She turned away. Jack could only see the purplish brown material of the gown she wore. It was the kind of thing she wore to the mill office, not the flashy, fussy kind of clothes she wore around her guests. Her everyday dresses were of Broadhurst-milled material, same as the women of the village, but she was always set apart by more than the better cut and trim. Her regal bearing and refinement were present in every movement she made. Even the first time he’d seen her, he noticed her quiet dignity. Yet, she’d been little more than a child with a husband more than thrice her age.
“He may,” Mrs. Broadhurst replied.
“If you do as he wishes, he won’t.”
“How much? I know the original sum paid to Papa was around twenty thousand pounds.”
Jack wondered if he had gasped. He felt as if he should have. It was an outrageous sum, more money than would pass through his family’s hands in their entire lifetime. Probably two or three times as much as the entire eighteen members of his family and their current and future spouses would ever see even if they counted every penny ever made.
“Three thousand pounds per annum,” answered the man.
Jack felt as if the hope had been crushed under the heel of a jackboot. He would never have so much to offer.
“Why do you think that is?” asked Caroline. “With the five-thousand-pound dowries paid for our sisters, Mr. Broadhurst has paid a king’s ransom for me. What is that, seventy-five, eighty thousand to date?”
Eighty-two thousand, calculated Jack. Good God, how much money did Broadhurst have?
“Not a king’s ransom. Richard the Lionhearted’s ransom was one hundred and fifty marks, but of course a mark is less than a pound. So perhaps it is close to a king’s—”
“Robert,” Caroline cut through her brother’s dithering. “Don’t you find it odd he would pay so much for me? Mr. Broadhurst is a man who never makes a bad business decision.”
“He has benefited immeasurably by his association with our family. The mill has prospered, we have all seen to it.”
“Don’t be silly. If he had invested that sum in another mill or two, or even on the Exchange, he would have made a great deal more.” The chair creaked as Mrs. Broadhurst sat down beside the bed. “Other families such as ours had daughters they might have been willing to part with for far less, and it is not as if I am any great beauty—”
Jack raised his hand to protest. She was beautiful.
“—or our stature is so high within the realm. No, this is more like blackmail,” she continued.
“Don’t be absurd, Caro.”
Why hadn’t they noticed his hand?
“What did Papa share with you about my settlement?”
“There is a packet of papers in the safe at home that I am to consult if need be, but I am sure it is just a standard marriage contract. If I had known what was afoot, I would have consulted them before I came. But Papa could drive a shrewd bargain when he needed.”
“Which is why Mr. Broadhurst got me instead of Sarah or Amelia,” Caroline said bitterly. “But he looked . . . beaten when I suggested I’d find a way to send him to prison.”
“Why would you do that?” Lord Nesham blurted.
Jack wanted to rise and stand between Caroline and her brother’s ire, but they seemed oblivious to his presence—not so different than in the normal world. Nobs never recognized his sort in any kind of meaningful way.
“I was angry.” Caroline’s voice was calm and soothing. “I just thought if he divorced me, after all this time, I would strike back. It was a thoughtless thing spoken in heat, but I think he believed me, which was odd.”
Jack tried again to wave his hand. He knew why Broadhurst feared prison. Most of the villagers suspected. No one had any proof, and he was the man they depended on for their livelihoods. People just didn’t speak out against a man with so much power over them. Not when the authorities could be tucked in his pocket. A man who could pay that kind of money for a wife could buy whatever justice he wanted.
Caroline should take the divorce and run.
The back of Jack’s hand rubbed against the covers. No wonder Caroline and her brother weren’t seeing his motion.
He tried harder, succeeded in opening his eyes for just a second and pushed his hand out against Caroline’s knee. His voice feeling rusty as an old pump, he managed to croak out, “Killed his last wife.”