No doubt the servants knew, but Beth could not possibly question Hetty, not after giving the girl such stern warnings about the evils of gossip. Did she dare to ask Jon himself? Well, why not? They were man and wife, after all, and he had asked Beth to run his household. He should have told her that he had engaged a new valet. He should have told her.

Since it was still very early, he would be downstairs in his library, working. Later, once the guests’ breakfast was over, he would be spending his time entertaining the gentlemen, but for the moment he would be alone.

She would finish dressing and then she would go downstairs to Jon’s library and ask him what he had done. And why.

The weak morning sunshine was struggling to illuminate Jon’s library. If his desk had not been near the window, he would have needed candles in order to work. At least there was not much correspondence to deal with. Possibly the last two days’ bad weather had delayed the post?

The door opened to admit the butler. ‘Miss Mountjoy has called and begs the favour of an interview with your lordship. She is waiting in the yellow saloon.’

So early? Jon continued to write. ‘Let her wait. In fifteen minutes’ time, you may invite her to join me here.’ He glanced up just in time to see a flicker of surprise cross the butler’s face. No, it was not how the Earl of Portbury was wont to treat a lady guest, but Jon was not at all sure that Miss Mountjoy deserved either title. He hurried to finish the instructions for his steward at Fratcombe. There was still much to be done there to remedy the damage done by his brother. George had a lot to answer for.

After some minutes, Jon sanded and folded the paper ready for dispatch. He checked the time by the long case clock. Any moment now.

Seconds later the door opened. ‘Miss Mountjoy to see your lordship,’ the butler intoned.

Jon rose politely but did not acknowledge his visitor. Instead, he held out the letter. ‘See that this is sent to my steward at Fratcombe Manor immediately, Goodrite. That will be all.’

As the door closed, Jon turned to Miss Mountjoy and favoured her with a cursory bow. ‘There was something you wished to discuss, Miss Mountjoy?’ He waved her to the chair opposite him. With a swift curtsy, she crossed the floor in an angry swish of silken skirts and took her seat. Jon leaned back in his chair, calmly steepled his fingers and set his facial expression to bland. Then he waited.

‘I imagine, Lord Portbury, that you were expecting me to call? In the circumstances.’

Jon raised an eyebrow. Otherwise, he did not move. The loud tick of the long case clock was the only sound to be heard in the room.

‘I have come to tell you, Lord Portbury, that I will not be abused and manipulated in this outrageous fashion.’

‘Outrageous, is it?’

‘You know very well that it is. When you settled that annuity upon me, and gave me the cottage to rent, it was in response to your wife’s last request. It was a sacred trust, yet now you would renege upon it.’

Jon allowed his hands to drop softly to the desk. ‘I have reneged on no promise, Miss Mountjoy,’ he said carefully. ‘Your annuity remains in place. Your cottage, however, was a mistake, about which I was not consulted. It is worth a rather higher rent than you are paying. Therefore, as my agent informed you, the rent will increase from the next quarter day.’

‘To a level which you know I cannot afford!’

‘That, ma’am, is not my concern. You have your annuity. You may always move to cheaper accommodation.’

‘You have ensured that there is none available, Lord Portbury. You take me for a fool, but I know you intend to force me to leave the district.’

‘If you know it, ma’am, why are you here?’ Jon said silkily.

‘I have come to tell you that I have no intention of quitting King’s Portbury,’ she snapped, ‘or the cottage I am renting from you. If you try to force me out, I shall fight you. I am not without ammunition, as you should be aware.’

Jon leant forward a little and allowed a sardonic smile to curl the corner of his mouth. ‘Indeed? Perhaps you would enlighten me? I do own your cottage, after all.’

‘I cannot stop you from evicting me, but I can ensure that your reputation, and that of your house, is destroyed if you do. If you proceed against me, I shall tell the whole world about your first wife’s preferences and why the Earl of Portbury was unable to sire an heir.’

Jon leaned back once more and sighed theatrically. ‘What a fascinating piece of gossip that will make, especially once your own role, as my late wife’s paramour, is made plain to all. I fancy your reputation might suffer at least as much as mine. Do you imagine you would be received after that?’

‘It is a price I would gladly pay for a victory over you, my lord. After all, I could always remove from the district later, perhaps even change my name. You, the great Earl of Portbury, have no such escape route. Once the world learns that Alicia preferred me to you, you will be the butt of every scandal-sheet in the land.’

Jon nodded slowly, as if considering her threat. ‘Do tell me about this escape route. If you move to another district, precisely what will you live on?’

She smiled then, for the first time, a confident, knowing smile. ‘Unlike the rental of my cottage, you cannot change my annuity, my lord. It was my deathbed gift from Alicia, a token of her regard. You merely executed her wishes. I find it gratifying that, even if I ruin your reputation, you will still be obliged to maintain me.’

‘Ah, I see. You believe your annuity renders you invulnerable.’ He pushed back his chair and rose. With one fleeting sideways glance at her, he strode across to the window and stood staring out at the garden with his hands clasped behind his back. ‘You know, Miss Mountjoy,’ he said evenly, ‘you really should read legal documents with more care.’ He heard her sharp intake of breath, but he did not turn. ‘If you had done so, you might have noticed the character clause I inserted in your annuity. It states, quite clearly, that if the beneficiary should lose her character, whether by criminal conviction or otherwise, her right to any payment will cease. I would wager a considerable sum that a woman who admitted to having a lewd relationship with the late Countess of Portbury would forfeit her character in the process.’ He turned slowly. ‘Shall we put the matter to the test?’

Miss Mountjoy’s hands had become claws, gripping the arms of her chair. Her face and neck had turned grey. In the space of moments, she had shrunk from a handsome woman to a desiccated husk. ‘You are a devil! I hope you rot in hell!’

‘And you are-’ He gave a snort of mirthless laughter and shook his head. ‘No, we will not discuss that. So…what do you propose to do now?’

‘What choice do I have?’

‘None.’

‘You wish me to leave King’s Portbury?’

‘I do.’

‘Very well. I will go. I will leave before the next quarter day.’

‘That seems an eminently sensible solution. And the other matter?’

She seemed to shrink even more. ‘I will say nothing. You leave me no choice.’

‘Quite so, ma’am. Let me add, however, that if any rumours should arise, from any quarter, about the conduct of my late wife, the annuity payable to Miss Louisa Mountjoy-wherever she is and whatever name she may trade under-will cease on the spot. Do I make myself clear?’

‘Yes,’ she said, in a small, crushed voice. ‘There will be no rumours, and no gossip. I shall not trouble you again.’

Jon crossed to pull the bell, but thought better of it. His first marriage had been a disaster, largely because of Louisa Mountjoy’s liaison with his wife. But, even so, he could not parade her defeat before the servants. ‘You are distressed, ma’am, which is understandable.’ He could not help his icy tone. The woman would have ruined him if she could. ‘I will leave you here to regain your composure. My butler will return in a quarter of an hour to show you out. I suggest we do not meet again.’ With a curt nod, he strode to the door and left her.

In the corridor outside, he almost fell over his wife. ‘Beth! I…I did not expect to see you down so early.’ She was looking remarkably alluring, in a gown of palest pink trimmed with flounces. Another one of those expensive fripperies he had encouraged her to buy in London. They all became her much too well.

She dropped him a curtsy. ‘Good morning, my lord. I wonder if I might have a word with you?’ She sounded unusually determined.

Jon wondered what had caused her change of mood. Last night, when they had been together in her chamber, she had been so soft, so yielding… Not at all like this stern young matron.

‘Might we go into your library? Where we may speak in private?’

That pulled him up short. ‘Er…no. Not the library. It is not- That is to say, Miss Mountjoy is in there.’

Beth stiffened and grew a little pale.

‘We were discussing a…a matter of business. She will be leaving in a few moments, once she has recovered-’ This would not do. He was tying himself in knots, and for no good reason. He refused to feel guilty about what he had just done to Miss Mountjoy. She deserved it all, and more.

Jon smiled down at Beth and tucked her hand under his arm. ‘The library is too gloomy this morning. Let us leave it to Miss Mountjoy. We can be private in the conservatory, and make the most of the light, besides. Madam, will you walk?’

Beth held herself a little apart as they walked through the house to the conservatory. She did not remove her hand from his arm-that would be much too confrontational-but she certainly could not relax into his touch.

Miss Mountjoy! He had been alone in his library with Louisa Mountjoy! What on earth had they been doing at this time of the day? And why did she have to be left alone there? To recover? From what?

The pictures racing through Beth’s imagination were far from comfortable. Although she had no reason to suspect that Jon and the Mountjoy woman were lovers now, she could not banish the suspicion that they might have been lovers once. Had she come to see him this morning, by appointment, before any of the guests was about? Before his wife was about? It did not bear thinking of. Beth fancied Miss Mountjoy was capable of anything, even seducing a married man.

In total silence, they walked through to the conservatory where Beth let Jon usher her inside. He had been right. By comparison with the rest of the house, it was full of light. It was warm, too, but the myriad of green leaves made it seem cool, and very restful to the senses. Jon pushed aside some of the overhanging branches and led her through to a small clear space where they could be private. There was a white painted bench to one side, but he did not invite her to sit. He simply stopped and faced her.

Now that they were alone, and the moment had come, Beth felt her courage ebbing away. How had she ever thought she could challenge Jon? She struggled to put a simple sentence together, but no words came.

‘You asked for a private word?’ His tone was gentler than she had expected. Was that because he was guilty about Miss Mountjoy?

The thought of that obnoxious woman in Jon’s embrace gave Beth a degree of courage that surprised her. ‘I understand you have engaged a new valet, sir.’ The words came out in a rush. ‘As mistress of your household, I should have preferred to learn of such a change from you, rather than from the servants.’

He flushed. ‘Good God! First my mother, and now my wife! Since when do I need permission from the women of my household to decide upon my own manservant?’

He was angry. Yet Beth was beginning to know him well enough to suspect that this show of temper was partly a cover for his embarrassment. He must know he was in the wrong over this.

‘Might I ask why you have decided to make the change, sir?’ Beth asked innocently.

Her tone had its effect. He took a deep breath and, when he spoke again, his anger had been replaced by gruffness, as if he were explaining a lesson to a rather stupid child and working hard to control justifiable impatience. ‘I no longer have need of Vernon’s skills. He should serve a single man, the kind of employer who wishes to cut a figure in society. All well and good when I was just returned from Spain, but no longer.’

He reached for Beth’s hand and, to her surprise, raised it to his lips for a gallant kiss. Was that by way of apology for his show of bad temper?

‘Now that I am married, I plan to spend more time in the country.’ His voice was almost normal again. ‘There is much to do here, and at the other estates. A country gentleman has no need of a man like Vernon. Joseph’s skills will be more than adequate, even when I am in town.’