She nodded. “Of course. My phone is out of battery, and as for Alex… well, I couldn’t tell you where he is. I’ll call her house this evening and let either her or Stanley know that she’s fine to take a couple of days off. I believe we’d agreed she’d take a week off when the baby was born anyway to be on hand, so it’s not a bother.”

Wow.

If only all employers were that understanding.

“That’s kind of you,” I said as Boris brought the tea tray in. “When my sister’s co-worker was pregnant, her boss tried to argue that she was even entitled to maternity leave.”

“I can’t stand people like that. No, we must look after our own. Thank you, Boris. That will be all.” Elizabeth took control of pouring the tea as Boris bowed his head and left us alone, closing the double doors behind him.

I still wasn’t used to her old-school way of doing things. If Boris ever made me tea, I always asked him to join me for a cup, and so did Alex.

Different generations, I guessed.

It was fascinating.

“Dylan—that’s Angela’s husband—is Scottish, and his parents still live near Aberdeen somewhere. He moved to London for his career, met Angela, and moved back here with her four years ago when she was pregnant with their son. Their only support network is Sylvia and Stanley. Sugar?” When I nodded for one, she dropped the cube in my teacup. “This country still doesn’t allow fathers enough time off work after the birth of their children, so if Sylvia needs some time off to assist them with the new baby, then I’m perfectly fine with that. She’s been the nanny to my granddaughter for ten years—I’m sure we can survive without her for a week or so while she tends to her own family.”

I smiled at her and thanked her for the tea. “She’s been with you that long?”

“Yes, ever since Olympia was a few months old. Nothing major at that point, you understand, as her mother was still with us, but she was a great help while my husband was ill.”

I dropped my gaze. “Sorry.”

“Whatever for, dear? Reminding me of my wonderful husband? No, that’s never anything to apologise for.”

“For bringing up Olympia’s mum.”

“You didn’t. I did.” She sipped her tea. “I admit, we don’t discuss her often.”

“Was she not a good person?”

Elizabeth tilted her head to the side.

“Sorry—it’s none of my business. I’m just curious, that’s all. You don’t have to answer.”

A small smile played on her lips and she set her teacup down on the saucer. “People can’t be split into good and bad, Adelaide. We like to think of ourselves as that, but really, we all live our lives in shades of grey. It’s simply that some of the things we do are lighter greys while some are darker. Nobody is truly good, and nobody is truly evil.”

“As true as that may be, it doesn’t answer the question.”

She laughed, and she leaned back, more relaxed than I’d ever seen her. “It does not. No… Natalie wasn’t a bad person. She and Alexander were very young, and in my opinion, weren’t a relationship that would last. He made some very reckless decisions before his father took ill, and as far as Arthur and I were concerned, Natalie was nothing more than a fling. Until she fell pregnant.”

I watched on as Elizabeth sighed and picked up her teacup again.

“There was a time when he considered marrying her. Really, when it was the only option, if only even for a short time. The heir to the dukedom must be a male born of the body, in wedlock, as I’m sure you know.”

I nodded.

“Neither of them were particularly keen on the idea, but Alex understood the situation, so we came to a compromise. They would find out the gender, and if the baby was a boy, they would get married, and after a year, separate. Natalie would live on the estate, and we would pay for everything for the boy. If the baby was a girl, nothing needed to change.” Elizabeth looked out of the window. “Of course, we have Olympia, so nothing changed.”

“What if it had been wrong?”

“Natalie had more invasive testing. There was a hereditary illness in her family it was recommended she be tested for, so it was done at the same time. I don’t remember what it was, but it didn’t affect females, so Olympia is fine.” She cradled her teacup. “They broke up not long after Olympia was born, but we continued with our agreement, just without the marriage. Natalie lived on the estate and was well-looked after, but they did part ways when Olympia was barely walking.”

I swallowed.

“Then, of course, when Olympia was five…” She trailed off, then sighed. “Natalie had long taken advantage of her position as the mother of Lady Olympia Winthrop-Bentley, only child of the future Duke of Worcester, and it opened more doors for her than I was comfortable with. She rose to quite a high position in society and in fashion, and she was on her way back from an event in London.”

Tags: Emma Hart The Aristocrat Diaries Romance
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