Regency Rogues: Wicked Seduction: Her Enemy at the Altar / That Despicable Rogue. Virginia Heath

did appear to be making an effort. Whether that was truly the case, Connie supposed she was about to find out.

      He offered her an approximation of a smile. The corners of his mouth turned up ever so slightly so she responded in kind, noticing that his did have a bit of a blue tinge to them. ‘Aaron went out over an hour ago, I believe. Am I to guess, judging by your attire, that you expected to go with him?’

      A cup of tea appeared miraculously at her right elbow, giving Connie a prop to hide behind if she needed it. She picked it up and used it to cover her disappointment. ‘Perhaps he forgot. It is of no matter.’

      ‘It is not like my son to be absent-minded. More likely he was avoiding trouble. He does that a great deal. Did the two of you have another fight?’ It was obvious, by the knowing glint in his dark eyes, that he was regularly appraised about her and his son’s relationship. The servants must have seen Aaron storm out of her rooms last night and assumed that he had done so because he was angry at her. But they had not fought and, since her illuminating conversation with Mrs Poole, Connie was even more convinced that it had been something more sinister that had sent him running away.

      ‘Things were cordial between us last night.’

      At the viscount’s immediate smug smile, she realised that he had just misinterpreted what she had said. ‘Well, that is splendid! I am glad to know that the pair of you are using your evenings properly.’

      Connie gave him a brittle stare and took a sip of her tea. Aaron wanted the old man to think that they were going to provide him with a grandchild. She could hardly correct him in that belief, no matter how much she wanted to. The man was dying.

      ‘With any luck you will have some news in the next few weeks.’ She was not going to discuss their non-existent attempts to create a child. The very idea was as preposterous as it was improper. ‘These things take time. It might even take many months. We all have to be patient.’ She said the last quite pointedly in the hope that he would get the message. Unfortunately, the viscount simply laughed.

      ‘Nonsense! We Wincanton males are very vigorous. Why, my wife was carrying Aaron within a month of our marriage.’ He said this so proudly that Connie almost missed his eyes flick to a portrait of a woman over the fireplace.

      ‘Is that Aaron’s mother?’ His good humour was suddenly a little subdued when he nodded. ‘She was very beautiful.’

      ‘Indeed she was. I think Aaron has also inherited a great deal of her personality. Elizabeth was always more affable. She died when he was a year old, but I think she would have been proud to know the man he has become.’

      Something about the way he said this made Connie wonder if he was actually capable of something akin to genuine affection. He had never remarried, which was unusual for men with titles. It would have been expected that he produced another son in case the unthinkable had happened. Her own father would have, she knew. Had the roles been reversed, he would have got over the death of his wife quickly in order to cement the succession. Hadn’t he repeatedly complained of his disappointment at having been given a daughter first? Especially such an outspoken and ungainly one. Perhaps, underneath all of that bluster, Viscount Ardleigh would soften towards her in time. Already, he had invited her to break her fast in his company. Surely that was something?

      Connie stood and began to help herself to the covered breakfast dishes. If her father-in-law wished to have a convivial breakfast with her she might as well eat. It was not as if she had anywhere else to go, seeing as Aaron had disappeared without her. ‘Aaron told me that you were unhappy with his decision to go into the army.’

      ‘Of course I was. It was a reckless decision that could have killed him. But he is stubborn and went anyway. I am eternally grateful that he came back in one piece.’

      ‘And by all accounts he came back a hero, although he is very closed lipped about it. What did he win his medals for?’

      Connie had expected to see pride shining in the old man’s face, but instead the viscount appeared irritated. ‘He won them for putting himself at risk! Officers should lead from the rear, not the front. But, of course, Aaron has no regard for proper rules so he was always in the thick of it as far as I can tell. He won one of them at Badajoz, where he apparently went after a few of his men who had been taken by the French and took them back, single-handed. Like a blasted fool. He should have left them there. The second was at Ciudad Rodrigo, for another foolhardy act of selfless bravery. I cannot say how he came by it because he refuses to talk about it. Those damn medals do not seem to bring him any pleasure at all.’