A Promise of Tomorrow (12 page)

“Thank you, Ellis. It’s good to be home,” he replied, giving him a warm smile in return and walking through the main doors into the hall.

Turning back to Kyle, he noticed a strange smile on the young man’s face and asked, “Is there somethingamiss, Mr. Allen?”

The young man chuckled and shook his head. “No, my lord. It’s just that this will be the second green room that you’ve sent me to.”

“Perhaps because ofyour eyes,”he murmured, thenhe decided he should quickly change the subject, as Kyle’s cheeks flushed and his eyes widened.

Clearinghis throat and castinga glance aside at Ellis, wondering if he’d noticed the exchange, he said, “Well then, Mr. Allen, I shall leave you in Ellis’s capable hands. When you are rested and refreshed, ring the bell and someone will show you to the library. Then we may begin our tour.” With a nod to Kyle, James allowed him to be taken up the main stairs by Ellis, followed by a footman with his trunk. He would take a few moments to peruse his letters before going upstairs himself. If he kept a decent distance between himself and his young guest, he might just make it through the next few days withhis sanityintact.

Chapter 7

 

A
FTER
the servants had come and gone with his bath, Kyle was too excited to lie down. Kentwood Hall was incredible. Kyle had been enchanted from the moment they passed the gatehouses and he’d gottenhis first view ofthe house.

It has a
moat,
for heaven’s sake
.

 

He felt like he’d stepped into the pages of a novel, and he couldn’t wait a moment longer to get onwiththe adventure.

After he rang the bell, a footman led him to the library, a large roomlined floor to ceilinginbookshelves made ofa wood so dark as to be almost black. Ahuge Persian carpet covered most of the floor in deep red tones, sprawling beneath heavy, dark, roughly carved wood furniture, all adding to the masculine and somewhat gothic feel of the room. Warren was seated in a tufted dark red velvet chair, staring into the fireplace with a large leather-bound book in his lap, lookingeverybit the broodinglord ofhis castle.

I
have
been reading too many novels,
he thought, rolling his eyes.

Victor had introduced himto Mrs. Radcliffe’s work when they first met in Shropshire, and Kyle had to confess that he had developed a voracious appetite for them. They were something his father would have never allowed in his house, and reading them had beena delicious sort ofrebellionfor himat the time.

As Kyle continued into the room, however, Warren looked up and smiled that warm smile that seemed to touch him everywhere at once, and the illusion was dispelled. This was no tortured, brooding villain, and his home was certainlyno haunted ruin.

“You’re down much earlier than I expected, Kyle. Was your roomto your liking?”Lord Warrenasked.

“Oh yes, thank you, my lord,” Kyle answered. “My room is wonderful. I simply wasn’t very tired and was eager to see the rest of the house.” He bit his lip then, wishing he hadn’t said that. He didn’t want to seemtoo eager.

Always the little bumpkin
. Victor’s voice echoed inside his head. But Warren only smiled in pleasure at his eagerness. Victor would have laughed at him.

But Warren is not Victor. Victor is not here, and he won’t be if you stop thinking about him!

Warren must have seen a change in his expression, for he asked, “Is everythingallright, Kyle?”
He didn’t seem convinced at Kyle’s nod, but he continued anyway. “As we are here already, I suppose we can start your tour with the library, if that meets with your approval?” Again Kyle nodded, tryingto bringa smile back to his face.

Warren stood and gestured about the room. “This roomwas a project begun by my grandfather, the third Viscount Sudbury, and in the intervening years, both my father and I have continued to add to it. If it weren’t for my sister’s influence, these would probably be the onlyimprovements made to Kentwood inmylifetime. I fear I love the old place too much as it is to think about expanding drawing rooms and adding ballrooms and the like. As you’ve probably guessed, I don’t entertainoftenunless myfamilyis visiting.”

Warren continued to detail some of the work that had been done, then took a moment to assure Kyle that he was welcome to read anything he chose before he glanced out the windows and said, “Well, perhaps we should move outdoors so you can get a feel for the place before the sunabandons us completely.”

Warren led him through the hall, back down the stairs into the courtyard, and around the east wing of the house. Kyle couldn’t help but notice the change in the man’s manner after only a few hours in his home. He seemed so much more relaxed and happy than he had in London. Unfortunately for Kyle, the change in him only served to enhance his already undeniable appeal, and he was hard-pressed to keep his mind from wandering down avenues it should not be wandering.

As he was led through the flower gardens and across the sprawling lawns, Kyle also couldn’t help but note the similarities between the lord and his home. It seemed to Kyle to be a living extensionofthe man. The openlawns, neatlylaid gardens, and simply shaped trees and shrubs had an air of quiet elegance that reminded him of their lord. There was nothing overly ornate or garish, no riots of colors or fantastical shapes, just nature simply arranged and neatly kept. The size and grandeur of the house were a little intimidating, as was the manhimself, but not inanycalculated fashion. It was more an air of harnessed power and quiet confidence that drew Kyle at the same time that it made himfeelcompletelyout ofhis depth.

When Warren determined that the sun had gone too far below the horizon for Kyle to see properly, he led himback to the house to continue their tour indoors. He was shown through the great hall with its plastered walls, rich tapestries, and minstrel’s gallery to a wellappointed dining roomin the modern style with white-trimmed bright lemon walls, gleaming delicate furniture, and brocade-covered seat cushions. As they walked, it felt a little like traveling through time, as the styles changed sometimes drasticallyfromroomto room.

When Warren noticed Kyle’s reaction to the mix ofperiods, he stopped his speech on the history of the house and chuckled. “I mentioned my sister’s influence? Well….” He waved his hand around. “While there are some rooms I won’t let her touch, I need to give ineveryonce ina while, else I’llnever hear the end ofit.”

Kyle smiled at his jesting tone and said, “It’s wonderful, my lord,”and he meant it. It had a character the pristine homes he’d seen in London lacked, a sense of history that drew him and made him wishfor years to explore everynook and cranny.

Letting his pleasure show openly on his face, he turned to find the lord of the house staring at him with a very odd look. As Kyle watched, the older man took a single step toward him, then halted, opening his mouth, but before he could say whatever it was he was going to say, Ellis entered through the doors at the far end of the room.

“Mylord, dinner is prepared. MayI serve?”he asked.

Withanother somewhat breathless chuckle, Warrensaid, “Ellis, your timing is impeccable, as always. Well, Mr. Allen, as we are alreadyinthe diningroom, are youprepared to dine?”

“Yes, my lord, I amquite prepared,” Kyle said with a laugh of his own.

He wondered what had prompted the odd look on the other man’s face and what he had been about to say, but it seemed the moment had passed, and he didn’t want to let it interfere with his enjoyment oftheir banter. He knew he was perhaps beingtoo familiar with Warren, teasing the way he was, but he couldn’t seem to help himself.

From the moment they’d entered the Hall, Warren had gone out of his way to make Kyle feel welcome and relaxed, and he couldn’t help but allow it to happen. The stress of his days in London and the worry about his situation were fading in a dream of fragrant gardens and tapestry-covered walls. He was losing himself in the pleasant fantasy of a kind, handsome lord in his charming red brick castle as ifhe belonged there.

He knew, deep down, that all too soon he would receive a reply to the letter he had sent before they left London, and the dream would be over. He also knew he’d done nothing to deserve this holiday. But for now, he would accept it and cherish it as the gift it was, knowing it would likely be a very long time before he would have another, and certainlynone so grand as this.

As they ate, Warren told him more of the history of the house and the neighboring villages, and Kyle was content simply to let that deep voice wash over him. They ended the evening by returning to the library and drinking port over a game of billiards, which of course Kyle lost, as he had very little experience with the game. The light banter they’d exchanged throughout dinner continued over the table, and as Kyle sipped his way through a second glass of port, he was feelingquite warmand content.

When Warren sat down by the fireplace to finish his port, Kyle happily moved to join him. He was tired, and the drink wasn’t helping, but he didn’t want the evening to end, and he couldn’t seem to bringhimselfto leave the other man’s companyjust yet.

Warren seemed preoccupied as he sat and sipped at his glass, and after a few moments Kyle began to feel that perhaps he’d overstayed his welcome. He was about to excuse himself when the older manspoke.

“So, Kyle, now you’ve had a few days to rest and recover, what are your hopes for your future?” he asked without looking up fromthe glass he held.

“I, I don’t know, my lord. I suppose it depends greatly on whether or not my aunt will see me. If she will, then… I suppose I will accept whatever position she is able to secure for me,” Kyle replied, caught a little off guard with the weighty turn of the conversation.

“Is there nothing in particular that you hope for?” he asked, looking up and meeting Kyle’s gaze with an intensity that set Kyle’s heart pounding.

Kyle had to take a moment and swallow the rest of the contents in his glass to wet his suddenly parched mouth before he could answer.

“No, my lord. I… I’ve never really thought about it, to own the truth. Father intended me for the church, but I don’t believe that will happennow,”he said, feeling some ofthe shame begin to creep back on him. He had to look down at his lap and away from that intense gaze to gather what few wits he had left.

“I must confess, I never really wanted a career in the church,” he continued, fidgeting nervously with the empty glass in his hand. “But now that I no longer have that choice, I don’t know what kind ofcareer I should wishfor or would be particularlysuited to.”

“I see,”the other mansaid quietly, and Kyle felt as ifhe’d failed some sort oftest.

His stomachtwisted as it had so manytimes withVictor and his father, and he looked up, dreadingthe look ofdisappointment he fully expected to see on Warren’s face. When he read only sympathy and understanding in the other man’s face, he was so surprised that all he could do was stare.

“I know the demands of duty and family as well as any, Kyle,” Warren said quietly. “I am on the path set for me by my father, and my father’s father before him, myself. I know what it’s like to live knowing only one future has been ordained for you. I was simply curious to know, now that you’ve been freed from that path, what youwould choose for yourself,”he said witha smallsmile.

Kyle continued to stare at Warren for several long moments, and before he could think of a response, the older man frowned and rose suddenly, saying, “Perhaps it was presumptuous of me to ask. Forgive me. I will claim weariness as my only excuse for the lapse and bid yougood night.”

“Oh no, my lord, there was no offense, truly. I only wish I had been able to give a better answer,” Kyle rushed to say in his confusion, not wanting Warren to be upset with him. He didn’t know how the mood had changed so quickly from the jolly time they had beenhaving, but he was sure somehow it was his fault.

“Well… I’m glad I did not offend you, Kyle, but I am indeed very tired, so I think it best we say good night. Until tomorrow,” the lord replied, his frown easing back into a somewhat sad smile before he turned and headed for the door.

“I’m a little tired myself, my lord. So I think I will join you,” Kyle said, followinghimout, stillfeelinga little uncertain.

They made their way up the main staircase together in silence and turned right to enter the west wing. After giving Kyle leave to make use ofanyofthe rooms onthe mainfloor he chose, Warrenbid himgood night againand continued downthe hall.

Before closing his door, Kyle was a little startled to discover that Warrenwas enteringa roomonthe opposite side ofthe hall, only a few doors down from his own. That he’d been put so close to the family rooms surprised him a little and helped ease the knot that had formed in his belly during their last conversation. The relief he felt, combined with the unusual amount of spirits he’d imbibed, allowed himto fallasleep not longafter his head hit the pillows.

The next day dawned bright and sunny, and though he was a little parched and his head hurt, he couldn’t help the thrill of anticipation he felt at spending another day in Warren’s company. Yesterday had been wonderful despite the few times his host had seemed preoccupied and perhaps a little displeased with him, and Kyle vowed to be extra vigilant today and not say anything that might ruin their time together. The man’s good opinion meant more to him with every moment they spent together, and he wanted everything to be perfect for however muchlonger he was allowed to stay.