It was a salvo Patrick hadn’t expected, but it only derailed him for a moment. “They would say not to let your opponent change the subject. Liam is Theodore Blackstone’s only male heir, meaning he is entitled to see the official operating agreement for Blackstone Bank.”

“I shall arrange for a copy to be delivered immediately,” Frederick said simply. “Now, about Gwen. I want your assurance that the incidents on the fire escape are a thing of the past.”

Heat engulfed every limb of Patrick’s body. He was used to parents throwing their daughters at him, not warning him away. Then again, he’d never reached above his station before. A pedigreed man like Frederick Blackstone was probably appalled that an Irish bogtrotter had dared touch his granddaughter. Gwen was a twenty-nine-year-old widow, not a green schoolgirl needing protection.

“What Gwen and I have is very special. I know the gulf between us is bigger than the Grand Canyon, but I will never do anything to hurt her.”

“She will be hurt if she openly associates with a man like you.”

The anger simmering inside Patrick burned brighter, but he tamped it down because Frederick was correct.

The older man continued talking. “Next week, dozens of relatives will descend on this house to welcome William back into the fold. There will be maiden aunts, nieces, nephews, and second cousins. Most of them spend their lives swanning around town to amuse themselves with empty pleasures and idle gossip. There are a few sharks among them, but most are mere plankton. My son Oscar is a shark, but don’t overlook the plankton. They can poison the water if they choose and mustn’t be underestimated.”

Patrick nodded. “Aside from Oscar, do any of these people have voting shares?”

“The men related to me by blood each have one or two percent. All combined, it adds up to twenty-five percent, but they let Oscar vote their shares. They have no experience in banking and know he acts in a way to earn the most money.”

“Who owns the rest?”

Frederick waved his hands. “People scattered all over the world. A monastery in Spain, a count in Russia. A few other people. They either telegraph their votes to us or authorize Oscar to vote their shares by proxy.”

That remaining twenty-five percent was powerful, and perhaps Patrick could find a way to use it to save Gwen’s college.

Patrick shared a bedroom with Liam on the top floor of the island mansion. It was painted in shades of pale gray and white, with a window overlooking the ocean. He woke to the sound of the surf rolling ashore and a cry of gulls in the distance.

He rolled over to see Liam silhouetted before the window, looking out to sea with a dismal expression. Outside, a haze of fog hovered over the ocean and blanketed the sky, the swirling white mists blurring the sunlight that tried to break through.