“Wait a minute.” Bennett ran a hand over his face and through his thick mane of hair. “I feel as though I’ve walked in on Act Two. Are you talking about Eve? You think she’d be upset that I’m, well, let’s say flirting with one of her actors?”

Alexander felt the rage spill over for a man who had the sun and only insisted on courting lesser stars. “If you must continually be unfaithful, can’t you limit it while she’s under our roof?”

“Unfaithful?” Bennett shook his head. “Now I’m afraid I’ve missed Act Two altogether. I don’t have anyone to be unfaithful to …” The words trailed off as the full meaning struck. He stared at his brother, then collapsed in uproarious laughter. “Eve?” He choked on another fit of chuckles and leaned against the newel, carved three hundred and fifty years before into the head of a cat. “I can’t believe that you—” Bennett struggled for breath, pressing a hand to his heart as Alexander’s eyes grew darker and darker. “I can take that as a compliment, brother, and a truly inspired joke.” He draped an arm around the newel, ankles crossed. There was nothing he liked so much as a good joke. “Alexander, you of all people should know better than to believe what you read in the paper.”

Rigid with fury, Alexander remained where he was. “I have eyes of my own.”

“But your vision’s clouded. You can’t seriously believe there’s anything … God, how to put this delicately.” He ran his hand over his face again, then dropped it. The smile was still in place. “Anything intimate between me and Eve?”

“You can stand there and tell me you’re not lovers?”

“Lovers? Sweet Lord, I’ve never even touched her. How could I?” Though the amusement still colored his tone, sincerity balanced it. “She’s part of the family. She’s as much sister to me as Brie.”

Something twisted open in Alexander’s heart, but he remained a cautious man. “I’ve seen you together, walking in the garden, laughing in corners.”

Bennett’s smile faded slowly as Alexander spoke. Comprehension came just as slowly. His brother loved, and because their family bond was strong, Bennett understood the torment it would have caused him. “Because she’s about the closest friend I have, and one I see so seldom. There’s nothing between us, Alex.” He stepped closer, wondering how long his proud, stubborn brother had been hurting. “If you’d asked me sooner, I’d have told you.”

The weight began to lift from his shoulders, the back of his neck, his heart. And yet … “Perhaps there’s no attachment on your side. Can you be so sure of Eve?”