Lucien glanced down at himself and lifted a shoulder. “Don’t mind my state of undress. Unless it bothers you?”

Gregory waved his hand. “It’s your house.”

“Come to my library.” Lucien led him to the back of the narrow house, where a compact room boasted bookshelves, comfortable though sparse seating, and a dazzling array of art on the walls, particularly of animals. Horses seemed to be the most abundant, but there were also dogs, sheep, goats, and even a cat.

“You like animals?”

“I like paintings of animals,” he said. “Whisky?”

“Why not?” Gregory lowered himself into a chair.

Lucien poured two glasses and delivered one to Gregory before sitting opposite him in what appeared to be the most well-worn chair. Gregory had presumed that was Lucien’s favorite.

“To what do I owe the pleasure of your call?” Lucien asked, as if they were being judged on polite manners.

Gregory didn’t care to play along with that. He preferred to cut right to the heart of things. “How is Evie?”

After swallowing a sip of whisky, Lucien shook his head. “I don’t know. I should call on her since that rubbish appeared in the newspaper today. Is that why you’re concerned?”

“I’m concerned because her life has been completely upended.”

“Right.” Lucien grimaced, deepening the grooves on his forehead. “How are you? I can’t imagine you enjoy seeing your name in the papers.”

“I don’t really care, to be honest. What harm will it do to me? I won’t get a voucher to Almack’s this Season? The horror.” Gregory took a drink.

Lucien cracked a smile. “We men are never punished the way women are. I can fuck my way through London, and I’d be congratulated.”

The unsettling butler appeared in the doorway. Gregory sat up straight as if he’d been caught doing something wrong.

“My lord, His Grace, the Duke of Evesham is here to see you.”

“Bloody hell,” Lucien muttered. “That is all today demands.” He looked down at himself once more. “Reynolds, I need a cravat and a coat. And the cravat has to be one of the obnoxiously colored ones. No, wait. Never mind. As if my state of undress will make him like me any less.” He laughed, and Gregory felt a pang of sympathy. How awful it must be to have such a contentious relationship with one’s father. But then he recalled the fact that he had a similar relationship with his brother.

Lucien squinted at Gregory. “Did Reynolds scare you?”

“He’s rather intimidating.”

“Excellent quality in a butler.” Lucien grinned. “He served in my regiment, and I hired him after he returned to England.”

“Did he get that scar in battle?” Gregory asked.

“He did. If you can believe it, he had a very boyish face before that.”