Nibbling on a small square of cucumber sandwich, she peered over at her guest who had spoken very little as she’d taken him through the assortment of rooms. She’d pointed out the duke’s bedchamber and given him leave to peer inside. She had not invited him into her chamber beside it, although it seemed as they passed it that a stillness came over him, even as they carried on. He had spent a great deal more time than she would have expected in the nursery, and she wondered if he’d been envisioning his son lying in the bassinet with its lacy canopy. Every aspect of the residence was elaborate, screamed wealth. No expense had been spared by previous dukes to display their power.

“After luncheon, we’ll take a stroll through the gardens, shall we? Twelve acres that represented Lushing’s pride and joy. He did love his gardens.”

“He did the work himself?”

She laughed lightly at the absurdity of any noble toiling in the soil, getting dirt beneath his nails. “Oh no. But he designed them, then hired others to bring to life what he’d envisioned. Some areas are extremely calming, others invigorating.”

Ahead of them was a fountain, Poseidon leaping from it, his trident in hand. The babbling water always brought her a sense of peace. She finished off her sandwich. “Is it what you expected?”

“More so.”

“Does it hold sway over you?”

He shifted his gaze over to her. “It’s impressive. And it certainly calls to my greedier instincts. Don’t you feel guilty about what you’re planning? It’s theft, sweetheart.”

“I can’t afford the luxury of guilt at the moment. It is not the things that I want. It is the prestige, the position. We once had two hundred guests visit. Every bedchamber occupied. Tents were erected on the lawn for those who didn’t warrant a bed within the residence. I planned the guest list and the itinerary. The Prince of Wales took several suites of rooms. I was terrified I would get something wrong. But I handled it all with aplomb, never let on that I was trembling in my slippers, because that was what was expected of me. We’ve had foreign dignitaries in residence. I was ever the gracious hostess here, at the other estates, in London. They say that nobles do not work. Well, I worked. Not backbreaking labor but soul-crushing endeavors that often prevented me from eating or sleeping because of worry that whatever I did would be found lacking. And because I wanted Lushing to be proud, proud he’d taken me to wife.”

“I can’t imagine that he wasn’t.”

“He certainly never made me feel as though he wasn’t. Still, in the end I didn’t give him the one thing he required: an heir.”

“That responsibility could have rested with him.”