“And she’ll need office supplies,” Mrs. Frazier said.
“Colored pens, for sure,” Colin said, his eyes teasing.
“Yes, now go,” Mrs. Frazier said. “I have a lot to do today and you two will just be in my way.”
Colin looked across the table to Gemma. “It looks like we’re unwanted.”
Gemma smiled. She would love to spend another day with him!
The minute Colin and Gemma were out of the room, Peregrine Frazier turned to his wife. “Alea,” he said slowly, “what are you up to?” When she didn’t immediately answer, he ran his hand over his face. “It seems like lately I’m asking you that every other day.”
Alea still didn’t reply, just sat there looking at him
with an expression he couldn’t read.
“I gave in to you on those old papers, and now I’m paying the salary and living expenses of a student. I know that we can well afford that, but you’re up to something with our eldest son and I want to know what it is.”
Alea gave a sigh. “You and I have been married for over thirty years, so you must know what I want most in the world.”
“To get someone in England to declare you a lady?” he asked, his voice a symphony of frustration. He hated it when his wife did this to him. It was as though she was saying that if he truly loved her, he’d intuit what she was thinking.
“If you believe that’s what I deeply and truly want most in life, then you know nothing about me.”
Peregrine resisted the urge to look at his watch, but he knew from experience that doing so would cause a fight. He just wanted to go to work, finish a couple of contracts, then play golf with his friend, Dr. Henry Shaw. But at the same time, he wanted to know what his wife was truly after because, sometimes, her schemes caused problems. Even though, with the exception of wanting to make herself into a countess, her plots had all been for him or their children, they hadn’t always done what she meant for them to.
In high school, when their daughter, Ariel, cried because she didn’t have many friends, Alea became the sponsor of the cheerleaders—which included purchasing the uniforms—but only if Ariel was put on the team. That had worked out well. When Lanny, at sixteen, was so shy he wouldn’t even go to a dance, Alea arranged for him to spend a summer in Paris studying ballet. He’d been the only heterosexual male in the class. That had not worked out so well.
“Alea,” he said patiently, “I really don’t know—” He cut himself off because he remembered something she’d said years before. When Colin was about four, she’d said, “I think he’ll give us smart, beautiful grandchildren.” It had been such an odd thing to say, considering the child’s age, that it had stuck with him.
“Grandchildren,” he whispered. When Alea smiled warmly at him, he knew he’d answered correctly, but he still didn’t understand. “Are you saying that you don’t care about being a countess?”
“Of course not! That my own family thinks that I’m such a shallow person that I’d want that—” She couldn’t seem to find words to describe how bad that had made her feel.
Peregrine leaned back in his chair. “How long have you been working on this . . . this plan? Whatever it is?”
“Ever since Eleanor Shaw’s first grandchild was born,” she said quickly. As energy surged through Alea, she stood up. “Every woman in this town has grandchildren.”
He knew what she meant. Not every woman, but nearly every woman who had grown children and was a descendant of the seven founding families did have grandchildren.
“Ellie Shaw has three grandchildren and her youngest daughter, Sara, is already pregnant. She’s only been married a few months. Then there’s Helen Connor. Twins! And her daughter-in-law named them after her grandparents!”
Alea was a tall woman, and she was top-heavy—a physical trait that he’d always loved—but when she pulled herself up to her full height, she could be downright intimidating.
“All of them have grandbabies to spoil and adore,” Alea continued. “Helen has only one child but two grandchildren—and more to come. What do I have? Five children and not even the hope of a grandchild.”
“Ariel is probably going to marry that guy Frank Thiessen,” Peregrine said meekly. He’d had no idea this was a problem to his wife. His belief was that these things would happen and it was best to let nature take its course.
Alea threw up her hands. “Our daughter hasn’t finished her residency yet and when she does, do you think she’s going to want to jump right into motherhood?”
“She might—”
Alea glared at him. “Don’t you think I haven’t talked to her about this? You think we haven’t had a mother-daughter talk about her having children? The age of her eggs, the age of the man she wants to marry—this time, that is. Frank is what, the third man she’s been seriously involved with?”
Peregrine kept his face straight but he vowed to call his daughter ASAP and tell her he loved her just as she was.
“And then there are our boys,” Alea continued. “Lanny will never marry. He likes to . . . I don’t want to think about what he does. Pere prefers to sit back and let women make fools of themselves because of his pretty face. He’s not going to trade that pleasure in for some woman who expects him to help with the housework.”
Peregrine felt as though entire lives had been going on in his house that he knew nothing about—and he was fascinated. “Shamus?” he asked.