An Ideal Husband? Read Online Free PDF

know what his father was capable of and how, each time, the fits of anger appeared to last longer. Most of all he feared the gentle father he loved would remain a raging mad man, incapable of coherent thought. The doctors told him that there was nothing they could do except lock him up, and Richard was not prepared for that to happen.
    ‘Mother, as I went to bed in the not-so-early hours of the morning, I have not seen the papers.Whatever you are seeking to blame me for, I am innocent.’ He held out his hand. ‘Pinch me. See, I am here in my bed, alone.’
    ‘At least tell me that the woman in question is an heiress, this redoubtable woman of yours. Your father might understand your need to chase her up here if she was eligible. Your being single must be a worry. I know how relieved he was when I produced you as the heir. All your father has ever cared about was having the line continue and those blasted pigs of his.’
    He pressed his lips together, considering the first part of his mother’s statement. He could explain away Newcastle on chasing an heiress. His father would accept that, rather than going into some apoplectic rage over the fact that his son had regular contact with the one woman he hated more than life itself. His father’s mental state and health were far too fragile to risk that. He loved both parents and refused to bow to his father’s insistence that he choose a side. Once his father’s health improved, he would explain properly. For now, a small amount of subterfuge had to be used. Two parts of his life kept separate.
    ‘What do the papers have to do with it?’ he asked.
    ‘Myers, the
Newcastle Courant
for your master, if you please.’
    Richard nodded to his valet, who gave a bow.
    His manservant brought the
Newcastle Courant
as well as one of the more popular scandal sheets, freshly ironed. He turned to the gossip page of the scandal sheet and pointed. Richard gave him a curious look.
    ‘It has the best wording, my lord. The
Courant
used a bit more veiled language. I thought it best to take the precaution of examining all the papers. I like to be prepared for all mention of my gentlemen.’
    Richard scanned the paper and winced.
Has the scandal-prone Lord B—been captured at last by the redoubtable Miss R—? Turtledoves were cooing last night. A wedding is devotedly hoped for but, given Lord B—’s form, not expected
.
    Scandal-prone indeed! The last crim. con. trial had not been his fault at all. His name should never have been mentioned. The Duke of Blanchland admitted that later. He’d been the innocent party, attempting to assist a woman, driven to distraction by her errant husband. The Duchess had never been his mistress. He had already bedded her sister. He had his code.
    He folded the offending paper in half and glared at his mother.
    ‘Preposterous nonsense, Mother. You shouldn’tbelieve things that you read in the papers. Surely you learnt that long ago!’
    His mother slapped her gloves together. ‘I won’t have it, Richard. Not when Hannah is about to be married. They will drag up the whole contretemps between your father and myself … and the issue of Hannah’s parentage. And if your father comes up here, there is no telling what he’d do. He swore revenge. I won’t have my innocent child suffer!’
    ‘And this has nothing to do with Hannah. In any case, your late husband adopted his daughter. It was all sorted in the end. My father did behave well on that.’
    ‘He never paid back my dowry and he ensured I had to lead a life of economies.’
    ‘It was your father who negotiated the settlement. The money was spent in part on refurbishments that you ordered.’
    ‘Do you know this redoubtable Miss R?’ His mother slapped her hand down on the paper. ‘For the life of me I can’t think of any acquaintances with the last name of R who would warrant the sobriquet of “redoubtable”. There is Petronella Roberts, but she has spots, and Sarah Richards fills out her