Lord Hart had just left the room and Low turned to watch his broad back as it sauntered into the hall. He was surprised to see his father's frame at the door, watching with a frown as his elder son walked in the opposite direction. The Duke peered into the room and his gaze collided with Low's, who had been watching his brother leave.

His frown became a dark look as he walked into the room with the two of them, Low and Margery. Low raised a brow when his father did not greet him or smile as he was used to, and came to stand over his wife with a huff. The Duke watched her pen a response to the neighbour and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I am going to London. Give my regrets." He muttered. She looked up in surprise but nodded and accepted his kiss on the cheek. It looked awkward and forced, but Margery still smiled beautifully at the attempt. "Behave." He shot the words at Low before ruffling his hair and moving towards the door. He stopped at the door.

"Was there something else, father?" Low asked as he focused back on his stepmother's task. The next words shocked him to his core.

"Don't bother getting to be good friends with that lecher. He will be gone soon enough." Were growled before he stormed down the hall. The Duke's footsteps echoed through the corridors and out the front door. Low and Margery exchanged a glance.

"He really doesn't like him." Margery commented with a frown. Low sighed and nodded in agreement.

"I don't know why. Sometimes I think that it can't just be about that incident as we were children. There has got to be something else. Something he is not telling us. I just don't want to believe he is being so awful just because of that." He sat down on a chair and dragged a hand through his somewhat mussed hair, causing it to go all over the place.

"I wouldn't know. He doesn't speak to me about these things." Margery admitted with a shrug. Low offered a sympathetic smile.

"Don't take it to heart. He doesn't speak to me about those things either. All he does is teach me accounts and estate manage...ment. Wait. Marge. Do you think... do you think he is really planning on disowning Derry?" Low looked at her with a rather shocked expression as it suddenly hit him. All those years, had his father been grooming him to be the heir instead of Derry?

"I confess it would not shock me. He has been teaching you about the estates, not Derry." She got a look on her face that was strange. Like she was warring with the pleasure of ripe gossip and the displeasure of it being bad news.

"But... but that is not fair! He is the eldest. He didn't do anything wrong. If anyone should be disowned, then it should be me." He cried out without thinking. Margery gave him a look.

"What? Why you? You were just a scared child too." She reasoned with him. He blushed fiercely and looked away.

"Yes, but I was the one who crawled into his bed that night." He said ashamedly. Margery laughed in derision.

"Please. As if that matters. I think your father wanted to find something wrong with him. That is what it seems like anyways. I wonder why...." She got a curious look in her eyes as she scribbled out the last signature and carefully dusted it to dry.

"I don't know. Do you think... he would disown me too... if... I did something wrong?" Low haltingly mumbled. Margery shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know. He seems to love you a great deal. I think you could steal his fortune from under his nose and he would forgive you." She replied as she began folding up the first letter. He hummed and looked down at the carpet in deep thought. His eyes strayed to the doorway and he bit his lip.

"I wish I could protect him. I think... even if father disowns him... I will tell him he will always be welcome to come back home." Low said decisively. Margery smiled at the younger man and nodded in agreement.

"Yes, as long as your father isn't here. Derry is always welcome in my books." Her voice was cheerful and carried out to the hall with Low's to where a figure had paused in the hall before reaching the room. Derry was pleasantly met with the words which were said outside his known hearing. It was a comfort to know that they truly felt that way towards him.

He waited a few moments more before resuming his walk to the door, until the conversation had changed direction at least, and went back inside smiling. The other two were finished with their task, and they decided to go for a stroll to the library next. Margery gave the stack of responses to a passing maid to be delivered.

"I don't think I actually want to start a new book. I am still reeling after the romance I read the other day. It was so tragic, I wanted to cry at the end." She lamented to the two men as they entered the large room filled with books.

"That was your first mistake, Duchess. You chose a romance." Derry snickered at her as she shot him a glare.

"Romances aren't all bad. I like the ones with a bit of intrigue." Low replied defensively. Marge nodded her head in agreement.

"Yes, the ones with action and adventure are nice too." Margery made a swishing motion like she was swinging a sword, making the gentlemen laugh. Then she skipped over to a stack of books on the desk, sitting in a wooden box and cushioned with brown paper wrappings.

"Some new ones come in?" Low asked curiously while looking at some titles on the shelf he was now leaning against.

"Yes. They look rather boring though. Oh, maybe not this one." She picked up a small blue book tooled with gold leaf. After flipping to a few pages and glancing at the writing, she tucked the book under her arm and sauntered to the door. "I have to go read this. It looks too interesting not to start right away and there is a lovely window seat in my room."

After declaring this, she skipped out the door and left the two brothers staring after her. Derry went over to the remaining stack of books, looking through them with little interest. Low nervously trailed his fingers over the spines of the books on the shelf in front of him, but didn't actually read a single one. He looked over at his brother's back nervously.

"Anything else worth reading?" He asked timidly. Derry looked over his shoulder at him, their eyes meeting for a second before Low's bounced away. He gulped at the sharp eyes that seemed to stare into his soul.

"No. I think the Duchess took the only new one worth it's salt." He replied a little sadly. Low nodded and bit his lip as he glanced over at the open door to the room. They could hear the serving staff moving about their chores, but none came near to bother them.

"I think he is wrong, you know." He said to Derry. His elder brother just gave him a confused look. "Father. I think what he is doing is very wrong. I just wanted you to know that. I am on your side Derry." He clarified with a determined look. Lord Hart raised his brows and smiled genuinely at him. It made his heart thump painfully in his chest to see that look directed at him so fully.

"Thank you, Low. You cannot imagine how much that means to me." He bowed a little and Low blushed.

"If he thinks I am going to ignore you just because he doesn't like you, he is dead wrong." Low grumbled as he thought of his father's words before he left for London.

"I am glad. If you don't want to read something, did you want to go for a ride?" Derry asked him as he glanced out at the overcast but mild day that showed through the curtains. Low coughed a little at the sudden image that passed though his mind. His brother was waiting for a response though, so he nodded his head instead to answer.

"You aren't a lecher. If anyone is a lecher...." He mumbled to himself as he followed the broad back out the door with a fierce blush threatening to surface.

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