Page 60 of When the Scoundrel Sins

“You can manage this place yourself and put into motion all those plans Belle has for the village and improving the estate. And you fit in well here. You won’t be able to say the same about America.” He gestured with his cheroot, indicating the house and the estate, even the unseen mountains in the distance. “Look around you, Quinton. Everything you want is right here.” He added, “And a beautiful woman to share it with.”

“Not everything.” The estate would always be Belle’s, not his. No matter what the law said about matrimonial property, this place would always belong to her, its heart and soul belonging to her alone. True, he wanted to be like his father, a man who would never lord rights and privileges over his wife and home. But Quinn also knew it would grate to know that he’d come into marriage as an unequal partner.

As for Annabelle…a man didn’t give himself to a woman like her and walk away with his heart intact.

He turned away from the French doors. “Asa Jeffers needs me. I promised Father I would take care of him and his wife.” He wouldn’t walk away from that, even if the thought of leaving Belle grew harder to accept with each new day. “America was the path Father wanted for me.”

“Yes. Because he knew how much it chafed at you to be the third son. Because he knew you’d need a way to prove yourself, away from the family’s influence and the title. Because he knew that life in the military or the church would never satisfy you, that you wanted to work for a living.” Robert put his hand on Quinton’s shoulder, adding quietly, “Because he wanted you to be happy.”

Guilt once more gnawed at Quinn’s gut. Around them, the din of the party hummed low, and the soft night air gave an appreciated respite from the stifling heat and too-sweet odor of beeswax candles wafting through the overcrowded ballroom. All the guests waited expectantly for Belle to make her announcement and end their suspense.

All except him.

“Father thought America would give you that chance at happiness, so he arranged it,” Robert said soberly. “But Jeffers doesn’t need you. He doesn’t have any sons, but he has successful sons-in-law who could take over the farm, or who would welcome him and his wife into their homes if they didn’t want to work the land. He doesn’t need you.Youneed him. That’s why Father wanted you to go to Charleston. He understood that part of your nature better than you did.”

Struck by the concern in Robert’s voice, Quinn slowly raised his eyes and met his gaze.

“You need to be needed, Quinton,” Robert continued quietly. “Always have. All the schemes we planned out as boys, all the trouble we got into…you always had to be at the center of it. Every contest and bet you carried out was because someone else needed you to do them—whether to win money or just to have a good time. Father knew that about you. He wanted you to have the chance to prove yourself on your own merits, but he also knew that you’d only be happy starting a new life if you had someone who depended upon you, who needed your help.”

His brother fell silent for a moment to study the glowing tip of his cigar, the same way Father always did when they smoked cigars in the dining room after the ladies had gone through. Quinton’s chest panged hollowly at the memory.

“That’s why you excelled at overseeing the properties when you took over as estate agent when Sebastian inherited,” Robert continued quietly. “Because you were needed there. No one else could have done it, and you thrived at it. That’s also why you were the one who spent so much time caring for Mother after Father died, because she needed you.”

Quinn looked away, his eyes stinging. He gritted his teeth against the pain he still carried for his mother’s grief. Always would.

“And you’re still here, in some godforsaken sheep pasture in the borderlands, because Belle needs you.”

With a skipping beat of his heart, Quinn snapped his gaze up to his brother’s. Could Robert be correct?

“You don’t have to go to America now. You’ve got everything you need right here to make yourself happy. You just have to accept it.” He leveled a sympathetic look at Quinn. “Father wanted you to be happy, no matter where you ended up.” He paused. “Does Belle make you happy?”

Quinton drew in a jerking breath and admitted, “Yes.” That was the God’s truth. He’d not been happier than during the past three weeks with Belle. “Very much.”

“Then stay right here, where you belong.”

A lead weight settled on his chest. The temptation Robert was dangling in front of him was a bittersweet one.

But he couldn’t take it.

“I’m going to America as planned,” he repeated, although this time the declaration left him wanting a good stiff drink.

Robert remained silent for a long while, then he drawled quietly, “And I’m leaving for London.” He flicked the ash from his cigar. “Tomorrow morning.”

Quinn stiffened at the news. He was parting from his brother far earlier than expected. “I thought you’d be riding all the way to Liverpool to see me off.”

And with that, the very real possibility that Quinn might not see his brother again for years. If ever. After all, most people who crossed the Atlantic made one-way voyages.

Truly, he had no idea when he would be able to return. His mother could very well have passed away before then, given her age, which was why he was privately glad that Sebastian married Miranda when he did, to soften the blow of Quinn’s leaving by giving her a new daughter to fuss over. God only knew when he’d see Josie and his nephew and niece again, or how many more children she and Chesney would have while he was gone. Seb and Miranda would be plagued by children; he was certain of it from the way those two stared at each other. And Robert would make good on his business ventures and become a wealthy trade merchant—he was already well on his way, in fact.

When Quinn did come back to visit in five years or so, there would be so many Carlisles running around Blackwood Hall and Chestnut Hill that he’d never be able to keep track of them all. And missing each of them terribly when he had to leave again.

Robert looked down as he rubbed the ash into the stone terrace with the toe of his boot. “I thought I was going there, too. But a business matter has come up. I received a message this afternoon. Those trade investments I made in India have finally paid off. The ship docked at Greenwich three days ago, and I want to be in London when the goods are auctioned.” He paused to inhale a deep, shaking breath. “This is it, Quinn. The opportunity I’ve been waiting for. One which might very well turn into a partnership with a large trading company.”

Might…Concern nagged at him. “Does Sebastian know what you’re planning?”

Robert froze for just a beat, but Quinn caught it. They were brothers; of course he noticed everything about him. Hadn’t he wanted nothing more when he was a boy than to be just like Robert, looking up to his older brother the way boys now idolized Gentleman Jackson or Wellington?

“No, and I don’t want him to. Not yet. If plans develop as I hope, then I’ll be able to launch a successful life for myself, just like you. Only in a civilized country.” Robert shot him one last warning look to mind his own business. “I’ll tell him soon, butI’lltell him—not you.”