The Courage Duology by Rachel Melanie

Author:Rachel, Melanie
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2023-09-20T00:00:00+00:00

Sophia Hawke looked through her sorted letters of business and picked up the pile she had set aside.

“Ah, Mr. Hobson, please come in,” she said to the man standing in her small study. He was a tall man, nearly as tall as his son and still possessed of a powerful frame despite his advancing years. His hair retained streaks of red amidst the silver, and while his clothing was in step with his position, it was well made, pressed, and clean.

“Miss Hawke, I understand I am to correspond with you at Pemberley should anything essential arise?” he asked quietly.

“I would appreciate that, Mr. Hobson,” replied Sophia as she glanced around the study, certain she was leaving something important behind. “I shall take some additional monies for any post you might send and leave it with the housekeeper, a Mrs. Reynolds, I believe. She will see to it. If it is urgent, send one of the Clauson boys direct.”

After a moment of silence, he spoke again. “Will that be all, Miss Hawke?”

Sophia tilted her head at him, distracted for a moment by how much Jack resembled his father. She had tried to get him to call her Sophia, but to no avail. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Hawke and the mistress of the house, such as it was, and he would brook no such informality with her. He was insistent that Jack address her likewise, and that had bothered Sophia a great deal more than she thought it ought.

“Please sit down, Mr. Hobson,” she said calmly but firmly. The man seemed to hesitate, and she indicated one of two wingchairs crowded together by the fire. “Please,” she repeated.

Her steward lumbered over to the wingchair and eased himself into it. Although he hid it well, it was a simple thing for Sophia to note that his back was stiff and painful. Though it was not the only reason for the conversation she was about to have, it made her decision even more important. She had to make this offer to him in a way that would not offend his pride.

Once he was settled, Mr. Hobson waited for her to begin. His two large weathered hands lay clasped in his lap, his thumbs rubbing anxiously against one another. Sophia cleared her throat. She was just as nervous, but seeing the man so uneasy in her presence, she squared her shoulders and began.

“Mr. Hobson,” she said, rather a bit too loudly. He looked to her and she modulated her voice. “How old is Jack now?”

Stupid, she thought. You know exactly how old he is.

Mr. Hobson stumbled over his words briefly before saying, “Seven and twenty, ma’am.”

“I see. And you hope for him to take over for you when you are ready to retire?”

“It is my hope, ma’am, to leave you in a few years with a man we can both trust in my office.”

She gazed at Mr. Hobson’s lined, craggy face with true affection. How fortunate we have been to have such a man to watch over Darlington.

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