Victoria walked toward the side door of her mansion in London. Her brother had given it to her after both their parents had died and he inherited two houses. With their new title came more money, which Victoria used to upgrade the house.

As she entered the kitchen, she felt an immense different of temperature, and was happy for the cool air on her skin. Mr. Lennard greeted her while she took out her hairpins.

"What a lovely day it is for a ride," she told her butler while handing him the pins. "I might just leave the house again."

"Yes, my lady," Mr. Lennard responded. "But I am afraid it must wait. You have a visitor in the parlour."

"A visitor?" Victoria asked surprised. She had taken out all her pins and slid off her bonnet. "Whoever might that be?"

Mr. Lennard took the bonnet from the lady. "Lord Hawthorne, my lady."

"Lord Hawthorne? What is he here for?" She could not start to think why that particular lord would want to speak with her. She had had some visits from multiple ladies over the past days, asking about the rumours they had heard. In fact, she had two ladies in her parlor just before she started her walk so that she could get away from them.

"Very well," Victoria said and stroke her hands over her dress, enjoying the soft fabric. Although she often compared herself to her brother, the lady loved every dress she saw through the windows of shops. Twas one of the reason she did not go on walks outside her own property much.

This particular dress was the first one she bought when she came to live in her London house. Twas white with vertical brown stripes, and Mrs. Stanley had admired how both colours contrasted her long golden hair. She bought a matching bonnet, and discovered that it came with long, white gloves.

Mr. Lennard opened the door to the parlor as Victoria approached. The room was close to the front door, and the perfect room to have visitors. Twas one of the first ones she had redecorated. She renewed the green wallpaper and set in chairs, a small table and curtains in white. A piano filled the room and a fire place gave an easy feeling.

"Lord Hawthorne," Victoria said as she saw the man looking at a painting above the fire place. "I did not expect a visit from you."

The lord turned around and walked toward Victoria. His hair was dark brown, almost black, and he had a very confident way of walking. He took Victoria's hand and kissed the top of it.

"My apologies for the surprise, lady Blackburn. I was just admiring your painting." Lord Hawthorne pointed behind him.

"Tis not mine," Victoria told him. "My brother made it. He gave it to me when I moved in the house. With it came the promise that he will visit one day."

"How is lord Blackburn?" the handsome man asked.

"He is well. He enjoys the silence in the countryside." Victoria looked at lord Hawthorne. "But surely you are not here to ask about my brother. What brings you here? I hope it is not what many ladies before you have come to ask."

"I do not know what they were asking you about, my lady. But I would like to ask about lord Brompton."

"Ah," the lady said. The same every other visitor she had had, wanted to know about. She moved her hand, suggesting the lord could sit down, then rang a bell. "We will need a lot tea for this conversation."

"Yes, my lady?" Mr. Lennard asked when entered the room.

"Could you provide us with some tea and a piece of cake? And please, bring Mrs. Stanley. I believe this to be a conversation much rather heard by her than you."

The butler nodded, then left the room to complete the errands his lady had just given him.

While waiting for Mr. Lennard to return with tea and Mrs. Stanley, the chaperone, to arrive, lord Hawthorne did not say a word. He simply looked at the lady before him, and Victoria assumed this was the first time he truly saw her. They had only seen each other on balls, from a distance. Lord Hawthorne had never spoken to Victoria for he did not need a dance partner. He knew he could ask every dance of his wife, lady Hawthorne.

Finally, Mr. Lenard entered with Mrs. Stanley behind him. He put the tray of tea and cake on the table, than left the three people alone.

While pouring the tea into three cups, Victoria said: "you wanted to talk about lord Brompton, my lord?"

"Yes," the lord said. "Surely you have heard the rumours about you and him?"

"I have," Victoria answered. She handed the lord a cup and then sipped out of her own. "I am very curious about what it is you want to speak with me about. Surely you know the rumours are not true, for lord Brompton is your friend and your wife's brother."

Lord Hawthorne smiled. "Lord Brompton is very good at keeping a secret. The rumours might just as well be true while I have no knowledge of it."

"I can assure you, lord Hawthorne, I have not spoken to lord Brompton beside the invitation for a dance. None of the rumours are true, and I do not know how they ever came to exist."

"Of course, lady Blackburn. I shall take your word for it. But - merely out of curiosity - would you like being courted by a man like lord Brompton?"

"Ah," Victoria said and she set her cup down. "So that is what you came here for."

"I do not quite understand what you mean, my lady," lord Hawthorne politely said, but Victoria knew it was an act, for she understood what the lord came to her house for.

"Since you are married, I can be sure you are not asking it out of personal curiosity. The other lords you call your friends are either married or not my age. You want to know if I could fancy lord Brompton."

"If that is what you believe I asked, then I will not stop you from answering."

Next to Victoria, Mrs. Stanley made a strange sneezing noise in an attempt to hide her laughter.

"I could not tell if I would fancy lord Brompton, for I do not know him well. But as you certainly know, he has quite the reputation."

The lord took a sip of his tea, than answered: "yes, certainly. But let us not forget that this reputation was born when he was merely a child. His older brother was not the best example for him, but children always repeat what there elder loved ones do. As did lord Brompton, though he was not quite as lucky as his brother by being discovered."

"He robbed houses!" Victoria shrieked.

"I would not go as far as to call him a robber, but indeed he liked to take certain valuable objects. He merely took one candle holder and a pearl necklace, which - may I add - he planned on giving his mother. But as he was caught doing this, he became a better man."

"And you want me to believe he only stole once?" Victoria asked, not believing that the lord was trying to make his action lighter than they were.

"Lady Blackburn, does it matter so much what he did in his past, when I care about his present and his future?"

"Well," Victoria said calmly, "in his present he still carries the reputation, and in his future he will have to continue doing so."

"Lord Brompton is a good man, much better than his reputation leads to believe," lord Hawthorne protected his friend. "He stole for the love of his mother."

"But he stole nonetheless."

Mrs. Stanley cleared her throat, then said: "perhaps we should cease this discussion, for both are very strong-willed."

"Yes," lord Hawthorne said, looking directly at Victoria, "perhaps we should."

"Very well," she said. But this did not mean the ending of their disagreement. Victoria was indeed strong-willed and would not admit defeat so quickly.

"Does lord Brompton's past scare you, lady Blackburn? Will it make you stay at home instead of attending the Birmingham ball in a few days?"

Victoria laughed - hard. Oh, how she have been so blind! Lord Hawthorne was not there to sway her into a romance with lord Brompton. He merely wanted to fulfil his friends wishes by keeping the whispers as far away as possible.

"So that is what you are truly here for." She looked firmly at lord Hawthorne. "Lord Brompton has send you to me, because he is too afraid to come himself. He does not want me to attend the ball, so that the whispers can stop. Tell me, does lord Brompton want to court a young lady, but is he too ashamed about the rumours to do so now?"

Lord Hawthorne set down his cup, then looked back at Victoria. "I have no knowledge of that, lady Blackburn. And even if I did, I do not want to be the person to start the never ending trail of rumours."

"Then what is it? Why does lord Brompton want to know if I will be attending? Will he avoid me because of the rumours? He should not worry about that, for I seek no attention of him - nor any other man."

"So I assume you will not be attending the ball, then." The raise in lord Hawthorne's voice made the statement sound like a question - a rather hopeful question.

"I will not be chased away by lord Brompton, my lord. You may assure him I shall be there." She leaned back and watched the lord. "Does that mean he will not?"

Lord Hawthorne did not answer. He simply sat and watched Victoria, a smile on his face. Then he said: "I believe this is the end of our conversation, my lady. I will leave now."

"You most certainly will not," Victoria said. The lord's eyes grew wide with surprise.

"My lady?" he asked.

"For several days - since the rumours started, actually - I have been receiving multiple unexpected visits from curious ladies who want to know if the rumours are true. I have been avoiding my own house so that I do not have to make up a lie for why I do not want to speak about this anymore. So while you are here, I have a perfectly good excuse for not receiving more guests, and meanwhile I can hopefully understand why you started this rumour."