oanja

Masterpost | One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six

~*~

Spencer had planned on talking to Ryan about what he had heard, - technically it would not be betraying Captain Bryar’s trust if he did not mention Mister Stump by name and only repeated what he had heard, but he did not get a chance to do so for another week, as he did not meet Ryan in a situation where they could have a moment of privacy.

Finally on Wednesday Ryan stormed into the house in the middle of luncheon and demanded to speak with Spencer in private. They ended up in the office Spencer shared with his father, where Ryan paced the floor like a caged animal, clutching a piece of paper in his hand.

“What is it, Ryan? What has happened to make you so upset?” Spencer asked carefully, and walked to a cabinet by the window. “Do you want a drink? You look awfully pale.” He added and opened the liquor cabinet doors.

“Do not pretend that you do not know!” Ryan hissed and brandished the letter in his hand. “This must be your doing - you and that Bryar have been as thick as thieves ever since you met. I want him out of my house, that traitorous bastard!”

Spencer was taken aback by this accusation, and decided that perhaps he needed a drink more than Ryan. “You must take my word that I have no idea of what you are talking about. Can you not explain it to me more calmly?” he asked Ryan, although he knew that sometimes trying to calm Ryan down only made the man more agitated.

“It’s Pete - he wrote this letter to me saying he’s going back to Paris, and did not say when he is coming back. That would not normally cause me such aggravation, but I went to see Mikey to ask him about it, for he has been close to Pete for a long time now and he told me.” Ryan paused to stare at the letter angrily.

“Mikey told me that Pete had met some old friends at the ball last Friday, and I did not recognize any of the people mentioned, the exception being Captain Bryar, and Mikey said there had been some unpleasant things brought up from the past and that Pete felt it would be best for him to leave London for the time being. Just like that! And he did not explain any of this to me, nothing.

His letter just says that England is blackening his soul like smog does London, and that even if you treasured a butterfly captured in amber for its beauty it does not bring the insect back to life. There is also a metaphor about fishing but I have no idea what he is trying to say with that. So, Spencer, try to tell me once again that you do not know what is going on, for you have been trying to separate me and Pete for as long as you have known him.”

For a moment, Spencer considered not saying anything but abandoned the thought almost as soon as it appeared. This was his chance to finally give Ryan reasons to see why Mister Wentz was not worth his time and affections.

“I do not think Captain Bryar had anything to do with Mister Wentz’ departure from the country but I have a pretty clear idea what actually caused it. I overheard Mister Wentz talking to Mister Stump at the ball.” Spencer began, and reiterated what he had heard.

When he was finished Ryan slumped into a chair, his face pale as death but completely expressionless. Spencer was not fooled by this and knew deep and tempestuous feelings were hidden behind that mask.

They sat there in silence for a minute or two before Ryan said in a quiet voice. “I would like that drink now.”

Spencer hastily poured some brandy into a glass and took it over to where Ryan was sitting, offering it without a word. When Ryan was sipping the alcohol Spencer laid his hand on Ryan’s shoulder and squeezed gently.

“From what you said it sounds like he still loves this Mister Stump. Are you sure that is what you heard?” Ryan asked when the glass was empty.

“I did not misunderstand.” Spencer promised and sat on the arm of Ryan’s chair, hoping that his physical proximity would offer some comfort, where it was doubtful any of his words would do so.

Ryan leaned his head against Spencer’s side, and Spencer could hear Ryan sighing. “Do you think this is why he hates marriage so much? Because it ruined his chance of being together with the man he truly loves? That he had to marry the woman just because she was carrying his baby? Why did he never tell me? I thought there was nothing on this earth we had not discussed with one another.” Ryan’s voice was quiet and even.

Spencer wanted to say he thought there was no ‘just’, about getting married if there was a baby involved, but did not wish to start an argument with Ryan when his friend was finally back to him again. So he remained silent.

“I thought he loved me, I truly felt so when it was only the two of us. When he looked at me like there was not a soul in the world other than I.” The admission was only as loud as a whisper but Spencer heard him perfectly and for a moment wished that he had been wrong about Mister Wentz, for Ryan truly deserved to be loved like that, and Spencer would have accepter even Mister Wentz into his life with open arms if he truly had felt so about Ryan.

~*~

The next day, Spencer felt it was his duty to write to Captain Bryar about what had transpired and that he had told Ryan about Mister Stump. After all, he felt it was best just to tell the truth and let Captain Bryar decide if he wanted to take offence. Luckily, he received a letter back the next day stating that Captain Bryar did not hold what Spencer had done against him and hoped that Ryan was not too heartbroken by the turn of events.

Spencer did not know how to reply to that, for Ryan had taken up residence in the only room they had free in the London house, and rarely was any of them successful in luring him out of his self-imposed exile. The older Way brother even came calling on their house, hoping to see Ryan but the man refused to come out and later admitted to Spencer that he felt mortified for having expressed his feelings so openly in their company now that he suspected that all their friends had known where Mister Wentz’s true feelings lay. Spencer could understand the sentiment, but somehow he could not manage to rouse negative emotions in himself towards Ryan’s and Mister Wentz’s mutual friends, he could see that perhaps they had been bound by ties of confidence, which they could not have betrayed, even to warn Ryan.

This suspicion was validated when he was walking Mister Way out and the man, looked at him with real regret in his eyes. “I truly did not expect this to happen. To me it always seemed like Ryan and Pete were very much on the same page on their worldviews, and I did not suspect that Ryan had any deeper feelings for Pete. He is a hard man to read, your friend. Please let him know that we dearly miss his company and all our poetry readings have suddenly grown very dreary indeed with his absence.” With this, Mister Way took his leave.

Still, the social calendar did not suddenly empty because of Ryan’s troubles, so the Smith’s could not just remain in the house trying to cheer him up, but often enough Spencer was able to beg out of various outings and stay behind. He did not generally enjoy this time spent with Ryan, who had taken up writing very dark poetry about betrayal, death and dismemberment. It would have been fine otherwise, but Ryan felt the need to read his creations aloud and even Spencer hinting that Ryan had other friends, who would better understand the artistic merit of such literary masterpieces usually just ended with Spencer dodging whatever projectiles Ryan had at hand, usually books.

When Spencer joined his family for dinner after they had spent their days separately, he tried his best to engage Brendon in conversation but found his efforts rebuffed. It was strange how Brendon had already changed so much from when Spencer had met him the first time. He had been so shy and nervous in Spencer’s precense and now he seemed happy enough to completely ignore everything Spencer said to him only answering him when it was completely unavoidable.

One night when Spencer joined Brendon in bed he had to approach the subject, for it was making him fell rather putout, as he did not think he had done anything to warrant such treatment.

“Have I in some way offended you?” He asked and stared at Brendon’s profile as Brendon pretended to read something, although Spencer was quite sure the light was too poor for that.

“Well, I am sure you do not think you have.” Brendon answered quite snidely, as far as Spencer was concerned.

“Brendon…” Spencer began but was at loss for words, for he still did not wish to start an argument with his spouse, especially when he did not even know what they were arguing about. If one was not sure there was always the possibility of losing the argument and Spencer was never fond of that happening.

Luckily, he did not need to finish his sentence as Brendon rushed along and asked: “How do you feel about me?” while still staring at his book.

Spencer thought he understood what was bothering Brendon now. His spouse felt Spencer was ignoring him too much in favour of spending time with Ryan. They were, after all, still newlyweds, and it would be natural for Brendon to expect Spencer to dedicate his every waking moment to him.

So what he needed to do was convince Brendon that this was only temporary and that once Ryan was back on his feet Spencer would be able to consentrate on other things. “You must understand that Ryan is in a delicate state of mind and I have to be there for him. That does not mean I do not care deeply about you.” Spencer said, happy that he had cleared the situation so easily.

“Yes, of course.” Brendon said, closed his book, placed it on his nightstand, blew out the candle and lay down. All in very precise, jerky movements, nothing like the way Brendon usually moved. Even Brendon’s back, the only part of Brendon’s body that Spencer could see now, seemed rigid and angry.

“Um…” Spencer began but Brendon’s back seemed to get even more hostile so Spencer gave up in utter puzzlement. Hopefully Brendon would be in a better mood in the morning and Spencer could perhaps find out what he had done wrong.

~*~

To Spencer’s disappointment and annoyance, things with Brendon did not get better. During the days, Brendon had too many opportunities to avoid even the shortest conversations, and during the nights Brendon had taken up a habit of going to bed earlier than Spencer, so when he got to their chamber it appeared to him that Brendon was already asleep. Or he was pretending, but Spencer did not have enough experience to tell the difference when it came to his spouse. This, combined with Ryan’s continued sulk did not make the summer a very enjoyable season for Spencer.

“I am so glad you have kept your heads level.” He told Josie and Peggy when he caught the girls alone at the breakfast table, for he was sure he would have been driven mad if the twins had acquired suitors during the season and he would have felt the need to look into their characters as well.

“Well, it would be awfully dull to get engaged before we even have a chance to go to university, now, would it not?” Peggy said and took a bite out of her toast, grinning at her sister who nodded. “Indeed and we have yet to meet anyone who could keep up with us. It is a very sad state of affairs.” Josie continued and poured herself a cup of tea, holding the pot daintily.

Before Spencer could reply, Brendon and Vivian walked in arms linked, laughing at something and the sight quite suddenly made Spencer feel something squeeze his heart. Why had Brendon stopped laughing like that with Spencer? Had he not worked ever so hard to win those smiles? How had he lost them so suddenly?

Brendon wished Good Morning to the table in general, cleverly avoiding the need to say anything to Spencer. He sighed internally and asked his mother, “Did father go to the office already?” For James had been happily skipping off to there, avoiding most of the afternoon calls and excursions.

“Yes, dear, but do not even think of imitating him, you are too young to sit in that stuffy place, especially with such a handsome spouse right here who needs to see everything London has to offer.” Vivian teased and poured herself some tea.

Spencer did not know what he would have said to that, but was saved from answering when Ryan walked into the room, shielding his eyes from the morning sun and looking very disgruntled. “Morning,” he said, and came to sit next to Spencer.

“It is about time you got out of your room, young man, there is no need to be so dramatic about things,” Vivian chastised Ryan, but pushed the platter of scones towards him even while she was still talking.

The girls looked so very curious, and Spencer knew they were dying to ask Ryan every sordid detail about what had actually transpired between him and Mister Wentz. Spencer thanked his lucky stars when they actually refraining from doing so.

Ryan took one of the scones and Spencer poured some tea for him but Ryan still was not his usual self, as he only crumbled the pastry on his plate and did not add any sugar into his tea. “I was thinking that I might go to Summerlin, I do not think being in London is best for me at the moment.” Ryan said tonelessly, surprising Spencer with the announcement as much as everyone else.

“Why haven’t you mentioned this before?” Spencer demanded to know, but before Ryan had a chance to answer, Vivian interjected:

“Ryan, you know I would love to let you go but you cannot really stay at the house by yourself, can you not wait until the end of the month when we will all return to Loughton?”

Ryan looked sullen and shook his head. “I live alone in the house here in London, I do not see what the difference is.”

Vivian looked stern. “You know full well that your uncle technically lives there too, even if he actually has been in India for the past two years.”

“I am sure Spencer would love to accompany Ryan back to Summerlin, would that not solve all our problems?” Brendon added, smiling at the room at large, but the expression did not seem natural to Spencer.

The words did sting; did Brendon want to get rid of him that badly? That he did not even want to be in the same city with him?

“Brendon, darling, are you sure you do not wish for Spencer to stay with us? I know there are only three weeks left of our time in London anyway but you will surely miss each other terribly?” Vivian asked, looking slightly worried.

Brendon continued to eat as if nothing of import was being discussed, but he had picked up Stuart from the floor onto his lap, which usually meant he was feeling uncomfortable. “I am sure we will both find things to help with the loneliness of separation.” He said, the choice of words making Spencer frown. What was Brendon trying to say?

“Well, that is cleared then. Can we leave today?” Ryan said, and pushed his chair away from the table. And that was it, Spencer finished his breakfast and went to tell his valet they were going back to Summerlin ahead of time and left him to pack, while Spencer himself just stood there staring at his and Brendon’s bed, trying to reason out what had gone so wrong between them when Spencer had been getting quite confident that they would end up having a very happy life together.

~*~

Staying in Summerlin alone with Ryan was not what Spencer would consider a good time under these circumstances. Even now that Ryan was making an effort not to thing about Mister Wentz, it was obvious to Spencer that his friend had not put the affair behind him. What was more, Spencer had not asked Ryan how far the relationship had actually progressed, for he did not wish to think about Ryan in such intimate terms, especially not when Mister Wentz was concerned.

Spencer consoled himself with the knowledge that at least there was no fear of illegitimate children popping up as a result of this unfortunate business. It also seemed that the men had exercised some caution in their public affairs, for it did not seem that there were any malicious rumours about Ryan and Mister Wentz. Now if only Ryan would be able to forget Mister Wentz’s existence and continue on with his life as before.

One afternoon when Spencer returned from exercising his horse, he found Captain Bryar sitting in the drawing room with Ryan. Or rather Ryan was sitting by the pianoforte, riffling through some music sheets and seemed to be ignoring Captain Bryar, who in turn was petting one of their hounds - Ivy - and sneaking glances at Ryan. Spencer cleared his throat by the door and walked in when both the occupants turned to look at him in turn. “Good afternoon, Captain Bryar, I did not know to expect a visit or I would have been here. Did the stable hands take your horse inside? I did not spot your mare on my way,” he asked and went to sit on one of the chairs, taking off his gloves and hat.

“Mister Smith,” Captain Bryar responded, and looked perhaps slightly mollified by Spencer’s question. “I walked, actually. It is not a very long journey, and I am building up the strength in my leg. My doctor informed me that it might be possible for me to rejoin my regiment after all, for my leg had healed better than expected. Now it is merely a matter of my own determination to get back to where I was in terms of physical strength. I was walking past Summerlin and thought I would come and see how you were doing. Is it long before your family will be joining you again?” For Captain Bryar, it was a long speech indeed and could easily have been labelled as a ramble.

“That must be great news, to hear you will be able to return to the army after all. Unless you had already found other occupations for your time here in the civilian world?” Spencer asked and looked at Ryan to see if the man was ever going to join in the conversation, but Ryan seemed to be ignoring not only Captain Bryar but also Spencer.

Captain Bryar nodded his head and said, “There is nothing here in England to keep me.” When he said this, Spencer noticed him again looking at Ryan and this made Spencer re-evaluate the things he knew about Captain Bryar. Of course, Spencer’s sisters had teased Ryan, saying that Captain Bryar had feelings for Ryan but that had been so long ago that Spencer had completely forgotten the subject had even been discussed.

Now he had to admit that perhaps his sisters had noticed something long before anyone else had suspected such a thing might be possible.

As Spencer had been lost in thought, the silence had stretched too long and grown awkward, but before Spencer could think of something to say to patch his faux pas, Captain Bryar was already getting to his feet. “I apologise, Mister Ross for forcing my company on you unannounced like this. I will take my leave now.”

“No need to apologise, Captain Bryar. I am sure Spencer was happy to see you,” Ryan said but still rudely did not even turn to look at Captain Bryar.

Spencer took to his feet as well, and followed Captain Bryar out of the room and then to the yard, where he stopped Captain Bryar from walking away by placing his hand on the man’s arm. “I am the one who should apologise in Ryan’s stead, I am sorry to say but his manners were never very commendable to begin with and this recent business has only made him brusquer. He does not mean it personally, I am sure.”

“Be that as it may, it is clear to me he does not wish for my company and there is no reason I should continue to force it upon him. I do hope he will find happiness elsewhere and will not try and rekindle his relationship with Peter once he returns to London. I do not see how that man manages to make the best of men susceptible to his charms.” Captain Bryar paused, and Spencer thought he would not say anything more but then he added sounding resigned.

“I spoke with Patrick after the events of the ball, which you yourself witnessed as well and he was still very upset. It has been years since their engagement was broken and still he harbours deep feelings for Peter, no matter what he claims out loud. I hope your friend will be spared the same fate.”

“Why would you say that to Spencer and not to my face?” Ryan’s voice startled both Spencer and Captain Bryar and they both turned to watch Ryan walking towards them, looking rather annoyed, and Spencer wondered if Ryan had heard everything they had said and now knew how Captain Bryar felt about him.

Captain Bryar’s ears reddened, and Spencer was sure the exact same thought had passed his mind as well, but when Captain Bryar answered the question his voice was as steady as ever. “I did not feel you would find my opinions worth hearing and neither did I think you would wish me to offer any on this subject, which must be very raw for you at the moment.”

“It is true that I do not appreciate you talking about my affairs with Spencer in this manner, and you should well keep that in mind,” Ryan said, and stalked back inside without saying anything else.

“I believe he must only have heard your last comment where you compared Ryan’s situation to your cousin’s,” Spencer said after a moment of heavy silence and Captain Bryar nodded. “And he is right to chastise me on the subject. It is not my place to comment on his happiness. This visit was clearly a mistake and I again apologise. However, I hope this has not ruined our friendship as well, for I hold your company in high regard and would feel its absence most heavily.”

Spencer was quick to assure Captain Bryar that their friendship had not been damaged in any way and that he was most welcome in Summerlin whenever he wished to visit. This caused Captain Bryar to smile rather wryly and add that he might keep his distance for the time being. Then they parted ways, and Spencer went inside, determined to find Ryan and make sure he had not drawn the wrong conclusions about the conversation he had overheard.

~*~

Day before Spencer’s family and Brendon were expected to return from London, Captain Bryar invited him to go for a ride with him. The invitation asked Spencer not to bring Mister Ross with him, which made Spencer lift his eyebrows in disbelief, for he would not have taken Captain Bryar as a person who would change his behaviour after being somewhat embarrassed. Still, Ryan had never been a great or enthusiastic horseman so it was easy for Spencer to go by himself without rousing Ryan’s suspicions.

Spencer met Captain Bryar at the crossroads where Summerlin’s private driveway connected to the road leading to Loughton. “I hope you did not wait for me for long.” He said after they had exchanged greetings and they started riding towards the town.

“No, Mist did not even have time to grow impatient.” Captain Bryar assured him and patted his grey mare on the shoulder fondly. “However, I did have a reason why I asked you to join me, and I believe it is best not to dance around the topic.”

Spencer nodded, slightly surprised that there was something serious Captain Bryar wanted to discuss with him.

“I just received a letter last night from my brother, inviting me to join the main house, for our aunt and her husband are coming here to visit after their time in London before they will return to Bath. I am sure you realise what this means; that my cousin Patrick will be joining them. I know Mister Ross made his opinion very clear that I should not interfere in his affairs but Loughton is a small community and I do not believe they will be able to avoid meeting. I also wish for you to convey to Mister Ross that Patrick is my dearest friend and relative and he does not know about Mister Ross and Peter, and I believe it would be best if matters remained so,” Captain Bryar explained with a grim expression, his eyes appearing stormy.

It seemed that when it came to Mister Stump he was willing to defend him even from Ryan’s rudeness. “I thank you for the warning and will surely pass it along to Ryan. I must say that it is more than likely that if Ryan meets your cousin he will not be very friendly, but I will try to make it absolutely clear to him that Mister Stump is just as innocent in this as Ryan himself and that it was Mister Wentz who deceived them both.”

“I would appreciate that,” Captain Bryar said and the topic was closed. They spent the rest of the journey talking about horses and Captain Bryar’s plan to breed his mare Mist, for she had shown herself to be of very fine stock, not only from her pedigree but also her nature. This led Spencer into complaining about the yard work going on in Summerlin where the construction of his mother’s new greenhouse was well underway but which made it almost impossible to sleep in late as the workers came in early and there was much ruckus.

“It is made worse by the fact that Ryan cannot sleep in the noise either, and he is horribly cross in the mornings, even when he does not have to get up at seven, so his temper is only worsened by the current project.”

“Does he wish to move back into Rosslings? I would agree into cutting my lease short if it would make him happy,” Captain Bryar stated, looking strangely earnest, when usually he was a hard man to read.

The supposition took Spencer by surprise for it hinted at things about Captain Bryar that Spencer was not quite comfortable knowing. He did not know if this willingness to sacrifice his own comfort for Ryan’s was wise, given the circumstances. Still, he judged it best not to mention. “I do not think it would be good for Ryan to live in Rosslings alone at the moment, so I hope you will not bring this to Ryan’s knowledge. I think it is best for him to be with—friends.” He had almost said family but managed to hold back, he did not think outsiders would be able to understand how completely his family had embraced Ryan as one of their own.

“Yes, undoubtedly you are correct in this,” Captain Bryar agreed and they both pulled to a halt the same crossroads where they had met, as they had looped back towards their houses.

“Say hello to your family for me, and I am sure we will meet again soon,” Spencer said, hoping that the next meeting would not end with them mediating between Mister Wentz’s two jilted conquests. Then he felt bad for his uncharitable thoughts, as he knew Ryan could contain himself if he so wished and Mister Stump especially did not sound like a man who would wish to make a scene.

Captain Bryar nodded, tipped his hat to Spencer in parting and rode away towards Rosslings. Spencer stayed where he was for a moment; watching Captain Bryar and the way he seemed so dignified in his posture and air. He sighed and wished that Ryan could just see Captain Bryar in a more favourable light and see what a fine man he was, for it seemed apparent to Spencer now, that Captain Bryar really did hold Ryan in great esteem and most likely harboured deep affections for him.

“How did my life turn into one of Miss Austen’s novels?” Spencer asked himself and turned his horse towards Summerlin.

~*~

The next afternoon, Summerlin was once again filled with life as everyone returned from London, the servants weighed down by parcels and luggage. It appeared that the girls had talked their mother into buying them so many new outfits that the amount of luggage had doubled from when they left for London. When Spencer mentioned this Josie just wrinkled her nose and said dismissively. “We can hardly leave for university in our old clothes. That is absurd, Spencer.” Then she breezed past Spencer already halfway into another conversation with Peggy.

Spencer turned to look at Brendon to see if he saw how amusing it was to see a girl, not yet eighteen, act so haughtily towards her elders, but Brendon was not next to him anymore. His spouse had been standing next to him only moments before as they had said their hellos. “Where did Brendon go?” he asked his mother who was watching over the traffic as all the luggage was brought in.

“I think I saw him go back out. Perhaps he wanted to stretch his legs after the journey,” Vivian guessed.

As Spencer stepped outside, he had to shade his eyes from the sunlight, and it took him a moment to orient himself. Luckily he heard a bark from around the corner and walked towards the sound. Stuart had a higher bark than Spencer’s family’s hounds, and where Stuart was, Brendon would surely be as well. When Spencer rounded the corned, he saw Brendon throw a small red ball to his terrier, laughing at the animal as Stuart tried to bounce up and catch the ball straight from the air. It hit Spencer then how much he had actually missed hearing Brendon laugh, how he had missed seeing that happy expression on his spouse’s face.

Stuart noticed Spencer first and bounded to him the ball in his mouth and his short tail wagging furiously. Spencer could not help but to laugh and crouch down and pet the dog behind the ears. “Hello, have you been a good boy? Have you?” He asked the bog, took the ball and threw it after he had gotten to his feet again. Brendon was looking at him with a sad smile and Spencer could feel himself get worried. Why would Brendon look like that?

The expression disappeared when Brendon noticed him watching and it was replaced with a cold look Spencer had hoped never to see again. It seemed that the absence had not made Brendon’s heart grow fonder as he seemed still as angry with Spencer as he had been on the day they parted in London.

Perhaps Spencer had got used to Brendon either being happy and interested in him, or shy and easily flustered but he was not prepared to this new Brendon and did not know how to approach him. The things he had wanted to say and ask just did not seem like things that would amuse or even interest this stranger in from of him. “Uh… Stuart seems to be enjoying being back in Summerlin,” He finally said, cursing his own incompetence.

“Yes, the house in London does not have as much room for him to run,” Brendon said and bent down to pick up the ball and throw it again. Spencer followed the graceful lines of Brendon’s body, trying not to be obvious about it.

“You surely wished that we could have stayed in London longer.” Brendon said, his voice cold and almost contemptuous, which puzzled Spencer.

“Not at all. It is good to have you back,” He said, trying to figure out what he could have done to upset Brendon.

When he did not come up with anything, he just asked it out loud. “I cannot help but to think you are most unhappy with me. Could you not tell me what it is so I might make it right?” Spencer asked, walking closer to Brendon and taking Brendon’s hand into his own.

“I have tried to be a good husband to you, but being married it as new to me as it is to you. Still, surely together we should be able to make this union a happy one,” He said trying to meet Brendon’s eyes, although the other man was doing his best to ignore him. “Brendon?” he asked, and reached out with his free hand, intent on lifting Brendon’s chin so they could look at one another but Brendon jerked away quite violently, pulling his hand free from Spencer’s at the same time.

He looked furious but also as if he might cry. “I do not see how you can say such things to be with such earnestness when I know… how highly you truly regard our marriage!” with this, Brendon hurried away a confused Stuart hot on his heels.

Spencer was left standing there in utter bewilderment. What on earth did Brendon think of him and where was this coming from?

~*~

The cello that Spencer had ordered for Brendon as a wedding gift arrived the next day, but did nothing to make Brendon think any better of Spencer. What was more, he even refused to play the new instrument, claiming that he was out of practise and would play it later. The excuse seemed to mollify Spencer’s family, but Spencer was not fooled. He was sitting on a garden bench with Ryan as they watched Brendon and Josie play tennis, while Vivian and James were sitting on a picnic cloth arranging the lunch they were planning on having.

Spencer had explained what Brendon had said to him to Ryan in hushed tones, in case his family overheard, and was now waiting to see what Ryan would think of the situation. “To me it seems as if he doubts your commitment to him,” Ryan said and rubbed his chin absentmindedly. He had started growing a beard, but to Spencer it did not seem to be going well. Still, he had known Ryan long enough not to voice his opinion where Ryan might hear.

“But why would he think that? We have hardly been married two months, when would I have had time to find a paramour?” Spencer asked, frustrated, and pushed Ryan’s hand away from his face. “And don’t scratch your face, it makes you seem uncouth.”

Ryan let out a short bark of a laugh, but it made Spencer smile widely as well, for laughs had been far and few in between ever since Ryan had parted ways with Mister Wentz.

“Yes, mother,” Ryan teased him, but did stop fiddling with his facial hair. Spencer turned to look at where the tennis game was in progress and found that Brendon was watching him again, with that same morose expression.

“He seems so unhappy, and I only wish I could make him happy again. You should have seen him before we came to London, he seemed to be settling in well, and he appeared most exuberant. I do not know what made him start to doubt me,” Spencer admitted sadly and leaned slightly against Ryan looking for some solace.

“How is he in the bedroom?” Ryan asked startling Spencer into exclaiming, “Ryan! That is hardly any of your business.”

Ryan smirked but did not let the matter drop. “You are still as much of a prude as you where at sixteen. It is very amusing, considering that you are a married man now.”

“Being married does not mean one loses one's sense of propriety,” Spencer protested and went to join his parents, as it appeared that lunch was ready to be served.

~*~

Spencer had almost managed to forget the fact that Mister Stump was visiting Loughton until one morning there was an invitation for the whole Smith residence to join The Bryars for dinner. After all, Spencer’s parents had always been good friends with the Bryars long before Spencer had gotten to know the youngest son and there really was no way around the invitation.

So that evening, they took both the carriages to the Bryars’ estate, which lay on the other side of Loughton from Summerlin. Spencer shared the smaller carriage with his father, Ryan and Brendon as none of them needed space for dresses. James sat next to Ryan and kept a steady conversation going, which was a relief as Brendon seemed as cross with Ryan as he was with Spencer and had not spoken a word to either of them out of his own volition during the whole week since he had been back from London. He did answer James’ questions happily enough, though, even if his general mood seemed slightly off.

The Bryar house was slightly smaller in size than Summerlin, which could partly explain why Captain Bryar had wanted to rent Rosslings from Ryan especially because his older brother had two children of his own living in the house. Still, the building was in impeccable condition, which Vivian was quick to mention, as they were welcomed inside.

They were ushered into the drawing room where the family was sitting and Spencer sought out Captain Bryar, who was sitting on a settee with a small girl in his lap. She was holding a doll and seemed to be explaining something about it very earnestly to Captain Bryar. The sight made Spencer smile, but then Ryan poked him in the side and whispered into his ear. “That man at the pianoforte, is that him?” and Spencer looked where he was directed and nodded when he spotted the same man he had briefly seen in the stairway.

“He does not seem so special to me, but perhaps he was much more comely when he was younger,” Ryan muttered, and Spencer wanted to point out that Mister Stump was only two years Ryan’s senior, but by then the Bryar men had gotten to their feet and rounds of introductions were conducted, so the time was inopportune.

Unfortunately the young people were ushered to be seated close to each other to allow conversation, and Ryan was actually seated next to Mister Stump, who had been lured away from the pianoforte. Luckily for everyone Brendon and Mister Stump seemed to share the same passion for music and began happily to discuss different composers and which they preferred to play themselves and which they preferred to listen to. Ryan looked bored, but Spencer knew that he would normally have loved to join in the conversation but was only remaining quiet, as he had sworn he would not like Mister Stump.

This left Spencer and Captain Bryar to their own devices, for Josie and Peggy had not chosen to join their group but were amusing themselves with the small children who seemed to greatly appreciate the attention. “They are fine children.” Captain Bryar said when he noticed where Spencer was looking.

“Do not mention the children, Bob. Mary, my aunt has very good hearing and will surely come here to sing the praises of child rearing. It is bad enough when she talks our ears off but now there are newlyweds, which would surely only incite her into a frenzy. I have to warn you that she will surely ask you when you are adopting, once we get to dinner,” Mister Stump interjected, as there had apparently been a lull in his and Brendon’s conversation.

Captain Bryar smiled a bit wryly and nodded. “That is true. She is a true believer of the doctrine that says only real families are families with children.”

Brendon looked uncomfortable again and remained silent so Spencer took it upon himself to say. “It is slightly too premature to speak of children yet. My sisters are not even married and I do not know how Brendon’s siblings feel about the issue.”

This made Brendon look up and he added. “There was some talk that perhaps we would adopt one of my brother’s children later on, but no definite agreements were made.”

Ryan sniffed derisively and Spencer wanted to stop him from speaking, as the topic of adoption had been one of the things debated several times during the coffee shop meetings Spencer had reluctantly attended. “I find it ridiculous that there is still this insistence on only adopting children that are of some relation to the actual couple, especially when there are so many children living in orphanages that are in appalling condition. It is an outdated tradition dating back to the times when nobility and bloodlines actually mattered,” Ryan lectured with his toneless voice, making him seem disinterested even when he so clearly felt very strongly about the topic.

Spencer was surprised when Mister Stump nodded as Ryan spoke and said after he was finished. “I could not have put it better myself. It is a silly old custom that I do not think should be practised so strictly anymore. It can be said to hold some merit when it comes to the royal house and perhaps some of the nobles but as you said in middle class families it surely should not matter if the child inheriting is actually related to its parents.”

Ryan appeared as surprised as Spencer had been, but Spencer doubted the others would be able to tell from his expression. Ryan did narrow his eyes and Spencer had to hide a smile, for it was obvious to him that Ryan was fighting the urge to like Mister Stump.

“This whole group is filled with radicals, why am I not surprised?” Captain Bryar said, amused, but then looked at Spencer and Brendon. “I hope this has not offended you?”

“Not hardly, I have after all listened to Ryan rant about numerous topics since we were small children. And I am not opposed to adopting children I have no relation to. It has already been agreed that one of my sister’s children will inherit the land and the company,” Spencer explained, which earned him a kick in the shin from Ryan.

“That is not what we were saying with Mister Stump, you are acting just as conservatively as the worst Tories in parliament. That is basically saying any of your children would not inherit anything! Why have you not mentioned this before?” Ryan sounded outraged.

Spencer looked at where his parent’s and Captain Bryar’s brother, his wife and Mister Stump’s parents were playing cards to make sure they were not attracting attention before answering. “That is not true either, Ryan. The children will get money; I think my father mentioned twenty thousand pounds. That is surely no small sum and they can happily marry into some other family so they may find a new home for themselves. Just because they will not inherit Summerlin does not mean they are destined for the poor house. You are being too dramatic, as usual,” He added, feeling rather annoyed that he had to hash this out in front of Captain Bryar and a practical stranger, Mister Stump.

Ryan just shook his head and crossed his arms, stubbornly. Brendon looked quite annoyed as well and said, “Why are you so invested in this? It is not as if we are talking about your children.”

Spencer lifted an eyebrow at Brendon’s tone, which was quite hostile. Everyone else seemed to pick up on it as well and Mister Stump looked like he wanted to change the subject but before he could Ryan answered, “Well someone needs to stand up for your theoretical children if their own parents will not.”

Luckily, this was when a maid came to tell them that dinner was ready and the argument was abandoned. Still, Spencer could feel Brendon fuming as they walked to the dining room arm in arm.

~*~

The next morning Spencer was hiding out in the office, as Brendon seemed only to be getting angrier and angrier every day, which was starting to make Spencer both sad and angry at the same time. Sad because he missed spending time with Brendon, and angry because he had done nothing to deserve this treatment.

Ryan had never learned to respect Spencer’s need to sulk alone, so it came as no great surprise to Spencer when the man barged into the room without even knocking. “I am still angry with you about the inheritance issue, but you look so miserable these days that I believe I will help you despite that you are a conservative oppressor standing in the way of true reform,” Ryan said, seeming very self-satisfied as he came to sit opposite Spencer in the chair placed facing the desk.

“What are you talking about?” Spencer asked, annoyed, and flicked to the next page of his newspaper, feigning disinterest.

“I know why Brendon is so angry with you.”

This most certainly captured Spencer’s interest and he looked at his friend imploringly. “Do not tease me in the matter.”

“I am not. He thinks you and I are lovers, and that you are making a fool out of him in front of everyone and that you are not even attempting to hide our affair,” Ryan said with a straight face, but Spencer could not take this.

“I told you not to jest about this. I know you did not approve of my marriage to a stranger but I happen to be very fond of Brendon already and I am desperate to fix our relationship. This kind of nonsense is not endearing at all.”

Ryan actually had the audacity to laugh. “Spencer, I am not pulling your leg. He honestly believes this to be true. I guess somehow he has interpreted out friendship the wrong way and perhaps one of the gossipmongers in town mentioned to him one of the stories about us being childhood sweethearts or how we were destined to marry. Who knows what he has heard, but he has drawn the wrong conclusions from it never the less.”

Spencer stopped to think on this and after a while he had to admit that it might make some sense. Brendon had been giving them both the evil eye and if viewed in this light some of his comments made more sense. Still: “How can he think something so hideous of me? That I would do such a thing to him. I do not imagine how he has made himself sleep in the same bed with me all this time. If it were me I would have done something very drastic already.”

“Well, you are not Brendon. I do not know how he sees his position here exactly but if his parents are as religious as we have been led to believe they would not take him back if he filed for divorce. Then he would have no money and nowhere to go. Also, I believe he honestly loves your family and does not wish to part from them; perhaps he sees this as the lesser of two evils. After all, I am sure there are many people in arranged marriages who actually do have affairs,” Ryan mused, making Spencer feel like a wretched creature indeed, although he intellectually knew he was innocent. But to have put Brendon through all that, even unintentionally, it hardly bore thinking about.

“He must hate me so. Do you think he would ever believe me if I tried to convince him that I have not insulted him in this way?” Spencer said and hid his face in his hands, suddenly feeling very tired.

“What else can you do? You must at least try to convince him. If he does not believe you, bring him to me and we will try together and if that does not work we must bring in your whole family. He must believe you eventually,” Ryan said calmly but the thought of his mother talking about this with Brendon made Spencer pale.

He got up from behind the desk and went to the door. “I will go speak with him at once. Do you know where he is?”

“I think he went to the greenhouse with your mother before I came here,” Ryan answered and then gave Spencer an encouraging look. “Good luck.”

~*~

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