Chapter Six
Matthew regretted teasing Verina. Being as young and naive as she was—and obviously having never been kissed—she had not taken well to his flirtatious suggestion of a kiss.
He was not even certain why he had asked her how to gain one from her, other than the fact that he was attracted to her.
It is not as if he went about taking advantage of young ladies.
After all, he was a gentleman and behaved as one.
Or at least he had until he had met Lady Verina.
So, why had he asked such a thing of her?
They returned to the drawing room just as tea was being served. After the others asked a few general questions of Lady Vernina and her impressions of Redfield, she fell silent for the rest of teatime. He doubted anyone noticed because the conversation flowed well between the others.
Except for his mother.
Mama tried to catch his eye, which Matthew avoided.
He continued to be the perfect host for their guests, but he was disappointed in how the day had turned out.
He had thought Lady Verina had the potential to be his duchess, but with the way she had turned cold and now silently pouted, she was obviously not the one for him.
He needed a woman with more maturity. Even experience.
Still, he liked her idea of service toward tenants.
He had always paid for things such as repairing roofs, but he had never actively participated in putting a new roof onto a cottage.
Matthew believed that would mean a great deal to the tenants at Redfield if he put in some of the sweat necessary to maintain the cottages.
He looked to Hugo now and said, “When you put those roofs on next week, I would like to be present.”
“What?” his friend asked. “You wish to see me laboring?”
“No, Hugo. I wish to participate. I want you to teach me. Because I want to start doing the same here at Redfield.”
Mama clucked her tongue. “That is not necessary, Matthew. After all, you are a duke. No one thinks any less of you for not climbing upon a roof and helping to thatch it.”
“It is something I wish to learn how to do, Mama.” Turning back to his friend, he asked, “May I come to Merrifield for this?”
“You are always welcome at Merrifield,” Hugo said affably. “It will take probably three or four days. Come the first day. You are under no obligation to stay after that You should see enough that day to satisfy your curiosity.”
Even though he did not want to be around Lady Verina overly much, Matthew heard himself saying, “No, I will be there the entire time. I wish to be a part of the whole process and participate fully. I shall bring those new skills of mine back to Redfield and put them to good use.”
“I will let you know when we are to start. Plan for mid-week or later,” Hugo told him.
Their guests left after tea. As they watched the carriage roll down the lane, his mother turned to him.
“What did you do to that girl?” she asked harshly.
He had never heard that tone come from her, much less be directed at him.
“I teased her a bit,” he admitted, not willing to make her a party to the entire story. “She did not take it well.”
“I had high hopes for her. For you. I have told you it is time for you to take a duchess, Matthew.”
“Well, it will not be Lady Verina, Mama,” he said flatly. “I will see you at dinner.”
Matthew retreated to his study and brooded. Thank goodness he would be making a trip to town with Lady Treatley soon. He needed time away from Redfield. Hopefully, he could quickly forget about Lady Verina Fulton.
*
Matthew left Redfield at first light, heading to Dove Hall, where he collected Lady Treatley and her small valise. He told her it would take until mid-afternoon to reach London and that her solicitor would be waiting to talk things over with them.
“After that, we will stay the night at my townhouse, then see your banker tomorrow morning. We will then put you on the next mail coach to Bath. I know you have not had time to write to your sister to warn her of your arrival, so I hope she will be welcoming to you.”
Actually, Your Grace, I posted a letter to her yesterday. It will arrive in time to give her a day or two’s notice before I show up at her doorstep.”
“If she will not take you in—”
“No, I assure you, she will. Despite the gap in our ages, we are quite close. I am what you call a change of life babe. My mother birthed my sister, and then for the next twenty years, she had a myriad of miscarriages and stillbirths. When she thought she was too old to give birth, she was surprised late in life with me. There are twenty years between my sister and me. Surprisingly, we are close, thanks to her wedding a local viscount. I saw her frequently growing up.”
“It is good you will be able to have someone to go to,” he said. “Many of the women we help have no one.”
“She, like me, was barren. She was the viscount’s second wife, however.
His first had given him two sons, so she was able to serve as a mother to them.
Unfortunately, both boys died when they were still children, so her husband’s nephew claimed the title when he passed last year.
That is when she came into her marriage settlements.
They lived about forty miles from Bath, and she has always had a fondness for the town, which is why she moved there, hoping to ease her grief and have a fresh start. ”
“Even if for some reason she could not take you in, Lady Treatley, you will have adequate income to find a place of your own,” he assured her. “Have you given any thought to a new name, as my mother suggested?”
“I was Amelia Harper before I became Lady Treatley. I may return to that name.”
Matthew frowned. “Though you will have your own funds, there is still a small chance that your husband still may come looking for you. He would give your maiden name to a Bow Street runner. I think you should alter it slightly. Keep the same initials, for instance.”
She thought a moment. “I have always favored the name Amanda. I had a childhood friend named Amanda. She was lost to a fever when we were eight years of age. I have never mentioned her to my husband.” She brightened.
“I shall become Miss Amanda Hall then. You might as well start calling me Miss Hall so that I become used to it, Your Grace.”
“I will do so,” he told her. “Still, Mama is right. When you book your mail coach ticket and ride to Bath, do not use Amelia Harper or Amanda Hall to make it harder to trace your movements. Again, it is merely a precaution. I would suggest you be Mary Smith for that journey. It is a very common name and would be hard to connect you to it, much less find you once you arrive in Bath.”
“Her Grace is a clever woman.”
“She is indeed,” he said proudly. “Mama survived an asylum, the same as you did, Miss Hall.”
“I was only in there for a few months. I cannot bear to think what would have happened to me if you and your mother had not sent Mr. Larkin to save me.”
“That is water under the bridge, Miss Hall.” He paused. “Shall we make it Mrs. Hall? It would be more appropriate for your age.”
She nodded. “I like the idea. I shall create a beloved Mr. Hall, whom I lost, which is why I am now a widow. I will give him all the traits I desired in my own husband, ones he never possessed. My Mr. Hall was kind, loving, and treated me as a queen.”
“You have had a good attitude about all this, Mrs. Hall,” he praised. “Not every woman does.”
He had instructed his coachman to take them straight to the solicitor’s offices once they arrived in town.
They entered them just before three o’clock that afternoon.
The clerk alerted Mr. Damley to their arrival, and the solicitor greeted them and escorted them to his office.
Quietly, Matthew told Lady Treatley not to share her new name until he brought it up himself.
“My dear Lady Treatley, it is so good to see you,” Mr. Damley said.
“It is thanks to you, in part, that I am able to be here,” she said. “You wrote up a very solid marriage contract for me, leaving me access to the monies I will now live off of.”
“I am only sorry to learn your husband has touched these funds,” the solicitor apologized. “We do have an appointment at nine o’clock tomorrow morning with the bank manager. I have warned him not to alert Lord Treatley.”
For several minutes, they discussed the income Lady Treatley would receive yearly and how she would be able to access it.
When Mr. Damley had fully explained her financial situation to her, a wistful look crossed her face.
“I only wish I could go to Treatley’s townhouse and collect a handful of things.
A favorite gown. A cameo my grandmother gifted me upon my wedding.
I know that sounds foolish. Material possessions should not hold such great value, yet sometimes, they do. ”
“I understand,” Mr. Damley said sympathetically. “I can do nothing about the gown, but I believe the cameo is amongst what was brought to me.”
This was a new development, and Matthew sat up. “What do you mean, Mr. Damley?”
“I wanted us to meet first, so that I might explain Lady Treatley’s situation fully.
Since we have now gone over everything, including the name change Lady Treatley has requested, I would like us to meet with two individuals in my conference room.
” He smiled. “You will recognize both, my lady. The first is Mr. Larkin, the Bow Street runner who spirited you away. Along with him is your former lady’s maid. ”
She shot to her feet. “Martha is here! Oh, she was very dear to me.”
Mr. Damley rose, and so did Matthew.