Chapter Eleven
J ulian greeted his guests, pleased that everyone invited had been able to attend. The meal, under Grigsby’s supervision, went smoothly. He was fortunate to have inherited such dedicated servants and decided his entire household should receive an increase in salary, especially his butlers, housekeepers, and valet. They had been instrumental in helping him acclimate to his new position.
Lady Marley said, “Your cook has outdone herself, my lord. This dessert is positively divine.”
“I will pass along your kind words to her, my lady,” he said, thankful each course had gone so well.
The duke and duchess had been talkative, and along with the duke’s sister, they had dominated much of the conversation. He hadn’t minded, trying to listen for names and other specifics, filing them away for the time when he would meet those mentioned.
Looking around, Julian saw everyone had completed their meal. He now rose and said, “I am so glad you could join me this evening.”
Quickly, he saw Grigsby approach and knew he had somehow erred. He didn’t know whether to sit or remain standing and would take his cue from his butler.
“If you wish, my lord, I shall take the ladies to the drawing room while you and the gentlemen have your port and cigars.”
Putting on a smile, he said, “Thank you, Grigsby.”
The other men at the table rose as the ladies were helped from their seats by footmen. Grigsby led them away. The footmen sprang into action, knowing what was expected, and soon the men all had drinks and cigars. Julian had never smoked in his life and waved away the offer of a cigar. The duke, Con, and Val all accepted, however, and soon the sweet smell of tobacco filled the dining room.
After half an hour, Grigsby took the lead again, saying, “If you care to join the ladies in the drawing room, my lord, I can have tea brought.”
“No tea,” said the duke. “Another snifter of brandy will do.”
Julian had drunk spirits before becoming the marquess. He found them not to his liking but did sip a single brandy each evening, knowing it would be expected of him once he moved about Polite Society. He did think it rather forward of Millbrooke to decline tea for everyone when it wasn’t even his household. Then again, the man was a duke and probably used to everyone fawning over him and accommodating his every request.
“Go ahead and bring tea,” he told his butler. “The ladies may prefer a cup.”
“Yes, my lord,” Grigsby said, an approving smile crossing his lips.
They joined his other guests, and Julian saw the ladies each sipped a sherry. He only knew what the drink was because Grigsby had walked him through the various spirits and mentioned sherry was a popular drink amongst women.
Once they were seated, Her Grace said, “Ariadne, you should play and sing something to entertain us.”
She looked to him. “Would you care if I played your pianoforte, my lord?”
He had never heard the instrument played before and said, “You may play for as long as you wish, my lady.”
“I play rather well, but I sing abominably,” she admitted cheerfully. “I will refrain from torturing you with my voice.”
Her mother frowned disapprovingly, but Julian found Lady Ariadne’s candor refreshing. He suspected he would be placed in situations many times where a young lady had no talent and was still encouraged to perform for others.
He didn’t know what piece she played, but it was soothing to his ears. Since no one spoke and gave her their full attention, Julian was able to study her at length without distractions. The shade of her hair was remarkable, and he longed to unpin it and run his fingers through her tresses. She had a flawless complexion and lips which tempted him beyond measure. He even liked the small crease in her brow as she concentrated on the keyboard.
What would it take for this beauty to wed him?
She finished playing, and Val said, “Bravo, Sis. Your playing could soothe any savage beast.”
“Then perhaps I should play for Bonaparte,” she quipped. “He might not be so bloodthirsty and eager to gobble up all of Europe if he could hear me play.”
Everyone chuckled, and Con said, “It certainly would be a new strategy for our government to employ. Perhaps Parliament can take it under consideration.”
“Would you play something else for us?” Julian asked. “Just one more.”
“All right,” Lady Ariadne agreed.
This time her song was livelier, and his spirits soared. He had a feeling he would never grow bored in her company, but he was afraid he couldn’t say the same about himself. He reminded himself that she was the daughter of a duke, whereas he had been a laborer all his life. While she seemed sympathetic to his background and he knew she would never reveal what he had shared with her, most likely she would not consider him as a husband, wanting a true blueblood instead.
After she finished, Her Grace said, “Charlotte and I are to spend all day at the modiste’s tomorrow. Thank you for your hospitality, Lord Aldridge.”
As everyone rose, Val said, “It is still early. Perhaps we younger folk might stay on a while.” He looked to Julian. “We could play a few hands of cards.”
He was eager to be in their company and agreed. “You are welcome to remain, my lord.”
Their Graces and Lady Marley took their leave, and Val called, “Break out the cards!”
“I know we must have a deck or two available. I will have to find where they are kept.” He hesitated. “I must apologize in advance. I have never played cards and have no interest in picking up gambling.”
“Oh, we do not have to wager, my lord,” Lady Ariadne said. “But you must learn a few card games. You will be invited to card parties during the Season. They can be quite fun.”
“Only because you win so much,” her brother teased affectionately. “I do agree with my sister, though, Julian. Cardplaying should be added to your repertoire of social skills.”
“You might wish to escape to the card room at a ball,” Con added.
“Cards are played during a ball?” he asked, puzzled.
“Most married couples only engage in a few dances,” Con told him. “Why, I doubt my own parents have danced once since they were wed. Many men retire to the card room where, yes, they do play and wager. Bets can be a pittance—or they can add up to a small fortune.”
He shook his head. “I don’t see the point in throwing my money away. Even if I knew how to play games of chance, they are exactly that. Pure chance.”
“Still, ducking into the card room might save you from an insistent mama wishing to corner you and demand that you dance with her wallflower daughter,” Val pointed out. “You can always spend some time there and not play. Have a drink. Watch the action.”
“I shall teach you how to play cards, my lord,” Lady Ariadne said. “I have taught several people how, even my younger sisters. Knowing the strategy behind choosing certain cards is vital.” She paused, obviously thinking. “While you eventually need to learn other card games—piquet, vingt-et-un, or loo—most hostesses at card parties have their guests play whist. That is what we will concentrate on now.”
He rang for Grigsby, who led them to the card room, a place he had yet to see in his own house. Soon, Lady Ariadne was explaining the rules of whist to him.
“It takes four players, working in teams of two, who sit across from one another. Here is how you shuffle the cards, which you will be called upon to do when it is your turn.”
She demonstrated how to do so and had him practice a few times. Julian quickly picked up the skill, but he told himself he would continue to practice so he could shuffle with ease when at a card party.
Lady Ariadne then shuffled the deck again, had her brother cut it in half, and then dealt the cards in a clockwise manner. When she reached the last card, she placed it face up.
“The dealer always shows this last card, which belongs to him or her,” she explained before setting it atop her own stack. “Most times when players receive their cards, they will pick them up each time until all thirteen are in their hands. My advice is for you to place them in numerical order, with any card being a two placed first. Do not worry about the suit.”
“Suit?” he asked, unclear what that might be.
Quickly, she named the four suits. “I think it would be best to play a few hands with all of us having our cards face up. Arrange your cards in front of you gentlemen, so we can all see them. My lord, after any tens you hold, the jack, then queen, and king are the next highest, with an ace being the most valuable card of all.”
They did as she asked, and he made a decision. “Would you please call me Julian? Your brother and cousin do, and we are in an informal situation here. It seems odd to my ears to hear you referring to me as my lord.”
She studied him a moment. “I can do so, but only in a rare circumstance such as this.”
Pleased at the progress he had made with her, Julian arranged his cards accordingly.
“Now, the player to the dealer’s right is the first to select and place a card in the middle of the table. This is called leading. The point of whist is to try and take as many tricks as you can, meaning the highest card played wins that round, known as a trick.”
Val played an eight of diamonds.
“If you have any diamonds in your hand, Julian, you must play one of them. If you want to take the trick, play a high diamond.” She looked at his hand. “You have the king of diamonds, but that means someone else holds the ace of diamonds. I would wait to see if that were played before relinquishing my kind. I would play a low diamond to see if the ace is drawn out. If a player does play that ace of diamonds, then you would win any other round where all diamonds are played.”
He took a three of diamonds and tossed it into the middle of the table. Con played the ace he held, which led Ariadne to play the five of diamonds.
“See, I am playing my lowest diamond. I can sacrifice it, knowing it is a low card and it would be less likely to win another round of diamonds.”
Con claimed the four cards in the middle, neatly stacking them and setting them aside.
“Con now gets to lead since he won the trick,” she continued. “He might wish to take charge and play another high card, or he might decide to sit back and draw other high cards from his opponents.”
Her cousin played a two of spades. They each played a spade, and Julian had the trump card, so he collected the four and set them aside.
“If I were you, I would now play that king of diamonds. You are certain to win the next hand since you know the ace has already been played.”
He did as she requested. “I have a question. What if someone leads with a card, but I have none in that suit?”
“Ah, you are catching on,” she declared. “If you no longer hold any cards of the suit played, choose the lowest card of another suit and play it. You do not want to waste a high card which might win a round for you. Since I can see that you are already done with diamonds since you hold no more of that suit in your hand, then you know others at the table hold them. The odd thing is, since you took the last trick, you might lead with a mid-card, say a seven or eight. You have quite a few clubs. Play one of them.”
Choosing the seven of clubs, he placed it down. Val had none, so he played his lowest diamond. Con only had the six of clubs and played it.
“Now, here is where your partner comes in handy. We are sitting opposite one another, and I should have a good idea that you are trying to win this trick. I would never trump you by playing a higher card in the suit you played. Our collected tricks won will win us points at the end of play. So, I will choose a five of clubs, even though I hold the ace of clubs.”
Ariadne played her card, and he said, “I am beginning to understand. You explain things well.”
They continued playing the remainder of their cards, and he won four of the hands, with Ariadne winning five.
“That means our total score is nine tricks taken,” he said.
“The losers score no points, despite the fact they may have won a few tricks. Winners must subtract six from their score.”
He frowned. “We only get three points?”
She laughed, and he loved the musical sound of it.
“The winning team at the table is the one which reaches five points first. We are already off to an excellent start. Most winning teams only score a point or two each round.”
“Are you confident enough now to play with cards hidden?” Val asked.
“I believe so,” Julian replied.
Val collected all the cards and shuffled them several times, having Julian cut them. As Val dealt, Julian lifted a card at a time, organizing his hand so by the time all cards were given out, he was ready to play.
“You will learn more about strategy each time you play,” Con told him. “And your partner. You might even speak beforehand so each of you has a good idea what the other is up to.”
They played several more rounds, becoming tied at four apiece. Ariadne rejoiced—loudly—when they claimed victory in the final hand.
“I should hope I could partner with you in the future, Ariadne,” he said, loving how her unusual named rolled off his tongue.
“I would be happy to do so, Julian. You caught onto whist quickly.”
“Next, she will be teaching you how to play chess,” Val said. “Our Ariadne is skilled at the game.”
She stood. “We should be getting home. Thank you for having us, Julian.”
“Thank you for coming—and for teaching me a social skill I lacked.”
He accompanied his guests down the stairs, falling beside Ariadne, who asked, “I do not been to be impertinent, Julian, but do you know how to dance?”
It had not struck him he would need to know how to do so, despite the repeated mention of balls.
“I do not possess that particular skill,” he said quietly. “I am ashamed I have not thought about it.”
As they reached the foyer and the butler began handing them their things, Ariadne asked, “Are the two of you doing anything tomorrow afternoon? Say, one o’clock?”
“No,” Val and Con replied in unison.
“Good. Because we are going to teach Julian how to dance.”