Chapter 5 #2
“Well, when you’re finished putting the castle to rights, then,” Glenn suggested.
Grey shook his head. “Then I have to begin working on the livestock. And crops. And drainage. Which I know damned all about.”
Rob gave him another delighted grin. “Too bad nobody’s laying siege to the place. You’re an absolute whiz at sieges.”
Grey sadly shook his head. “If you know anyone who knows the difference between borage and beehives, please. Invite them along. There will be whiskey.”
Glenn obviously knew Mayhew was standing by as well. “Oh, I suspect I’ll be too busy. Besides, I can get whiskey at White’s. Much more civilized, my lad. Happy to keep your wife company here, of course, since you’ll obviously be up to your boot tops in muck.”
Grey was already shaking his head, uncomfortably aware that he, too, was beginning to have fun.
“My wife? No, lad, she’ll be right at my side.
As bad as the fields are, the house is even worse.
Once we get the roof fixed, she’ll have to start from ground up.
Oh, and did I tell you the village was too superstitious to allow their daughters into the house to fight ghosts for the brooms?
” Grey gave a huge sigh. “I thought soldiering was hard. I suspect I’m going to be the first marquess who wants to give the bloody title back. ”
“Wait,” Glenn said, brightening as he laid a hand on Grey’s arm. “I know somebody who can help. Charlie! Come meet my friend.”
Grey turned to see the entire Packham contingent headed their way.
Amazing to think they were all so closely related.
Miss Edwina should have been lovely with her pale, almost silver-blonde hair, sky-blue eyes, and tall, sleek form.
Her dress was of a standard design with squared neckline and little puffed sleeves, a cream muslin with rose ribbons at her bust and hem, topped off with the obligatory string of pearls.
But the entire picture ended up being rather vague, as if one needed to squint to better focus on her.
Miss Charlotte stood at least a hand shorter, her hair a distinct, gleaming red, her smile impish, her green eyes comfortably crinkled at the corners.
She was a bit plumper than fashion, with dimples at her elbows and a lush bosom that was barely contained by her gold-colored gown, but somehow it all conspired to make a man want to smile when he met her.
And bringing up the rear was Lady Georgianna, whose easy smile was once again doing strange and terrible things to Grey’s breathing.
He couldn’t have said why. She was no more beautiful than when she’d invaded his house.
Her chin was still too strong, her forehead too broad.
But that smile...not comfortable like her cousin’s. Not vague at all.
Maybe it was the fact that it resided mostly in those sharp green eyes. He could look on them forever, he thought, even as his less honorable self wondered what she would look like disheveled and sated. In his bed, preferably.
Even perfectly coiffed and clothed, she inspired fantasies.
She filled out her pale primrose silk dress quite comfortably, enhanced by a pearl collar that accentuated her sleek neck and little jeweled flowers tucked into her thick dark curls.
Nothing dozens of other young women hadn’t accomplished in presenting themselves at a ball.
But she was...more. She didn’t simply strike someone as memorable.
She made a man want to stand up straighter, smooth out his attire, brush his hair back.
Hell, if he’d had facial hair, he’d be pulling at it, just to earn her attention.
“Rob,” Charlie greeted Grey’s friend with what seemed to be sincere delight, striding over as if she were hiking the hills. “When did you get back?”
“About the same time my friend Coleford did,” he said, bending over her hand.
“Greyville,” Grey growled, tired of reminding people.
“You’re going to have to get used to it eventually,” the redheaded Miss Packham said with that impish grin of hers.
“I still have time.”
Rob beamed as if he’d performed a magic trick. “You two are already introduced?”
“Yes,” Grey said. “These ladies helped me save my cousin from sure disaster at the Serpentine the other day. Lady Clevedon was kind enough to make the introductions.”
If he repeated that lie many more times, he’d start believing it enough to describe the squelch in his boots from wading into the water to rescue a ball.
“Miss Packham,” he murmured bending over one hand, then the next. “Miss...er, Packham. And Miss…Packham,” possibly lingering just a bit longer over Lady Georgianna’s.
All three of them grinned at him. “It will save time and confusion if you simply use our first names,” Miss Charlotte Packham said. “Everyone does. If you feel particularly starchy, you may add Lady or Miss.”
He nodded. “Thank you. I believe I will.”
“How are the girls?” Lady Georgianna asked, and damned if Grey didn’t think she meant it. Maybe he would be comfortable calling her Georgie after all.
“When they knew I might see you they asked me to give you their best wishes.”
Her smile grew. “I can just picture Sophie doing that very thing.”
He couldn’t help grinning back. “While Amelia tugged on my jacket and Bark sprawled across my boots.”
She nodded as if satisfied. “Well, please tell them that we shall be issuing formal invitations to tea this week. My mother is longing to meet them.”
He scowled. “You’re sure? They can be hard on your shelves.”
Her chuckle was delighted. “Oh, yes. From what I’ve heard as we walked up, we need to visit before you drag them off to darkest Wales.”
“You live on the Severn,” Glenn spoke up. “What can you tell my friend here about the country across the river?”
She shook her head. “That it’s too much trouble to cross the river to see it. Even from the Manor it takes at least at least two days, depending on the season. As unreliable as ferries are in the tidal currents, you must travel all the way up to Gloucester to cross over.”
“We have made the trip a few times,” Miss Edwina said. “We have some cousins near Abergavenny. I remember how pretty the hills were.”
“I remember that it rained,” Miss Charlotte added. “Constantly.”
“Oh, yes,” Lady Georgianna agreed. “Which meant it took three days to get there. And everything was damp.” She lifted an elegant hand in exception. “Beautiful, mind. But wet.”
“I think our work is done here,” Lady Charlote murmured. “Prissy’s father just hurried out of here as if the place had caught fire.”
“I suspect he’s looking for Prissy’s mother,” Lady Georgianna responded with a small turn of her head. “She tends to frequent the card room.”
“Somehow I doubt she’ll be so easy to convince,” Grey said.
Lady Georgianna nodded. “We’ll probably have to perform a second act,” she said, “which we girls can manage. All we must do is share your sad news with my Aunt Berenice. She will provide all the outrage Mr. Mayhew will need to stoke his determination. She loathes Wales.”
“Shall I see to it?” Edwina asked.
“Yes, please.” Lady Georgianna shot her a bright smile. “You know how to handle Aunt Berenice better than we do.”
“Everyone knows how to handle her better than I do,” Charlie retorted.
“Eddie has patience,” Lady Georgianna said. “Besides, you get along better with the fathers, Charlie.”
Rob laughed. “That’s because she can outride them all.”
“I still say we need a rake,” Lady Edwina said, her voice pitched low.
Rob leaned in. “You need a what?”
Lady Georgianna smiled. “Eddie believes that if a known rake shows interest in Priscilla, it would provide the final push needed for her parents to wed her to her safe neighbor. But we don’t know any rakes. Well, not any who can be trusted.”
Rob snapped his fingers. “Declan Bowdern.”
Lady Georgianna perked up. “Is he a rake?”
“Worse. He’s an Irish rake.”
Lady Georgianna was beginning to look delighted. “Is he poor?”
Rob shrugged. “Nobody knows. My suspicion is that he does quite well for himself but just doesn’t want to invite a notoriously anti-Irish ton into his affairs.”
“But can we trust him?”
Both men nodded.
“Pulled my cods out of the fire more than once,” Rob said.
“He was on the Peninsula with you?” Lady Georgianna asked.
Grey nodded. “Came home on the same ship.”
Lady Charlotte tilted her head, her attention on Rob. “Aren’t you enough of a rake for our purposes, Rob? I can’t imagine you made it across the entire Iberian Peninsula in an unsullied state.”
Grey was surprised to see Rob leveling a rather ferocious scowl on the petite redhead. “That’ll be quite enough of that, young lady.”
Which only made her laugh. “You have been gone too long.”
“Not so long I can’t turn you over my knee.”
Now Lady Charlotte was scowling. “I’d like to see you try.”
Her cousins took up position on either side of her. “So would we.”
Suddenly Rob was leveling a blinding grin on the three. “Ferocious.”
The returning smiles proved the point.
“Something to remember,” Lady Charlotte answered. “Where is this notorious Irish rake? I’d love to meet him.”
“Not you,” Rob protested. “You don’t want to frighten the man all the way back to Wexford before we can make use of him.”
“If he’s that easily frightened,” Miss Charlotte said, “I doubt we’d have any use for him.”
“Enough, children,” Lady Georgianna intervened. “My lord,” she said, turning those sharp green eyes towards Grey. “Have you spoken to Priscilla yet tonight?”
“I have not. I did reserve a dance with her.”
She nodded. “That might be a good time to tell her about the girls.”
He scowled. “It might sound just a touch overwhelming in public, don’t you think? I’d prefer not to spend my evening catching swooning females.”
“Possibly. But she’ll thank you later. I promise. You can also tell her that we are devoting our every attention on freeing her up for her Timothy. She is over by the windows, Grey.”