Chapter 10
By the time the group returned to the Fletcher townhouse, it was nearly tea time.
“Would you all care to stay for tea?” Mia asked.
Kathryn shook her head. “No, thank you, Miss Parker. I must be getting back to the twins.”
Mia looked at Lord Easton and Lord Chandler.
“Thank you for the invitation, Miss Parker. I must accompany my sister back to Devon House. Another time perhaps?” Easton asked.
“Of course. I had a lovely time. Thank you for accompanying us, Lord Easton,” Mia said.
She’d been hoping to have more time with him.
She was still unsure about how she felt about him—was he merely a family friend or was he becoming something more to her?
One moment, she was indifferent, and the next, a stab of jealousy had lodged in her chest when he asked Lady Victoria for a dance at the Gardner ball.
What?
Jealous?
No, she wasn’t jealous, she told herself.
She was merely put out because he was talking to one of the most beautiful young ladies of the Season while ignoring her.
No one could deny Lady Victoria’s beauty, and the fact that she was also one of the kindest young ladies to debut this year made it hard to dislike her.
Mia liked her very much and decided that her friendship with Lady Victoria was not something she would ever take lightly.
If Lord Easton wanted to speak with her, then Mia told herself she wouldn’t dwell on it because she wouldn’t want to jeopardize her fledgling friendship with Lady Victoria.
“The pleasure was mine, Miss Parker,” Easton said. “Good day, all.”
“And I’m afraid I have another appointment to attend to,” Lord Chandler said. “I look forward to seeing you at the ball. Until then, Miss Parker, Fletcher,” he said, tipping his hat.
“Good day, Lord Chandler,” Mia said.
“Chandler,” Fletcher said as he dismounted and helped Mia down from the saddle, handing Lucille’s reins to Easton.
“Thank you again for loaning me the mare.”
Easton nodded. “My pleasure.”
Mia watched for a moment longer as Easton and Kathryn trotted away.
“Shall we go in? I’m rather parched,” Fletcher said.
“Of course,” Mia said, following him inside.
They found Audrey in the drawing room. “How was your ride?”
Mia skipped into the room and plopped down next to her sister on the sofa. “Oh, Audrey, it was so wonderful. I met Lord Easton’s friends, Lord Chandler and Lord Ludlow, and Lord Chandler has already requested a dance at the Gardner ball.”
“Well, that does sound exciting,” Audrey said.
“And we saw Lady Wright and Lady Victoria. It was lovely to see them again.”
“That’s wonderful. I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.” She looked up at her husband. “I’ve ordered a tea tray. It should be brought in shortly.”
“Excellent. I’m quite parched,” Fletcher said, kissing his wife’s cheek. “How are you, my darling?”
“I’m quite well.”
It wasn’t long before a maid brought in the tea tray and placed it on the low table in front of the sofa. She bobbed a quick curtsey and exited the room.
“Mia, will you pour out?”
Mia nodded and prepared cups for all of them before sitting next to her sister again.
“Thank you, dearest. I’m pleased you had an enjoyable time in the park.”
“You’ll never guess who we also saw today,” Mia said.
“Oh? Who would that be?”
Before Mia could respond, Fletcher spoke up. “Lady Whitestone and Lady Nestle. Busybodies as usual, and they were quite disrespectful of Lady Clifford.”
Mia jumped into the conversation before Fletcher could explain. “They addressed her as Lady Kathryn. It seemed purposely done to humiliate her, and they were shocked when Lord Easton corrected them and said his sister is now Lady Clifford.”
“Oh my! I can imagine that didn’t sit well with those two. They claim they know all the best gossip, and yet they had no idea about Kathryn’s marriage. It must have been delightful to see the look on their faces.”
Fletcher nodded. “Oh yes, it was. However, Lady Clifford was as gracious as always and merely greeted them with her usual kindness.”
“I would expect nothing less from my friend,” Audrey said. “Was she upset at the slight?”
Fletcher shook his head. “If she was, she didn’t show it, and then Easton dismissed them quite out of hand. I could tell he was seething, but Lady Clifford didn’t want to cause a scene, and we rode on.”
“I must write to her and express my outrage at her mistreatment by those vile women,” Audrey said. “I will never forgive them for ambushing us the first time we were promenading in the park together.”
“My darling, do not upset yourself. It’s not good in your condition,” Fletcher said.
“Condition? What condition?” Mia asked, her brows bunched together. “Audrey, are you well? You must tell me if you’re sick. Should we leave London?”
Audrey shook her head before placing a hand protectively over her belly. “I’m not sick, dearest. I’m with child.”
Mia nearly dropped her teacup at this unexpected news, and her mouth fell open. What did that mean for her Season? Would it be cut short? She knew her sister hadn’t had an easy time while carrying William.
Audrey squeezed her hand. “Dearest, do not let this news upset you.”
“I’m not upset,” Mia lied, smoothing her face. “In fact, it’s wonderful news. Another niece or nephew for me to spoil.”
“You mustn’t worry about your Season. I plan on attending as many events as possible with you.”
“Of course, but you must put your health first,” Mia said, knowing it was the right thing to say but not entirely happy about it.
Wait! What was she thinking?
She inwardly chastised herself for being selfish. It was wonderful news. Her sister had done everything for her throughout her life, and she vowed to be more appreciative of her. What was a silly ball or musicale compared to the love and devotion of a beloved sister?
She’d greatly admired how Lord Easton jumped to his sister’s defense, and she wanted to be more like that. After all, family was everything.
“I do hope Lady Whitestone did not upset you too much,” Easton said as he and Kathryn made their way back to Devon House. “I must say those women are the worst gossips I’ve ever had the displeasure of encountering.”
“I confess I used to shake with fear whenever I encountered them during my Season. I was always on edge, thinking that I must be perfect—perfect in what I wore, what I said, and who I talked to—or else they would make some disparaging remark about me, and it would run rampant through the ton.”
“I’m so sorry; I didn’t know how unhappy you were back then. I would have spoken to them on your behalf if I’d known.”
“You’re a dear brother, but I’m afraid there wasn’t much you could have done. Anything you said would have been twisted and repeated in the most ugly way possible.”
“You may be right, but it was my own failing that I didn’t know how you were suffering. I’m your older brother and should have been looking out for you better,” Easton said, reaching across and squeezing his sister’s hand.
“Thank you, Easton. Please don’t fret over it anymore. It’s all in the past, and I’m so very happy with my husband and children, I rarely think of my failed Season.”
“I’m very pleased you’re happy. Sir Samuel is a good man.”
“Indeed he is. So, I noticed you were speaking with Lady Victoria earlier. Are you interested in courting her?”
He shook his head. “No. I was merely being polite.”
“I see. Are you sure about that?”
“Yes. Why do you ask?”
“No particular reason, although I did think you were interested in Miss Parker.”
“Miss Parker? No, not at all,” he denied vehemently, maybe a little too vehemently.
“Lady Victoria is a lovely young woman, so if you’re not serious about courting her, I would ask you not to give her a false impression about your interest,” Kathryn said.
“I would never do anything to cause her undue upset. I merely asked her to save me a dance at the Gardner ball. Nothing more.”
“Good,” she said with a slight nod.
There was no more conversation as they made their way to Devon House.
Easton was conflicted. Were his feelings for Miss Parker so transparent?
First, his mother had questioned his feelings, and now his sister had done the same.
This could not stand. He would have to keep his distance from Miss Parker from now on, especially since she didn’t seem to regard him as anything more than a family friend, especially if her flirting with Chandler was any indication.
He had to admit that he’d wanted to ask Miss Parker to save him a dance at the Gardner ball while on their ride, but then she began flirting with his friend.
He’d been a fool and waited too long. There was no way he would say anything to Chandler.
It wasn’t his fault that Miss Parker found him more attractive, but it was still hard to watch.
When he and Kathryn reached Devon House, his mind was in turmoil.
What should he do?
Confess his feelings to Miss Parker and hope she might return them someday?
Or…keep them buried deep inside his chest?
Could he live with himself if she decided on another suitor because he never declared his feelings to her?
He was certainly no coward and had never had a problem interacting with the ladies before, so why was it that Miss Parker upset his perfectly controlled life with her passion for fun?
Perhaps if he tried to arrange a fun activity for her, she would see that he held her in the highest regard? What was the most fun place he knew?
Vauxhall Gardens.
A night of entertainment might be the perfect catalyst for her to see that he could also enjoy himself and have fun. Maybe then, her feelings for him would change…or at least, he hoped so.