Chapter Two
Philip Harding stared at the drink in his hand as he sat in his friend’s library. Though he’d said he never thought it would come to this, his conscience told him he knew it would happen eventually. He just hadn’t expected it to happen like this…on a sure bet.
The Viscount of Tamworth strolled over and sat in the wingback chair next to him, setting his own drink on the table between them. “How bad is it?”
Philip hesitated to admit his failure to anyone, but he needed help, and Tamworth was the most discreet. “It’s bad. I’ve lost it all.”
“You couldn’t have lost it all. Crestfield Hall is entailed. You still have a roof over your head and a place to sleep.”
“Yes, I have a roof, but I’ll have no bed to sleep in once I pay this debt.”
“What the devil did you bet on?”
His gut twisted and resentment rose, even though it was his own fault.
“I bet on you, of course. You were a sure thing. You had a plan. Buy this place. Fix it up. Then look for a wife after you celebrated thirty years of life. It was such a sure bet that only one person bet against the rest of us. Bloody bastard.” He took a gulp of the fine scotch and let it sear his insides as he deserved, but it was far too smooth to even allow that self-flagellation.
Tamworth, to his credit, shifted uncomfortably. “I apologize for that. I hadn’t expected to fall in love with Sophie. But if you remember, I told you not to bet on me.”
“Honestly, I was shocked. I placed that bet in the book at White’s right after we left Lord Ferncroft’s Twelfth Night affair, and at that outing you were tupping Lady Worcester. You certainly made quick your courtship to Lady Sophie. I didn’t even have a chance to talk you out of the wedding.”
“Unfortunately, you would not have succeeded. I was even ready to go to Gretna Green to marry Sophie if need be. Who was it that bet against you?”
He turned the glass in his hand, unease filling him.
“That’s the worst of it. That rake Lord Claremont was the only one who took us on.
There were five of us. We all knew you well, and Claremont knows you not at all.
I was positive there was no possibility you would marry before thirty, or I would have never placed the bet. ”
Tamworth stared at him. “Wouldn’t you? Since your father’s passing, you’ve been betting on everything from which member of royalty would attend the theatre to how much rain fell in a day.”
Philip looked away, back at his drink, before taking another gulp. Finally, he grumbled, “But you were a sure bet.”
“Durham, I know you’re angry at your father, but losing everything he left you won’t make that feeling go away.”
Self-loathing filled him, and he rose, throwing back the last of the scotch. “I need another.” He started for the sideboard.
“What you need is to come to terms with your father’s death, not another drink.”
Rage filled him, and he clenched his hands so hard that the glass in his hand shattered. As the pieces fell to the Persian rug beneath his feet, he watched the blood droplets appear on his hand. The pain was like that inflicted by a gnat, hardly what he deserved.
“Durham?” Tamworth rose. “Damn, what happened?”
“It appears I broke your glass. You’ll have to stand in line to have me pay you for it.”
“Don’t be an ass. Here. Wrap your hand with my handkerchief before you ruin Sophie’s new rug.”
Philip took the proffered linen and wrapped his hand, holding it together with his thumb.
“You’re correct about one thing—drinking isn’t going to save me, any more than betting did.
” He walked to a still-empty bookcase, a reminder that his friend had made his own fortune but wasn’t quite finished.
He turned, leaning against the solid oak.
“Maybe after everything sells, you could help an old friend invest in trade.”
Tamworth sighed. “You need funds to do that. I could have advised you long before now, but you were set upon losing everything, not gaining.”
“I’ll have you know I won a fair amount, too.”
Before Tamworth could answer, a footman came in with a tray. “My lady requested I bring this in.”
Philip grinned at the surprised look on Tamworth’s face. “Still not used to your wife taking care of you, I see.”
“No, just eternally amazed at how observant she is. Rout cakes are your favorite, are they not?”
“You lie. Those are not on that tray.”
Tamworth put something on a plate and brought it to him. “Your rout cakes.”
“I’ll be damned.” Philip took the plate and bit into the dense cake, the flavor of brandy and currant filling his mouth. For a moment, he simply savored the treat he wouldn’t be able to afford again. After he swallowed, he sneered. “Then again, I’m already damned.”
“Come, sit down and have some tea and more rout cakes. I’ve surmised that you didn’t just come here to let me know you lost your fortune. You could have let me find out once news hit of your sales. You know, if I had the blunt, I’d loan it to you.”
Too aware of how selfish he was being—again—Philip returned to the chair he’d vacated and set the plate down on the table.
“You’re right. I did come to you. You’re intelligent, trustworthy, and have connections that are advantageous.
I was hoping there might be a way to avoid anyone finding out that I have lost everything once I pay the debt.
You don’t happen to still have my house in Town, do you? ”
“I don’t. I had to sell it to convince Sophie’s father I could support her. Why?”
“I was hoping you could give it back to me. Then I could sell it and pay you back over time. That would at least keep a few servants about and most of the furniture. But that is a moot point, after all.”
“So you truly want to avoid losing everything that was your father’s? I had the feeling you were trying to erase him from your memory.”
The rout cake he’d just bitten into suddenly tasted like paper. What he was trying to do was erase what he’d done to his father, but that obviously wasn’t working either. And now, he’d lose every memory of his parents when all the furnishings were gone.
He finally swallowed the bite. “No. That wasn’t my intent. Every loss was deserved.” He clamped his mouth shut before saying too much.
“If you truly wish to keep as much of your possessions as possible, I may have a suggestion, but I promise it will not be easy and would change everything about your life.”
At the idea that he could possibly undo what he’d done, he leaned forward. “Tell me. I’ll do anything. It’s not as if my life since my father passed has been worth living anyway.”
Tamworth studied him, obviously trying to decide if he was being honest. What the man didn’t know was exactly how desperate Philip was to save what he could of his father’s legacy. How odd that he hadn’t appreciated it until it was lost, much like the former Lord Durham.
“I believe you. I just hope you’re being sincere because it will affect—”
“Man, don’t delay, if there’s a way, tell me posthaste.”
“Fine. My wife has a friend, a classmate from the Belinda School for Curious Ladies, who is in desperate need of a husband. The lady’s parents would pay a significant dowry to the gentleman who would agree to this position.”
“I don’t have time to woo and win a lady among dozens of anxious swains, Tamworth.” Disappointed, Philip sat back and reached for his glass, only to find it a cup with tea instead. He quickly put it down without drinking.
“Actually, this particular lady is in as much of a hurry as you are, and there are no other men currently at her door.”
Wary, as it sounded far too good to be true, Philip leaned forward once again. “There is something wrong with her.”
“No, not wrong. She was simply seduced by another peer who told her he would marry her and then married another.”
“Bloody blackguard. But if she believed him, she cannot be completely right in her head. Tell the truth. She’s not very intelligent?”
“Just the opposite. As I said, she attended the same school as my wife. The man was simply too convincing, and from what Sophie says, the lady’s mother encouraged the relationship, so she too was taken in.”
“So this lady is intelligent, but no longer a virgin. Is she with child?”
“Not that I know of, but it may be too soon to tell. Only the lady can answer that.”
“I see. Then I take a deflowered lady to wife, and possibly take her illegitimate child, and in return I keep my estate and all my possessions as well as what little honor I have. Does anyone besides the family and your wife know?”
“Just a few other classmates, so you wouldn’t want to delay if it is of any interest to you.”
Philip rose and walked to the window that looked upon the back of the small estate, but he didn’t see the landscape.
What he saw was his home, a place he’d never given a thought about until he was sure he’d lose everything in it but the walls and roof—and soon those too when he could no longer maintain them.
As he thought of Crestfield Hall, memories of growing up surfaced: his father teaching him to ride, his mother gifting him with a new toy at Christmastide, and his older sister running after him.
All the things he’d forced into the recesses of his mind as if they didn’t matter. But they did.
What Tamworth offered was a lifetime payment to a woman he didn’t know and possibly a child that wasn’t his. It seemed fitting. Finally, he would have the punishment he deserved for his selfishness.
He turned and faced Tamworth. “I’ll do it.
I will need to call on her to avoid suspicion of anything odd.
We will also need the three weeks for the banns to be read, to make everything appear as usual.
I believe Lord Claremont won’t think twice if I wait a month to pay him. It’s not as if I run into him often.”
“Do you not wish to know who it is first?”
He shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. But we may need to fabricate a story of how we met. Unless I’ve met the lady already?”
“You have indeed. You met her at the Marquess of Ferncroft’s Twelfth Night event. She is Lady Georgina, the daughter of Lord Edgerton.”
He envisioned the women at the masquerade and the days that followed. There’d been quite a few. “What costume did she wear?”
“She was dressed as a green bird with orange and yellow feathers.”
The image of a slender woman with quick movements and fast speech entered his head. “Did she have dark brown hair?”
“Yes, she did. Do you remember her?”
“I do, at least in costume. Did she skate the next morning?”
Tamworth rose and shook his head. “You may want to give the people around you a bit more consideration in the future, so as not to miss important clues. Yes, she was skating before we took to the ice.”
Philip searched his brain for an image of the ladies who were already skating, but he’d been so intent on besting Manning and Tamworth in a race that he hadn’t paid much attention.
Another instance of his selfishness? “It is of no consequence. When I call upon her, I will know her. She is amenable to this arrangement?”
“She doesn’t have a choice, and to be honest, she could do a lot worse than you.” Tamworth gave him a warm smile.
“Not much worse, but if she’s willing, I am. I can be in Town in two days.”
“Allow me to prepare the lord and lady first. Your regular betting is well known, and if Lord Claremont has already been bragging about how he won, you can be assured Lord Edgerton might have reservations.”
He bristled at the idea that he would not be considered acceptable despite his lineage and the lady’s circumstances. Had he really fallen so far? “Then please do so. I will be at Crestfield awaiting your word to call on Lady Georgina.”
Ready to leave, he almost started for the library’s door but caught himself just in time. Blast. He needed to start thinking beyond himself. Maybe a wife to provide for was just what he needed.
He turned and walked to where Tamworth leaned against the large mahogany desk, then held out his hand. “Thank you for offering me a solution. I will endeavor to make a success of it.”
“I just hope you don’t end up in the same circumstances a year from now, when you have a wife and possible child dependent upon you.”
After Tamworth shook his hand, Philip opened his mouth but promptly shut it. He’d already broken too many promises to his father, to his friends, and to himself. Until he was confident he could keep one, he would no longer make any promises. “Are you coming to Town this year?”
“Only for a fortnight, but if all goes well, Sophie and I will gladly attend your wedding.”
He gave a nod and headed for the door. As he left the house and climbed into his coach, which he’d hardly used until he knew it would be sold, he ruminated over Tamworth’s final words.
The message was clear. Tamworth expected an invitation to the wedding and would be coming to Town to check the results.
As the carriage rumbled along the dirt road toward Crestfield, a new feeling of hope filled him. If the lady in question accepted his suit, he was quite sure they could rub along well. He wasn’t a difficult man to live with. At least, he didn’t think he was.
He tried again to bring the image of Lady Georgina to mind.
If she was to be his for the rest of his life, he should know what she looked like.
But as he tried to remember the skaters that morning, or even the ladies at dinner the next day, he couldn’t see the face of the slender woman with dark hair.
He relaxed back into the cushion of the seatback. It was of no consequence. He would marry her and save his father’s legacy, a legacy he hadn’t known he cared about until it was about to be taken away.
Even at the mere thought, his stomach tensed.
Hope was not the same as relief, and his hope could be shattered in a matter of days.
He needed to do whatever was necessary to win over the lady and her parents.
He sat straight as his mind raced. He would call on Lord Manning on the morrow to see if that man had any insight into Lord Edgerton.
Then he would have his solicitor find a townhouse to rent for the Season.
No, he didn’t wish to incur more debt until he knew the full extent of his future wife’s dowry, if she agreed to marry him. Better to rent rooms until he was sure of his circumstances.
Feeling better with a plan, he sat back again, anxious to arrive home. He had much to do.