Chapter 15
The coach rolled to a stop before the set of stairs that led up to the Duke of Rivers’ impressive abode. A gaggle of young ladies, their mothers, and their boxes arrived in a cacophony of excitement.
The Duke of Rivers folded his hands behind his back as he watched the young ladies descend in a flurry of pinks, yellows, and blues, followed by their mothers in slightly darker but still vibrant hues.
“What the devil is this about?” Lord Philip asked, eyeing the collection of young ladies who were clearly not of quite as prestigious a class as he was.
“I made a mistake,” Rivers said.
Philip let out a note of astonishment. “The Duke of Rivers can make mistakes?”
“Stop that,” Rivers said archly. “You know that I can and you can too, my boy.”
Philip grinned. “We are all capable of making mistakes. Let it be known. The world shall be amazed.”
Rivers rolled his eyes. “She was alone,” he said simply. “Of course, she was staying up in her room.”
Philip sucked in a breath. “You recognized it?” he said.
“You did too?” Rivers asked.
Philip gave a nod. “It only just hit me, the terrible mistake we made. Frankly, I’m shocked that Fennyman didn’t come to the conclusion sooner.
Of course, she wouldn’t want to be with the lot of us.
She’s not like us. Her family doesn’t travel in our circles, so why would she feel comfortable? You’ve done the right thing.”
Rivers smiled slowly. “I think so too. Now she won’t be able to avoid anyone. The maid, Nancy, helped,” he said softly.
Philip cheered. “Well done, Nancy. She must have been brilliant because I spotted Miss Foxley and Seaborough coming back in from the gardens together and trying to look surreptitious. But to my most pleased eye, they also looked as if they had done something that they shouldn’t.
Or, well, rather something that they definitely should, but couldn’t get caught doing. ”
Rivers eyed him swiftly. “You’re serious?”
“Oh, yes,” Philip replied, beaming. “It’s magnificent. We are back on track, and the young ladies who have just arrived will help.”
“Do you truly think so?” Rivers asked. “I have some concerns because they are wallflowers and generally aren’t given to dancing and things, as far as I have been informed.”
Philips shook his head. “They’re only not given to dancing because no one ever asks them.”
The Duke of Rivers’ brow furrowed. “It is so frustrating that ladies are judged by such ridiculously horrible standards.”
Philip folded his arms over chest, the immaculately tailored coat stretching over his shoulders. “Yes, and that gentlemen almost have none. We can get away with anything,” Phillip observed. “They are on trial for everything.”
Rivers snorted. “We’re fixing that though, aren’t we? We are changing the standards and we are altering how things are done.”
Philip lowered his arms and eagerly clapped his hands together. “Indeed, we are, Your Grace, and tonight we shall make sure that every lady dances apace over and over again.”
Rivers frowned. “You don’t think it’ll be too obvious? After all, we did that the other night.”
“We will just be solidifying the fact that we are in defense of the ladies, you and I. And, of course, we’ll get Viscount Skyburn in on it and the Duke of Westfort. His wife is such a jolly sort.”
“Do you think that they’ll agree?” Rivers challenged. “They won’t grow suspicious?”
“No, not a bit of it,” Phillip said with the sort of confidence that belonged to the very young. “The two of them love the idea of putting the ton to rights by giving some respect to young ladies who aren’t afforded it. They have no idea about The Marriage Managing Society.”
“You don’t think they will worry that people will suspect that they wish to court those young ladies?”
“I don’t think Skyburn will think the least of it,” he said. “And Westfort is married. They’re happy to help you, and it’s clear that this is a favor that you desire.”
His frown turned to a scowl. “I don’t want it to be clear that it’s what I desire. If they begin to think that I am at the root of all of this, they’ll swiftly come to understand The Marriage Managing Society’s point.”
Philip nodded, not as worried, and clearly sure that all would always work out. “I see. Well, I think I know exactly what I’ll do.”
Rivers arched a brow. “We better run it by Fennyman.”
“I’ll run it by Fennyman. Never you worry,” Philip said. “Now you go downstairs and you get the young ladies situated, and you make sure that tonight everyone dances.”
The duke smiled, feeling as if things were indeed going to start going as he hoped. “Oh, I shall.”
Ernestine’s friends, her partners in her future escape to Italy, positively gushed with laughter as they raced down the hall towards her.
Ernestine let out a cry of amazement and held her hands out to her three dear friends.
“Whatever are you doing here?” she exclaimed, feeling a wave of relief.
“We were invited at the last moment,” exclaimed Juliet, whose eyes were wide with amazement, taking in the wealth that was so common in the duke’s home.
“I know. It is quite remarkable. I don’t even know why we’re here,” Araminta enthused, all but bouncing up and down.
Clementine let out a peep of amusement before she patted her bonnet. “But we are here and that’s all I care about.”
“At last, we are at the center of things,” Juliet cried out, her cheeks as pink as her gown.
Araminta winked. “We are now the crème de la crème.”
Ernestine guffawed with laughter. “I don’t know if we want to be the crème de la crème,” she said. “It all seems to be rather thick around here. The only one who seems to be interesting at all is the Earl of Seaborough. And his friends.”
“Well, let us observe these delightful friends anew and take in their natural habitat,” Juliet teased.
“Before we judge them all boring,” Araminta said, looking about the hall. “Though one couldn’t ever call this hallway boring! I have spotted a Reynolds, a Gainsborough, and a Caravaggio!”
Clementine said, “Exactly. We need to have a look around too. When shall we have a chance at spotting such things again?”
“Now tell us everything that has been happening,” Juliet demanded, as she linked arms with her.
Ernestine beamed and began leading the lot of them towards her chamber.
They bustled eagerly down the carpet woven in hues of green, gold, and ivory, ready to be alone for a good gossip.
She shut the door behind them and declared, “You will never guess.”
Araminta’s eyes gleamed with excitement. “Oh, I think we might!”
Her three friends tittered.
“You and the earl?” ventured Clementine.
Her cheeks went pink.
“My goodness. What happened?” Juliet burst out. “Tell all!”
“He kissed me,” she said.
“Kissed you?” Araminta echoed, feigning swooning. Clementine caught her and the two looked adoringly into each other’s eyes before erupting into laugher.
“Are you getting married then?” Juliet asked, throwing herself down into a chair with less than ladylike zeal.
“Of course not,” she replied swiftly, but then she swallowed. “Well, I don’t know. It’s all rather unclear.”
“You can’t get married,” Araminta protested, though she wasn’t emphatic.
“We’re going to Italy in two weeks’ time!” reminded Clementine.
“As soon as your inheritance has cleared,” Juliet added. All three of them, who had never and would never make a mark on the marriage mart, had been saving and waiting until they came into the sort of funds that would let them lead dignified and peaceful lives in the sun.
She nodded. “Of course. Of course we are. Forgive me. I don’t mean to be distracted.”
But then Juliet gave her a merry look. “If you wed him, we can go to Italy whenever we want.”
“I’m sure he’d buy you a thousand villas,” Araminta teased, crossing to the fireplace and draping herself along the mantel.
Clementine nodded. “Yes, I am sure he would, and he’d happily play the lute beside you as you sat in a field full of crimson poppies and—”
“Yes, yes,” Ernestine cut in, raising her hands. “That sounds very charming, but I don’t think the Earl of Seaborough is going to relocate to Italy. Not anytime soon.”
Juliet pouted with disappointment. “Then I suppose the three of us will simply have to go without you.”
“Don’t say that,” Ernestine said firmly. “I still intend to go. This is merely…”
“What?” Araminta asked gently.
“I don’t know,” she suddenly lamented, throwing her hands up. “I guess I simply can’t pass this up. Someone like him… He’s so unusual, so remarkable, and he…”
“Yes?” Clementine asked, leaning forward.
“He fancies me, and I fancy him, even though I don’t wish to admit it. But there’s no getting around it now,” Ernestine rushed. “The two of us, well, we fit well together, though we shouldn’t.”
Her friends grinned.
“You are going to marry him,” Clementine said, looking rather dreamy for a moment.
She shook her head. “I highly doubt that. He wants love. I can see it in his eyes, and that’s not something that I want to give.”
Juliet winced. “Oh, please don’t say that. Surely you deserve love?”
“It’s not that I don’t deserve love,” she said quickly. “I don’t want to chance it. It’s brutal when love is taken from you.”
Her three friends went very quiet. Awkwardly so. And then they looked at each other, each one seeming to need to gather the courage to speak.
Clementine cleared her throat. “But surely your parents and he…? That is totally different?”
“It’s not,” she said firmly. “I don’t know how I turned love off inside me years ago.
But I did. I’m going to go through this life single, and perhaps I can have a kiss here and there or a bit of fun, but I’m never ever going to feel like I felt that day again, when my entire world was ripped away from me.
I’m simply not capable of love now. It’s just not something I can do.
I don’t think I’ve ever really recovered.
Love broke inside me,” she said honestly.
“And right now, I have half a mind to run downstairs and get in that coach that brought you and leave, but I know that would be a cowardly thing to do, and so I won’t.
I am trying so very hard not to be a coward. I must be brave.”
Her friends stared at her again. Quiet. Contemplative.
She could see how much they wished to help her but knew that they could not.
“Listen to you,” Araminta marveled.
“What inspired you to speak thus?” Juliet asked, awed.
“A maid,” she said honestly. “Nancy. So I’m going to do the very best I can, and then once I’ve enjoyed myself, I’m going to leave him to his life, and I will go towards mine. With the three of you.”