by Fanny Finch
“You have done a marvelous job choosing flowers and shrubs to add to your garden, Eugenia. You should not feel bad.”
Eugenia shook her head. “I cannot help it, sweet one. Do you not agree that my garden has been simply dwarfed by Lord Faulkner’s magnificent garden?”
Hestia had to admit Lord Faulkner’s was much more eye-catching. It was certainly something Eugenia would not let her forget.
Hestia had reached the point that she was sure Eugenia had forgotten about her vow to help Hestia capture the heart of the unique Leander. Eugenia had not mentioned him since the house party, where she’d unsuccessfully tried to find time for them to talk to him.
Aware that Hestia would rather not speak with Leander in the presence of Miss Drusilla, Eugenia had avoided them. This meant they lost every opportunity they had to strike up a conversation with him. Feeling guilty about the whole thing, Hestia concentrated her efforts on finding a match for Eugenia.
Neither agenda was successful.
Lady Eugenia sprung to her feet and smiled brilliantly at her. “I have some news to tell you, Hestia. I think you will be very pleased.”
A streak of excitement passed through Hestia. She smiled back at her friend.
“What is it? Please tell me.”
Lady Eugenia’s face turned to a teasing grin. “I will tell you but first… let’s go for a horseback ride. I am bored sitting here, though the sun is shining and the air is crisp and clean. It’s a fine day for a horseback ride.”
“Oh, my lady, how you tease me!” Hestia said dramatically, lifting one arm to rest the back of her hand against her forehead.
“You will survive a few more moments, dear,” Lady Eugenia said with a grin. She moved swiftly across the grassy lawn with Hestia close behind her. A feeling of excitement washed over Hestia. Lady Eugenia made her feel that way with her youth and vitality.
The few years between them made more of a difference than Hestia would have suspected. It could have been their circumstances that made Hestia feel so much older than Lady Eugenia. But as she watched Lady Eugenia smile happily at the groomsman and take the reins of her horse from him, she felt many years older than the young girl.
She wondered what it was her friend wanted to tell her. Something exciting, it seemed.
She had learned long ago to be patient when someone had something to tell her. Her mother and father had taught her not to anticipate anything. Of all the things she had learned, the thing that stood out the most was how much expectations could hurt when what was wanted was not gotten.
The groomsman handed her the reins to the horse Lady Eugenia’s family had given her when she first arrived. It was one of the many things Lady Eugenia had convinced her family to do for Hestia.
As she rode behind her friend, she glanced back at the mansion they lived in. It was large, two stories, with many rooms that often went unused. Lady Eugenia was an only child, which was something her parents had not expected.
The viscount had given Hestia the room directly next to Lady Eugenia as if the young woman needed a nanny. But the room was huge and decorated with some of the most beautiful portraits of flowers and landscapes Hestia had ever seen, along with beautifully crafted furniture and a large comfortable bed.
Hestia was glad she didn’t have to return home every day, though she sometimes missed her own bed. She’d gotten used to the bed at the Culross mansion and had come to appreciate everything she was given by the family.
She ran her eyes over the wide-open lawn in front of the mansion and the garden on the other side, the one Lady Eugenia wished was more like Lord Faulkner’s.
Hestia smiled. Undoubtedly, Eugenia would convince her father to create a more elaborate garden. Her competitive nature extended only to a few things and the beauty of a garden was one of them.
“It is such a beautiful day, is it not?” Lady Eugenia turned to look at Hestia as she rode. She slowed her horse so that Hestia could come up beside her.
“It certainly is.” Hestia had to agree. It had been cold and rainy lately and the day was perfect, with a clear blue sky and only a touch of clouds to disturb it.
Lady Eugenia grinned at her. “You want to know what I have to tell you, I know you do.”
Hestia smiled back. “Of course, I do. But I will wait until you are ready to tell me. I am not anxious.”
Lady Eugenia laughed. “You are never anxious, Hestia. That’s one of the things I like about you. You are always calm, thinking things through. You are so mature and understanding. You are the best friend I believe I have ever had. And will ever have.”
“Oh, Eugenia. That is a sweet thing to say. Thank you.”
“I only tell the truth.” Lady Eugenia formed a cross on her chest and lifted one finger to point toward the sky. “God knows.”
Hestia nodded. “I know.”
“Father has been very gracious lately. I have asked him for several things and he has agreed to all of them. I believe he expects me to be courting by the end of the season, though I have yet to find a suitable man for me.”
Hestia did not know what to say. She thought any man who turned down the opportunity to be with Lady Eugenia must be a fool. She waited patiently for Lady Eugenia to continue.
After a short pause, her friend looked at her with a sly grin. “I have arranged a meeting for you, Hestia.”
Hestia pulled her eyebrows together, gazing at her friend. “What have you done?”
Lady Eugenia laughed again. “Oh, Hestia. You may not have found a husband for me yet, but you have found one for yourself. I want to further that.”
“Are you talking about Lord Price?”
Hestia had her answer when Lady Eugenia just stared at her, the smile frozen on her face.
“Oh no, Eugenia. I cannot possibly. Lord Price is already courting Miss Drusilla and I am but a lowly…”
“You will not say it,” Eugenia said in a scolding voice. “You will not call yourself a lowly servant around me, Hestia.”
“I was going to say lowly companion but servant works just as well.”
“No. You are not lowly. You are not a servant. You are my friend. Just because my family pays you to be my companion does not mean you are not my friend. I think you are the closest friend I have. I know you are.”
Hestia felt her friend’s love for her wash over her. She sighed happily. “I am so glad you care so much about me. I am blessed to be with you.”
“I am the one who is blessed. And that is why I will not let you put yourself down. You are a beautiful woman and I want you to be as happy as I will be when I am married. You deserve a husband who is worthy of a woman such as you.”
“Please tell me then,” Hestia said. “What have you arranged? What kind of meeting?”
“It is the kind of meeting that gives you an opportunity to speak with Lord Price.”
Hestia held in her excitement at the thought of spending more time with the handsome lord. “He is courting Miss Drusilla, I must repeat. You cannot expect me to take his love from her.”
Lady Eugenia snorted in an unladylike way. “His love for her? My girl, you must not be in your right mind. Everyone at the house party could see how miserable he was. And I suppose you did not notice when he was looking at you.”
Hestia’s heartbeat quickened. She forced herself to calm down. She had not seen Leander looking at her but she had avoided glancing in his direction, unwilling to see him with Miss Drusilla.
“He was looking at me?”
“Of course he was,” Lady Eugenia pulled on the reins so her horse would come to a stop. Hestia did the same, coming up beside her. Restless, her horse swayed his head back and forth, tapping his front feet.
“I did not see him. Are you sure he was not just looking in my general direction?”
Lady Eugenia laughed. “I am sure. When he turned his eyes and focused, they were not just in the general direction. They were directly on you.”
“You may not have seen correctly.”
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“Well, he certainly was not looking at me, Hestia. He was looking at you. I would not lie to you.”
Hestia knew that was the truth. If Lady Eugenia had not seen Leander looking at her, she would not say so. Could it be true? Could he have been that taken by her?
“I would not know what to say.”
Lady Eugenia gave a short laugh. “Hestia! You certainly would know what to say. You are a lady. You have been trained to know what to say. It is obvious Lord Price is only paired with Miss Drusilla because she has money. She was not trained or raised as a lady.”
“Her parents did not know how to train her,” Hestia replied logically.
“That is no reason to keep quiet about your feelings for Lord Price. I could see it in your eyes and I promised you I would do whatever I could to make sure you are happy. I believe you will be happy with Lord Price and that is why I have arranged this party.”
“A party?”
“Yes. I have arranged to have all the fine lords and ladies come here to the mansion. Including Lord Leander.”
“But Miss Drusilla will come, will she not?”
“She was not invited.”
“Eugenia! Will that not make the ton look down on you?”
Lady Eugenia frowned at her. “Why would they?”
“If Lord Price is courting Miss Drusilla and she is not invited, they will know you had a plan for this.”
“There is nothing that dictates I must invite certain people to my party. I do not wish her to be present and therefore, she will not be there. She is simply not invited.”
Hestia swallowed, blinking rapidly. Without Miss Drusilla there, Hestia would indeed have an opportunity to see Leander the way he normally would act. He’d been nervous and fidgety the entire time Miss Drusilla was around him.
“I will still be attending as your companion.”
“No. I have asked your mother to come. She will be here and you will be able to be the lady you really are.”
Chapter 13
“Follow me, Hestia,” Lady Eugenia said in an uncommonly demanding voice.
Hestia did as she was told. She was still reeling from the news that her mother would be attending the party and serving as her companion for the evening, making it a night for Hestia, as well as Lady Eugenia.
She rode behind Lady Eugenia, who took her horse across the lawn back in the direction of the garden. “I am going to have the gardeners make this flower garden look more elegant. I want it to be more like…” She glanced at Hestia with a wide smile. “You know…”
Hestia laughed. “I certainly do, Eugenia. Ever since you saw Lord Faulkner’s creation, you have been looking at this garden as though you detested the very sight of it.”
Eugenia joined her in laughter but shook her head at the same time. “No, no. I do not detest it. I just see that there is so much more that can be done. So much can be added to the beauty. You must agree, if someone were to see this garden and Lord Faulkner’s they would not hesitate to choose his over mine.”
“I suppose you are right,” Hestia said, gently. She did not want to hurt Eugenia’s feelings. “But your garden is also beautiful.”
“Not enough for me. I want it to be so much more. I have so many ideas.” She looked at Hestia. “You are trying to distract me from talking about my party. I see what you are doing.”
Hestia looked shocked but the look faded into cheerfulness. “I was not the one who came over to the garden. That was your doing. I believe you said you are going to have the party out here on the lawn and you want your garden to be more elegant. Is that not why we came over to look at it?”
Eugenia stuck out her bottom lip. “You are right. That is why I brought you over here. I am so excited to see you and Lord Price together, Hestia. It is going to make my party the best I have ever given.”
Hestia’s smile returned. She could not recall Eugenia asking her father to hold a party in the past. Not since she was Eugenia’s companion, anyway. And last season, Eugenia had been too young to attend any of the parties, much less have one of her own.
“You are putting great stock into this budding relationship you already have going on between myself and Lord Price. Are you sure you are not putting the cart before the horse? We do not know anything yet. Why, in the last week, he could have asked her father for her hand in marriage and they may have already set a date.”
Eugenia acted as though she was choking, placing one small hand against the base of her slender throat. It was the first time Hestia noticed her friend’s neck was lengthy. It leaned to the look of royalty she had always seen in Eugenia.
The reaction brought a chuckle from Hestia, which she knew Eugenia was waiting for.
“Hestia! Again, you make me think you have lost your sanity. It is my opinion, based on the way he looked at you and the way he looked at her, if he has asked for her hand in the last week, it is because he was forced to do so. And I do not see that happening.”
Hestia hoped her friend was right.
“He did not look happy when he was with her. Did you notice he used a scolding voice and often tried to give her ideas on how to better fit in?”
“Perhaps he is grooming her to be the wife he needs her to be.”
Eugenia sighed. “You are exasperating at times, Hestia! Can you not just give Lord Price the benefit of the doubt?”
“How am I not doing that?” Hestia was confused. She could not believe Leander was interested in her just because he looked at her a few times and Eugenia was convinced of it. The man was courting another woman. She did not want to feel like an intruder.
An idea came to her mind and she frowned. “Oh, Eugenia, what if he is interested in me but only as a mistress?”
Eugenia’s face turned white. Hestia regretted asking the question of such a young woman, in her first season.
“A mistress? Hestia! Is that what you think of Lord Price? If so, I will certainly rescind my invitation to him.”
Hestia was quick to shake her head. “No, no. I am sorry. It was a wayward thought. I never should have said such a thing.”
Eugenia’s face continued to darken. “I do not want to think that any man I choose to marry will decide to have a mistress. I want my husband to love only me.”
“I did not mean to imply that would happen to you, Eugenia. Please do not be sad. I am so sorry I said that.”
Eugenia looked out at her large flower garden, her face unsatisfied and stripped of all the joy she’d had just moments before. Hestia felt terrible. She felt tears clogging her throat. She wished she could take the words back.
“I do not believe Lord Price is that type of man,” she said firmly. “And I know that any man you choose will love you just as much as you love him. He will not stray from your side.”
Eugenia turned her eyes back to Hestia, who noticed they had filled with tears. Her heart broke.
“Please do not think of it another moment, Eugenia. I wish to see you happy as you have been all day. I regret my words. I am sorry.”
Eugenia swallowed visibly and nodded. “I know you did not mean to say that about Lord Price, Hestia. But it did make me think… oh, I know not what I would do if my husband took a mistress for himself. It would be scandalous! I would not know what to do.”
“I do not believe that would ever happen to you. You are a good woman and you will be a wonderful wife.”
“Do you really think so?” Hestia could tell Eugenia was pushing the bad thoughts from her mind by the look on her face. It had become innocent and sweet, rather than sad and hopeless. Hestia did not ever want to see that look on her friend’s face again. She would be more careful with her words in the future.
“I do.” Hestia nodded vigorously. “I do wonder, though, why you are going through so much trouble for me?”
Eugenia’s smile was back, much to Hestia’s relief. “You cannot possibly be wondering such a thing. I have made myself clear. You are a lady, too. You are not just a companion. You have shown your
tenacity and smarts by obtaining gainful employment to secure your future because of your family’s woes.”
“That does not appear selfish to you?”
Eugenia shook her head, moving her eyes out over the garden once more. “No. You are not at all selfish, Hestia. You are a kind and loving woman and I would be remiss not to take any opportunity I could find to make sure your happiness is secured.”
Hestia was grateful for her friend’s loving spirit. “I am blessed once again,” she said with a smile. “Not only by your persistence at pairing me with Lord Price but also because I see you are happy again.”
