Charlotte felt her face warm with his words. She cast her eyes down and looked back up at him through the veil of her lashes. The man was so striking that he made her quite nervous, even though he must surely be close to her age, or perhaps older. “What better time to be forward than at a fancy-dress ball?” Charlotte gave him a guarded smile.
He gave her a deep bow. As he rose he said, “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lord Stanhope. And you are?”
Charlotte tried to remember what she and Amanda had said she should call herself if others asked. She mumbled, “Miss Thomas.”
“It is most lovely to meet you, Miss Thomas. Now that we are acquainted, would you like to dance?” Lord Stanhope’s flashy manner would not normally appeal to Charlotte, but there was something charming about the man.
She accepted his offer with a nod of her head, and he extended his hand to her. Once her hand was within his, he guided her onto the floor, where he pulled her along with him in a dance that took Charlotte a moment to catch on to. When she did, she found the dance rather entertaining.
To her surprise, Lord Stanhope was not annoyed that she did not know the English country dance. He took her inexperience in his stride and showed her how to do the steps as they went.
“You are very kind, Lord Stanhope,” Charlotte said with a genuine smile.
Lord Stanhope laughed. “You say that because you do not know that I am hoping if I show you how kind I am that you will assent to see me again.”
“See you again?” Charlotte was taken aback by the notion. “Do you mean another dance?” The idea was not an unpleasant one.
Lord Stanhope chuckled as they danced, and he shook his head. “I meant perhaps you would let me come to see you at home, or escort you somewhere.”
Charlotte whispered, “Oh.”
Lord Stanhope quickly added, “I did not mean that to seem roguish. I mean that I would like to truly court you. But I know a lady such as yourself needs time. I just do not know if I can survive the wait until another ball.”
Charlotte almost stumbled and quickly excused herself. “I am sorry,” she mumbled as she made her way off the floor.
Lord Stanhope tried to call after her, but Charlotte was making her way hastily towards the exit. She nearly ran into Lord Easterly. “Lord Easterly,” Charlotte whispered. “I was wondering if I might be excused to go home. I fear that I am not feeling up to any more dancing.”
Lord Easterly gave her a concerned look. “Of course,” he said. “I shall tell them to bring my carriage around the front. Are you certain that you are well?”
She nodded and walked with him toward the entrance. “I do not mean to take you away from the party.”
“No, I shall not ride with you. It would not be proper, but I will give you leave to use my carriage. I can ride home with my sister.” Lord Easterly escorted her to the front door and waited with her.
Charlotte whispered, “I do not know how society people handle these things. They seem very vexing.”
“They can be,” Lord Easterly agreed with a nod. “The trick is to not let them get complicated. How did you like your first ball?”
Charlotte let out a breath she had been holding. “It was wonderful and terrible. I felt as though people were watching me. I was afraid that I might bring some sort of shame on your house.”
“I think if my sister has not managed that then you shall be quite fine.” He clasped his hands behind his back and Charlotte hid a small laugh behind her hand. “That is better.”
“What is?” Charlotte eyed him with curiosity.
Lord Easterly whispered, “You are laughing and therefore you must feel better.”
“You always do make me laugh. You are a good man, Lord Easterly.” Charlotte dared not look up at him as she smiled at her feet.
The carriage drew up outside and Lord Easterly walked her down the steps to meet it. “Take her straight home, Richard,” Lord Easterly called.
“Right away, Your Lordship.” Richard gave Charlotte a little wave, which Charlotte returned. He was the same driver who had picked her up that first day.
Once Charlotte was inside, Lord Easterly bade her farewell with a lift of his hand. The carriage moved forward and Charlotte peered out of the window to see Lord Easterly as he walked back up the steps to go inside.
She settled down against the cushioned carriage seats and sighed. Her first ball was done. Charlotte smiled. Her would-be suitor was a silly thing for her to think of, yet he was exactly what she thought of as she rode home.
*
The next morning, Charlotte was already eating when Amanda came into the dining hall. “Ah, there she is,” she said with a grin. “Oh, thank goodness there is coffee. I always appreciate that bitter stuff the morning after a ball.”
“Were you out very late?” Charlotte had thought herself out late, but she knew that Amanda had come in later even than she.
Amanda lifted her arms in a helpless gesture. “Not as late as I would have liked, but alas my brother made me leave at some indecently early hour as he had some business this morning.” She sipped her coffee then shook her finger at Charlotte. “Which brings me to my next point, you abandoned me.”
“I did no such thing. I was simply overwhelmed and worn out,” Charlotte said with a frown at Amanda.
There was a smile on Amanda’s lips. There were moments here and there when Charlotte saw a true resemblance between Lord Easterly and Amanda and this was one of those moments. “How did you like your first ball?”
“It was, as I said, overwhelming.” Charlotte bit into a ripe strawberry. “Are they all like that or was it just because of the fancy-dress?”
Amanda stopped and seemed to give the question some thought. “As far as I can tell, with this being my first season, I would say that they are all like that to some extent. Perhaps the fancy-dress parties are a little more freeing for people.”
“Well, they certainly do test the stamina.” Charlotte shook her head at the grin her comment earned from Amanda. “You are a child.”
Amanda did not even try to contain the laughter that spilled over at Charlotte’s comment. “And what fun it is to be a child sometimes. Besides, I saw you dancing with some very legible and quite handsome young men. Care to talk about it?”
“I will not gossip with you,” Charlotte chided.
Amanda leaned over the table. “Come on, Lotte. Half the fun of going to a ball is talking about the ball and with whom you danced. You really must learn these things.”
“I do not know that I am cut out to be a gossip,” Charlotte admitted. She set aside her strawberry and took a sip of her tea.
Amanda assured her, “Everyone can gossip. It is the main currency of society. The more gossip you know, the more leverage that you have. It is like a game.”
“It sounds rather dreadful.” Charlotte made a face of disdain at Amanda.
With a roll of her eyes, Amanda took another sip of her coffee. “I saw you dance with Lord Stanhope, the brother of the Earl of Brunswick, for instance. How did you find him?”
Charlotte sighed and relented with a smile. “I found him amusing. Well, right up until he offered to court me.”
Amanda giggled. “Is that why you almost fell down?”
“I imagine everyone saw that. I feel so foolish.” Charlotte tried to be cross about it but she found herself laughing along with Amanda about her ill fortune.
Amanda reminded her, “No one knows who you are and therefore it does not matter.”
“It was quite flattering to have that kind of attention. I certainly never got that sort of attention in Dallington.” Charlotte felt a pang of homesickness, not so much for the place but for the simpler times. As much as she was swept away by her first taste of society life, it was not her world. There was no point in getting a thirst for it.
Amanda grinned. “I would like to see the look on Lord Stanhope’s face when he realised he had made such an offer to a maid and not to some heiress.”
/> “Heiress?” Charlotte’s stomach dropped. “Did you tell people that I was an heiress?”
Amanda waved off Charlotte’s look of shock. “I thought Graham had told you for sure. Anyway, it was just a silly game. It was not as if it mattered.”
“Lord Easterly knew as well?” Charlotte did not know how she felt about that.
There was the clink of silverware as Amanda set down her coffee. “Oh, he did not know until after. Besides, you have an offer of courtship thanks to me.”
“For an heiress that does not exist,” Charlotte said in dismay.
Amanda frowned at Charlotte. “What does it matter? Were you thinking of seriously accepting his offer?”
“No, of course not,” Charlotte said adamantly. “But I feel so embarrassed about it. What if he finds out?”
Amanda hit her hand against the table causing Charlotte to jump. “Nonsense. How could he find out anything? And if he did it would not matter. So, stop worrying over it.” Amanda bit her tongue then asked, her voice light and teasing, “Would you like to go to another ball? We could make you a disguise.”
Charlotte huffed. “I will not be attending any more functions. You might not care what your frivolous games do to your family’s reputation, but I do.”
“You are no fun. What happened to you, Lotte? You used to be so much fun when we were children?” Amanda shook her head. “Never mind all that droll stuff. Let me tell you about my night. “
Charlotte turned a deaf ear to her friend. All she really had to do with Amanda was nod, smile and make the odd noise of agreement. Amanda just needed an audience. That was one of the things Charlotte had noticed about her since being in her employ.
There were other things that Charlotte was beginning to notice, such as how Amanda treated others, including herself. If anyone were below her station the woman, no matter the reason for the situation, seemed to think it her right to use them as her own personal amusement.
She did not think seriously that anything would come of the Lord Stanhope situation, but the way Amanda spoke was horrible. Her old life might have been less than she had hoped for, but at least there was some security in it. At least Charlotte had had some sense of control.
Being at Amanda’s whim were taking its toll on Charlotte’s wellbeing. Yet, here she was in London. Surely there were opportunities aplenty for a girl such as herself.
Charlotte eyed her old friend as Amanda gave her a smug smile. Yes, Charlotte would find her own way in this world. She simply needed to be able to get away and do so. How she could find the extra time was another thing that Charlotte had no idea about.
She would work it out, though. Charlotte had the beginning of a plan that would see her free of Amanda’s clutches. She might not have felt like she had a choice when she entered into the agreement, but now she started to understand that everything was a choice.
*
Try as he might, James Stanhope was having very little luck in finding his missing heiress. He cursed himself for being so forward. Cleary the girl would require delicate handling.
He drank a brandy, which he put on his estranged brother’s tab. It would not be long before Phillip would find out about this spot and warn the barkeeps against selling any more drinks to James. Honestly, how dare his brother treat him this way?”
Ever since their mother died, Phillip had made it his mission to make James miserable, as if taking responsibility for anything had ever made anyone happy. James would show his brother a thing or two once he found his beloved heiress. He was smitten, he mused, as he took a gulp of his drink.
A rough looking fellow dropped down into the seat across from him. “Hello there, James.”
“Donald,” James said with a smile. He extended a hand across the table and they shook by way of greeting. “What have you found out for me?”
Donald shook his head at James. “Well, for starters, the girl you are looking for is not staying at the inns around. I did hear that she was seen with Lord Easterly, though.”
“Yes, I know she danced with him,” James said with a dismissive wave.
Donald lifted his hand to get the barkeep’s attention. “No. I mean a couple of the servants that night saw Lord Easterly escort her out. Apparently, he put her in a carriage before he returned to the party.”
“Does not Lord Easterly have a sister that debuted this year? I have yet to become acquainted with her, or perhaps I did and did not know it.” James pursed his lips in thought.
“I don’t know,” Donald said with a shrug. “It seems she must be staying with the Easterly family, if not related to them.”
James ran his finger around the rim of his glass. “Would not hurt to pay them a visit, would it? Feel free to put your drink on my brother’s tab, Donald. I am off to see if I can track down my lady love.”
Donald snorted as James gave him a little bow. James left the tavern with a sense of adventure. He would see this to the end. No matter where it led, it was sure to be interesting. He hung his cane on his arm and straightened his hat as he entered the street.
He fetched his horse from the boy he had offered a few coins to hold the reins. The child whooped with glee at his booty and raced off with his shiny coins as James climbed into the saddle. The street where the Easterly family resided was not that far from where his own family estate was. Not that he was currently welcome there.
James knew the way well and he hardly paid attention to the street as he rode. He was instead thinking of how he might smooth over the roughness of the last exchange he had with the mysterious heiress. He only hoped that the woman would consent to see him, since she had not been exactly receptive when he had offered a visit.
The estate loomed and James drew in a breath as he rode up into the entrance. A man stopped him with a raised hand. It looked to be some sort of servant and James tensed. It was possible that he might be turned away before he even reached the steps.
“Business with His Lordship?” The man squinted up at James with some doubt.
James nodded. “I have business with the lady of the house, but I will gladly speak with Lord Easterly, if I must.”
The man held James’ horse steady while James dismounted then motioned for him to go on up to the steps while he led the horse towards the stables. James straightened his jacket and used the door-knocker.
The loud clang swiftly brought the doorman. The heavy oak door swung inward and the man asked, “Business with His Lordship, Sir?”
James shook his head. “I wish to call upon the lady of the house, if that would be possible.”
“I shall have to speak with His Lordship about it, Sir. Would you like to wait in the entrance hall? I fear it might rain.” The doorman waved his hand at the cushioned benches that were designed for visitors.
James nodded and stepped inside as a rumble of thunder sounded overhead. “These summer storms really creep up on a fellow.”
“That they do, Sir.” The doorman gave him a bow. “I shall return shortly.”
James waved the man off and sat down to wait. The house really was quite lovely. He would not doubt that an heiress might be hidden away in one of the rooms.
The townhouse made his anger toward his brother bubble up. He should be living like this instead of cramped in that inn. His brother acted as though he were being so generous by allowing James just enough of an allowance to keep a room.
Under the Seductive Lady's Charm: A Historical Regency Romance Book Page 9
