“I am glad she is of service to you, Lady Agatha. Sister, dear, I will send the coach back for you in the mid-afternoon, if that is suitable?”
“Perfectly,” Edith replied, just as if they had not discussed this more than a dozen times that very morning.”
With that settled, Penelope allowed the butler to see her out and James to hand her up into the carriage.
The riding park where she would meet with Lord Newhorn was just a little beyond Pinehaven Park. It had a small hostelry where they could leave the team, as well as having horses to rent.
When she arrived, Penelope was pleased to discover that Lord Newhorn had brought mounts for her and for James, so they would have no need to hire one for the day. In addition, he had a small pack pony who was laden with two paniers.
“I brought a waterproof tent today,” Lord Newhorn announced, proudly. “So no matter what nature decides to send against us, both we and the horses will be sheltered.”
“That is quite fore thoughtful of you, My Lord,” Penelope said.
“I am glad it meets your approval, Miss Chapman. I hope the rest of my arrangements will, as well. Unfortunately, I do not have any attendants with me today, so we will not have servants or music.”
Penelope laughed. “I believe I can bear up under the hardship. Truly, I like to ride and I don’t get the opportunity very often. James should be able to do all that we need today, if we assist him.”
“Miss Chapman, have you ever put up a tent?”
“No. Have you?”
“Once or twice. It can be an interesting process.”
James made a sort of strangled sound, but when Penelope and Lord Newhorn looked at him, he had on a proper servant face.
“Are you all right, James?”
“Quite fine, Miss Chapman. I promise I can ably instruct you in the niceties of putting up a tent, if that is your desire.”
Lord Newhorn looked up at the sky, which was a beautiful, clear blue with only a few clouds drifting overhead. “We probably won’t need it, but I thought it prudent to bring one, just in case. English weather being what it is, this lovely day could easily turn into a downpour if those fluffy little clouds decide to have a meeting.”
“It is such a beautiful day, I would hate for it to be spoiled by a downpour. My sister and I used to come out here with our uncle, before he became so busy. We would spend the whole day, riding the trails, picking flowers and just getting away from everything. It isn’t a fashionable area, so there are very few people who use the trails here.”
“We should have a pleasant day, then. My cook assured me that he had packed a delectable lunch that will withstand jostling and any sort of weather short of a complete dunking in a lake.”
Penelope laughed. “There is a spring and a small stream, but no lake, so I do not fear that we shall be getting wet. Thank you so much for indulging me. This is a rare treat.”
“I’m glad you are enjoying it. I’ll own it has been a while since I rode anywhere simply for the pleasure of it.”
“You worked so very much for your family’s interests while you were in Europe?”
“I did. I cost my mother and father a great deal, so I felt it behooved me to help them regroup. After Napoleon was defeated, there was a great deal of rebuilding of the family finances to be done.”
“So very little riding for fun?”
“Very little, and a great deal of junketing about in stuffy coaches to see my father’s various agents. I learned a great deal, and hope to apply it now that I am back home. The people on the estate are counting on me to carry on.”
Penelope gazed steadily at Lord Newhorn for a moment. “I’m glad you feel that way. Too many landholders are turning off their people so that the land can be used for other things. I fear that our own people have not had an easy time of it these last two years while we have been in London.”
“Did your uncle turn any of them out?”
“Oh, dear, no. But with the manor house let, even though we have kept the staff on, the estates have not been looked after as Uncle was wont to do. We have a good steward, but it isn’t the same as being there. Uncle Horace drives out there at least once a month to see to things.”
“Have you enjoyed your time in London?”
Penelope sighed. “Yes and no. Being on display…we already talked about what a trial that is. And I’m afraid I do not enjoy city hours. I like to see the sunrise because I have risen early, not because I have stayed up late.”
“What did you like about London, then, Miss Chapman?”
“Oh, the many sights to see! The famous places, the museums, and the bookshops. Although Uncle Horace does not like it, we have had a good deal of fun going to the shops and bazaars in Cheapside. Nor does he realize that my sister and I have refurbished most of our gowns that we might be stylishly turned out without breaking the bank.”
Now it was Lord Newhorn’s turn to look at her in surprise. “You were reduced to that?”
“Oh, dear. Now you will think we are all cheese-parers! It is amazing the things that people will throw or give away. A dress of perfectly serviceable silk, with a torn flounce, a bonnet that only wants fresh flowers or new strings. The money we saved we could use to buy books, embroidery floss or colors for our sketchbooks.”
Lord Newhorn folded his lips in, as if to keep from smiling, but his eyes twinkled. “You could not have had both?”
“Oh, I’m sure we could. Uncle Horace would not have denied us, but such shifts let us have the things we wanted and stay inside our allowance, too.”
“Miss Chapman, you are truly amazing.”
“Not really. My sister and I had a good teacher. Our maid, Stella, who has been with us ever so long, knew just what we needed to know in the womanly arts and was more than happy to help us manage.”
“I must meet Stella one day. She has done an amazing job being a mother to you. Too many children of the peerage when raised by servants end up being petulant petty tyrants.”
Penelope wrinkled her nose. “I think I have met one or two of them,” she said.
Lord Newhorn tipped back his head and laughed so heartily that his horse snorted and shied away. He pulled the large beast’s head down to him, and petted its jowl. “Miss Chapman, I am sure you have. Shall we mount up? I do not wish to keep you from your promised treat any longer. I, too, am looking forward to this day.”
James, who had tied his horse’s reins and that of the pack horse to a nearby rail, came over and made a stirrup of his hands so that Penelope could mount. The horse, a dappled mare, shifted a little restlessly under her weight, but then they settled in together.
Once I have told him, he will probably think that I am one of those spoiled children. I will make the very best of today, because it might be the last. Oh, how did we ever come to such a pass?
Chapter 34
Benjamin mounted up after watching James help Miss Chapman mount. Should he have assisted her? It had been so long since he had dealt with the minutia of social nicety, he was not sure. Although she said that she was not able to ride often, her seat on the dappled mare was a thing to admire. Her back was straight, the tail of her habit perfectly draped, and she held the reins delicately in her left hand while she gently stroked the mare’s withers with her right.
The mare whuffled gently and relaxed certain clenched muscles, indicating that she accepted her rider, and approved of her. Not that Dapple would have misbehaved, but Miss Chapman would have a much better ride now that her steed had decided she was worthy of cooperation.
Miss Chapman lightly touched the rein to Dapple’s neck and the mare obligingly turned toward Benjamin. “Sensitive, isn’t she?”
“She is. She has a very tender mouth, so she is trained to neck rein. If you were riding astride, she could be directed by knee pressure.”
Miss Chapman stifled a soft giggle. “I’m sure anyone we met would be scandalized if I rode astride. I’ve often thought it would be much easier to ride that way, but maintaining mode
sty might be more difficult.”
“I suppose that could be a consideration,” Benjamin said, momentarily regretting the perfect drape of her riding habit that did not reveal so much as an ankle.
“One of great importance if one does not wish to be thought very fast,” Miss Chapman replied with mock severity. The slight crinkling at the corners of her eyes clearly showing good humor.
“Is it something you fear, Miss Chapman?”
“As a general thing, it is something to be avoided. If one were a gentleman, there would be many choices in life. One could become a soldier or a clergyman, or read for law. One could even study medicine. But as a woman, so many doors are closed. Do you have a bank account, My Lord?”
“Well, yes, of course,” Benjamin said, startled. “Why do you ask?”
“Because I cannot have one unless it is managed by a male relative or someone who has been hired to act as a man of business. I cannot enter a bank. I am barred from most reading rooms, save only lending libraries for genteel ladies.” Miss Chapman set her lips in a firm line.
“Ah. My sister used to talk about such things. Then she met Lord Steelfrost, and it seemed as if everything changed.”
“How was that, Lord Newhorn?”
“She fell in love. It seemed most fortuitous. My father had despaired of finding a husband for her.”
Miss Chapman cast her eyes down toward her hands, then fixed them on Dapple’s ears. “I see. She trusted him?”
“I believe so.” Benjamin thought for a few minutes. How much should I disclose of what happened that fatal week?
“One does, I believe, when one is in love,” Miss Chapman commented. “But in this, also, a lady is expected to be obedient. Even serving girls are constrained in their behavior, although I believe that when one is single or widowed or owns a shop one might be less constrained. But even shopkeepers must rely upon preserving their reputation.”
“I have thought on this,” Benjamin said. “But I must own, nothing of the kind had ever occurred to me before my sister’s death.”
“How did that affect your point of view?”
Benjamin sighed. “Florence was always a little wild, but she had an amazingly good heart. The problem came about because she was helping with a charity ball to benefit the Foundling Hospital. It was supposed to be a one-time thing, but she discovered that in spite of displays of artwork and extensive support from the government, conditions were appalling.”
“What did she do to support the hospital?” Miss Chapman asked.
“Various things. She hosted several sewing circles, held card parties and even staged a few amateur theatricals for the young ladies of her set. She severely took me to task for supporting a dancer, more than once.”
“But you told me that your relationship with your dancer was relatively innocent.”
“It was. And my little dancer was primarily focused on the stage, not on entertaining gentlemen in her dressing room. She and my sister even met on one occasion. After that, they secretly became friends. It was not at all the thing, of course. My father was furious with both of us when he found out.”
“But none of this sounds like something that would cause her death.”
Benjamin pressed his fist into his thigh to keep from pounding it on his horse’s withers. Docile old steed that Ranger was, he shifted uneasily, feeling his rider’s tension. “It wasn’t. Oh, it caused a few stormy scenes between my sister, my father and I, but nothing like the thing that really pushed her into the fury that sent her at that fence.”
“What happened?”
“My dancer wasn’t the only person my sister befriended. In fact, she made friends wherever she went. Members of the clergy, artists, shop-keepers, they all loved her.”
“You said that already. I confess, I’m a little puzzled.”
“To be honest, so am I. To this day I am. But she came home crying mad one afternoon. She told me that I was …. well, never mind what she told me. My sister could swear like a sailor come ashore when her ire was raised. She went straight from the coach to the stable, without even putting on her riding habit. She was just leaving the gate when my father called me from the library and sent me after her to bring her back.”
Miss Chapman just looked at Benjamin, waiting. He opened his fist and gently stroked Ranger’s sleek hair. He fixed his eyes on Ranger’s mane, watching the way the coarse hair stirred on the horse’s neck. “The groom was already saddling Ranger as I entered the stable. I led him out, threw myself on his back and rode after Florence. I could tell from the way she was riding that she was upset. She was hunched up in a bundle on the horse’s back. When she saw me, she thumped the horse in the sides, urging him to greater speed. Just before she came to the gate, her horse stumbled, but she gathered him and put him at it anyway.”
Benjamin drew a deep breath, and let it out shakily. “It looked as if he might try. He rode at it, pell-mell. But at the last minute, he refused it and Florence flew off him, right over his head and over the gate.”
“Lord Newhorn . . .” Miss Chapman spoke softly, sympathy in her voice.
“There are times, Miss Chapman, that I would give anything to have been just a little faster, to have started a little sooner. I so wish I knew what it was that caused her to be so agitated that day. But I never had the chance to find out.”
“You . . . didn’t?”
“No, I didn’t. There was the duel, and I had to leave England. I couldn’t even go to her funeral. I left so much behind, and now, there is no way to get it back. All I can do is go forward.”
They rode side by side for a time, in companionable silence. At length, Benjamin shook himself. “I am sorry, Miss Chapman. I had intended this to be an enjoyable day for you. But sometimes these fits come upon me, and words are the best way to let them out.”
“Always,” Miss Chapman agreed. “Words are so much better than other means of expression. I am touched that you feel comfortable enough to confide in me.”
“Not sure what to say after that,” Benjamin mused.
“Then say nothing at all. Let’s just enjoy today.”
“Because today is all we have? It seems to me as if I might have heard that before. Perhaps in a recent sermon?”
“Not all lectures from the pulpit can be wrong. Platitudes become platitudes because they have some basis in life.” Miss Chapman looked up the trail, where the trees interlaced their branches overhead, making a cool, green tunnel. “It is too nice a day to waste on apologies. Tell me, instead, what the pack pony is carrying. There are the most interesting scents emanating from those baskets.”
Benjamin laughed, his good humor and his faith in the day restored. Miss Chapman had a way of doing that.
I feel so good when I am with her. It is almost as if the last ten years have, not vanished exactly, but ceased to be quite so important. I do so hope that she will say yes when I ask for her hand in marriage.
Chapter 35
Robert Bastion turned another leaf of the contract, his voice droning on without inflection. “ . . . and should the party of the first part be unable to fulfill his obligation to the party of the second part . . .”
Lord Steelfrost smothered a yawn. He had read through the document the previous night, and made notes of the parts that needed to be changed before the principles signed. It was amazing the things that turned up in these old entails. So, Lord Newhorn had to find a bride, wed her and produce an heir before he could properly inherit? Delightful. The only thing that could make it better would be if he could wrangle his way into inheriting that moldy pile that those upstart Newhorns had caused to be erected on their estates. Nothing would please him more than to pull it down.
He must have allowed the pleasure of his thoughts to reach his face because Mr. Bastion paused in his reading, and asked, “Was there something humorous in that, My Lord?”
“No, no. Merely recalling my mistress of last night. It was a pleasurable memory.”
The young law clerk
gave him a dubious look. “Quite so, Lord Steelfrost, I am sure. But perhaps attention to the matter at hand would afford you a better understanding of the contract?”
“I believe I understand it tolerably well, young Bastion, since I dictated most of the terms. Do not presume to teach your betters. But continue reading, if you will. It does please me.”
The heir of the younger partner in Bastion, Bastion, and Harrington gave his patron a dubious look, and returned to the reading of the document.
“And if said ships should not return to port . . .”
Lord Steelfrost schooled his face into studious attention. Of course those ships are not going to make it into port. If my compatriots from the Colonies hold up their end of the bargain, neither will those cargoes manifest in the British Isles. But I shall obtain profit from them, all the same. Double profit that will give me the greatest pleasure.
How To Catch An Earl With Ten Lies (Historical Regency Romance) Page 18
