“He took quite an interest in our Margaret,” her mother finished with a sly smile.
Louisa blinked.
Luckily Miss Grayson gave the sort of inconsequential response such a statement required, and Louisa’s mother took that as an encouragement to regale them all with an excruciatingly detailed account of Tumberland’s visit.
She’d been talking for nearly two minutes straight when Louisa finally managed to completely register the fact that…she did not know. Her mother had no idea that Tumberland had caught her whilst she’d climbed out a window.
Oh, very well, fallen out of the window.
A lightness stole over her and she understood now how a prisoner must feel after he’d been granted a reprieve.
She would live to see another day!
“Have you had the pleasure of meeting Lord Tumberland, Miss Grayson?” her mother asked. She did not wait for an answer. “He is quite handsome. And so very charming.”
Charming? She arched her brows as she considered that. With his stern features and serious tone, he hardly fit the description of charming. Certainly, he had a sense of humor, but only the subtle glint in his eyes gave that away.
She supposed that glint could be considered charming. But no, even with his dry humor and quick wit, no one would call him charming.
Now handsome, on the other hand…
A memory of sandy-colored hair and flashing, intelligent eyes, of well-crafted features befitting a statue…or a portrait of a certain deceased seafaring captain.
“He seemed quite smitten with our Margaret,” Louisa’s mother added with a smug little smile.
Really?
Huh.
Louisa blinked. Well that was…wonderful.
Wasn’t it?
She shook her head. Of course it was.
And she shouldn’t be surprised. Of course he was interested in Margaret. Why wouldn’t he be?
The more pressing question ought to be…was Margaret besotted with him?
Louisa looked to Margaret with interest, wishing that just once they had that sort of close sibling relationship that allowed one to read the other’s mind. That would certainly come in handy just about now.
But all she got was that same small smile from Margaret which didn’t really tell her anything at all.
Knowing Margaret, she likely was just as pleased as their mother, just far less effusive with her excitement. After all, this was what she’d wanted. What the whole family needed.
Louisa ought to be giddy with relief that a fruitful match was near and her family’s financial stress would be a thing of the past.
She should be happy.
She really, really should.
“Is that not wonderful news, Louisa?” her mother asked, apparently catching up with the fact that the normally talkative Louisa had not spoken in a while.
“Yes!” Louisa said a little too heartily. “Wonderful news.”
Miss Grayson cast her a suspicious sidelong look at her feigned enthusiasm—Louisa had never claimed to be much of an actress. And even Margaret gave her a questioning glance. But their mother once again rode roughshod over the conversation, talking at great length about Tumberland and his friend, Mr. Allen.
This time, Louisa was all too happy to listen to her mother, particularly if it meant she could avoid speaking herself. She wasn’t quite ready to talk at length about the great boon that was Tumberland’s courtship of her sister.
It was a good thing, of that she was certain.
She just wasn’t quite able to feel good about it.
The hour was drawing to a close by the time her mother finished regaling them with all the wonderful tidbits she knew about Tumberland and his lineage. If Miss Grayson had not already been well-versed in Debrett’s she’d surely received an excellent lesson on one particular title and its legacy this very afternoon.
How lovely for Miss Grayson.
Louisa stifled a yawn, plotting how she could steal a moment alone with her sister to gauge her reaction to all this. Margaret might have always talked about marrying well, but Louisa couldn’t help but believe that somewhere deep down beneath all that calm pragmatism lay a romantic heart.
After all, they were sisters. Surely they had at least one thing in common, and it was clearly not demeanor or looks, so it stood to reason that perhaps they shared a bent toward romance.
If so, she absolutely despised the idea of her sister marrying for anything other than love. And Margaret did not love Tumberland, of that Louisa was certain. How?
She just was.
“Mother, we ought to leave soon,” Margaret said at last.
“Oh, yes! It seems I lost all track of time.” Her mother laughed.
Margaret arched her brows as their mother started to set down her teacup and gather her belongings. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”
Her mother’s expression was blank.
Margaret cast Louisa a quick, almost apologetic sidelong look. “The reason we came,” she prompted her mother.
Louisa tensed, studiously ignoring the burst of hurt that came with knowing that her mother had come for some ulterior motive, and not, in fact, to visit with the daughter who’d been staying in someone else’s home for six long months.
She pushed the thought aside quickly, however, and fixed her mother with a politely curious expression.
“Oh, of course! How silly of me,” her mother said. Still going about her business, she added, “Louisa, we’ve all been invited to Lord Everley’s in three days’ time. We expect you will join us.”
It was not a request but a command.
“Actually, Mother…” She shot Miss Grayson a questioning look.
“The girls were supposed to go to the theater that night,” she said softly.
“You can go to the theater any night,” her mother interrupted. Turning to Louisa, her smile faded fast. “You will go. It means the world to me and your father.”
Louisa blinked in surprise. “My being there means that much to you?”
“Of course!” Her mother sighed. “Lord Tumberland asked for you to be there specifically. We would not wish to disappoint him, now would we?”
Louisa’s heart lurched in her throat. Tumberland had asked for her? Oh no. She’d been too quick to believe herself safe. Lord Tumberland had something else planned. Possibly a fate worse than death.
She rolled her eyes when her mother’s back was turned. It was very possible she had gone a bit overboard with the drama as of late.
Perhaps Addie was right. Perhaps it was time to read something other than her favorite gothic novels; they were starting to go to her head.
But even so… His requesting her presence—it made no sense. Louisa looked from her mother to Margaret, but neither seemed to sense her distress. What was she missing? “Why would he wish to see me?”
Her mother sighed. “Is it not obvious? He clearly wishes to scrutinize Margaret’s family before making any sort of promise.” Her mother shot a quick look at Miss Grayson before arching her brows meaningfully at Louisa. “Lord Tumberland would not be the respected gentleman he is today if he did not take every measure to ensure his acquaintances were from good families.”
Louisa bit the inside of her cheek. Good families. Meaning, ones without odd little sisters with a tendency toward melodrama and scandal, she supposed. “Yes, Mother.”
But her mother was not done. Moving to stand closer, she lowered her voice. “Lord Tumberland is clearly giving us a second chance to prove that we have raised our daughters to be the epitome of grace and decorum.”
Louisa winced as she recalled falling, a tangle of limbs and grunting as she accidentally tackled her sister’s beau.
“Your sister has proven herself to be a paragon of virtue,” her mother continued.
Louisa felt the blow of the comparison even as she fought the urge not to laugh. Paragon of virtue? She snuck a glance over at Margaret and the urge to laugh died quickly.
Oh drat, Mar
garet was a paragon of virtue. While Louisa was only ever a disgrace.
Her mother tilted her head down and gave her a warning look. “Tumberland insists on you being there, so you will be there.”
Louisa nodded, afraid to open her mouth lest the truth come tumbling out. Her mother had it all wrong. Tumberland was not trying to ascertain whether she had mended her ways…
He was hoping to out her as a scandal.
The thought stung like a betrayal. She had a vision of amused eyes, of a calm, even tone—laughing at her, perhaps, but not unkindly. In fact, for a second there, she’d almost thought he’d been an ally, of sorts. A compatriot in her silly plan to flee the scene.
She stifled a sigh as she realized that she’d been wrong. Again. He might have been laughing, but he’d also been judging. And now he hoped to catch her out once and for all as the disgraceful failure of a young lady.
What other explanation could there be for him to insist upon her presence?
Her mother smiled for Miss Grayson’s sake but kept her voice low. “You will be on your best behavior, Louisa. Do you understand?”’
“Yes, Mother.”
“Just this once, we will get through a public outing without you causing any sort of embarrassment for your sister.”
It was not a question and even if it were, Louisa’s throat ached too much to answer. Instead, she nodded once more. It was on the tip of her tongue to protest. To explain to her mother that she never intended to cause trouble It was not as though she were a willful, disobedient child, just…curious. And perhaps a bit too whimsical. But she’d never meant to cause harm.
That had to count for something, didn’t it?
Her mother turned to say her goodbyes to Miss Grayson but her smile was still strained.
With a heavy heart, Louisa realized that perhaps it did not matter whether her foibles had been intentional or not. Either way, they’d caused pain to her parents and her sister.
If she were the one who kept her family from finding the financial salvation they so desperately needed, she would never forgive herself.
They all deserved better from her, and there was no more room for excuses. Straightening her spine, she tilted her chin up with resolve, ignoring Margaret’s questioning look.
Her sister would see soon enough that this was the start of a new era. Gone was the former childish Louisa with her romantic notions and her quest for adventure. This new Louisa would be all that was demure. She’d be the very picture of docile and well-behaved.
A voice deep in the back of her brain snorted in disbelief. Quite possibly because she’d given herself this speech before. It sounded very familiar and less believable this time than last.
But she would not doubt herself. Not on this.
She would begin her campaign to prove herself at this soiree she was to attend.
It would be the first step in a long road to redemption.
One night, she told herself as her mother and sister walked out the front door and back out of her life. Surely she could stay out of trouble for just one night.
Chapter Seven
“I still do not understand why he specifically requested that you attend,” Delilah said as the girls watched her get ready.
“You are just jealous that a marquess did not request the pleasure of your company at an intimate soiree,” Prudence said to her friend.
Delilah merely shrugged, not attempting to deny it. The girl was one year younger than the others but it often seemed that her ambitions to marry and to marry well were greater than all three of them combined.
With lips pursed as she was wont to do, Prudence eyed Louisa warily. “Are you quite certain this is wise? Perhaps you should cry off.” Her eyes brightened. “We could tell your mother you have fallen ill.”
Louisa frowned at Prudence in the reflection of the mirror. She was nervous enough as it was. “I wish you would have some faith in me, Pru.”
Prudence had the good grace to wince with regret as she murmured an apology. She did not attempt to say that she had not meant it, however. There was a distinctive lack of ‘oh I did not mean you were certain to make a fool of yourself!’ in the silence that followed her apology.
Louisa huffed as she fiddled with her necklace. What were the odds she could get through this evening without sticking her foot in her mouth, at the very least, if even her closest friends did not believe in her?
She turned her gaze to Addie who’d been sitting on Louisa’s bed quietly throughout all of this. Too quietly, as a matter of fact.
“What do you think, Addie?”
Addie’s brows shot up in surprise as she toyed with the duvet. Louisa turned to face her fully now, noticing for the first time just how distracted and distressed her friend seemed to be.
“Addie? Are you all right?”
Delilah answered when she did not. “Addie has been acting oddly all day today.”
Now all three of them were facing Addie and Louisa felt a jolt of guilt that she’d put her friend on the spot.
Addie shifted uncomfortably. “It is just that…” She cleared her throat awkwardly and addressed Louisa. “Did you say you were going to Lord Everley’s home?”
“Yes, why?” she asked. “Do you know him?”
She licked her lips and glanced around nervously. “In a way…”
Delilah sighed loudly with exasperation. “Really, Addie, we expect melodrama from Louisa, but not you.”
Louisa shot Delilah a dirty look. “Really, Dee?” She flung a hand in Addie’s direction. “She’s the one who ran away from an evil villain and very nearly got herself kidnapped…or worse.”
Delilah ignored her and Prudence tsked annoyingly. “It’s hardly ladylike for you to remind her of that difficult time.”
“Actually,” Addie interrupted. “That’s what I was hoping to talk to you about.”
All three of them whipped their heads around to face her. It was widely understood that Addie didn’t care to dwell on those dark days, and the topic was studiously avoided.
Addie plucked at the duvet again. “Lord Everley…”
“What about him?” Prudence asked with impatience.
“Do you recall when I said I’d overheard a gentleman speaking to Duncan just before I left home?” she asked.
“The one who all but told him to murder Reggie?” Louisa asked loudly. “Of course we remember.”
Addie bit her lip before blurting out, “That was Lord Everley.”
Delilah and Prudence stared in open-mouthed shock but it was Louisa who said it. “Lord Everley is Lord Evil?”
Addie winced. That was the nickname they’d given him because Addie had refused to name the man for two reasons. First, her beau Tolston was still quietly investigating the matter, and also—the man had sounded cruel but had not actually done anything wrong.
Tolston and Addie had decided that, until they knew for certain that he had done harm, they could not make any accusations against the gentleman in question.
But now…
Well, now it seemed as though Louisa and her family were entering the den of the devil. Louisa shot out of her seat. “I must warn my father.”
“And tell him what?” Delilah responded, her tone irritatingly mild and more than a little condescending in the face of Louisa’s outburst. “That Lord Everley was a friend of Duncan’s?” She arched her brows delicately. “Half the ton was fond of Addie’s horrible cousin. No one knew that he was a monster. At least, not until…” She waved a hand in Addie’s direction meaningfully.
Addie sighed. “Precisely. Lord Everley never actually did anything wrong.”
Prudence looked pale. “But he said those awful things. He suggested Duncan kill your brother.”
“He might have been in jest,” Delilah said. As if people joked about murder every day of the week.
Louisa wrinkled her nose at the dark-haired princess. Maybe in Delilah’s hoity-toity world they did.
Delilah shot her a sidelong look
along with a scowl. “Oh, stop looking at me like that.”
“Like what?” Louisa shot back. “Like you’re a monster?”
Prudence snickered. The oh-so-prissy goody-two-shoes had a wicked sense of humor if you took her by surprise, Louisa had discovered.
Delilah? Not so much. She looked down her nose at Louisa. “I resent that.”
Now Addie was smothering a laugh and Louisa grinned. “All right, fine. You are not a monster. But admit it…” She planted her hands on her hips. “You would defend the devil himself if he were a wealthy, titled gentleman in need of a wife.”
Now they were all laughing, even a grudging Delilah as she rolled her eyes. “You are ridiculous.”
“Perhaps,” Louisa agreed lightly. “But that doesn’t change the fact that I am about to attend a dinner party with an evil villain.”
Addie winced. “This is why I wasn’t certain I should tell you.”
“Are you joking?” Louisa said. “Of course you ought to tell me. I need to be prepared lest this man try to work his evil wiles on me or my sister.”
Prudence groaned. “That is precisely what Addie means, Louisa.”
Louisa looked to Addie, who gave her a rueful little smile. “Precisely.” Addie’s smile softened her words, but only slightly. “I know how important this evening is to you and your family, and I don’t want you to do or say anything that might—”
“I would never!” Louisa interrupted.
All four of them took a moment to absorb that lie and Louisa sighed. “Oh all right, fine. I might.”
Addie smiled kindly. “Please don’t.” Before Louisa could interrupt again, Addie added meaningfully, “For the sake of Tolston’s investigation.”
Louisa shut her mouth, her protest forgotten as she thought about that. “I would not want to interfere in that.”
“No, of course you wouldn’t,” Addie said. “And besides, as of now, we have no proof that he did anything wrong.”
“He might just have an odd sense of humor,” Delilah added.
They all shot her a look. All anyone truly knew about Lord Everley—aside from this new tidbit—was that he was wealthy as Midas.
The School of Charm: Books 1-5 Page 20
