Sebastian blinked at her aunt, looked at Anne, and actually obeyed Sophie’s words. To Anne’s ears it even sounded genuine. A bubble of hysteria sat in her throat, and she thought she might laugh too but worried she would not be able to stop if she began, so she managed to confine herself to an answering smile.
The orchestra had stopped in the face of the commotion, but they were hastily getting settled and striking up the next song. Anne was equally parts horrified and relieved when she heard it was a waltz and the earl was looking at her with clear intent. She didn’t know if she could face the dance floor, but at least she would not have to endure multiple partners.
The earl didn’t speak to her, keeping his face pleasant but impassive. Anne tried to explain. “There was no avoiding it. You really must understand. I promise you, I was not trying to entrap him in any way. Lord Dunbar was quite clear with me that he would not be making me an offer, no matter what I did. But I could not stand there and allow that harridan to slander him like that. The viscount is my friend, too, you know.”
This time when he met her eyes, Anne saw compassion reflected in his steady gaze. “I know, my lady. Do not get into a taking over it. Perhaps it will blow over without much fuss.”
As the dance continued, Anne thought with a sinking heart that there was little hope of that. The harpy could be heard wailing as she was escorted from the ball room, even over the sound of the music. Curious, speculative gazes were being cast toward Anne as she circled the room in the earl’s arms.
“Are you sure I cannot go home now?”
“Quite sure. Grey will dance with you next. I don’t think Dunbar should. If your aunt can find your uncle, he should lead you out, too. And then you can go home. Unless your baron returns to your side. Then there would be nothing to worry about.” The earl paused for a moment. “But from the look that was on his face, I am not holding out too much hope for that.”
“He must not have cared for me in the first place if he would so easily reject me,” Anne replied, hoping her voice would not quaver to reveal the depth of her hurt.
“Then he is an idiot, my lady, and not worth your time.”
There was a pause as Anne tried to process all that had happened. “Lord Dunbar did not look pleased,” she commented.
“Did you expect he would be?” the earl inquired, his tone not unkind, almost curious.
“As I told you, I did not take the time to think over much before acting. But surely he must realize that I only meant to help him.”
The earl’s tone was neutral as he said, “Do not let it trouble you, my dear.”
“But I essentially traded my happiness for his. I would expect him to at least try not to be angry with me.”
Finally, the earl dropped his serious mien and chuckled, drawing a few eyes their way but not in a censorious way, much to Anne’s relief.
As the earl had decreed, Anne danced with Lord Grey and then her uncle before he finally allowed that she could leave. She had not been given the cut direct by anyone, so she surmised that she had not been totally outcast. Anne found that she could not quite care. All she wanted to do was go home and pull the covers over her head and sleep for a week. And preferably, never see another member of the ton ever again. She was finally going to be able to do at least the first point in her wish list. She may not sleep for a week, but she was definitely going to leave orders not to be disturbed the next day.
Chapter Thirteen
“She said what? The chit actually expects that I ought to be grateful?”
They were in Lord Sutton’s library; the hour was well advanced and the earl had dismissed his servants after a decanter had been brought for him and his two friends. Wesley was pacing in front of the blazing fire that was attempting to chase the chill from the room.
“She told me she traded her own happiness for yours, so she expects you not to be angry with her.”
“That’s rich!” the viscount replied with disgust. He tossed back a large swallow of the earl’s fine brandy, enjoying the burn as it slid down his throat. “I could see her clearly as it was happening, but I was too far away to be able to stop her. I know full well she thought she was doing it for me, and it was not a ploy on her part. But that sacrifice was unnecessary. Stupid girl. I could have muddled through on my own, and she could have kept her baron.”
Sebastian finally spoke up. “We are better off knowing that he’s a disloyal arse. If he can’t stand by her in a moment like that, he doesn’t deserve her.”
“While I cannot argue with your logic, Grey, I still wish the chit had kept quiet. She has destroyed many of her opportunities with what she did.”
Wesley felt the earl’s eyes boring into him as he paced. Finally, he turned to him, raising his eyebrows. “Do you have something to add?”
“Do you really think she should be tied for life to some bounder who cannot bother to ascertain the truthfulness of a situation?”
“No, but surely you both realize that everything about the Marriage Mart is about appearances. Loyalty and all that come later. Most noblemen expect their wives to be virtuously unassailable. By publicly declaring that we spent time alone on the terrace, Anne called her own virtue into question. While we all know nothing questionable happened, she caused speculation to rise, which will drastically alter how she is perceived. I am unsure if the three of us are in any position to help her straighten this out given our own reputations.”
The other two looked momentarily uncomfortable but then shrugged over the inevitability of the situation. The earl spoke up. “No use in worrying over it now. Let us reconvene on the morrow.”
“At least one of us needs to call on her tomorrow. I am unsure if it should be me.” Wesley couldn’t decide if it would do more harm than good.
“I would be happy to do so,” Sebastian offered.
“Very well, then come meet us at the club to let us know how she goes on.”
~~~
“Before you ask me anything, I need a drink first,” Sebastian declared as soon as he arrived to meet his friends.
Wesley waited impatiently while his friend threw back his first glass. “Well, how is she?” Sebastian had barely swallowed. Wesley needed to know Anne was all right.
“She appeared to be fairly well rested and was quite in her looks, to be honest with you. But the situation is dire, in my opinion.”
“Why? What happened? Did she have no callers?”
“She had plenty of callers, they just were of a much different nature than previously.”
“What do you mean? Get to your point, man.”
Sebastian grinned at Wesley’s impatience, despite the situation they faced. “There were no young ladies calling on her, for one thing. And for another, the gentlemen were of the nature of Lord Samson.”
“Samson? Doesn’t he have seven or eight children and he’s looking for his fourth wife?”
“The very one.”
“But he’s got to be headed for sixty,” the earl pointed out.
“Besides the fact that he’s looking for an unpaid governess for his passel of children rather than a proper wife,” Wesley added with disgust. “Anne needs a husband who will cherish her, not one who’s looking for a nursemaid.”
“And he was actually one of the better callers. I didn’t want to tell you about some of the others.”
“Why? Who else was there?” Wesley demanded, feeling as though his blood were turning cold.
Sebastian couldn’t even look him in the eye as he answered with one word. “Patterson.”
“Patterson?” Wesley was confused for a moment. “But he’s not in the market for a wife.”
“Exactly,” Sebastian said just before Wesley exploded out of his chair.
“What could that bounder be thinking, soiling an innocent young debutante with his presence? Lady Sophie allowed him entrance?” He was incredulous.
“You know how lax Lady Sophie has been. And poor Lady Anne would have no knowledge of him, so she wouldn�
�t know to tell the butler not to admit him.” Sebastian took another gulp of his brandy, as though to wash the bad taste from his mouth.
“We have to go over there and talk some sense into that chit.” Wesley was on his way to the door when Lord Spencer stopped him.
“Dunbar, wait. What do you think you will be able to accomplish? You’re the reason the girl is in this mess. I suspect you ought to stay far away from Lady Anne and let her relatives sort this out.”
Wesley knew the earl was making sense, but he just couldn’t bear to stand by and do nothing. He said as much to his friends. “We have to be able to do something. We got her into this.” He saw the sardonic look on the others’ faces and amended his words. “All right, I got her into this mess as you said, but we have to be able to do something. Obviously, her relatives are inattentive and unreliable. We cannot just leave her to the wolves. There has to be something we can do.”
“For the moment, there is nothing that can be done. Is it not tonight that you are to host her at the theatre? That will be the perfect time for you to talk to her and see how she is faring. Perhaps her baron will still come up to scratch, and there is nothing to for us to be worrying about.” Wesley recognized Spencer’s soothing tone and it put his teeth on edge.
His low rumble of disgust sounded almost like a growl, but there was nothing else for him to do. Wesley nodded at his two friends and left. He had every intention of going home, but he soon discovered himself asking Lady Sophie’s butler if he might speak with Lady Anne for a few moments. The butler looked dubious but allowed him to enter and then left him cooling his heels in the receiving room while he went to see if my lady was at home to visitors.
~~~
The day thus far had been an unmitigated disaster. None of Anne’s usual callers had shown their faces, but that did not mean the knocker had remained silent. No, that would have been a delight, Anne thought with an edge of hysteria creeping into her mind. A shudder shivered down her back at the thought of that afternoon’s callers. She should have said she wasn’t going to accept callers as she had intended. Spending the entire day in bed would have been far preferable to how the day had turned out. Perhaps it was time to retire from Society. She ought to send a note to Lord Dunbar declining his invitation for the theatre. That thought brought a pang of regret. She had been so looking forward to the treat but under the circumstances, she was unsure if she could face going out in public.
She was just about to dissolve into tears when there was a knock on her door. It distracted her just enough to prevent the tears from spilling over her eyelashes. She opened the door to find a footman waiting with a message summoning her to the morning room.
“Who has sent the summons?” she asked, wondering over the footman’s choice of words.
“I apologize for not being more clear, my lady. Your aunt has sent for you.”
“Thank you, Jason. I shall be right there.” She closed the door and ran to her vanity to check her appearance. After running a comb through her hair, she decided she needn’t make any other alterations and hurried to do her aunt’s bidding. Hopefully the older lady would have some direction to help get her out of the mess she had created.
Her feet froze to the floor immediately upon stepping into the morning room. She could barely believe her eyes.
“Papa?” she asked, almost at a shout, before running and throwing herself into his arms. She could not bring herself to let him go, so all the questions she was asking were muffled by his coat.
Lord Austen laughed and pulled his daughter out of his arms. “Anne, my dear girl, I cannot make out anything that you’re saying. Surely, I have not been gone so very long to generate a reaction like that. Now what were you asking?”
Anne couldn’t help herself; she threw herself back into his arms but contented herself with one tight squeeze and then pulled herself away.
“It may not have been so very long, Papa, but you didn’t say where you were going or when you would be back, so I was becoming quite alarmed over your absence. But never mind, you’re here now and I am so happy to see you.”
Anne took a deep breath and looked around the room, becoming aware of the strained silence amongst the other occupants. She felt the heat climbing into her cheeks as she realized that a stranger was also present. She dipped into a hurried curtsy.
“I am so sorry, my lady, I did not realize you had a caller, I was just that happy to see my father.”
Lady Sophie looked discomfited, but it was apparently not directed at Anne as she shook her head and patted the seat next to her. “Of course, my dear, pay it no mind but come and take a seat here beside me.”
Anne was confused over her aunt’s strange tone but did as she was bid. After she settled herself carefully on the settee, she looked at the unknown woman and wondered why the room was so silent. She offered the woman as friendly a smile as she could muster given her own discomfort.
When still no one said anything, Anne transferred her gaze to her father. When their gazes met, her father’s eyes widened.
“I apologize, my dear, I have forgotten my manners, please, allow me to introduce to you Mrs. Appleton. She has done me the honour of agreeing to be my wife.”
Anne blinked a few times, wondering if she had somehow become stuck in a strange dream, but then her good breeding clicked on and she went through the motions of polite behaviour. She stood and curtsied briefly to the other woman before taking her hand and saying, “How do you do?” She wasn’t sure why her aunt was being so strange about the woman. She didn’t look to be completely ineligible. Anne wondered if it might have to do with thoughts of her late sister but dismissed that thought as she hadn’t gotten the impression the two sisters were even all that close. Anne braced herself for what was sure to be an uncomfortable experience.
“How did the two of you meet?” she asked politely, wondering what the proper protocol for becoming acquainted with one’s future stepmother was. She could tell the other woman was uncomfortable, but Anne wasn’t sure how to make her feel at ease.
Lord Austen jumped in to answer when it became apparent Mrs. Appleton wasn’t going to say anything. “She was an angel of mercy when I fell into difficulty. I couldn’t help but fall in love with her.”
Anne hoped her smile wasn’t too wan as she looked at the pair. “How lovely.”
Lady Sophie got to her feet. “Well, shall I have my housekeeper make up a room?”
“Oh, no, my lady, my companion and I will be staying at Nerot’s Hotel. We merely wished to stop by and meet Lord Austen’s daughter.” Mrs. Appleton turned to Anne and continued, “I know you must be rather busy with all the activities of your first Season, but I do hope we can become better acquainted before we leave for Rowanwood. Lord Austen is hoping to resume escorting you, and I’m sure you have a lot to catch up on.”
Lady Sophie did not wait for Anne to reply. “Well, this evening we have a commitment that does not include Lord Austen and for which we ought to begin our preparations. It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” With those words, she swept from the room without a backward glance.
Anne stood staring blankly at the door through which her aunt had just left, unsure how she ought to proceed. She looked at her father and his betrothed uncertainly.
Her father, surprising Anne with his astuteness, launched into speech. “Do not worry about your aunt, my dear, and do not worry that we are troubled by her. Lady Sophie does not take well to change. But she is a good woman and will come around. Now, go ahead and get ready. I will be staying here. Perhaps over breakfast in the morning we can make plans to spend some time together.”
“Very well.” Anne didn’t know how else to reply. She kissed her father on the cheek and shook Mrs. Appleton’s hand before leaving the room. “I look forward to getting to know you, ma’am,” she added with as sincere a smile as she could muster given the strange events of the past day.
Just as she neared the foyer and the stairs up to her room, the butler stop
ped her.
“My lady, I was unsure if I should disturb you with this matter, but Lord Dunbar has called to see you. He is in the receiving room.”
Anne felt her heart sink and yet its rate at least doubled if not tripled while butterflies took flight in her stomach. She bit her lip with uncertainty. The butler must have interpreted this to mean she did not wish to see the viscount.
“I will demand that he vacate the premises.”
“No, no, that is unnecessary, but thank you for the offer. I will see to him. I will ring for you if I need you.” Anne was not feeling at all prepared to face the viscount, but she could not bear to have him evicted from the house either. She stopped outside the receiving room, took a deep breath, rubbed her now clammy hands over her skirt, glancing down to make sure it was free of creases or wrinkles. Throwing back her shoulders and lifting her chin, she entered the room, hoping she looked far more confident than she felt.
“Good afternoon, my lord, how pleasant to see you.” She almost smiled with delight over how composed she sounded.
“My lady, I trust I have not disturbed you overly. I did not realize it would take so long for the butler to find you.”
The viscount’s words, although censorious, set her at ease, and she actually laughed. “I’m sorry, my lord, were you waiting long? I must admit the house is a little at sixes and sevens, but you should not have been left to cool your heels. Please, accept my apologies.”
“No, no apologies necessary, I am just glad to see that you are all right.” The viscount’s searching gaze examined her face, making Anne a trifle uncomfortable, but she tried to keep her face impassive as she bore up under the scrutiny.
Finally, just as she thought she could bear it no longer, the viscount strode toward her. “Ach, Anne, it is I who owe you an apology. I thought I could play god with your life, and now I’ve just made a mess of it. I should have left well enough alone from the beginning.”
Anne’s eyes welled with tears as he grasped her hands warmly in his. “But then I would not have had your friendship, my lord, and I cannot regret that.”
The Viscount Deception: A Sweet Regency Romance Adventure (Mayfair Mayhem Book 3) Page 16
