He turned and galloped off in a flurry of hooves, and it was only later, when he had calmed down slightly, that he realised he had almost run down one of his own grooms on the way. A groom who was obviously there to chaperone his wife.
She hadn’t been alone with young Briggs after all.
Damnation!
Amelia had decided that the girls may as well eat their meals with her when they had no guests, to save the servants the trouble of taking food up to the nursery. She thought it would be good for them to learn some table manners as well. Consequently, the three of them had just sat down to lunch one day when there was a great commotion in the hall. Amelia ignored it at first, but the voices became louder, and eventually she went to see what was happening.
A frail looking elderly gentleman stood in the middle of the hall, arguing with his valet and with Jamieson. His face was rapidly turning puce as he became more and more agitated, and Amelia thought it best to intervene.
‘Can I be of assistance, sir?’ she asked. ‘I’m Lady Demarr. His lordship is not at home at the moment.’
The old man looked her over, then seemingly decided that he liked what he saw, smiled and said, ‘Yes, my dear, you can most certainly be of assistance. Tell these two fools to go about their business and leave me alone. I’m not yet in my dotage. I don’t need coddling at every turn and I most definitely do not wish to lie down for a nap, having come all this way to see my grandson’s new wife.’
‘Oh, you must be the Earl of Holt then. Welcome to Marr Place, my lord. I’m afraid that no one informed me you were coming, or I would have had everything ready for you.’ Amelia curtseyed to him, but he reached out for her hands and kissed each one in turn in a rather old-fashioned way, which she found charming.
‘Don’t worry your pretty little head about that,’ said Lord Holt. ‘If these two would just get on with their duties instead of bothering me, I’m sure they’ll have a room ready for me in a trice. I decided to visit on the spur of the moment, since I felt quite well this week. With the gout, I never know how matters will stand from one day to the next, you see.’ He took a deep breath. ‘And since my scamp of a grandson hasn’t seen fit to bring his bride to me, I had perforce to come and see for myself. An old man can’t wait forever.’
Amelia couldn’t resist a smile at this and, ignoring the pleading glances from Jamieson and the valet, she invited his lordship into the morning room to partake of lunch.
‘Excellent idea,’ he said. ‘And who have we here then?’
Mathilde was staring at him curiously, while Chloe jumped off her chair to run and hide behind Amelia’s skirts.
‘These are your great-granddaughters, my lord, Mathilde and Chloe. Make your curtseys to Lord Holt girls, please.’ This they did, but continued to stare in fascination at the old man.
‘Oh, sit down, do,’ he waved a hand at them. ‘I shan’t eat you, you know. I’m much too old for that. And anyway, I don’t have enough teeth left.’ Mathilde giggled and Chloe’s eyes grew round as saucers. ‘I’m glad to have met you at last. I have been ill for a long time, or I would have come to see you before.’ He winked at the girls and they began to relax.
He allowed Amelia to serve him with ‘a few choice morsels’ as he put it, which, had he seen it, would probably have given his doctor a fit, consisting as they did of all the things he had expressly forbidden his lordship to eat. Amelia suspected this might be the case, but was tactful enough not to argue. The old man seemed more interested in talking anyway, and didn’t actually eat very much. He regaled them with tales of all the pranks Lord Demarr had got up to as a boy and soon had them all chuckling, even Chloe.
‘And now I had better retire for a rest,’ he said at last, ‘else I’ll have no respite from the nagging of my servants. Perhaps you could all join me in my room for an early dinner and we can chat some more?’
‘Oh, yes please, great-grandfather,’ the girls chorused. Amelia agreed.
The evening meal was even merrier and his lordship’s valet was shaking his head at such goings-on, but it seemed to be doing Lord Holt a deal of good. When the girls were lead off to bed by Eliza, he asked Amelia to stay on for a game of chess, and she willingly obliged.
‘I have to warn you though, I am not a very good player, as my father was wont to tell me.’
‘As to that, we shall see, but tell me about your father. He was Colonel Ravenscroft, I understand. I knew him a little, and have heard many good things about him.’
‘Many bad ones too, no doubt.’ Amelia made a small face. ‘Although he adored his life in the Army and was very conscientious in his duties and well liked, illness forced him to retire prematurely and then after my mother died, I’m afraid he succumbed to the lure of the gaming tables a little too often. He … shot himself just over a year go now.’
After a slight hesitation, Amelia told Lord Holt the rest of her story and how she had met his grand-son, leaving nothing out, not even the misunderstanding at the opera. The old man was so perspicacious, she thought he would find out anyway and as she liked him a lot already, she wanted to be truthful with him.
‘And where is James now?’ Lord Holt asked when she had finished.
‘He’s at Westfield. He said we needed time apart to get used to our marriage. To be honest, I think he is regretting it already, but it is done now and to my mind, we have to make the best of it.’
Lord Hold nodded. ‘Indeed, and you seem to have made a good start. Don’t think I didn’t notice the changes in this house – all for the better – and those little girls have obviously taken to you.’
‘Oh, I haven’t achieved much yet, but I do wish he’d come back. Mind you, after his rudeness to me and our neighbour the other day, I should be wishing him at Jericho, but somehow I don’t ...’ She shook her head. ‘You must think me a complete ninny, my lord.’
‘Not at all. I’m glad you can see past James’s outburst, which was probably just jealousy talking.’
‘Do you think so?’ The possibility of James being jealous of Justin pleased Amelia. It would show that he cared and she had come to realise that was something she wanted him to do.
‘Yes, I do. And don’t worry, James will return and he’ll soon see that he’s made an excellent choice of wife.’
‘You’re too kind.’
‘No, that I’m not. And I am neither stupid nor blind yet and I’m very glad James found you. Just give him some time. He’s always been a stubborn boy, but he’ll see sense in the end, don’t you fret.’
They parted on very good terms and Amelia thought wistfully that she seemed to get on well with all of James’s family. The only one she couldn’t please was him. It was a lowering thought, but Lord Holt seemed to think there was still hope, and that bolstered her courage.
Somehow, she would make this marriage a success.
James felt like a fool for jumping to conclusions yet again. For two days he had stayed away, knowing he owed Amelia an apology once more, but unable to decide how best to approach the subject. If he told her that he had acted out of jealousy, which he now realised was the case, it would be tantamount to admitting that he wanted their marriage to be much more than one of convenience. However, he still felt it was too early in their relationship for him to trust her fully, and for him to admit such a thing would give her the upper hand.
What he really needed to know, was whether she was indeed pregnant or not. As yet, he had seen no sign of this, but he knew that on some women it need not be visible for quite some time. He was loath to ask her again outright, but neither could he find out in any other way. Besides, she had already denied it and if she had lied before, why would she be honest now?
He finally decided to tackle the problem head on and to that end, he took himself off to Marr Place once again. Upon his arrival, however, the house seemed deserted and he had to search for quite a while before he found even a footman.
‘Everyone’s outside, m-my lord,’ the youth stammered. ‘On the terrace.’
James headed for the back of the house and stepped out through the French doors, then stopped dead at the unexpected sight of his wife and daughters having lunch with his grandfather. To James’s further amazement, Lord Holt was sitting with little Chloe on his lap, telling a very amusing story, judging by the gales of laughter coming from all his listeners. The whole scene was one of contentment and togetherness. James was annoyed to find that he felt left out.
‘Grandfather, it’s been a long time since we had the pleasure of your company here,’ he said, somewhat stiffly as he went over to make his bow.
‘James, my boy, there you are. I had to come over and entertain your family since you were off gallivanting about goodness knows where.’
‘I am very pleased that you were able to make the journey. Had I known, I would have invited you sooner. I trust you are not too fatigued? Should you not be resting?’
‘Bah! Go and join those other two kill-joys in there,’ Lord Holt waved a hand vaguely towards the house. ‘They don’t want a body to enjoy himself, now do they, my sweet?’
He addressed this last to Chloe, who giggled and said, ‘No, they bully you awfully, don’t they.’
James blinked in surprise as Lord Holt laughed and said, ‘You see? Out of the mouths of babes …’
James had to smile as the entire scenario was too fantastic for him to take it in. When pressed, he consented to take lunch with them all, protesting vigorously when his grandfather embarked on yet another tale about his youthful misdemeanours. He joined in the laughter, however, and glanced at Amelia from time to time. She looked happy and content and the sight of her like that made him feel warm all over. He wanted her to look like that always.
‘You look very charming today,’ he commented. She was wearing a pretty morning dress of lilac sprigged muslin, which matched her eyes and complemented her silver-blonde hair. She gave no sign that she was annoyed with him for his rudeness to young Mr Briggs and this gave him hope that they may come to some understanding.
‘Thank you.’ A slight blush stained her cheeks, but she seemed pleased with the compliment.
The afternoon passed and James decided to stay at Marr Place for the night so that he could spend more time with his grandfather. He thought it best to put off his chat with Amelia until the next day as he didn’t want to spoil the mood.
‘Could you spare me a moment, please? I’d like a word with you in the library.’
Amelia looked up from the flower arrangement she had been finishing off and nodded at her husband. ‘Of course.’ She followed him across the beautiful hall, so light and airy in the spring sunshine, wondering what he wished to talk to her about.
‘Please, sit down. This won’t take long.’
Amelia waited while he collected his thoughts, pacing back and forth in front of her.
‘Amelia, as you are aware, I’m heir to an earldom. This carries with it certain duties and responsibilities, including that of begetting an heir myself.’ Amelia felt her cheeks grow hot, but she remained silent. ‘At the time of our marriage, I despaired of finding anyone at such short notice and your offer came as a welcome surprise. However, I only checked your background briefly with those present at the ball and I have come to think that perhaps I acted rashly. I should have taken more time to satisfy myself as to your suitability.’
Amelia frowned. ‘Are you saying I’m not good enough to be your wife?’
‘No. Yes. I mean, I don’t know – that’s the whole point. I know nothing about you really. The thing is, as and when you present me with an heir, I have to be sure that he is actually mine.’
‘You are accusing me of unfaithfulness already?’ Amelia stood up, her fists clenched, ready for battle. She could not believe what she was hearing.
‘Not exactly. What I’m saying is that you could already be carrying a child, intending to pass it off as mine.’ Amelia gasped, but he ignored her and continued with what sounded like a rehearsed speech. ‘I must make sure this is not the case. Therefore I have invited an eminent physician from Harley Street, Dr Augustus Harcourt, who is a specialist in obstetrics. He should be arriving later this afternoon and I would be very grateful if you would allow him to examine you.’ He stopped directly in front of her, fixing her with his gaze.
‘Of all the low-down … No! I most certainly do not want to be examined by some stranger I’ve never met.’
‘Amelia, please,’ he pleaded quietly. ‘I need to know that I haven’t been duped. I want to trust you, really I do, but a part of me tells me that I’ve acted like a fool and …’
‘You most certainly have.’ Amelia was so angry, she hardly knew what to do with herself. ‘And to think I was beginning to like you. Hah! Very well, I will allow the good doctor to paw me, just to prove you wrong, but you can forget your heir in any case for I don’t ever wish to speak to you again. I shall seek an annulment.’
With her head held high, she turned and marched out of the room.
Dr Harcourt proved to be a very nice, rotund little man and the examination, although intimate and hugely embarrassing to Amelia, was not painful in any way.
‘You couldn’t possibly be carrying even a two-month old baby,’ he declared. ‘There is nothing there at all.’ When Amelia did not reply, he very wisely said no more, simply bowed courteously and took his leave, presumably to report his findings to Lord Demarr.
During the days that followed, Amelia made it perfectly clear to her husband that she wanted nothing to do with him. She treated him coldly, hardly speaking to him at all unless asked a direct question. Although she hadn’t set the proceedings in motion as yet, she was still determined on an annulment. She knew it would break her heart to have to leave Marr Place. And she had no idea how she would tell the little girls.
How can I leave them now?
To her amazement, everyone in the house appeared to be siding with her and she guessed that somehow they had all got wind of what had happened. She supposed it was inevitable that everyone in a house like this would know everything going on, but it was still disconcerting. The servants tiptoed about, giving James strange looks, and Jamieson even went so far as to frown at his master.
Lord Holt kept shaking his head every time he looked at his grandson and even the girls did not go out of their way to talk to their father. They had understood that Amelia was angry with him for some reason, and they wanted her to be happy again. In the end, James took himself off to Westfield once more, muttering about ‘not being wanted in his own home’. Amelia breathed a sigh of relief, but she still didn’t send for a solicitor.
Two days later, Miss Keyes, her former governess, arrived at last to take up her new position. Amelia was delighted to see her, as they had been very close, and took her up to her room without delay.
‘Well now, haven’t you landed on your feet young lady,’ Miss Keyes commented with a smile as she looked around her. ‘I never thought you’d end up a viscountess, not in my wildest dreams.’
‘Neither did I, but much good it has done me, and it may not be the case for much longer.’ Amelia proceeded to tell her old friend and mentor everything that had happened, ending with the recent visit of the doctor, but to her surprise Miss Keyes did not take her side, as everyone else had.
‘Your husband sounds like a very sensible man to me,’ she said.
‘Sensible? Surely you don’t mean that you think him right in believing the worst of me?’ Amelia demanded indignantly.
‘No, of course not, but one cannot but see why he felt he had to do what he did.’ Miss Keyes put her hand on Amelia’s arm in a soothing gesture. ‘You really did not know each very well, did you, and perhaps he has been hurt by a woman before. Did you not mention something about a scandal?’
‘Well, yes, but …’
‘Do you know any of the facts about it?’ Amelia shook her head, beginning to see her friend’s point. ‘Precisely. And with Sir Bernard going round telling all and sundry that you were his mistress, he did have cause
to doubt you. Often there is no smoke without a fire, as they say.’
‘But he shouldn’t have married me if he believed that,’ Amelia protested.
‘Perhaps not, but you both acted rashly, did you not? You married him without knowing what scandal he had caused. I think you should give the poor man a chance to make it up to you. I’m sure everything will work out in the end.’
‘I don’t know. I’ll think about it. Anyway, it’s lovely to have you here and I hope the girls will like you as much as I do.’
‘Well, let’s go and meet them and find out.’
CHAPTER ELEVEN
When the doctor told him the verdict, James was aware of a feeling of great relief, but also shame that he had not trusted his wife. She had never appeared to be the sort of woman who dissimulated, unlike his first wife, and he wished now that he had listened to his intuition where Amelia was concerned.
But now it was too late.
Sitting all alone at Westfield, night after night, he at first tried to drown his problems with brandy, but upon waking up for the third day in a row with a mammoth headache, he knew that was not the solution. There had to be some way of earning Amelia’s forgiveness, and the only way he would find out was to go back to Marr Place. He decided to ask his grandfather for advice. Amelia seemed to like the old man and James knew that Lord Holt was a wise old bird who missed nothing. If anyone knew what to do, it would be him.
Before he had time to do so, however, Amelia surprised him by demanding to speak to him the minute he walked through the door. It was as if she had been lying in wait to pounce on him the moment he returned.
‘Yes, of course. In the library?’
Amelia nodded. As soon as they were inside, with the door firmly closed, she turned to him, looking nervous, but determined. ‘We really cannot go on like this,’ she said. ‘The discord between us is affecting the children, and much as I appreciate their support, I feel it is wrong that they should take sides against their own father.’
Regency Romance Collection From Christina Courtenay Page 8
