'Miss Beaumarsh, Rosamund, hush now!' He took her hands. 'Look at me. Damnation.' With a muttered oath he flicked back the veil from her face. 'That's better. Now, young lady, do I look like a man at the end of his endurance? No. Ullenwood House has room and to spare for another dozen guests and servants enough to look after them all.' He squeezed her fingers and smiled at her 'You are not a burden.'
She looked up at him with an anxious frown.
'Have we not driven you from your home?'
The smile grew. 'No. The truth is I rarely dine at home when I am alone. Now instead of berating yourself for being a nuisance, you should be upbraiding me for my lack of attention.'
She blinked and her lip trembled. 'I could not do that, when you have been so kind to me.'
'Kind!' He handed her a snowy handkerchief. 'Here, wipe your eyes. I would guess that for the past few years you have been living with a man who considered nothing but his own comforts, and you have come to think of yourself as having no worth at all. And yet you have spirit, I know that. Where is the woman who would only drink champagne the first time I came to see her?'
'I was angry that you should presume to order my servants.'
'And quite rightly so. It was an unforgivable piece of impertinence. I beg your pardon for it. If you wish to drink champagne every afternoon then I will ask Johnson to have it ready for you.'
She was engaged in wiping her eyes but managed a watery chuckle.
'Now you are being absurd, sir.'
'Yes I am.'
He took her chin between the finger and thumb of one hand and tilted her head up.
'Give me my handkerchief and let me wipe away the rest of those tears. They do not become you.'
'No doubt your mistress can shed tears and still look beautiful,' she muttered.
'Of course,' he agreed cordially. 'She can cry at will, without her skin becoming at all blotched, or her nose turning an unbecoming shade of red. The difference, however,' he pinched her chin, 'Is that it is all for effect, whereas your emotion is from the heart.' He held her eyes for a moment, then with a slight laugh he released her and drew the veil back over her face. 'Now that we understand one another, I think we should continue our drive. I will not keep my horses standing too long. Let 'em go, Kirkham!'
Despite the chill wind the park was busy with carriages and riders, but although the marquis acknowledged a number of acquaintances he did not stop to speak to any of them. However, it reminded Rosamund of her quest for independence.
'You know so many people, my lord,' remarked Rosamund, 'I am sure there must be at least one amongst them who would be grateful for a little help … with letter writing, perhaps.'
'I am sure there are, but none that would welcome a recommendation from me.'
His tone was so implacable that she ventured no further word on the matter, but pinned her hopes on the guests invited by Lady Padiham to her party that evening.
By the time they returned to Ullenwood House, Rosamund was on the best of terms with her host, and surprised to find she had enjoyed herself more than at any time since leaving Northby Manor. A comment as he handed her down made her pause.
'Do you mean you will not be attending your aunt's party this evening?' she asked, putting up her veil as he led her into the house.
'There is no need for me to be there.'
'Oh.' She was immediately aware of a deep disappointment. 'Remembering our earlier conversation, my lord, you said I should upbraid you for your neglect…'
He gave a bark of laughter. 'So I did, and now you throw it back in my face. Baggage! Very well. I have an engagement for the first part of the evening, but I will drop in later, you have my word. Will that do?'
'Thank you, sir.' She turned and looked up on the landing as she heard a voice. Mrs Tomlinson was looking down at her from the gallery.
'So there you are, Rosamund! I am so glad you are back. Aunt Padiham has changed her mind on what to serve for supper tonight and has asked me to give Cook her new orders. Do come with me, for you know she will be as cross as crabs to have her plans overset at this late stage. Or better still,' she said, brightening, 'Elliot could tell her.'
He put up his hands. 'Oh no you shall not drag me into this, Bella.'
'Give me a moment to put off my cloak and bonnet and I shall come with you,' said Rosamund. She glanced up at the marquis. 'I hope you will not lose your cook, my lord.'
'Not a chance of it,' he retorted. 'She may huff and puff, but she will not in any way blame me for this upset!'
'What a spiritless creature you are, Lord Ullenwood.' Rosamund laughed and began to make her way up the stairs. 'Wait for me, Bella and we will brave the kitchens together.'
'And I shall ask Johnson to have a glass of champagne ready for you when you return,' the marquis called after her.
'What did he mean by that?' asked Arabella, frowning.
Rosamund blushed and shook her head before hurrying off to her bedchamber.
For Lady Padiham's party, Mrs Tomlinson had purchased a new gown of Italian sarsenet in pale lilac with a matching head dress, but Rosamund could not be persuaded to order another new gown and she chose to wear her dove grey silk with a bandeau of white lace secured around her dark hair. A string of pearls about her neck was her only ornament and Lady Padiham nodded in approval of her simple attire, declaring it entirely suitable for a young lady in mourning.
'Of course, I shall not make a great fuss of presenting you,' said my lady, shaking out the folds of her own rose-coloured gown. 'Since you and Arabella are still in mourning you shall not be put forward in any way, but you must watch me, my dears, and if I call you over then it will be to present you to one or two of my particular friends.' She smiled and nodded, setting the golden plumes attached to her turban waving gently above her.
'Has my cousin invited any of his friends tonight, aunt?' asked Arabella.
'No, he has left everything to me, but he has promised to look in a little later.'
'To make sure we are not enjoying ourselves,' muttered Arabella, pouting.
Lady Padiham was too good-natured to take offence and merely chuckled.
'You must behave yourself tonight, Bella, else I will have to answer for it to your dear mama.'
'So we must sit, mumchance, in a corner like schoolgirls not yet out,' grumbled Arabella as the first guests began to arrive. She flounced down beside Rosamund in a shadowy corner of the room, tapping her fan angrily against her hand.
'But Bella, you must know most of these guests already,' remarked Rosamund.
'I do, of course, and a duller set one could never imagine. Most are older than Mama.' Bella shivered. 'I am surprised they will venture out on such an icy night!'
'There is a roaring fire, and it will soon grow more comfortable when everyone has arrived,' replied Rosamund, determined to be cheerful. 'Stay here while I fetch you some mulled wine. That will warm you.'
As the guests came in, Rosamund recognised many of them as my lady's afternoon visitors, and those she did not know she turned to Arabella to enlighten her. She was mindful of her conversations with the marquis and considered that if she was looking for employment it could not be with a young man. Lord Ullenwood seemed to think that such men would misunderstand her motives. Neither should she choose a married man, since Mr Mellor had pointed out that a wife might well object. No, she needed to find an elderly, single gentleman who would welcome her help in matters of business. She therefore watched the guests with interest, and when at length she saw her aunt sitting alone she went over to her.
'What a fascinating evening, ma'am. So many guests: I should dearly like to know who they all are.' She glanced around. 'That gentleman over there, for instance, the one in the puce coat and the red whiskers.'
'Ah, that is Lord Tyneham,' said Lady Padiham. 'Excellent man. Retired from government now, of course, but his grasp of foreign policy is second to none. Addington wanted him to be ambassador in Paris, you know, rather than Lord Whitworth, but he turned it down, sa
id he was too old to be gallivanting over the continent.'
'I see. And, and that one? The tall, thin gentleman in the grey bag-wig and chocolate-coloured frock-coat?'
'Matthew Harkstead.' Lady Padiham sighed. 'Dear man. Lost his wife several years ago and has since thrown himself into charitable works.'
'How interesting.' Rosamund considered the gentleman. Perhaps this was her opportunity. She felt a little jolt of surprise when Lady Padiham offered to present him to her, and could only watch, speechless, as my lady waved an imperious hand and Mr Harkstead wandered over.
'Matthew, you must let me present you to my little friend, Miss Beaumarsh. Northby's granddaughter, you know.'
'Ah yes, I heard about that,' He took her hand and bowed over it. 'A very bad business. My condolences, Miss Beaumarsh.' For all her planning, Rosamund could think of nothing to say. Mistaking her silence for heartbreak, Mr Harkstead patted her hand. 'You must feel it dreadfully, to be wrenched from your family home, with no one to look after you.'
'Excuse me, Matthew, but she has my nephew to advise her,' put in Lady Padiham.
'Ah yes, of course, of course.'
With a bow, Mr Harkstead walked away, and soon after Rosamund returned to her corner seat beside Arabella, the beginnings of a plan taking shape in her head.
***
Arabella handed her another cup of mulled wine.
'I am so bored,' she complained. 'Aunt Padiham has told them all about me, so that the ladies only want to sympathise and the gentlemen treat me as if I was their granddaughter. I wish there was someone here to laugh with.'
'Perhaps there is,' murmured Rosamund, looking towards the door. 'Your cousin has this minute come in.'
Arabella was immediately on the alert.
'Oh famous,' she declared, brightening immediately. 'He has Sir James Ashby with him. Do you know Sir James, Rosamund?'
'I have met him; he came to the house the other day.'
'He is very good company.' She gave a little crow of laughter. 'Oh look, Sir James is coming over. Good evening, sir. I am so pleased to see you.'
He bowed over the widow's hand with practised grace. 'Servant, ma'am. Miss Beaumarsh.'
'We are so happy that you are here,' cried Arabella, clinging on to his fingers. 'I do hope you will stay and talk to us all night.'
'Well I would be delighted to do so, of course, but I fear I must do my duty and seek out my hostess. Then I hope to come back to you.'
'Yes, do hurry back,' begged Arabella. 'You can have no notion how dull we are finding the company.'
Sir James put up a hand and said with a laugh in his voice,
'Have a care, ma'am, you must know that most of these people are friends of mine!'
Rosamund seized her chance. 'Are most of them in the government, Sir James?'
'Well, some of 'em, certainly.'
'How fascinating. What a pity that we have agreed not to seek introductions this evening, for there are several persons here whom I would dearly like to know more of … Lord Tyneham, for instance.'
'Would you? Well let me go and do the pretty by Lady P. Then, if you wish, I will present some of these fascinating gentlemen to you.'
Scarcely able to believe her good fortune, Rosamund thanked him prettily and watched him walk away. Arabella tutted impatiently beside her.
'Rosamund I am disappointed in you. Sir James is by far the most attractive gentleman here tonight and all you can do is ask him to introduce you to those dreary old men.'
'I did not ask him, he volunteered,' Rosamund corrected her. 'And besides, I hope to persuade one of those dreary old men to employ me!'
Her optimism was short-lived. True to his word, Sir James came over presently with Lord Tyneham beside him. Arabella persuaded Sir James to take her over to join Lord Ullenwood on the far side of the room and Rosamund was left alone, doing her best to charm her new acquaintance without fear of his being dazzled by the vivacious widow. Lord Tyneham was very courteous, but so deaf that conversation was extremely difficult. At length she learned that he had no interest in public life and now devoted himself to nothing more strenuous than a stroll in the Green Park with his beloved spaniels.
Lord Tyneham clearly would not suit her purpose, neither would the other gentlemen that Sir James obligingly presented to her, either being too old, too infirm, or with no interests at all except for hunting and fishing. She helped herself to another glass of mulled wine and sat down to rethink her strategy. On the far side of the room she saw Arabella laughing and talking with Sir James and the marquis. She scowled as she finished her wine. It was so disobliging of Lord Ullenwood not to help her to find employment. She was sure he could do so if he wished. Sir James had been very helpful, but since he had no idea why she wanted an introduction to any of these gentlemen he could not be blamed for presenting those he thought most interesting.
She took a glass of champagne from the tray of a passing servant and sipped it. She decided to join Arabella but even as she rose to cross the room she caught sight of Mr Harkstead sitting alone by a window. She would have one last try. As she approached, he stood up and smiled at her in such a fatherly way that she was encouraged. Smiling back, she sank down on to the sofa.
'I do hope you are not finding the company tiresome, Mr Harkstead.'
'Not at all, Miss Beaumarsh.'
'Perhaps you are fatigued,' she continued. 'Such a busy life as you must have. My aunt tells me you are involved in many charitable works, I wonder how you can find time for it all.'
'One is obliged to organise one's time, naturally,' he replied, sitting down beside her. 'But you are right, one rarely has a moment to oneself, for there are committees to attend, working parties, not to mention the petitions. People are forever knocking on my door, begging me to help them. You see, I am even now in the process of setting up a new scheme to alleviate the sufferings of the deserving poor…'
'And do you have anyone to help you?' she asked, taking a sip of her champagne.
'I have a clerk, of course…'
'And I am sure he is very useful, but he cannot understand the finer points of your charities.'
'No, my dear, you are quite right. How acute of you.'
Rosamund thought of the estimable Henry.
'Would you, for example, trust him to make judgements on your behalf?'
'Oh no, no, that would never do.'
She took another sip for courage.
'I would very much like to help you with your work, Mr Harkstead.'
'You would?' he said, surprised.
'Oh yes, very much so. You see, since my grandfather's death I have spent far too much time doing nothing. I want an interest that I can throw myself into wholeheartedly.'
'Well, that is very admirable, but I do not see…'
'From what you have told me I think I could help you with your work, sir. I could take some of the burden from your shoulders. It must be very lonely for you, with no one waiting for you at the end of the day to share your worries.'
'That is true,' he said, much struck. 'I carry all these cares with me, day and night. To have someone who could ease that burden would be an advantage.' He paused. 'Your glass is empty, Miss Beaumarsh. Let me find you another.'
He signalled to a footman and was soon handing Rosamund another glass of champagne. Her head was beginning to spin a little, but the bubbling wine seemed to help her to express her thoughts, so she took another, larger sip.
'I thought that you were under Lord Ullenwood's protection,' remarked Mr Harkstead.
'Well, I am, of course, but it is not always very comfortable,'
'Ah, I understand,' he said quickly.
Rosamund wondered what he meant by that, but she let it pass and said eagerly, 'I would very much like to be independent.'
'But will Lord Ullenwood not object?'
'Oh no,' she replied airily. 'We have discussed it, and in truth, I think he would be very pleased to be rid of me.' She fixed him with what she hoped was an int
elligent look. 'You see, I like to be busy. I want an occupation.'
'Do you now?'
'Yes sir, for I do so dislike to be idle, and if you were looking for someone, I am sure I could be of use to you.'
He gave her hand a fatherly pat. 'I am sure you could, my dear.'
She took another sip of champagne. This was going very well!
'Of course, the problem would be finding somewhere to live.' She considered again the estimable Henry, who had lodgings in nearby Jermyn Street.
'Well there is no need to let that worry you,' said Mr Harkstead. 'I could find you a snug little house.'
'That is exceedingly kind of you! But we will need to discuss terms, of course.'
'Terms?'
'Well, yes. You will want to know just what I can do…'
Mr Harkstead put up a hand and said hastily, 'I do not think we should discuss that here! Perhaps it would be best if you came to see me tomorrow, my dear. I live but a step away, in Dover Street. Come to me at, say two o'clock, and we will discuss everything more fully.'
Rosamund beamed at him. 'Why, thank you, sir. I shall.'
When Mr Harkstead had gone Rosamund remained on the sofa and considered her success. She had not needed Lord Ullenwood's help after all, which was a great source of satisfaction. She felt a little light-headed, and put down her glass, thinking that perhaps she should not drink anything more. In fact, she was feeling a little sleepy, and was content just to lean back on the sofa and close her eyes…
'Rosamund, where have you been?'
She opened her eyes to find Arabella standing over her. She reached out and pulled her down beside her.
'You will never guess! I have found someone who will hire me as his secretary.'
'No!'
'Yes! Mr Matthew Harkstead.'
Arabella looked across the room at the thin, ascetic looking man who was even now taking his leave of Lady Padiham.
'Are you quite sure?'
Rosamund nodded.
'Yes. We discussed it fully. He is extremely busy, and thinks I could be of great use to him. I am to see him tomorrow, to agree terms.'
Mrs Tomlinson drew back. 'Surely you do not mean to go to see him alone?'
To Marry a Marquis Page 7
