by Ayles, Abby
Rodrick surprised himself to be thinking like this. He normally didn’t think much about girls, especially not a specific one that he’d just met the other night…
“I’m sorry,” his mother suddenly said, stirring his thoughts back to the present. “I didn’t wish to insult your friend. I just thought I should be honest with you.”
“No, Mother, it’s quite all right,” he replied, giving her a small smile and a pat on her hand. “I feel the same way sometimes.”
“That Fletcher girl is probably better off.” She had a strange look in her eyes when she said that to him.
He wasn’t sure that he liked it.
Later on, when he was alone in his bedchamber with his thoughts, he vowed that he wasn’t going to waste time on ‘what ifs.’ He wanted very much to see Lady Noelle again. How enchanting she had been!
He wished that his mother didn’t know about her, though. Now he couldn’t help but think that there was a further expectation for him to get married, because she’d witnessed him dancing with a young lady.
He could practically see the wheels turning in his mother’s head when she talked to him about Lady Noelle. But she is also Lady Noelle, a lady of status, he thought.
Rodrick didn’t like to waste time wishing for things he couldn’t have, but right now he deeply wished that he had the status that his cousin had. James was so kind and unassuming that he likely would’ve given him the earldom if Rodrick had asked him nicely.
Rodrick shook his head a bit and told himself to stop worrying so much about status and things he didn’t have. He had his mother’s love and support, and James’s as well. He was in a lovely family and that was what mattered.
Chapter 9
“Oh, what do you think is keeping the Marquess of Fairfax from coming?” Noelle’s mother fretted to her husband. “You don’t suppose that he is otherwise engaged, do you?”
The duke hmphed from behind his newspaper.
Noelle wished that she could do such a thing without getting lectured. As it was, she was at her drawing board in the sitting room, attempting to do a still-life of a half-empty cup of tea. And half-listening to her mother’s dramatic moaning.
“I do wish that more of you cared about this,” the duchess complained, putting a handkerchief to her mouth. She wasn’t really crying, but she did a great job of pretending when she wanted to. And now was one of those times.
“We do care about it, my dear,” the duke replied. “I’m sure Noelle wanted nothing more than to at last meet the dashing marquess and see for herself if she liked him.”
“Oh pfft, of course she’d like him,” his wife said with a dismissive wave of her ‘kerchief. “What’s not to like about a wealthy man with such a reputation?”
“What reputation is that, Mother?” Noelle asked her without looking away from her drawing. “It seems to me that he is more of a rogue than you’re willing to admit.”
Her mother appeared shocked. “I have heard no such things about him!” she cried. “He’s taking care of his father, who is ill, and all reports say that he’s a charming man.”
“We met him a few times,” the duke recalled. “I can’t recall him being ‘charming’ as you say, but he certainly held people’s attention…”
Noelle blushed a little bit as she smiled at her pad of paper. In all of her imaginings, the Marquess of Fairfax was a handsome – but conceited – young man. She didn’t want to be too dismissive of him, but the thought of him didn’t appeal to her.
She carefully shaded the edges of her teacup on the paper. “Perhaps he is interested in theatrical pursuits,” she offered. “If he receives so much attention at a ball and yet does not come across as memorably charming.”
Noelle didn’t intend to slight actors; indeed, if the marquess was an actor, that would succeed in making him more appealing to her.
Her mother, on the other hand, appeared practically horrified at the insinuation. “An actor! Really, Noelle, how improper for a man of his status.”
Noelle couldn’t help but giggle a little. “I find pursuit in the arts far more gratifying than regular ball attendance,” she admitted.
“You would,” her mother countered. “Oh! You and your sister, always going on about such nonsense. You need to be married – and then you can have your books and your art. But for now, you must make a match. And not with that Edwards fellow.”
The duke raised his eyebrow suddenly and lowered his newspaper. “Eh? What’s this? I thought you liked Lord Edwards. Seemed an agreeable and gallant fellow to me,” he added as if that would make it better for his wife.
“Lord Edwards was,” his wife hissed in correction. “But his cousin, Mr. Edwards, seemed such a droll sort of fellow.”
Noelle could tell that her mother was eyeing her but she didn’t dare look over at her.
“Apparently Noelle danced half the night with him while our Catherine – smart and attentive girl – continually paired up with Lord Edwards.”
Honestly, Mother, if you must always insist on picking favorites in this manner then I suppose I shall always lose to Catherine. Though Noelle took no pleasure in knowing that her mother was displeased with her actions of late, it gave her some satisfaction to know that she at least hadn’t felt like she’d wasted her time pining for some stranger.
“I thought Mister Edwards,” her father said then, “was a fine young man himself. He carried himself well, he was polite…”
“That may be, but he’s not even in the landed gentry!” the duchess went on. “And, oh, that mother of his!”
This Noelle couldn’t much remark on. She hadn’t made his mother’s acquaintance really, and she didn’t much care for discussions of land ownership. Instead, she began lightly shading in the tea inside her drawn cup as they talked.
She had an idea, but she wanted to speak to her sister about it first before she did anything about it. Catherine would need to be in agreement with her in order for it to work, but if it did then it should be quite a delightful success, she was sure.
As soon as she finished up her latest drawing, Noelle closed her drawing board and set it safely back in the corner of the room where no one else would bother it. Luckily for her, no one else in the family cared to try their hand at drawing so her supplies could remain hers alone.
She went up the stairs to Kitty’s room, gently knocking on the door and hoping that she’d find her sister in there, doing whatever it was that her silly younger sister did for entertainment.
Catherine grinned at her as soon as she opened the door to her bedroom. She took Noelle’s hands and led her inside at once. “Oh, Noelle, I’ve received so many wonderful letters!”
She gestured an arm over the stacks of letters that were laid out on her desk. Each one had been hastily opened and read and reread, to be sure.
“So many kind people thanked me for the ball the other night. Me! Isn’t it so very exciting?”
When Noelle glanced down and noticed the names on some of the letters or envelopes, she wasn’t so surprised that Catherine had been the addressee. “Ah yes, it was good of Mr. Ingram and Mr. Chase to write to you,” she said, tongue in her cheek.
“Aren’t they just divine?” Kitty asked her, holding one of the letters up to her chest. She completely missed the tone of Noelle’s voice, or she chose to ignore it.
“Quite,” Noelle agreed with a nod of her head. “As a matter of fact, while we’re on the subject of letters, I was just thinking that it would be nice to send a letter to Lord Edwards and his cousin, thanking them for their visit.”
Kitty’s cheeks pinkened and her mouth fell open a bit. “Why, Noelle, that is a superb idea! I did actually receive a letter from Lord Edwards.”
She held this letter out for Noelle’s perusal. The usual bon mots were displayed there in his steady and neat hand. Noelle couldn’t help feeling that this gentleman would make a rather fine match for her sister, even if Kitty was a bit of a dolt at times.
“Well, you were j
ust going to receive this kind thank you and not reply?” Noelle asked her with a smile. “Really, Catherine, I thought Mother taught you better than that.”
“I didn’t know what to say,” Kitty said in an almost giddy manner. “I never know what to say!”
Noelle sat down at her sister’s desk and carefully moved the other letters out of the way so she could use the space there and get comfortable. Writing letters wasn’t her favorite activity either, but she knew that they served an important purpose.
She took some of the paper that her sister had in her desk – never used, most likely – and took up a pen.
“Oh, Noelle, you’re really serious,” Catherine remarked. She sat on her bed nearby so she could observe her with a smile on her face.
“If you wish to see someone again,” Noelle replied, “you have to let them know so they don’t think you’ve forgotten them.”
For a moment, she sat there looking at the blank page and thinking of what she should write. She knew that she should be writing to Lord Edwards, but the gentleman that she really wished to write to was Mr. Edwards.
“I think it’s prudent that I should write to Mr. Rodrick Edwards,” she announced then. “After all, he was my dancing partner. And you should write to Lord Edwards when I am done,” she concluded.
Kitty bit her bottom lip a bit, swinging her legs off the side of her bed. Sometimes it was quite difficult to believe that she was old enough to be receiving letters – multiple letters – from prospective beaus now.
“You’ll have to show me what I should say,” she replied. “I’m terrible at wording things properly.”
Noelle laughed lightly. She knew that her sister could be charming and witty in her own way, but she was not gifted with the quill. None of the Fletcher girls were, really. Not even Emily, although she was so fond of books.
“Of course, I would be delighted to help you compose a letter. Let me just write to Mr. Edwards first.”
She felt rather sheepish to admit that she was continuing correspondence with the gentleman even though their mother was annoyed at the very idea. She was supposed to be penning love letters to the marquess, and yet…
But this was not a love letter. That was silly. One had to be in love in order to write such a thing.
Putting her pen to the page, Noelle began to compose her letter. Kitty, meanwhile, sat rapt in contemplation of her own letter that she must write.
Dear Mr. Edwards,
I hope that this letter finds you well. I wanted to take this opportunity firstly to thank you for attending the ball that was hosted by my family.
It was immensely kind of you to spend time with me and help me entertain my little sister who is not fond of parties or large crowds. I shan’t forget that.
It is my sincere wish to meet with you again soon. When you are next in London, do think of us and make us a call.
Fondly,
Lady Noelle Fletcher
She set her pen down and read her letter over, blushing and smiling a little as she imagined him reading it. She had to believe that a man like Mr. Edwards received letters from young ladies all of the time… And yet there was something so endearingly modest about him.
His cousin, Lord Edwards, likely earned more attention at functions, but if Mr. Edwards went along with him as he had this time, he likely met a great many people from London’s famed ton.
After safely folding up the letter and placing the gentleman’s name upon the outside, Noelle turned around in the chair with a grin on her face. “Now it’s your turn,” she said to Catherine.
She got up from the chair and waited as her sister came over and sat in her place. For extra fun and awkwardness, she pushed Catherine’s chair a bit closer to the desk.
“I wrote that I wished to see him again,” she said to her. “But I left it at that. You mustn’t make it too flowery or you’re likely to scare Lord Edwards away.”
“Really,” Kitty said with a laugh. “I don’t think that he was so very shy and fragile as all that.”
Rather than looking over her sister’s shoulder and reading what she wrote onto the parchment, Noelle sat down upon the bed. They hadn’t even sent the letters yet, but still she was giddy with anticipation.
I wonder what Mr. Edwards will make of it, she thought with a smile. I hope that he doesn’t think I’ve forgotten about him, as Mother probably hopes I shall…
That was another thing altogether: she was not sure how her mother would react if Noelle and Catherine were invited to a party at Mr. Edwards’ home. There was a chance that they could avoid finding out, though, if Lord Edwards had the good sense to invite them personally to his own manor.
Noelle thought that she should be quite content to just pay a visit to the gentleman’s modest home, though. She never expected anything quite so grand as her mother. She really only wished to see the man himself again.
Chapter 10
Several days had passed since the ball at the Duke of Salisbury’s London home, and yet Rodrick found that he could not stop thinking about it. In truth it had been a party like any other, all except for the beautiful and friendly Lady Noelle Fletcher.
It seemed now as if they’d only had a few minutes together, but in reality they had spent most of the ball in each other’s company. He had been relieved that his friend Alphonse neglected to come along to the ball, even if he pretended to be annoyed at him.
Really, he had been bothered only because Lady Noelle seemed so downtrodden about the marquess’s absence. And, to be sure, the one who was really downtrodden about it was her mother, the duchess.
“Confound it, the man could have an absolute peach of a girl for his wife, and what does he do? He doesn’t even show up to be polite and make her acquaintance!”
James chuckled softly, shaking his head. He was sitting comfortably on the couch in Rodrick’s sitting room, visiting his cousin after a long morning of doing his old father’s bidding.
“I know that you liked her, Rodrick, you old devil,” he said. “And you do know by now that Lord Drake is not the sort of man who follows rules or does what is expected of him.”
Rodrick sighed and nodded in agreement. He leaned against the wall by the window looking out on his expansive garden. “Indeed, I know him only too well to be surprised by his behavior.”
He only wished that he could convince his friend to attend another ball wherein Lady Noelle was also in attendance. He wanted to live vicariously through his friend for as long as possible, but he had a terrible feeling that the chances of that were diminishing by the day.
The Duke and Duchess of Salisbury were not likely to invite Lord Edwards and his cousin to another party if it was known that Rodrick continued to dance with Lady Noelle against their wishes, either. Still, he prayed that they might see each other again soon.
“Gods, I wish that we lived in a time or place where titles were not so damned important!” he opined, pushing off from the wall and going to sit in a dark green wing chair beside the couch. “I am not a bad man; I’m intelligent and polite and noble, in my own way…”
“And quite modest,” James added with a wry smile. “Really, Rodrick, you mustn’t trouble your mind with it. I am convinced that we shall be seeing the fair ladies of the Grosvenor Square crescent again.”
Rodrick arched an eyebrow at his cousin. “Oh?” he asked. “Have you been plotting in your absence?”
James continued to smile deviously, but shyly, at Rodrick. “I may have been gone off to my own abode, but dear cousin, I am never absent.”
“But what have you been plotting?” Rodrick asked, ignoring his platitudes. “I know that expression of yours. You mean to cause a bit of mischief.”
“Why no, sir,” James replied with a laugh. “I merely mean that I have been thinking the same such thing as you have. I think that it might be a good idea to invite the Salisbury family here to return their gracious favor.”
Rodrick’s mouth fell open in astonishment. Then he gave James a
smile of appreciation and relief. “Oh, how fine an idea is that! My own manor should be a suitable location for it – for I have my mother here who can be a chaperone and companion for them in their stay…”
He chuckled a bit then, raising his eyebrows at his cousin. “I think it may be a fine time to make your feelings known to Lady Catherine, eh?”
James blushed, smiling from ear to ear. “Perhaps,” he said quietly. He was such a shy young man that Rodrick had to wonder how long it would take before he’d propose marriage to Catherine.
He wondered briefly if they might wish to extend an invitation to Alphonse, in order to finally unite him with Lady Noelle and please her mother the duchess, but Rodrick quickly thought better of that. It was perhaps not a good idea to continue to push the meeting, especially if the lady wasn’t so keen on it.
There’s no need to rush that, after all, Rodrick thought. They surely will cross paths eventually…
He couldn’t believe that he was thinking such a thing. He was being so impertinent lately on the subject of the Fletcher girl. And he was not being the best friend to Alphonse.
“Do you really think that another ball so soon after the last one…?”
James scoffed and shook his head. “I daresay, no. We shan’t have need of another ball; but rather, I thought that we could invite only the Salisburys as a means of getting better acquainted.”
Rodrick could imagine exactly which member of that family with whom he wished to become acquainted. He smiled knowingly. “I see.”
He was grateful that his cousin was on his side. He knew that he was going to need to remain by his side if there was ever to be any chance of his meeting a lady for his own wife. Not that Rodrick was attending these parties for the purpose of such a thing, but he wasn’t counting it out either.
