Grace really was a sweet girl, and a good match for any man worth his salt. Once he and Georgie were settled, he would have to look out for her. It wasn’t right that she should be so neglected.
“Oh! Lady Hetty is here!” Miranda chirped happily. “Can we go and see her?”
Tony raised a brow at her. “Why ask me? I am only your escort, and entirely at your service. Lead on as you will.”
Miranda rolled her eyes. “You poor, longsuffering man. How nobly you bear your burdens.”
“Thank you. I do try.”
They approached Lady Hetty, who was seated by Georgie and Izzy, as it happened, which made Tony very pleased.
“Now he’s happy,” Miranda muttered when she, too, noticed.
“Don’t be prickly, Miranda,” he scolded. “You like Georgie and Izzy, remember?”
She harrumphed to herself, then fixed a warm smile on her face. “Lady Hetty! I didn’t think you’d be here.”
Lady Hetty gave Miranda a bewildered look. “Why wouldn’t I be? You think I don’t like musical evenings?”
Miranda laughed easily and situated herself on the other side of her. “Not at all, I remember how fond you are of music.”
“If it’s well done,” Lady Hetty clarified. “There’s nothing so intolerable as poorly performed music. I don’t even clap for those poor souls.”
Georgie seemed rather amused by that. “Why not, Lady Hetty? Surely their bravery for performing deserves to be commended.”
Lady Hetty made a disparaging noise and thumped her walking stick on the ground. “Nothing commendable in being an embarrassment afore all Society.”
Izzy giggled even as her face flushed. “Lady Hetty! What would you say when I sing, I wonder?”
The older woman gave Izzy a sharp look. “You’ve never sung, Isabella. Can you?”
“A little,” Izzy admitted with a lift of one shoulder.
“Then you shouldn’t perform tonight,” she said rather simply. “Even if you have the ability, you should own to it with confidence, not timidity. No one wants to hear from someone who only sings a little.”
That seemed harsh, even for Lady Hetty, but Izzy didn’t seem to find it the slightest bit abrasive. “I wasn’t intending to sing tonight, Lady Hetty,” Izzy told her with a fond smile. “I never perform for an audience. I only sing to myself or to children.”
Lady Hetty smiled back at her and patted her hands. “That is because you are a good, sweet creature, Isabella Lambert, and if you had any backbone, you’d be a wife by now.”
Tony took a step towards Lady Hetty, ready to defend Izzy, but Izzy only sighed with a sad shake of her head. “I know. It is so unfortunate.”
Miranda laughed in surprise, but eyed Izzy, obviously impressed.
Tony was no less impressed himself. Lady Hetty had insulted her to her face twice, though she claimed to be fond of Izzy, and Izzy had not only borne it, but had done so with kindness and humor. There had not even been a hint of pain or hurt in her expression.
She’d actually agreed with the woman.
He thought he’d known the extent of Izzy’s goodness, of the ‘nice’ quality everybody claimed she had, but until now, he’d never witnessed just how far it extended.
He glanced over at Georgie, who had a forced smile on her face, and she looked up at him with steely eyes.
“But the music is destined to be lovely tonight,” Izzy said brightly, looking towards the front of the room. “Lady Trenwick is musical herself, as is Grace, so we can be sure they will have secured some very promising performances.”
“We shall see about that,” Lady Hetty muttered. She looked at Miranda suddenly. “Didn’t you sing, Miranda?”
Miranda nodded with an encouraging smile. “I did, Lady Hetty, yes.”
“Perhaps they should have asked you.”
Miranda waved a dismissive hand. “No, I think not. The performances are better left to the younger girls. I shall remain in the back of the room with the rest of the old women.”
“No!” Izzy protested, looking around Lady Hetty at her. “Please, do perform!”
“I don’t think it’s open to suggestion,” Georgie broke in. “Knowing Lady Trenwick, she’s already decided on everything.”
“Quite right,” Lady Hetty grunted. “Can’t have just anybody going up there.” She looked at Izzy with another fond smile. “But you would look very fine up there, if you could sing, Isabella. That green does suit your hair so well.”
Tony looked at Georgie again, whose widened eyes told him that she was just as lost by Lady Hetty as he was.
Age was a fickle thing, it seemed.
Charlotte was suddenly with them, exhaling great pants of air. “You’ll never guess,” she gasped.
“You’ll never breathe,” Lady Hetty countered. “In and out, Miss Wright.”
Charlotte flipped a hand quickly. “I can breathe later. Lady Trenwick has lost all sense, and she’s asked Eliza Howard to sing.”
Izzy gaped openly while Georgie seemed to freeze in place.
“That’s unfortunate.” Lady Hetty frowned and shook her head. “I suddenly find myself unwell and must go home.” She tapped her stick on the ground and rose, shuffling off towards the door.
Tony watched her go, then turned back to the group. “She’s that bad?”
“Oh, she can sing well enough,” Izzy managed between shocked giggles. “She’s just a horrid person, and even Lady Hetty cannot abide her.” Izzy gasped suddenly and looked at Charlotte in horror. “Is Prue here? You know Eliza will do something if she is.”
Charlotte shook her head quickly. “Grace intervened there. Prue is very unwell and cannot attend. But really, she’s just at home reading.”
Georgie and Izzy exhaled in relief, while Miranda looked utterly bewildered. “Well, I will endure it, if I must,” Miranda stated firmly, a sour note in her voice, “though I am not inclined to think well of anyone who abuses sweet Prudence. I’ll study this Eliza Howard and see what I make of her.”
Charlotte grinned at that. “I’m sitting by you, Mrs. Sterling, if only to hear your delightful commentary.” She brushed by Tony and took the seat that Lady Hetty had abandoned.
There was no possibility that Tony was going to enjoy a musical evening in the company of his stepmother and Charlotte if they were going to gossip the entire time. He looked at Georgie, imploring her to do something.
She caught his look and rose gracefully. “I’m going to visit the terrace,” she told the others. “I’ll come back in after Eliza’s through.”
“I’ll join you,” Tony offered, coming around the chairs to offer his arm. “The night is chilly, and you shouldn’t go alone.”
Georgie took his arm with a smile, nodding in acceptance. “Thank you. I rather hoped you’d come along.”
“Kindly remember we can see you through the windows,” Miranda warned them, smiling mischievously.
“Mrs. Sterling!” Izzy’s cheeks flamed, even as Charlotte howled with laughter.
Tony looked at his stepmother. “Duly noted, Miranda, thank you. Kindly remember that your voice carries, and what you say in London may haunt you for life.”
Georgie pulled him away as the others laughed, leading him out to the relative safety of the night.
“What has gotten into everyone tonight?” Georgie asked, taking in a deep breath of the cool night air. “It’s as though nobody has any sense or manners.”
“My thoughts exactly.” Tony leaned his forearms on the railing, looking out across the well-maintained garden beyond. “I didn’t expect Lady Hetty to attack Izzy like that.”
Georgie sighed and rubbed at her brow. “She doesn’t do it often,” she said, as if that helped matters. “And she truly does like Izzy. She just… doesn’t want her to be so nice.”
Tony looked over at her with a sardonic brow lift. “Nobody who cares about Izzy wants her to be nice enough to be taken advantage of. But going about it this way? It only enhances that part of Iz
zy’s nature that wants to please everyone. To put everyone at ease.” He winced and turned back to the garden. “Does Izzy realize that she probably ought to be hurt or offended?”
“I don’t know,” Georgie murmured, watching Tony with too much interest. It wasn’t often that anyone understood her cousin on this level, let alone expressed it. And there were fewer people who cared enough about Izzy to say or do anything about it.
“You don’t know?” he repeated, giving her a sidelong look.
Georgie shook her head. “We don’t discuss it. Every time I have tried, and I do mean every time, Izzy changes the subject or makes explanations that cause me to doubt the argument I intended to make.”
Tony exhaled and shook his head. “And now we have Eliza Howard to deal with.”
We. Not you, not they, but we.
Georgie stared at Tony with increasing wonder, the inkling over the past few days now pressing harder and harder against her heart. She had avoided giving in to it, or letting herself dwell on the sensation, fearing that it might weaken her further still.
But now she wondered if the opposite might be true. This feeling just might give her strength.
Tony turned to her expectantly, and she realized she hadn’t answered him.
“Yes,” she said quickly. “Eliza Howard.”
Apparently, her response amused Tony and he straightened, smiling at her.
“What?” she asked him, suddenly feeling warm despite the cool breeze.
He smirked, looking far too handsome when he did, and said, “I was under the impression that having Eliza Howard in Town was not good for us.”
Us. There he was again, using words that made her go weak despite already feeling too favorably inclined towards him.
“We can manage Eliza,” she managed, her throat suddenly dry. “We always have. It’s not particularly pleasant, but we’ll rally around Prue.”
Tony nodded slowly, still smiling in that odd fashion. “That is good. I’m glad to hear it. What is the plan? Do we hire others to be a distraction? Do we send spies to make sure Eliza and Prue are never at the same event? I’m not above poisoning if it will keep Prue from harm. Henshaw would help, and I think I could get Morton, too. He’s the quieter one, not nearly as social, but he would be very good with Prue.”
“Stop,” Georgie begged, torn between laughter and tears. “Tony, stop.”
He cocked his head, folding his arms. “Why, Georgie?”
She bit her lip, shaking her head. “Tony, it’s too much. You’re saying the most perfect things, and I can’t have you be this perfect. It… makes me hope. It makes me feel things, Tony, and I just can’t…”
Tony started towards her, his expression softening. “Georgie…”
She tried to step back, but she was already at the edge of the terrace.
Tony stopped just before her, his breath dancing across her brow. “Georgie,” he said again, his voice a tender caress.
“They can see us,” she whispered, her voice catching. She tilted her head towards the window beside them.
He glanced to look through, then smiled and looked back at her. “No one is looking. The music has begun, and everybody is quite transfixed.”
Georgie exhaled, whether in relief or nerves she couldn’t tell. She nodded once.
Tony surprised her by pulling her gently against him and wrapping his arms around her.
She laughed despite herself. “This isn’t what I anticipated.”
He chuckled, and she pressed her cheek against his chest, loving the sensation of feeling him laugh. “We’ll get to that, I have no doubt,” he rumbled, his arms pulling her more tightly against him. “But right now, I just want to hold you. I’ve wanted to hold you for a very long time.”
The tears welled up, and she had no willpower to resist them. She slid her arms around his waist and tucked herself as close to him as she could, letting the last of her defenses fall away in his arms.
This was what she had been missing. She hadn’t realized it, and wouldn’t have without him. She’d been wanting someone who would hold her just like this, despite a room filled with other people just beyond, but wouldn’t mind stealing this moment with her. She’d wanted the comfort of someone’s arms holding her close, of feeling a steady heartbeat thud against her cheek.
But not just any heart, or any arms.
The arms that would lift her when she was weak, hold her when she was frail, and lead her when she was lost.
The heart of the man she loved.
His heart.
Georgie sighed at the sensation rippling through her frame, searing her heart and soul.
She loved him. That feeling pressing against her heart, that inkling that had tugged at her for days, was now wild and free, filling her with light and life.
She had known loneliness, sometimes to a depth she couldn’t bear to explore, and now it was fading. The darkness was turning brighter and brighter, and the flame of hope she had kept steadily burning was now roaring to life in a blaze of brilliance.
“I mean what I say, Georgie,” Tony whispered, pressing his lips to her hair. “I will do whatever I can to help our friends. Anything in my power.”
“Shh.” She turned her face and kissed him right where she could feel his heart beating. “I know.” She rested her brow against him, exhaling slowly.
“What is it, love?” he asked tenderly, placing a finger under her chin, and tilting her face up to his. “What troubles you?”
Her heart caught at the endearment, and she smiled up at him. “At this moment, nothing troubles me. Nothing in the entire world.”
Tony grinned at that and stroked the underside of her jaw. “Good. That’s as it should be.” He leaned down and kissed her as though she were a delicacy he savored, taking his time, giving the task his due attention and enjoyment, driving her mad with the thrill of it.
Georgie slid her hand from his waist and up to his neck, tugging at him, pressing his lips more fully against hers. He complied without resistance, his kiss turning deeper, more insistent, more captivating. This was no mere kiss, this was a claiming, though who was claiming and whom was being claimed seemed rather unclear.
It didn’t matter.
Nothing mattered but them. This moment, this night, this man…
What she wouldn’t give for eternities of this.
Tony broke off with a series of gentle kisses, nuzzling against her, then pulling her into his arms once more.
She felt him tremble a little, and she smiled. Knowing she could bring him to this filled her with a heady sense of pride. She, who had never so much as turned a head before, could weaken Tony Sterling into a trembling tower.
What a perfectly delightful thought.
Tony cleared his throat and released her, his hands trailing along her arms. He backed away, staring at her with an odd, heated sort of look.
Georgie frowned in confusion. “Tony?”
He turned and walked a few paces, looking up into the night sky, then turned back around to face her. “Georgie, I have to be perfectly honest with you.”
She tried for a smile but couldn’t manage it. “That sounds ominous.”
Tony stared at her with the same look. “It might be.” He took in a deep breath, then released it. “…I’m in love with you.”
He was… what?
Georgie was entirely beyond words, staring back at him, her mouth gaping wide open.
Tony swallowed and nodded once. “I’ve been in love with you, probably from the beginning.” He gave a breathless laugh. “I’ve never met anybody like you, and Lord knows, I wasn’t looking. But you came into my life, and it took me all of five minutes to decide that you were my idea of perfection.”
She was sure her heart was beating, she could feel it pounding against her chest, but she wondered if it hadn’t taken flight and joined itself with the heavens. She wasn’t sure she was even awake, but in her dreams, nothing this sweet had ever occurred.
“Georgie, I l
ove you,” Tony said again, and his tone made her ache somewhere deep inside.
He loved her. She, who had only just admitted to herself that she loved him, was now to accept that he loved her in return.
How could she manage to comprehend anything so miraculous?
Tony swallowed with some difficulty. “Well?”
Right. She had to respond. She had to tell him…
She wet her lip carefully. “We all strive for perfection in some way,” she managed. “It’s a pleasure to know I’ve attained mine.”
His brow furrowed, but a small smile made itself known on his lips. “Does that mean…?”
Georgie smiled at him, a grand, beaming, adoring smile. “I love you, too,” she whispered.
Tony stared at her for a moment, then laughed again. “You do?”
She nodded almost frantically. “Yes.”
He strode to her and hauled her into his arms, picking her up off the ground and burying his face against her. “Oh, my love,” he murmured, laughing, and twirling her. “Oh, thank God.”
Georgie clung to him, giggling wildly, and feeling the desire to squeal like the little girl she had once been.
Tony set her down and cupped her face, kissing her deeply, but briefly. “Georgie, my love, will you be my wife?”
She gasped and choked on a laugh. “Say that again?”
He smiled a slow, delicious smile. “Georgie. Marry me.”
“I don’t mind if I do,” she replied, her tears returning to the surface and spilling onto her cheeks.
Tony wiped one away and kissed its place, then kissed her lips with such tenderness more tears began to flow.
He touched his brow to hers, grinning madly. “You have no idea how happy you’ve made me.”
She nudged his nose with hers. “I think I have some idea.” She pulled back and gave him a wry look. “What am I going to tell the others? What will they say?”
Tony snorted softly. “They shouldn’t say much. The only complaint before was that I didn’t have a house, and I’ve just procured one. Even Elinor would call me a good match now.”
Georgie laughed and shook her head. “I don’t care what Elinor would say. I think you’re a good match, and I intend to take you for myself.”
The Merry Lives of Spinsters Page 26
