by Matilda Hart
“Thank you for coming to bring some extra cheer to our sad household, Edgar,” she replied, returning his smile.
“Miss Lockhart,” he continued, “welcome back to the country.”
Juliana was shocked that he remembered her, but she hid her surprise in a quiet reply.
“Thank you, Lord Edgar. It is a pleasant time of year to be visiting.”
For the rest of the meal, conversation ranged among a number of harmless topics, from Edgar’s desire to add to his stables, to Lady Eleanor’s plans to host a concert, to Gray’s decision to keep the London house open a bit longer.
“I may need to run back up to London before the end of summer,” he said, in answer to his mother’s question. “Best just to keep the servants there till I’m sure.”
He looked at her as he said, it, and smiled, making her cheeks tingle with the need to blush. But she was aware of another pair of eyes on her, and she looked at his mother instead of returning his smile. What she saw in the clear cold gray depths chilled her to the bone. She shivered, and returned her gaze to her plate. She would definitely need to let Gray handle his mother...she did not feel up to the challenge of butting heads with a woman who so clearly hated her.
Chapter 9
After breakfast, Deborah was summoned to her sitting room by the Dowager Duchess, which left Juliana free to do as she pleased. She chose to sit in the library reading, hoping to be ignored by everyone until she could sort out her confused feelings. She had felt an immediate attraction to Gray, and now that he had indicated his own feelings, she did not know how to proceed. That they could never be caught alone together, or risk her reputation, was a source of irritation to her, as she could not see how she was to judge his character, or her own willingness to tie herself to him, should he follow through on his courtship, by spending a mere few hours each day with him in the company of others. This was one of the reasons for her parents’ strong disapproval of her attitude to marriage. She did not hold with the current standards for courtship behavior, which she thought rather foolish for two people who would be spending the rest of their lives together.
Perhaps, though, she needed to remember that marriages were not meant to be the culmination of any fond feelings that each party might have for the other. Rather, they were meant to be business arrangements, to secure a woman’s future, or enlarge her husband’s fortune, or both at once. She paused in her reading to contemplate the benefits of a match between herself and Gray Wingrove. Certainly, she would be pampered for the rest of her life...except, of course, by his mother. And her parents would have the distinction of having married their daughters well, a circumstance that would inevitably raise their standing in the community. Such a distinction for her parents was not to be taken lightly. In the end, though, she had much rather like the man she married, if she married anyone at all. And Gray Wingrove seemed already set upon winning her in that regard.
A brief knock sounded before she was interrupted by Deborah.
“I’m glad I found you, Juliana,” she said, remaining by the door. “We must talk, and I would prefer to do so outdoors, if you don’t mind.”
Sighing inwardly at her sister’s total lack of concern for having interrupted her, but conceding that as Deborah’s companion it was her duty to be available, she replaced the book where she had taken it from the shelf, and walked with her out to the rose garden.
“What has you all atwitter?” she asked, letting Deborah urge her along the path that led to the back of the garden. They sat on a bench conveniently placed there before she replied.
“Lady Eleanor was happy to be reminded of the matter of the family name being held in disrepute if she had succeeded in getting Gray to marry me,” she began, “so thank you for reminding me.”
Juliana knew instinctively that Deborah had taken credit for having remembered on her own, but she decided not to hold it against her, as Lady Eleanor would be even more angry with her for having had the temerity to point out her own lack of insight. Best to let sleeping dogs lie. And as it might turn to her advantage -- her new situation made it imperative that she remain as objective as possible, to avoid any suspicion that she had made the reminder as a matter of self interest -- she was happy to give Deborah the credit. She urged her sister to continue.
“Well? I assume there is a new plan?”
Deborah giggled, and lay her hands over her sister’s. “Indeed there is, Juliana. And it is a rather clever plan.”
Which Juliana knew meant it was probably as harebrained a scheme as anything else her sister had ever come up with, bolstered by the ruthlessness of her mother-in-law. And she wouldn’t be surprised if there wasn’t some salacious content to it as well. Deborah was a lusty young woman, and though Juliana could not say whether she was or not -- though she suspected she might be with Gray Wingrove -- she understood the way her sister’s mind worked.
“Who is to be the new victim?” she asked, and then bit her lip, realizing the mistake she had made before her sister began to upbraid her.
“Why do you say it like that?” Deborah inquired sharply. “You make it sound as though a man would be hurt by marrying me!”
Juliana hurried to soothe her injured feelings. “I meant nothing by it, I promise, Deborah. Tell me the new plan.”
Deborah sniffed peevishly before replying. “You may remember how Edgar used to dance attendance on me, how he was one of the suitors vying for my hand? Well, we have decided that it is time to give him what he wanted then.”
“That shouldn’t be difficult, if he is still in love with you,” Juliana replied, relieved that it was nothing more sinister.
“Oh, but it is,” Deborah exclaimed, “because Lady Eleanor has it on good authority that he has begun to sniff around the skirts of some of the local ladies. No doubt he is looking for a wife, now that he is back from Europe. And as he probably assumes that I am still not interested in his suit, I shall have to make it clear.”
A light began to dawn in Juliana’s mind. “And the easy to show that interest is to seduce him? Deborah, that is a preposterous plan! Why not just have him court you in the accepted fashion?”
“Because it seems he has been paying particular attention to another baron’s daughter of late, and Lady Eleanor wishes to nip that in the bud. There is no other way, Juliana,” she ended, no doubt sensing her sister’s reservations. “She regards me as the daughter she never had, and is determined to see me to another satisfactory marriage.”
Juliana shuddered. Her sister’s willful ignorance of the pain she could cause, and Lady Eleanor’s utterly ruthless ambition, were appalling to her. But she understood that she was different from most women of her time, and she knew, in the practical part of her heart, that because marriage was a competitive business, the likelihood that everyone would emerge unscathed was small.
“If he is an honorable man, and he has already begun to pay court to another, surely only a desperate act will bring him to heel?” she asked, horrified.
Deborah glared at her, removing her hands and standing.
“Really, Juliana, you might choose your words more carefully,” she snapped. “Edgar is not a dog to be brought to heel, as you so inelegantly put it. We are merely going to play upon his former interest in me to secure my position at the top of his list.”
“And if he doesn’t comply willingly?” Juliana could not help asking the obvious question.
“Then we will have to coerce him,” Deborah replied immediately, as though they had also planned for that emergency.
She dreaded to know, but had to ask, “And how will you do that?”
Deborah smiled, and Juliana’s blood chilled. “I shall seduce him into my bed.”
Everything in her rose up in protest at her sister’s words. And a burgeoning resentment also wound its way through her. Here she was, unable any longer to be alone in the same room with a man she was finally interested in, while Deborah would be allowed access to a man she planned to trick into marrying her, n
o doubt by using the age-old pregnancy trap, if all else failed. Edgar Wingrove seemed to be such a harmless man that it broke Juliana’s heart to think how bitter he would be when he discovered, as she was sure he would eventually, how he had been ill-used by his wife, if Deborah and her mother-in-law had their way.
She stood up as well, and said, over her shoulder, “I cannot condone this plan any more than the other, Sister, but I hope and pray that you will get your heart’s desire, hopefully without breaking any hearts.”
“Don’t imagine that I have not noticed the looks that you and Gray have been exchanging” Deborah asked sharply. “If I didn’t know better, I would say you were interested in the Duke yourself. So be kind to him when you reject his advances, as you wish me to be to dear Edgar.”
Juliana froze at her sister’s words. Turning back to face her, she said,
“What makes you think His Grace has any interest in me?”
She could not bring herself to deny her own feelings, but she hoped that if she simply ignored that part of Deborah’s comment, it would remain unremarked.
“I have eyes, my dear,” Deborah said, “and I do not believe for a second that you have not also observed it.” She smiled slyly, and continued. “Perhaps that was why you were sneaking out so early every morning to ride...so the two of you could meet.”
Juliana fought valiantly against the color that rose in her cheeks, but lost the battle.
“Why, you sly thing, you!” Deborah exclaimed. “Has he kissed you as yet?”
“Really, Deborah, what sort of woman do you take me for?” Juliana protested angrily, not wishing to make a confidante of her sister, but knowing she needed to quash the possibility of gossip between her sibling and Lady Eleanor. “Do you know me to be the sort to seek out a man’s attention?”
Deborah had the good grace to look ashamed. “All right, perhaps it was not of your design,” she conceded, “but can you not see how ideal it would be if he were finally to choose a bride, and that bride be you?”
“Ideal for whom, sister?” Juliana asked dryly. “Surely you cannot have missed Lady Eleanor’s disapproval of me?”
Her sister made an inelegant noise with her lips and Juliana laughed, despite her upset. Deborah was not slow-witted, but she was also not easily dispirited, believing that everything would always work out for the best, no matter how difficult the circumstances.
“You would do well to remember the poor esteem in which I am held by your mother-in-law,” Juliana said, “and whatever you think you see in His Grace’s attention to me you should probably interpret as his merely being polite to his sister-in-law’s sister, especially given his mother’s coldness to me. He is just being a good host.”
She was proud of the way she had dealt with her sister’s curiosity and peculiarly sharp insight into the relationship that had been brewing between her and Gray. Before her sister could find the hanging thread of their conversation and unravel it, she said,
“Let us return indoors. I would like to practice the piano piece I was last working on before I left home. You might like to find something useful to do as well,” she added. “I’m sure Lord Edgar would appreciate knowing that hi new wife knows how to keep herself pleasurably occupied and out of his hair.”
Apparently, Deborah had missed the sly dig at her plan, and they walked back indoors to the sitting room where the pianoforte was located. Deborah had already secreted her knitting in one of the side tables, and she sat amiably listening and offering comments as Juliana worked on the music by Mozart that she had memorized but wanted to perfect.
Chapter 10
It had been a week since their last ride together, and Gray had been missing Juliana’s company sorely. He had not been able to find any time to be alone with her, despite his promise to her to protect her reputation. Each morning, her soft smile and sultry voice stirred his senses, and by the end of the day, he was functioning on half a brain cell because the rest of it was focused on keeping his wayward body under control. He wanted to touch her dewy skin, especially when she first came in from her morning ride. He had taken to riding in the afternoons now, so as to keep their pact. But he had had enough of that now. He wanted to hear her voice directed at only him. He wanted her secret smile to shine on him. He wanted to touch her. God help him, he wanted to kiss her.
She had cried off dinner, citing a headache, and Deborah had declared that she would most likely not emerge for another day until the pain wore away.
“I have had Rose take some soup and crackers up to her,” she said. “Perhaps she will be able to keep that down.”
Gray itched to excuse himself from the table, but could find no reasonable explanation for ending his meal early, so he bore the dreadful boredom of it, not really tasting anything he ate or drank, and remaining mostly silent.
“Are you also unwell, Gray?” his mother asked, bringing him crashing back into the moment.
He bristled, hoping no one would connect his pensiveness with Juliana’s absence.
“Why would you ask that?” he demanded. “Do I look unwell?”
His mother eyed him sharply, taking his question seriously. “You do look a bit peaky around the eyes,” she replied. “Perhaps you are not getting enough rest. You do come up rather late at night.”
He ignored her comment, choosing instead to address his cousin. “Lord Hurley is hosting a hunt at the weekend. It will no doubt be entertaining. You should join us, as my guest.”
“I shall be delighted to do so, cousin,” Edgar replied. “It has been a pleasant week so far.”
Gray resisted the urge to point out that it had been made more so by his unsuccessful attempts to disguise his continued interest in Deborah. He resolved to have a talk with him on the matter, as he could not imagine what could be holding the man back from speaking. And as soon as breakfast was over, he and Edgar repaired to the study where Gray poured him a large scotch and immediately pressed him for answers.
“Do not imagine, cousin, that I am unaware of your continued interest in Lady Deborah,” he began, sipping his drink.
“I cannot imagine what I have done to give that impression,” Edgar said, looking questioningly at him.
“It is, rather, what you have been avoiding doing that has given you away,” Gry told him. “You never look her in the eye, even when you speak directly to her. And you rarely do that, either. You speak more to her sister, in whom you have no interest whatsoever.”
Edgar smiled slyly. “Do not worry, cousin. I have no intentions towards Miss Lockhart. She is all yours.”
Gray wanted to be annoyed, but he laughed instead. Apparently they were both in the same boat.
“It is a new thing for you, this interest in and pursuit of a woman, Gray. Is Aunt aware of your affections?”
“I am sure she has her suspicions,” he replied, though I have not as yet made any pronouncements.” He grinned. “But we were talking about you. Why do you hesitate to declare your hand? Can you not see how willing she would be to such an alliance?”
His cousin sighed heavily, and took a long swallow of his drink before replying.
“I am in a difficult position, Gray,” he admitted. “I have been spending some time with Miss Eugenia Ware, a local baron’s daughter. I have not as yet made my intentions known to them, in large part because I am reluctant to saddle myself with a wife who is, at best, a half wit, and because I am not sufficiently fond of her to be willing to sacrifice clever conversation for stability. But she and her family may be forgiven for supposing that I will ask for her hand eventually, unless I tell them otherwise.”
“Then you should do so speedily,” Gray said. “But I do understand how that makes it difficult for you to openly pursue Lady Deborah. You cannot be seen to encourage two women at once.”
“And what of you and Miss Lockhart? Is she aware of your feelings?”
Edgar was curious, and Gray supposed it would do no harm to admit to a mutual knowledge between himself and Juliana.
“Well, come on, man,” Edgar said. “Finish the story. Are your feelings reciprocated?”
Gray paused. Were his feelings still reciprocated? He had no way of knowing, as Juliana had been distant, almost cool with him this past week, avoiding his eyes, not engaging in conversation, going off to bed before the others each night. She was doing her best to throw everyone off the scent, and he knew that she must be waiting for him to make the next move.
“Initially, I believe they were,” he answered cautiously. “But it has been a while since we have had a moment to ourselves, and I am no longer certain that the spark is still lit.”
Both men sat in quiet contemplation of their circumstances, though neither spoke of them again. And when Edgar excused himself and went up to bed, Gray stayed in the study, helping himself to another drink. His mother was right...he had been going up later and later to bed, hoping against hope that Juliana would find a need to return to his study for a midnight scavenger hunt, so that he could kiss her and leave her as hungry as he was. She had never returned, and he knew she would not come tonight, if she were truly as ill as her sister claimed.
