by Elaine Hart
Caroline was on her way to her chambers to fetch her shawl when she heard Lord Dundee’s coach riding along the cobblestone path that led to the back of Fursdon House. She crossed the hall and glanced through the opposite window, but noticed it was not his coach after all. She did not recognise the crest on the door, or the flag on the side. Her brow furrowed, wondering to herself whether it was merely a visitor for their father, but when Lord Dundee climbed out from the coach, Lady Caroline was even more perplexed. Her eyes widened as a young woman with long amber hair also climbed out of the coach. Lady Caroline inhaled deeply, attempting to compose herself, as she was known to overreact at the worst of times.
“Breathe, Caroline. It is not what you think,” she whispered to herself and glanced out the window.
To her utter horror, the young woman grabbed Lord Dundee’s hand, pulled him close and proceeded to kiss him rather passionately. Of course, Lord Dundee did nothing of the sort to contend. It seemed as though he enjoyed every single moment of it.
Lady Caroline turned away and stepped away from the window. Tears stung her eyes and she slowly walked to her chambers to fetch her shawl, as intended. She made her way to the terrace, where Lady Harriet waited for her, and as if fate had not already punched her in the gut, Lord Dundee appeared at the foot of the main stairwell as she made her way down the staircase.
“My lady,” he said with a charming smile.
“My lord,” she answered, as though she had not seen a thing a few moments prior. She would not give him the satisfaction of a reaction.
Not again.
Never again for that matter.
“I certainly look forward to our meeting this evening,” he said with a smirk.
“Regrettably I cannot make it,” she stated, with not a shred of remorse.
“And why is that?”
“I promised Lady Harriet we would attend the theatre. There is a tragedy that she and I both wish to see,” she explained.
“A tragedy? How morbid,” he scoffed.
“Indeed,” she said.
“Shall we meet tomorrow evening?”
“I am not certain. I have been neglecting my friend as it is, and I do not wish to keep you from your errands,” she uttered, over-enunciating the very last words.
“Is something the matter?” he asked her.
“Everything is perfectly fine.” She approached him, brought her hand up to his cheek and lightly touched his bottom lip. “This particular hue of rouge does not look good with your skin tone, my lord.”
Lord Dundee’s smirk faded and he stared at her wordlessly. “My lady—”
“Spare me,” she said and held her hand up in the air. “I do not even wish to hear it.”
She turned on her heel and left him standing at the foot of the stairwell, pale-faced and unable to respond.
Lady Caroline stepped out onto the terrace and joined Lady Harriet.
As she sat down, she noticed the sunset and smiled slightly. “Sunsets used to be my favorite part of the day,” she said.
“Indeed it has. What has changed?”
“I am not certain. It merely does not have the same appeal to me as it had before,” she sighed, noticing Lord Dundee standing in the doorway but he did not make an attempt to step out onto the terrace. Lady Caroline turned away and said, “Perhaps we should go to the theatre tonight. There is a tragedy playing.”
Lady Harriet smiled and nodded. “Oh, I do enjoy a good tragedy.”
“As do I,” Lady Caroline answered.
Lady Caroline and Lady Harriet proceeded to ready themselves for an evening at the theatre, and their laughter and enthused banter was heard throughout the Fursdon House, echoing through the hallways. After they had left in the coach, the halls were quiet, and even though the sound of their excited shrieks and giggles was more than Lord Erasmus could possibly bear, the silence now bothered him, as he sat in the drawing room reading.
Lord Erasmus was still rather upset over the fact that Lady Caroline had been sneaking away in the middle of the night to meet with Lord Dundee in the gardens. Not only that, but also because Lady Caroline seemed unaffected by the tales of his brother’s indiscretions.
Lord Erasmus was not ignorant to the ways of his brother, and he was certainly no fool either. He only pretended that he did not notice her sneaking out the front door, even though the window of his chambers looked out directly onto the area in front of the entryway. He also pretended not to care any longer, even though he still did very much. He desperately attempted to convince himself that if Lady Caroline was foolish enough to believe all the lies that his brother told her, which he was quite certain that he was, then she deserved whatever was coming her way, but it was rather difficult.
Lord Erasmus had always admired Lady Caroline from afar, but certainly did not do anything to instigate any kind of relationship between them. Not only because she was the dearest friend of his younger sister, or that she was four years younger than he was, but because she was headstrong and determined, followed her own path, and did not care for petty gossip, or care what others thought of her. She was an intelligent woman, even from a young age, and this appealed to Lord Erasmus very much. Not a single soul knew of his admiration and adoration of Lady Caroline, and at that very moment, he was content that he had never told anyone.
He had never imagined that Lady Caroline would fall so easily under the spell of anyone, not even Lord Dundee, and that was certainly the thing that disappointed him the most. He had been under the impression that she was better than that, but it turned out that she was simply the same as the rest of the female population who enjoyed being one of the plenty of women who Lord Dundee wished to spend his time with. Shamelessly for that matter.
Lord Erasmus grew increasingly frustrated, and abandoned the pursuit of relaxing with one of his favored novels. He closed the book and placed it on the table beside him. As he glanced up, he noticed Lord Dundee entering the drawing room and sighed. However, he noticed the perplexed expression on Lord Dundee’s face and despite not wanting to know what his brother had on his mind, he asked, “What is the matter?”
Lord Dundee glanced at him and he shook his head. “I may have been found out.”
“That is certainly overdue,” Lord Erasmus muttered, but Lord Dundee looked genuinely concerned.
“I am rather serious, brother,” Lord Dundee muttered in return and sat down on the sofa opposite Lord Erasmus.
“Enlighten me. Who has found you out?” he asked.
“Lady Caroline.”
“Is that so?” Lord Erasmus said nonchalantly.
“She knows that I had been seeing Lady Abigail yesterday.”
“She is an intelligent woman,” Lord Erasmus said as he reached for his book once again. He opened it and brought it closer to his face, pretending to be immersed in it once more. It was the only way he could hide his satisfied smirk from his brother.
“It is a pity, really. I had fun with her,” Lord Dundee sighed.
“I do not wish to know the details of your ‘fun’, brother.”
“Oh, it certainly is not what you think,” Lord Dundee scoffed.
“I am well aware what you are capable of, Thomas,” Lord Erasmus said from behind his book.
“Indeed, but Lady Caroline was different.”
“Different how?” Lord Erasmus asked, not paying much attention to Lord Dundee.
“She was resistant,” he answered.
Lord Erasmus lowered his book and glanced at him. “Resistant.”
“Indeed. She was not like all the other women who threw themselves willingly at me. She wished to talk and hold my hand as opposed to kiss me and—”
“Enough details,” Lord Erasmus sighed.
“The point that I am attempting to make is that she was not the kind of woman who would be satisfied with what I was offering,” he said.
“Why does that bother you as much?”
“Perhaps I had been acting inappropriately.”
“Perhaps? Th
omas, you are a rake who ruined more women than anyone I know, relentlessly and without conscience. Why on earth would one woman change your mind?”
“I am not certain, but it does not even matter any longer,” Lord Dundee sighed. “She wishes to have nothing to do with me.”
“And I do not blame her.”
“Perhaps you could speak to her for me,” Lord Dundee suggested hopefully.
“No, absolutely not,” Lord Erasmus said and closed his book abruptly.
“Why not?”
“Have you not done enough damage, Thomas?” He stood up in exasperation and glared at his brother.
“But I am willing to change.”
“Perhaps it is too late for that,” Lord Erasmus uttered and stomped out of the room, leaving Lord Dundee alone with wounded pride, feeling even more perplexed than he had before he entered.
Lady Harriet entered her father’s study and found him sitting at his large desk. He glanced at her with a smile as she closed the door of the study.
“You called for me, Father,” she said cheerfully.
“Indeed I have. I apologise for seeming more formal than usual, but there is something I wished to discuss with you, privately of course,” the Duke said and placed his hands on the desk.
“No need for apologies, Father, although you do make it sound very serious.”
“I received a letter from Paris.”
“Paris? Who lives in Paris?”
“Here. Read it for yourself,” he said and handed her the letter.
Lady Harriet glanced at the writing on the page and frowned. She said nothing as she read through the letter, and even though the content of it did not shock her in the least, it simply confirmed her suspicions.
“You do not seem surprised by the letter,” the Duke pointed out with a furrowed brow.
“I am not, Father. His behavior speaks for itself,” she answered.
“Indeed, but I was not under the impression it had reached this level of concern,” the Duke pointed out as he took the letter back from Lady Harriet.
“With all due respect, Father, I am quite surprised that you think that Thomas is an angel.”
“I never said that, Harriet. I knew he had his shortcomings and his flaws, but I certainly did not expect him to be this irresponsible.”
“Responsibility was not something he was bestowed with, unlike Erasmus,” Harriet answered.
“Certainly not. I do think it is time to have a word with your brother,” the Duke said and his jaw clenched in disapproval. “When were you made aware of this?”
“The contents of the letter?”
“Yes.”
“Shortly after he arrived home. I found a letter in his trunk—”
“Harriet, what have I told you regarding going through your brother’s things?” the Duke asked with thick disapproval.
“Thomas told me he had a gift for me in his trunk. I did not go through his things without his knowledge. I am not that person, Father, and I feel rather offended you would even think that of me,” Harriet said and crossed her arms.
“I sincerely apologise. It was not my intention to upset you,” the Duke said apologetically.
“I opened Thomas’s trunk and found the letter tucked in between his shirts. I am fairly certain that he was not aware of its existence at the time. He did find it, however, and he is aware.”
“How do you know all this?” the Duke asked.
“I noticed the crest at the top of the page, and two days later, I saw the letter in the fireplace, partially burnt, the crest still visible,” she said. “I did not say anything as it was not my place to, and I had unintentionally snooped when I should not have,” she explained.
“I am glad that he is aware, but it worries me that he has not come to me to discuss it.”
“He will not, Father. We all know Thomas, and we all know he will not step up and do the right thing.”
“It saddens me to admit this, but you are right.”
“I wish I was not. He is still my brother, and I love and adore him very much. His choices, however, I do not agree with at all.”
“Indeed.”
“Is that all, Father? I wish to get back to Lady Caroline. I left her all by herself in the library.”
“No, there is something else,” the Duke answered. “She should be alright for another while. I believe the library is her favored place after all.”
“Indeed,” Lady Harriet chuckled.
“I wish to host a ball here at the estate.”
“For what reason?”
“Do I need a reason to host a ball?” the Duke asked with a wink.
“Not at all, Father. I merely thought it was to celebrate something, or perhaps you have an important announcement,” she said and glanced at her father expectantly.
“Such as?”
Lady Harriet’s smile faded and she sighed. “Father, forgive me, as this is not my place, but would you not consider bestowing your title onto Erasmus, instead of Thomas?”
“Harriet...”
“I am aware Thomas is the eldest son and rightful heir to the title, but Erasmus is so much more deserving,” Lady Harriet said.
“I am aware of that, Harriet, but it is Thomas’s birthright. I cannot merely take it away from him. It would be scandalous if it were to come to light.”
“More scandalous than what is written in that letter?” she asked and cocked her head.
The Duke ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. “Never. Nothing even comes close to that.”
“Indeed,” she nodded and sighed. “Let us speak of this no longer. It is making me feel rather dreary.”
“I absolutely agree. Would you and Lady Caroline wish to go shopping for gowns?”
Lady Harriet smiled brightly and nodded. “You certainly know how to make my heart happy, Father.”
“I am glad to hear that. The ball will merely be an end to a lovely summer that you have spent with Lady Caroline. Is that a good enough reason?”
“Perhaps.”
“And who knows, perhaps there are two eligible gentlemen who catch your eyes.”
Lady Harriet laughed and shook her head. “Perhaps for me, but not Lady Caroline.”
“And why is that?” the Duke asked.
“She told me her father agreed for her to attend Oxford University. He is well acquainted with the board and may possibly convince them to allow her to attend at the start of the next year.”
“That is wonderful news.”
“Indeed, she had been begging her father for years now, and he finally agreed.”
“Seems as though she would not require an eligible gentleman after all,” the Duke said and pursed his lips.
“So it may seem, Father.”
“Is Erasmus aware of this?”
“Of Lady Caroline perhaps attending Oxford?” she asked and the Duke nodded. “I doubt it. They have not spoken much since she has been here.”
“Perhaps they should.”
“Indeed. Erasmus would certainly approve of her plans,” Lady Harriet said with a smile.
The Duke frowned and Lady Harriet sighed. “Come on, Father.”
“What?”
“You mean to tell me that you are not aware of Erasmus being more than simply a little fond of Lady Caroline?” Lady Harriet asked.
“I was not at all aware.”
Lady Harriet chuckled and shook her head. “Well, he is, and even though he did not tell me personally, I can see it. The way he looks at her and the way he speaks of her, which is not a lot, but when he does, it is the most endearing thing.”
“Why has he not said something?” the Duke asked.
“Father, you know what Erasmus is like. He is far too diplomatic and proud to say anything, and he may possibly think that she would find Thomas more attractive than him.”
“Does she?”
“I am not certain,” she answered and narrowed her eyes at him. “It feels as though I am being interrogated. Why is that
?”
“I simply wish to be made aware of what is happening in my children’s lives,” the Duke answered nonchalantly. “Is that not allowed?”
“Certainly. I have said enough, I think. If you wish to know more you must rather ask them,” Lady Harriet said and stood from the chair.
“Perhaps I shall do just that.”
“Will that be all, Father?” she asked.
“Indeed. Thank you for speaking with me.”
“You are very welcome, Father,” she said with a smile and swiftly left the office.
Lady Caroline slowly walked through the library as she was still left undecided as to what she would care to read. Her mind was not cooperating, still recalling in her mind the image of Lord Dundee kissing the amber-haired woman outside. She had constantly scolded herself for being such a fool. She had believed that Lord Dundee cared for her, but she was merely another one of the many women he made believe was special to him. His words now meant nothing to her, but even though she should have anticipated that something such as this would happen, she was still left empty and hurt. She had attempted to keep her distance from him as much as was possible without drawing any unnecessary attention to herself, and it seemed to have worked.
Lady Harriet was none the wiser, and Lady Caroline felt rather terrible for not sharing it with her dearest friend. Tears filled her eyes as she could only imagine what Lady Harriet would have to say of her foolish behaviour. It saddened her to even think of what effect it might have on their friendship.
As Lady Caroline walked through the long aisles, she saw movement from the corner of her eye and wiped the tears from under her eyes before she glanced in that direction. She certainly did not wish to be seen crying over a man who was not worthy of the ground he stepped on, or the women for that matter.
She gasped ever so slightly, seeing him standing at the other end of the aisle. For a moment she froze, but then soon after realised that it was Lord Erasmus standing with his back to her, placing a book back on the shelf. She breathed a sigh of relief, as she was not certain how she would react if Lord Dundee had to be in the library, alone, with her.
She frowned as she wondered whether Lord Dundee even knew where the library was.
