by Ann Barker
‘When heard you this?’ he asked in rather peremptory tones.
‘My husband is a distant connection of her father, Sir Wilfred Hope,’ she replied. ‘Come to think of it, I’m sure that the wedding should have taken place by now. Who do you think cried off?’ Ilam merely grunted in response. ‘I wonder how happy she will be to see him hanging upon Miss Granby’s arm. Do you think there will be a fight? I should so love to see the fur fly.’
Pulling himself together, Ilam said ‘I am sure both ladies have too great a sense of decorum, ma’am. By the way, when do you expect to see Sir Philip return?’
Deciding to relent, for after all he was a very striking young man, as well as being from one of the most significant families in the district, Lady Gilchrist allowed him to change the subject. Were the viscount questioned later, however, he would have been quite unable to have given any information with regard to the whereabouts of the dashing lady’s husband. Instead, he was thinking about the relationship between Eustacia and the young man who had entered the room with Evangeline Granby.
His aunt had told him that Eustacia had been jilted by a clergyman, but then his aunt had told him a lot of other tarradiddles as well. Could she have been jilted by the handsome young man, whose practised smile and elegant movements reminded him ever so slightly of his father? It had seemed to him, foolishly perhaps, that she had been showing a fondness for him. Certainly his own feelings for her had been growing stronger by the day. Had he only been the means for her to convince herself that she was still desirable after the desertion of the man she really loved, and who might even now be returning to her?
Lady Gilchrist halted in the middle of a lively account of Sir Philip’s travels, for once again Ilam was glaring in the direction of Miss Hope. ‘Then without more ado, I garrotted the first highwayman, slit the second from his neck to his navel, and allowed the third to have his way with me in the bushes,’ she said in matter-of-fact tones.
Ilam’s head swivelled back in her direction, a startled look on his face. Lady Gilchrist let out a peal of laughter. ‘I wondered what it would take to get you to remember with whom you were dancing,’ she said, the laughter still in her eyes but a hint of challenge in her voice.
‘I beg your pardon,’ he replied. Then he started to grin. ‘How intrepid of you, Lady Gilchrist,’ he remarked. ‘What did you do with him then?’
‘What do you think I should have done with him?’ she asked provocatively.
‘I suppose that would depend on the prickliness or otherwise of the bushes,’ he answered her. They both laughed.
It was very unfortunate that when Sir Brian led Eustacia from the floor, it was in the direction of the Granby party. Evangeline looked flushed and triumphant, and Eustacia could not be in any doubt that Morrison’s was the arrival that she had been awaiting with such excitement. It had never occurred to Eustacia that the gentleman in question might be Morrison. After all, there was no reason why it should.
Given the smallness of the gathering, it was almost inevitable that Eustacia and Morrison should meet. In this encounter Eustacia had the advantage, for she had seen him first. When he looked around the room and caught sight of her, his face took on a shocked expression and lost a little colour, whereas she was able to appear calm and composed. This was as well, for Evangeline was looking straight at her, rather than at Morrison.
‘I told you that he would be here,’ said Evangeline with more than a hint of smugness. ‘Eustacia, may I present Mr Morrison to you? Mr Morrison, this is my newest and best friend, Miss Hope.’
‘Mr Morrison and I are already acquainted,’ replied Eustacia calmly, making her curtsy, before introducing Morrison to Sir Brian, who was still hovering at her elbow.
‘You didn’t say so,’ said Evangeline in surprised tones.
‘You didn’t mention his name,’ replied Eustacia. ‘How are your parents, Mr Morrison? Have you seen them recently?’
‘No not really,’ answered Morrison, still looking very uncomfortable.
At that moment, the dance came to an end, and Evangeline said gaily, ‘Come, Mr Morrison, you promised me the first dance.’
‘Of course,’ replied Morrison with a smile. ‘Perhaps Miss Hope will honour me later?’
‘Perhaps,’ replied Eustacia, adding with a hint of waspishness. ‘I may already be engaged.’
She turned away, feeling very shaken despite her calm demeanour. Somehow, seeing Morrison again had brought back all the unpleasant feelings that she had experienced on her wedding day. After exchanging a few words with Mr and Mrs Granby, Sir Brian had left the group in order to join some other gentlemen, and Evangeline’s parents followed him. Eustacia looked around for someone to speak to and was in time to see Ilam and Lady Gilchrist standing at the edge of the dance floor, laughing into one another’s eyes. Suddenly, she felt very much alone. When Gabriel looked around, he was in time to see her retreating figure heading for the ladies’ retiring room.
By great good fortune, the room was empty when Eustacia arrived, and she was able to sit down and think about what had just happened. How on earth had such a mischance occurred? Of all the places that Morrison might have chosen to make an appearance, why did it have to be here? What was more, how had he and Evangeline met? It was barely a month since she had left Woodfield Park and that had only been a matter of days after she had been jilted. She could only think that he must have gone straight to London, possibly hoping to purchase his commission. No doubt he had met Evangeline at some social occasion then. He had obviously begun a new romance very quickly.
She realized that had this happened a comparatively short time ago, she would have been distressed about the matter. Now, her chief feeling was one of anger at Morrison, that he should have put her into such an impossible position.
Conventional form dictated that an engagement, once entered into, was almost as binding as a marriage. A man’s honour demanded that he should see it through, no matter what his feelings might be. Eustacia had never been entirely convinced of the rightness of that view. She could think of nothing worse than being married to a man who would much rather be somewhere else. In her opinion, the most honourable course would be to tell the other person involved that one’s feelings had changed. Only an utter poltroon would leave a woman standing at the altar as Morrison had done.
How would Gabriel have behaved in similar circumstances, she wondered? She was as sure as she could be that he would not have followed Morrison’s example. His reaction to his discovery of his aunt’s scheming gave added support to that view. Probably that aspect of his nature would mean that he would rather confront the lady concerned than live a lie. One thing was certain. Had it been Gabriel who had failed to marry her and then turned up today she would not be sitting here dry-eyed. The feelings that she now had for him far exceeded the mild inclination that she had felt for Morrison. In fact, she asked herself sternly, why was she wasting her time thinking about Morrison at all when Gabriel was probably out there whispering improper suggestions into Lady Gilchrist’s ear?
She was on the point of leaving the room when she paused, struck by a sudden thought. How serious was Morrison in his intentions towards Evangeline? Was this now true love, or was there any chance that he might prove to be a jilt yet again? Miss Granby ought at least to be warned of the possibility. After all she had proved to be an agreeable friend, even if she was rather spoiled.
What should she do? If Lady Agatha had been anything like a responsible older relative ought to be, then she could have asked her advice, but Lady Agatha, vicar’s widow though she was, seemed to lack any proper moral sense. Ilam’s advice would be good, she was sure. When she thought about asking him, however, she shrank from describing exactly how Morrison had humiliated her. It made her sound so undesirable, and she knew that she did not want to appear to him in that kind of pitiful light.
Suddenly she became conscious that she had been in the room for rather a long time, whilst other ladies had come in and gone ou
t again, some of them eyeing her rather curiously. She wondered how close it was to the supper dance, which she had promised to Gabriel. Coming out of the ladies’ room, she walked straight into Morrison Morrison, who seemed to have been hovering in wait for her.
‘There you are at last,’ he said peevishly. ‘I’ve had the devil of a job making sure that I didn’t miss you. What on earth have you been doing in there all this time?’
‘That is a most improper question for you to ask,’ Eustacia replied indignantly, ‘and even if it were not, you have long since forfeited any right to ask me any questions with regard to my whereabouts.’
‘All right, all right, there’s no need to take on so,’ he grumbled, taking her by the arm and pulling her onto the landing so that they could sit on a seat set into a recess in the wall.
‘That’s an interesting point of view,’ she replied, shaking off his hand but going with him none the less. ‘I would have thought that I had ample reason for “taking on” as you put it. What do you want?’
‘I only want to talk to you,’ he replied, brushing the tails of his coat back before seating himself next to her. She could well understand why Evangeline was so enchanted with him. He was a very handsome young man, she thought dispassionately. He was well turned out in a plum coat and tight-fitting knee breeches, although it seemed to her now that he was a little too slim for her taste. Since he was not in uniform, he had evidently not yet purchased his colours.
She would have liked to say that she would prefer not to exchange another word with him ever again, but that would not have been true. After all, she wanted to find out about his intentions towards Evangeline, and she would rather like to know how long she would be obliged to endure his presence in the neighbourhood. ‘Well I’m here,’ she said. ‘What do you want to say? I can’t spare very much time. I’m promised for the supper dance, which can’t be long now.’
‘I just want to make sure you don’t spoil things for me with Evangeline,’ he said. ‘I think she likes me and I don’t want you to put her off.’
‘By telling her how you left me at the altar?’ Eustacia asked sweetly.
‘Oh come now,’ he replied in tones of false heartiness. ‘It wasn’t as bad as that.’
‘I beg pardon, but it was exactly as bad as that,’ answered Eustacia. ‘I have the dust from the church floor on the hem of my wedding gown to prove it.’
He turned pale. ‘Oh Lord,’ he exclaimed. ‘I never thought of that. You mean the lad came to the church? He was supposed to go straight to your house, the silly clunch. You can scarcely blame me for that.’
She stared at him aghast, unable to speak for several moments out of sheer astonishment at his insensitivity. ‘It did not occur to you, then, that you might have averted this whole catastrophe if you had simply sought me out and told me plainly the change in your sentiments?’
He coloured and looked down at his hands, clasped between his knees. ‘I dared not,’ he said. ‘There’d have been such a rumpus.’
‘There was a rumpus; one which you, by great good fortune, were able to avoid.’
‘All right all right, you’ve had your say,’ he said wearily. ‘Can’t we just leave the matter be and get back to what you’re going to say to Evangeline?’
‘Not yet, I’m afraid,’ replied Eustacia. ‘There is just one thing that I am waiting to hear from your lips. It’s something that is long overdue.’
He looked at her with a puzzled expression on his face, before saying eventually, ‘You’re expecting me to apologize,’ as if the idea had only just occurred to him.
‘Personally, I think that that is the least that the lady might expect under the circumstances,’ said Ilam as he strolled into view. ‘When you jilt the lady you’re engaged to, I would have thought that it was obligatory.’ Evangeline’s hand rested on his arm. Her face was looking rather set.
Morrison sprang to his feet. ‘Have you been eavesdropping?’ he asked in scornful tones.
‘Certainly not,’ Ilam replied haughtily. ‘This is a public area, open to all. Miss Granby enlisted my help in finding you as you are her partner for the supper dance. I was looking for Eustacia for a similar reason.’
‘Who gave you permission to call her by her given name?’ Morrison demanded belligerently.
‘I did, if it is any business of yours,’ Eustacia replied, getting to her feet.
Morrison opened his mouth to speak again, but before he could do so, he was silenced by a ringing slap dealt him by Evangeline. ‘How could you?’ she demanded furiously. ‘How could you jilt my dear Eustacia? To think that I put other gentlemen off for you! Poltroon! Scoundrel!’
‘Oh I say, Miss Granby,’ cried Morrison, his hand going to his cheek.
‘And don’t think that you will be welcome in our house after Mama and Papa hear how you have behaved,’ she added.
‘If you take my advice, Morrison, you’ll leave of your own volition,’ Ilam advised him. ‘If Miss Granby doesn’t throw you out, I certainly will.’
Morrison took due note of Ilam’s powerful frame. The viscount topped him by several inches and was broader than he. After one fulminating glance around the group, he made a bow which was commendably dignified under the circumstances. ‘I shall go and make my farewells,’ he said. ‘I’ll instruct my servants to remove to an inn in the next village.’
‘That will be far enough – for tonight,’ Ilam replied, with an ominous smile that did not reach his eyes.
‘Evangeline, would you like to sit here with me for a while?’ Eustacia asked the other girl after Morrison had left them.
Now that the drama was all over, Evangeline looked much younger and rather forlorn. ‘No thank you,’ she answered, with more dignity than Eustacia would have expected from the spoiled young woman that she knew her to be. ‘I think I will go to the ladies’ room for a while to compose myself, until I am sure he has gone.’
‘Would you like to remain here?’ Gabriel asked Eustacia after Evangeline had left them. ‘I’m sure that you have no more desire than Miss Granby to see that fellow again. Did it distress you very much to see him?’
Eustacia sat down again. ‘No it didn’t distress me, precisely,’ she told him. ‘I was shocked to see him, of course.’ For a time they sat in silence.
Eventually Gabriel exclaimed, rather unwisely, as if the comment had been torn from his lips, ‘I can’t imagine what possessed you to go apart with him. Had you taken leave of your senses?’
Eustacia took a deep breath, reminding herself the while that this was the man who had just sent Morrison packing. ‘Lord Ilam, I am grateful for your intervention, but—’
‘Gabriel,’ he corrected.
‘Gabriel, then, I am grateful for what you did, but who I do or do not choose to go apart with is surely no concern of yours,’ Eustacia replied with dignity.
‘It most certainly is,’ he replied. ‘My aunt is your godmother. That makes me in some sense your older cousin.’
‘Oh pooh,’ Eustacia replied. ‘If you had been as close as that, you’d have been at the wedding.’
‘I gather you really were jilted,’ Gabriel observed. ‘I thought it must have been something that my aunt made up.’
‘No, it wasn’t made up; well, the bit about my bridegroom being a clergyman was.’
Looking down, Eustacia saw Ilam’s fist clench on his powerful thigh. ‘If I had been there, I would have gone after him and knocked his teeth down his throat,’ he said.
‘You could have done it and welcome,’ she replied frankly. ‘The difficulty would have been that nobody knew where he had gone.’ She paused. ‘To be honest with you, I would have released him, had he asked. I cannot think of anything worse than being married to a man who had changed his mind.’
‘The blackguard really allowed you to go to the church and receive the news there?’
‘He actually allowed me to get right to the altar,’ Eustacia admitted.
‘Then blackguard is too good a word for h
im,’ said Ilam in disgusted tones.
‘I suppose it had its funny side when you come to think about it,’ she reflected. She began an account of the day, leaving nothing out, from the note brought by the small boy to her mother fainting followed by her own escape out of the vestry door.
‘Fancy sending a small boy to do his dirty work,’ Gabriel exclaimed.
‘Yes, he did,’ Eustacia assured him. ‘It was the absurdest thing. This child came clattering down the aisle in a pair of working clogs and stood there holding out a piece of paper and asking which one of us was the bride.’
The laughter which she had felt welling up inside her on the day and to which she had never given voice, suddenly came back as she was finishing her account. Laughter is very infectious, and in the end, they were both overcome by quite uncontrollable mirth.
When at last they began to regain control of themselves, they found that they were looking into each other’s eyes. Without unlocking his gaze from hers, he edged closer, took hold of her hand and raised it to his lips. Then moving closer still, he pulled her into his arms, and lowered his lips to meet hers.
Whilst she had been engaged, Morrison had kissed her on more than one occasion. She had found it pleasant, but no more preferable to any other agreeable occupation such as drinking tea or reading a good book. By way of contrast, Ilam’s kiss was a revelation. She had kissed him once before, but that had been half in anger, to prove a point. Now, held firmly in his embrace with his mouth covering hers, his tongue gently but insistently probing between her lips in order to explore inside, she could not imagine anything that she would rather be doing. She began to do a little experimenting of her own, caressing the hair which grew at the nape of his neck just beneath his queue. She loved the feel of it, and the appreciative growl that he made deep in his throat indicated that he enjoyed the sensation of having her hands caress him in that way.
It was the sound of a gasp that caused them to spring apart. They looked up and saw Anna, a stricken expression on her face, her hands to her mouth. Moments later, she whirled round and turned to go down the stairs.
