by Lucy Adams
What she had overheard had only confirmed what she had suspected. There was a suggestion made that Margaret would take Lord Monteforte to the library – which would mean walking through the hallways alone – and Louisa, when pressed, had made a very thin excuse as to why she could not possibly do so. Given that she feared her uncle might force her to wed Lord Monteforte, Olivia ought to have said nothing and therefore remained utterly silent so that her cousin could press her advantage with him, but her conscience could not permit her to do so. As much as she disliked Lord Monteforte, and as much as she thought him to be rude and thoughtless, she did not want him to be forced into a marriage that she was sure would bring a good deal of heartache to both himself and, in the end, to Margaret. Therefore, the words that had left Olivia’s lips had surprised her almost as much as it had Lord Monteforte and her cousins, who had all turned to look at her with astonishment, having been entirely unaware of her presence.
Olivia had not backed down. She had stated that she would walk with Lord Monteforte and Margaret and had done precisely that.
What had intrigued her, however, was not only that Lady Margaret had led Lord Monteforte into the library, but that there were other gentlemen sitting there waiting for him – including her uncle. She had only caught a glimpse of each of them and had not recognized them all either, but she did wonder why they had all come to sit in Lord Lincolnshire’s library when the gentleman had organized a soiree. She had not even known her uncle had been in attendance, for he had left the house in his own carriage whilst she, her cousins, and her aunt had all gone to Lord Lincolnshire’s townhouse in their own carriage. And then, when it had come time to return, she had mentioned to her aunt that Lord Dayton was not yet with them and her aunt had merely shrugged, stating that her uncle would do as he pleased and return home whenever he chose.
It was all a little mysterious.
Of course, it could very well be that her uncle had business to attend to, although Olivia was suspicious that, when it came to Lord Monteforte, Lord Dayton had very specific intentions – business or otherwise. There was no reason for her to know what precisely her uncle and Lord Monteforte had been discussing last evening, but there was something about it that caught her interest.
“You have been summoned to the drawing room, Lady Olivia.”
Olivia looked up, having been sitting in a small chair by the quietly crackling fire. It was a rather cold summer’s day and, as such, she had requested a fire to warm her room. She was loathe to leave it, loathe to step away and retreat from her room, but the look on Betty’s face told her she could not refuse.
“Who wants to speak to me?” she asked, as Betty shot her a warning look, practically forcing her to her feet. “My uncle?”
“Your uncle and your aunt,” Betty answered, quietly. “And they have their daughters with them.”
Butterflies began to flutter furiously in her belly as she saw Betty frown. “My cousins are there also?”
“They are all waiting for you,” Betty said, warningly. “I, of course, have no thought as to what they might say, but I would think it will be serious.”
“You are probably correct,” Olivia murmured, pressing one hand lightly against her stomach. “I cannot imagine what it is they wish to say to me, but I cannot help but feel some anxiety.” Her mind began to fill with all manner of ideas, wondering if they were to speak of last evening, of Lord Monteforte, of another gentleman that she might expect to be considered as her suitor. Mayhap she was to be sent back home early over some sort of misdemeanor that she was entirely unaware of.
“Do not fret so,” Betty said, moving quickly to usher Olivia from the room. “But do not keep them waiting either. Hurry, Lady Olivia, before they find something else to complain about!”
By the time Olivia set foot in the drawing room, her stomach was twisting with anxiety and her heart thundering much too quickly for her liking. She tried as best she could to put an expression of calmness on her face as she saw her uncle, aunt, and cousins all turn to look at her at once, forcing herself not to show any sign of tension.
“Olivia,” Lord Dayton murmured, as she sat down in the chair indicated by her aunt. “Thank you for coming so quickly.”
Olivia’s brow flickered with a frown. She could not tell from her uncle’s tone whether he was displeased with her or not. Daring a glance at her two cousins, she saw that Margaret was white faced whilst Louisa’s eyes appeared to be red-rimmed from crying.
Her heart sank.
“Something has come to light that I would like to speak to you about, Olivia,” Lord Dayton said, never lifting his firm gaze from her face. “I would like you to be entirely honest with me, if you will.”
“Of course, Uncle,” Olivia promised, fastening her fingers together in her lap and feeling almost too afraid to blink such was the intensity of his gaze. “I will speak truthfully.”
“Good.” Lord Dayton cleared his throat, threw a quick look at both his daughters, and then returned his gaze to Olivia. “Last evening, I saw you with Margaret and Lord Monteforte,” he said, sending Olivia into a spiral of worry. “Is that not so?”
“It is,” Olivia answered quickly, having no need to lie since everything Lord Dayton had said was true. “I accompanied–”
Lord Dayton held up one hand. “If you please, Olivia.” Waiting a moment to see if she had remained silent, he then spoke again. “To your knowledge, was Margaret intending to walk to the library with Lord Monteforte alone?”
Olivia’s eyes flared for a moment. Her mouth went dry, and she turned to look at Lady Margaret who was steadfastly staring across the room at the wall. She did not want to speak ill of her cousin, even though Margaret did not treat her particularly well, and yet the truth had to be spoken.
“My lord, I believe Margaret wanted to accompany Lord Monteforte to the library, since he had very little idea as to where he was going, and unfortunately, Louisa was quite unable to attend with her. Therefore,” she continued, before Lord Dayton could ask her to remain silent, “I offered to accompany her.”
Lord Dayton’s eyes flicked to his wife, who lifted one shoulder and then turned her head away, clearly a little put out.
“Is that so, Margaret?” he asked softly, the very room seeming to fill with tension. “Is that what you intended?”
Olivia did not dare glance over at her cousin, knowing that this was not the entirety of the truth, for she was quite sure that Margaret and Louisa had, together, managed to come up with an excuse so that Margaret and Lord Monteforte could walk alone together to the library. Quite how Lord Dayton had found out that Margaret had indeed had such an intention, Olivia could not say.
“It is my fault, father,” Louisa interrupted, her voice very soft and a little tremulous. “I should not have put such an interest in speaking about my new gown to Lady Lincolnshire.” Her eyes darted towards her mother for a moment, and Olivia instantly caught her breath.
There was more to this situation than Olivia had first realized. If she guessed correctly, then the specific circumstances had been arranged by both Lady Dayton and Margaret, who would have brought Louisa into their plans. Perhaps it had been simply so that Margaret and Lord Monteforte could have a few minutes alone together – which, whilst risky, could be entirely innocuous, or it could have had much more serious intentions.
“I do not know what to think,” Lord Dayton said, sighing rather heavily and shaking his head. “But Olivia, I must ask you to tell me, here and now, whether or not you have any particular interest in Lord Monteforte.” Flinging up his hand at both his wife’s and eldest daughter’s loud exclamations, he held it palm upwards until they had both lapsed into silence. “The reason I ask you such a personal question, Olivia, is because I believe Margaret had an interest in him and believes, I think, that he might have a particular regard for you.”
At this, Olivia let out such a snort of ridicule that she found herself quite embarrassed. Turning her head away, she closed her eyes tightly fo
r a moment and shook her head, aware of the silence that now flooded the room.
“Forgive me, Uncle,” she stammered, more than a little embarrassed of the sound that had left her mouth. “It is only that such an idea is quite ridiculous. I have no regard for Lord Monteforte, and he has no interest in me, I am quite sure.” She turned to Margaret, who had gone a deep shade of red. “You need not have any concern on my regard, Margaret. I care nothing for the gentleman and, even if he were to express interest in me, I could not even abide the idea.” She emphasized this last part, praying that her uncle and aunt would hear her speak with such vehemence and understand that she was not about to entertain any idea of courtship and the like from Lord Monteforte. “Indeed, Margaret, you may accept my words as truth in this.”
Margaret said nothing, her eyes shuttered as she turned her head away, looking back at Lord Dayton with a resigned expression.
“I am glad to hear it,” Lord Dayton said firmly, his authority filling the space between himself and Olivia. “Then there is to be no more attempts on your part, Margaret, deliberate or otherwise, to be alone with Lord Monteforte in the hope of persuading him to court you. You should be grateful to Olivia that she stepped in when she did, otherwise there might be a scandal on our hands. Lord Monteforte might very well prove to be a valuable acquaintance, and I will not have him pushed away from this family by the antics of my daughters!”
“Yes, father,” Margaret murmured, whilst Louisa pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at her eyes.
“He is to call this afternoon,” Lord Dayton continued, rendering both his daughters speechless as their heads shot up. “I have a little business to conduct with him and, thereafter, I am sure he will wish to greet you both.” This was directed towards Louisa and Margaret, with Olivia being entirely ignored, but Olivia told herself, quite firmly, that she did not mind in the least not being included. “Make sure that you are ready and prepared.”
“Yes, father,” both daughters said in unison as they stood to leave, Louisa’s tears swiftly forgotten. They excused themselves just as Olivia rose to her feet, making to follow after her cousins. Curtsying towards her uncle and aunt, she began to walk towards the door, only to be stopped by her aunt’s sharp voice.
“Olivia.”
Olivia turned, looking at her aunt. “Yes?” she queried, wondering why her aunt looked suddenly so foreboding. “Is something wrong?”
Lady Dayton narrowed her eyes. “I would hate to think that the reason you accompanied your cousin was simply to seek out what your uncle was doing,” she said sharply, as Olivia’s eyes widened in surprise. “That is not something that I expect from you.”
A rush of color flooded Olivia’s cheeks as she recalled how she had eavesdropped at her uncle’s door only a few days beforehand. “No, Aunt, I did not,” she assured her, glad that she could speak the truth without hesitating. “Truly, I had no such intention.”
Lady Dayton held her judgement for a moment longer, watching Olivia with a suspicious gaze, only for her to turn her head away and sigh, relenting completely.
“You are quite certain you have told me the truth in everything, Olivia?” Lord Dayton remarked, making Olivia shiver with the dark expression on his face. “You have not kept anything from either myself or your aunt?”
“No, Uncle,” Olivia said, putting as much fervency into her voice as she could. “I have told you the truth, truly.”
Lord Dayton exchanged a glance with his wife, only for Lady Dayton to give him a tiny, almost indiscernible nod. “Very well,” she sighed, making Olivia let out a long breath of relief. “You may go.”
Olivia nodded and turned away at once, feeling the urge to run from the room growing steadily. There was still such anger in her aunt’s expression, such doubt in her eyes that Olivia felt a deep sense of sadness grip her heart. What was it Olivia had done to garner such suspicion? She had been trying to help her cousin, albeit perhaps with less than pure motives, but there had never been any intention for her to spy on her uncle’s meeting!
Although, said a small voice within her, why did my aunt even think to make such a suggestion? What is it about my uncle’s meeting that desires such secrecy? She recalled just how quickly her cousin had been sent away once she had delivered Lord Monteforte to the library, recalling the strict instruction to shut the door tight, and felt herself begin to think on the matter again. Her curiosity was growing still, despite the knowledge that she ought not to be doing anything of the sort. Her aunt was clearly a little afraid or angry that she had been attempting to discover her uncle’s business, and that only intrigued her all the more.
“Perhaps I should get to know Lord Monteforte a little better,” she murmured to herself, as she made her way slowly back to her bedchamber. “Perhaps then I might be able to discover what my uncle is involved in.” It was none of her business, of course, but her enquiring and curious mind would not let the matter alone. She could be cordial and polite to Lord Monteforte, she decided, even though her first impression of him would never change. Perhaps she would discover something of interest, something that might pique her curiosity all the more. Or mayhap she would come upon the most dull of all scenarios, where the gentlemen simply drank port and discussed matters of politics and the like. Whatever it was, however, Olivia was now determined to find out what it was Lady Dayton had been so eager to hide from her.
Chapter Six
“Good evening, Lady Olivia.”
Phillip smiled to himself as Lady Olivia turned around quickly, her expression rather startled. He had spoken low and close to her ear, for the simple reason of wanting to see her reaction. He was not disappointed. Her grey eyes flickered with sparks of silver as she looked up at him, her cheeks touched with a little pink. Her smile did not appear, however, but rather more of a contemplative look that had him feeling a little abashed.
“Good evening, Lord Monteforte,” she said quietly, clearly not as disconcerted as he might have first thought. “Are you enjoying the theatre this evening?”
A small shrug lifted his shoulders. “It is not entirely dull,” he said, being careful not to reveal to her that he had not been paying any sort of attention to the play but had instead been looking surreptitiously about him to see who else from the beau monde were in attendance. A part of him had hoped that Lady Olivia would be present, but he had not been able to see her in the gloom of the theatre. Now, however, he felt his heart leap just a little at the sight of her.
“And you?” he asked, glancing about her and seeing Lady Dayton and her daughters standing nearby, talking with another lady and her daughter. “Are you enjoying the theatre thus far?”
She allowed herself a small smile, which Phillip took to be an encouraging sign. “It is not to my particular taste,” she said, most likely referring to the tragedy that was being performed that evening. “But I appreciate the acting at the very least.”
This he could agree with, nodding whilst wondering just how he was to break down this strange wall between them. A wall that was invisible to the naked eye but present nonetheless.
Perhaps a direct approach was what was required.
“Lady Olivia,” he said, taking a small step forward and seeing how her eyes darted to his face, rounding just a little in surprise. “I must speak honestly with you for a moment, if you will permit me.”
She seemed not to know how to respond, for some moments went by without her saying a single word, her expression almost entirely blank as she blinked up at him.
“What do you wish to say, Lord Monteforte?” she asked eventually, speaking each word with great slowness so as if to give him time to work out what precisely he wanted to extend to her.
“I–I want to apologize profusely for our first meeting,” he said, aware of the heat that climbed up his spine and into his face as he spoke. “I know that I did so at the time, but I do not feel as though it were at all adequate.” He sighed, closed his eyes, and dropped his head. “I was rude, callous, a
nd entirely improper,” he said honestly. “You had every right to be furious with me, Lady Olivia, but I will confess that, in that moment, I did not recognize myself.”
Lady Olivia was frowning now, the lines on her forehead deepening as she watched him speak. There was no sign in her face as to whether or not she was to believe him, nor if she would accept his apology, but regardless, Phillip continued on, determined to say all that was required.
“I am never usually cruel, nor am I particularly angry,” he said, lifting his head to look at her. “The night you remarked on my rather stalwart presence at the side of the ballroom, I was lost in thought. My mind was troubled, Lady Olivia, which, whilst not an excuse, is a reason for my behavior. I should not have reacted so, but I did and I was wrong.” Holding her gaze, he prayed that she could see his sincerity. “I humbly beg your forgiveness.”
The expression on Lady Olivia’s face did not change. The frown remained, the flattening of her lips still present. Her grey eyes searched his, reminding him of thunderclouds as they poured into each other, almost malevolent in their darkness.
“You were very rude indeed,” Lady Olivia commented, a little wryly. “You spoke very poorly and made me very cross.”
Nodding, Phillip spread his hands. “I am aware of that, Lady Olivia,” he answered quietly.
“And yet you have made a very pretty apology,” Lady Olivia interrupted, before he could say more. “You say that your mind was troubled, Lord Monteforte. Is that true?”
Nodding, he looked at her. “It is,” he answered, truthfully. “My thoughts were heavily occupied.”
“On what matter?” she asked, rather too boldly. “You were watching my uncle, I think, and now I must wonder if it has something to do with him.”
Phillip did not know what to say in response to this, for his mouth opened but no words came out. Lady Olivia was very observant indeed to have seen such a thing, for he had been watching Lord Dayton but, he had thought, with very great care so that he would not make himself too obvious.
