Kitty clutched her hands in her lap. Apparently her body had not received the information that she was not to be nervous. “I'm sorry, but I thought Giddenhall was your mother's. Are you not glad that your son is bringing the estate into order? I had understood it was much in need of repair.”
Lady Midlington knocked the teaspoons askew and sat back in her chair. “Yes, and it has been brought to order with your settlement. I know that. Truth be told, I have no particular affection for the place. I did not grow up there. I grew up on my father's estate, and my mother retired there when my father died, but by then I was married.” Lady Midlington got to her feet. “I imagine you are very tired. Come, I will show you to your room.”
It was not a suggestion. Kitty followed her to the door, feeling like an unwanted puppy. She did not understand how those glimpses of humor and affection she sometimes saw in Phineas came to be with two parents who were so cold.
Lady Midlington led the way up the staircase. The townhouse had three floors and was much larger than the one Kitty's brother had rented on Laura Place. On the second floor, Lady Midlington gestured toward a room on the back of the corridor.
“That is Phineas's room. I did not arrange for you to stay there since it is too small for two people, and I know he is accustomed to that room and to his privacy. He will not wish to leave it. Besides, the largest guest room is in need of refurbishing. I have put you in a room upstairs.”
“Whatever arrangements you’ve made will suit me, my lady.” Kitty did not attempt to make further conversation as she followed her mother-in-law up another set of the stairs. Lady Midlington opened the door to a room that was of a decent size and tastefully decorated. A rush of relief went through Kitty that she wasn't being sent to stay in the servants’ quarters. She had begun to fear that was where she would end up.
“I hope you will be comfortable here.” Lady Midlington kept her hand on the doorknob of Kitty’s room. Her expression was tight, and it sounded as if the polite words were forced out of her.
Kitty would not give Lady Midlington the satisfaction of thinking she regretted being placed so far from her husband. She faced her mother-in-law in the doorway. “I also like my privacy. This room is perfect.”
19
Phineas was shown directly into Carter’s office, who had been waiting for him. “My lord, it is good to see you. I hope married life suits you well.”
Phineas noticed the careworn lines around Carter's eyes that were not there before and asked, “How are your parents?”
An expression of pain flitted across Carter’s face. “I am afraid my father has left this world. My mother is doing as well as can be expected. I thank you for your patience and understanding that has allowed me to attend to my family during this difficult time.”
“I am sorry to hear about your father. And I could do no less—you have been such a help to me. If there's anything else I can do?” Phineas let his voice trail away into a question.
Carter shook his head. “No, in life, these things must come. Let us instead talk about your affairs. How are you finding the servants I hired for you?”
Phineas settled into his seat. “Well, I did not wish to bother you with such trivial matters when you had greater ones at hand, but I cannot claim to have been fortunate in my servants. The steward you had hired a year ago did not do what was required for the tenants’ houses—which I discovered upon arriving after the wedding. I was obliged to come to Bath and use my father's man of business to find a new steward. And Craddock—you know the overqualified groom you had hired, who applied for the position, as if brought by fate?” Carter nodded, and Phineas went on. “He appears to have had designs on my wife.”
Carter shot his head up, and he lay both hands on the desk. “What?”
“I dismissed Craddock. I am also not sure about the housekeeper, Mrs. Morley, although she was not your hire. I have given her a warning. I believe she will now treat my wife with the respect due.”
Carter's face was ashen at the number of servants who failed to suit their posts. “I have let you down, my lord. I will understand if you wish to have your affairs handled elsewhere.”
Phineas chuckled softly. “No, nothing so drastic as that. After all, in one area you have done very well.” Carter met Phineas’s gaze with a look of inquiry. “Yes, you have chosen my wife well. I am most pleased with her.”
Carter leaned back in his chair and allowed his shoulders to relax. “That is a relief. When you wouldn't even look at a miniature of her, I could not help but fear you might not find her to your liking.”
Phineas shot Carter a wry look. “You knew very well that Lady Hayworth is a remarkably handsome woman, and she has a sweet temper. All in all you did your research, and I am most obliged. There is one more post to fulfill, however. I came to see you about the valet.”
“I have found one, my lord. I was only waiting for you to arrive in Bath to send him to your father's house. I hope that he should meet with your approval.”
“Very good. It puts an end to the servants borrowed from my father. This will give me a clean break from the management my father has exerted over my life. You have done well.” With a mischievous smile, Phineas added, “You need have no fear for your position.”
“You relieve my mind, my lord.” Carter grinned.
They spent the next few hours going over the most pressing details of Phineas’s affairs, and at the end of it, Carter stacked the papers on his desk and Phineas stood. “Are you married, Carter?” It had never occurred to Phineas to ask, although Carter knew nearly everything there was to know about him. He suspected Carter did very well for himself. Phineas knew he lived in fashionable quarters and had studied at Oxford. He supposed it was the personal talk of Carter’s parents and Phineas’s own marriage that moved them a degree forward in intimacy.
Carter looked up in surprise, and although he was older by a year or two than Phineas, he gave something close to a blush. “No, my lord. Was there a reason…?”
“Oh, no.” Heavens no. What had ever possessed him to start asking personal questions of his man of business? “I had just wondered.”
Carter shrugged and fingered the leather envelope he was holding in his hand. “My father left me something in the way of investments, and I suppose I should begin thinking of it now.”
“May I suggest something?” Carter looked up with interest and nodded, and a smile hovered on Phineas’s face. “Have your man of business find you a wife.”
Carter laughed, as Phineas made his way to the door. “You promised to come to Giddenhall again, and it might be useful to come if you have time before Christmas. I want you to meet the new steward, since you will need to communicate with him on matters.”
“I have nothing pressing to attend to before Christmas,” Carter answered.
They bid farewell, and Phineas headed back to his parents’ house. Once inside, he peered into the drawing room where his mother sat, lost in thought.
“Mother?” He took two steps into the room, wondering how Kitty had fared with his parents while he was gone. It was foolish to suppose she would still be sitting with his mother having a cozy chat. “Where is Kitty?”
His mother broke out of her reverie to look at him. “Did all go well with Carter? Has he taken up Giddenhall affairs once again?”
“He has. Where is Kitty now?” Phineas sat across from his mother.
“Katherine is in her room. She said she needed to rest before dinner.” Her room. So they would not be sharing a bedroom. “She is a rather timid thing for a viscountess. I hope she will be suited to her role after her training.”
“She is not so very timid.” As far as Phineas was concerned, she had no problem telling him exactly what she thought. “What room is she in? I thought you would put us in the west-facing room that is large enough for two.” He fiddled with his shirt sleeves to avoid looking at his mother. The truth was, it would have been a sweet torture to be in the same room as his wife if she refused
to release him from his oath, but he was certain it would have brought them over the final hurdle to being married in the proper sense.
“She did not seem to wish for that. I put her in the second largest room after yours.”
The one on an entirely different floor. A sharp pang of disappointment hit Phineas in the chest. He molded his features into austerity rather than reveal to his mother how much that hurt. She did not seem to wish for that? “Did she come right out and say she wished for her own room?”
“In so many words.” A gust of air caused the bare branches of a nearby tree to scratch at the window, and his mother peered through the glass. “She said she preferred to have her own room, as she was accustomed to her privacy.”
“I see.” Phineas leaned on his chin, attempting to digest the news. Perhaps he had not made the headway into his marriage he’d thought.
Sterling alerted Kitty to the fact that the family was meeting for dinner. She'd grown accustomed to seeing Phineas on the other side of her door when it was time to go down, and the shift disconcerted her. It was as though Kitty were adrift and unanchored without her husband there.
Phineas was waiting for her in the drawing room, however, and he looked anxious when he spotted Kitty, wasting no time in approaching her. “Are you comfortably settled then? Is the room to your liking? I am sorry that my affairs kept me until now.”
She glanced at her mother-in-law, remembering the words about how much her son liked his privacy. There was only one answer to make. “The room suits me perfectly. I am very happy with it.”
She could not read his cryptic expression. Phineas took Kitty on his arm and followed his parents into the dining room. What was in that expression he wore? It seemed as though his face fell. She supposed if he liked his privacy that much, he was not about to change it for her. Kitty could not help but wonder how important it was to Phineas to maintain his own room. Would he still do so if they were married in the proper sense?
When they were seated, Lord Midlington put his fingers on the table as the footman attempted to serve him without spilling anything. “Did you get everything established with Carter? Will you have time to visit Parkson as well? There are some outstanding issues on Midlington that you were responsible for—and still other issues I think you should continue to keep an eye on since you will one day inherit it.”
Phineas allowed the footman to place a venison steak and garden peas on his plate before answering. “My visit with Carter was successful, and he is caught up on all matters for Giddenhall. My valet arrived, and I've seen to it that he was settled in the servant’s quarters.”
Lord Midlington frowned under bushy eyebrows. “You could have continued to use the valet I provided for you all these years.”
“You know very well I needed to hire one of my own. Your valet was not willing to leave Bath, even for the short stay after my wedding, and I need one that can follow me to Giddenhall.”
“Hmph.” Lord Midlington grunted and began cutting his meat.
“We've decided that the dinner ball to celebrate your marriage will occur next Thursday,” Lady Midlington said. “Bath is thin of parties these days, so I do not think anyone will mind the last minute notice. Is there anyone you would like us to invite, apart from our usual set?”
Phineas looked up, his fork poised mid-air. “Yes, as a matter of fact.” He turned to Kitty, startling her. She had grown accustomed to passing unnoticed in his family. “I have sent word to Robert Bromley that we were in town and have already received a note in return inviting us for tea tomorrow. Does that suit you?”
The idea of leaving the house for a social outing lifted Kitty's spirits. “I would like that very much,” she replied.
Phineas nodded and turned back to his mother. “I would like to have Mr. and Mrs. Robert Bromley invited.”
His mother narrowed her eyes. “Who are the Bromleys?”
“Phineas spoke of him when he was in school, if you’ll remember,” Lord Midlington said, lifting his gaze briefly to his wife’s. “I’ve met Bromley's father. He is suitable enough to invite to our ball.”
The names of the other guests flowed past Kitty, leaving her out of her depth. She’d known it would be difficult to integrate into a society that was not her own. Not that she’d ever felt that way in Phineas's presence. It was only his parents … and his servants, she thought wryly, who made her aware of her station.
“You may give their direction to me,” Lady Midlington said. “I will have an invitation sent tomorrow.”
20
The next day, Kitty went with Phineas to visit the Bromleys on Great Pulteney Street. She had asked him if they might stop at the modiste first and was pleased to see his eyes brighten at her request. He could not have doubted that she would put those beautiful fabrics to good use, surely?
Kitty peeked at Phineas through the crack in the curtains as she was being measured, while he sat in the waiting room. He never did anything so indecent as to come into where she was being fitted, although technically as her husband it would not be considered as such. She did, however, see his gaze continually shift in her direction before quickly looking away again. At one point, Mrs. Laurent asked if Phineas would not like to come and see how the cloth draped across his wife, but he demurred. Kitty was relieved. She would not like his first glimpse of her in déshabille to occur in front of an audience.
When they arrived at the Bromley’s residence, the butler showed Phineas and Kitty into the drawing room where the couple was sitting. The Bromleys stood as soon as they entered the room, and Mrs. Bromley came forward first and greeted Kitty with a curtsy. “Lady Hayworth, it is a pleasure to meet you—and you, my lord. I was thankful when Robert informed me he had run into an old schoolmate. There are not many friends in Bath who are our age, and even fewer that Robert would wish to spend any time with. How long are you staying?”
Phineas smiled. “Only two weeks. A pleasure to meet you as well, Mrs. Bromley. I hadn’t thought Robert would be able to tempt anyone to the altar, but I can see he is fortunate, indeed.”
Mr. Bromley shot Phineas a look heavy with irony. “I might say the same for you.” Kitty suppressed a bubble of mirth.
“Oh, mine is merely an arranged marriage,” Phineas replied with a sigh of resignation. “One of convenience.”
The blunt nature of his words surprised Kitty and sent a bolt of pain through her. Was he always to introduce her that way? She darted a glance at her husband, who appeared to be waiting for her regard because he gave an exaggerated wink. Kitty’s shoulders sank with relief. This was the first time Phineas had teased her, and she hadn’t known he was capable of it.
Phineas turned from her, a smile still on his lips. “By the bye, I believe you will be receiving an invitation to a select ball my parents are holding next week. My parents wish to present Kitty to Society. And speaking of introductions, might we all address each other by our Christian names? Robert and I go far enough back, and I hope the informality extends to our wives.”
“Hear, hear,” Bromley said with a smile.
“Oh yes. It suits me perfectly for my friends to call me Teresa,” she replied. “I am not one to stand on ceremony, as Robert will tell you. And as to the invitation, we have just now received one, as a matter of fact. Of course we will be there.”
When they’d sat and Teresa had ordered tea, she turned to Kitty. “How do you find married life?”
Kitty did not know how to answer, and one glance at Phineas told her the question struck him as just as awkward. “I like it very well,” Kitty replied, turning her gaze back to Teresa. “I suppose I was fortunate in the choice of a husband, although you now know our marriage was merely the product of a tiresome contract.” She said the last bit with a droll look that made everyone laugh, and she saw a twinkle in Phineas’s eyes.
The soaring in Kitty’s heart continued along with the conversation. Not even when she’d lived in Bristol did she find such friendly discourse as this. It had never
struck her before how very few friends she had, even where she had grown up. Yet here, and in one day, she’d found people who appeared to possess enough depth of feeling and sensibility to become true friends, but who were light-hearted enough to opt for playful banter. And as Phineas’s wife, she was being brought into the relationship as though she’d known them both for years.
“Will you be coming to Bath often?” Robert asked Phineas. “I am surprised we have not run into each other before, although I suppose it has not been that long since we took up residence here.”
Phineas consulted Kitty with a glance before answering. “It will depend. I suppose we will come a few times a year. I really must bring Giddenhall into a good state of affairs. I also believe Kitty will need time to adjust to her new role there.” The workings of an idea lit his face. “If you are not overly busy, you must come and visit us, as well. We are not very far.”
“That sounds delightful,” Teresa said. “I, for one, am pleased to have you in Bath, even if it’s just for a short stay. Robert has been positively moping.” Robert rolled his eyes, but his glance at his wife was indulgent. “And we need little by way of excuse to visit friends in the country.”
“Even if my father keeps me busy this week, we are sure to meet again the night of the ball,” Phineas said.
Kitty added, “If you can spare the time, Teresa, I would not mind coming for a morning visit.” She bit her lip in sudden realization. Phineas, in conversation with Robert, was not listening and could not guide her as to whether she could receive guests at his parents’ house. “Of course, I cannot return the invitation and invite you.”
“Never mind that,” Teresa said. “I will be glad to have you visit. No need to send back an invitation.”
When they left the Bromleys’, Kitty breathed a sigh of relief. This was the first relationship where she felt as though she’d been placed on equal footing. “I quite like your friends,” she said as they turned toward his parents’ house. “Which family does Teresa come from?”
His Disinclined Bride (Seasons of Change Book 7) Page 18
