Page 93 of Regency Whispers: Scandalous Matches

Alice smiled sweetly. ‘Today I am going to take a basket of food to Mrs Willow and her children. Mr Willow died last year of consumption, and I understand two of the children have been unwell.’

Alice’s mother inhaled loudly and as Alice glanced over gave her a stern look. Cecil looked appalled as she had known he would and shifted uncomfortably.

‘Surely you cannot mean to visit a family where there is illness, Miss James? You have to think of yourself.’

‘I promised Mrs Willow I would go. She struggles with six children now she is all by herself.’

Cecil curled his lip and flexed his fingers where they rested on her hand.

‘Even in the summer months we must be vigilant against disease,’ he said.

‘Perhaps you could postpone the visit for a few days, Alice,’ Mrs James said firmly. ‘I am sure Mr Billington would appreciate your time being spent to show him a little of the village and the surrounding area. It is a glorious day. You might even take a stroll on the beach.’

‘A promise is a promise, Mother,’ Alice said quickly. ‘I am sure Mr Billington would not want me to brush off my commitments so readily. It is not an attractive quality in a woman to be unreliable.’

She was saved from further argument by the door opening and their maid slipping into the room. They were not a grand household. Her father’s income could only provide enough for one maid and a young lad who helped both inside the house and in the garden. Milly helped Alice’s mother in the kitchen and did some of the housework duties around the house, but Alice was expected to do her fair share. All of which had increased significantly since her sister had left home.

‘There is a gentleman to see Miss James,’ Milly said, turning over a small card in her fingers. She looked in awe of the little piece of embossed card.

‘A gentleman?’ Mrs James said, standing and casting an apologetic look at Cecil.

‘Yes, ma’am,’ Milly lowered her voice. ‘He says he’s the Earl of Northumberland.’

Mrs James’s eyes widened, and she took a step forward before turning to Alice.

‘Alice James, if this is one of your friends being silly, I will not be impressed.’

In any other circumstance Alice would have had to suppress a smile. It was the sort of thing Lydia would do, press an unsuspecting male friend or relative into giving Milly a card with a false name upon it. However, today Alice knew it was no trick.

She felt her mouth go dry and her pulse quicken. There was no good reason for him to be here. Last night had been magical, but Alice was well aware it had been an interlude in her otherwise normal life, nothing more. Lord Westcroft had no place in her small drawing room in their modest home in Bamburgh, just as she had no place in the lofty halls of his grand country house.

‘Shall I show him in?’ Milly asked, her hand hovering on the door-handle.

‘Yes, you had better,’ Mrs James said, glancing at Alice again. ‘Do you know him?’

Before Alice could answer the door opened again, and Lord Westcroft stepped into the room. He looked out of place in the drab drawing room, and Alice suddenly felt self-conscious. In the cold light of day he would see her dress was made of inferior material, her hands dry and reddened by the manual labour she had to undertake. Normally these things did not bother her, but in front of him she felt a fraud, an imposter. Last night she had soared with all the wealthy ladies, the candlelight allowing her to pass as one of them. It would be painfully clear today she did not fit with the women he was accustomed to.

As he entered the room Alice thought back to the perfect kiss they had shared in the garden before she had fled through the night. It had been magical, everything a young woman could dream of for her first kiss. She found her eyes flicking to his lips now and had to force herself to look away, to focus on the floor as she bobbed into an unsteady little curtsy.

‘It is an honour to have you in our home, my Lord,’ Mrs James said, bustling over and pausing in front of the earl.

‘I am sorry to call unannounced. I hope you can forgive me for dropping in like this.’

‘You know an earl?’ Cecil muttered out of the corner of his mouth, spittle gathering in the corners in a little frothy bubble.

‘A little,’ Alice said warily. Lord Westcroft had seemed a sensible man last night and had been aware of the damage that could be done to her reputation by the wrong association. She knew he would not be here if it weren’t important. She thought of the rustle in the bushes the night before as they had shared their kiss, the feeling that someone had spotted them, that eyes were watching them, and she shuddered.

‘Miss James,’ Lord Westcroft said, turning to her with a dazzling smile, ‘it is delightful to see you again.’

‘And you, my Lord,’ Alice said, trying to read his expression.

‘And this must be your dear cousin you were telling me about,’ Lord Westcroft said, directing his gaze onto Cecil. Alice caught the mischief in the earl’s eye and pressed her lips together giving a miniscule shake of her head.

‘Billington, Cecil Billington, at your service, my Lord,’ Cecil said, stretching out a hand to shake Lord Westcroft’s.

‘Forgive me, my Lord. I was not aware you were acquainted with my daughter.’

‘Our acquaintance has not been a lengthy one,’ Lord Westcroft said, allowing Mrs James to usher him into the room. The room was not large, and alongside a low table there was only the armchair Mrs James had been sitting in and the long sofa where Alice and Cecil were. Lord Westcroft seemed unperturbed and took a place next to Alice on the other side.