“Then you should know better.”
The pleasant mask on Lady MacDiarmid never slipped. “I can assure you, Finella is much better prepared than I was.”
Lady Theo rose. “We’ve had a lovely time, but I’m afraid we must be leaving.”
Mrs. Cameron, their hostess, had a look of unfettered relief on her pleasant countenance. “Thank you so much for coming by, my lady.” Her gaze included Mary and her friends. “It was a pleasure to meet you. I suppose I’ll see you this evening.”
“You will indeed.” Theo marched out, leaving the rest of them to follow like a flock of chicks after their mother hen.
“What do you think that was about?” Caro whispered to Mary.
“I have no idea, but I have a feeling we’ll find out.”
Once they were in the carriage, Lady Theo’s lips tightened, and after several moments she said, “I had hoped she’d wait, but apparently she thinks nothing of auctioning off her daughter the same as she was.”
Mary and everyone else remained quiet.
“Morna was a diamond when she came out. A beautiful, silly young thing. My brother, Simon, the baby of the family, fell in love with her. As did almost every other eligible man, and some who weren’t. He thought she returned his affections. In fact, he was sure of it. Then she was married off to MacDiarmid. He was fifty years older than her if he was a day, but he had the title and more money. He’d been married four times before with no issue to show for it, yet nine months after the wedding, she gave birth to Cormac.” Lady Theo closed her eyes for a moment. “He’s the image of Simon. There is no way to be sure who fathered Finella, but it could well have been my brother. He left for America before the girl was born and hasn’t been back since.”
The carriage rumbled over cobblestones before turning onto the smoother macadam. Lady Theo’s gaze bore into Mary. “It pains me to say it, but none of them are to be trusted. Morna will be looking for the largest purse she can find for both of her children.”
Mary swallowed. For the first time in almost an hour, her need for a chamber pot receded. “I understand.”
Not only must she take care, Kit would have to be put on his guard as well. Perhaps she should just agree to marry him. It would keep both of them safe from fortune hunters, but would it provide the life she needed?
Kit glanced at his pocket watch for the tenth time in as many minutes. The hands still hadn’t moved much. It was almost four o’clock. He glanced out at the hall of Lord Titus and Lady Theo’s house. A half hour ago, Kit had to send the carriage back to the stable. There would be no excursion to-day. Where the deuce had the ladies gone? They should have been back hours ago.
“Featherton, will you stop pacing?”
Rather than leave the men to their own devices, Lord Titus had remained with them even as he worked on a paper he was preparing.
“I had an outing planned. The ladies should have been back before now. You don’t think anything has happened, do you?”
“We don’t have a fashionable hour to promenade. Morning visits make up for it.”
Kit wished he’d known that before. They’d have to prepare for the evening’s entertainment soon. A carriage came to a stop in front of the house. Thank God, they were back.
He strode to the front door intending to escort Mary up the stairs, when she dashed past him without saying a word. Was she avoiding him?
“I love you, Gervais, but not now,” Caro said as Huntley reached out to kiss her. Anna and Phoebe rushed past as well.
Kit stared after them. “What is going on?”
“I wish I knew,” Huntley responded, gazing up the staircase.
Lady Theo paused, her hand on the newel post as she mounted the curtail step. “Their first morning visits.”
“As long as I’m not at fault, I don’t care what it is.” Rutherford joined Kit and the others. “We’ll find out soon.”
“Be sure to tell me when you do. I have the distinct feeling Mary will not wish to speak of it.” Only because they were neither married nor betrothed. Even more reason to forge ahead.
“Mama, I don’t want to be here.” Finella fiddled with the fringe on her shawl. “I want to come out with Cait, in two years.”
“If you don’t stop, you’ll ruin that shawl.” Morna lightly slapped her daughter’s hand away from the fringe. She hated having to pretend she wanted her daughter to marry so young rather than waiting to come out with her closest friend. Yet if Fee was to have a better life than Morna’s had been, it meant getting her daughter married to a gentleman who could protect her. The only good thing old MacDiarmid—Morna had never thought of her late husband by any other name—had done was die before he could arrange a match with one of his friends. Unfortunately, her own father had been talking about husbands for his granddaughter, and, until her son Cormac was of age, Father was Fee’s guardian. Regrettably, her son had another year before he attained one and twenty. Even then, Morna’s father could cause trouble and probably would. “You know Cormac has said he’ll choose a bride as soon as he attains his majority. You’ll be much happier living in your own home after that.”
“I suppose so.” Fee’s words did not match her woebegone face.
“Fee, my heart. I want you to be able to fall in love. Yet, if we wait much longer, that choice could be taken from you.” Morna’s throat closed and she turned away, not wanting her daughter to see her tears. If only she’d been allowed to wed the man she loved. How different her life would have been. She fought back her anguish. The most important thing now was to take care of Fee. Thank God Father wasn’t in Edinburgh.
