‘But he’s your neighbour!’
‘Indeed. And I find the fact regrettable.’
That, she could tell, did not go down well, though what exactly had she expected? That she would be welcomed wholeheartedly here and would instantly be able to build a new life, with new friends?
‘It will take time,’ she told herself. ‘I must be patient.’
But during the next few days she felt restless and unsettled, especially as she heard the sounds of partying from the Earl’s house nearly every night. Harriet liked to go out and listen to the music drifting through the still air. ‘It must be wonderful,’ she said to Kate, ‘to wear a beautiful gown and dance in a man’s arms!’
Kate said nothing because once, long ago before her illness, she too had dreamed of balls and romance. The Viscount’s son had cured her of that, or so she’d believed, but lately her dreams had returned–cruel dreams, because the man who danced with her and held her in his arms was her enemy, the Earl of Rivington.
Indeed, she found that he troubled her more and more. Too often, she found herself remembering that party and the way his female companion had lifted her face for his kisses. One morning after a sleepless night, when she’d felt sure she’d heard some of his friends straying near to her house, Kate wrote a short, sharp note.
Lord Rivington. I believe your guests have trespassed onto my land and I would appreciate it if you would make the construction of a boundary wall your priority.
Joseph delivered it for her, and within the hour the Earl sent a groom with his reply.I told you. I am waiting for the stone to arrive.
Kate fumed. She was restless. She was ready for action. One day she announced to Harriet, ‘I shall ask Joseph to take me into town this afternoon. You see, I’ve read inThe Brighton Heraldthat there is a musical concert this afternoon at Donaldson’s Library on the Steine. Would you like to come with me?’
Harriet said that she really would rather not, so Kate prepared for the outing on her own.
She dressed carefully in what she hoped was suitable attire, a dark blue spencer with pearl buttons over a pale blue muslin gown. She did feel slightly nervous as Joseph drove her into town in the gig and left her outside the library, but she reminded herself that it was, surely, the kind of event a single lady could happily attend. Who knew? She might even find allies against the Earl!
There were still a few seats, so she sat next to a woman around her own age who was talking to her neighbour. The woman turned, though, to stare at Kate and said haughtily, ‘I’m afraid that seat is taken.’
Kate was startled. ‘Is it? I beg your pardon. I hadn’t realised.’ She was already rising to her feet, under the frosty scrutiny of the lady and her friend.
After finding another place at the back of the room she sat down again. Was it her imagination, or were more people turning to stare at her?
She felt a horribly familiar mixture of bewilderment and humiliation. Was it because she had come here by herself? Had she perhaps dressed incorrectly? She sat through the concert but hardly heard a note, and her spirits were in no way lifted when Joseph, driving her home, cleared his throat and said, ‘Miss. You know that fruit you handed out at the cottages the other day?’
‘Yes, Joseph?’
‘I thought you ought to know it’s annoyed the market traders in town. You’re cutting away their business, you see.’
She nodded, mortified. ‘Yes. I do see. Thank you for telling me.’
Yet another error. She tried to assure herself that it just didn’t matter, for she had a house that she loved and a beautiful garden, and the weather was just glorious. But every evening, her sense of peace was destroyed by the sounds of raucouslaughter floating through the woods that formed only a fragile barrier between herself and her new neighbour.
The Earl will not stay here for ever,she kept reminding herself.
She continued to try and make the best of it. She still regularly asked Joseph to take her into the town, often with Harriet as well. They both went to gaze at the Pavilion, which when Kate was last here was a modest summer residence but was now, thanks to the Prince Regent, a palatial construction featuring domes and gilded minarets. Harriet was breathless with admiration, but Kate privately thought that it lacked taste.
She became a member of Donaldson’s lending library and went there one afternoon to hear a local author talk about his new book on the history of Brighton, but still no one was speaking to her, and the next day she found out why.
Leaving Harriet making raspberry jam, which was perhaps the only way to use up their abundance of fruit, she asked Joseph to take her into the town to return a library book. After picking another from the shelves—The Many Sights of Sussex by the Sea—she found a seat and settled down to read for a while. But she couldn’t help overhearing some ladies close by.
‘Isn’t it exciting,’ one was saying, ‘that the Earl of Rivington has come here for the summer? We know his betrothal has ended and he has said that he’s no intention of looking for another bride just yet. But who knows when he might change his mind?’
‘There is one particular female who definitely won’t tempt him,’ declared another, ‘and that’s the woman who inherited Jemima Honeywood’s property. I’ve heard she’s objected strongly to his new house. How dare she?’
The rest were murmuring their agreement. ‘Quite right,’ another said. ‘I’m told she’s hoping to make friends in the town.But why would anyone want to befriend her, when she has made an enemy of the Earl?’
Kate rose from her chair and went to put the book back on the shelf, hearing a collective gasp from the group as they recognised her. She left with her head held high and decided to take a short walk along Marine Parade since Joseph wasn’t due to pick her up yet, but once again she was foiled because large drops of rain were starting to fall. She would be soaked if she went for her walk. On the other hand, how on earth could she go back in there and listen to those women?
She hesitated by the door and was close to despair when a man about to enter the library stopped and said politely, ‘Do you need any assistance, ma’am?’
Surprised by his kind voice, she saw that he was well-dressed and had his left arm in a custom-made black sling. He was a former soldier, she guessed. ‘Thank you,’ she said, ‘but I’m actually waiting for my groom to collect me and he should be here any minute.’
