“Did someone mention retirements? Were you two ladies talking about me? They say I am retired, but I daresay I would not decline being sent off back to battle, despite my weary knees!” he declared with a big grin.
“We were discussing the requirements of the Duke of Huntington, Norman,” Lady Marlow corrected, sighing.
“Will he require me to be of service?” the elderly baron asked, his eyes twinkling with hope.
Madeline bit her lip to keep herself from smiling. Her grandfather always found ways to make the situation lighter, though she was aware it also meant he was getting older and that his hearing was worse. Such a reminder, though, highlighted the need for her to take care of them.
“It is quite all right, Grandpapa,” she said loudly, patting his arm. “You can rest your weary knees for now. His Grace is not looking for men, at least not at this time. He is... looking for something else.”
From the corner of her eye, she could see her grandmother narrowing her eyes at her. It was at that very moment that Napoleon, Lord Marlow’s beloved ginger cat, leaped from a sideboard to the table. His slitted eyes were fixed on the crumpled remains of the Morning Post’s advertisement. With his lightning-fast paw, he swiped it away.
“No, Napoleon!” Lady Marlow cried as the cat pushed it around as if it were a ball of yarn.
It was too late. The cat’s claws and teeth tore through the advertisement as if it had personally insulted him. Soon, shredsof the paper flew through the air until nothing was left of it but confetti of random words.
“It looks like Napoleon agrees with me. It is a good thing that someone else is sensible enough to know that is all this advert is good for,” Madeline laughed, her chest feeling much lighter.
“It was our only copy of it!” her grandmother exclaimed, her face contorted with horror.
“Then I believe it was fate at play, Grandmama,” Madeline said. Then, she rose from her chair and planted a kiss on Lady Marlow’s cheek.
“You... you! Where are you going, young lady?”
Madeline was already at the door when she paused to grab her bonnet and a light shawl. “I am headed for the park to meet some of the ladies for tea.”
She was also hoping to meet someone there. Someone who did not post adverts in the Morning Post, looking for a wife. Someone who would be looking for love, just like she was.
“What is this? Do I not get a kiss?” Lord Marlow asked, exasperated.
Madeline smiled as she rushed to plant a kiss on her grandpapa’s cheek as well. “I am sorry, Grandpapa. I was in a hurry. I am running late, and the ladies will be expecting me.”
“Will you take long?” her grandmother asked, her tone no longer angry.
That, along with her sly smile, should have been a sign that something was afoot, but Madeline’s mind was in the clouds, eager to meet her friends and share in the latest gossip.
“Perhaps not, but perhaps just enough to find the love of my life,” she murmured, heading out the door.
Chapter 2
Today will be a good day. I will make certain of it.
Hyde Park was always busiest in the late afternoon, and Madeline had looked forward to the outing all week. A walk among the trees, a little gossip beneath the silk-lined tents, an hour away from the worries back home. She had even worn her brightest ribbons for it.
But as she approached the tent where her friends had gathered, something felt wrong. The chatter did not rise to greet her as it usually did. It dropped instead, and several heads turned her way at once.
Madeline kept her smile in place and told herself she was imagining things.
“Is there something new about you, Madeline? A new trim on your bonnet?” Lady Rose asked, her fan snapping open and shut.
“No, I do not think there is anything new,” Madeline replied, bewildered.
Why are they looking at me so strangely?
“Oh, what a shame, then,” Lady Rose murmured, her lips curling into a sneer that surprised Madeline. “Your ribbons are far too bright. I find that too optimistic for you.”
What was wrong with optimism? Madeline tilted her chin upward, giving the young lady and their other friends a defiant smile. It had become her armor, what with all that was going on in her life.
“A splash of bright color is important in making even the grayest day happier. Don’t you agree?”
