Prologue
50 Berkeley Square, 1812
Penelope Prescott, Marchionessof Heathway, had been listening to Louisa Stapleton rattle on about her marvelous new daughter-in-law Georgiana for the past quarter hour. In fact, they hadallbeen listening to it. A Society of Sponsoring Ladies meeting had been convened in Penelope’s drawing room and just now the duchess, Lady Easton, Lady Redfield, and Lady Featherstone leaned forward in rapt attention.
The society’s raison d’être, its beating heart, its very lifeblood, was to make real the ladies dear-held wish to act as a mama to a charming daughter. There were those ladies elsewhere who fretted until a son and heir arrived.Theseladies had never had such a concern, as sons had arrived with surprising regularity. Sadly, what had never arrived was a daughter they might dote on.
As none of them had born a daughter, daughters must be found. Each lady was determined to enter a season with a delightful girl in hand. Each lady dreamed of standing at the edge of a ballroom floor as their girl’s card was filled, or trotting by thetonin their carriage and gathering admiring glances, or standing by a pianoforte of a musical evening and knowing their girl was far more skilled than the rest. It would be their moment in the sun, and it would be glorious.
How else could it be done except by stepping forward to sponsor an honorable but disadvantaged girl?
Lady Mendleton had been the first out of the gate with the project and now, apparently, nobody was to equal this paragon of a girl who was now wife to Lord Langley. Of course, Penelope was delighted for Louisa, though she could not help wondering at the exceedingly odd circumstances. She would wonder silently, though, as the queen herself had made her approval of the match widely known.
In any case, she had far more interesting things to think about than the new Lady Langley. Unbeknownst to her friends, she was just now poised at the gate herself.
Hoping to bring Louisa’s crowing to an end, she said, “We could not be more thrilled for you, Louisa.”
Lady Mendleton nodded vigorously. “I should not be at all surprised to find a granddaughter in the house soon enough. Do you know they have no plans to strike out on their own? They shall stay with us and we’ve given over the west wing of the house for their use. Georgiana in particular wishes it. She really has become a daughter to me.”
The other ladies appeared quite staggered by these ideas. A granddaughter to arrive at some blessed day, the couple staying on in the house, and most of all—the longed-for daughter had been made realandpermanent. The duchess shook out the brocade of her skirt like a bird settling its feathers, Lady Easton chewed a biscuit with gusto, Lady Featherstone fanned herself, and Lady Redfield dabbed her eyes.
“My friends,” Lady Heathway said, the note of determination in her voice apparent to all, “Louisa has found success and so must we all. We must drive this effort forward and I am prepared to do it.”
Penelope paused dramatically so the ladies might take in her meaning.
“That is correct,” she said. “I have found my girl. Miss Grace Yardley, daughter of the late Viscount Barlow. She has come highly recommended to me by my cousin Lady Gadden, who has a neighbor who has a cousin in Miss Yardley’s neighborhood. It turns out the estate was entailed, no son was produced, and the new viscount has moved the girl and her mother into a dower house that has been described to me as…ramshackle.”
“Ramshackle!” Lady Easton cried.
“Goodness,” Lady Featherstone said. “Ramshackle does not sound suitable for the daughter of a viscount.”
“Ramshackle,” the duchess said, “strikes me as detestable.”
“It strikes us all as detestable because itisdetestable, and not to be stood for,” Lady Heathway said. “I have written Lady Barlow and enclosed a kind note for Miss Yardley too. I have indicated that I will send a carriage on Wednesday next.”
“Do allow me to assist you with the dear girl, Penelope,” Lady Mendleton said in a tone of gracious condescension. “I am now, of course, very experienced with daughters. It is more complicated than you might imagine.”
Lady Heathway nodded at Louisa though she did not have the first intention of seeking out the lady’s advice. She had been planning for a daughter for years and was well able to manage it without Louisa fluttering round her.
“We shallallassist in this very noble undertaking,” the duchess said.
Lady Heathway gave the duchess an approving smile. She was generally of the opinion that the duchess threw round the word noble with rather careless abandon—but in this case, she had hit the mark. The girl had been thrust down to the brink of despair and would be lifted up again by her sponsor’s generosity. Therewassomething noble in it.
The door to the drawing room opened, though she had specifically instructed that the meeting of the society was not to be disturbed. Ranston hurried in carrying a letter on a silver tray.
“I am sorry for the intrusion, my lady,” he said, “but you did request that any communications from Barlow House be brought to you immediately.”
“Ah! Bring it here, Ranston. That will be from Lady Barlow, expressing her appreciation for the scheme.”
Lady Heathway tore the letter open, thinking how fortuitous it was that this missive of gratitude should have arrived with her friends present to witness it. She did not only expect Lady Barlow to express appreciation for thescheme, she expected the lady to express appreciation forherself. As the duchess had rightly pointed out, she acted rather noble.
As she perused the surprisingly short letter, her thoughts felt muddled. It was as if she were reading words that she could not in fact be reading. Was it a forgery of some kind? A joke, perhaps?
None of it made sense. She dropped it on the table.
Lady Redfield leaned over and peered at it. “Goodness,” she said. “That is unexpected.”
“Give it here,” the duchess said imperiously. “It is too late in our history to have any mysteries between us.”
