Page 60 of This Marquess of Mine

Chapter Nineteen

Two nights later, Olivia stepped down from the carriage onto the pavement in front of Vauxhall Gardens and tipped her head back to gaze up at the night sky. Not a cloud in sight, she noted with a satisfied smile. It was the perfect canvas for fireworks.

“Thank you, John,” Aunt Augusta said cheerfully as the footman handed her down from the carriage.

The two ladies set off toward the entrance to the pleasure gardens, joining the stream of fellow patrons with the same destination in mind. The clap of Aunt Augusta’s walking stick on the pavement kept time as she hummed an offkey tune, her voluminous emerald-green skirts swishing with every step.

“You’re certainly in a good mood this evening,” Olivia said with amusement.

“I am,” Aunt Augusta said. “It feels good to be out. I was beginning to grow weary of card games.”

“And of Lady Keswick, I imagine.” Olivia sent her aunt a knowing glance.

The lady’s hazel eyes twinkled, but she only said, “I adore Lady Keswick.”

“I know you do,” Olivia said. “But two people can spend too much time together. Even the best of friends.”

Aunt Augusta sighed. “I cannot disagree with that,” she said. “Still, I have to wonder at the swiftness of Lavinia’s recovery. I think, perhaps, it is more wishful thinking than anything else.”

Olivia nodded. “You cannot blame her for it, though. I should hate to be cooped up in bed for two weeks.”

“As would I,” Aunt Augusta said. “I only hope her impatience does not lead to a setback in her ankle’s healing. Regardless, my services are no longer needed, and I have been relieved of duty.” She threw Olivia a sidelong glance. “I hope you are not too disappointed to have your old auntie as chaperone again.”

“Nonsense,” Olivia said, looping her arm through her aunt’s. “You are always my first choice for chaperone.”

“Good,” Aunt Augusta said briskly. “Because you have no choice in the matter.”

Olivia laughed. In truth, she was excited to spend a night out with her aunt. She’d seen very little of her these last two weeks, and Lady Keswick’s mended ankle meant things would return to normal now, which meant she would see more of her aunt. And less of Griffin.

It was for the best, of course. Nothing good came of their spending time together, willingly or not. What had happened during their last encounter was testament to that.

Her cheeks flushed hot as she remembered what they’d done on that bench in Mrs. Lubbock’s garden folly, the whispered words and heated confessions they’d shared. She’d thought of those moments many times these last two days, and still she could not understand how it had happened. Or why.

Why had he kissed her again? And why had she let him? Nothing would come of it—nothing good, at least—and she was nearly betrothed to another man, for heaven’s sake. So why had she allowed herself to fall under his spell again?

What was this effect he had on her that made her lose her senses so?

It was a good thing Lady Keswick’s ankle had healed. It was past time for things to return to how they’d been before, to the sanity and safety of normalcy.

Shoving thoughts of Griffin from her mind, Olivia and her aunt paid for their admittance before stepping through the doors and into the Proprietor’s House, and after a brief walk down a short corridor, finally reached the pleasure gardens.

Hundreds of flickering lamps beckoned, the blue glass globes suspended from posts and obelisks, and even the trees. Twin rows of sturdy oaks framed the Grand Walk before them, casting the long path in a warm, romantic glow.

A large rotunda loomed on their left and from their right, music could be heard from the Orchestra, a tiered wooden building nestled between the Walk and a large grove of deciduous trees where patrons could gather to dance and enjoy the musicians’ skillful play.

“I wish Sophie could be here tonight,” Olivia said as they strolled up the gravel path, passing their fellow patrons with smiles of greeting. “It is odd going to Vauxhall without her. She loves it so much.”

Aunt Augusta smiled. “That she does.”

“Do you remember the first time you brought us here?” Olivia chuckled as memories of that night two years ago filled her mind. “Sophie was like a little girl, watching the tightrope walkers and the fire breathers, her eyes as big as saucers. She talked about it for weeks after.” Her smile dimmed and a sigh escaped her lips.

Aunt Augusta patted her hand, still looped around her aunt’s arm. “You will have many more chances to visit Vauxhall with Sophie, my dear.”

Olivia nodded. “I know. But things will never be the same again, will they? It will never be the three of us, the way it used to be.”

“No. It won’t. But such is life. Nothing can remain the same forever.”

The wistfulness in her aunt’s voice, the bittersweet smile turning her lips, made Olivia pause, and it dawned on her then how much her aunt’s life would change in the coming months. Sophie was already married, and once Olivia followed suit, Aunt Augusta would be alone.