AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Sorin, who was supporting his mother, glanced back at her with a sardonic look.
Eleanor stifled a laugh and followed on.
A portly, balding man hurried forth, bowing and scraping, to ask which of their party Lord Wincanton was.
“I am he,” said Sorin.
The man bowed deeply. “I received your message, my lord, and have prepared a private dining room for your party.”
Yarborough’s bewildered expression began to turn downright nasty.
“Thank you,” said Sorin with a kind nod. “My mother, however, will wish to dine in her—” He paused as his mother patted his arm and shook her head. “Never mind, it appears we shall all be dining together.”
At the innkeeper’s bidding, they proceeded into a small room clearly set aside for guests of prominence. Eleanor hurried around the opposite side to sit between her cousin and Rowena, narrowly avoiding the hasty chair Yarborough pulled out as she passed. She pretended she had not noticed, leaving Caroline to claim it.
Unfortunately, her position put her directly across from Lady Yarborough, who fixed her with a baleful glare. Eleanor ignored her in favor of the bowl of steaming soup that was promptly placed before her. There was little talk during the first course as everyone was hungry and tired. But as the second course appeared and the wine began to flow, so did conversation. Keeping her head down over her plate, Eleanor refrained from making eye contact with anyone at the table. Perhaps if she finished her meal quickly, she might be excused before any more disasters could occur.
No such luck.
Lady Yarborough cleared her throat loudly, drawing everyone’s gaze. “Lady Wincanton, young Miss Caroline here has informed me that you have an acquaintance residing in Golden Square.”
Eleanor caught Caroline’s pained expression just as Lady Wincanton paused in her repast to fix her inquisitor with a steely eye.
“So I do,” the Dowager replied flatly.
Lady Yarborough waited, but Lady Wincanton offered nothing further. A tiny bit of red crept above the neckline of her gown. “How delightful,” she said rather awkwardly. “For we now also reside in Golden Square.” Again she waited. In vain. The red crept higher. “I wonder if perhaps you might introduce me,” she pressed on. “After all, we’ll be neighbors.” It was said with a sickly smile that slowly faded as the Dowager Countess of Wincanton again lifted her head to regard the woman with chilly disdain.
Looking at them, Eleanor thought Sorin’s mother looked like a fierce lioness regarding a plump housecat.
“Miss Caroline is right,” said Lady Wincanton at last. “The lady in question happens to be my sister-in-law. Happily, she is away caring for her daughter who is expecting the arrival of my grandniece or nephew any day now. I do not expect her to return to London this Season, so I’m afraid there is no one to whom you may be introduced at this time. As for your other neighbors, I know them not. But I’m sure they will come to know you in due course.”
Eleanor hid her smile by taking a bite of roast chicken and watched the scarlet of mortification creep the rest of the way up Lady Yarborough’s neck to flood her face. It would have been perfectly delightful had the woman not immediately turned her narrowed, spiteful gaze upon her. Eleanor hadn’t mentioned anything to Lady Wincanton about her desire to be introduced to anyone, but damned if Lady Yarborough would ever believe it. There was nothing she could possibly do or say to mitigate the unbridled hatred shining from the woman’s eyes.
“Ah! Rowena,” continued Lady Wincanton as though oblivious to the rising tension in the room. “I want to ask you if Eleanor might come and join me Tuesday afternoons for tea with some of my friends and their daughters while she is in London. You are, of course, aware that I quite enjoy her company, and as I have no daughters of my own…”
Rowena glanced at her in open surprise before answering in a rather startled voice, “Oh, of—of course she may. I’m delighted that you’ve had such a pleasant time together.”
“Excellent,” said the older woman. “Then it is settled. Now, I do hope you will all forgive me, but I believe I shall go to my room now. I’m quite exhausted. Far too much so to even consider the temptation of dessert. Sorin, if you don’t mind.”
At once he rose and offered her his arm. Just as they made the turn, Lady Wincanton looked back at Eleanor and winked.
For the second time that day, Eleanor wanted to kiss a Wincanton. She’d just been placed under the aegis of one of London’s most respected matrons.
Before anyone else could speak, Lady Yarborough, who was now a rather interesting shade of violet, rose also. Rage radiated from her like the spines on a hedgehog. “I’m quite fatigued as well,” she bit out. “Donald, you will escort me to my room. Now.”
Eleanor almost pitied him as he reluctantly left his half-eaten dinner to do her bidding. Almost. She watched as, without so much as a fare-thee-well, Lady Yarborough grabbed her son’s arm and stalked out of the room.
Rowena turned to her with a baffled countenance. “What in heaven’s name have you done to Lady Wincanton?”
“I—I’ve done nothing,” she answered truthfully.
“Well, she certainly has taken a liking to you,” said Charles.
“Unlike Lady Yarborough,” said Rowena, her tone dour. “Eleanor, I must ask you to at least attempt to make amends with the woman. I know she’s horrid,” she added more quietly. “But we are forced to travel with her for the next several days, and I’m not entirely certain I shall be able to reestablish good relations without your help.”
She felt her pulse quicken with outrage. “I will not retract a single word,” she vowed.
“Eleanor, please!” hissed Rowena. “It’s not that I disagree with you—I fully share your opinion on the matter of contention—but she complained about you for a solid hour after you left! I worry for your reputation should she reach London in such a state. Even if Lady Wincanton has decided to take you under her wing, Lady Yarborough could still inflict a lot of damage. And not just to you,” she added, shooting a nervous glance toward Caroline.
