AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Good.” Lord Dayton cleared his throat, threw a quick look at both his daughters, and then returned his gaze to Olivia. “Last evening, I saw you with Margaret and Lord Monteforte,” he said, sending Olivia into a spiral of worry. “Is that not so?”
“It is,” Olivia answered quickly, having no need to lie since everything Lord Dayton had said was true. “I accompanied–”
Lord Dayton held up one hand. “If you please, Olivia.” Waiting a moment to see if she had remained silent, he then spoke again. “To your knowledge, was Margaret intending to walk to the library with Lord Monteforte alone?”
Olivia’s eyes flared for a moment. Her mouth went dry, and she turned to look at Lady Margaret who was steadfastly staring across the room at the wall. She did not want to speak ill of her cousin, even though Margaret did not treat her particularly well, and yet the truth had to be spoken.
“My lord, I believe Margaret wanted to accompany Lord Monteforte to the library, since he had very little idea as to where he was going, and unfortunately, Louisa was quite unable to attend with her. Therefore,” she continued, before Lord Dayton could ask her to remain silent, “I offered to accompany her.”
Lord Dayton’s eyes flicked to his wife, who lifted one shoulder and then turned her head away, clearly a little put out.
“Is that so, Margaret?” he asked softly, the very room seeming to fill with tension. “Is that what you intended?”
Olivia did not dare glance over at her cousin, knowing that this was not the entirety of the truth, for she was quite sure that Margaret and Louisa had, together, managed to come up with an excuse so that Margaret and Lord Monteforte could walk alone together to the library. Quite how Lord Dayton had found out that Margaret had indeed had such an intention, Olivia could not say.
“It is my fault, father,” Louisa interrupted, her voice very soft and a little tremulous. “I should not have put such an interest in speaking about my new gown to Lady Lincolnshire.” Her eyes darted towards her mother for a moment, and Olivia instantly caught her breath.
There was more to this situation than Olivia had first realized. If she guessed correctly, then the specific circumstances had been arranged by both Lady Dayton and Margaret, who would have brought Louisa into their plans. Perhaps it had been simply so that Margaret and Lord Monteforte could have a few minutes alone together – which, whilst risky, could be entirely innocuous, or it could have had much more serious intentions.
“I do not know what to think,” Lord Dayton said, sighing rather heavily and shaking his head. “But Olivia, I must ask you to tell me, here and now, whether or not you have any particular interest in Lord Monteforte.” Flinging up his hand at both his wife’s and eldest daughter’s loud exclamations, he held it palm upwards until they had both lapsed into silence. “The reason I ask you such a personal question, Olivia, is because I believe Margaret had an interest in him and believes, I think, that he might have a particular regard for you.”
At this, Olivia let out such a snort of ridicule that she found herself quite embarrassed. Turning her head away, she closed her eyes tightly for a moment and shook her head, aware of the silence that now flooded the room.
“Forgive me, Uncle,” she stammered, more than a little embarrassed of the sound that had left her mouth. “It is only that such an idea is quite ridiculous. I have no regard for Lord Monteforte, and he has no interest in me, I am quite sure.” She turned to Margaret, who had gone a deep shade of red. “You need not have any concern on my regard, Margaret. I care nothing for the gentleman and, even if he were to express interest in me, I could not even abide the idea.” She emphasized this last part, praying that her uncle and aunt would hear her speak with such vehemence and understand that she was not about to entertain any idea of courtship and the like from Lord Monteforte. “Indeed, Margaret, you may accept my words as truth in this.”
Margaret said nothing, her eyes shuttered as she turned her head away, looking back at Lord Dayton with a resigned expression.
“I am glad to hear it,” Lord Dayton said firmly, his authority filling the space between himself and Olivia. “Then there is to be no more attempts on your part, Margaret, deliberate or otherwise, to be alone with Lord Monteforte in the hope of persuading him to court you. You should be grateful to Olivia that she stepped in when she did, otherwise there might be a scandal on our hands. Lord Monteforte might very well prove to be a valuable acquaintance, and I will not have him pushed away from this family by the antics of my daughters!”
“Yes, father,” Margaret murmured, whilst Louisa pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at her eyes.
“He is to call this afternoon,” Lord Dayton continued, rendering both his daughters speechless as their heads shot up. “I have a little business to conduct with him and, thereafter, I am sure he will wish to greet you both.” This was directed towards Louisa and Margaret, with Olivia being entirely ignored, but Olivia tol
d herself, quite firmly, that she did not mind in the least not being included. “Make sure that you are ready and prepared.”
“Yes, father,” both daughters said in unison as they stood to leave, Louisa’s tears swiftly forgotten. They excused themselves just as Olivia rose to her feet, making to follow after her cousins. Curtsying towards her uncle and aunt, she began to walk towards the door, only to be stopped by her aunt’s sharp voice.
“Olivia.”
Olivia turned, looking at her aunt. “Yes?” she queried, wondering why her aunt looked suddenly so foreboding. “Is something wrong?”
Lady Dayton narrowed her eyes. “I would hate to think that the reason you accompanied your cousin was simply to seek out what your uncle was doing,” she said sharply, as Olivia’s eyes widened in surprise. “That is not something that I expect from you.”
A rush of color flooded Olivia’s cheeks as she recalled how she had eavesdropped at her uncle’s door only a few days beforehand. “No, Aunt, I did not,” she assured her, glad that she could speak the truth without hesitating. “Truly, I had no such intention.”
Lady Dayton held her judgement for a moment longer, watching Olivia with a suspicious gaze, only for her to turn her head away and sigh, relenting completely.
“You are quite certain you have told me the truth in everything, Olivia?” Lord Dayton remarked, making Olivia shiver with the dark expression on his face. “You have not kept anything from either myself or your aunt?”
“No, Uncle,” Olivia said, putting as much fervency into her voice as she could. “I have told you the truth, truly.”
Lord Dayton exchanged a glance with his wife, only for Lady Dayton to give him a tiny, almost indiscernible nod. “Very well,” she sighed, making Olivia let out a long breath of relief. “You may go.”
Olivia nodded and turned away at once, feeling the urge to run from the room growing steadily. There was still such anger in her aunt’s expression, such doubt in her eyes that Olivia felt a deep sense of sadness grip her heart. What was it Olivia had done to garner such suspicion? She had been trying to help her cousin, albeit perhaps with less than pure motives, but there had never been any intention for her to spy on her uncle’s meeting!
Although, said a small voice within her, why did my aunt even think to make such a suggestion? What is it about my uncle’s meeting that desires such secrecy? She recalled just how quickly her cousin had been sent away once she had delivered Lord Monteforte to the library, recalling the strict instruction to shut the door tight, and felt herself begin to think on the matter again. Her curiosity was growing still, despite the knowledge that she ought not to be doing anything of the sort. Her aunt was clearly a little afraid or angry that she had been attempting to discover her uncle’s business, and that only intrigued her all the more.
“Perhaps I should get to know Lord Monteforte a little better,” she murmured to herself, as she made her way slowly back to her bedchamber. “Perhaps then I might be able to discover what my uncle is involved in.” It was none of her business, of course, but her enquiring and curious mind would not let the matter alone. She could be cordial and polite to Lord Monteforte, she decided, even though her first impression of him would never change. Perhaps she would discover something of interest, something that might pique her curiosity all the more. Or mayhap she would come upon the most dull of all scenarios, where the gentlemen simply drank port and discussed matters of politics and the like. Whatever it was, however, Olivia was now determined to find out what it was Lady Dayton had been so eager to hide from her.
