AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The relief she felt upon seeing Lord Huckleby drive away was almost inexplicable. Was there something about him that she was pulling away from? Something in his eyes that had frightened her?
“Thank you, Dinah, for conquering the dark silence that had settled between myself and Lord Huckleby,” she said, as she and her cousin climbed the steps back to the house. “I am truly grateful.”
Dinah said nothing for some moments, handing her bonnet and gloves to the waiting butler before turning back to Titania with a curious look in her eyes.
“I do not think that Lord Huckleby spoke to you with kindness or consideration, Titania,” she said slowly, as though she were unused to speaking her mind or were taking great lengths to consider every word. “The way he demanded such things of you was, to my mind, more than a little ungentlemanly, and I found myself a trifle angry with him.”
Titania’s brows rose in astonishment, having never heard her cousin express such a feeling before. “Anger?” she said, unable to help herself. “You do not consider that to be wrong?”
Dinah smiled slowly, her face transformed from severe to joyous in a moment. It was almost breathtaking to behold.
“No, indeed I do not,” she replied with a quick shrug. “There is such a thing as a righteous and good anger, and that is what I felt this afternoon. I do not think, Titania, that Lord Huckleby is a wise choice for you.”
Blinking rapidly in surprise, Titania tried to regain her sense of balance, quite overwhelmed with all that her cousin had said. “I do not think he is either, Dinah,” she admitted, seeing her cousin’s smile widen in relief. “In fact, I did not enjoy this afternoon as I said – and you need not correct me for my mistruth, for I know that it was wrong to pretend, but I did not want to anger Lord Huckleby further.”
Dinah said, her smile fading away as she turned to climb the staircase. “What was wrong about this afternoon?”
“Lord Huckleby was not at all considerate of me,” Titania replied quickly. “He was much more interested in being seen rather than speaking to me. He showed very little interest in furthering our acquaintance, and—as such—I
found myself quite repulsed.”
Dinah nodded, waiting until Titania had caught up with her before they walked together to the drawing room. “Then I am glad, I must say,” she commented, as they stepped into the room. “And it means that I do not have to endure another carriage ride with him, for which I am very grateful!”
Titania could not help but laugh, seeing Dinah smile again and wondering at this change in her cousin. A large swell of relief rose in her heart as she rang the bell for tea, feeling almost free as she set Lord Huckleby aside in both her mind and her heart. He was not the gentleman she had thought him to be, and therefore, she could not consider a future with him. In addition, she realized, sitting down carefully opposite her sister Catherine, who was reading, she was quite caught up with Lord Carroway, wondering what it was he would reveal to her this evening. Her mind turned to him fully, and she found an eager expectation rising up within her, flooding her with a sudden anticipation and excitement. This evening was to bring a good deal of revelation with it, and Titania could hardly wait to see Lord Carroway again.
* * *
“Good evening, Miss Wells. Thank you for allowing me to call upon you at such a late hour.”
Titania smiled and welcomed Lord Carroway into the room, aware that Merry had also risen to her feet and was now staring at Titania in astonishment.
“You are most welcome, Lord Carroway,” Titania replied, praying that Merry would not ask Lord Carroway to leave, given both the hour and the fact that Lady Whitehaven was gone from the house. “Please, do sit here and let me ring for tea – unless you would care for something a little stronger?” She gestured to the decanter of brandy that sat on one side of the room and saw Lord Carroway’s eyes flare.
“If you would not mind,” he murmured, walking over to pour himself a glass. As he did so, Titania threw Merry a long look, seeing her shake her head in Titania’s direction. Titania held her breath, thinking that her sister might insist that the visit be of a very short duration or that she might rise and draw closer to Titania so that she could hear every word Lord Carroway said. Thankfully, however, Merry sighed and let her shoulders slump as though in defeat. Sitting back in her chair, she gave Titania a careless wave of her hand, as though she knew that Titania would do as she pleased regardless of what Merry thought.
“Thank you, Miss Wells,” Lord Carroway said again, as he came to sit down opposite Titania. “I know this will be a difficult conversation and might I say that I am sorry for all you have endured thus far.”
Titania frowned, hearing the compassion in his voice and wondering what it was she had stumbled into.
“I shall speak quietly so we are not overheard,” Lord Carroway continued, his eyes flickering to Merry for a moment before returning to Titania’s face. “It is best that as few people as possible know of this.”
A thrill of anticipation ran up Titania’s spine, and she found herself leaning forward in her seat, clearly eager to discover the truth. Lord Carroway looked back at her steadily, his jaw set and his blue eyes fixed upon hers, filled with a dark intensity that had her catching her breath.
“Speak, Lord Carroway,” she said urgently, wanting him to tell her all that he knew. “Why did someone attempt to break into this house? Why did another fellow try to carry me away from the ball? I must know the truth.”
He nodded slowly, appearing a little reluctant to do so. Letting out a long breath, he spread his hands and shrugged softly. “I am a spy, Miss Wells,” he murmured, the words sounding like thunderclaps above her head. “I work for the British army to discover and capture the French spies that linger amongst us. And, for whatever reason, these spies now seek you.”
Titania could barely draw in air, her breath coming in weak, shallow gasps as she stared at Lord Carroway. Her eyes were wide, her hands clutching tightly at the arms of the chair as she struggled to comprehend what had been said.
“I know this may come as something of a surprise,” Lord Carroway continued, hesitating, as though he could see the astonishment in her expression and wanted to ease her back from it again. “But I must tell you the truth if you are to understand, Miss Wells.”
“A spy,” Titania whispered, recalling how her brother had written of such a thing and how she had disregarded it completely. “Truly?”
Lord Carroway nodded. “Yes, it is the truth, Miss Wells,” he said, without even glancing away from her. “As you know, I am an orphan and have no family to call my own. Someone – I believe it was my father, who was rumored to be some duke or other – purchased a title for me so that I would not be without a future.” His expression darkened for a moment. “Whilst I was grateful, I will not pretend that I reveled in the idea of joining society. Instead, I found myself seeking to do something of importance, something that would allow my life to have purpose.”
Titania swallowed the lump in her throat. “And so you joined the army?”
“This particular endeavour was set up by myself and another fellow, Lieutenant James,” he said by way of explanation. “There are a few gentlemen involved, as well as a good many others from the lower classes. It works very well, save for the fact that one particular man continues to elude us—no matter what we do.”
