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“Did you laugh in his face for such a ludicrous suggestion?”
“I tried to at first, but he sounded so certain. And I couldn’t take a chance that something bad would happen to my sisters.”
Vicky almost quailed under the intensity of his incredulous stare, but then his face softened slightly and he squeezed her hands.
“And we haven’t been the best of friends since you came up for the Season, so I suppose you wouldn’t think to come to me with this.”
She shrugged a little trying to seem unaffected but then a tear slid down her cheek, giving away just how overwrought she was.
“I didn’t know who to turn to. I didn’t even tell Georgia, as I didn’t want to upset her in her condition. I couldn’t involve my sisters, as they’re in the same position or too young to involve. I couldn’t take a chance on there being a scandal that might make life difficult for Grace and Felicity. It didn’t seem at all likely that you were involved in any sort of plots, but I felt that I couldn’t trust my own judgment where you are concerned.”
“Why not?”
“That’s hardly the point, at the moment. The question really ought to be why would Lord Bertram make such an accusation? If it isn’t true about you, could it be true about someone? Is there perhaps a plot afoot that we ought to do something about?”
“Is this why you’ve been asking me the strangest questions and vacillating between being friendly and cool?”
Vicky shrugged again. “I was actually interested in hearing about your travels, but I was also hoping they might give me some insight into whether or not you could possibly be up to no good. But then I realized I wasn’t really smart enough to figure that out. I would like to think that I am intelligent, but I think you might need to be slightly crooked yourself to be able to figure out a schemer. And I’m sad to say, I’m terribly conventional and boring.”
“I wouldn’t say that at all about you. But tell me, what did Bertram want from you?”
“I couldn’t rightly say, to be honest. He wasn’t making the most sense. I’m ashamed to admit that I panicked a little when he first spoke to me, so I didn’t ask him enough. Or rather, I didn’t insist that he tell me everything. I tried to, but he said he would share more once I gathered information from you. But I wasn’t very good at it.”
“What sort of information did he want?”
“He wanted to know about your interests and businesses.”
Ashford stiffened. “So, you were only asking for him.”
“What does it matter? If there’s a plot afoot, shouldn’t that be the focus?” Finally, it all became too much for Vicky, and she started to cry. “I should have gone to Crossley with my concerns right away. It was foolish of me to try to figure it out on my own. But all I could think about was protecting my sisters.”
Ashford pulled her into his arms. “You should have come to me about it, foolish girl,” he said in a warm tone that did delicious things to her fluttery heart.
Suddenly, a gasp sounded from the doorway.
“What is going on in here? What is the meaning of this?” The shrill voice was getting louder and louder, echoing off the high ceilings of Crossley’s elegant estate, bringing the attention of others as Vicky realized how it might look and sprang out of Ashford’s arms, quickly wiping away her tears and frantically thinking of a way to fix the awkward situation she suddenly found herself in.
Lady Delilah was flapping her arms and calling for her mother, tears streaming from her eyes. Vicky was bewildered as to what the silly young woman could possibly have to cry about. She didn’t think the other woman was empathetic enough to be crying at the sight of Vicky’s tears.
Georgia was trying to soothe the situation, but the milling crowd was gathering and casting suspicious glances at all of them. Vicky heard Ashford sigh heavily. Her gaze met his, and her stomach dropped as he opened his mouth. Somehow, she just knew what he was about to say, and it was going to ruin everything.
“Lady Vigilia has just accepted my offer of marriage.”
Vicky managed not to scream her denial for all the world to hear, withstanding the shift in the atmosphere as suddenly everyone was offering their congratulations instead of their suspicions. All but Lady Delilah, that is. Clearly, she had been hoping that she would be the one about whom Ashford Northcott would be making such an announcement. Vicky nearly rolled her eyes over the vagaries of theton.
Soon, Georgia had ushered everyone from the room to take tea in the salon, leaving only Ashford, Crossley, and Vicky staring at one another until Georgia returned and quietly shut the door.
