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Chapter 9
It had been three dayssince Ben had kissed her. Three days since he’d kissed her passionately—and then declared it had all been a mistake. Three days since she’d last seen him.
And Rebecca had gone through three long days of woeful looks from her brothers and consoling words from her sisters. Three days of her nieces and nephews being urged by their mamas to invite Rebecca to read to them or play the pianoforte for them so they could dance and sing. Three days of the occasional awkward silence during family meals.
The irony of it all was that no one knew Ben had kissed her or had spoken his heart-crushing words to her. They were all giving her their woeful glances and empathetic words and encouragement merely based on the fact that Ben had excused himself before the family entertainments had concluded.
They were all being well-intentioned and kind, and Rebecca loved them and appreciated what they were trying to do, even if they had no idea of the actual grief she was suffering. They were worried about her enough; she didn’t need to add to their concerns. But it was all becoming too much for her to keep inside.
Currently, however, she was once again seated on her chaise longue in the dayroom, doing needlework, although she wasn’t alone. Isobel and Lavinia were with her, as were Delia and Hannah, although Delia was doing more talking than needlework. Clara was once again helping Wynn in the nursery. It had been just under three weeks since Rebecca’s injury, but it felt an eternity, and there were at least three more weeks before the surgeon would call upon her to remove her splint.
She had been attempting to embroider a flower on the corner of a handkerchief, but her stitches looked a mess. She was laboriously unpicking everything she’d done thus far today when Hawkins entered the room, carrying a salver upon which a letter sat.
Could Ben have sent her a note?
“A letter from Lady Thurlby,” Hawkins announced, taking it to Isobel.
Rebecca’s heart fell, even though she was glad to hear from Mama. Her hopes had been foolish anyway.
Isobel broke the seal. “She says,” she began before stopping to peruse the letter. “She says Susan is indeed married to the Duke of Aylesham, and—”
“We don’t want a summary, Isobel,” Lavinia said, having stopped her needlework to hear the letter read aloud.
“I was merely ascertaining whether the news was happy in nature.” Isobel glanced briefly at Rebecca. “There’s been enough hardship in the house of late.”
“We would have had you read it in its entirety anyway,” Rebecca said, feeling defensive. “We all wish to hear Mama’s words.”
“Very well,” Isobel said. “‘To my beloved family at home, greetings! This is but a brief letter to inform you that our dear Susan was wed this morning’—that would have been Monday,” Isobel clarified, “‘to the Duke of Aylesham, at St. George’s, Hanover Square, in an altogether moving service. Our Susan is now a duchess; can you imagine?
“‘But that must wait for another day and another conversation. I am writing to tell you that we will be immediately returning to Alderwood so that Aylesham can meet his wife’s family and neighbors and so that we can celebrate their nuptials in a proper, Lincolnshire manner. Papa and I are leaving early tomorrow and will arrive home Friday late or Saturday. Susan and her duke will join us at Alderwood on Monday.
“‘I am relying on all of you to begin organizing the celebration until Papa and I return. There is no time to lose, for Aylesham must return to London to attend to his duties in the House of Lords. I suggest we hold the event on Tuesday.’” Isobel looked up from the letter in her hands. “That is less than a week away! Good heavens!”
“Does she say anything else?” Lavinia asked.
“Let me see,” Isobel said. “No. She just sends her love.”
Lavinia reached out to take the letter from Isobel, scanned it quickly, and then looked up. “Isobel, I may be speaking out of turn since you are married to Thomas, who is the eldest, but I do not believe you should be in charge of such a large undertaking, not when you are in a delicate condition.”
“I wouldn’t dream of passing such a burden on to someone else,” Isobel said.
“Nonsense,” Delia exclaimed. “Lavinia is entirely correct. You must think of the babe and not put yourself under such an additional burden, my dear. Besides, Lavinia and Artie and Hannah and I have organized so many theatrical productions as to be old hands at this sort of thing.”
“Old but experienced hands,” Hannah added, setting her sewing aside.
“I confess, the idea of organizing a party for a duke and his wife—even if the wife is our Susan—on such short notice does feel daunting,” Isobel said, placing a hand on her swollen abdomen. “Although I don’t wish to disappoint Mama and Papa Jennings either. This is such a grand moment for them, having a daughter marry a duke.”
“Don’t worry,” Lavinia said. “Delia is right; we have pulled together some rather ambitious productions in very little time in the past. And you will be here, giving advice, keeping things within the proper decorum a duke would expect, which will help immensely. That is the area where I and the others perhaps fall short. And with everyone here to assist, there are plenty of people to see to all the details.”
“I may not be much good at running errands at present, but I can write out invitations,” Rebecca said. “How incredible it is to think of Susan as a duchess! I’m exceedingly happy for her. I am looking forward to meeting the Duke of Aylesham and determining for myself if such a grand nobleman is worthy of her.” She reached for her crutches and stood. “But if you’ll excuse me at the moment, I have been sitting indoors for too many hours and days, and I long for some fresh air.” A plan was taking shape in her mind.
“Do you wish to have company?” Hannah asked her. Dear Hannah, who had always been so kind to her. She had even helped Rebecca improve her needlework skills. But today, Rebecca wanted to be alone. This news of a wedding celebration meant that Ben needed to be present among the guests, despite the painful words he’d spoken to her during their last encounter.
She wanted to speak to him, and it needed to be in private. “No, thank you, Hannah. I shan’t be gone long, but I believe a nice breeze on my face and a bit of exercise will do me a world of good.”
“Very well,” Hannah said. “If you’re certain.”
Delia nodded approvingly at Hannah.
