AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“At any rate, Louisa,” Mama continued, “I do suggest you hurry with your morning routine. It would be a good idea to have a few wedding details in place that you can discuss with Lord Kerridge this evening. The gentlemen may argue all they wish about marriage this and marriage that, but it is the womenfolk who see to the actual event. I shall meet you in my sitting room in an hour’s time.”
“Yes, Mama.”
One hour later, Louisa dutifully arrived at her mother’s favorite sitting room, where the two of them discussed her nuptials to Lord Kerridge. “We must be assured of Lord Kerridge’s approval in all of this, of course, not to mention that of the Duke and Duchess of Aylesham, who will undoubtedly wish it to be a grand affair.”
Their efforts during the afternoon raised a flurry of questions in Louisa’s mind. Would the marriage take place in London? At Lord Kerridge’s estate in Devon? Or at one of the duke’s vast holdings? What was to be eaten at the banquet to follow, and who was to attend? And then there were flowers and travel arrangements and guest accommodations and on and on and on. Louisa felt completely overwhelmed.
“Don’t worry,” Mama told her reassuringly. “It sounds a bit much at present, and it’s true that most weddings needn’t concern themselves with the preferences of a duke and duchess in addition to everything else, but it will all work out well and happily. You’ll see.”
Louisa hoped so.
Eventually, Mama put the list aside and sat back, satisfied that they’d at least made a decent start, which was a good thing, for it was past time they concluded in order for her to prepare for the theater.
Louisa chose a demure gown of dark-blue silk with silver embroidery on the bodice, rather than one of the lighter-colored gowns young girls usually wore during their come-out season. She sat at her dressing table and studied her reflection in the mirror, finally deciding she looked acceptable, even if the color was still high in her cheeks. She realized she was looking forward to seeing Lord Kerridge again. She wondered how the marriage contract negotiations were progressing and if he would approve of the plans she and Mama had drawn up thus far.
She wondered if he would kiss her again and how she would feel when he did.
She took up her gloves and fan and made her way downstairs to join her family for supper.
* * *
The following afternoon, Louisa was in the music room practicing the pianoforte in case she was called upon to perform sometime, which was often the case for young ladies during the Season—even betrothed young ladies. More precisely, she supposed, she was attempting to practice because, truthfully, she couldn’t stop daydreaming about her time at the theater the previous night.
She hardly remembered what she’d observed onstage—what with Lord Kerridge seated beside her, sensing his nearness and the natural warmth that had emanated from his body, the scent of leather and cologne that had filled her nostrils. It had all seemed so masculine and intriguing—which was odd, considering she’d lived her entire life with a father and two older brothers. She’d certainly smelled leather and knew men were warm-blooded individuals, just as she and Mama were. Perhaps her awareness of it last evening was because she knew Lord Kerridge was to be her husband, so she had begun to notice elements of his maleness she’d not really considered before.
At the intermission, he’d asked Mama’s permission to take Louisa for a stroll, and, naturally, Mama had agreed. They’d exited the box and walked down the hallway, Louisa’s hand tucked in the crook of Lord Kerridge’s arm, greeting others who were taking the opportunity to stretch their legs as well. They received several knowing smiles, and Louisa understood that he was making a public point of his intentions toward her, even if nothing at all official could be said yet.
He clearly had been intending to send a message to her other suitors. Louisa had noticed more than one gentleman approaching her only to change course when they saw her on Lord Kerridge’s arm. The Baron Moseby, who’d been with an elegant older woman who wore too many cosmetics, had looked positively chagrined.
And then, before the intermission ended, Lord Kerridge—George, as he’d finally asked her to call him—had led her to a secluded corner and kissed her again. More than once, in fact, allowing for the brief amount of time they’d had remaining before the next act was to begin.
It had seemed delicious and rather clandestine to be pressed into a corner in such a manner and kissed by a handsome gentleman. Her betrothed. She knew he had been highly sought after by the young misses and their eager mamas. He was an earl who would be a duke one day. He’d been one of the most eligible bachelors of the ton for the past few years, from all Louisa had heard.
And he’d chosen her out of all the prospective young ladies.
She was puzzling out the fingering for a particularly tricky musical passage when there was a knock at the door that made her jump in surprise. Good heavens, where was her mind today?
“Sorry to disturb you, milady,” the footman who opened the door said in a low voice. “But I have been sent to summon you to your father’s study. As soon as is convenient.”
“Thank you.” She set her music aside and hurried to the study. A formal summons by her father was an unusual occurrence. It was possible that a settlement had been reached, although she doubted it, based on what Lord Kerridge—George—had told her last evening.
“Lady Louisa,” her father’s solicitor, Mr. Swindlehurst, said, crossing the room to greet her when she arrived. “You are as lovely as ever.” He took her offered hand in his and bowed over it.
Louisa’s attention, however, was diverted to her father, who was standing by the window, looking out, his hands clasped behind his back. And then she noticed her mother sitting in a chair, twisting a handkerchief in her lap, her face strained and pale. Something was terribly wrong. Had one of her brothers been injured, or worse? Her stomach clenched at the thought.
There were two other people in the room, she belatedly realized—a man who looked to be about the same age as her father and a younger man not much older than her brothers. They both rose from their chairs and turned toward her.
“Allow me to present Viscount Farleigh and Mr. Heslop, his solicitor,” Mr. Swindlehurst said. “Gentlemen, Lady Louisa Hargreaves. Please, Lady Louisa, won’t you be seated?” He gestured toward the vacant chair next to her mother’s, and the two gentlemen resumed their seats. Her father did not move, however, but continued to stare out the window while the young gentleman’s solicitor, Mr. Heslop, began ruffling through a small stack of documents in his possession.
The young gentleman, Viscount Farleigh, on the other hand, was studying Louisa closely—enough so to unsettle her. His dark eyes were scrutinizing her from head to foot, seeming to take in every detail of her appearance. It felt to Louisa as if he were assessing her rather like he would review bloodstock at Tattersall’s.
Feeling self-conscious and uneasy, Louisa sat at the edge of the chair and clasped her hands to keep from fidgeting. Why did her father continue to stand woodenly at the window? Why was this young viscount watching her so closely? She was betrothed—as good as betrothed—to an earl who would be a duke one day. She was the daughter of a marquess. A mere viscount should not feel so intimidating, as though he, somehow, was the person in control of things here in her father’s study. She lifted her chin ever so slightly and stared back at him.
One corner of his mouth tipped slightly upward for the briefest of moments.
“What is going on, Mama?” she asked quietly, her eyes still on the viscount.
“I am so sorry, darling,” her mother whispered in a broken voice.
