AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter 21
The Earl of Cosgrove stoodin front of Lavinia in all his resplendent glory. Tall, blond, richly dressed, and with elegant manners—to the uninformed, he appeared the perfect nobleman, the consummate gentleman.
Lavinia saw a toad.
“Let me introduce you, shall I?” he said as he approached her, his voice tinged with smugness. “Lord and Lady Thurlby, Mr. Jennings, allow me to present mychère amie, Miss Ruby Chadwick, The Darling of Drury Lane, known throughout London for her lively onstage performances, frequently while wearing breeches. She’s very popular, as you might expect, especially among the gentlemen.”
“Anactress?” Lucas’s mother gasped. “Inbreeches?”
“Alice, truly, I think it best if you leave the room. More to the point, I’m ordering—”
“Fiddlesticks,” his mother replied. “If you think I’m leaving Lavinia—Ruby—whatever her name is—alone in here with you three, you’re sadly mistaken.”
“Thank you, Lady Thurlby,” Lavinia said.
“Don’t be thanking me yet,” she said. “I’m not about to leave you without a chaperone in a room with three men, not in my house—although if you are who Lord Cosgrove claims you are, I doubt it will affect your reputation one way or another. Anactressknown for wearingbreeches, in myhome. I can scarce believe it. No, I’m staying because I fully intend to hear what all this is about.”
“What this is about, Lady Thurlby, is the scandal that was about to descendupon your family,” Lord Cosgrove said. “Nothing more and nothing less.Fortunately, I have arrived to spare you such humiliation.” He smirked, andif not for the fact that Lucas and his parents were present, Lavinia would have slapped his loathsome face with all her strength. But she was not blameless in this disaster, so she could do no such thing.
“You may outrank me, Cosgrove, but do not by any means mistake me for a fool,” Lord Thurlby said. “You have already shown your motives to be less than noble.”
“Pious country sensibilities. How tedious,” Cosgrove said, bringing his jeweled quizzing glass to his eye so he could look down on Lucas and his family with haughty scorn.
Lavinia stood as straight as she could, calling upon all the most courageous roles she’d ever played to guide her demeanor and give her strength: Portia, Cordelia, Joan of Arc. “I have nothing to say to the Earl of Cosgrove, Lord and Lady Thurlby,” Lavinia said, head held high. “I am more than willing to explain myself to the rest of you, however.”
“Did you know Miss Chadwick’saffectionsare highly sought after?” Cosgrove drawled. “She’s a prime article, as should be plain to see. Since I no longer need disguise my motives here, I will tell you straight: I consider her to be mine. Bought and paid for.”
“Good heavens,” Lord Thurlby muttered.
“I am not the only one who has pursued her, you know. Lord Anston, Lord Wetheral, Sir Robert Mattersey . . . the Duke of Worthing . . . have all sought after her quite ardently—andextravagantly. There are others I could name as well. Shall I?”
“Alice, leave the room this instant,” Lord Thurlby practically yelled.
Lucas’s mother ignored him and turned to Lavinia. “I took you into my home, into myheart, thinking my son had finally found love and a purpose in his life. But you have lied to me—to all of us—the entire time. How could you do this to us?”
Her words cut deeply. Lavinia, wracked by a day of grief and worry over Delia, thought she could take no more. But she must, for Lady Thurlby’s words were entirely true.
“Come, Ruby, it is time for us to go,” Cosgrove said with bored impatience. “There is nothing for you here; you are deluding yourself if you think otherwise. I commend you for your ingenuity in slipping out of my sight and out of London. Well done.” He gave a slow clap. “You like applause, don’t you? Now take your final bow, and let us be gone from here.”
Lavinia looked at Lucas. She saw only too clearly the shock and confusion in his eyes. “My name is Lavinia Fernley,” she said to him. “And I refuse to go anywhere with the Earl of Cosgrove. If you wish me to leave, I will, but I willnotgo with him.”
“Stop this infernal nonsense, Ruby,” Lord Cosgrove said. “You have cost me a pretty penny,chère amie petit, and I have no intention of leaving here without you after all the trouble and inconvenience you’ve put me through. You cannot actually believe you will be happy in such rustic surroundings. The idea is appalling. Your life is in London, with me, under my protection. It is time you accepted that fact.”
“My name is Lavinia Fernley,” she repeated more firmly, this time to Lord Cosgrove. “I created the character who was Ruby Chadwick. She served me well, but she is gone. I no longer need her.”
She turned to Lady Thurlby. “Your son and I are not betrothed, milady, and I am truly sorry for the deception we created surrounding it. The meeting we were to have had with you and Lord Thurlby this afternoon was to tell you the truth and explain everything.”
“Apparently not everything,” Lucas said.
Stung by his words, Lavinia turned on him. “You wish I had taken you aside on such short acquaintance and told you of every man who has flirted with me backstage, made an overture, offered me a jewel? To what end? Lord Cosgrove is merely the latest in a constant stream of gentlemen with ungentlemanly intentions, although he is certainly among the most vile—”
“Watch your tongue,” the earl growled.
“I willnot.” She turned deliberately away from Cosgrove to face Lucas and his parents. “I am not the earl’schère amie, despite what he wishes you to believe. And while it is true that I was offered gifts from some of my admirers, I always made it very clear before accepting that they should expect no favors of any kind in return. These so-called gentlemen are never so direct as to call their gifts ‘inducements,’ although that is certainly what they are—lures to dangle in the hopes they may secure a female plaything.
“I have no interest in these men. Idespisethem.” She looked over her shoulder and shot a venomous glare at the earl. “I despiseyou. Oh, no, I willnotbe going anywhere withyou, Lord Cosgrove, not now or at any time in the future. I own my own property, you see, far away from London and Drury Lane, and I will have my own life there, anormallife, away from you and men like you.”
She took a deep breath. “And now, Lady Thurlby, if you’ll excuse me, I will go pack my things so I may leave in the morning. I only pray you will take pity on my friend Miss Weston and Mr. Drake too, for I doubt he will leave her side, and allow them to stay under your roof until I can secure arrangements for them to join me. If I may beg that one favor of you, I will be forever in your debt. Thank you for allowing my friends and me to share your home and your family. You are extraordinarily blessed in the family you have. I hope you know that.”
