AllFreeNovel
Share Us
But I would never have the opportunity to live such a life. I was neither beautiful, rich, nor of the peerage.
“You donotwant to be having dalliances with rakes, Cassandra.” I said, trying to be serious.
Indeed, the situation was comical, but only to a degree. It was only a matter of time before Lord Marsden and Juliana were found out. While the Lord had clearly already squandered his reputation, Juliana had much more to lose. Her engagement to Lord Turley would surely be broken off, and her father would likely send her home… or to a convent. Not even her great beauty could save her from that.
I remembered Lady Radcliffe’s words from the day previously.
“Beauty is far less important than decorum.”
I hated to admit it, but sometimes, Lady Radcliffe was right. At least when it came to London society.
“If Juliana and Lord Marsden are discovered,” I spoke quietly, looking Cassandra dead in the eye, “She will be ruined. Her time in London will be over, forever.”
The younger girl nodded, acknowledging the reality solemnly. But then a guilty smile crept onto her face.
“What?” I said, raising my eyebrows.
“Well, if that does indeed happen, my grandmother will surely forbid me from marrying Alfred. I wouldn’t mind that at all.” She grinned.
“Though, of course, I would feel terrible for Juliana.”
She added the last part in a hurry.
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“I suppose your right, Cassie. Silver lining, indeed.”
“Was Lord Marsden always this much of a… scoundrel?” Cassandra asked, her wide eyes probing my expression.
I rarely spoke of my childhood. All Cassandra knew was that we had known each other at Rosehill, though I had never divulged the closeness of our relationship.
I bit my lip, remembering the boy he had been. How he’d pushed me on the long swing in the Rosehill Garden and picked me roses from the hedgerows. How we’d played hide-and-seek in the orchard… him pulling on my long braids with a cheeky smile…
“No, not really. I mean, not like this.”
I finally said, my mind still off in distant places.
On the surface, the Lord Marsden I had encountered the past month was far from the boy I had grown up with. This Marsden was sarcastic and flippant, and if even half of the things people said about him were true, he was definitely not to be trusted.
He was a rake of the worst sort, through and through.
But when I’d talked to him on Gracechurch Street, I thought that I had seen the smallest glimmer of my old friend… of Will. It was just a hint, but his kind, probing eyes made me feel like I was back at Rosehill, running through the halls behind him.
Plus, he’d remembered me, and I couldn’t deny that it made me feel a little special. When he’d stared at me without a glimmer of recognition at Lord Turley’s party, it had felt like an icy knife was plunged somewhere deep into my chest. I couldn’t say why it hurt so much, but it did. He was one of the last reminders of my childhood, of a happier time, and his lack of recognition had felt like a rejection of the years we had spent together.
But when he’d finally said my full name,Amelia Allen, it felt like the knife was pulled out again. Like I wasn’t completely forgotten, forever doomed to be the invisible charity case of Lady Radcliffe…
Lord Marsden had made me feel special. And that was a rare feeling.
[line bre
Two weeks passed and nothing seemed to be amiss.
Indeed, we heard much about Lord Marsden – the rumors of his rakish behavior and wayward bachelordom were, at this point, legend – but nothing of Juliana.
We even had tea with Alfred Pembroke at his townhouse with Juliana in attendance. She sat at the table, looking rather distant and bored, adding in appropriate nods or laughs to the conversation, but giving no indication that she was involved in a scandal at all.
By this point, it was the end of the season and the number of social events had slowed significantly. Cassandra and I spent most of our time in her grandmother’s townhouse or taking walks in Hyde Park. We were waiting anxiously forsomethingto happen, good or bad.
