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Chapter 6
Lavinia stood outside the door to her townhouse, breathing deeply. Before, at the ball, she’d thought that staying there, watching Dane dance with Caroline, worrying about her fate while everyone was oblivious to her plight, was the worst kind of torture. But now that Annalise’s carriage had driven off, leaving Lavinia behind, there was no recourse but to enter her father’s townhouse, and she couldn’t make herself move.
What Lavinia realized—what she should have realized earlier—was that she didn’t want to go to her father’s residence, she’d just wanted to leave the ballroom. It hurt watching Dane and Caroline together. It hurt being lonely when all her friends were happy with their spouses. And it hurt having nowhere to come home to.
Yes, she did have a roof she resided under, but it wasn’t home. Anywhere Lavinia went, she was a burden. Of course, her friends didn’t think of her that way, but they had their new lives now. She was just a part of their former life, a part that still kept them miserable when they could have been gloriously happy if they’d just left her alone.
So she stood on the doorstep of her father’s house, wondering if another blow waited for her inside. Had her father awakened and spoken, or was she to spend another night grappling with the unknown?
Annalise was right. It would be better for everyone if she just married.
But finding any suitor who would be willing to wed her required a concentrated effort on her part to seem agreeable. That was a state she was not sure she could achieve under the circumstances.
Lavinia took a fortifying breath. She couldn’t stand outside of the townhouse forever. She needed to enter.
The door swung open as soon as she knocked, and her butler’s pale face stared at her gloomily.
“My lady,” he said as he took her cloak. “The new master has arrived.”
Lavinia’s entire body tensed. “The new master?”
“Yes. Lord Birch’s successor.”
Lavinia froze, her mind going blank. The new master. She hadn’t thought he would be here before her father’s death. She hadn’t thought about what awaited her when he arrived.Oh, Lord.
But before she could ask anything from the frightened servant, light steps sounded in the hall, and then a tall, confident-looking gentleman appeared before her.
“Ah, you must be Lady Lavinia,” he said with a smile. Laugh lines appeared at the corners of his eyes, and he seemed genuinely delighted to meet her. “Pleasure to finally make your acquaintance.”
Lavinia sank into a slow curtsy. “The pleasure is mine.”
“I know you must be tired, but I wish to speak to you, if you do not mind. I shall not take much of your time, gentleman’s promise.”
The smile never left his face, but goosebumps crawled up Lavinia’s spine. Something about the gentleman did not inspire trust. It might have been his good-natured countenance, for that was something extremely rare in the Birch residence. Or it could just have been Lavinia’s natural mistrust for any man—any man except for Dane, that was.
“Of course.” Lavinia tried for a smile.
The gentleman waved a hand, silently asking for Lavinia to proceed. “We can speak in my—Pardon, in Lord Birch’s study, if you please.”
With a slight nod, Lavinia hastened to the indicated room.
Lord Birch’s successor pulled up a chair for Lavinia, and once she settled in, he rounded the desk and sat opposite her.
“I arrived a few hours ago,” he said. “And I wished to speak with you right away. I was surprised to find out that you were out, not that I can blame you. Having a sick relative is definitely a chore, is it not?”
Was this his way of chastising her for leaving her ill father’s side? “I have been spending my nights by my father’s bed. My stepmother and I alternate. It is impossible for one person to be cooped up in a sickroom all day long without earning a migraine.”
“I do not disagree. My mother—her name was Rose—passed away just a few months ago. It was a trial,” he said. “We lived in a small coastal town, and I was the one looking after her until her final day…”
“My condolences.”
“Thank you. ” He cleared his throat and steepled his fingers on the desk as he watched Lavinia under hooded eyes.
Lavinia shifted uncomfortably. “When did you say you arrived in London?”
“I arrived in London last night. But I didn’t want to bother you so very late, so I came to call upon you today. A few hours ago, as a matter of fact. Lady Birch told me that I had just missed you, so I assume I arrived a few minutes after you left for the ball. How was it?”
“Pleasant enough.” Lavinia made her face expressionless.
