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Chapter Seven
Three days later, their first opportunity to show society he and Charlotte were only friends presented itself. Seth received an invitation to a small dinner party hosted by the Ladies K—his personal endearment for Lady Keats and Lady Kingman. It only required a few messages sent round about and a solitary afternoon for him to learn that Charlotte had been invited as well as both his daughters currently residing in London. They’d all accepted, so Seth quickly penned his own acceptance and then steeled himself for the evening.
It came far too soon.
Wearing his next-finest jacket—one that had cost a ridiculous amount—Seth made his way on the back of his horse, Brushfire, to the London home situated down an undeniably wealthy street. When he arrived, Seth started the horse back toward where he’d be stabled and looked after, but then stopped himself.
When Seth had first been knighted, he’d often forgotten that he now had footmen to open doors and take his horse from him. He would start to open his own door or lead his own horse around back, only to be stopped by a manservant.
From there, it had become a challenge—Seth pitted against his footmen, both seeing if they could reach the door first.
But that was only at his own home, or the homes of his daughters, or at Blackmore House where he was well known. Here, such behavior would not be appreciated as the menservants would expect him to behave as gentlemen of the pamperedtonalways did.
Seth waited patiently until a footman came and took Brushfire away and then made his way inside. Blessedly, by the time he was shown into the drawing room, Eliza and her husband Adam, Lord Lambert, were already arrived.
Eliza greeted him with a smile and an arm through his. “I must confess to being a little surprised to see you here tonight.”
Seth shrugged. “It was necessary.”
“Ah yes,” Adam said, his voice low enough only Eliza and Seth would hear him. “Dinah told us of your plans with Lady Blackmore.” His jacket and breeches actually coordinated well tonight. Eliza must be having a good influence on the notoriously poor dresser. Seth didn’t normally care about such things, but evenhe’dnoticed Adam’s inability to pair what he wore below the waist to what he wore above.
“Sir Mulgrave,” Lady Keats said, walking over toward him with a smile as her hands played with the same long strand of pearls he’d seen about her neck at Charlotte’s ball.
Her expression appeared not at all as pleasant as Eliza’s smile. More than just the difference between the smile of a daughter and the smile of an acquaintance, Lady Keats didn’t look at all pleased he was there.
One of the few disadvantages to being counted one of thetonwas that you didn’t invite whom you wanted to a dinner party; you invited whom it was expected you should invite.
“Lady Keats,” Seth said with a bow. “Thank you for the invitation.”
Her wrinkled lips stayed up, but the look of pleasure in her expression died a long and painful death.
One of the manybenefitsto being counted one of thetonwas that you never had to speak with anyone you didn’t wish to for long. Lady Keats made her excuses and left him to greet another guest almost as soon as he was done with his bow.
“She will not be easily swayed to support your friendship with Lady Blackmore,” Eliza said in the silence of Lady Keats’s parting.
“That’s because,” came Dinah’s light feminine voice from behind Seth, “she’s nothing but an old hen, clucking on about things that have long since stopped being of any importance.”
Seth and Eliza moved to the side so that Dinah and her husband Henry, Lord Stanton, could join their small circle.
“Not so loud,” Eliza said, glancing about, but also laughing slightly at her sister’s honest assessment.
“It’s not as though we don’t all agree,” Dinah said in her own defense.
Seth stood by, quietly, while his daughters and their husbands continued to talk. Eliza, always so kind and considerate, spoke compliments regarding others in attendance, after which Dinah spoke on the adventure she and Henry had encountered while riding their horses through Hyde Park the day before. It included a spooked horse—neither of theirs, but the mount of another rider entirely—a stray cat, and a lot of mud.
For the whole of it, while Adam and Henry often interjected their own thoughts, Seth was content to simply listen.
Just as Dinah was reaching the end of her tale, Charlotte came and stood beside Seth. She was dressed in an enchanting dark blue gown with slender accents of gold lace. He very nearly reached out, took hold of her hand, and wrapped it around his arm.
He was blasted lucky he’d caught himself just in time. The whole point of him being here tonight was to prove to society that he and Charlotte were friends and nothing more.
Still, he couldn’t shake his desire that she stand closer.
“It’s rather an entertaining tale, is it not?” Charlotte asked him.
Dinah continued her story of the cat and horse, and Seth turned his head slightly toward Charlotte so that they wouldn’t interrupt. “She finds entertainment no matter where she goes.”
Charlotte also kept their conversation between them. “Your girls have all found their footing among society, it would seem. It wasn’t that long ago a simple dinner party such as this would have caused them no small amount of distress. But now look at them, carefree and comfortable.”
