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“God's balls, surely it's still the middle of the night!” Frances protested. “Go away!”
Bess ignored her protests. “It's almost ten; you'll sleep the day away, and you asked me to remind you that you had a special dinner party to plan this morning.”
“Lud, how do you put up with me?” She picked up a hand mirror and stuck out her tongue. “My mouth tastes like I've been licking the bottom of the parrot cage.”
Bess handed her a cup of chocolate and sat down on the wide bed. “Lady Frances, I don't know how to thank you for everything you've done for me. I am so very grateful—”
“Rubbish, I'm the one who's grateful. Bess, we deal so comfortably together. I'm not the least ashamed of letting you share all my tawdry secrets, because I know I can count on your discretion. I have a new groom I'm absolutely panting for—he's such a big young brute! You will accompany us when we go riding and make sure we are not disturbed. I need absolute privacy while he gives me equestrian lessons.”
Bess laughed, thinking Frances was simply being her outrageous self and trying to shock her.
“And of course I'll make sure you are not disturbed when you entertain a lover. Speaking of Rogue Cavendish brings me to the dinner party we must plan.”
The smile left Bess's face and was replaced by a blush. “Cavendish isn't my lover.”
Frances stared at her in utter amazement. “You clever girl! You've put the ultimate price on your favors as Anne Boleyn did. No bedding without a wedding! How in the name of God have you managed to hold that rampant stallion at bay? Or for that matter, how do you control your own lust, darling? I know I can't!”
It suddenly dawned on Bess that lust was exactly what she felt when Cavendish touched her. “I refuse to play the whore.”
“Darling, we're all whores under the skin, whether we give ourselves by calculation or by desire. It's just that some of us demand a higher price than others. You are quite clever to demand marriage when you know he'll be widowed shortly. Just don't let any other woman steal your candy. While you're pushing him off with one hand, be sure to keep him hot for you with the other. Remember that the steps to the mating dance are advance as well as retreat. I told you years ago that cockteasing was the surest method of trapping a husband; I'm most flattered you are taking my advice.”
It's not like that! Bess protested silently, then her innate honesty came to the fore. It's exactly like that! she admitted to herself with a blush.
“This dinner for Sir William could be as important for you as it is for him, if you have ambitions to become Lady Cavendish.”
Bess did not deny her ambition. Instead, she stopped protesting and listened carefully.
“To become a privy councillor, Sir William must have the approval and backing of the other privy councillors— hence the dinner party. Since the lord high treasurer, William Paulet, is William's patron, he'll be amenable, as will his friend Parr, and of course William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke.”
It was suddenly brought home to Bess just how important marriage was at the Tudor Court. One of Parr's sisters had become queen by marrying King Henry, while Parr's other sister had long been Countess of Pembroke by marrying William Herbert. Parr himself was about to wed Elizabeth Brooke, daughter of Lord Cobham, while Elizabeth's brother, Thomas, was espoused to Cavendish's daughter.
“Will you invite the wives to the dinner party?”
“Yes, indeed, Bess. The influence of a wife is quite often the driving force behind an important man. Take Privy Councillor Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford. He made Ann Stanhope his countess. I hate her with a passion! She is a rabid bitch—jealous, avaricious, grasping— in short, just the kind of woman an ambitious man needs. Be extremely wary of her, Bess. On the other hand you need not worry about John Dudley's wife, Lady Warwick, or William Herbert's wife, Lady Pembroke, for they already know you from your visit to Chelsea.”
“It sounds like even a simple dinner party can be filled with intrigue and back-stabbing. Perhaps I shouldn't attend,” Bess said doubtfully.
“If you wish to be a successful player at the Tudor Court, you cannot be fainthearted. A woman with your brains and beauty could be an invaluable aid in Cavendish's climb to the ivory tower. You must partner him if you want the highest in the land to think of you and Cavendish as a couple.”
“That is the last thing I want! My reputation would be ruined, for they all know he's a married man. Besides that, it would drive away any other suitors.”
“Then I shall seat you next to someone else at dinner. Let's see, the Earl of Shrewsbury is a widower and will need a partner.”
“I've met the Earl of Shrewsbury. He was most kind to me when I appealed to him for help.”
“Then we shall seat you next to him so that you can appeal to him again. He's an unknown factor. Since he's one of the few men in England who doesn't need money, he may not back William. Be sure to wear a gown that shows off your lovely breasts. Older men are notoriously ruttish.”
That evening, as Bess walked through the Long Gallery with Frances Grey's brother, Lord Suffolk, who was escorting her to supper, she came face to face with Rogue Cavendish, who had just walked down the Strand from Whitehall.
“Bess, will you take supper with me?”
“Won't you join Lord Suffolk and me?” she invited graciously.
Cavendish fixed young Suffolk with a challenging glance. “Lord Dorset is looking for you.”
Since Suffolk was no match for the masterful Cavendish, the youth excused himself.
“That was rather high-handed,” Bess accused.
