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“Are you staying here?” Dorothea asked as she sat in a chair near the window, folding her hands in her lap. “Or have you and your husband taken lodgings elsewhere?”
“We are staying a short carriage ride away. Matthew’s joining us for dinner tonight.” Madeline looked from Dorothea to Regina. “Mother told us why you’re in London. Matthew has quite a few eligible friends we could introduce you to—”
“That’s very kind of you,” Ellie cut in quickly. “But how about we settle in first before we start talking about husbands?”
Madeline shrugged. Emma nodded.
“That sounds about right. After all, you’ve been travelling for a while. You need nourishment and rest before you think about anything else.”
Ellie couldn’t agree more. She just wished that she didn’t have to think about marriage, for her or any of her sisters. But as she was finding out now, letting it happen naturally when her father was sick was no longer an option.
***
“I do love a sunset,” Randall Copelton said as he and Derrick walked along the path. “It’s better when it’s in the country, though. No smog floating around to get in the way of the scene.”
“Or the smell.” Derrick took a sniff of the air and made a face. “I don’t understand why they built the factories so close to where we live. If the wind is blowing the right way, it makes my eyes water.”
“Same here. But it could be worse. We could be living near that tannery a short way from your estate in Northampton.”
Derrick had to concede that. That did absolutely stink. His house in London wasn’t too far from a pottery, and he had heard rumours that they made the china cups out of bone. It was known as fine-bone china. After all, why else would one of the workers at that factory ‘the bone cleaner’?
It was a little disconcerting knowing that he was drinking tea out of something made of animal bones, but Derrick was in no position to complain. At least the crockery was well-made.
“So, have you heard about the ball at Lord and Lady Yaxley’s home tomorrow night?” Randall asked, twirling his cane before he tapped it on the path as he walked. “I’ve heard it’s going to be a bit of a wild party.”
“A wild party? At Lord Yaxley’s?” Derrick snorted. “I doubt that’s going to happen.”
“Well, I have it on good authority. Besides, if it isn’t, there’s always the club nearby. We can go there and make things more interesting.”
“You can, anyway. I can’t.”
“How come?”
Derrick frowned. “You know why. I am an earl, after all.”
Randall sniggered. “Oh, of course. You have to find yourself a wife. You are almost thirty, and you’re still unmarried. Your poor mother must be going out of her mind.”
Derrick rapped him sharply with his cane. Randall winced and hobbled out of reach.
“Hey! Not the shins! That hurt!”
“Serves you right. You know I don’t like the situation.”
“Just tell your mama that you’re not going to do it. There’s nothing wrong with a grown man telling his mother that he’s not going to do as she wants.”
Derrick sighed. Being a single gentleman with both parents having passed away long ago, Randall didn’t have anyone to answer to. With his playful demeanour, Randall Copelton was one of those rakes who didn’t seem to care much about how his future was going. How he hadn’t ended up in a duel for taking things too far, Derrick had no idea. His friend just seemed to have all the luck.
And he was able to walk around without having to worry about finding a wife. Or, at least, he had nobody pestering him into finding a wife. Derrick wasn’t so lucky. He had been Earl of Northampton for four years now, and there was no woman in sight. His mother was in despair about this. It was becoming a regular conversation, something that Derrick didn’t like.
“You’ve met my mother, Randall. Do you really think that’s something I can do to dissuade the dowager countess?”
“Erm… fair point.” Randall shrugged. “I’m just glad she’s not my mother. I’m fond of her, but she is awfully scary when she wants to be.”
“I won’t argue with that,” Derrick grunted. “At least she’s given me a bit of leeway. She’s granted me until I turn thirty to find a wife on my own before she looks for me.”
“But that means you’ve only got six months to have your own way, doesn’t it?”
“Five months.”
