AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter Eight
“Ilike Lady Eleanor,” Lord Whitney said as the gentlemen entered the library after dinner. “I hope the ladies let her into the group.”
Nick shut the door then went to the decanter. “You only say that because she’s interested in your book.”
Lord Whitney shrugged. “What’s wrong with that? It’d be nice ifLadies of Gracehad someone besides my wife who appreciates history.”
“Nothing’s wrong with it, but I suspect she was more interested in making conversation with you than learning about the fall of the Roman Empire.” Nick poured brandy into four glasses. “I think she’s nervous about getting into the group and has opted to ask questions from everyone in attendance in order to appear more interesting.”
Byron’s eyebrows raised in interest. Nick picked up on more than his expression revealed. Byron hoped the gentleman didn’t suspect he had come to this dinner party with ulterior motives.
Nick held out a glass of brandy to him. “Mr. Tumilson, we might as well get beyond formalities. You can refer to me as Nick, Lord Whitney as Piers, and Lord Powell as Gill.”
Byron accepted the glass of brandy. “Everyone can call me Byron.”
“Well,” Piers interrupted, “I don’t care if she was asking about my book because she’s worried about getting into the group. She listened to what I told her. I know that because she asked more questions that were in line with her previous ones. She has to have some interest in the topic to do that.”
Gill took his glass of brandy. “Does it really matter? If she makes it in the group, she’ll be stuck talking to the ladies all the time. We don’t often have dinner parties together.”
Byron waited until the others were sitting before picking a chair to settled into.
Piers glanced at the others. “Am I the only one who thinks Lady Eleanor will make a good addition to the group?”
“No, you’re not,” Nick assured him as he crossed his legs. “I think she’ll be good for it. My wife has been having the hardest time finding a suitable replacement for my sister. Cress can’t be in the group anymore because she’s in Quebec, and my younger sister has no interest in the social affairs of London. It turns out finding a reputable lady is more difficult than I imagined. You not only have to think about the kind of family she comes from, but her actions have to meet with the Ton’s approval. Then there’s the compatibility issue. The lady has to get along with the other ladies in the group.” He shook his head. “I still remember the arguments my wife had with Lady Blakemoor when they led the group together. Those two couldn’t agree on anything.”
Gill laughed. “At least that’s all in the past. And now I know why your wife is so careful in choosing who’ll be a part of the group. She doesn’t want to risk another Lady Blakemoor.”
“No, she doesn’t.” Nick sipped his brandy. “Enough about all of that. We haven’t given the newcomer sufficient time to talk. Tell us something about yourself, Byron.”
“What do you want to know?” Byron asked.
Nick thought for a moment. “You’re Lady Eleanor’s suitor. Is a proposal imminent?”
Byron had to stop himself before he spit out his brandy. Good heavens. Like he would—or even could—marry a noble lady! He managed to swallow his brandy before saying, “No, a proposal is not imminent.”
“It’s not? Why? She has everything a gentleman could ask for,” Piers said, not hiding his surprise. “She’s attractive, intelligent, and witty. Best of all, her father is well established. I know him from White’s. He’s a bit formal about rules, but he’s pleasant enough. I don’t foresee him making any problems for his future son-in-law.”
Byron couldn’t come out and tell these gentlemen that his financial situation prohibited him from marrying someone like her. He couldn’t give away the real reason he was here, either. He had to keep up the pretense of being interested in Lady Eleanor. Finally, he settled on a suitable response. He gave the gentlemen a grin. “I do enjoy Lady Eleanor’s company. She’s a fine lady. But I want to make sure she’s an ideal match for me. I don’t want to rush into marriage.”
“I can understand that,” Gill said. “Marriage is for life. You want to do everything you can to make sure you end up with someone you’ll be happy with.”
Relieved someone had accepted the lie, Byron nodded. “Exactly.” Then he took another sip of his brandy.
Piers, however, wasn’t so easy to convince, for he argued, “I don’t see how you can do better than Lady Eleanor. My wife knows many ladies who are in their Season, and few have the kind of reputation that Lady Eleanor does. That’s why my wife suggested her for membership intoLadies of Grace.”
“So that’s how Tara found out about her,” Nick said. “I wondered about that. Lady Eleanor hasn’t been in London for very long. All I know is that Lord and Lady Cadwalader approve of her father.”
“He thinks highly of them as well,” Byron replied, hoping they could steer the conversation away from him being Lady Eleanor’s suitor. The fewer lies he had to come up with, the better.
“Yes, it is all about Lord and Lady Cadwalader, isn’t it?” Piers mused. “EverythingLadies of Gracestrives for is their approval.”
“I can’t complain,” Nick said. “It’s why my wife married me. She thought I would be a good addition to the group. Granted, I’m not officially in it, but the Cadwaladers judge the members by the husbands, too. ‘Bad company corrupts good habits,’ is what they say.”
“Well, they wouldn’t be wrong,” Byron replied. “The kinds of people we choose to associate with does say something about us.” Most of the time, a crime was committed by someone the victim knew. “Is Lady Eleanor close to any of your wives?”
Gill shook his head. “Heather barely knows her. She’s only seen her the two times Lady Eleanor has been invited to a social event withLadies of Grace, and that includes this evening’s dinner party.”
In that case, Heather probably had no reason to wish harm on Lady Eleanor. Byron directed his gaze to the other two gentlemen, especially Piers. Perhaps Piers’ admiration of Lady Eleanor had upset his wife. Maybe she brought up Lady Eleanor to Tara in hopes that Tara would invite her to the group. As the old adage went,Keep your friends close but your enemies closer.What better way could a lady learn about another lady than through an informal encounter like a dinner party?
