The Earl's Inconvenient Wife (Marriage By Scandal Book 1)

by Ruth Ann Nordin

  She motioned to Lilly to follow her down the hall and noted that Lilly stood on her tiptoes and hurried after her, pretending to be anxious as she did so. Claire resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Leave it to Lilly to make fun of her.

  Once they reached the servants’ staircase, they snuck down the steps. Claire’s heart pounded furiously in her chest, and she stopped at every sound. At what was her tenth time pausing to determine if someone was coming up the stairs, Lilly let out a loud sigh and pushed past her.

  “We’ll grow old and grey by the time we reach the bottom of the stairs at the rate you’re going,” Lilly whispered.

  “I’m sorry. It’s just that my husband would be upset if he found out I dressed up as a chambermaid and snuck into Lord Hedwrett’s home.”

  She rolled her eyes. “This was your idea.”

  “I know that.” And it would be worth it, even if Nate did find out.

  Lilly lifted her skirts and bounced down the steps, not seeming to notice the noise she made. It was on the tip of Claire’s tongue to warn her to be quiet, but she realized Lilly was too far ahead of her so she ran after her. Once they reached the bottom of the steps, they glanced at the kitchen where the kitchen maid was putting dishes away on the shelves. Since she had her back turned to them, they hurried to the back door and slipped outside.

  Claire closed the door softly behind them and collapsed against it. They made it out of the house. Meeting Mister Robinson would be the easy part. Feeling much better, Claire joined Lilly and headed down the street.

  “I don’t know how you can be so calm,” Claire softly said, not wishing for anyone to overhear.

  As far as she could tell, the few people they passed didn’t pay them any mind. Even so, she lowered her head whenever they walked by someone, but Lilly refused to bow her head. Was it possible Lilly was daring someone to discover who she was? It wasn’t like it was dark out. The sun wouldn’t set for another hour.

  “No one cares who we are because we’re supposed to be chambermaids,” Lilly whispered. “You have nothing to worry about. Mister Robinson had a good idea.”

  Feeling better, Claire lifted her head. “You’re right.”

  When they turned down the street where Lord Hedwrett lived, Claire spotted Mister Robinson wearing the same disguise he’d had on the previous day. Thankfully, he’d thought of how they would get into Lord Hedwrett’s residence.

  When they reached the youth, Claire asked, “Is my husband here?”

  “He just got here. We’ll go in through the back,” he replied and turned to lead them around to the back of the residence.

  “Aren’t you afraid someone’s going to see us?” Claire wondered, glancing behind them. So far, it looked like they remained undetected. With any luck, it would stay that way.

  “I know the brother of Lord Hedwrett’s butler’s cousin. He assured me that the staff wouldn’t notice me.”

  “What about us?”

  “Oh, I gave you wigs and clothes so you’d look just like the chambermaids who work for Lord Hedwrett. You both don’t look exactly like them, but as long as you don’t make eye contact with anyone, they’ll assume you’re them.”

  “You thought through everything, didn’t you?” Lilly commented, sounding impressed.

  “You have to if you’re going to get past Lord Roderick,” he muttered. They reached the back door, and he glanced at Claire. “It’s a good thing chambermaids aren’t seen or heard.”

  Deciding not to comment, Claire waited for him to open the door and led Lilly into the house before she followed behind them. She shut the door behind her and hastened after them as they made their way to the servants’ stairs. She noticed the butler collect a decanter and a couple of glasses to put on a tray. The butler looked in their direction but turned his attention swiftly back to the tray as if he hadn’t seen them. She shook her head. Just how many connections did Mister Robinson have? There was no doubt about it. He had to be one of the most resourceful people she’d ever met.

  They went up the stairs and down a hall, back down another flight of stairs and then back up. On their way through another hallway, she stopped him.

  “Where are we going?” she whispered, though there was no one from the household in sight.

  “We’re going to the drawing room,” he replied.

  “But isn’t it close to the entrance of this house?”

  “Of course.”

  She forced back her exasperation. “Then why are we going up and down stairs as if we were going through a maze?”

  “There’s no point in sneaking into a house if you take the direct route.”

  At that, Lilly giggled.

  Claire groaned. Leave it to her sister and Mister Robinson to think the unnecessary steps was funny. “Mister Robinson, the future of my sister’s happiness is at stake.”

  He shook his head as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Lord Hedwrett’s brother told me he never starts with business. He likes to play a couple of games first. Right now your husband is probably trying to avoid playing for money. Lord Hedwrett has a tendency to cheat, too, so gentlemen have to be careful.”

  “I doubt Lord Roderick will be taken in by Lord Hedwrett’s ploy.”

  “I have no doubt you’re right, but that won’t stop Lord Hedwrett from trying.”

  Claire glanced at Lilly, wondering what she thought of that, but Lilly was peering into one of the bedrooms. She went over to her and took her by the arm. “Come on, Lilly. We aren’t here to see the house.”

  “But it’s a beautiful one!” Lilly whispered. “The curtains are such a lovely shade of purple.”

  “Let’s go,” she muttered, dragging Lilly with her as Mister Robinson turned down the hallway so they could go down another flight of steps.

  This time, he led them straight to the drawing room which was next to the saloon. To her surprise, he moved aside a portrait from the wall and motioned to a peephole in the wall. Her jaw dropped. What was the peephole doing there? Did Lord Hedwrett know it existed? Were there similar holes in her townhouse or at Weston? She’d have to inspect the rooms of her homes at her earliest convenience. In the meantime, she had more important things to think about.

  She peered through the hole and saw Lord Hedwrett and her husband playing cards at a small round table. She backed away from the wall and gestured for her sister to look through it. As much as she wanted to watch what happened, it was more important Lilly got to see it instead. While Lilly looked through the peephole, Claire brought her ear to the wall. Though the words were mostly muffled, she was able to make out some of what they said. She furrowed her eyebrows and focused on what they were saying.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Are you sure you don’t want to make the game more interesting by adding some money to the table?” Hedwrett asked, leaning forward in his chair.

  “No,” Nate said, wishing they could be done playing cards so they could get down to business.

  He’d heard Hedwrett liked to wiggle as much money from others as possible, so Hedwrett’s insistence that they play piquet hadn’t come as a surprise, but he sure did wish he could tell Hedwrett what he could do with his greedy claws. But he couldn’t. Instead, he had to hope that one of them would get a hundred points and end the game.

  “Not much of a gambling gentleman, hmm?” Hedwrett shuffled the cards, and though Nate couldn’t be sure, he thought he saw the gentleman slip a card under his sleeve. “I can’t resist a challenge. Of course, I hear Lord Edon can bluff his way through any game.”

  “Oh?”

  “You’re in White’s, aren’t you?”

  Nate nodded, not sure if he wanted to find out where this conversation was going.

  “I haven’t been there. I prefer Brooks’s.”

  “Both are fine clubs,” he cautiously said as Hedwrett dealt the cards.

  “Lord Edon often plays games at White’s, doesn’t he?”

  “Yes.” He picked up his cards and glanced at
them before he glanced at Hedwrett, wondering when, or if, he’d pull out the card he had slipped under his sleeve. “I can’t stay here much longer. I have pressing matters to tend to at home.” Sure, the pressing matters he referred to had to do with spending time with Claire, but he figured there was no need to explain what he meant to Hedwrett.

  “I heard you’re a gentleman who works hard, but it’s never a bad idea to allow for some play.”

  Hedwrett wiggled his finger and clucked his tongue in a way that only served to annoy Nate further. For goodness’ sake! Did Hedwrett think he was a child?

  The door opened, and Nate glanced over to see the butler carrying a tray with a decanter and glasses on it. He shifted uncomfortably in the chair. He didn’t mind drinking port wine, but he hoped Hedwrett wouldn’t pester him to drink more than he usually did. As it was, the gentleman had managed to get him to play cards, and unlike other gentlemen, he hated to play cards. Nate bit back the urge to sigh in case Hedwrett realized how much he was bothering him.

  “Do you collect wine, Lord Roderick?” Hedwrett asked as the butler poured some of it into their glasses.

  “No, I don’t, but my brother did.”

  “A shame. I make it a habit of only getting the best, and he was bragging he had some that dated back a century.”

  He exchanged a card from the deck stacked at the center of the table and studied it, trying to determine if he could use it to his advantage or if he should intentionally let the other gentleman win. “Not anymore. My brother got rid of them.”

  “I suppose he got tired of his collection.” Picking up his glass, he drank almost the entire glass before setting it on the table and gave a satisfied smile. “No, this is not one of my vintage bottles, but I’m happy to say that it came from the Duke of Watkins. He knows a gentleman who can make wine that tastes as if it’s been sitting in a bottle for a hundred years. I don’t know what his secret is, but I wouldn’t mind teaching it to my staff. God knows they could use something more to occupy their time. The other day, I caught the valet in a rather embarrassing situation with a chambermaid. Granted, these things happen, but if they insist on it, I’d rather they do it when there isn’t work to be done.” Hedwrett picked up a new card from the deck and looked at Nate’s glass. “I hope you’ll taste it.”

  After he picked up another card, Nate dutifully retrieved his glass and sipped the wine in it. How he wished he could leave already. The last thing he wanted was to hear Hedwrett gossip about his household.

  “What do you think?” Hedwrett asked.

  “About what?”

  “The wine, of course.”

  “Oh!” Nate took another sip and nodded. “It’s good.” At least as good as any other wine he’d had. He didn’t know what made it special, but he supposed taste was subjective.

  “It’s good, he says.” With an exaggerated eye roll, he chuckled. “I hate to say this, Lord Roderick, but you don’t know good wine if all you can say is that this wine is good.”

  Nate shrugged. “I’m preoccupied with the game. Shall we get back to it?” He lifted his cards, praying this would be the last round he’d have to suffer through.

  “Yes. You’re very focused.”

  “It’s how I managed to rectify the damage my steward did.”

  Hedwrett smirked. “I suppose it is. Too bad we can’t combine your steward’s amiability with your ability to properly settle financial matters.” He picked up another card, and with a wide smile, added, “I believe I got a hundred points, Lord Roderick.”

  Relieved, he set his cards down. Good. The game was finally over! Maybe now he could pay Hedwrett and go home.

  “You’re a terrible card player. No wonder you don’t want to bet with money.” Hedwrett let out a hearty laugh and motioned for the butler to pour him more wine. “Drink up, my lord. It’s impolite to not accept my gift to you.”

  Nate picked up his full glass and forced himself to drink the wine. When he was done, Hedwrett motioned to the butler to pour more wine into Nate’s glass, and as much as he wanted to protest, he didn’t dare.

  Hedwrett sat back in his large chair and sipped his wine. “You may leave,” he told his butler with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Good help is so hard to find, don’t you agree, Lord Roderick? Even this butler can’t seem to remember where the good wine is located in my cellar. If I didn’t know better, I’d say he was smuggling the good bottles to his room.”

  He let out another boisterous laugh. Nate glanced at the butler who closed the door behind him on the way out. No wonder Hedwrett’s servants were known for either gossiping about him or running off as soon as they could. Hedwrett had no sense of diplomacy.

  After Hedwrett drank half the contents in his glass, he let out a contented sigh. “Yes, that wine gets better every time I taste it. But never mind that. You have some money to give me. I won’t take up any more of your time. I don’t want to keep you away from those pressing matters at Weston.”

  Nate jumped up and followed Hedwrett to his desk where he pulled out his ledger and ran his fingers down one of the columns. “I’m afraid your ledger is incorrect. I don’t owe you any more money.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I paid everything my steward owed you.”

  Hedwrett shrugged. “But there’s still the matter of interest for being late.”

  “I came here to tell you I’m not paying it.”

  Hedwrett frowned. “I see you a week before making good on the debt. As far as I’m concerned, you owe me compensation for waiting.”

  Irritated, Nate placed his hands on the table and made eye contact with him. “I don’t owe you anything.”

  “Is it because you don’t have any more money? Did your steward leave you destitute?”

  “My financial affairs are not your concern.”

  “Since you owe me some money, they are my concern, but I think I misjudged how much your steward foolishly wasted. Lord Roderick, I’m a reasonable gentleman. I’m sure we can come to an agreement. Perhaps if you’d allow me some time alone with your wife, we could let the extra interest go.”

  Nate didn’t have time to think. He grabbed Hedwrett by the cravat and pulled him over the desk so their noses were barely touching. “If you ever make a suggestion like that to me again, I’ll call you out to a duel, whether it’s legal or not. That money I already gave you settles the debt, but if you feel inclined to press me further, I’ll be sure to approach the gentleman you swindled the next time I’m at White’s club. Do you understand?”

  Hedwrett’s eyes grew wide and he gulped, his face pale.

  “Signal that you understand.”

  He nodded.

  Nate released him. “You disgust me, Lord Hedwrett. If you come near me or my wife, I won’t be responsible for what I do to you.” He straightened up and exhaled to calm his nerves. “The account is settled. You won’t be telling anyone otherwise.”

  Hedwrett reached for the bell at the corner of his desk and rang it. The door to the room opened. “Make sure Lord Roderick is escorted to his carriage,” he told the butler, his voice a bit shaky.

  Satisfied, Nate spun on his heel and headed out of the room.

  ***

  “We have to get out of here,” Mister Robinson whispered.

  Claire and Lilly stepped away from the wall while he put the picture back in place. They hurried after him as he went to the door. He pressed his fingers to his lips and listened at the door as the butler led Nate out the front door. Claire dared a glance at her sister, wondering if she was as shocked by what Lord Hedwrett had said as she was. Lilly’s face was pale, but she gave no indication as to what she was thinking. It was just as well. She’d have to talk to her sister later.

  She turned her attention back to Mister Robinson. Once everything was quiet, he opened the door a crack. He nodded to them and led the way out the door and down a hallway until they reached the servants’ steps. Once they were outside, she released her breath and followed Mister
Robinson and her sister as they made their way around the side of the house.

  To her surprise, Nate was talking to his footman. Claire paused for a moment, wondering why he wasn’t already on his way to the house. Nate looked in her direction, and when his gaze met hers, his eyes grew wide. Gasping, she turned around and followed after Mister Robinson and her sister who had stopped a block away to wait for her.

  As soon as she reached them, her sister asked, “Why did you stop?”

  Keeping pace with her companions, Claire groaned. “I didn’t expect my husband to still be in front of the house. It took me by surprise.” She winced. “I think he knows it was me.”

  “You can’t know that for sure,” Mister Robinson said.

  “Oh, but I can. He gave me the same look he did that day when he caught me dressed up as a stableboy.”

  Lilly halted her steps, grabbed Claire’s arm, and turned her so they were facing each other. “You dressed up as a stableboy?”

  She glanced behind her to make sure Nate’s carriage wasn’t coming down the street. “To see our parents, but mostly to see you.”

  “To see me?”

  “Because you said Lord Hedwrett had taken an interest in you, and I wanted you to marry Mister Morris.”

  “Ladies, can you discuss this later?” Mister Robinson interrupted them.

  Claire glanced to where he was pointing and saw Nate’s carriage heading their way. Startled, she and the others hurried down the street.

  “You don’t have to worry about me,” her sister told her. “I won’t have anything else to do with Lord Hedwrett.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief. Once she reached her townhouse, Mister Robinson darted down another street, and Claire urged her sister into the house where they snuck up the servants’ stairs and to her bedchamber.

  In all her life, Claire had no idea she could change clothes as fast as she did, and afterwards, she stuffed the chambermaids’ clothes and wigs into a trunk and slammed the lid. Out of breath, she motioned for Lilly to hurry to the drawing room. Once downstairs, they passed a surprised butler and made it to the room just in time for the front door to open.