by Sahara Kelly
“He is,” she smiled back. “I’m so happy. His note says that he’s very pleased with the match, even though we didn’t seek his consent.” She glanced at Maud. “Should I have done so?”
“Well,” Maud thought about it. “I suppose yes, that would have been the proper procedure. But given that you are here with us, under the Sydenham wing, so to speak…I think Giles trusts us enough to add his endorsement to ours. However, you did the right thing holding off on any formal announcement until he had given his approval.”
“So it can go into the Times now, then,” nodded Judith. “I’ll let Ragnor know.”
“You’re going to stay in London?”
“For the moment,” answered Judith, her eye caught by the flash of light bouncing off the surface of the beautiful ruby ring on her third finger.
“It is a lovely ring, darling.”
“I apologise,” Judith chuckled. “It distracts me now and again. Anyway…yes, we’ll make our home here in town for a while. Ragnor has suggested that after the wedding we might honeymoon at Withersby Park. It sounds a lovely place to be as spring comes in, and then we’ll be back.”
“An excellent notion,” agreed Maud. “So other than the wedding arrangements, everything is proceeding quite nicely, I’d say.”
“I couldn’t have done any of this without you and Sir Laurence, you know.” Judith gazed at the older woman. “I’d never have come to London, met Ragnor, had so many adventures, made friends, played piquet…” her lips twisted into a grin, “none of it would have happened if not for you two.” She got up and hurried round the table to hug Lady Maud. “Thank you,” she whispered. “From the bottom of my heart.”
“Now now, what’s all this?” Sir Laurence walked in. “Do I deserve a hug if they’re being given away?”
“Always,” said Judith, her throat clogged with tears. “I am very much in your debt. All my happiness, so many wonderful things…all because of you both.”
Sir Laurence hugged her back. “Well, we are quite brilliant at that sort of thing, you know.”
The tears cleared and the laughter returned. “Truly, I had no idea, but now? Yes, I could not agree more.”
Sir Laurence let her go and went to his customary seat at the table. “Well, Maud. What on earth are we going to do with ourselves once our Judith here leaves us for that rascal Withersby?”
Maud flashed him a brilliant smile. “Have you forgotten? We have a new season of the Wednesday Club to plot, my dear. More fun, more music…” She touched a fingertip to her chin in thought. “I wonder if we should feature musical recitals now and then? Just to keep every evening fresh and different.”
Sir Laurence rattled his paper as he opened it wide. “Whatever you’d like, my love. Whatever you’d like.” He peered over the top of his page at Judith. “But you, Miss, you’re going to promise me one thing every day—from now on until you leave.”
“Of course, sir. What would you like?”
“Another game of piquet…”
The End
Footnotes from Sahara
Princess Charlotte of Wales, the daughter of the Prince Regent, did give birth toward the end of 1818, although it was in November…a little earlier than implied here in this story. Sadly, the child was stillborn and within hours the Princess herself had passed away. London was thrown into a period of deep mourning, and it is highly likely that no scandals at all, Fiona and Lord Rolfe’s or any others, would have been circulated at that time. England wept for its beloved Princess.
While the London Season is well-recorded as being “the time Parliament was in session”, the actual dates have slithered around a bit over the years. Originally the Season began with the opening of Parliament in October. The roads were not good back then, and most Londoners stayed put over the Christmas break.
However, with the advent of easier travelling conditions, the need to stay in town over the winter dwindled. Many families preferred to leave the metropolis and celebrate at their own country estates, returning to town at the end of January for the February start of Parliament.
Hence the real “Season”, mentioned here and in so many other Regency tales, begins in the spring and runs into the early to mid-summer. The “Little Season”, which arrived in our books courtesy of Georgette Heyer, was most likely a real phenomenon, attracting those who, for whatever reason, wished for entertainment in a cold and wintry London.
Whether they actually called it the “Little Season” or not, is a matter for debate. I like to think it covers a less-formal series of parties and events. And since this book is fiction, I’ll happily incorporate it into my story and hope no one objects too strongly.
And on a final note, my profound apologies to anyone who is an aficionado of the game of piquet. It was indeed one of the most popular card games during the Regency, and caused more financial troubles than most everything else. Fortunes were regularly wagered on a partie, and the game itself has a long and storied history.
It is, as I discovered, the most agonisingly convoluted game of cards ever to come out of the human brain. I tried—I really did—to grasp the concepts, but even when I thought I was close, they slipped away leaving me with a handful of cards that meant very little. I’m not of a mathematical “bent”, nor am I good at remembering numerous different directions. Also, for once, the Internet is very thin when it comes to information, and the sites I found were full of so many variations my ears began to bleed.
I’ve done my best with those scenes—so have pity on an author who is not good at cards, and please excuse any glaring inaccuracies for which I take full responsibility.
Watch for the next Wednesday Club book - A Melody for Rose
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About the Author
British born and bred, Sahara Kelly has enjoyed writing and reading Regency romances for many decades, beginning in her childhood with books by Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer and Barbara Cartland.
Arriving in America with her almost-complete collection of Leslie Charteris’ Saint novels, all the original James Bonds, and a passion for Monty Python, Sahara’s new life eventually expanded to include a husband, offspring, citizenship, and a certain amount of acclimation to her new surroundings.
She never quite managed to attain a level of comfort with the American way of spelling, however, and creating a Regency novel offers challenges in that regard. So you’ll see words that British readers will recognise, but American readers might perhaps find unusual. It’s a choice… should one write an English romance using English spelling? Sahara has come around to that belief. She can now enjoy the extra “u” which has always seemed so colourful…
After more than two decades of writing, Sahara is now enjoying the greater freedom offered to authors by the rapidly expanding self-publishing scene and looking forward to many more such experiences.
Being freed of external controlling restraints has opened doors—for Sahara and many other writers. There are now no impediments; no obstructions barring the path from writer to reader. Which is, in many ways, exactly as originally intended when that first storyteller sat on a rock outside her cave, tugged her bearskin around her shoulders and smiled at her kids across the open fire with the words “Once upon a time...” (or however it sounded several million years ago.)
To find out more about Sahara Kelly and her writing, please drop by her website and visit her at:
Sahara Kelly’s website
This is where Sahara shares none of the intimate details of her life, but will present you with a list of books she'd like you to buy so that she can go do research on a beach in Aruba and be pampered with massages accompanied by drinks with umbrellas in them. She’ll send you a postcard. Thank you.
When not dreaming of lazing on tropical beaches, Sahara has a modestly active social presence on the Internet. Take a look:
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Also By Sahara Kelly
(*- co-written with S.L. Carpenter)
Lady Adalyn
The Saga of Wolfbridge Manor – Book 1
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The Landlocked Baron
Book 1 in the Six Pearls of Baron Ridlington series
St. Simon’s Sin
Book 2 in the Six Pearls of Baron Ridlington series
Word of a Lady
Book 3 in the Six Pearls of Baron Ridlington series
The Mistress Wager
Book 4 in the Six Pearls of Baron Ridlington series
Blackmail and the Bride
Book 5 in the Six Pearls of Baron Ridlington series
Mistletoe Masquerade
A Ridlington Christmas Novella
~
The Mistletoe Marquess
Outrageous Ladies
~
Honor and Secrets
Book 1 in the Gypsy Gentlemen Series
Control and Compassion
Book 2 in the Gypsy Gentlemen Series
Endings and Beginnings
Book 3 in the Gypsy Gentlemen Series
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Consent
Sword Play
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Oh My Laird!
Book 4 in the Regency Rascals Series
Deverell’s Obsession
Book 3 in the Regency Rascals Series
The Fifth Wife
Book 2 in the Regency Rascals Series
Julia and the Devil
Book 1 in the Regency Rascals Series
~
Discreet Madness
The Viscount and the Witch
Feels So Right*
~
Whole Lotta Love Series
Love in the Cards*
Love on the Road*
Love Under the Lights*
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Happy Endings*
With a Little Help from my Friends (with Ciana Stone)
Letting Off Steam
Winding Her Up
Stripping Her Gears
My Renaissance Romance
Hired Help*
Open House
So Into You*
Faerieland needs YOU
My Wish
My Prize
My Hero
Showing Off *
And more.
~
Sahara would like to mention that she and S.L. Carpenter co-own a small business and have been up and running for over five years. They have blended another of their shared passions — art — and formed an online graphics business focusing on the complicated world of writers. If you’re interested in seeing what they get up to when they’re not writing something twistedly hot and sexy, they’d like to invite you to come visit their company at the link below and check out some of the amazing cover art they’re creating. No wonder they have no time to be bored!
P and N Graphics
www.pandngraphics.com
Happy Reading…