A Hero Returns

by Kelly Anne Bruce

  "It is so ridiculous as to be amusing." Beatrice let out a chuckle of her own, then she felt her smile falter. "Except she is extremely upset all of the time. I spend much of my time trying to avoid her."

  "I am so sorry. Do not blame yourself. My father can be completely awful with my brothers. He interferes in nearly every aspect of their lives and can be very critical. I truly believe he is trying to help them but he can be quite horrible. And of course, they hate the intrusion."

  "I am rather sorry for your brothers then. This Season has been miserable save for the week I spent with you at Castborough."

  "Not entirely miserable," Henrietta teased her. "It seems Mr Townsend is still pursuing his suit. Surely your mother is happy about that."

  "Unfortunately, she is more happy about Mr Townsend's interest, than I."

  "Unfortunately?" Henrietta asked her quickly.

  Beatrice looked around the garden to make sure that their conversation was still going unnoticed. Lord and Lady Alderside were still speaking with Lord and Lady Castborough while Beatrice’s mother looked on. Only Mr Townsend glanced over at them.

  "Mr Townsend appears nice in most conversations but as I continue to speak to him I find that he is fairly presumptuous. He has no qualms about making decisions when we are together regardless of my feelings on any manner."

  Henrietta frowned. "I feel as though I have missed something. Are you and he officially courting?"

  "No, we are not. He sent an invitation to take a ride in the park last week, which my mother accepted without my knowledge. I only found out once we were at the park."

  "She accepted? Without speaking to you?"

  "It was horrible." Beatrice quickly told her what had happened.

  "He was dragging you back to his carriage?" Henrietta asked, her eyes wide with worry. "What did you do?"

  "Someone came upon us and Mr Townsend released me. I went straight home." Beatrice was not sure why she did not mention that it was Henrietta's own brother that had come to her rescue. She had been so scared, then so happy and relieved when Lieutenant Repington had arrived. Her feelings were all mixed up and she was not ready to share them.

  "Thank goodness," Henrietta said with relief. "Is that why you were not at Almack’s this week?"

  Beatrice nodded. "I have tried to avoid seeing Mr Townsend. Of course, my mother has other ideas."

  "Your mother is still encouraging a match with Mr Townsend?" Henrietta glanced across the garden at Beatrice's mother.

  "She says that I must be wrong. That I had gotten upset over nothing."

  "You must have told her what happened. She must have wondered when you came home alone."

  Beatrice let out a long sigh. "She was furious that I acted so rashly. It was unladylike of me to have left Mr Townsend in the park." Beatrice noticed more people were moving about the garden and she rushed to finish before they were interrupted. "She forced me to come today since Mr Townsend had procured me an invitation."

  Henrietta looked horrified for a moment and then reached over to pat Beatrice's hand. "Do not worry. I will make sure that you are never alone with that horrid Mr Townsend."

  "Thank you, Henrietta." Beatrice blew out a sigh, "I suppose we should appear to be more social. I do not want you to suffer consequences because of my plight."

  Beatrice stood up and straightened her skirts. When she looked up she saw that Lieutenant Repington had arrived. As soon as she laid eyes on him she felt her heart warmed and she turned away before everyone saw her smile. Her reaction was a surprise to her as well, although she had been thinking about him ever since they had danced at Almack's the previous week. His appearance in the park had just furthered her feelings for him. His embrace being foremost in her thoughts, a memory she would not soon forget.

  Henrietta turned to her and excited smile upon her face. "Charles is here. Come with me to talk to him."

  "Of course," Beatrice answered, happy to go along but hoping she did not look too eager.

  Her worry was for naught as Henrietta rushed across the garden to greet her brother boisterously. "Charles! I did not know you would be here today."

  "Hello, Henrietta!" Lieutenant Repington grinned down at his sister.

  Beatrice's heart fluttered, she told herself that it was natural to react to him. He was a very handsome man. He wore a navy coat that fit his broad shoulders impeccably and she was sure matched the blue of his eyes. It was simply a reaction to seeing any handsome man. A little voice inside her head laughed but she ignored it.

  "I expected to see you at the house but Fletcher said you were staying at the Wainwright house."

  "And Fletcher was right. Patrick Wainwright was on the Peninsula at the same time I was. He just got back and going mad alone in the large house by himself. He asked if I wanted to stay with him since he knew you would be coming up from Castborough." Lieutenant Repington explained." At least until he leaves London."

  "Where's he going?" Henrietta asked looking over at a nice-looking gentleman standing near the trellis where they had been sitting. "Not back to the Peninsula?"

  Lieutenant Repington seemed surprised by her question but easily said, "No, to India."

  "India? But it is so hot there." Henrietta turned to Beatrice. "Can you imagine?"

  Beatrice thought for a moment. "I do not know. It sounds rather fascinating to me." Lieutenant Repington smiled at her and then looked away quickly as though he wished he had not.

  Beatrice his cheeks burned at his reaction. She looked down as though to fix her gloves. Suddenly, she was embarrassed about her emotional behaviour in the park. Mr Townsend's actions had upset her so much that she had forgotten herself. Lieutenant Repington had been so gracious, she hoped that he would forgive her melodrama. To make matters worse, Lady Judith had arrived and came straight to their group.

  "Good afternoon, Lieutenant Repington," Lady Judith said looking up at him through her lashes.

  "Good afternoon, Lady Judith."

  "Good afternoon, Miss Beatrice," Mr Townsend said from just behind her.

  Henrietta turned around before Beatrice could and said brightly, "Hello, Mr Townsend, I have not seen you since the party given by Lord and Lady Colchester. Are you enjoying this Season?"

  Mr Townsend blinked seemingly confused by her many questions. "Yes, I have very much. Thank you. How have you enjoyed the Season?"

  He looked back at Beatrice as he spoke, but Henrietta went on as though she had not noticed. "It has been very good. Thank you. It is so wonderful to be back in London."

  "Miss Beatrice," Matthew Repington had moved to stand next to her. "I believe everyone is moving into the drawing room to begin the recital."

  "Thank you, Matthew."

  He held out his arm. "May I show you in?"

  "Yes, that would be lovely," Beatrice answered with a smile and took his arm.

  "Oh look," Beatrice heard Henrietta say as she and Matthew moved towards the house. "Everyone is going into the drawing room."

  The last thing that Beatrice saw as she and Matthew left the garden was Henrietta looping her arm through Mr Townsend's. "Lead the way, Mr Townsend."

  Chapter Sixteen

  Charles stood in the garden watching first Matthew lead Miss Beatrice into the drawing room followed by Mr Townsend and his sister. He was glad that Miss Beatrice had been spared Townsend's attention although Charles was not so sure he liked his sister dealing with the man.

  "You orchestrated that nicely," Wainwright said from where he was standing off to the side.

  Charles shrugged. "I was able to tell Matthew to keep Townsend away from Miss Beatrice."

  "He was quick to follow your instructions," Wainwright noted watching the others walk into the house.

  "He accepted that it was for a good reason and did what I asked. I will tell him about the incident in the Park later." Charles had been relieved that Matthew had not asked questions but simply nodded and moved away to keep an eye on Townsend.

  Wainwright nodded
. "I still cannot believe that Miss Beatrice's mother is not more concerned about Townsend."

  "It baffles me as well," Charles said shaking his head. "As I told you the other day. I waited by the carriage when Miss Beatrice entered the house. Her mother was furious, I could hear her all the way out on the street. She thought that Beatrice should not have come home on her own. Even after Miss Beatrice explained that Mr Townsend had upset her and mistreated her."

  Wainwright shook his head. "It should not be a surprise. As I told you, Lady Taltham has long treated Miss Beatrice poorly."

  Charles stared at the ground for a moment as anger flared through him. It was unfathomable to him that a mother could be so dreadful to her daughter. His own father could be hard on him, demanding respect and responsibility. They all knew, though, that their father would always aid them and certainly protect them if needed. His father’s good intentions were never in question.

  He tried to imagine Henrietta having to deal with someone like Townsend, knowing that would not end well for such a terrible man. Then forced himself to stop. If you he kept thinking about it, he would have to go into the drawing room and drawn Townsend's cork.

  "You coming?" Wainwright asked from the door.

  Charles blew out a breath. "Yes, I cannot wait."

  Wainwright chuckled and followed him into the house. "Do not fret. I am sure my cousin will keep you quite entertained."

  "Yes, I am sure Lady Sarah will do her best. Although I do not know if entertained is the best way to describe what will happen next."

  "No, probably not," Wainwright admitted quietly as they entered the room. Before Charles even realized anyone had approached him, he heard Wainwright offer with a slight bow, "Lady Judith, allow me to show you to your seat."

  Charles sent his friend a silent thank you before finding his own seat. He was so very glad in that moment that Henrietta and Miss Beatrice were friends. It made sense that he would sit with his family, which meant he could be near Miss Beatrice.

  When she and Henrietta had come over after he had arrived in the garden he had wanted to say hello and ask Miss Beatrice how she was feeling but Townsend was standing not far away scowling at anyone that spoke to the young woman. Charles decided that provoking Townsend would not help Miss Beatrice, so he had been reserved in his greeting to her.

  Charles took a seat with his family and he was pleased that he had a good vantage point to see Miss Beatrice quite clearly as she carried on a quiet but lively conversation with his sister. When he had walked out into the garden he had noticed Miss Beatrice right away. She was wearing a yellow dress that seemed to match her usual sunny disposition.

  Which only served to remind him of how upset and shaken she had been when he had intervened at Hyde Park. It had truly been fortuitous that he was even in the park that day, as he had never even looked at the park since his return to London. He had been agitated and restless alone in the house and Fletcher had suggested that he take a walk, even reminding him that Hyde Park was not too far away.

  After taking Miss Beatrice back to her home where she insisted on entering alone, Charles had immediately gone to Wainwright's to tell him what had happened. The other man had shared Charles' worries and they had stayed up rather late discussing what could be done. Wainwright had suggested Charles stay in one of the many rooms at Wainwright House instead of taking the carriage back in the early hours of the morning. He had not liked the silence any more than Charles and after some discussion decided that he would stay until Wainwright left London for his post in India. It had been an easy decision for Charles, as much as he hated the silence in their large London residence trading it for the noise and well-meaning intrusion of his family was not something he wanted to do.

  Lady Sarah walked up to the pianoforte signaling the beginning of the recital. Her sister, Helena, stood next to the pianoforte looking fairly nervous. Charles sat up attentively trying his best not to react when Lady Sarah hit the wrong piano key or Helena's voice missed a high note. He looked over at Miss Beatrice at one point, she cringed turning her head toward him. She caught him looking and smiled sheepishly. He smiled back and then grimaced comically as Helena's singing turned into a drawn-out screech.

  Miss Beatrice's eyes widened and he saw the smile on her face briefly before she covered her mouth with a gloved hand. Her shoulders shook briefly and he realized he had made her laugh. He immediately wanted to do something else to make her laugh again.

  After the recital, Lord and Lady Alderside invited everyone to enjoy refreshments served in the dining room. Miss Beatrice held back, presumably trying to avoid Townsend who Henrietta and Matthew managed to herd out of the drawing room.

  He waited for her at the door. "Miss Beatrice, I hope you are faring well after that fine musical performance."

  She nodded, a serious look on her face. "Of course. It was quite lovely."

  "Lovely," he repeated slowly, nodding. "You, Miss Beatrice, are far more gracious than I."

  "You can learn to be just as gracious, with a little practice," she said serenely.

  His eyebrows furrowed in concentration. "Are you suggesting that I attend a multitude of recitals in order to learn to be more gracious? Your estimation of my abilities may be somewhat exaggerated."

  She laughed. "Clearly, you need to work harder."

  "Perhaps you could teach me," he said plaintively.

  "Oh," she replied seemingly surprised. Then she pursed her lips. "Perhaps."

  "If you are up for returning to the park, I shall be there Tuesday afternoon."

  "I think a walk in the park would be lovely," she said quietly.

  "I look forward to it," he said taking her gloved hand in his before bowing to drop a light kiss on the back of her hand.

  Chapter Seventeen

  "I am glad you are feeling better." Beatrice's mother sat down in the chair next to the settee.

  "Thank you, Mother," Beatrice replied focusing on her own needlework and never looking up at her mother.

  In the days since the recital, Beatrice had spent most of the day in her room reading. She had been happy to avoid her mother's complaints and as she had no other social events there had been no way to meet with Mr Townsend either.

  "I was worried I would need to call the physician."

  "I do apologize for worrying you. Although I did tell you that I felt better after the recital."

  Beatrice knew better than to believe that her mother's worry had anything to do with her. She was quite sure that her mother was far more concerned about the hunt for a husband than any real concern over Beatrice’s health.

  "I had hoped that you would have been able to talk to Mr Townsend at Lady Sarah's recital, but it seemed that every time he tried to talk to you there was some sort of interruption."

  "Oh?" Beatrice pulled the needle through the fabric before finally looking up at her mother. "There were so many people there I had not noticed. It was a very nice to see Lord and Lady Castborough again. Was it not?"

  "Yes, of course, it was," her mother replied.

  Beatrice counted on that to keep her mother from further complaining about Beatrice not talking to Mr Townsend. It had been Henrietta that had caused most of the interruption that her mother had mentioned.

  "Now that you are feeling better you will be able to attend the upcoming parties."

  "Yes, Mother."

  "I think you should attend Almack’s tomorrow night. Although that would involve paying a visit in order to get the vouchers."

  Beatrice put down her embroidery. "No, Mother. I would rather not."

  "Beatrice, you must go. You will never find a husband staying here all day, every day."

  "Yes, Mother," Beatrice said stifling a groan. "I was not saying that I wanted to stay home. It is just that I would rather miss Almack’s and go to Lady Westerton's ball at the end of the week."

  "Oh!" Her mother exclaimed in surprise. "Lady Westerton's ball?"

  "Yes, I received the invitation this mornin
g," Beatrice nodded to the small table near the door. She was sure that her friendship with Henrietta had precipitated the invitation but she did not care. Lady Westerton's ball was one of the greatest events of the Season.

  "Yes, you may stay home from Almack’s. Lady Westerton's ball will be a great opportunity for you and Mr Townsend to talk. I expect you will be very happy."

  "Mother, I do not want to speak with Mr Townsend."

  "Now, Beatrice," her mother started.

  "There is something not right with him, Mother. He scares me."

  "I do not want to hear another word about that," her mother commanded in a shrill voice. "Mr Townsend is a great match for you and you will talk to him at Lady Westerton's party."

  "Yes, Mother," Beatrice gave her standard reply. Her mother was not listening to her anyway.

  "Lady Alderside told me at the recital that Mr Townsend's brother still has not improved." Her mother looked across the room they breathe this hint of a smile crossed her face. "There is no telling if he will recover."

  Her mother was as bad as Mr Townsend, wishing for the air of Marlsfeld to die. It was so horrible.

  The door to the drawing room opened. "Lady Henrietta is here to see Miss Beatrice."

  "Thank you, Porter,” Beatrice got up from the settee and put her embroidery in a basket.

  Henrietta walked in a moment later. "Good afternoon, Lady Taltham."

  "Good afternoon, Lady Henrietta."

  "Beatrice, my carriage is waiting to take us to Hyde Park."

  "The park?" Beatrice feigned surprise.

  "Yes, you need to get some fresh air," Henrietta told her. Then turned to Beatrice's mother. "She has been inside all week. It will be good for her to get some exercise. Do you not agree?"

  Beatrice tried not to laugh. Her mother clearly did not want her to go to the park but she did not want to contradict Lady Henrietta either.

  "It will be good for you to be seen, too,” Henrietta added. “You know everyone will be there this afternoon, especially the night before Almack’s."