Roger snickered at him. “I’m sure.”
Mr. Robinson shrugged. “I can’t help it if you believe me or not. Perhaps you ought to ask your sister-in-law. She was so bored that she begged the servants to take her back to London.”
“Last I heard, she and Lord Roderick returned to their estate,” Roger replied. “And she was happy to go with him.”
“I think she’s expecting a child,” Mr. Robinson said. “It’s the only reason she’d willingly go. What can she do in London? Once a lady gets with child, she can’t do much socially. It’s not much different than being stuck at his estate.”
“She wouldn’t be so far along that she’d be confined to the townhouse,” Roger replied, only now realizing that his marriage to Lilly meant he was going to be an uncle someday.
“I couldn’t help but notice you’ve been coming here a lot more recently,” Aaron told Mr. Robinson. “I suppose with Lord Roderick gone, you figure it’s safe to come to White’s.”
“He’s not afraid to come by when Lord Roderick’s here,” Lord Edon spoke up on his friend’s behalf.
“Of course not,” Aaron replied in a way that let everyone know he didn’t believe Lord Edon. He let out a loud sigh and directed his gaze to Roger. “I don’t know about you, but this conversation is boring me. I feel like I’m trapped at Lord Roderick’s estate right now. Want to find some stables to muck out so we can be better entertained?”
Roger had to hand it to his friend. While he had a tendency to give some unpleasant truths at times, he did have some clever retorts. Opting to play along, he said, “If we can’t find any dirty stables, we might be able to find some chamber pots.”
Aaron motioned to the chessboard and told Mr. Robinson and Lord Edon, “You’re welcome to finish the game if you want.”
Without waiting for the two to reply, Roger followed Aaron out of White’s. As soon as they were outside, Aaron said, “They were unusually interested in you today. What was all that about?”
Roger shrugged. “I don’t have the slightest idea.”
“It’s probably the scandal. They love them. I think they wished they’d been a part of it. You can’t do anything about them. It’s best to ignore them.”
“I have every intention of doing that.”
“Good. Want to continue the chess game at my townhouse?”
Roger nodded, and the two headed down the sidewalk to go to his friend’s townhouse where he could get some peace for a while.
Chapter Nine
Lilly’s shoulders slumped as she sat back in the chair. She folded the missive Christopher had written her and tucked it into her pocket so she could take it up to her bedchamber and hide it before anyone found it. The last thing she needed was for a servant or Roger to find the missive. Sure, Christopher had signed it under a lady’s name, but it was obvious the handwriting belonged to a gentleman. Roger was already so upset with her that he refused to be in the same room with her. She didn’t want to make things worse.
Christopher had written to her about the conversation he’d had with Roger at White’s the previous day, and it hadn’t gone well at all. Christopher had thought that if a couple of gentlemen at White’s were to talk favorably about her, then Roger would be more inclined to think of her that way, too. However, as Christopher had put it, “He was surprisingly resistant to the idea that having a scandalous wife is a good thing.”
Christopher was surprised because he loved to oppose the Ton. He admired anyone who had the courage to publicly turn their noses up at people like Lady Cadwalader.
Roger, on the other hand, wasn’t like that. He preferred to stay in the Ton’s good graces. It was why she’d made it clear to everyone that the scandal was all her doing. It was bad enough she had trapped him into marriage. If she had given the Ton any hint that he had been a willing participant in the scandal, she knew he would never have forgiven her.
But he might not forgive her anyway. As things were looking, there might be no way she could redeem herself. He just might always hate her. Tears filled her eyes, and her first instinct was to fight them back, but they trickled down her cheeks anyway.
She never should have told him no when he proposed. She was going to live with that regret for the rest of her life.
The footman stepped into the room, and she lowered her gaze so he wouldn’t see that she was crying.
“Mrs. Morris,” he began, “Miss Stewart wishes to visit with you. Are you available, or should I ask her to come back later?”
Lilly swallowed the lump in her throat then said, “Bring her in.”
She waited until he left before she lifted her head. She hurried to wipe the tears from her face and rose to her feet. She took a deep breath in an effort to calm her emotions. Having Emilia here was good. It would provide her with a much-needed distraction from what she was going through.
Emilia came into the room, and Lilly requested that the butler bring them tea and scones, picking Emilia’s favorite items since it was the least she could do. She dared a glance at her friend and was relieved to see that her friend was smiling at her. Thank goodness. She had so much going against her. It was nice to know she hadn’t ruined things with Emilia on top of everything else.
“Have a seat,” Lilly told her friend. “We’ll talk after the butler brings in the tray.”
Emilia nodded and made herself comfortable on the settee while Lilly waited in the doorway. After the butler left the tray on the small table in front of the settee and went out of the room, Lilly shut the doors.
“So much has been happening,” Lilly told her friend as she approached her. “I don’t want anyone to overhear any of it. I wanted to pay you a visit, but I’ve been warned to stay indoors until the scandal abates.”
“Considering how much people are talking, that’s going to be a while,” Emilia replied.
Lilly sat next to her and poured tea into their cups. “Is it?”
Emilia nodded. “Everywhere I go, I hear someone mention the scandal.”
Lilly winced. She couldn’t expect the gossip to die down immediately. She hadn’t even been married to Roger for a week. It was bound to take a while before the rumors stopped. But she couldn’t help but wonder just how long “a while” was going to be.
“It’s not all bad,” Emilia said. “There are some people who’ve taken your side.”
Surprised, Lilly almost dropped the teapot. “There are?”
“Don’t get excited. It’s the segment of London who doesn’t like Lord and Lady Cadwalader. They’re actually glad someone had the courage to act so brazenly at their ball.”
“People like Lord Edon and Mr. Robinson?” Lilly guessed.
“Yes, among others. Not everyone loves the Ton and its rules. Some secretly resent it. The other day while I was at the park, I overheard a couple of ladies applauding you for getting the gentleman you wanted. They were speaking in low tones and didn’t realize I heard them from where I was sitting on the bench. They’re just as frustrated as I am that we’re at the whims of what gentlemen want. We have to wait for the gentlemen to approach us, and we have to dance with them if they request it. Then we don’t have a say in a marriage if our parents arrange it for us. Granted, we can say no if the gentleman proposes, but it’s not like we can pick which gentleman does the proposing. We have to hope that the one we like chooses us. What you did was pick the gentleman for a change.”
“Not really. Roger had picked me. I just wasn’t smart enough to say yes when he wanted me.”
“He loves you. Anyone can tell he loves you by the way he looks at you. He might have said no to you with his mouth, but his heart isn’t in agreement with his words. You hurt his pride. That’s all.”
“As it turns out, his pride is winning. He refuses to be in the same room with me.” She gave her friend a cup of tea and added, “Thank you for coming to visit me even though I made Lord Valentine think you were in love with him.”
Emilia offered her a smile. “I know you didn’
t mean for that to happen. You only said I’d been talking about him. He took that to mean I was in love with him. This situation could have happened to anyone. And it’s why I happen to be one of the ladies who agrees that it’s refreshing you created the scandal in order to get the husband you wanted. If I’d had the courage to do that, I would be with Lord Reddington right now.”
“Lord Reddington? I had no idea you fancied him.”
“I’ve never actually talked to him. I only know of him. He’s one of the best-looking gentlemen I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing. I like to watch him at the balls. He’s never once come over and asked me to dance. I don’t think he even knows I’m in the room.” She took a sip of tea and sighed. “That’s what I mean by how ladies are at the whims of what gentlemen want. I can’t go up to him and ask him to dance. I’ve passed by him several times, but he doesn’t even look in my direction. My father refused to make an introduction, and I don’t know anyone Lord Reddington knows.”
“Why didn’t your father establish a cordial relationship with him so he could introduce you two? And why am I just learning about this now?”
“My father thinks Lord Reddington jokes around too much. He prefers gentlemen who are more serious. I didn’t say anything to you about it because I knew Lord Reddington would never ask to be my suitor. He’s so handsome. He can get any lady he wants. Why would he pick a lady who doesn’t have a titled gentleman for a father? Sure, we have some money, but plenty of other ladies have more money to bring to a marriage.”
“You have plenty to bring to a marriage. You’re fun. You’re pretty. You’re intelligent. And, most of all, you’re forgiving.” Lilly offered her a grateful smile. “I appreciate that most about you. You could have decided you’d never speak to me again, and I wouldn’t have blamed you for it.”
“We’re friends. And like I said earlier, I know you didn’t intend for the calamity with Lord Valentine to happen.”
“I’m very fortunate to have you and Kitty as friends. I don’t know what I’d do without you two.”
Emilia giggled. “Kitty told me you made her dress up like a gentleman so you could talk with Mr. Robinson about your marriage.”
“She was appalled I asked her to do it, but I had to go with someone. I didn’t want to trouble you since you have so much going on.”
“I wish you had troubled me. I spent an entire day at Lord Valentine’s townhouse telling some gentleman how I wanted to decorate my bedchamber and the drawing room.”
“Lord Valentine wanted you to decorate the drawing room in his townhouse?”
Emilia rolled her eyes. “He wants to make sure I’m comfortable.”
“That’s sweet.”
“I realize it’s sweet, but it only emphasizes the fact that I’ll be his wife before the end of the year.” She grimaced. “He came over for dinner last night, and it took all of my willpower not to shudder when he touched me on the arm. I’m just not attracted to him. I can get away with not kissing him before we marry, but once the vows are exchanged, there’s nothing to stop him from kissing me,” she shivered, “or coming to my bed.”
“If you make sure none of the candles are lit in the bedchamber and wait until after it’s dark, you can pretend he’s someone else.” Feeling a bit wicked, Lilly added, “Pretend he’s Lord Reddington.”
“I doubt that will work. Once he hits me on the head with his big nose, I’ll know it’s him.”
Despite the grim situation, Lilly laughed. When Emilia looked at her in disbelief, she said, “I’m sorry. I know it’s not funny.”
“I know he’s not outright ugly. I’m sure he’s appealing to someone out there.”
“I can’t think of who. I wouldn’t want to kiss him either. The reason he hasn’t secured a wife before now is because none of the ladies are interested. He’s too thin for his clothes, his hair tends to stick up at the oddest places, his nose is too big, and he snorts when he laughs. No one can blame you for not being attracted to him.”
Emilia selected a scone and said, “I’d rather not think about him or the wedding. I’d rather talk about you. What happened when you and Kitty dressed up as gentlemen so you could speak with Mr. Robinson?”
“I was there to seek his help. I figured he might have some ideas on how to get back into Roger’s good graces since he’s a gentleman.”
“But he didn’t help?”
“He tried.” Lilly put her cup down and pulled the missive from her pocket. “He and Lord Edon spoke favorably about me to him at White’s, but it didn’t do any good.” She glanced at her friend who was biting into the scone. “Would you like to hear what he wrote?”
Emilia nodded, so Lilly proceeded to read the missive to her. Even as she read it, she had to fight back the urge to cry. A couple of times, she paused so that she could regain her composure. When she was done, she folded the parchment and slipped it back into her pocket.
“I know they were trying to help by telling your husband he shouldn’t let the scandal bother him,” Emilia began, “but we both know the issue goes deeper than that.”
Lilly nodded. “I rejected him. I should have realized that I couldn’t expect him to wait for me forever. When he told me he was no longer interested, I should have committed my life to spinsterhood.”
“I can’t see you being a spinster. You had too many gentlemen falling over themselves to get a chance to talk to you.”
“None of them would dare go near me after the scandal.” Recalling Christopher’s proposal, she amended, “Most of them wouldn’t anyway. Right after the wedding, Roger told me that all I ever think about is myself and that I do whatever I want regardless of how other people feel.” She paused. “The worst part is, he’s right. All of my life, I haven’t really given any thought to anyone else.” This time when the tears came up, she couldn’t stop them. She had to brush them away and hope Emilia didn’t notice.
Emilia set her cup and half-eaten scone down so she could put her arm around Lilly’s shoulders. “If I had a lot of gentlemen vying for my attention, I’d be focused on what I wanted, too. You can’t please everyone.”
“It’s more than selecting the gentleman I wanted. I’ve been this way since I was a child. Whenever Claire and I were together, I’d picked which game we played. When the maid asked us what we wanted to eat, I’d make the choice.”
“To be fair, Claire didn’t want to make the decisions. She left that up to you.”
“Yes, but I didn’t encourage her to make them. Not even once did I turn to her and tell her to choose this time. I just told her what we’d do, and I expected her to go along with it. Come to think of it, I did that even after we grew up. Even after she married Nate, I insisted we go shopping and that we spend his money.”
“Well, shopping is the one thing you do best.”
Noting the teasing tone in her friend’s voice, she felt a smile tug at her lips. She wrapped her arms around Emilia and hugged her. “I don’t know why you’re my friend, but you always know what to say to make me feel better, and I appreciate it.”
“You’re not all terrible, Lilly. No one is perfect. We all have our burdens to bear.” She pulled away from her and said, “There was something about you that made Roger fall in love with you. You just need to figure out what that was and do it again.”
“It’s pointless to ask him what made him fall in love with me. He won’t even be in the same room with me. He won’t even eat in the dining room with me. He has the butler or maid bring my meal to me in this room or in my bedchamber.”
“Well, if he won’t talk to you as Lilly, maybe you can get him to talk to you as someone else.”
“And just who am I supposed to be when I talk to him?”
“You disguised yourself as a gentleman when you saw Mr. Robinson. Can’t you do the same with your husband?”
Lilly shook her head. “I can’t just barge into this townhouse as a gentleman and talk to him.”
“No, but maybe you could meet him outside of t
he townhouse. No one minds if a gentleman stops another gentleman on the sidewalk to have a conversation with him.”
“Even if I were to do that, there’s no way I can get Roger to tell me how a lady can get him to fall in love with her.”
“No, I suppose that wouldn’t work if you just met him while going out for a walk. But you could do it if you went to a place he frequently goes to. Isn’t he a member of White’s?”
“Yes, but White’s is an exclusive club. They don’t let just anyone in.”
“Mr. Robinson just wrote you a letter about being at White’s. Can he get you into the establishment?”
Lilly gasped. “Maybe. I know he’d be willing to if he could.”
Emilia picked up her scone and cup. “If you want, I wouldn’t mind disguising myself as a gentleman and paying him a visit with you. I’d love to do something to occupy my time so I don’t have to think of my upcoming wedding.”
“It would be nice to have you with me. Kitty felt so awkward the whole time she was in disguise. I don’t want to make her go through that again.”
“Then it’s settled. You’ll have me put on the disguise instead.” She winked at Lilly. “And I think we’ll have a wonderful time.”
Chapter Ten
Christopher drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair. “You want me to take you to White’s and introduce you to your husband as Mr. Squire?” he asked Lilly.
Lilly glanced at Emilia who was sitting in the chair beside her. Both of them had donned their disguises before coming to his townhouse. Unlike Kitty, Emilia seemed to enjoy being dressed up as a gentleman. She had even sipped the brandy Lord Clement had offered her as if she’d been drinking it for years, and Lilly knew for a fact that Emilia hadn’t touched brandy until today.
Lilly’s gaze went back to Christopher. “Actually, I’d like you to take both of us. I’d be Mr. Squire, and my friend would be the Duke of Marrow.”
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