The viscount grinned as his companion stiffened her spine. “No, I am not going to back out on you.” She nearly spat the words. “Pembrokes do not go back on their word. Although, if I recall, I have not yet actually given you my word, have I? Very well, my lord, I will accompany you. Of course, I am nervous. I would have to be a complete imbecile not to be. I have much more to lose than you do if this scheme does not work out.”
Jasper was about to object to her words, but seeing her haughty look, he paused and allowed her to continue. “I will acknowledge that you are hoping to benefit greatly from this scheme, but it is ridiculous to consider that there will be terribly unpleasant consequences for you if it fails. Even if we are found out, it will not be you who is deported.”
Jasper’s concerns turned to amusement as he guffawed over her words. He quickly hushed as he saw the eyes turned towards them with speculation.
“My lord, do control yourself, we do not need any attention brought upon us.” Daisy was trying not to let her discomfort show as she did her best to ignore the interested eyes regarding them.
“I am sorry to argue with you, my dear lady, but a bit of attention will lend credence to our story. If my parents hear that a young lady has fixed my interest from someone other than me, it will be all the better, would you not think?” Jasper’s enthusiasm was quick to fire. “It is absolutely ideal, in fact. I will call round for you tomorrow and take you shopping. It is perfectly acceptable for a gentleman to escort a lady friend upon her errands.”
“But I am not perfectly sure if I will have my maid arranged by tomorrow, my lord. If I do not, that would be stretching the proprieties somewhat, would it not?”
Jasper considered her words, not wanting to give up on his plan. He snapped his fingers as he determined a compromise. “I will take you riding in the Park at the fashionable hour. Then I can drop you off on Bond Street after our ride. That will give us an opportunity to discuss the rest of our plans. In fact, I see nothing wrong with my accompanying you into some of the shops. I am fairly certain gentlemen do it all the time.”
Daisy felt as though her life were spinning out of control. She had been wishing for some excitement, but this seemed like it was going to be a whole lot more than she had bargained for. But her word given was sacred to her, and she would not now go back on it, no matter how lily livered she was feeling.
“Very well, my lord. That will give me this evening to see whether or not I can arrange for the maid we had discussed.”
“Excellent. Now allow me to see you home.” Jasper stood and bowed over Daisy’s hand, making her cheeks warm once more.
Daisy took herself to task for the shiver of awareness that slithered down her spine at his show of gallantry. The viscount’s behavior was all for show, she reminded herself, realizing that was going to be something she would have to remind herself over and over in the coming days. Plastering what she hoped looked like a genuine smile upon her face, Daisy allowed his lordship to assist her from her seat and place her hand through his elbow.
“I would really rather you not escort me home.” She managed to keep her face looking pleasant, but her tone must have revealed that she wished not to hear any argument on the subject.
“And why ever not, my dear?” Jasper heard the amusement in his voice and regretted it as his companion all but radiated her discomfort.
“Bloomsbury is hardly the place for you to be seen, my lord,” Daisy explained, her voice revealing her embarrassment.
Jasper wished he could put her at ease. “It is hardly beyond the pale, Miss Pembroke.”
“Have you ever been there before, my lord?”
Jasper should have seen that trap coming. With effort, he managed to keep a snarl off his face as they made their way out of the sweet shop and into the fresh air. “That is neither here nor there, my dear girl. I am going to escort you home.”
“If you are seen escorting me home to Bloomsbury, my lord,” Daisy began, her patient tone setting the viscount’s teeth on edge, “we will hardly be able to convince anyone that I am an eligible parti, would you not agree?”
Stubbornly, Jasper refused to accept her logic. “While you are a part of this scheme, as you have called it, you are under my protection. You are my responsibility now, Miss Pembroke, and I cannot, as a gentleman, allow you to be wandering around the city on your own without protection of any sort. You are not even in the company of a maid,” he pointed out reasonably. Seeing that she was about to protest further, he stalled her with a point of logic she could not refute. “If it is as déclassé as you say, surely you must realize that no one of significance will see me there, so your protesting is for naught.”
Jasper’s lips twitched as he struggled to hold back his laughter while he watched Daisy’s lips part in protest but no words followed. Looking disgruntled, Daisy had to acquiesce. “Very well, my lord. I ought to be gracious and thank you, but I find that I cannot.”
Now Jasper gave up the struggle as he threw back his head and guffawed. He knew he was going to have an entertaining time with the girl. For the first time in ages he was looking forward to the future, and even his dread of returning to his ancestral home had diminished somewhat. He had a feeling that anything would be easier with Daisy by his side.
Daisy wasn’t as convinced as the viscount seemed to be that all would be well. Her usually sunny disposition was a trifle dimmed as she pondered all the difficulties needing to be overcome in such a short time.
Jasper must have noticed her preoccupation as he began questioning her. “What has you so blue devilled, my dear girl?” he asked, leaning toward her with a grin belying the concern showing in his eyes.
Daisy tried to shrug away his question. “I am hardly blue devilled, my lord. I am merely summarizing the lists of things I need to accomplish.”
Jasper blinked as he gazed at his companion. “Are you one of those highly organized females that like to manage everyone and everything around them?”
Daisy’s grin returned with full force. “Mayhap, my lord,” was all that she would allow, but the viscount was satisfied that her worrying seemed to have been brought under control, at least for the moment.
“If you have a maid in tow by morning, you could come to the house and look through my sister’s old gowns to see if you thought any of them would serve our purposes.”
Daisy protested. “But, my lord, I do not feel comfortable taking your sister’s clothes without her leave. Will she not be at your mother’s party? Do you not think she might notice that I am wearing her gowns? For that matter, your mother is likely to notice.”
“I hardly think they will be taking that much notice of your clothes, my dear. They will have other things to occupy their minds. Besides, my sister barely wore each gown more than once. I doubt she would recognize any of them, even if we were to tell her they had been hers. And now that she is a married lady, she has disavowed any interest in her old wardrobe. They are merely gathering dust in her old dressing room. I can assure you, no one shall begrudge you any of those gowns.”
Daisy was dubious over some of his words but saw the logic in others. She felt the need to protest. “Surely you jest if you think any of the ladies at the house party will not be analyzing everything about me when I show up in your company. Every stitch of my clothing will be assessed in an effort to ascertain my standing and my wealth down to the last farthing.”
“I doubt it will be so bad as that, my dear girl.”
“Have you not spent any amount of time with the ladies of your station, my lord?”
Daisy’s sceptical tone brought amusement to the viscount’s face as he replied, “I am beginning to wonder whether or not I have,” he admitted. “Although, I find myself wondering how you have come to this knowledge,” he commented.
With a dismissive shrug, Daisy sidestepped his question. “If you are absolutely certain your sister will not be collecting those gowns for her own use at some point in the future, perhaps I will make use of some
of them. With the help of my maid we should be able to alter them sufficiently to suit the current fashions and avoid detection.”
“Detection of what?” Jasper was suspicious.
“Of our deception,” Daisy explained in exasperation. “Have you not been paying attention?”
Jasper had the grace to blush, much to Daisy’s amusement. “My dear, I feel as though I ought to apologize, but I am not entirely certain for what.”
Daisy giggled over his words. “No apology required. In fact, I probably owe you one. I was less than gracious in accepting your offer of assistance. Mayhap you are correct, and this scheme shall benefit the both of us. If nothing else, it shall be an adventure I can reminisce upon when I am near to perishing from the boredom of life as a governess in the future.”
She said these last words with such a degree of laughter in her tone that Jasper joined her in her amusement.
They were still laughing when Daisy stopped and pointed to a small house squeezed in between two larger ones. “This is my temporary abode, my lord. I thank you for your escort. I will see you on the morrow with my maid in tow. It would be best if you do not stand here over long, my lord. I do not wish to draw attention to our association.”
Jasper tipped his hat to her gallantly and turned on his heel without argument; he had his own arrangements to make before they met again.
Chapter Three
After closing the door quietly behind her, Daisy leaned against it and gnawed her lip in indecision, wondering how much of her adventure to share with her hostess. Charlotte was her oldest and dearest friend; she really ought to tell her everything. Pushing away from the door, she went in search of her, glad for once that Charlotte had only a few servants.
Charlotte looked up from the needlework she had been toiling over as her young charge bustled into the room. “How did it go with Miss Holstein, my dear?”
Daisy sat down across from her friend, perching delicately on the edge of the aging settee, and allowed a sigh to escape her lips before she shook her head in denial. “She was not there. The shop was closed up tight.”
“Really?” Charlotte asked, her brow wrinkling with surprise. “She rarely closes her office. Are you quite certain you had the correct address?”
Daisy grinned indulgently at her old governess who had never quite accepted that she had grown up. “Yes, Charlotte, it said Miss Holstein’s Employment Office on the sign. I am quite certain it was the correct place.”
Charlotte returned her smile. “Oh, yes, of course. I had quite forgotten she had such a sign. Well, I rarely ever visit her office, you know.”
“I know, my dear, pay it no mind.”
“Well, you can just go tomorrow, then. Or you could give up on your idea of gaining employment and stay here with me. You know I enjoy having you here, and you are no trouble at all.”
Daisy smiled her appreciation. “I know, and you are a dear for offering, but I cannot abuse your hospitality by staying any longer than necessary.”
Charlotte began to argue. “There is absolutely no abuse. Everything here is really yours by right.” She would have continued on the topic, but Daisy cut her off.
“My dearest Charlotte…” Daisy kneeled before her friend, clasping her hands warmly between her own. She hated to see her former governess aging, knowing that Charlotte’s concerns for Daisy’s future did nothing to aid her failing health. “Everything here is not rightly mine. You served my family well. You have rightly earned your retirement years. I know my parents were generous, but I am certain whatever they may have settled upon you is not sufficient for the two of us. Besides, at my age I need to be gainfully employed. And you know I hate needlework. I could not bear to sit here with you stitching away. It would drive me mad.”
Charlotte smiled indulgently at her companion. “But you can stay a while longer. I so love having you here.”
“And it is a pleasure for me to be with you.” Daisy squeezed her friend’s hand again before continuing in a lighter tone. “I will actually take you up on the offer of staying a few more days. I have been offered a temporary, paid position, but it will not commence until next week.”
“Oh, how nice. What kind of job is it? It must not be another governess position. No one wants the governess to be only temporary.”
“It is a bit like a paid companion,” Daisy began evasively before blurting out the entire story. “I met a viscount while standing in front of Miss Holstein’s closed shop. His name is Lord Jasper Seaton, the Viscount of Hawthorne. His father is the Marquis of Abernathy.”
“And you are going to be his companion?” Charlotte demanded, her tone of disgust conveying her thoughts quite clearly.
“How long have you known me, Charlotte? Do not jump to conclusions until you have heard the entire story. I will admit I had my reservations when he first proposed his scheme, but while it is a trifle havey cavey, it is most certainly not that type of position.” Daisy strove for indignation, but she knew from the warmth in her cheeks, she was probably looking guiltier than she should.
Charlotte settled back in her chair, only slightly mollified. “You are right, my dear. I trust you completely. I should let you finish your tale before I jump to my conclusions. Please, carry on.”
“Well, the viscount seems to be the black sheep of his family. I am not sure what the history is, but I got the impression there is bad blood between him and his father. He strikes me as a good enough fellow, but he has been making an effort to maintain the feud up until now. I think he has sailed rather far up the River Tick and needs his parents’ money to get straight once more. He does not wish to get leg shackled, but he thinks if he gets his parents to believe he is pursuing a courtship they will open their purse strings to him.”
“So you are going to help him deceive his parents? Why would you even consider such a thing?” Charlotte’s tone of disapproval left no room for doubt over her thoughts on the subject.
Daisy shrugged again, which brought a censorious look from her former governess. “The viscount thinks I might be able to find another position through the connections I will make at his mother’s house party.”
Charlotte’s dubious expression was comment enough. Daisy continued. “I know, I told him the same thing. There is no way a lady is going to hire someone she has met socially to be her governess. But there is the possibility of finding a position as a paid companion, which when I think about it, might be much more to my liking.”
“Do you really think you could tolerate being at the beck and call of some aging lady who is no doubt unhappy and unpleasant?”
“Why must she be unhappy and unpleasant?”
“If she was a joy to be around, her family would happily be providing the services she is hiring out,” Charlotte pointed out reasonably.
“Or mayhap, she is a spinster with no family to speak of,” Daisy countered. “And even if she is a cranky old thing, it can hardly be worse than tending to the spoiled babies of noblemen.”
“There are probably more similarities than you would imagine,” Charlotte replied with a grin. “But do you seriously expect me to believe you think you are going to find suitable employment while accompanying a viscount to his mother’s party at a country estate? There must be some other reason you are even considering accepting this strange man’s preposterous offer. You have not suddenly developed a tendre for the man, have you?”
Daisy blushed hotly but shook her head firmly in denial. She stared rather defiantly at her former governess for a moment before giving in and admitting the full truth. “If you must know, I want to see what it is like, being a part of that world, even if only for a week. I know I should not wish it, that it will no doubt lead to frustration and heartache since the aristocracy is nothing but a bunch of dressed up fools as my papa would say.” Daisy shrugged helplessly once more. “But I cannot help myself, Charlotte, I just want to see it.”
Charlotte’s face softened instantly upon this admission. “Of course you do, my dear. V
ery well, what can I do to assist you in this harebrained scheme?”
With a whoop of laughter, Daisy threw her arms around her friend for a fierce but brief embrace. “Thank you, my dear, I knew I could count on you. There is actually something that would be a huge help,” she said as she eyed the discarded needlework.
Charlotte caught on immediately. “You will need appropriate attire. How long do we have? I could stitch you up enough gowns in a couple of weeks.”
“We do not have that long. The viscount wishes to depart for the country in a few days.”
“What? But you cannot possibly be ready that quickly. Is the man daft?”
“It is a possibility.” Daisy smiled. “But he is thinking of buying me a couple of gowns from a proper modiste as well as giving me some of his sister’s old gowns. That is what you could help me with — they will need to be altered to fit as well as to bring them up to date and make them unrecognizable to his mother and sister.”
Charlotte stared at Daisy with chagrin shining on her lined face. “It is highly inappropriate for this gentleman to buy you gowns, my dear girl.”
“He said to think of it as though I am an actress playing a role, and he is merely buying me some costumes.”
Charlotte hmmed noncommittally.
“It may not even be necessary if there are sufficient gowns from his sister. But taking those dresses does not leave me entirely comfortable either,” Daisy admitted.
“Perhaps you ought to rethink your plans,” was Charlotte’s quiet suggestion.
“No, I gave his lordship my word. I am determined to help him. He said he wishes to straighten out his life and I find that I believe him. All he needs is access to his funds in order to do so. And he has promised to help me ensure my situation is established before we part ways at the end of this escapade.”
Charlotte again sniffed with disapproval. “A young, single nobleman is in no position to be arranging your affairs, my dear girl. But I understand your desire to catch a glimpse of what might have been, and I will stand by my offer to help you.”
A Dangerous Debut: A Sweet Regency Romance (Ladies of Mayfair Book 5) Page 3