This was ridiculous! He gave himself a mental shake. This evening was important, if otherwise he would have stayed home and made further attempts to become closer to his beautiful, young wife. He needed to focus! Through sheer force of will he managed to rein in his thoughts and charm his way into an agreement with Lord Cranfield to support the bill they were trying to get passed through the House. He forced himself to ignore the voice at the back of his mind that was reminding him that this fine gentleman was married to that shrew of a woman who was such good friends with Lady Melissa, the one he hadn’t wanted to talk to when he was with Beth at the Park.
He refused to speculate how such a nice man ended up with such a terrible wench for a wife, nor would he allow his mind to question how he would prevent his from turning out that way if she ended up displaying such tendencies. This almost alarmed him enough to end his next conversation, since he was remembering Beth’s strange behaviour on the ride to London from her family home, but he just managed to push such thoughts to the background of his mind and get on with the obligations of the evening. There would be time enough to dwell on these things when he tossed and turned later that night.
∞∞∞
Beth awakened feeling quite fresh and ready to face the challenges of a new day. She found herself smiling at the thought that this was one more day in her new life; a new life that was looking brighter and brighter. She was relieved to be away from her father’s negativity. Although she had been watching closely, she had yet to see her husband display qualities similar to her father. This thought heartened her considerably. She determined to remain vigilant for any signs of similarity, but allowed herself to experience a degree of optimism for the first time in many months, maybe even in years.
Sally entered the room quietly carrying her lady’s morning chocolate and tray. She made every effort to be silent so was surprised to hear the countess call out a cheerful greeting. Sally let out a quickly stifled squeak of surprise but managed not to spill anything when she whirled to face her mistress.
“Oi, milady! I thought you’d be asleeping for a while yet!” she declared. “His lordship said as we was to let you sleep as long as possible since your journey was so exhaustin’ like and it has only been a couple a days that you’ve been here.”
“And waste this beautiful day? Not I, Sally. I shall accompany the cook and her helper to the market this morning, and I must be up and ready. I wouldn’t want them to miss the freshest ingredients,” she answered with a twinkle as she hopped out of the big bed.
“Mmm, my chocolate! Thank you so much, Sally. I think I shall like living here very much,” Beth declared as she took the steaming cup from the maid and began her preparations for the day.
Justin walked in at that precise moment and was gratified to hear his wife’s declaration. “That’s excellent news, my dear.”
Beth let out a squeak of her own as she started in surprise, embarrassed to be seen by the earl when she was all mussed from sleep. She blushed rosily and put her hand self-consciously to her hair.
Observing her dismay, Justin chuckled, dropped a brief kiss on her brow, and complimented her. “You look charming, my dear, never fear. I don’t mean to intrude this morning. I just wanted to bid you farewell. I have some things I need to do, but we hadn’t settled on a definite time to meet this afternoon. Would two o’clock be convenient for you?”
Still blushing with consternation, Beth replied, “That should be fine, my lord, Justin.”
He laughed again then mercifully left her to her morning preparations with a promise to see her later.
Beth rushed through the familiar routine of dressing and preparing for market, careful to wear nothing that would draw attention to herself, knowing that the presence of the countess would no doubt decrease any chances of getting a bargain. She had been used to doing most of the shopping for the household at her old home and was excited to see what a London market would be like.
She had already discussed with Mrs. Potts the previous evening what sort of things they would be shopping for. She had come to terms with the fact that her new circumstances in life would preclude her from really being able to do the household shopping, except for linens and wall hangings, furnishings and rugs and such like things, but she truly was interested in all that went on in the large home of the Earl of Westfield, and felt she should be somewhat informed on all the processes that went into the running of the establishment. Much of it was her responsibility now, and she took that very seriously. Besides, she expected it would be quite diverting to spend the morning with the servants, if they could get over the awe they felt due to her position.
Thankfully, the cook was sufficiently impressed with her own degree of importance in the household and felt no discomfort being accompanied by the mistress of the house, her air revealing that she considered it her right to have such exalted company. The other servants followed her lead and they were able to spend an enjoyable time at market. Beth tried to stay out of the way as the cook argued and haggled with the various vendors. She was happy to observe the quality of items being sold and felt confident in her new servants’ abilities. Beth accepted the fact that in future she would have to leave these things in their capable hands.
She would have to maintain a degree of distance from the mundane aspects and trust that those to whom such things were delegated would be able to manage reasonably well. Clearly Cook was competent, and Beth had full confidence in Mrs. Potts as well. It was a refreshing feeling for the young woman who had had to take on so much responsibility in her old home. Despite the vastness of the earl’s household, it would actually be less of a burden for her to care for.
It was a good thing, too, because Beth was beginning to realize that the running of the house was a minor role for her in comparison to the other responsibilities that were to fall on her as the Countess of Westfield. She was still rather vague about what those might be, but she had been able to tell from her husband’s tone when he spoke of social calls that this was quite important to him. This filled her with trepidation, but she still felt a bounce in her step as the shopping procession returned home.
Beth smiled to herself as she ran up the stairs to prepare for the afternoon with her husband. She was happily amazed to already be thinking about this house as “home.” No doubt it was because of the various tensions that never quite left the air in her parents’ house — anything better was easy to consider home. But there had been good times there, too, as there would be and already had been here in her new life. In a spirit of optimism, Beth determined it would be best to remember those times rather than dwelling on the negative.
Chapter Nine
Sally had already been informed about the afternoon’s expedition, at least what little Beth knew, so she had lain out what she thought would be best for Beth to wear if she were to go visiting with the earl. Sally was becoming aware that her mistress’ wardrobe left much to be desired, but was sure that would soon be rectified since the countess was realizing just the same thing. Of course, neither was yet sure what to do about the problem, but they would figure it out. Beth was undecided if she should try to further discuss the issue with the earl and was hoping he would notice her dilemma and solve it for her.
Of course, the earl had realized the problem and was coming up with a rather complicated solution. He’d had a very interesting meeting with the Viscount and Viscountess of Cumberland early that morning. He was pleased with how well it had gone. When he had been shown to the front receiving room, his friend Gary had strode forward to grasp his hand warmly.
“Justy, old chap, I must say you have piqued our interest with your strange request to meet us at such an ungodly early hour of the morning,” he grumbled good naturedly. He was the only one of the earl’s acquaintance to call him ‘Justy.’ It was a strange appellation to say the least, but since they had been friends for so long, Justin allowed the familiarity to pass unmentioned and was gratified to be welcomed by the pair with such good humour.
After being served a cup of tea in impossibly delicate china by his friend’s wife, Justin was happy to observe that Lady Geneva was as kind and ladylike as he had remembered. He had full confidence in his plan to enlist her help in launching his wife into Society. He took a fortifying, deep breath and then launched into his explanation and request for their help.
Justin was surprised by their delighted response. The viscount slapped Justin on the back. “Congratulations, lad, you have finally gotten yourself leg shackled,” he declared before laughing over his wife’s feigned disgust. He continued, “It’s about time you hitched yourself up to a countess and started making an effort to fill your nursery. Nothing better, my friend, nothing better. And I can see that with your political aspirations you’d want your wife to be comfortable dealing with Society. Not that anyone’s really comfortable dealing with certain members of Society, mind you, but that is a whole other story.”
The group shared a companionable chuckle over that witticism while the viscount and his wife shared a speaking glance. Justin felt his throat constrict with what could only be described as jealousy to observe the unspoken communication between the viscount and his wife. He hoped one day to have such a relationship with his own wife, but for now he would have to settle for just getting along smoothly.
After a moment Gary continued, “Your timing is atrocious though, my friend, considering how unreliable old North is these days. I would say that is all the more reason why you have need of our help, isn’t it?” It was a statement rather than a question since it was so obvious, considering where they stood on various issues within the political arena those days.
They were all silent for a moment as they thought about the potential gravity of the situation. Justin considered how unstable the Prime Minister seemed to be and how necessary it was for the House of Lords to remain firm. Gary was right, the timing for his hasty marriage could not have been worse. Despite his concerns, Justin was confident he could trust the Cumberlands not only to help him but also not to spread any harmful gossip about whatever they may observe while they helped Beth prepare for her place as the Countess of Westfield. He was brought back to the moment by Lady Geneva clapping her hands.
“This shall be so exciting, my lord! I missed my sister’s coming out Season since I was in a delicate condition, so this will be a fill in for what I did not get to enjoy with her. Thank you for asking us to help you with this. I have no doubt that your wife is a delight and would be able to manage just fine without our assistance, but I can see that it would be quite a challenge for her to enter Society as a countess when she has not even had a Season of her own as a debutante. Does she have suitable attire, my lord? No, most likely not if she is from the wilds of Wiltshire. That shall be so much fun. Of course, you had best be prepared to spend some of your blunt, but it will probably just be a drop in the bucket for you.”
Lady Geneva laughed at the consternation on the earl’s face. She continued, “Don’t worry, my lord, I will look after everything. I know just the right modiste to make this all happen quickly and discretely. And I had actually just been thinking I would like to throw a big party. This will be just the thing. Shall we say in a week, or would maybe ten days be better? Let me think about it. Bring your Beth around this afternoon and we shall work everything out.”
She paused for a moment before asking delicately, “Am I right to assume you do not want her to know you have enlisted our help in this?”
At Justin’s nod, she clapped her hands in delight again. “How did you know to ask me? It will be so much fun to make your wife the toast of the ton and then watch your sister’s face pucker up in consternation.” She slapped her hand over her mouth in regret. “I am sorry, my lord, I should not speak ill of your sister.”
“No, my lady, you are correct. Obviously, she would have been my first choice to help my wife, if she had been agreeable. There would be nothing questionable about her sister-in-law taking her around. But most know Gary and I are old friends, so there should be no comment made over my wife and you being friendly. And at this point, I too would be happy to see my sister’s nose put out of joint.”
With friendly handshakes exchanged between the three friends and now co-conspirators, Justin left the couple with a promise of returning later that day with Beth to perform the introductions and start the process they had just arranged. The earl felt a great deal of confidence in the choice he had made. Lady Geneva was the perfect degree of friendly outgoingness to appeal to his shy, young wife. And her knowledge of the ton and all that was sociably acceptable, as well as what would be to their political advantage, would all work in Beth’s favour as she stepped onto the social stage. Justin knew she would be in capable hands as long as she would go along with what had been arranged. So far, she had seemed to be very agreeable, so he expected it would all smooth out.
∞∞∞
Back on Governor’s Road in the Earl of Westfield’s lovely townhouse, Beth and Sally were just finishing up the countess’ preparations for the afternoon’s excursion with the earl. Beth was still unsure if they were going visiting or sightseeing, so they had agreed on a simple frock that could pass for somewhere in the middle of both those social events. It was a bit of a stretch with her limited choices, but Beth felt they had done all they could. At least her hair appeared to be acceptably fashionable. Hopefully they wouldn’t run into anyone of too judgmental an attitude.
Beth shuddered delicately at the thought of running into her sister-in-law, hoping that event could be postponed far into the indefinite future. She pushed the melancholy thought to the back of her mind and bounced to her feet before remembering to be more decorous. She imagined a countess needed to be even more serene than Miss Dunseith from Wiltshire.
Beth drifted down the stairs just as the clock was striking two. “Punctual as always, my dear. I am impressed,” commented Justin as he took in the lovely vision his wife presented. He bent gallantly over her hand and placed a gentle kiss on the back of her hand before they stepped out the door and climbed into his phaeton.
“We are in luck, my dear. My friends that I wanted you to meet are able to see us this afternoon. They will be expecting us shortly. You shall like them, I’m sure. Gary, that is Garfield, Lord Cumberland, and I went to school together. We have been friends since we were young lads and we sit in the House of Lords together. We often even agree,” he concluded with a dry chuckle.
Beth was listening with wide eyes. She was delighted the earl wanted to introduce her to his friends, but she was obviously intimidated to meet them. The introduction to his ‘dear’ sister had not gone well the day before despite the earl’s expectations to the contrary. How will he react if his friends take me in dislike? she fretted.
Justin’s ever watchful eyes took in the spectacle of his wife valiantly trying to hide her fears. He was beginning to perceive a pattern in her reactions. She would plaster a polite, agreeable, rather emotionless smile upon her face, but her hands gave her away. In this case, they were grasping each other so tightly in her lap that her knuckles had turned white. The earl knew that any onlookers would just see the serene smile and assume all was well with the young woman, but he saw beyond what she wanted him to, straight to the problem – she was nervous to meet his friends. He was unsure how to comfort her, so he merely reached over and patted her tightly clenched hands. Justin was very surprised when her hand twitched, relaxed, and then softly clasped his own. He smiled down into her now upturned face. Not wanting to startle her, he refrained from any further move, but he did want to say one thing.
“I know my friends are going to like you, but you do not have to feel obligated to like them in return, Beth. I do hope that you could become friends with them, especially Lady Geneva, since her husband and I will often be tied up with necessary government business. You will be much more comfortable if you could have some friends to spend time with, I am sure.”
Beth was touched by his thoughtfulness. Never in her experience wo
uld a man give so much thought to her concerns. She was amazed at his comments, that he would think his friends would like her, but she was under no obligation to reciprocate. It made her all the more willing to try to be friends with the ones they were about to meet.
Justin pulled the bays to a stop in front of a lovely new, brown brick home. Beth found the simple, clean lines of the architectural style hugely appealing and would have enjoyed gazing for a while at all the fine details such as the beautiful curved bay windows, but the earl had his hand cupping her elbow, urging her up the stairs to where a footman was already opening the door for them. Over all Beth had an impression of fresh elegance as they were ushered through the foyer into a lovely receiving room where the lord and lady waited to welcome them.
Lord Cumberland strode forward purposefully. After bowing to her formally, he made her an elegant leg. “Welcome, Lady Fulton, we are pleased to make your acquaintance.”
Beth almost looked behind herself, looking to see who Lady Fulton could be, but caught herself just in time as she realized with a startled blush that it was, in fact, she that he was addressing in such a manner. It was the first time someone had called her by her new title, and she felt a small thrill over her new identity. This reaction predisposed her to like the jolly viscount and she smiled warmly as he then presented her to his wife.
“This lovely creature is my dear wife, Lady Geneva,” Lord Cumberland graciously introduced his wife, and Beth dipped into a small curtsy before the pretty, slight woman. Beth guessed her to be some years older than herself, but still girlish looking despite the fact that according to the earl the viscountess already had at least two children.
The Debutante Bride: A Sweet Regency Romance (Ladies of Mayfair) Page 8