“How are you feeling today, Betty?”
“Much better, my lady.”
“I have brought you some food, which I will leave here. And I have instructed the doctor to visit you again tomorrow. Is there anything else I can do?”
“No, ma’am. You have already been too good to me…”
“Do you remember the name and address I gave you?”
“Yes. Mrs. Blisse Spencer.”
“She runs a clean, safe house, Betty. She makes sure that her girls are not roughly treated. And she will help you to protect yourself from disease and conception. I will stop in on her in a week or so. I hope I will see you there?”
“You will, my lady, you will.”
* * *
Chapter 41
They left and visited two more houses where the dowager was known and welcomed. One of them was almost out of St. Giles, on the edge of a better neighborhood. The house was whitewashed, and there were none of the ever-present rats. They were admitted by a cheeky young Cockney girl who joked with Lady Tremayne about her escort. “Are you bringin’ us customers now, my lady?”
“Lord Sidmouth is just helping me out today, Mattie. Is Mrs. Spencer available?”
“Yes, mum. I’ll go get ‘er.”
They were shown into a private parlor that was tastefully if inexpensively furnished. Harry was greatly surprised to see a reproduction of a Constable on the wall. He would not have thought a brothel owner to have such good taste.
“I am sure you are surprised to see that here,” said the woman who entered, as if she had read his mind.
“Indeed I am. It is a good copy.”
“It is not a copy, sir. It is a parting gift from a former protector.”
Harry’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “Then you could get a bit of money for it, I should think.”
“I could. But its sentimental value is far more important to me.”
Mrs. Spencer, for it was she, turned and greeted the dowager warmly. “Do you have time for a cup of tea today?”
“I am sorry, Blisse. I have only come to remind you of Betty.”
“Ah, yes. The young girl who met up with a rough customer. When shall I expect her?”
“In a few days. But may I leave her address? In case she doesn’t come on her own, could you send someone over for her?”
Harry was fascinated by the easy familiarity with which the two women conversed, the short, gray-haired marchioness and the proprietress of a brothel. “Mrs.” Spencer was tall, raven-haired (obviously not a natural color), and hard-eyed. She did not look at all like the sort who would keep valuable paintings for sentimental reasons, nor take in young girls for safekeeping. She looked like what she was, a businesswoman in a heartless profession. And yet, there was something about her mouth that belied the expression in her eyes. It was full and soft and curved. To his amazement, Harry found himself wondering what it would be like to kiss her. Somehow, a woman who possessed a tender mouth like that must still possess some tender feelings.
Mrs. Spencer escorted them to the door herself and offered her hand to Lady Tremayne, who held it and thanked her again for Betty. When they were back out on the street, Harry looked down at the dowager and smiled.
“You are quite a woman, Lady Tremayne.”
“Given the privilege I grew up with, Mrs. Spencer is more to be admired, Lord Sidmouth. She has managed to keep her humanity in a very hard world. Were you disturbed by what you saw today, my lord?”
“I saw nothing I didn’t know existed, although I admit it is different to experience it rather than hear about it. But nothing that was worse than the war.”
“Yes, I had forgotten about that. We at home can never really guess at what it must have been like.”
“I confess to being disturbed by the sight of that first young woman,” Harry said slowly, his throat getting tight. “She reminded me of something that I saw at Badajoz. It scares me, such violence,” said Harry, looking directly at the dowager. “Because it comes out of what is supposed to be an act of love. Or at least desire.”
“And do you fear desire, my lord?” the dowager asked softly.
“I believe I do. I am beginning to see that my pursuit of young women had little to do with real desire, which your niece was wise enough to see.”
“My niece?”
“Yes. Miss Kate Richmond and I had an enlightening conversation after my disastrous behavior with her sister,” Harry admitted with a tight smile.
“I am not at all sure your behavior was disastrous, my lord. Oh, I would not recommend consistently letting your own needs blind you to those of young women,” the dowager continued, answering Harry’s look of surprise. “But your behavior on that balcony brought back an important memory for Lynette. She was attacked as a child, you see, and not only had buried the incident, but all her ability to feel passionately. Had you not kissed her, she might have remained unable to open herself to love. Life is paradoxical, isn’t it, Lord Sidmouth,” said the dowager. “And not all meetings between women and men are characterized by violence. You have been exposed to the extremes, and I understand your fear of opening your heart. But that does not mean you do not have one.”
“Would that I could believe that, Lady Tremayne,” replied Harry, who took her arm and silently escorted her to where the carriage was waiting.
* * *
Chapter 42
Kate had been very surprised by her aunt’s decision to use Lord Sidmouth as an escort. She was also a little hurt. Surely she could have accompanied her aunt if Absolution was unavailable.
When the dowager returned, Kate was waiting for her.
“How was your afternoon, Aunt Kate?”
“Very productive, thank you.” Lady Tremayne smiled to herself. Her work was very taken for granted by the family, and no one ever waited around to inquire about a particular afternoon. She was sure it was curiosity about her companion that motivated her niece.
“Is Absolution sick, Aunt Kate? Will you need someone later in the week? I would be pleased to accompany you.”
“Absolution is fine, my dear. But I thank you for your offer.”
“Then why did you use Lord Sidmouth, Aunt? And how did you get him to come?”
“I told him that Absolution was laid low by the toothache.”
“And he is not? And you lied to Lord Sidmouth to get him to go with you?” said Kate, surprised at her aunt’s deception.
The dowager had the grace to look a little ashamed of herself. “Well, it was the only way I could think of to spend some time with him alone. I wanted to get to know him better.”
“And why is that, Aunt Kate?”
“Because, as I have told you, I think you and he are well-matched. But something has been standing in his way. And now I think I have an idea of what it is.”
“Most likely it is that he is not at all interested in me!” Kate responded tartly.
“No, I think it is that he is afraid.”
“Afraid? Afraid of what?”
“Afraid of himself. Something happened at Badajoz, even beyond the expected horrors of a battle, I am sure. It is amazing to me that we continue to send our young men off to war, where violence is everyday, and then expect them to return home untouched. I suspect that Lord Sidmouth was marked as much emotionally as physically by his experiences.”
* * * *
Kate spent the rest of the afternoon thinking about Lord Sidmouth. What could he have done or seen that might have affected him so, if her aunt was right? His behavior had been different since their return from Cornwall. Might he really be interested in her but somehow afraid of that interest? But what was there in plain Kate Richmond to attract or frighten him?
Her own feelings puzzled her just as much. She had initially found Lord Sidmouth easy to despise. At the same time she had been mildly attracted to him. The mild attraction had grown much stronger over the course of their acquaintance. What would she feel if she knew her interest was returned? She was very
much afraid that she wanted to feel the strength in those hands again, this time restrained by tenderness—to feel him stroke her cheek, to feel his lips on hers.
But had that anything to do with love? Or was it only desire?
* * * *
Perhaps it was because she had spent all afternoon thinking of him, but when she saw Lord Sidmouth that evening, she was determined to get him to talk to her. When he asked her for a dance, she told him she was tired and asked him if he would accompany her outside, where they might find a place to sit and talk. She was shocked at her own boldness, especially when she saw the expression in his eyes. He probably thought she was flirting with him. Well, let him.
The evening was warm and both were happy to be outside. Kate was relieved to see other couples, since she hardly wanted to place herself in a compromising position.
“There is a bench just around the corner,” said Harry. “Shall we see if it is occupied?”
This would take them out of the sight of the rest, but Kate agreed.
“You are looking very pretty tonight, Miss Kate. That color green brings out the flecks of green in your eyes,” he said, leaning a little closer than she was comfortable with.
“Thank you, Lord Sidmouth.” It was the easiest, most practiced sort of compliment, although the first he had given her. It meant nothing, she told herself. “I hear that you accompanied my aunt this afternoon. What was that like?”
“Despite her size and age, your aunt is a formidable and admirable woman.”
“Yes, Aunt Kate looks like the last person one would find in a brothel.”
Lord Sidmouth laughed.
“Oh, dear, that did not come out quite the way it should have. But you know what I mean.”
“I do.”
“But you will say no more about your experience?”
“What I would have to say is not fit for a young woman to hear.”
“Come now, my lord, I am not one of your just-out-of-the-schoolroom misses, and you have not treated me like one before now.”
Well, that was certainly true, thought Harry. He had not used any of his tried and true techniques to get her alone with him. And yet, here they were alone because she had asked him, he realized with amusement. In the past he would have viewed it as a perfect opportunity to steal a kiss. Instead, he treated her seriously.
“I am, of course, familiar with some places in the city that a young woman would not be. But I do not frequent St. Giles streets, nor go slumming like some of my contemporaries. So to some degree, what I saw was new to me. It is one thing to know that young girls are selling themselves. Quite another to meet one, I assure you.”
“And what do you think of my aunt? Do you hold the common opinion that she should be preaching remorse and repentance to these girls?”
“I can think of nothing more ridiculous than preaching goodness to the desperate. Where would a fourteen-year-old girl who is already ruined go? How would she eat? No, your aunt is helpful in the only way she can be—by trying to make a miserable life a little less miserable. She saved one poor girl today. Of course, ‘save’ is a relative term,” admitted Harry with a laugh.
“What do you mean?”
“She got her away from selling herself on the street and risking being beaten or worse and into a clean well-run brothel.”
“And you think the girl better off?”
“Absolutely. The proprietress, Mrs. Spencer, seems a good businesswoman. She probably treats her girls decently to keep good, steady customers. I think she may even have a heart despite her commitment to profit.”
“It is very easy to forget all of this when we are safe in Yorkshire,” said Kate softly.
“Surely young women are ruined there, too?”
“We do have an occasional scandal,” Kate admitted. “We had Peggy Metcalfe.”
“And who is she?”
“A Hawes woman who ran away from her husband and child to go off with a soldier.”
“And you’ve already told me of the infamous milkmaids of Jervaulx,” teased Harry.
Kate looked up at him and smiled. “You have an impressive memory, Lord Sidmouth.”
“I do. For instance, I remember everything about my visit to Yorkshire.”
“Well, we will all be back there soon for the wedding. I am sure you could find a willing milkmaid, my lord.” Kate had pursued the jest without thinking and was surprised to see the look in Sidmouth’s eyes.
“Is that what you think of me, Miss Kate? That I heartlessly pursue women? Although what else would you think,” he continued almost to himself, “after this spring.”
Without thinking, Kate put her hand on his arm. “I am sorry, Lord Sidmouth. I spoke too quickly. My opinion of you has changed over these past weeks. And I blamed you unfairly about Lynnie, which perhaps I have never fully apologized for.”
“I cannot really explain my behavior away, Miss Kate. Except to say that when I came home from the war, I wanted to keep my heart from being touched and so I pursued only young women who had not the slightest chance of doing so.”
“Truly, you need not justify yourself to me, Lord Sidmouth,” protested Kate. She was amazed at how a thoughtless comment had wounded him.
“I do, if I wish you to know me better than you have.” Harry’s voice was low and serious, and Kate was surprised at how the intimacy of his comment and his tone made her feel. To hide it, she responded brightly, “Yes, well, given your friendship with Lord Clitheroe, we will be almost family.”
“I suppose we will,” said Harry, pulling back. Kate was both relieved and disappointed. “We had better get inside,” he continued, “or people will start gossiping.”
* * *
Chapter 43
Although they were never alone together again, Kate felt that something had changed in Lord Sidmouth’s manner with her. He seemed more relaxed and less apt to converse with her only superficially. Over the next few weeks he continued to ask her to dance, and often when James called for Lynette for a walk or a drive, Sidmouth came with him to escort Kate. And since the betrothed couple was often in their own little world, the marquess and she got to know each other better by necessity.
They found themselves telling family stories and amused one another with anecdotes from childhood.
“And have you always been the practical Richmond?” quizzed the marquess one afternoon during a walk in the park, after Kate had told him how she was always the one to come up with some way to avoid punishment for their childhood scrapes.
“Neither Gareth or I had an all-consuming interest like my parents or Lynette. We are both more down-to-earth. Perhaps a little dull, compared to the rest of the family,” said Kate with a laugh.
“It is not at all fair to yourself to turn your strength into a weakness, Miss Richmond. Families always need balance.”
“I suppose you are right. Look at James and Lynette.”
“Yes, look at them,” said Harry with a smile, taking her literally.
The other couple had stopped at the end of the path and were talking earnestly, face-to-face, hands clasped. From time to time James would lean down and drop a kiss on Lynette’s forehead or mouth. They were clearly oblivious of their companions.
“Oh dear,” said Kate.
“We could turn back and assume that they will eventually follow.”
“They are more likely to forget our existence. In fact, it seems they already have,” said Kate dryly, as she and the marquess turned and retraced their steps.
“Will you be lonely when your sister leaves?” asked Lord Sidmouth suddenly.
“I think I will be a little,” admitted Kate.
“Will you come down to London again for the Season?”
“I hadn’t thought much about it,” she replied. “Perhaps in the spring, since Lynnie and James will be here.”
“I am glad to hear that, Miss Kate. An attractive young woman such as yourself should not be shut away in Yorkshire with no prospects.”
; Kate felt her heart sink down into her half-boots. The marquess sounded so politely interested. Surely if he really cared for her, he would not be encouraging her husband-hunting for another Season.
“I appreciate your concern, Lord Sidmouth,” she answered coolly. “I think I hear James and Lynette behind us. If we wait here, they will catch up with us.”
* * * *
Harry went home from that excursion pleased to have discovered that Kate would most likely return to London in the spring, but frustrated by his seeming inability to present himself as a suitor. The more time he spent with her, the more he wanted. He hoped that his time with the family in August would help him find a way to break down the barrier that held him back from outright wooing.
The Richmonds left the city earlier than most of Society, bringing the dowager marchioness with them so she would not have to travel up alone.
When they reached home, settled themselves back in, and began preparations for the wedding, Kate found herself becoming more and more irritated with her family. Mr. Richmond was completely absorbed by writing his account of what he had seen at Padstow. When Lynette wasn’t helping him, she was mooning around in a very un-Lynette-like way, thought her sister. Lady Elizabeth was busy making up for the time she had spent away from the farm, traipsing out every day from one pasture to another, making sure the flocks had prospered in her absence. They all contributed to the wedding plans, but basically the practical details were left in Kate’s capable hands. She was grateful for the dowager’s presence, for her aunt was the only one willing to give her undivided attention to the wedding.
Granted, it was not to be a large or very formal occasion. The Otleys would attend and the Marquess of Sidmouth, of course. And then there were the local families. But where flowers were to come from was no small consideration in Yorkshire, and accommodations for their London guests needed to be planned. Richmond House was a good-size house, but not large enough to hold all of their guests and Kate had to make arrangements for those not in either immediate family.
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