“Time jumped?”
“That’s just what I call it. Also, like Aunt Nellie said, if you ever get panicked—even more than now—remember it’s just one month and you can go back home.” She spread out her arms. “And this is the Lichfield Estate. You will always be welcome here. Even if you just want to spend your month reading.”
Eva nodded, already immeasurably comforted by the thought. Two maids arrived and helped the women rid themselves of soaking wet clothing.
Once Eva was dry and was wearing several layers of clothing, plus stays and a brightly colored Regency dress, she started to feel better—all the fabric and the warmth it provided was suddenly comforting. She sat at the dressing table while the maid worked wonders on her hair in only a few moments. And the finished product was quite charming. Even with no makeup, Eva was pleased. She smiled at the young girl. “Thank you. I’d love to take you with me.”
Her face turned into one of alarm. “Oh no, I couldn’t leave my mum. Beggin’ your pardon. Thank you for thinking of me.”
Anna shook her head. “She wouldn’t really take you. She just means she’s pleased.”
The girl curtsied. “Thank you, my lady.”
As soon as both maids left, Eva whispered. “Should I be a lady? Who is my family? My father? Aren’t such things known?”
“They are. But I don’t know what else to do since you introduced yourself as such.”
“Could I be from another country? Or America?”
“Heavens no. They’re not too fond of Americans. But perhaps a northern estate in Scotland?” She shook her head. “No, just a northern English estate with an ancient family. Perhaps your father is a Baron. He doesn’t serve in the house of Lords and no one has ever heard of him because he rarely leaves his estate.”
“Most of that sounds like gibberish I know nothing about, but if that’s the story, that’s the story.”
Anna reached for her hand. “And now, we go meet your new boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend? That sounds so un-time period.”
“I apologize. We go to…entertain the man who called.”
“Better.”
“Though you know this very meeting is so very untoward.”
Eva giggled. “I suppose it is. A man, sitting in our front room. Picked us up in the dark of night in a rain storm.” As she walked with Anna at her side down the stairs, she felt stronger and happier. Her heart seemed to slow and her breathing felt unrestrained. “And did you find him handsome? Or is it just my befuddled brain?”
“He’s grippingly handsome.” Anna fanned herself. “I highly approve. Maybe we can find one for me while we are here.”
“Oh, I’d love that. The four of us could have a blast…”
Anna was shaking her head and her wry smile gave Eva pause.
“There’s no double dating, no four of us, unless we’re careful. Remember, we will all be chaperoned to death except in certain moments. Phaeton rides or walks are good for that. The verandah or back gardens at balls…”
“Vauxhall Gardens?”
“Yes, that’s a perfect location to get lost for a time.”
Eva nodded. “I understand. I’ll just have to remember not to be a hoyden.” She giggled again.
“And I’ve never heard you giggle…not one time, until today.”
“I think something’s still odd with me, but at least I don’t feel like I need to curl up in panic.”
They arrived outside the doors to the front sitting room. Anna nodded to the footman, who opened them and announced their presence.
Lord Hereford stood, placing his cup on the table to his front. “And now I am much more cheered, seeing the both of you dry and in much more pleasant circumstances.”
They approached and Eva stepped forward closer. “It is in great thanks to you that we have arrived here at all.” She curtseyed. “You have our deepest gratitude.”
His face lit and he seemed immeasurably pleased. He bowed over her hand, and when the pressure of his lips burned into her hand through her gloves, she felt her face heat. Then he turned to Anna, doing the same. The servants brought over another chair and another tray of food and tea, and the three of them sat.
After many of the usual pleasantries, Lord Hereford directed his full attention back to Eva, and she thought she would have to hold her breath to stop it from reverting to her panicked panting. “How long will you be staying?”
“Oh, um.” She looked at Anna for a hint of how to respond. “I was thinking perhaps I might have a season in London? Or half a season as it is now fully underway. I’m unsure. Thirty days at least.”
“Is that because you must return here at the full moon?” His face was full of open curiosity. Eva had no idea how much he understood about the way things at Twickenham worked.
“Partly. I think it is more that Anna and I are going to return together when it’s time.”
“And you live in the north of England?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“And your sponsor? Where might I call upon you once we all return to London?”
Eva nearly choked on her swallow of tea. She had no idea. But Anna jumped in. “My aunt, Beatrice. She’s here. Or the Duke of Ramsbury. He would also be a place we stay.”
“Oh well that’s wonderful! The duke and duchess and I are fast friends.”
“I look forward to a continued acquaintance. But before you return to London, would you like to dine with me at the inn?”
Eva rose both eyebrows. Something about his offer sounded sketchy even to her American brain.
“The both of you, of course. With a smaller party of us. The duke and his wife will be there. Tomorrow.”
“Oh, yes of course. We’d love to.” Eva nodded, relieved and feeling ridiculous for assuming anything different than an evening of the utmost propriety. These people governed their lives by their sense of appropriate behavior.
The rain picked up outside their window. Anna clucked. “We cannot let you go out in that. Perhaps we could settle in with a book and a quiet evening?”
“I’d like that very much.”
Eva smiled. “I as well. I’m feeling a bit warm now, by the fire. Perhaps we could move to the settee?”
Lord Hereford appeared only too willing to join her at her side on the settee, and Anna took up a spot across from them in an arm chair with needlepoint in hand.
Eva looked over her shoulder at the beautiful intricate stitching. “That’s lovely.”
“Oh this?” She laughed, but she also seemed pleased and embarrassed. “I save it here at the house for whenever I come. Perhaps one day I will finish it.”
They settled in. Lord Hereford picked up the book to his left, Shakespeare’s sonnets, and began reading aloud. Eva thought she would melt from the deep timber of his voice and the lovely rhythm that washed over her. She didn’t know much about how this whole adventure would move forward, but she knew one thing—she could spend many an evening in just exactly this way and be happier than she had ever been.
7
Oliver paced impatiently in the private dining room at the inn where he was staying. The duke and duchess watched him. If the expressions on their faces were any indication, both were highly amused. “You can stop laughing at me.”
“Not a single jovial noise has exited my lips.” The duke smirked. “Though I admit to frequent biting of my cheeks to prevent such an uncouth occurrence.”
The duchess laughed at his remark, and Oliver suspected many private experiences had made it funnier than his comment merited. For Oliver found it only mildly amusing, irritating honestly, if he thought about it again. “Where are they?”
“We are here!”
He wished to have bitten his tongue right in two.
Lady Anna and Lady Eva arrived with a maid and footman. He moved forward, hands outstretched. “And so you have arrived. I’m so pleased you could come.” He indicated their table. “Please join us. You remember the duke, His grace Algernon of Ramsbur
y, and her grace, Jane?”
Lady Anna nodded. “I’m so pleased to see you again, Algernon, Jane.” Her eyes sparkled and she kissed both on the cheeks.
Jane squeezed her back. “I didn’t think we’d be seeing you in our part of the world ever again.”
Anna shrugged and indicated Eva. “When I saw her leap, without so much as an inkling of understanding, I couldn’t let her come alone.”
“Leap?” Oliver looked from one to the other, confused but pleased.
Also happy that Lady Anna was such a dear friend to the duke and his wife and completely lost in their conversation.
“Oh dear. I’m sorry. We are talking of our games as youth, and I apologize that no one else at the table could possibly enjoy the conversation.” She took her seat. “But I do have to repeat how very good it is to see you both.”
They smiled, and the duke took his wife’s hand.
Then they turned to Lady Eva. “And we are so pleased to meet this new adventurous soul.”
She curtseyed. “Thank you. I’m happy to be here. Though we had a rough arrival.”
“Rough?”
Oliver felt at last he could contribute. “Yes, quite. I found them shivering on the side of the road. But once warm and comfortable I feel we had a lovely evening by the fire to wait out the rain.” He could have thanked the rain profusely were such a thing possible. He’d never had a finer night.
“What a perfect time to arrive.” The duchess shook her head.
“I couldn’t have timed it better myself.” The duke snorted into his cup and turned away.
Oliver began to lose a tiny bit of patience with his guests, elevated in status though they were. “Shall we begin?” He motioned for the footmen to start filling plates and cups. Conversation continued around them, but Oliver found his eyes seeking Lady Eva so much he gave up trying to resist. She didn’t seem to mind and sought his thoughts as often as he sought hers. When the duke would make a joke and everyone laughed, he wanted to see the widening of her smile, how her eyes twinkled when she found something funny. And he was gratified she looked to him in those moments as well. It seemed everything merited the sharing of gazes.
By the end of the meal, he wasn’t sure he could eat another meal without her sitting at his side. What a perfectly odd feeling, to have a sudden need for someone he had previously not even known existed.
“I admit to finding my arrival a bit jarring but made all the more wonderful by Lord Hereford’s arrival. He was quite heroic and our evening one of the coziest and most pleasant of my life.”
Oliver leaned closer to her. “I share your sentiments. Would we could bring down many more rain storms to repeat just such an evening.”
The duke cleared his throat. “Perhaps we can invite you all to a dinner party at our townhome in London this Tuesday? A good introduction for Lady Eva into society?”
“Oh, thank you. I would appreciate that very much.”
“And you both must stay at our home.” The duchess nodded. “We have plenty of room and would love the company.”
Lady Anna smiled. “I would love nothing more, as I suspect you have acquired a few more amenities?”
Everyone at the table glanced in Oliver’s direction, and he’d never felt more left out of a conversation. He stood. “Perhaps a turn about the room?” He offered his arm to lady Eva.
“Oh, of course. I’d enjoy that.” She stood and when she placed her hand on his arm, he felt he’d never like her to take it away. A feeling of protective energy coursed through him and he stood taller.
“I confess to seeking a moment just such as this, a tiny conversation without so many people listening.”
“Oh?” Her cheeks turned a lovely pink.
“Just so.” They walked slowly, for the room was not overly large. Until Oliver rested his other hand over top hers. “Would you be amenable to me calling on you?”
Eva tuned to face him. “Yes! That would be wonderful. I might be so bored if you didn’t.” She cleared her throat. “That would be lovely, yes.”
He found her reaction so refreshing. He could tell she was well mannered and carried herself with the utmost decorum, but there was a fire, a happiness, an energy that burst forth from her that he found irresistible. “Excellent. I look forward to many moments in just such a manner as we are now and such as we had last evening by the fire. As well as walks in the park, the opera and didn’t you mention Vauxhall?”
Her face lit. “You remembered.”
“Naturally. We must pay a visit to the place you’ve most wanted to see, and to any other place you’d like to visit while in London.”
They made their way back the other direction toward the other guests. As they neared, he slowed their steps once again. “My mind forbids me speak too soon, but my heart is commanding otherwise. I’ll allow the two a battle and say only this much. I have never been so moved by a woman.” He bowed over her hand, pressing his lips once again on her knuckles.
When they returned to the table, something had changed between them, a new sort of understanding felt comfortable and unsettling all at once. Oliver wasn’t sure he’d ever sleep well again with thoughts of Lady Eva running through his mind. But as he watched her laugh with the others and eat and feel more comfortable, he imagined more and more what life might be like with her at his side, and he couldn’t imagine a happier way to be.
8
Eva paced her small room, the lady’s maid waiting patiently for her to begin dressing. Anna sat in a chair over by the fair, already dressed and ready.
“But he has expectations.” Eva wrung her hands together.
“They will all have hopes. Will want to dance with you, call on you, fill up your afternoons. But their hopes do not require anything from you. You behave according to your own desires.”
Eva groaned. “But how could I pursue anything more than a mild flirtation with anyone, knowing that I will be gone within the month?”
“But will you? Be gone? You don’t know that. Anything could happen. Remember, you can return at any time to any time. Right when you left.”
Eva stopped. “I keep forgetting that all important detail. When I freak out, will you please remind me?”
She nodded and then indicated the maid. “That’s precisely why I am here, wearing stays, using a chamber pot again and submitting myself to mindless ballroom chatter.”
“You are the dearest friend.”
“I know. Now, let’s get you beautified.”
Eva held up her arms and the maid pulled off her nightshift, quickly replacing it with all her various underthings. When at last the emerald green gown flowed over her head and down to the floor, she felt strapped in and drowning in clothing. But as she stepped in front of her mirror, even she had to admit the effect was stunning. “Remarkable.”
Anna nodded. “You will awe and amaze.”
“As will you. Have you thought what you will do if some Earl comes calling your name?”
“Well, if he’s anything like yours, I might be convinced to stay awhile.” She smiled and Eva sat down at her dressing table. The maid used a new pomade on her cheeks, which brought out some natural looking color. And then the Regency version of a curling iron, which probably fried the ends to smithereens, produced lovely ringlets of hair around Eva’s face. The maid hid jewels throughout her hair so that it would sparkle in the candlelight, then applied a touch of rose water to her neck.
“If I might say so, you look lovely.” Her maid curtseyed and bowed her head.
“Oh, thank you. You’ve turned me into a royal princess. You’re a wonder.”
“I’m happy to have pleased you. If that will be all?”
“Yes, I’ll return and ring for you before bed.”
“Very good, my lady.”
As soon as the maid was out of the room, Eva eyed herself again. “It really is remarkable what they can accomplish without a lick of mascara or foundation.”
“Two other products I wish I’d brought wit
h us.”
“So, you know to let the servants put food on your plate?”
“Yes, and fill my cup. I know not to eat until the host eats. I am to stick to boring subjects.”
“But to try to make them sound decidedly not boring.”
“I love how you all of a sudden use words like ‘decidedly.’”
“I told you I’ve lived here for months at a time. It would do you well to try to adopt a certain manner of speaking. At least you can pull off the British sounding vowels.”
“And if they ask about my manner of speaking?”
“Hopefully our story of you being isolated your whole life will aid in the believability of you being English.” She laughed. “And from their time period.”
“This is the greatest immersion of all time. I still can’t believe we pulled this off.”
“It’s incredible to know such an opportunity exists. I’m not sure how the Fae choose people to bless with this knowledge, but it’s priceless.”
Eva considered. “I could go any time I wanted.”
“You could. I think Nellie is much more inclined to help in matters of the heart, but she’s been known to support a bit of healthy curiosity and adventure as well.”
Eva smiled. “Shall we?”
“Yes, I’m certain the guests will soon be arriving, and I’m dying to talk to Jane.”
“She sounds kind of…modern.”
“I’ll let her tell you her story.”
Eva nodded and then she smiled. “I can’t believe I’ve got my own Earl coming to dine at a Regency dinner party.”
“Let’s see who else Jane invited for me to meet.”
Eva laughed. “And off we go.” She corrected. “What I meant to say was, let us not be late to greet the guests.”
“Better.”
They descended just as the butler let in the first of the guests. Two men, not as broad shouldered as Lord Hereford, but dashing in their cravats in the breadth their jackets stretched across their shoulders. They laughed and joked with the duke and he introduced her and Anna to his friends.
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