A Gentleman Always Remembers

by Candace Camp

  “Surely he cannot be all three.”

  “Ha! If Camellia is attracted to him, I’ll probably discover he’s something even worse.”

  Over the course of the next few days Eve herself began to wonder if Fitz’s joking comments might be true—at least the part about Cam’s attraction to the Frenchman. As Camellia had promised, she rode out with servants and oversaw the rolling up and carrying off of the large balloon as well as the retrieval of the broken basket from the tree. She spent a good deal of each day reading to Leveque or patiently answering his questions about the disposition of his balloon and equipment, peppering him in between with questions of her own.

  Eve had to commend Camellia’s generosity and her willingness to help, but as the days passed she could not help but wish that the girl would leave Leveque to the servants’ less entertaining care. Eve had not realized just how much she had come to rely on Cam as an extra chaperone for Lily and Neville. With Camellia so often in the sickroom Eve had also had to cut her lessons with the girls short, which left Lily with more time on her hands. And while in the past Lily could be counted on to curl up with a book when she had nothing to do, now she was less likely to read than to talk to Neville Carr.

  Eve urged Lily and Neville to join Cam in Leveque’s room for games or conversation, but she could never count on them remaining there for long, for neither Lily nor Neville could endure a great deal of conversation about the mechanics of lighter-than-air flight. Quite frankly Eve could see their point. She, too, tended to grow heavy-lidded when Leveque got started on the finer points of ballooning. Still, it was most frustrating to think that she had Lily and Carr safely in the company of others only to find thirty minutes later that the two of them had gone for a stroll.

  She hated having to track them down and thrust herself into their tête à tête as an unwelcome third. But since even Fitz seemed to be occupying himself elsewhere these days, the duty fell to her. She was certain that he was avoiding her. Whereas once he had seemed to pop up wherever she was, now he disappeared when she was near. It was what she had told him she wanted, of course. And at least it saved them from the awkwardness that seemed to befall them whenever they were together.

  The problem, unfortunately, was that she hated not being with him. She wanted to talk to him, to look at him. She wanted, quite frankly, for him to kiss her again. Even worse, she was finding that his absence did not make her stop wanting him. She thought about Fitz all the time, even dreamed about him at night. And whether she was awake or asleep, her body heated every time he came into her mind. It was galling to think that he apparently did not have the same problem. He, it seemed, could spend any amount of time away without missing her in the slightest.

  At least there was the dinner party with the Carlyles to give Eve something to keep Lily—and herself—distracted. On the day of the party they received a note from Sabrina saying that Lord Humphrey had had an unexpected guest and requesting permission to bring the person with them. It was no problem, really, as the guest was a man, and that would make their numbers even. But the coy way Sabrina had avoided naming the guest was rather irritating. Eve, note in hand, went upstairs to tell the girls, but she found only Camellia, who was, oddly enough, lying down in her room.

  “Are you all right, my dear?” Eve asked, coming farther into the room. “Are you ill?”

  “No. Only a little tired,” Camellia answered. “I have been reading to Barthelemy, and it made me a trifle sleepy.” She rose on her elbows, grinning. “Him, too, apparently, for he fell asleep. So I thought I would lie down.”

  When Eve told her about Sabrina’s request to bring a guest, Camellia frowned. “Why won’t she say who it is?”

  “I don’t know. She loves being the center of attention, even in a small way.” Eve paused, then asked casually, “Where is your sister? I had thought she was with you.”

  “She was. She read for a while, but then she decided to go for a walk in the gardens.” Cam wrinkled her nose. “I think she’s not happy with me for spending time with Barthelemy.”

  “You, um, seem to like Monsieur Leveque a good bit.”

  Camellia shrugged. “He’s interesting. When he recovers he says he will take me up in his balloon. I’d love to do that. Wouldn’t you?”

  Eve smiled. “I believe I would prefer to keep my feet on the ground.”

  “I think it would be wonderful to go floating over the trees. Though,” Camellia added with her usual pragmatism, “it does seem a bit uncomfortable, with the cold and all and being blown off course. Still, I think it would be great fun, at least once. Besides, I enjoy learning how things work. Have you ever seen a steam engine? I should like to see a steam engine, too.” She sighed. “There are lots and lots of things that I would like to see.”

  “Perhaps you shall.”

  “I don’t know. Sometimes I wonder. First I was too young, and then we came here.”

  “Do you not like it here?” Eve asked, surprised.

  “No, it’s not that. I do like it here, actually. It’s just . . .” She frowned a little. “It sounds silly, I guess, but everyone keeps leaving. First Rose, then Mary. I always knew they would marry; they were bound to fall in love. Now Lily is all moon-eyed over Mr. Carr, and I can’t help but think that she is going to marry, too.”

  “She wants to marry Mr. Carr?” Eve’s stomach tightened. It had gotten even more serious than she had feared.

  “No. She hasn’t said that. But she’s always talking about him. Neville did this, and Neville said that. But even if it isn’t Mr. Carr, she’ll marry someone someday. She’s bound to. Lily’s just the sort of girl who will marry. Don’t you think?”

  “Probably.” Eve nodded. “I imagine that you will marry, too.”

  “Maybe. I don’t know. I don’t ever feel all mushy the way she does.”

  “Not everyone feels ‘mushy,’ I imagine.”

  “Not as much as Lily, at least.” Camellia grinned, but her smile fell away quickly. “Sometimes I think I’m going to wind up being here all by myself, just me and Lord Stewkesbury. Which I do not think will make him happy, either. I know he will say I shouldn’t do any of the things I’d like to do or go places I’d like to see. I shall have to defy him to do them. Of course, I don’t really mind that, but . . . it’s funny. I never realized it before, I guess because I always had my sisters. People think I’m brave, but when I think about being alone, it scares me.”

  “Of course it does.” Eve leaned over and hugged Camellia. “Nobody likes to be alone. But I don’t think it will be so bleak. Lord Stewkesbury doesn’t seem unreasonable, and you will still see your sisters. There’s Vivian. And I shall be here.”

  “Will you?”

  Eve smiled. “Of course. You will need a chaperone until you get married.”

  “You think I will marry?”

  Eve nodded. “You are very pretty, you know, and easy to like. I understand that you had no lack of partners at Lady Sabrina’s dance.”

  “Dancing’s fun. But that doesn’t mean I’ll get married. All the men I met at the dance were boring.”

  “Well, there are many more men out there. And you, I think, are feeling a little under the weather. Why don’t you take a nap and see if you don’t feel more optimistic later?”

  “All right.” Camellia smiled at her and obediently turned over on her side as Eve reached down and took the light cover from the foot of the bed and spread it over her.

  Eve left her room and started down the hall, thinking to check on the Frenchman. A flash of white caught her eye as she passed the windows halfway down the hall, and she paused to look out.

  There in the little herb garden below she saw Lily and Neville Carr. They were standing very close, and he was bending over her. Both of her hands lay in his. They were not kissing or even embracing, only looking at each other. But there was a world of meaning in their posture.

  Eve’s heart plummeted. Her fears, she thought, had come to pass. Lily and Neville Carr were in
love.

  Chapter 12

  Eve started to run down to the herb garden but thought better of it. She did not want to charge in on Lily like a stern matriarch, tearing the couple apart. Whirling, she hurried back to her own room to grab her bonnet, gloves, and spencer. From her small sewing kit she took her scissors. Pulling on her outdoor garments as she went, Eve rushed down the back staircase to the terrace and around to the side stairs. There she slowed to a casual stroll and, humming a tune, strolled along the path toward the herb garden. The noise of her approach would, she hoped, give Neville and Lily ample time to separate and take up more innocent poses.

  Singing a line of the song, she strolled through the open gate, then stopped in apparent surprise. “Lily! Mr. Carr. I’m sorry. I didn’t expect to see you here.”

  Lily was seated on the bench where Eve herself had sat with Fitz—best not to think about that!—while Neville stood two feet away from her, his hands clasped in front of him. Both were turned toward Eve. Lily’s eyes were too wide and innocent, and she was blushing furiously.

  “Mrs. Hawthorne.” Neville bowed.

  Lily jumped up. “Hello. Mr. Carr was just showing me the herb garden.”

  “Isn’t it lovely?” Eve asked. “I quite enjoy it, too. I came to see if there was any lavender. Poor Camellia is lying down; I think she has a bit of a headache. I hoped lavender might help.”

  “Oh!” Lily stared. “Cam’s sick?”

  “She said she was only tired. But it’s so unlike Camellia, don’t you think? I suspect she must have had trouble sleeping or a headache or some such thing.” Eve glanced around. “Now, let’s see, where is the lavender?”

  “If you ladies will excuse me . . .” Mr. Carr nodded to them politely. “I think I’ll just pop up and check on our Frenchman.”

  “That’s very thoughtful of you.” Eve smiled at him and gave him a good-bye nod. As he walked off, she turned back to Lily, whom she found eyeing her warily. “I think that is lavender against the far wall, don’t you? But alas, I fear there are no blossoms left.”

  She started toward the plants, Lily trailing along after her. As she had said, there were no blooms left on the plants.

  “Ah, well, perhaps the housekeeper has some lavender water. Normally I do, but I was quite out.”

  “Is that really why you came out here?” Lily asked.

  Eve raised her brows. “Whatever do you mean?”

  Lily lifted her chin a little. “I thought you might have been looking for Neville and me. Because we were alone out here.”

  “I see. Well, I am sure that you and Mr. Carr were acting in a perfectly proper manner, were you not? Although you are right—once we are in London for the Season, you will have to be more careful about being alone with a man for any reason. People, I’m afraid, are eager to gossip.”

  “It’s so stupid! I hate all these rules.”

  “They are rather strict for young unmarried women, I’m afraid. I chafed under them, too. However, that is the world we live in, and I can promise you that you do not want to be viewed as scandalous. You don’t want to be excluded from Almack’s.”

  “Neville says it’s deadly dull.”

  “It is. But still, everyone wants to be there.” She paused. “Mr. Carr is a charming man.”

  “Oh yes.” Lily’s unguarded face took on a brighter glow. “He says you do not like him, but I told him I was sure that wasn’t the case.”

  “I don’t know him well; I have heard of him, of course.”

  Lily looked at her suspiciously. “Now you are going to say something bad about him, aren’t you?”

  “Bad? No, not bad. Indeed most people find it something to congratulate one on. Mr. Carr is said to be on the verge of proposing to Lady Priscilla Symington. The word is that they have been expected to marry for years.”

  “Yes.” Lily’s pretty face clouded. “He told me. He said that he could not be less than honest with me. Don’t you think that shows what a fine character he has?” Her eyes shone. “He could have pretended otherwise; I would not have known. It is so sad—being obliged to marry someone you do not love. And just because your father demands it!”

  “It does seem terribly unfair.”

  “I knew you would understand.”

  “I do. I think it is most unfair of parents to put such expectations upon their children. Nor can I think that such a situation would make for a very happy marriage.”

  “He does not love her at all. I know he does not.”

  “But as a gentleman he is duty-bound to follow through. She has been waiting for him for years; it would make her an object of ridicule if he backed out now.”

  Lily looked away. “I know.” Her voice came out a little hoarse, and Eve thought she saw the flash of tears in her eyes. “It’s so tragic.”

  “Of course your sympathies are engaged.” Eve picked her words carefully. “It is a sad situation, not just for Mr. Carr but for Lady Priscilla as well, I should imagine.”

  Lily’s eyes widened. “But she is to marry Mr. Carr.”

  “We do not know that she cares for him any more than he cares for her. And if she does love him, how sad it must be to marry someone knowing that he does not love you.”

  “Then why can’t she set him free?” Temper flashed a little in Lily’s voice. “If she knows he does not love her, why would she want to marry him?”

  “Few woman look forward to being labeled a spinster,” Eve pointed out drily. “But it would be more scandalous than that. She would be considered jilted, or the nearest thing to it, even though they are not actually yet engaged. It would be a scandal, and while he might be held more to blame, she would suffer a great deal from the rumors. It is hard to be the object of pity, just as it is to be the object of scorn.”

  “I suppose so, but it seems very poor-hearted to me.”

  “It is not, I am sure, the sort of thing that you or one of your sisters would do. But many young women are much less . . .”

  “Shocking?” Lily suggested a little roguishly.

  “I was going to say independent.” Eve reached out and linked her arm through the girl’s affectionately. “I know it is a hard situation for Mr. Carr and Lady Priscilla, but it is you I am concerned with. I do not wish to see you hurt. I am afraid your hopes might rest on his not marrying the lady, and I do not think that will come to pass.”

  “No, I know it won’t. Neville—I mean, Mr. Carr—and I are nothing more than friends.” She let out an unconscious little sigh. “How could we be anything else?”

  Eve went down to the dinner party that evening with some trepidation. While it would be good for Lily and Camellia to get some experience as hostesses, she wished that their guests did not include Lady Sabrina. Eve felt sure that Sabrina would snipe at Lily’s and Camellia’s efforts at putting on a dinner party. Neither of the Bascombes was at her best. Lily’s spirits had drooped noticeably after her talk with Eve, and Camellia had been unaccustomedly listless and cranky. Any of Sabrina’s poisonous “compliments” would deflate the girls even further.

  When Eve walked into the small anteroom where they gathered before dinner, she was relieved to see that both sisters were already there and seemingly in good spirits. Camellia’s cheeks were high with color, and her eyes sparkled, and Lily seemed to have returned to her usual merry self.

  Eve’s eyes went involuntarily to Fitz, who rose and bowed when she entered but made no move to come talk to her. A trifle stung, she started toward Camellia and Lily, but before she reached them the butler announced the arrival of the Carlyle family. Eve braced herself, turning to face the group of people entering the room. Her mouth dropped open, and she stared in astonishment.

  Behind Lord Humphrey and his wife, walking with Vivian, was a man with arrow-straight bearing and brown hair, gray at the temples. He had a hawk nose and a square chin, and his quick glance around the room seemed to take in everything at once. His eyes lit on Eve, and he smiled.

  Lord Humphrey was at that moment
introducing him. “My old friend Colonel Willingham,” he said to Fitz, and the colonel turned to bow to Fitz. “The colonel happened to stop by on his way to Lancaster the other day, and I was able to persuade him to stay with us.”

  “I hope I’m not an intrusion,” the colonel said in a crisp voice.

  “No, sir, not at all. We always are eager for guests here in the country. Pray, allow me to introduce you to my cousins.”

  Fitz began with Camellia and Lily, and the colonel bowed to them. But when Fitz moved on to Eve, the colonel smiled and walked over to her. “No need to introduce me to this lovely young woman. Mrs. Hawthorne and I are old friends.”

  “Good evening, Colonel.” Eve extended her hand, smiling. “This is a welcome surprise. I am happy to see you.”

  “No happier than I, my dear Mrs. Hawthorne. When Lord Humphrey told me you were visiting Willowmere, I told him I could not leave without seeing you.”

  “I am very glad that you did.”

  Fitz’s eyes narrowed as he watched the older gentleman take Eve’s hand and bow over it. “How fortunate that you have two friends here, Colonel. How is it that you and Mrs. Hawthorne know each other?”

  “My husband, Major Hawthorne, served under the colonel,” Eve explained.

  “An excellent man. None braver.” Colonel Willingham shook his head admiringly.

  “Yes. Bruce was always brave.”

  “Come. You must tell me all about what you have been doing since I saw you last.” Colonel Willingham edged Eve a little away from the others. “I asked Lady Sabrina not to tell you who their guest was. I wanted to surprise you.”

  Eve noticed that Vivian’s eyes followed them curiously, as did Sabrina’s, though the latter’s gaze carried venom as well. Eve sighed inwardly. She felt sure that Sabrina had not taken kindly to the colonel’s not only knowing Eve but wanting to see her again. Sabrina was the sort who liked to keep any gentleman’s attention solely on herself. She would not care that Colonel Willingham valued Eve because of his regard for her late husband. She would see only that a male who was supposed to be admiring her was happily chatting with Eve.