Well, that was one part of the mystery solved. “But who is he?” I asked. That was the vital question.
“No one has been down there,” Will said, gesturing towards the bridge. “I think he must have found a new hiding spot.”
“But he hasn’t been doing anything, so why would he need a hiding spot?” Sarah asked. “And if it is Mr. Richfield, what better hiding place than his room with his Sandwoods?”
“I don’t care about that! And it isn’t Mr. Richfield” I said sharply, completely frustrated. I scowled at the bank that had reminded me of just enough to create more questions. “I care about who he is.” As long as he wasn’t my betrothed. “I hate having this hanging over us.”
Crossing her arms, Sarah frowned. “Well, I don’t know how we’re going to figure this out.” Oh, that was so helpful, and I told her exactly that. She shrugged. “Diana, I don’t know what you were expecting, but there isn’t anything else we can do.”
“That’s why I’m saying we need to ask Richfield,” Will said. “I do not see another way to go about it.”
“That would not be an enjoyable conversation,” I said with a sigh. If only I could remember what I had found that day. That would solve everything so quickly.
“Well, there’s nothing else we can do here. Let’s go.” We climbed back up to level ground. “So, when will you talk to Richfield?”
At that point, I wasn’t even sure whether I would or not. Since he and Sarah were watching me as though they were expecting an answer, I shook my head and walked ahead of them. “You’re both not off the hook yet,” I said over my shoulder. “You still have a long way to go to make up for making me panic about you wanting to prove Mr. Richfield is a highwayman.”
“Well, I don’t know what you want us to do,” Sarah complained.
I wasn’t too sure about that either.
MR. RICHFIELD HAD A private conference with my parents and I that afternoon and agreed to the plan of a dinner party to announce our engagement. He had sent the letter to his mother and was waiting for a reply. A short engagement was what he desired if I was agreeable. Once his mother arrived, any day would do for him.
As soon as I heard that, nervousness plagued my mind. How long would it be before I met Mrs. Richfield? Would she like me? What if I disliked her? And what of John’s sisters? How would we get on?
A date of four days later was set for the dinner party, and I was immediately caught up in the planning of the dinner. I wanted everything to be perfect, and I wanted it to be a dinner everyone would remember.
There would be no going back after the announcement.
I should have realized from the start my betrothed would prove to be a distraction to my accomplishing everything before the dinner party. He interrupted me while I wrote out the invitations, and when I sorted through the linens that would be needed, he appeared. When Mother and I discussed with the cook what items would be served, the maid announced he was asking for me.
Most of me was delighted to have him underfoot. His suggestions and comments were sure to make me laugh. Any attempt of his at assisting me with the invitations ended in disaster, with a bottle of ink being spilled on the desk.
He slowed all activity to the point it became a mad dash to finish on time. Amused though she was, Mother had to urge me to see to my tasks constantly. Sarah was outright annoyed because she was forced to pick up where I had not gotten to my assignments.
“Why is he always here?” she finally asked after three days of holding her tongue on the matter. “Every time I turn around, there he is!”
“Where else would you expect him to be?” I asked. We were in the attic, where the little-used dishware was stored. I opened one chest and began to check its contents. “Hanging on the words of another lady?”
“You’re going to spend the rest of your lives together as it is.”
Smiling, I brushed at a lock of hair hanging in my face. “If I didn't know better, I would say you were jealous.”
“Yes, so jealous my sister is engaged to a highwayman,” Sarah said, pulling at a chest. “I may just throw myself off a cliff as a sign of my protest and a broken heart.”
Laughing, I shook my head. “Don’t be ridiculous. There aren’t any cliffs nearby.”
Sarah rolled her eyes. Despite the uncertainty about the identity of the highwayman, I was happy. And I wanted to stay that way. Not even my sister’s complaints could dim my mood.
Chapter Seventeen
The one thing Sarah was enthusiastic about was our trip to to the dressmakers’. Mrs. Kenson had sewn our dresses for as long as I could remember, and kept up with the fashions in London. While I knew an engaged young lady typically went to the City to have her wedding clothes made, I was more than happy to turn to Mrs. Kenson.
The older woman was pleased to have us in her small shop. And once she heard I was to be married, she was quick to pull out all of the latest fashion plates for Mother and me to peruse. As I had expected, Sarah had no interest in this and spent the hour searching for the specific trimmings she wanted for her ball gown.
Initially, I worried about the cost of making such a large purchase all at once. After all, I would be getting a completely new wardrobe, from morning gowns to evening dresses. Mother was quick to stop me every time I tried to suggest being more economical. “Your father and I have planned for this since you were born, Diana,” she said in a low voice. “Your wedding clothes will not be as extravagant as other young ladies will have, but they will show you to great advantage.”
“But so many—!” I fingered the beautiful green dimity in front of me.
Mother closed her hand around mine. “You will go to your wedding attired as a well brought up and respectable young lady ought. Think nothing of the expense. It’s no worse than should be expected.”
With a sigh, I nodded. “Sarah, what do you think of these?” I asked.
Sarah’s sense of fashion was unparalleled, for all she disliked looking at the fashion plates. I always relied on her to know what would or wouldn’t work. Her preference for simple elegance matched my own, so there were no quarrels between us on that point. When it came to colors, though, we often butted heads. She preferred blues, and I adored greens.
Coming over, my sister glanced at them. “They’re nice,” she said before she stepped away.
That seemed the best I could expect from Sarah. Studying the designs for a moment longer, I nodded and chose them. Mrs. Kenson checked my measurements. Promising to hire some help, she vowed to have everything I needed in a matter of weeks. She also swore to keep the news quiet until after the dinner party.
And with my wedding clothes chosen, I had to find the net lace I had envisioned for my ball gown. I also needed something to dress up the gown I intended to wear to the dinner party. I frowned at the different choices I had in front of me. Did I want lace, or silver lining? Silk cord? Chinz bordering?
“I want the Vandyked lace on my gown,” Sarah said, leaning around me. “Unless you want to copy me, pick something else.”
“I can choose whatever I want, Sarah,” I said sharply. Vandyked lace had become popular, so I was surprised Sarah would choose it for herself as she usually wished to be more original.
“I think you both should try these pink ribbons,” Mother said, reaching over to pick up a pink striped satin ribbon.
Sending a horrified look in my direction, Sarah hurried away. I finally decided on silver beading, not because Sarah had warned me away from the lace I admired but because I thought it would look better against my gown.
With our selected trimmings in hand, we returned home. When we arrived, Father met us outside and took one look at the packages we held. “Did you buy every bauble Mrs. Kenson had on hand?” he asked, his tone teasing.
“Of course not,” Sarah said indignantly. “That would mean I brought home that hideous pink ribbon Mother always tries to push on me.”
Father sent a wink at Mother, which made her blush. “I think yo
u would all look wonderful in pink. In fact, I believe you should have a gown that is completely pink, Sarah.”
Looking both shocked and horrified, Sarah shook her head. “You know I detest pink, Father!” She hurried away, her nose in the air.
“Your Mr. Richfield was here,” Father said to me, his eyes bright with mischief. “I told him you have called the engagement off and had run away with one of the footmen.”
My heart stopped. He was joking, wasn’t he? “What?” I asked, my voice a high pitched squeak. “Father! You didn’t!”
“No, I didn’t,” Father said with a laugh. He paused, and then continued, “I merely explained you were off spending every penny we had, and he should naturally expect you to continue to do the same after the wedding.”
That was not any better. I closed my eyes as I covered my face with my hand. “Stop teasing the girl,” Mother said chidingly, though her tone was amused. “Take your purchases inside, Diana. You will need to get to work right away if you are going to be ready.”
She was right about that. And I knew I would be slowed down by the visits of my betrothed because I didn’t want him to see the alterations I had planned for my gowns. As I hurried for the door, I heard Father say, “One down, and only three more to go, Mrs. Forester. Well done.”
I glanced over my shoulder in time to see Father kiss Mother’s cheek. Those rare moments showed the love between my parents and always warmed my heart. Such was what I hoped my marriage would be.
THERE WAS ONE PERSON I knew I had to tell before the dinner party. Every time I saw Anna, though, there were many people around, and for several days, I did not have the chance to speak a word to her in private. I was thankful that during these times, John managed to behave as he had any other time, so no one suspected anything had changed between us.
Anna, as usual, took matters into her own hands. The day before the dinner party, she arrived on the excuse she was to help me alter my gowns. In the privacy of the sitting room, she and I sat at a table with various trimmings spread out in front of us.
She had only been there for five minutes when she sent a surreptitious look at the door. “Now that we are alone, tell me all, Diana,” she said. Holding a piece of ribbon against my dress, she studied the effect for a moment and then tossed it aside. “You are going to a great deal of trouble with this gown for tomorrow night, so I know there is something.”
I couldn’t keep my cheeks from flaming up. “I want to look my best. Besides, you did just the same when Sir Rodger courted you.”
That was all I had to say. Anna’s eyes lit up with excitement. “This has to do with Mr. Richfield, doesn’t it!” She leaned closer and lowered her voice. “Has he proposed? Or given you a hint he intends to do so?”
“Yes, he has. Proposed, that is,” I said, unable to keep a happy smile from my face. “That is why my parents arranged for the dinner party tomorrow, to announce the engagement.”
Laughing, Anna reached across the table and embraced me awkwardly. “I’m so happy for you, Diana,” she said when she sat back. She balled up a ribbon and threw it at my face. “Why didn’t you figure out a way to tell me this before? Why wait until the day before everyone else knows?”
“Well, it was surprisingly difficult to get you alone. Your mother knows us all too well and kept us occupied every time I was at the manor.” Anna’s penchant for plotting mischief hadn’t abated with her marriage, and I had gone along with her too many times in the past.
“You could have sent me a note!”
That was true, and I searched for a reason as to why I hadn’t done so. “I’ve had a great deal on my mind?”
“I’ll just bet you have,” she said, her voice a good-natured grumble. “It’s a good thing we are such good friends; otherwise I might not have forgiven you for keeping this news from me. When I think of how you were the first person outside of my family whom I told about Rodger’s proposal.”
Raising my eyebrow, I sent an incredulous look at her. “Be that as it may, I recall your mother arriving with the news right before you made it here to tell me. And you had only been engaged for an hour!”
“What plans do you have?” Anna asked, ignoring my response. “I want to help you choose your wedding clothes.”
With a slight laugh, I shook my head. “Sorry, my friend,” I said. I gestured to the beading I had tacked to my gown. “Where do you think I purchased this? Mother, Sarah, and I went just the other day to get it done.”
Anna huffed in disappointment. “I will arrange your bouquet the morning of the wedding then. I will do something with you for this wedding. When are you to be married?”
“John is hoping his mother and sisters will be there, so it will be some weeks. As soon as the date is set, you will be the first person I tell.”
“I would hope so.”
Silence fell for a moment as I concentrated on attaching my beading to my gown. “Philip is severely disappointed, did you know?” Anna said all of a sudden. “It is the second time this year I’ve seen him look so crushed.”
Looking up, I frowned at her. She couldn’t mean her brother already knew about my betrothal. “What do you mean?”
“Do you know why he invited the Reynolds here?” Anna asked, setting aside the ribbon she had been fingering. Puzzled, I shook my head. “He believed the family to be quite wealthy and thought perhaps he would be able to convince her to marry him. He confessed it last night when I demanded to know what was wrong.”
Surprised, I took a moment to consider the news. “I never thought your brother was the least bit concerned with marrying an heiress,” I finally said. Such an idea would have been at odds with his proposal to me not so long ago! What had changed in the past few months? “And has he given up the pursuit of Miss Reynolds?”
“Naturally. The family is on the verge of being penniless!”
“Penniless?”
Anna nodded. “I overheard Mrs. Reynolds confiding in Mrs. Carter earlier this morning,” she said, lowering her tone even more. “I have heard that Mr. Reynolds trusted the advice of a relative and lost a great deal of their money in a business venture. He only heard the news after they arrived here and their lawyer sent him a letter.”
I supposed this explained Miss Reynolds’ horrid mannerisms. Anna shook her head when I mentioned this. “That child would be bad-tempered whatever circumstance her family is in,” she said. “But, that is why she was so furious when her jewels were lost to the highwayman. They cannot be replaced.”
That did make sense, and I felt a twinge of pity for her. “Poor girl. That’s terrible.”
“Only you would feel sorry for that impudent girl,” Anna said, sitting back. “I have no idea how I shall bear the rest of her visit with my family. She delights in setting things on their heads, with no respect for the consequences of the things she says. Do you know she made Miss Delan cry yesterday by criticizing her painting?”
“It’s only a small part of me that feels sorry for her, and it is for the sake of her father. John says Mr. Reynolds is a clever man, and he is the one I feel sorry for.”
Anna raised an eyebrow. “You have had no trouble in referring to your betrothed with such informality, I see,” she said with a smile. “And here I thought you would be prim and proper by calling your betrothed ‘Mr. Richfield’ up until the day you die.”
A blush heated up my cheeks, and I threw a ribbon at her. “Aren’t you supposed to be helping me?” I asked, changing the subject.
“I am. Do you see anyone else here keeping you company?”
Shaking my head, I didn’t see Anna moving to retaliate until all of the gown trimmings landed on my head. “Anna!”
Best friends were almost more trouble than siblings.
THE DAY OF THE DINNER party was a flurry of activity for me. I was Mother’s right hand in everything. No doubt she viewed it as practice for when I would plan dinner parties in a household of my own. Sarah found a way to hide from us both, thus getting out of a
great deal of work.
“I think this is the largest dinner party we have ever held here,” I said as I dressed. My gown of pale green, embroidered with tiny pink flowers at the hem, had turned out well with the silver beading I had added to it. “We shall be bursting at the seams I should imagine.”
“A success, then.” Sarah fixed her hair at the dressing table. “I’m surprised at just how many people were invited.”
“The house party at the Knighton’s did increase the guest list, but of course it would have been rude not to invite everyone there,” I said, struggling to fasten my gown. I gave up after several minutes of struggle. “Sarah, could you help me?”
Sighing, Sarah twisted away from the mirror and made quick work of the fastenings. She returned to the mirror. “Miss Reynolds will make herself extremely disagreeable, you know. And I cannot save you from her on every occasion.”
“When have you ever had to save me?”
“More times than I care to admit.” She tugged a lock of her hair free to hang along her face and admired the effect. “Well, I suppose this will have to do. It won’t matter once we start to dance.”
In her white nankeen gown and her hair in ringlets around her face, Sarah appeared older than what she was. She held herself with confidence, more so than I’d seen from her before. “You look lovely,” I said, stepping up behind her to look in the mirror with her. “I imagine if you ever go to London, you will break many a young man’s heart.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“You’re right. Your sharp tongue would frighten half the dandies away!”
Spinning around, Sarah swatted at me. “Go downstairs and see to your party.”
It was true I did have to check everything one final time. Reminded of this fact, I left the bedroom. Hearing voices in the drawing room, I hurried down to check the state of the dining room. Every place setting was exactly as it should be, and Cook was quick to shoo me out of the kitchen with assurances all was well.
A Chaotic Courtship Page 18