That was a cheering thought. Miranda would drive Georgie to her wits end, but there would be no arguing with her about anything at all. She would have Hazelwood reworked to her satisfaction in the course of one afternoon, and it would no doubt be more efficient for her correction. Tony would certainly need to escape the house for rides or hunting then, but there would be no escape for Georgie at all.
She would deserve it.
After her discussion with Aubrey the other day, she was growing more and more convinced that Georgie had something to do with the situation they now found themselves in. With her determination to see Aubrey involved, and her perseverance in anything she set her mind to, there was no possibility that she would let Aubrey’s answer stand. She had to have done something.
And in a few moments, she fully intended to prove it.
“What’s that smug look for, lass?” Edith asked beside her with a slight nudge.
Grace immediately cleared her features. “You’ll see soon enough.”
Edith laughed a faint giggle. “That sounds ominous.”
“It just might be.”
She glanced at the clock, then cleared her throat. “Everyone, I have an announcement to make.”
Every voice in the room silenced, and all attention was on her.
Elinor’s eyes were round, and her mouth worked awkwardly. “Please tell me you aren’t getting married,” she managed.
Grace looked at her in utter bewilderment. “Why would you even consider that a possibility?”
The girl shrugged. “I’m used to announcements being that sort of thing, and well… you’re you.”
As if that meant anything.
“Ignore her,” Charlotte insisted, clasping her hands before her. “We of mature years know that there is more to life than being married, or not being so. Please, continue.”
Returning her attention to the group as a whole, despite Elinor’s squawk of protest, Grace put a smile on her face. “I have invited someone to join us today. On a matter of personal necessity.”
Every one of her friends looked confused, and she couldn’t blame them. Nor could she help grinning at the sight of their confusion.
“Who is it?” Izzy asked.
“Whose personal necessity, exactly?” Charlotte demanded.
“How will we be able to help?” Prue wondered.
“When are they coming?” Georgie inquired.
Footsteps could then be heard in the corridor and Grace gestured at the sound.
The Wright family butler, Robbins, appeared in the doorway and bowed. “Lord Ingram, Miss Wright.”
“What?” Charlotte exclaimed, torn between delight and disbelief.
Grace snickered softly. “Surprise.”
Aubrey appeared in the door then, his face fixed in an apologetic smile, hands raised in the air. “I come in peace…? If that helps? I would have brought a white flag, but those are shockingly difficult to come by.”
Grace snorted into her hand and rose, as did the rest, and they curtseyed as Aubrey bowed.
“Why do you look so terrified, Ingram?” Georgie asked with a laugh.
“Because I have a quite legitimate fear of appearing as a feature in your Society Dabbler.”
Charlotte looked as though someone had just brought her a tray of pastries. “Ah, you read the Chronicles.”
He nodded once. “Most thoroughly. And might I suggest the topic of cravats for your next Fashion Forum? They are really getting to be lavish in the extreme.”
“Yours is fine,” Grace pointed out.
He shrugged. “I’m peculiarly simple in my style of dress. My valet cries about it every morning.”
Charlotte grinned outright. “Oh, do come in, Ingram. Do you know Miss Asheley?”
He looked at Elinor with polite fondness. “Only by name.” He bowed for her alone. “Pleasure to meet you.”
Elinor beamed at his politeness. “Please, call me Elinor.”
Grace blinked. The girl’s tone was awkwardly breathless. Aubrey wasn’t that attractive, was he? Enough to make Elinor forget that she hated men?
“I couldn’t possibly,” Aubrey protested, again with too much politeness, though he somehow avoided making it seem at all stiff.
“You could,” Charlotte corrected. “We are entirely without formality here, Ingram. Believe me, no slanderous tales of ungentlemanly behavior by way of informality will escape these walls.”
Aubrey looked at Charlotte, then turned his attention to Grace. “She says it so helpfully.”
“She does that,” Grace acknowledged with a dip of her chin. “You get used to it.”
He nodded as if instructed, then clasped his hands behind his back, returning to look at Charlotte.
“And I don’t believe you will have met Lady Edith Leveson,” Charlotte continued as she gestured to Edith.
Aubrey smiled with real warmth at Edith, which did something strange and sharp to Grace’s stomach. “No, but the name is quite familiar.”
Edith smirked wryly. “No doubt you would have heard of my late husband, Sir Archibald.”
“Ah, yes, I recollect now. I’d offer my condolences, but I hear they are unnecessary,” Aubrey stated, the corner of his smile ticking with his usual mischief.
“That is correct, my lord,” Edith replied with a regal incline of her head.
Aubrey nodded himself, then asked, “Is it true you were only married for five minutes?”
“Aubrey!” Grace scolded, though she knew it was commonplace for people to ask such things where Edith was concerned.
True to her good nature, Edith’s mouth curved, and she lifted a shoulder. “Something like that.”
Aubrey grinned and bowed to her. “Fair enough.” He glanced at Grace with a superior look, and she rolled her eyes in response.
Charlotte gestured to a nearby chair, which Aubrey accepted, and they all sat. “So, Ingram, what brings you to our little Spinster gathering?”
“Flaming curiosity to gain insight into the inner workings of such a dominant force,” he recited with a sincere intensity, his smile turning markedly mischievous.
Grace flopped back against the chair she was seated in. “Oh lord, Aubrey…”
They ignored her.
Charlotte turned to Elinor, then snapped her fingers. “Elinor. Snap back into yourself and inform us of the details regarding Lord Ingram.”
As if on command, Elinor jerked out of her lovesick daze and turned to the stack of materials beside her. She rummaged through a few pages, and then reported, “Lord Ingram. Bachelor, rumored to be near on thirty years of age, unconfirmed. No military record. Exemplary marks in school. No outstanding gambling debts. No courtships, jiltings, or scandals. Suspected fortune of… fifteen thousand a year, unconfirmed. No family living, riding abilities unknown, and a country estate in Derbyshire. Breyerly. Rumored to be the finest sight in Derbyshire.”
Grace bit her lip, restraining a laugh at Aubrey’s thunderstruck expression.
Charlotte nodded and turned to him. “Any questions, Ingram?”
Aubrey blinked once, then again, then swallowed. “I’m feeling rather exposed and intimidated at this moment.”
“Don’t worry about it, Lord Ingram,” Elinor soothed, though it didn’t sound at all soothing. “By this report, you are practically perfect.”
Grace snorted without reserve. “Lies.”
Aubrey glared at her. “Hush.”
Georgie howled in delight at that. “Oh, I cannot bear it, the two of you are so delightfully spiteful!”
It was the perfect opening, and Aubrey’s suddenly satisfied look told Grace he knew it, too.
“It’s interesting that you would think so, Georgie,” Grace mused in a slow tone, giving her friend a speculative look. “Would you care to hazard a guess as to why Aubrey is here with us today? And why he and I are so ‘delightfully spiteful’, as you say?”
Georgie’s innocent look was really very good, but it did not fool Grace in the slightest
. “Why would I know what brings Ingram into our circle, or to speculate as to the spiteful nature of your relationship?”
Aubrey crossed his legs over each other. “Because you objected to my objection of being involved in the fault-finding of Grace, Georgie. You even told me that it was not the last that I would hear of it.”
“And you said your response was the only answer I would receive,” she shot back. “Has something changed?”
Grace looked at Aubrey, and he returned it, then gestured with his hand.
He was letting her lead.
Surprisingly respectful of him.
She smiled a brief thanks, then turned to Georgie once more. “My father has decided that Aubrey is the only candidate that will do for his fault-finding expedition.”
“Say exhibition, by all means,” Aubrey added. “It is a bit of a farce and a show.”
That was much less respectful. She sent him a quelling look, then turned back to Georgie, who did not seem as surprised as she ought to have.
“Are you really going to, Ingram?” Charlotte asked eagerly.
Aubrey nodded without the same enthusiasm. “I had very little choice in the matter. The other candidates would have torn several holes in Grace, and it was made very clear to me that one of them would be the next choice if I continued to refuse.” He smiled tightly at Grace. “I couldn’t do that, much as I don’t want to do this.”
She returned his smile in the same vein. United in their dislike for their situation and what was before them.
What an odd partnership.
“You are going to attempt to find fault in Grace?” Elinor repeated in disbelief.
“Attempt is an appropriate word choice for the situation,” Aubrey replied with a nod.
“I would prefer,” Grace broke in, looking at her married friends, “if your husbands would not be made aware of this as yet. I know they will hear of the fault-finding, if they don’t know already, and I know that Aubrey’s involvement must come out to them eventually, but at this moment…”
All of them nodded obediently. Prue smiled broadly. “Camden would be livid. He’s quite protective of us, you know.”
“And we adore him for it,” Charlotte assured her. She turned to Grace, frowning. “Why would Georgie have anything to do with this?”
Grace looked at Georgie again. “Because my father would never think of Aubrey for a candidate on his own. Aubrey knew that my father was concerned about my being a spinster and had plans to amend it. What’s more, my father specifically told him that he did not think Aubrey would know what to do about me, nor did he expect him to.” She cocked her head to one side, smiling at her friend. “Yet, now, he’s hired him to assess me. An odd shift in his perspective, is it not?”
The others began to look at Georgie in speculation, but Georgie kept her eyes dancing between Grace and Aubrey. “I did not write to Trenwick about Aubrey as a candidate, Grace, if that is what you are insinuating. And I did not speak to him, either. I hope to never speak to him again, truth be told.”
“Brava!” Charlotte praised.
Aubrey heaved a sigh. “Then, truly I don’t know what possessed him to do it. Grace?”
Grace still stared at Georgie. Clearly this wasn’t all there was to the story. “Then what did you do, Georgie? I know you, and I know how driven you can be. What did you do after Aubrey refused that night at Campbells’?”
Georgie stared back at Grace, her lips curved into a smile, and then suddenly broadening with mischief. “I may have written to Miranda.”
“Oh, saints preserve us,” Edith breathed, crossing herself twice.
“Why would you do that?” Prue asked with a hiccup, eyes wide.
Georgie smirked proudly. “Because I happened to recollect that Miranda knows Lord Trenwick personally. Knowing her tenacity for anything and everything that strikes her fancy, I thought it was worth the effort.”
“Good lord, Georgie,” Aubrey said with a look of sheer horror. “You told Miranda Sterling that I had refused?”
She nodded, this time looking very smug. “And what the entire situation was. I have no idea what she said in her missive to Trenwick, I only know how she responded to my own letter.”
Grace swallowed hard. “Which was?”
“She said, ‘I will handle it’.”
There could be no more ominous words from Miranda Sterling.
Grace looked over at Aubrey, and he looked at her. They swallowed at the same moment, then Grace exhaled roughly.
Aubrey’s exhale came with a muttered curse.
She would have echoed it if it would not be marked as a flaw.
“Don’t worry,” Georgie said with a laugh. “It’s only Miranda, it will be fine!”
“Says the woman shortly entering her confinement,” Aubrey commented, “away from London and Miranda.” He returned his attention to Grace, shaking his head. “What hold over your father could Miranda have?”
“I haven’t the faintest idea, and I’m not at all certain that I want to.”
Various nods around the room echoed her thoughts.
Aubrey couldn’t believe what he was hearing. It had been Georgie that had interfered with Trenwick’s plans via Miranda. She had orchestrated this horrid demise of his and given her friend fresh cause for embarrassment in the process.
Not that it would change his mind back to his original inclination. He would stand by his promise and see it through, mostly out of fear of the other candidates. Only now he would also have to fear the wrath of Miranda Sterling.
Which was infinitely worse.
“Was that all that you came for, Lord Ingram?” Mrs. Morton asked politely. “To inform us of your… assignment?”
He shook his head firmly. “Sadly, Mrs. Morton…”
“Izzy, please,” Grace interrupted.
Gads, but this was awkwardly informal for him. Still, better to follow their preferences and gain their trust and assistance rather than remain at a formal distance.
He inclined his head with respect. “Izzy, then. I have also come because I am in need of assistance.”
“Ah,” Charlotte interjected with her version of a sage nod. “The matter of personal necessity.”
Grace gave her friend a sardonic look. “Yes, Charlotte, it is. For me and for him.”
That seemed to intrigue Charlotte. “Indeed?”
“Indeed.” Aubrey cleared his throat. “I am designated to repeatedly attempt to find faults in Grace, and I have absolutely no idea in what direction I had best move. What categories ought to be evaluated, what potential faults to look for, how to proceed…” He exhaled, slumping his shoulders. “You know Grace better than anyone. I don’t know where else to turn.”
Grace smiled a mixture of apology and comfort, which he very much appreciated. For someone he would soon be evaluating for flaws, she was a remarkably supportive woman.
Why? Why wasn’t she fighting him tooth and nail? He knew she could fight well, their few spats of late were proof enough. So why not fight him? Make this task impossible?
Resist more?
Take the victory, old man, his mind hissed, clapping him soundly on the back of the head.
It was true enough. If his task were impossible as it was, at least he would not be miserable in the interim.
“Well, well,” Charlotte said, rubbing her hands together. “This, I believe, we can help you with.”
“I am afraid,” Grace announced to no one in particular, making Aubrey chuckle.
Charlotte speared her with a look. “You, Miss Morledge, need to leave the room.”
“What?” Grace cried. “Why?”
“Because it will be deuced uncomfortable to assist him in finding fault in you if you’re here to experience the plotting of it all.” Charlotte nudged her head towards the door. “Out you go. The music room isn’t far, you should play while we plot.”
Grace rose, blinked, then looked at Aubrey. “She says it so helpfully.”
He grinned. �
��She does that.”
With a disgruntled sigh, Grace left the room, and with her, some of the light.
Strange phenomenon.
“Right,” Charlotte began, sitting forward in her chair. “What have you come up with? Anything at all?”
“Not a thing.”
“I thought not.” Charlotte turned to Elinor. “Tell him some of the categories we use for young ladies. Or better yet, make a list for him, but say them out loud. He’s going to need all this spelled out specifically so as to remember with clarity.”
Aubrey frowned and looked at Edith. “Should I be offended by her inference of my ineptitude?”
Edith shook her head at once. “Not a bit. Never let Charlotte offend you, try as she might. She thinks she’s being helpful.” She rolled her eyes for effect, and Aubrey smiled at it.
Make that three Spinsters he liked immensely.
Four, if he counted Grace.
He really should.
“Fortune, fashion, reputation,” Elinor recited, her quill dancing across the page before her, “musical accomplishment, artistic ability, riding, languages, dancing.” She looked up meaningfully. “And it really must be said that one should be able to satisfactorily dance a waltz, quadrille, jig, and country dance. Very separate abilities there.”
“Noted,” he muttered.
“But Grace d-dances so very w-well,” Mrs. Vale protested, seeming rather worried about this whole thing.
Izzy sighed and put her hand over her friend’s. “Yes, dear, but that won’t help Ingram to find his way through all of this.”
Mrs. Vale bit her lip hesitantly. “I s-suppose.” She looked at Aubrey quite directly for so shy a person. “Be sure to c-consider how she treats others, both of her s-station and beneath it. Such a thing can be q-quite telling.”
So was her suggestion of it. Aubrey nodded at her. “An excellent point, Mrs. Vale, and I quite agree.”
A smile flickered. “You can c-call me Prue, if you like.”
He returned it easily. “If it would make you comfortable, I shall. If the reverse, I shall not.”
Now her smile spread. “I would like it if you would call me Prue, Lord Ingram.”
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