The Seventh Suitor

by Laura Matthews

  Lord Norris at last sprang into action, and the horses were quickly settled. A shaken Benjamin Karst kept muttering, “She ran right in front of me!” He gave the reins to his groom so that he could descend from his bright scarlet curricle, but he had some difficulty in walking over to Kate and Susan, for his legs were trembling. “Is she all right, Kate?”

  “I think so, Benjamin. She has merely fainted and is coming round now. Do not be alarmed.”

  “It’s my fault,” Lord Norris proclaimed dramatically, coming over to them. “I do apologize, Kate.”

  “Oh, do be still. I do not wish to hear another word on the subject, do you hear me? I have lost patience with the lot of you,” Kate cried, her nerves strained intolerably.

  “A most unhandsome acceptance of an apology,” the Earl commented sarcastically.

  Kate chose to ignore this remark. “Charles, will you help me get Susan to the inn? She should have a glass of wine.”

  “I’ll get us a private parlor,” Benjamin offered, and was followed more slowly by Kate and Charles assisting Susan. When it became evident that the Earl intended to join them, Kate turned to him and dropped an exaggerated curtsy. “I must thank you for saving Susan’s life, Lord Winterton. We would not wish to disturb you further.”

  “I’ll leave when I’m ready, Miss Montgomery. Thompson, brandy for the lot of us, if you please,” he directed the landlord.

  “It is not necessary . . .” Kate began.

  “I’ll decide what’s necessary, Miss Montgomery. You and Charles and Karst do not seem to have managed things so very well.”

  “But it wasn’t my fault,” Benjamin protested. “She ran right in front of me.” Charles could think of nothing to say, and Kate merely glared at the Earl.

  Susan whispered, “I’m sorry to have given so much trouble. Thank you, Lord Winterton. I was most foolish, I know.”

  “Hush, my dear,” her sister comforted her. “Sip this, and you’ll feel better,” she urged, taking the glass the Earl handed her. When Susan had taken several sips, the color began to return to her face.

  Kate was offered a glass by the Earl and shook her head. “Drink it,” he ordered. “You need it.”

  Since this was no more than the truth, Kate acquiesced and savored the stinging warmth it brought. She ignored the disdainful look the Earl bent on her.

  “Do you think you can manage to get the two of them home safely, Karst?” Lord Winterton asked.

  “I can see them home,” Charles declared.

  “Don’t you think, Charles, that they would do better in Mr. Karst’s curricle, even if they will be a bit crowded?” his guardian asked, his patience wearing thin.

  “Yes, sir, I suppose so.”

  “Then give Karst a chance to answer for himself.”

  Benjamin did not like the Earl’s tone, but he was more than willing to take the sisters to Montgomery Hall. “I can see them home safely,” he muttered. “The accident was not my fault.”

  “Lord Winterton is not noted for his reasonableness in placing blame,” Kate offered. “Do not be offended, Benjamin. We welcome your assistance.” She helped her sister to her feet, and the three of them left. The door closed before they could hear more than “Stay, Charles. I have something to say to you” in the Earl’s icy voice.

  “I’d give much to hear that,” Benjamin whispered to Kate.

  “So should I,” she replied, her eyes twinkling. “Poor Charles. He absolutely froze.”

  “I cannot say I did so well myself. You would have been under the horses’ hooves as well, Kate, had he not thrust you aside.”

  “Tut! He has no patience with anyone. There was a time . . . but that was long ago,” she faltered, remembering the Earl’s kindness to Carl and his mother. “He has grown selfish and bitter, I fear.”

  “But he saved my life,” Susan remarked rather forcefully. “I am grateful to him.”

  “So are we all. I am chastened; I should not have spoken so of him when he risked his life for you, my love. Forgive me.”

  “I did not mean to scold you, Kate. But you are always so fair. I have seldom heard you speak unkindly of anyone. Except in anger, of course,” Susan remarked. “When, you are angry or upset you do have a sharp tongue.”

  “How right you are! No one has ever accused me of having a placid temper,” Kate agreed.

  When they arrived at the Hall, Susan was immediately hustled up to her room, after once again apologizing to Benjamin for having frightened him by her carelessness.

  When she was advised of the circumstances of their arrival home, Mrs. Montgomery fluttered around her youngest chick. She scolded and petted in turn, until Kate was driven to distraction. But Susan obviously found this the necessary prescription, so Kate excused herself and went to the music room. She had managed to calm herself by playing a few airs on the pianoforte when Sampson intruded to announce Lord Norris.

  “Is Mama still with Susan?” she asked.

  “I believe so, Miss Kate.”

  “Then show him into the parlor. I shall join him in a minute.”

  Lord Norris sported the aggressive air of one who has just been severely and justly chastised and is unwilling to admit the right of it. He stomped about the room after greeting Kate darkly, finally stopping to speak.

  “I have already apologized to you for yesterday. My guardian has informed me,” he continued sarcastically, “that I chose an inappropriate moment and that I should express my regret again.”

  “Then perhaps your guardian did not hear me say that I do not wish to hear another word on the subject, apologies included,” Kate flashed.

  “I doubt that he cares what you want,” Charles replied, “but I for one agree with you. Nevertheless, I am sorry if I caused you any embarrassment, Kate,” he said contritely. “I have promised Winterton I will not speak of it, and of course Wayne will not. There now, that is over. Is Susan all right?”

  “Mama is with her, but she seems well enough. I shall tell her you called, Charles.” When the young man appeared reluctant to leave, Kate patted the seat beside her and suggested, “Sit down and tell me what is bothering you. Not the tongue-lashing from Winterton, surely?”

  Charles could not seem to decide what tack to follow—indignation at his guardian for berating him or mortification at his own showing in the near-accident. Kate smiled encouragingly at him, and his self-doubts won out.

  “I feel such a fool, Kate!” he exclaimed, agitatedly twisting the signet ring on his finger. “What must Susan think of me, standing there like an idiot while she was nearly trampled to death! And to have him be the one to save her. Even you were able to react faster than I, for I saw him fling you out of the way when you went after her. I shall die of shame!” He could not keep the dramatic note from his voice, even though his feelings were real enough.

  “Charles, you must not reproach yourself too severely, nor give in to self-pity. You are prone, I think, to do both. No one has any reason to doubt your courage. I can myself remember some rather daring episodes from your youth,” she admitted with a laugh. “I think the shock overpowered your natural instinct. I feel sure Susan will understand, if you do not exaggerate the incident. But Susan is young and needs someone mature to lean on. I don’t think yesterday’s childish prank set you very high in her esteem, Charles.”

  “No, I suppose not,” he admitted grudgingly. “You don’t think she needs someone really old, do you?”

  “Not old, Charles. Mature. Someone she can depend on. Someone stable.” Kate sighed. “I should hate to think of her marrying some loose-screw; she deserves better.”

  Charles eyed her suspiciously but decided that she could not possibly be referring to himself. He thanked her for her kindness and departed, leaving Kate to mull over the morning’s adventures.

  Chapter 4

  Susan was able to join the family for a luncheon set back an hour by Kate, as Mrs. Montgomery had been too occupied to remember. Ralph looked better than Kate had expected, but he
was given to morose thoughts. It touched him on the raw to hear that the Earl of Winterton had saved his youngest sister’s life while he lay abed nursing a splitting head.

  Mrs. Montgomery urged her husband to carry a letter to Winter Manor and express their thanks to Winterton. He suggested that Ralph accompany him but was informed that his son had other plans for the afternoon.

  “And you, Kate? Should you like to ride with me?” he asked.

  “I would like to, Papa, but Mama is expecting callers and I shall sit with Susan,” Kate begged off.

  Thus Mr. Montgomery set off alone carrying his wife’s letter to the Earl. His reception was no better than he had expected; the Earl was not pleased to see him, but he was ushered into the library and offered a glass of wine after his ride.

  “My daughters have apprised me of the great service you have done my family, Lord Winterton. I wished to thank you personally,” Mr. Montgomery began.

  “There is no need. I could not help but involve myself,” Winterton responded. “Your younger daughter was a fool, and your elder daughter has an unruly tongue, sir. You should keep them on leads.”

  Mr. Montgomery could have taken offense at this unkind comment, but surprisingly he broke into a laugh. “You are too severe,” he chuckled at last. “Tell me your opinion of my son.”

  “I stopped him only yesterday from buying a short-backed nag,” Winterton retorted, but he smiled at Mr. Montgomery. “It cannot be pleasant to be the parent of such a bunch of chuckleheads.”

  “They are well enough,” Mr. Montgomery replied. “Not precisely what I had expected, to be sure, but not so bad, either. Your own father might not be over-impressed with such a stiff-rumped, arrogant son as yourself.”

  Winterton eyed him closely before saying, “I would not allow anyone else to say so to me, sir. My father was inordinately fond of you.”

  “And I of him. You’re making a name for yourself in the neighborhood, Winterton, and it is not altogether flattering. Tell me, have you kept up his farming methods? Do you keep abreast of the Hookham Meetings?”

  The two men spent an agreeable afternoon going over Lord Winterton’s estate and discussing the various improvements accomplished and contemplated. If the neighbors found Winterton disagreeable, his tenants did not. Mr. Montgomery explained his own improvised method of drainage, and Winterton admitted he would like to see it. The two men parted amicably.

  It was a week before Winterton availed himself of Mr. Montgomery’s invitation to inspect the farming methods used at the Hall. Unfortunately he arrived on a day when Mr. Montgomery had gone to Bristol. Mrs. Montgomery sought out Kate in the music room and begged her to take Lord Winterton about the estate in her father’s stead.

  “For you know almost as much about it as your father, Kate, and Ralph doesn’t know a seed drill from a . . . a . . .”

  “Winnowing fan. Yes, Mama, I know. But I am sure Lord Winterton would do better to come back another day when Papa is here to escort him himself.”

  “You are forgetting the obligation we are under to his lordship, Kate. He saved your sister’s life, and I would not wish to show him any discourtesy.”

  “But he would probably be insulted if I took him around the estate,” Kate protested. “Women are not supposed to know of such things.”

  “He seemed intrigued by the idea,” her mother admitted.

  “Ah, yes, I can imagine that sardonic look,” Kate laughed. “All right, I’ll do it. Tell him I shall be with him in ten minutes. I must change.”

  Kate was determined to wipe the sneer off Winterton’s face, and she succeeded within the hour. She discussed the farming methods in such a businesslike, knowledgeable way that Winterton was unable to hide his fascination.

  “It has taken me a few weeks to catch up,” she confessed. “My Aunt Eleanor lives in town and I have been out of touch with the farming except through my father’s letters. I saved all of those, though, and studied them so that I would not disappoint him on my return.”

  “Your father wrote you of such things?”

  “Oh, yes, he writes more of crop rotation and drainage than of the family’s activities. It is no surprise to me to hear how much hazel is sold for sheep hurdles and chestnut for hop poles.” She offered him a mischievous grin. “The only thing that surprises me is that he does not have his writing paper stamped with the Coke motto: No fodder, no beasts; no beasts, no mature; no manure, no crop.”

  Winterton grudgingly returned her smile. “I could tell he was an enthusiast when I spoke to him. Surely he does not expect you to understand the farm implements and new sowing and harvesting methods.”

  “Not only does he expect it, he insists on it. You must not think I am adverse to learning, Lord Winterton. Why, The Farmer’s Magazine is well-nigh my favorite reading.” Her eyes danced, but her expression remained politely blank.

  “You are mocking, Miss Montgomery. No doubt your interest does not extend to the financial side of the estate management, which would be too complicated for a woman.” He was well aware that he was purposely pinching at her, but he could not resist the impulse to set her down, since his opinion had long been that she was capricious and unprincipled. Had she not refused to marry his brother Carl and then accepted a large legacy from him?

  Kate did not allow his disparaging comments to irritate her. “The other knowledge would serve little purpose if I were not also trained in keeping the books. I have in the past taken over when my father was ill or away from home. He does not believe in teaching the practice without the theory, my lord, or having me aware of the income without knowing the expenses. I am rather fond of doing the accounts.”

  “Are you? You astonish me, Miss Montgomery. I have prided myself no less than your father on keeping abreast of agricultural matters, and I am impressed by the extent of your knowledge. Does your brother take a like interest?”

  “Unfortunately, no, but I have an eye to that,” Kate remarked with a casual wave of her hand. “Has Lord Norris shown any interest in his estate?”

  “Strange you should ask that. The young gudgeon came to me but a few days ago—I’ll be bound it’s the first time he has ever sought me out—and asked how he should go about learning something of estate management. I thought he was roasting me for a moment, but he was dead serious.’’

  “Then there is hope for Ralph yet, I feel sure.”

  Winterton eyed her suspiciously and asked, “Did you have something to do with Charles’s sudden interest in his estate?”

  “Now, how should I, Lord Winterton? I imagine it was the peal you rang over him.”

  “He told you of that? Young jackanapes. Forever acting tragedies.”

  “You are too hard on him. He is young yet,” Kate replied coolly.

  “At his age I came into my inheritance,” Winterton retorted.

  “And I am sure your handling of it was above reproach,” she replied sweetly.

  “I didn’t know a thing about it,” he admitted, “but there were people who depended on me.”

  “Charles does not have the same motivation, perhaps.”

  “No, for I am convinced his brother Wayne shows all the earmarks of a scholar.”

  “Does that bother you?” Kate asked, directing her mare back toward the stables.

  “No, the life will suit him. He’s not a bad fellow, Wayne. I’m surprised he took part in that prank last week.”

  “He didn’t wish to, you know. He came to me first thing the next morning to apologize. You should not have sent Charles. He was in pelter enough, and you could not but have heard me say I did not wish to speak of it again,” she said tartly, remembering her annoyance. “It had nothing to do with you.”

  “My wards do as I tell them, Miss Montgomery,” he replied stiffly. “I am responsible for their behavior as gentlemen.”

  Kate burst out laughing at this. “When you set them such a fine example, I am surprised you need speak to them at all.”

  “I told your father you had a
n unruly tongue. It is most unbecoming.”

  “No, do you think so? Tsk. I must mend my ways for such an authority!” she exclaimed and set her mare to the gallop. Despite his later start, Winterton managed to arrive at the stables before she did and glared as he handed her down. “I have enjoyed the opportunity to show you about the estate, Lord Winterton.”

  “Thank you for your time, Miss Montgomery,” he replied formally before he remounted his horse, lifted his hat to her. His rugged countenance was accentuated by the penetrating blue eyes and black hair, and his athletic build suggested a forceful masculinity. If his eyebrows were not so fierce and his nose not so determinedly patrician, he might be considered handsome, she supposed, but not with such an unbending, unconciliating manner. She watched him out of sight, his tall frame erectly at ease in the saddle.

  Kate joined her sister, who was reading the latest novel from the circulating library in the parlor. Susan looked up and grinned at her sister. “Mama said you had taken Lord Winterton about the estate. Was it fun?”

  “Well, for a while he was pleasant, but I managed to annoy him in the end. He told me that I have an unruly tongue and that it is most unbecoming,” Kate confessed with mock contrition. “Are we expecting Benjamin Karst this afternoon? He seems a frequent caller these days. I fear you have bewitched another eligible man.”

  “Nonsense. He pays no more attention to me than to you, as you well know, and I think he would just as soon find Ralph as either of us, for they have some lark planned, I think.”

  “The word is about in the stables they are planning some crackbrained race to Bath at night. Hmm. I think, Susan, it’s time we gave their thoughts a different direction.”

  Susan groaned. “What now, my dear?”

  “They share a common interest in horses, and I know just the farm where they could breed them.”

  “What do they know about breeding horses? They’d make wretched work of it. Besides, Papa would not be willing to advance the funds for such a scheme.”

  “You may be right, love, but shan’t we at least give it a try?” Kate begged. “We would all be more comfortable if we could find something to interest Ralph besides gaming and hunting.”