by Robyn Carr
“At least we both have options, should we fail to reach a final agreement,” the baron said, but the look in his eye indicated that he was very displeased.
“I am optimistic, my lord. We wait approval from my brothers, but they often trust my judgment in such things.”
“Come back to Chappington while you wait,” the baron urged. “London must be a dreary place for an American.”
“It is not without its diversions,” Tyson replied.
“Soon, then,” Lord Ridgley pressed. “Our life is dull. You liven the place considerably.”
“Dull?” Tyson laughed. “You lie like any good merchant. I have met your family. Some of them are stuffy, some of them a bit too bold, but none of them is dull.”
“My family,” Boris said. “How they test a man’s patience. Never mind the righteous Latimers, the rest of us make good company. We want you to visit.”
“I have some business in the city, my lord. It is of a personal nature.”
“Is there anything that I can do to hurry your final decision?” Lord Ridgley asked. “If so, I will stay in London.”
Tyson smiled at the man’s eagerness. “I think not. But if you choose to take the other offer, I will understand.”
“I think I have made my preference clear enough, short of begging. May we say September? The first week?”
Tyson thought about seeing Vieve again, but he was not aware of the frown that betrayed his inner conflict. Vieve, the golden flower from the baron’s garden, had awakened that part of him that he thought Lenore had killed. The business venture appeared perfect. But he was quite upset by the way the memory of her moist lips and soft scent of lavender haunted him still. He had barely touched her, yet he had not enjoyed a peaceful night’s sleep since.
“September,” he finally agreed. “The first week.”
“Good. Paul and Evelyn will welcome you and Vieve will be delighted to see you.”
Tyson sighed ruefully. The baron did not know what he asked. Tyson needed the month between this business discussion and seeing Vieve again to bolster himself and make a few resolutions. He had already killed a man because of a woman. He hated to think what form of violence the little seductress at Chappington might inspire.
Chapter Five
Lord Ridgley remembered with clarity that as the first buds had appeared on the trees last spring, he had been despondent. He had feared that after many years of struggling with his properties, he would be forced to admit defeat. Though he held no grudge against either Evelyn or Lord Dumere, it did not help his estate to take a heavily indebted dower farm and manse into his accounts. His warehouse and shipping losses had forced him to borrow against Chappington Hall. And Vieve, it had seemed, was destined in marriage to a useless and poor young noble.
Over the summer the captain had come closer to making his generous investment, which would not only bolster the shipping business but allow the baron to remove the debt from his family lands. And his daughter had somehow come to her senses and relented to consider other suitors.
The approach of fall cooled the land, and Lord Ridgley felt robust and strong. He was fully cognizant of the fact that there would not be many more such profitable summers. He was driven to set many troubles aright before his own death. He would not leave his children problems and debt, but a secure base from which they could do well if they were willing to give the effort.
Lord Ridgley took great pride in the attributes of the suitors he funneled into Vieve’s life. After she had nodded her head in agreement that she should widen her prospects, Boris had contacted friends and acquaintances to send suitors to her stoop. Although the Ridgleys had lived in a quiet and retired country style, his daughter’s comeliness was not unknown. It proved a very simple task to recall those men she had earlier discouraged and even to provide new ones.
And then he watched, from a distance, with great amusement.
Vieve kept company with Lester Bryfellows, the son of a neighboring baron, for only a fortnight. The tall, lanky heir apparent would likely prove a good manager of money, but he was a gawky lad with no sense of humor. When he visited Chappington, his clumsiness saw the staining of good imported Irish linen and cast more than one china cup into the trash heap.
“He may be wealthy one day, Papa, but his money will be fast diminished as he replaces his wreckage.”
“Perhaps it is only his youth, and he will outgrow it,” Lord Ridgley replied consolingly.
“Good Lord, Father, I am to marry the man, not raise him.”
Samuel Trenner, who would one day aspire to an earldom in the south of England, graced their parlor and dining room for a time. His manners were rigid and impeccable, and his appetite tremendous. His chubby appearance and unabashed gluttony caused Vieve to grimace as they shared a table. Poor Samuel was not rejected for this reason, however, but the fellow departed, shamefaced and guilty, after a shriek of outrage and a ringing slap were heard from the sitting room.
There were a few others whom Vieve found too dull, too unsightly, too foppish, or too poor.
Lord Ridgley brought one more to her attention. Sir Wayne could not be said to have any of these faults, for he was a fine figure of a man. He also had a generous stipend from a flourishing estate, was successful with money, was mannerly, humorous, and held a position of some influence in government. He was quite handsome. But...
“My God, Father, he is fifty years old.”
“A bit too mature?” Lord Ridgley asked.
“He has buried three wives and has a son older than me.”
“Ah, you worry about the inheritance of your offspring. Good point, daughter.”
“Please,” she begged, “teach me the accounting of these ledgers and take me to London to see the ships. I would rather die an old, unused virgin than settle for any of these men.”
“Now, Vieve, you are too impatient. It is only one summer; you haven’t seen them all.”
“It does not look good,” she insisted, crossing her arms over her chest and tapping her foot.
“Perhaps you are too fussy.”
Her eyes glittered with anger. “Your complaint about Andrew was that I was not fussy enough.”
“Ah, yes, it was, wasn’t it? Well then, perhaps you are missing your mark by looking for the obvious. Learn to trust your instincts. That is what I do in trade, and it never fails me.”
Lord Ridgley ciphered his sums, and his daughter’s disappointment increased as August aged. But the baron was not discouraged. His children thought he was crusty and old, given only to work and blind to all other matters of living. They would be shocked to learn that he had a strong sense of the romantic and that there was very little he missed. He had seen how Captain Gervais regarded his daughter, and he had noticed, as well, how Vieve’s manner changed in the company of the captain.
Lord Ridgley was hungry for the Yankee’s money, but he was not blind to other concerns. There were a few other things he needed as well, and he had come to believe that Captain Gervais was the perfect man to oblige him. He saw stubbornness and pride in Tyson, and the appearance of ruthless loyalty to Tyson’s own family and possessions. In this Lord Ridgley found hope. Like his daughter, Lord Ridgley knew how limited the possibilities were for finding a good, handsome, and rich man. What Lord Ridgley alone realized was the requirement for such qualities as ingenuity, craftiness, plotting, and devising of plans. There were family troubles that Lord Ridgley feared he would not live long enough to finally settle.
He found Vieve alone in the parlor, lounging on the settee with her feet raised on the arm. She wiggled her toes and her gown was hoisted up, petticoats ruffling around her knees. There was still so much of the child left in her, but it was quickly giving way to complete womanhood. As he entered, she jumped in surprise and quickly assumed a more demure posture. “No young man calling today?” he asked her.
“Truly, Father, even I deserve a rest from this nonsense.”
“Nonsense? No wonder you find no suitabl
e man. You must be a bit more serious in this quest.”
“You may believe me when I say that I am more than serious. Thus my disappointment.”
“Patience, Vieve. It is only the last week in August. You are fairly new at this venture.”
“And the sooner it is a memory, the better.”
“I have found,” Lord Ridgley said philosophically, “that when things seem the darkest, there is a bright dawn ahead.”
“I’m telling you, she won’t let me near her.” Andrew Shelby raised a closed fist in emphasis, and his face reddened in an effort to convince the man. He paced in the small study and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. Charles Latimer did not reply. Andrew turned to face him again. “It has been almost four months since I’ve been alone in her company. And nothing I say will change her mind.”
Charles leaned his elbows on his desk and looked at Andrew. “And her complaint is that you demanded too much?”
Andrew nodded. “She says she cannot believe that I truly love her, since I have asked her to forfeit her virtue to hurry her father toward our marriage.”
Charles shook his head in disbelief. His teeth gleamed. “So unlike a woman,” he said. “I assure you this is rare, Andrew. Once you’ve touched them, raved about your agony and desire, they come panting to you.”
“Well, you were wrong this time,” Andrew said with disappointment.
“You sampled a little of her, eh? How did she seem? Reluctant?”
“No. Not until the Yankee arrived. Perhaps he’s her lover now.”
“Not hardly. He was only here for a few days after you failed with the maid. His interests, it seems, are more wisely placed to business than wenching.”
“How do you know that?”
“Why, Andrew, do I appear to be so foolish as to let my brother blindly enter some agreement with a foreigner without inquiries of my own? Poor Boris has failed so miserably and so often that I feel it is my duty to take a look at Captain Gervais’s credibility...for Boris’s sake, of course. However, I think you had better get to Vieve before the captain returns to Chappington with business settled and diversion on his mind.”
“What am I supposed to do? She will not even speak to me privately. She prattles about thinking with a clear conscience and about her family troubles. Money, and all that.”
“We already know that Lord Ridgley has problems with money. That has been my major concern. Have you tried taking a different approach to the wench?”
Andrew frowned in frustration. “I have been on my best behavior. She is unmoved.”
“All right, then you had best remain so. I think we should prepare a new plan immediately. We’ll arrange for the sudden death of one of your distant relatives.”
Andrew laughed bitterly. “And who shall that be?”
Charles licked his lips in thought. “You must look into your ancestry quickly, young man, and come up with a name. It will afford you a small fortune and you can step in to save the day for Lord Ridgley. Behave yourself with the girl, for now.”
“This isn’t working out the way you said it would,” Andrew said sullenly. “I’m beginning to think it was a mistake from the start.”
“Here now,” Charles cautioned. “It is too soon to be discouraged. She’s a little more skittish than we expected, but do not lose heart. If Gervais had not startled her on the road, it would be done now. I think it’s a simple matter that the girl got frightened by the Yankee, but she’ll come around. How far have you gone with her?”
“Not very far, actually. It’s not been easy to endure, I’ll have you know.”
“Come, come, you young people are so impatient. There are plenty of village wenches upon whom to ease yourself. I’ve given you enough silver to buy your whores. Tell me what you’ve done. Have you taken enough liberties to move her father?”
“As I told you, it is different with Vieve. Something in her manner suggests she is ready for a man, but she allows me little. The minute my hand begins to move, she pushes me away. She is not like other women; she carries on as if one simple kiss is a passionate compromise.”
“Well, even though she doesn’t admit it, by now she’s probably aching for a man. You’ve stirred her up a mite, eh, boy?”
Andrew shrugged. Things had become too complicated for him. He had begun this alliance with Charles Latimer with money as an incentive, but he wanted only Vieve now. He couldn’t take another to his bed without having visions of her. He might have intended to arouse her, but now it was mostly the other way around. She seemed to be managing too well without him, while he was having torrid dreams that were driving him crazy. He looked at Charles. “I think I actually love her.”
“Nonsense, Andrew. That is how every man feels about a woman who won’t give in to temptation. If you let feelings like that upset you, you’re likely to act without thinking. And believe me, this requires some thought.”
Andrew sighed. “What do you want me to do?”
“Well,” Charles began, rising from behind his desk, rubbing his chin pensively. “I can provide you with money to take to Lord Ridgley. If you’re even a little clever when you talk to him, you can convince him that you adore his daughter, that you’re more than willing to combine your wealth with hers for the betterment of the entire Ridgley family, and get his permission for the marriage. He was never very concerned that you didn’t come from good enough noble stock. It was your conspicuous lack of money that distressed him.”
“Perhaps money was an issue,” Andrew relented.
“Of course it was. Boris needs money. Badly, in fact. But money has never been quite as important to him as his bloody nobility. He’d have taken you over an untitled rich man in a moment.”
Andrew raised both his eyebrows questioningly. “Are you absolutely sure about that?”
“I can give him plenty of money, but he refuses to accept my help.” Charles’s shrewd, narrow eyes mocked his attested concern for his brother.
Andrew had mismanaged his inherited estate, and through his inexperience and lack of effort, the Shelby lands had gone to ruin. A year before, Charles had taken advantage of Andrew’s desire for Vieve and his need of money and cleared the debt from the Shelby lands. Charles now held a contract signed by Andrew. Upon Andrew’s marriage to Vieve, Charles would take possession of the estate that Andrew had inherited, beleaguered though it was. Andrew was pleased, since Chappington appealed to him much more.
Charles’s only requirement of Andrew was that the Ridgley family never be told there was any monetary help from Charles Latimer. Charles wished to help his brother settle Vieve with a good noble name, anonymously. Since all Andrew wanted was Vieve, he did not doubt Charles’s charity, nor did he question the fact that he had all but gifted the crafty merchant with everything he could claim as his own.
A year ago, Andrew had been excited and hopeful, for how could such a plan fail? Without help from Charles, Andrew could not even afford to court the woman of his dreams. But now, with things going much awry, Andrew was not only disappointed, he was frankly a little frightened. He did not know how he would survive as an esteemed noble without Chappington by marriage or his own family lands. He had nowhere to turn but to Charles Latimer.
“Listen to this, Andrew,” Charles said, after a few moments of quiet deliberation. “I think you should go first to Lord Ridgley and offer to help him out of the financial trouble he is experiencing. Tell him...no, convince him that it is because you love his daughter that you are willing to make your money available to him She should come to your marriage free of worry; her father’s problems should not interfere with her happiness. And then, when you have saved her father from ruin, you must go to the young woman and plead for a chance to change her mind. But mind you, do not frighten her, or she will refuse to give you the merest portion of her time.”
Andrew shook his head in confusion. “I admit, Charles, that I do not fully understand why you go to such lengths to aid me.”
“Of course you
do, Andrew. When you marry her, I shall own the Shelby estate. My niece will marry a good old English name, I will make money, and my brother will have the help he needs.”
“My estate is not worth as much as you’ve invested already.”
“But I like you so well, and surely you’ve gone too far with my niece for me to consider another for her hand in marriage.”
“But,” Andrew interrupted, “if Lord Ridgley accepts help from me, he will actually be accepting it from you.”
“True,” Charles admitted. “But he won’t know it.”
“Why does he refuse help from his own family?”
Charles shrugged. “Our mother, you see, was nobly born, but we were sired by different fathers. My father was a commoner, and for all the years of my rearing I was dependent on my brother for everything. Lord Ridgley is stubborn and proud. It does not sit well with him that I have attained so much more than he has. It was easier for him to dole out money to me for all those years than for him to accept my charity. He feels that as a baron, born to so much responsibility, he should not be forced to admit defeat... especially to a younger brother he has always resented.”
Andrew frowned in confusion. He had been in the company of the two families many times, and it had always seemed to him that Charles resented Boris, and not the other way around.
He shrugged off his suspicions. “I suppose that when all is said and done, everyone will be content with a better state of affairs.”
“Exactly, Shelby. Do as I say now and present Lord Ridgley with an improved offer. The sum is unimportant, for certainly it will endear my niece to you.” Charles rushed Andrew toward the study door. “I know you think of yourself as a very good lover, young man, but if you are clever you will humble yourself to my niece and promise to show deep respect for her virtuous conduct. Admit you were wrong to demand so much, if it should come to that. If you give her the impression that you are in rut and charging like a wild boar toward her maidenhead, she will fear to be alone in your company.”