The Scandalous Life 0f A Betrayed Heiress (Historical Regency)

by Lucy Langton

  Sophia couldn’t understand it in the least. Was he not carousing with his mistress whilst they were in town? And why did Philip continue to behave so strangely? After the outburst a week earlier, there had been no direct animosity from Philip, but Sophia had to admit that something was decidedly off. There was not the same warmth and affection between them, and certainly nothing like that remarkable time they shared in the study.

  Sophia found that she still had dreams of Philip at night. Dreams where they were both in a state of undress, lying entwined and feeling each other’s soft skin. She remembered what his bare chest had looked like and Sophia couldn’t get the image out of her mind, the way his muscles seemed to ripple, the smooth chest with only a tuft of hair, the erect nipples that were hard and warm.

  At Willow Grange, Sophia would banish such thoughts by going out into the garden, but she found there was little to distract her at the townhouse itself. So, she would often take walks in the public plazas. Arabella would accompany her on such occasions, seeing as Philip did not offer to be her chaperone. It truly broke Sophia’s heart.

  One rainy, weary day, Sophia was delighted to receive a letter from Kitty Carmichael, something she had been anticipating for some time.

  Sophia!

  You would not believe the wonderful time that I’m having. Wales was divine – and the men so handsome – but now I’m in Scotland where the men are not only more handsome, they’re also much more rugged. But I can’t understand a word they say!

  I miss you so, and I’m wondering how things are getting on. Every night I light a candle that it works out with Lord Timothy. And should it not, that at least it works out with the soldier. Either, or both!

  Love and affection,

  Kitty

  Sophia brought a hand to her mouth, trying to conceal the laughter. Kitty had a remarkable way of making her laugh so hard. Either, or both? Only Kitty Carmichael could say such a thing.

  Yet, her heart sank. Even though Kitty was lighting a candle each night, Sophia found that her situation had gone from bad to worse. Not only was her husband never at home and the state of his affair with his mistress unknown, but now Philip had withdrawn his affections. Had Sophia not had a sturdy head upon her shoulders, she’d consider throwing herself into the River Thames.

  Unable to resist responding at once, Sophia got to work writing a reply to Kitty’s letter. The address of the inn of Scotland was clear on the postage, and she crossed her fingers that Kitty might still be there when her letter arrived.

  Dearest Kitty,

  I’m nearly choking with laughter. But I must admit that, instead of lighting one candle, you may need to light seven. The situation with Lord Timothy has not improved, and I’m afraid the charming relationship with the soldier was nothing but an illusion.

  I am bereft, but I know that I must move forward. Sometimes things are amiss before they improve. Whatever the result, I desire so much to see you. Please return to London before you depart back to America.

  Send my regards to the Scotsmen,

  Sophia

  Sophia’s feelings had improved. That was the effect that good friends could have. If nothing came of her life after marrying a duke and moving to a foreign country, at least Sophia would have found a dear friend in Kitty Carmichael.

  “I’m off for business,” Sophia heard a voice say, and turned to find her husband standing in the doorframe.

  “Do as you must,” Sophia replied warmly.

  “Make arrangements for a fine supper this evening. I would like it to be special,” Timothy said.

  “That sounds nice,” Sophia replied, and watched as her husband exited the room. She sighed to herself. Sophia knew not why he should want that evening to be special, but she welcomed the distraction of having something to do. She ventured down to the kitchen, which was in the basement of the townhouse. It was a rather small kitchen compared to that of Willow Grange, but Rudolph still managed to work his culinary magic.

  It was uncommon for a chef to travel from country home to townhouse and back again, but Sophia insisted upon it. Of course, that left no chef for the duke back at home but considering that he was only living off of broth, it didn’t seem like an extravagance to bring Rudolph to town.

  “I suggest a quiche,” Rudolph said.

  “For dinner? I thought quiche was preferred for tea,” Sophia said.

  “It’s the newest trend. Very French,” Rudolph explained. “I’m told the prince regent now prefers it.”

  “Well, we can’t go against the prince regent now, can we?” Sophia replied.

  The menu was written out onto a card with fine penmanship on Sophia’s part:

  First Course

  Minted Pea Soup with Asparagus Coulee

  Second Course

  Herb Butter White Fish with Candied Figs

  Main Course

  Lobster Quiche with Assortment of Spring Vegetables

  Dessert

  Cherry Tartine with Rhubarb Ice Cream

  It read like a meal fit for a party of ten, but Sophia reasoned that, since all seemed to be lost, one may as well celebrate what one has.

  ***

  Timothy had heard no correspondence from Lady Helena and he was beginning to fear that he never would. What had he done wrong? Was there any way he could amend it?

  Although he knew it foolish, he was writing to Lady Helena once a day. Some days it was protestations of love, others it was protestations of anger, and occasionally he would merely send a poem.

  Being in the House of Lords had proved to be a fine distraction from the emotions that stirred within him. One moment he’d think of Lady Helena and feel elation, but the very next moment he’d think of her and wish to throw her off a bridge. Such was the nature of love, he thought.

  The reason he had ordered his wife to put together a fine meal for that evening was because Timothy thought it was high time he embraced his duty and informed Sophia that he wished to move forward with their relationship. If Lady Helena decided to come back, then Timothy would consider keeping the door open for her, but he was unsure.

  He had seen very little of his brother in the past week and it left him to wonder what Philip was doing whilst in town. Perhaps he was considering returning to his military duties, which would make Timothy quite happy. If Philip remained in town, it meant that Timothy and Sophia could return to Willow Grange and live as a proper man and wife. For a moment, Timothy even blamed Philip’s presence for the rift between he and Sophia. Perhaps if the pesky brother was sent away, then Timothy could finally perform his duties as a husband.

  Walking along the street to the House of Parliament, Timothy thought of Lady Helena once more.

  “Witch,” he muttered under his breath, thinking that only a treacherous woman could treat him the way he was being treated. Then he thought of her lustrous gold hair, her perfect white teeth, and her sensuous bosom. “Angel.”

  So preposterous for one’s thoughts to flit about so. But there was work to be done on that afternoon, which meant that Timothy could finally clear his head of her and again refocus on the evening ahead when he would, essentially, inform his wife that he was ready to be her husband.

  ***

  Philip needed to create distance from Sophia. It was necessary in order for him to discover the truth. Deep in his heart and his mind, he knew it could not be her. But without adequate proof there was no convincing the general. Philip was certain of it.

  Before leaving for town, Philip had done a great deal of work going through the library and the study to see if there were signs of his father’s documents being tampered with. From what he could see, although the documents were thorough, they were too dated for the information to be of any importance. And considering that Timothy had only recently entered the House of Lords, there was no reason why Sophia should be leaking information from the moment that she stepped onto English soil. There was simply no information to leak.

  It pained Philip no end to ignore her the wa
y he had. It took all of his strength to do so, and Philip was beginning to think that his strength was running out. Thinking it was high-time to put the charade to an end, Philip wrote a letter to the general requesting an audience with him that very afternoon. He received a letter shortly thereafter, stating that the general was amendable to Philip’s request.

  Returning to the home of General Highbrow, Philip felt a sense of finality. He was going to put an end to it all right then and there. Finally, he’d be free again to express his true affections for Sophia, and should his brother’s behaviour continue to falter, he’d return to Timothy’s proposal that Philip should do the duties of a husband with Sophia. The only amendment would be, Philip would demand to take Sophia as his wife.

  “Lord Philip,” the general said, sitting in his chair with cigar in hand. Philip wondered if the general never left that spot.

  “General,” Philip replied with his salute. He seated himself without fanfare and got right to business. “Lady Sophia is innocent in this matter,” he said.

  “How do you know?” the general asked.

  “It’s simply an impossibility that she could have got her hands on any kind of information about the inner workings of the British throne. The duke does not have such information, nor does the future duke.”

  “But have you evidence to back this up?” the general asked.

  “No concrete evidence, but you can trust me as a soldier and a British patriot,” Philip explained.

  “Lord Philip, I trust no one. I’m a general,” he replied.

  “Right,” Philip said, scratching his chin.

  “Keep it up. Bring me evidence. If you fail to do so, I shall have to assign more far-reaching British intelligence to the matter.”

  Philip’s heart sank. The last thing in the world that he should want would be a team assigned to investigate Sophia. He couldn’t bear the thought of it. His position was untenable. Philip wished to finally reconcile with Sophia, but he did not want the case to escalate in such a way as to disrupt the Clumber family.

  “Very well,” Philip replied, getting up from his chair and leaving the general’s office in a state of discontent.

  He had to come up with evidence. There had to be a way to prove to General Highbrow that Sophia was entirely innocent in this matter.

  Philip returned to the townhouse, upset but not defeated. The sun was setting over London, leaving a pink and purple haze spanning across the sky. When he returned home, he wished Sophia might be there alone, so he could finally begin to amend things.

  ***

  The aromas coming from the kitchen were delectable, and Sophia arrayed herself in her very best light blue gown for the occasion. She also procured fresh flowers from the florist, which she placed at the centre of the dining table.

  It came as a shock when, looking out the window at the evening sky, Sophia saw that the first person to return home was Philip.

  “Good evening,” he said, seemingly just as shocked to see her as she was to see him.

  “I did not know whether to expect you home tonight. You have been absent of late,” Sophia replied, her heart beating faster.

  “Yes, I have been busy with various matters. I apologise for my absence.”

  “There’s nothing to apologise for,” Sophia said. “I’m merely happy to see you here.” She saw a gentle smile form on Philip’s lips and it warmed her heart.

  “Supper smells wonderful,” Philip said.

  “I had Rudolph cook up something special. Timothy requested it.”

  “Whatever for?” Philip asked.

  “I’m unsure. He didn’t explain.”

  “Sophia,” Philip said, drawing closer. “There is an explanation for my absences. I cannot speak of it now. But do trust that it was not my choice.”

  There was pain and longing in his eyes, and Sophia felt a tightening in her stomach. “I do trust you,” Sophia replied, feeling him draw even closer.

  Philip placed his palm on Sophia’s cheek, and she longed for nothing more than to reach up and cover his palm with her own, but to do so in such plain view would be inappropriate. She felt her cheek grow warm under Philip’s hand, then watched as he smiled in response to her blush.

  “I wish to intrude upon your dinner party,” Philip added, his face turning from loving to loathing. No doubt he was thinking about being in the presence of his brother.

  “I’m sure it will be all right. Timothy did not give express orders that it should only be he and I.”

  “Perhaps I should have,” Timothy said, and Sophia turned to find him standing at the end of the hall.

  Philip slowly removed his hand from Sophia’s cheek, but he did not seem fazed at all. Sophia, however, feared that her heart might beat out of her chest.

  “M’Lord,” Sophia said, unsure what else to say.

  “I hope I’m not intruding,” Timothy said haughtily.

  “On the contrary,” Philip replied, turning to his brother, “we were discussing your mystery dinner party.”

  “It’s no mystery. I will make the meaning of it plain soon enough.”

  “How thrilling,” Philip replied coldly.

  Sophia excused herself, thinking that she couldn’t endure the tension for another moment. She ran down to the kitchen to ensure that the preparations were in order, and upon returning to the dining room, she saw her husband and Philip sitting across from each other at the table in cold silence. There was an empty glass in front of Timothy, which signified that he had already been drinking. Philip had a half-empty glass in front of himself as well.

  Sophia went to seat herself and noted that both gentlemen got up in order to pull out her chair.

  “I think this is my duty,” Timothy said.

  “Are you finally interested in duty?” Philip asked.

  Timothy did not reply, but merely knit his jaw.

  Upon sitting, the soup course was served. Sophia might have to choke it down, the tension in the dining room was so great.

  Just then, Arabella entered the dining room and stood against the wall, a frightened expression on her face. Sophia wondered what the matter might be. It seemed as though she was trying to get Sophia’s attention.

  “Is there something wrong?” Sophia asked, thinking it strange that Arabella should enter the dining room so.

  “M’Lady,” Arabella said, at a loss for words. The men turned towards the maid, confusion on their faces.

  “What is it?” Sophia asked, beginning to be concerned.

  Arabella stepped towards the table, her hands clasped in front of her.

  “I’m afraid that . . . the Duke of Clumber is dead.”

  Sophia froze in silence, Philip looked down at the table, and Timothy stood to his feet, placing his hands on the table.

  “Thank you, Arabella,” Timothy said, summoning her to leave. She did so, and Timothy turned towards Philip and Sophia.