Rose sighed in resignation. It was not the best plan ever hatched, but it was the best she could come up with on her own.
“Are you all right?” Elizabeth whispered at her side.
“As right as rain,” Rose answered with a grin.
“That is a nonsensical expression, but you sighed just now, it made me concerned.”
“Did you not find that musical number to be as moving as I did?” Rose asked, managing to keep a straight face despite her friend's dubious expression.
“Apparently not,” Elizabeth's answer was dry before they were hushed back into silence by the other spectators.
Once the musical portion of the evening was complete, Lady Yorkleigh announced that refreshments were being served in an adjoining room. The sound of many conversations swelled to fill the rooms, echoing slightly off the high, ornate ceiling. The crystals in the chandeliers shivered and tinkled with the vibrations.
As the two friends made their way slowly to the other room to have a glass of punch, Rose intercepted Elizabeth's inquiring look.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“You seem different since the beginning of the musicale, I just cannot put my finger on what has changed.” Elizabeth paused for a moment, gazing at her companion with her head cocked to the side. “You seem tense or on edge. Do you care to tell me about it?”
Rose's lips parted as she thought of a plausible explanation of her distraction or tension but then she quickly remembered that she had been claiming to be moved by the music. Someone moved by the music would not be so quick to be on edge, was her frantic thought, as she tried to come up with something believable to say. Bringing order to her disordered thoughts, Rose forced her shoulders to relax as she turned her face more fully towards her friend with a warm, brilliant smile.
“How could I possibly be uptight at such an event as this?” she asked before lowering her voice in conspiratorial tones. “Aside from the usual reasons of this being a ton event, of course,” she muttered with a wink. “But did you not think those last couple of numbers were exquisite? I do believe we shall hear those musicians many times throughout this Season, as they shall no doubt be in high demand to perform at other functions.”
Elizabeth did not look fully convinced but accepted Rose's words with good grace. “I am sure you are correct. While I did not feel it to be the earth-shattering experience you seem to have found it, many of the performers did do remarkably well. We must find Lady Yorkleigh and express our appreciation.”
Rose pulled a face at her friend's words.
“You, of either of us, should be eager to do so, since you enjoyed the performances so very much.”
“Are you certain a note of appreciation would not be sufficient?” Rose asked plaintively.
“Quite. Now hurry along if you have finished with your punch, let us go and speak with her now, there does not seem to be much of a crowd surrounding her at the moment.”
****
Rose was mentally castigating herself for her choice of words as she was strangely reluctant to approach the countess. But in all reality she had enjoyed the musicale and Elizabeth was correct, it was only right that they compliment their hostess in person.
The Society matron smiled in welcome as the girls approached her. Rose admired the deep teal of her beautiful gown; the embroidery on the soft cotton organdy caught the light and nearly shimmered.
“Lady Yorkleigh, thank you so much for your generous hospitality this evening,” Elizabeth began the conversation as they neared the countess.
Rose quickly chimed in. “The performances were exceptionally well done. You must have put a great deal of thought into choosing your performers.”
“Why thank you, you dear girls,” Lady Yorkleigh answered graciously. “I am so pleased that you are enjoying yourselves. I was not certain the younger ladies would enjoy a musical evening as much as a ball.”
“Balls are all fine and good, but a musicale is food for the soul,” Rose enthused, much to Elizabeth's amusement. Rose had to work hard to control her own giggles as she saw her friend struggling to keep her face from breaking into a grin.
Lady Yorkleigh regarded Rose with elevated eyebrows. “Are you being serious, young lady?”
“Actually, I am. I think music is one of the most beautiful things that was ever invented.” Rose had no struggle infusing her voice with full sincerity as she really did love all things musical. “Of course, at a ball you can enjoy the music too but there are added complications that oftentimes interfere with the unadulterated pleasure of a well performed piece.”
The countess's smile increased in sincerity as Rose spoke. “How true that is, my dear Miss Smythe. I remember my first season. There were many distractions to contend with. But are you enjoying the Season despite the complications, as you said?”
“Oh yes, of course,” Rose stretched the truth a wee bit for the sake of tact. “Without the Season I would not have made the acquaintance of my dear friend, Lady Elizabeth, which would have been a sad thing indeed.”
The three well-bred ladies shared a smile over these words before their hostess inquired politely, “Have you two had a chance to have some refreshments and mingle with the other guests? There are no doubt some here that you have not yet met, Miss Smythe, as this is your first Season. Would you like me to introduce you?”
Despite her usual composure, Rose felt her cheeks beginning to blush with the pleasure of being thus singled out by the countess. “That is exceedingly generous of you, my lady. I would not wish to impose.”
“No imposition at all. Now come along. I am quite certain I have invited some highly eligible young men that you absolutely must meet.”
With those words, Lady Yorkleigh set off across the room. With a wry, questioning look exchanged between them, Rose and Elizabeth set off in her wake. Rose wanted to turn away from following the countess when she saw her heading toward a handsome young man who seemed engrossed in conversation. The other man had his back toward them but Rose had a sinking feeling it was the man she had overheard earlier speaking to Lord Austen. She so did not want to talk to him!
“Lord Edgecombe and Sir Broderick, I trust you are having an enjoyable evening,” Lady Yorkleigh began, causing the two gentlemen to quickly turn and bow respectfully to their hostess.
“My lady, we are having a marvelous time,” enthused the handsome young lord as he bent over his hostess's hand, placing a gallant kiss on the back of her wrist.
“Who are your lovely friends, my lady?”
Rose barely suppressed her shudder at the sound of Sir Broderick's voice. She felt the slither all the way down to her toes. He put her in mind of the snake she had seen at a fair being held in Vienna. The romantic side of Rose had always considered that men with the title sir should always be even more gentlemanly than other men of the ton due to the origins of the knighthood. It seemed to Rose that Sir Jason Broderick had never been of the same mind. She managed to maintain her composure as the countess performed the introductions.
Lady Yorkleigh began with Lady Elizabeth but as she introduced Rose to Sir Broderick, Rose could not help interrupting.
“Sir Broderick and I are already acquainted. We attended a few of the same functions while we were both in residence in Vienna, while my father was occupied with the Congress.”
“Oh, how lovely,” Lady Yorkleigh replied, her tone correctly polite, although her bright eyes seemed to Rose to be looking right into her soul. Rose bolstered the sincerity of her smile as much as she was able. It became less difficult as she turned her attention to the conversation Elizabeth was having with Lord Edgecombe. She hoped fervently that the young viscount was not involved in any nefarious plots with Sir Broderick. Rose could not bring herself to trust anyone she saw conversing with the slippery knight.
“It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, my lady,” he was saying. “And you too, Miss Smythe. Are the two of you enjoying the Season thus far?”
“Oh,
yes,” Elizabeth answered promptly while Rose merely smiled politely, neatly sidestepping the question.
Not allowing her off the hook, his lordship probed a little deeper. “I heard you mention you had been in Vienna with your father. Does that mean this is your first Season here in London?”
“As a matter of fact it is, my lord. It has been an interesting experience thus far, I must say.”
These words caused the viscount to throw back his head and laugh. Rose was torn between embarrassment over the attention brought to their small group and appreciation of his grasp of her subtle humor. She was relieved when he turned to Elizabeth and questioned her.
“Tell me, my lady, have you found the Season to be interesting as well?”
“Infinitely more so now that I have the enjoyment of the presence of my new friend Miss Rosamund,” she replied, staunchly loyal, unsure if the viscount was making fun of Rose or not.
As though he were feeling like he was being ignored, Sir Broderick took this opportunity to enter the conversation. “Have the two of you ladies been friends for long? I did not think Miss Smythe had been long returned to Britain's fair shores.”
Rose stiffened slightly at the implication that he was aware of her whereabouts but managed not to verbalize her reaction, leaving Elizabeth to answer the question directed at her however she wished.
“In some ways it feels as though we have been friends forever, but you are quite correct, our acquaintance is not of a terribly long standing.” Elizabeth either picked up on her friend's discomfort or took the knight into dislike on her own account: Rose could see that her usually sunny smile was noticeably dimmed as she turned it upon Sir Broderick. “Did you enjoy Vienna, my lord? Miss Smythe has been regaling me with amusing tales of her time spent there.”
Rose was grateful that the knight had never become aware of any of her involvements in the Congress as he turned and gave Rose a look bordering on pity as he replied to Elizabeth's question. “The ladies, of course, enjoyed the fairer aspects of life in that fine city while we gentlemen saw to the actual work of the Congress. Much of the time I was in Vienna I was far too busy to enjoy what the city had to offer.”
“What a shame,” Elizabeth answered briefly before turning her attention back to Lord Edgecombe. “Have you ever visited Vienna? I must admit I am a little envious of my dear friend as I have really been nowhere.”
Rose nearly rolled her eyes as the young viscount hastened to reassure Elizabeth. “But my lady, that is not the case. You have been to London and really that is all that matters. It is true that I have seen a little more of the world than you, having made the Grand Tour with my tutor after I finished school, but there is nowhere finer than our fair country, and the greatest city in the world is our very own London.”
Lady Yorkleigh had remained with the small group during this exchange and she stepped into the conversation at this point. “Your patriotic loyalty is to be commended, my lord. It is a shame the prince is not here to hear your words. He would no doubt be heartened by them. Now if you gentlemen will excuse us, I would like to bear off my friends to introduce them to a few of my other guests.”
With those words the countess swept Elizabeth and Rose off with her. After they were out of earshot, she paused briefly to comment to the girls in a tone low enough not to be overheard by the other guests. She kept a poised smile on her face so no one would be able to guess what they were discussing.
“I apologize, my dears. I had not noticed that Sir Broderick was in company with Lord Edgecombe. Otherwise, I would not have directed you there for the introduction. While I think the viscount is a sweet, charming boy I cannot quite bring myself to like Sir Broderick and would recommend that you be wary if you ever find yourselves in his company. He is an associate of my husband, which is how he ended up on my guest list this evening. I would normally not be so indiscrete as to tell you of my real feelings in a matter such as this, but I have decided that I like the two of you and thus needed to plant the warning in your ear.”
Rose decided then and there that she quite liked the lovely countess. “Have no fear, my lady. You can be sure that neither of us will bandy about your words. And I had already come to my own conclusions about Sir Jason long ago. You can count on the both of us to be cautious if we find ourselves in association with him in the future.” Dropping into a respectful curtsy, Rose continued, “We appreciate your kindness in taking the time to perform some introductions and for having a care about us. But we truly have no wish to monopolize your time, my lady.” Glancing around with shrewd eyes Rose concluded, “You have already done us a world of good just by singling us out in such a way, but we should really allow you to get back to the rest of your guests.”
With a trill of pleasant laughter the countess grasped Rose's hand in a warm clasp. “You are a dear minx. I shall enjoy furthering our acquaintance in the coming weeks. You really must call upon me at my next at home, which is two days hence. You are probably quite correct that the rest of my guests will not be overly appreciative if I spend too much time with any one guest so I shall see you back to your mothers.”
Lady Yorkleigh took a moment to greet Lady Smythe before she hurried away to speak with others.
“What a perfectly lovely lady she seems to be,” Rose's mother commented a moment after the countess left them. “How kind of her to take some time to see to your introductions. You should cultivate the connection if possible, my dear. It could do you well. To be sure, you need all the help you can get as the awkward daughter of a mere baron.”
Rose intercepted Elizabeth's sympathetic look and felt the heat rising in her cheeks. Despite her heightened color, Rose kept her face impassive. She excused herself from her mother's side with a few choice words. “Elizabeth and I had been on our way to check out the refreshments when we encountered the countess. With your permission, we will return there for a few moments.”
“Very well, my dear, but see that you do not stray too far. We should be taking our leave before too long.”
The two girls strolled away. When they were out of earshot they shared a brief giggle.
“Oh, my dear, I should not laugh as it really is at your expense, but your mother is just terrible at times.”
“Laughter is the best way to handle her. But never with her around, of course,” the two girls shared another giggle over this before Rose continued. “In her defense she has faced many disappointments in life and it has molded her into the lady you now see. It is unfortunate that I did not make my debut before my brother's death. She was a much different person back then. Of course, I was much too young then, but you know what I mean.”
“Indeed I do. Now, let us go and see if there are any of those scrumptious-looking pastries left that I had spied earlier.”
As the two girls sampled the treats and enjoyed another glass of the punch, they made small talk with some of their fellow guests for a few moments before being left on their own again.
“Do you plan to take Lady Yorkleigh up on her invitation to call on her?” Elizabeth asked with curiosity.
“I do believe the invitation was directed at the both of us.”
“Perhaps, but it seemed to me that she took to you much more strongly than to me. And as your mother so kindly pointed out, you need the connection much more than I do.”
Rose grinned at her friend's words. “How true it is.” She paused in thought for a moment before continuing. “I quite enjoyed making her acquaintance, so I actually do plan on accepting her invitation. It did seem to be quite sincere. Do say you will accompany me.”
“I do believe that wild horses could not keep me away,” came Elizabeth's prompt reply. “Oh dear. It would seem our time is up. I see your mother bearing down upon us. Shall I call upon you tomorrow? I would think it is my turn.”
The girls shared one more grin before Rose was borne away by her mother.
As they rode home in their carriage a while later, Lady Smythe took her daughter to task. “You really sh
ould be making more of an effort to further your acquaintance with gentlemen rather than always being in company with your friend, Lady Elizabeth. In fact, I saw that Lady Yorkleigh introduced you to that attractive Sir Broderick but you hardly exchanged a few words with him. What is the matter with you, girl?”
Rose just barely managed to keep her jaw from dropping open at her mother's words. How could the older woman possibly find the terrible knight to be the remotest bit attractive, she wondered. Keeping her thoughts to herself, as was her wont of late with her mother, Rose used her mother's own reasoning upon her.
“But, my lady, Elizabeth is an earl's daughter,” she explained. “Would you not agree that it is a marvelous connection for me to cultivate? In her company I am much more likely to make the acquaintance of a more eligible parti than Sir Broderick.”
“Well, I can see the wisdom in your words, but you cannot expect to look too far above your station. As the daughter of a mere baron, you are rather insignificant in our world and you would do well to bear that in mind.”
“Yes, mother,” Rose answered meekly, while feeling torn between amusement and pain at her mother's words. She was relieved when they pulled up in front of their townhouse.
Rose dithered in the foyer after saying goodnight to her mother, waiting as Lady Smythe glided up the stairs silently.
“Is my father home, Hartley?” she asked of the butler.
“Yes, miss, he is in his study working,” Hartley answered, smiling fondly at his young mistress. “I am certain he would not mind being disturbed by his favorite daughter.”
“I am his only daughter,” Rose answered dryly before inquiring, “Has he been working long? Do you think he is due for an interruption?”
The Duke Conspiracy Page 4