“We will of course, credit your account, my lord,” Mr. Cardshaw said. “Perhaps for another copy of the Southey?”
“Excellent idea,” St. Cloud said. “Thank you.”
“My biggest problem,” Amanda told him, “will be not re-reading the Southey before Christmas and having Stephen find me with it.”
Only the slightest widening of his eyes showed surprise at her words. “You have read Life of Nelson?”
“Yes,” she said, taking the books from Mr. Cardshaw and adding them to her shopping bag. “In Stephen’s last parish, there was an elderly gentleman whose eyesight was failing. He asked me to read it aloud to him, and I found myself fascinated by Mr. Southey’s re-telling of the life of England’s greatest naval hero. I know it’s not what most ladies would choose to read, but I enjoyed it.”
St. Cloud nodded and gave her a slight smile. “Then I hope you will contain your desire to read it again until after your brother reads it for the first.”
He offered her his arm, and Amanda slipped her hand around it, enjoying the feel of its strength beneath the cloth. Outside the shop they walked to Sanford’s in companionable silence. Once inside and seated at a table next to a front window, St. Cloud ordered and they sat back to wait for Perdita and Stephen. “Are you excited about your first Christmas at All Souls?” he asked.
Not nearly as excited as I am sitting here alone with you. At least we’re in a public place. “Very much so,” Amanda told him. “And are you excited about the upcoming race?”
He shrugged. “A bit. My brothers and I always draw lots to see which one of us will race. My middle brother, Richard, won this year. It would be unfair to have more than one St. Cloud enter.”
“Why? Because you’re all that good?” Amanda dared to tease. “Would you come in first, second and third?”
His smile could have melted the snows of Siberia. “Not to boast, but yes. We learned from the best.”
Amanda put her hand over her heart in a display of mock admiration. “Truly all the other competitors must be in awe of your family’s ability.”
“The smart ones are.”
“Oh, I nearly forgot!” St. Cloud’s smile could do that to a girl. Amanda reached into her shopping bag, took out the unwrapped box and gave it to him. “This is for you, my lord.”
His smile vanished as he stared at it, and then at her “What is this?”
“It’s not a present,” Amanda assured hastily. “If you open it, you’ll understand.”
He carefully removed the box’s top and pulled apart the paper. “Gloves?” he asked.
“To replace the ones that were ruined when the rabbit scared Socrates and you lost your balance trying to control him,” Amanda explained.
“You mean when I fell off of him. Miss Fleming, this wasn’t necessary. It was an accident.”
“I know that,” Amanda said. “But perhaps if I had gone into the inn instead of walking Hamish, the accident wouldn’t have happened.”
He frowned. “I have plenty of gloves, Miss Fleming.”
“I know that too,” Amanda insisted. “But it’s only right that I replace them.”
“No, it isn’t.”
“Yes, it is.”
“Miss Fleming, has anyone ever told you that you’re stubborn and hard-headed?”
“Frequently.” She lifted her chin and tried to ignore the pounding of her heart. “It’s something I do well.”
“So I see.”
“Cam! Amanda!” Perdita called from the other side of the store. St. Cloud quickly put the glove box into his own shopping bag as Perdita hurried forward with Stephen a few paces behind.
“Stephen told me you were with him,” Perdita said to Amanda, stopping at the table. “Isn’t this wonderful?”
She waited until Stephen helped her sit and took his place, before asking, “Did you finish your shopping, Cam?”
“Very nearly,” he told her. “And you?”
“’Very nearly,’” she pitched her voice in a perfect mimicry of his and they laughed. “I love Christmas, don’t you, Amanda?”
“Yes,” Amanda said. “It’s my favorite time of year.”
The waitress arrived, pushing a wheeled tea cart. After serving them, she left and Peridta acted as hostess.
“Are you nearly ready for the Winter Ball, Lady Perdita?” Stephen asked.
“I hope so,” Perdita said, filling their cups. “I’ve looked over all the old plans my mother left. I want to make it perfect, the way she always did. I would want her and Papa to be proud of me.”
A sheen of tears entered her eyes, making them brighter than usual and she put down the teapot. “I wish they were here to see this,” she choked. “Sometimes I miss them so much.”
Amanda put her hand over the younger woman’s. “You will be the most celebrated hostess of the Christmas season,” she declared. “Everyone who is not at the Winter Ball will be wild with jealousy at not being invited to it. The Patronesses of Almack’s themselves will be so ashamed for not making the guest list, they will retire and go hide in the country!”
Perdita’s half-sob turned into her now familiar laugh. “Oh, Amanda. Has anyone ever told you how funny and clever you are?” Amanda allowed her gaze travel to meet St. Cloud’s. “Frequently,” she said, not bothering to hide her smile.
“And do you have your gown for the Winter Ball ready as well?” Stephen asked.
“Cam and I are going to London tomorrow for my last fitting,” Perdita said. “Amanda, do you have your gown?”
“I have one from a ball I attended last year.”
“But you can’t wear last year’s gown!” Perdita gasped. “You shall come to London with Cam and me tomorrow and I’ll have my modeste do one up for you.”
“I can’t afford a new gown,” Amanda told her. “The one I had from last year will serve. It’s very pretty.”
“Oh, Mandy, go with them,” Stephen said. “With what his lordship is paying me, we can well afford a new gown.”
“Cam, tell her she must come with us,” Perdita commanded.
“My sister has spoken, Miss Fleming,” St. Cloud said. “You have no choice but to come with us to London tomorrow.”
Amanda looked at the Hunt siblings. “You’re sure it’s not any trouble?”
“No trouble at all.” Perdita said, picking up the pot again.
Being in London all day with you and your brother? Amanda’s heart tumbled to her toes. I have a feeling the trouble is only just beginning.
Chapter Twelve
The next day.
“You’ve only been to London twice?” Perdita asked. “Cam, imagine that!”
Noting Miss Fleming’s flushed cheeks, Cam said, “Miss Fleming has often lived in the country, Perdita. Perhaps she has had no occasion to travel there.”
And now here she is in my best coach traveling with me to London. And I can hardly take my eyes off of her. Perdita, how do you convince me to agree to your madcap ideas?
“I’m sorry, Amanda,” Perdita said quickly. “You’re just so sophisticated, I thought you must have gone to London many times.”
“No harm done, Perdita,” Miss Fleming assured her. “And I do thank you again for this chance.” She patted her reticule. “Stephen told me to buy whatever gown I wanted and to have the bill sent to him.”
“Couldn’t you convince him to come with us?” Perdita asked. “I think we’d all have such a cracking good time together. We could even take him to Cam’s tailor, get him fitted out and then he’d be bang up to the knocker, even if he is a clergyman!”
“Perdita, please,” Cam sighed. “Must you use such cant all the time? It isn’t ladylike. What say you, Miss Fleming?”
He didn’t dare look directly at Miss Fleming—who looked very well indeed in her mauve traveling suit—for to do so would have broken his example of brotherly control and sent him into uncontrolled laughter. Miss Fleming’s tightly held lips were a marked contrast to her pretty face, but Cam could se
e them trembling in a brave effort to hold back her own mirth. Meeting her gaze while her eyes danced in a dangerous twinkle would have been the final blow.
“I think,” she finally said, “that if you are going to use ‘all the cant,’ Perdita, you should only use it among your family. Some young men might not understand and as your brother correctly says, think you less of a lady. And you wouldn’t want that.”
“Thank you, Miss Fleming,” Cam said. “You see, Perdita?”
“Oh, very well,” Perdita grumbled good-naturedly. “I’ll be a proper lady for the rest of the trip, just like Lucy would be.”
At the mention of Lucy, Cam looked out the window at the approaching view of London. Considering his relationship with Lucy, traveling with Miss Fleming, even with Perdita, might not be “just the thing.” Viscount Pembroke might have something to say about it. His wife certainly would.
But since she’d become friends with Miss Fleming, no matter how stubborn she might be, he’d never seen Perdita so happy. A new spark glowed within his beloved sister, and Miss Fleming clearly had lit it. The lady herself often radiated happiness, as if she carried her own internal flame of joy.
Careful. Cam heard the old voice of caution warn in his head. Next thing you’ll be reciting poetry, and then you’re doomed.
“——had to go see Squire Beecham about a horse and a sleigh for the race,” he heard Miss Fleming say. “But he said perhaps another time we can all go together.”
“I wonder who will win the race this year?” Perdita mused. “After all, we must get back the tradition of a St. Cloud winning. It’s been three years since we had the trophy at Heart’s Ease, but Richard will give them all a run for their money.”
“Indeed he will,” Cam agreed. “But I might have to go to Tattersall’s to see about this horse he was boasting of the other day.” And also to see about the new horse I bought for your Christmas present.
“Oh, I’d love to go to Tattersall’s!” Perdita declared.
“Perdita, young ladies are not permitted at Tattersall’s,” Cam said sternly, fighting against a rising panic at the thought of his sister in that most masculine domain. “After we visit your modeste, I’ll have George and Quinn drive you and Miss Fleming through Hyde Park or take you shopping, but you are not going to Tattersall’s.”
“I’ve only driven through Hyde Park once,” Miss Fleming said helpfully. “There’s no one I’d rather see it again with than, you, Perdita. And we must let everyone see Quinn in his new finery. Has he been your tiger long, my lord?”
“Why do you keep calling him, ‘my lord,’ Amanda?” Perdita looked first at Miss Fleming and then back at Cam. “You’re friends, aren’t you?”
A most becoming shade of pink spread over Miss Fleming’s face and she lowered her gaze to her reticule. Silence filled the interior of the coach and remained for several moments until Cam cleared his throat and said, “I would be happy for you to call me by my given name, Amanda. That is if you have no objections, or think that your brother would not.”
She lifted her gaze and her expression hit him with the force of a well-placed blow to the chin. “Thank you, Cameron,” she said. “I don’t think that Stephen will have any objections. But I do think it best that we only do so when we’re in private. We wouldn’t want people to think we were being overly familiar.”
“I quite agree,” Cam said. “Look, we’re coming into town.”
The horses picked up speed and for the next hour, at Cam’s direction, they made a tour of London, with Cam pointing out the sites. It was something Cam had done many times over the years with visitors and friends from out of town, a tour he could give in his sleep.
But today for some reason, his pulse beat a little bit faster. It was almost as if he was giving the tour for the first time. But then, in a way he was.
It was the first time he was giving the tour to Amanda Fleming. Her eyes sparkled and excitement added a flush to her skin as he pointed out the sights. She shivered in mock terror as he described the horrors of the Tower of London and some of its victims, and laughed at his not quite respectful imitation of the Prince Regent. They were still laughing when they arrived at Carey’s Fine Fashions off of Bond Street. Inside, no less than Mrs. Carey herself waited for them.
“My lord St. Cloud,” she greeted with a smile and a curtsey. “And Lady Perdita! Welcome once again.”
“This is my friend, Amanda Fleming,” Perdita introduced. “She’s come to look for a gown for the Winter Ball. Can you help her?”
“Perhaps,” Mrs. Carey said as her staff came forward to take their coats. “If you’ll come with me, Lady Perdita, I have your gown nearly ready. My lord, we won’t be but a moment.”
Cam led Amanda to a group of chairs and a table. When they were seated, she turned to look at him. “Thank you again, my lord, for this opportunity,” she said, falling back into her usual formality. “It was most kind of you and Lady Perdita to invite me.”
“I think you may have noticed by now, Miss Fleming,” Cam said, “that it is nearly impossible to say ‘no’ to Perdita. Thank heavens she’s not become a conceited little chit, for we’ve all spoiled her. And yet, she’s the most unspoiled of souls.”
“I know,” Amanda said. “I’ve no doubt she will be a diamond of the first water next Season and the marriage proposals will follow hard and fast.”
The thought of Perdita leaving Heart’s East and Huntingdown must have shown on Cam’s face, because Amanda said quickly, “I’ve upset you. I’m sorry.”
“Not at all.” Cam’s fingers gripped the ends of the chair as a tightness gathered in his heart. “I must prepare myself for the day that Perdita will wed and leave us.”
“Are your brothers as devoted to Perdita as you are?”
Her gentle tone erased some of Cam’s tension and his grip relaxed. “Yes. Although I’ve them to blame for teaching Perdita to be such a bold rider. But you are quite correct. Perdita will take London by storm. It’s only right she should find a suitable husband and marry well. But as she is my only sister, part of me wishes she would stay with us forever. Your brother would certainly understand.”
“What do you think, Cam? Amanda?” At Perdita’s question, Cam turned his head and then slowly got to his feet.
Hope shown in Perdita’s face as she stood before them. Her pale, pink ball gown was simple yet elegant, and transformed the normally very pretty Perdita into a beauty that quite literally took Cam’s breath away. He opened his mouth to speak and then closed it.
“Perdita, it’s beautiful.” Amanda’s words supplied Cam’s thoughts. “You’re beautiful.”
“Yes indeed,” Cam managed to put his thoughts into words. I’ll have to hire security guards to be sure some buck doesn’t carry you off to Gretna Green before I find you a proper husband.
“I’ll have to take it in a bit, here and there.” Mrs. Carey had joined them and her brows drew together. “Have you lost weight, Lady Perdita?”
“The way she eats?” Cam asked. “I think not.”
Perdita swatted him with the back of her hand. “Beast,” she accused. “Mrs. Carey, I know the ball is soon, but can you make a gown for Amanda?”
“A new gown? In such a short time?” Mrs. Carey frowned and looked at Amanda. “I have so many other ladies’ orders to finish, and even with all my girls working throughout the day, I couldn’t guarantee I could have a new gown ready in time for the Winter Ball.”
“That’s all right,” Amanda said quickly. “I have a gown from last year that would be perfectly suitable.”
“Wait!” Mrs. Carey snapped her fingers. “I think I have an idea. There’s a lady who has just returned several gowns and I think one of them just might suit Miss Fleming.”
“Why did this lady bring them back?” Perdita demanded. “I won’t have Amanda taking an ugly gown. She’s too pretty to wear an ugly gown.”
“Not at all, Lady Perdita,” Mrs. Carey soothed. “If his lordship won’t mind me saying
so, the lady’s husband discovered she had outstanding gambling debts and made her bring back half a dozen dresses so she could pay what she owed the tables. They’re all quite lovely, and if one of them fits, and she likes it, I’ll reduce the price for Miss Fleming.”
“Go try one on then, Amanda,” Perdita urged. “But not pink, please. I’d hate for people to think we were competing.”
Miss Fleming smiled and followed Mrs. Carey into the back of the store. Perdita slowly walked around the large viewing room, as if testing how the gown felt, even stopping twice to practice a curtsy. At last she returned and sat in the chair next to Cam and looked at him, the hope still on her face. “Do you really like my gown?”
“If you like it, dearest, then that is all that is important,” Cam said. But seeing a frown crease her forehead, he added, “Miss Fleming was right, Perdita. You look beautiful.”
“Well now, Lady Perdita. What do you and the earl think of your friend’s choice?” Mrs. Carey’s voice signaled her return with Miss Fleming. Cam looked up and for a moment, surprise kept him in his chair. Then, still staring, he rose.
Like Perdita’s, Miss Fleming’s short-sleeved town was simple but elegant and gorgeous. The pale green silk shimmered like sunlight on the water. The bodice was low enough to be fashionable but still modest. Lace edged the sleeves and underneath the lacy overskirt dozens of tiny white flowers were stitched onto the fabric and the image of her at their first meeting leapt into Cam’s memory. Amanda Fleming was a water-sprite come to life.
She slowly turned, the silk clinging lovingly to her slender body, and Cam swallowed down the lump in his throat. Gone was the image of the wild, Viking princess on her horse, leaving behind this delicate, fey creature.
I don’t think it needs even a nip and a tuck,” Mrs. Carey said, patting the dress. “It looks as if it were made just for you, Miss Fleming. A perfect fit, if I do say so myself. What say you, Lady Perdita? My lord?”
“Oh, Amanda,” Perdita breathed. “You look like something out of fairy-tale! All you need is handsome prince to take you away. Your brother will be so pleased, won’t he, Cam?”
Christmas is in the Air Page 21