She regretted her words the moment they were out of her mouth. He was a visitor to her country, even if it was now his country as well. “But please, Mr. Channing, do feel free to ask anything that might come to mind.”
“Jack,” he said firmly and smiled. Admittedly, it was a most charming smile. But then, so was his father’s. “And I suspect I’m going to need all the help I can get.”
“Probably.” She cast him a dismissive smile and took a plate of her own.
She knew he was still looking at her but she ignored him and pretended to be completely engrossed in selecting a sausage. Absurd of course, no one spent that much time choosing a sausage. After a moment he joined the other gentlemen at the table. Good, she had no desire for aimless chat with an . . . an interloper. A man who was less than forthright even if he didn’t, by definition, lie. Subtle deceit was far worse than outright dishonesty. She would not be led down that road again.
Dee stepped up beside her and sliced a piece of pheasant pie. “What was that all about?”
“What was what all about?”
Dee slid the pie onto her plate. “That nonsense with you saying you hadn’t met him and him saying you had.”
“Simply a bit of confusion, that’s all.” Teddy selected a coddled egg and added it to her plate. “We shared a dance together but we were not introduced.”
“I see. Still, you were a bit curt with him.”
“Was I?” Teddy shrugged. “I hadn’t noticed.”
“I did. It’s not at all like you.”
“Perhaps I simply don’t like being played for a fool by men who appear to be one thing when they are something else entirely.”
Dee stared in confusion. “What?”
“Oh, certainly he was charming enough with his mysterious manner and his unfinished story and his shocking secrets. But does he seem the least bit out of place to you?”
“Not if he doesn’t open his mouth,” Dee said slowly.
“No, he certainly does not. And his you are an adventure nonsense. Entirely too polished and well rehearsed. It takes a great deal of practice to sound that sincere.” Teddy slapped a piece of bacon onto her plate. “Lord save me from men who claim they wish to be perfectly honest.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about . . .” Teddy stared at her friend. Dear Lord, what was wrong with her? The man really hadn’t done anything to earn her annoyance except not confide his identity to her. What he had or hadn’t said was of no consequence really even if last night there had been something, a spark, a recognition, just for a moment . . . a moment easily explained away now by his resemblance to his father. Of course she would be attracted to the man. The first crush she’d ever had was on his father. Regardless, that was no reason—indeed—there was no reason at all why she should be so irate with him.
And yet she was.
She drew a deep breath. “Forgive me, Dee. I must be more tired than I suspected. You’re absolutely right. I was a bit curt.” She glanced at the table where Jack had joined his father and Sam. “I should probably apologize.”
“Although I suppose it makes sense if you don’t like him.”
Teddy started. “I never said I didn’t like him.”
“It would certainly be understandable.”
Teddy drew her brows together. “Why?”
“On my behalf, that is.”
“Again why?”
“Well, just like your cousin Simon, Jack has swept in here, where he has never belonged, and, through nothing more than a twist of hereditary fate, will be handed Millworth Manor and all that goes with it. My home and my heritage. As much as I might say that I have accepted it, it’s still difficult. Don’t you agree?”
Teddy nodded.
“That’s it, isn’t it? Why you were so sharp with him.” Dee cast her friend an innocent smile.
Teddy stared. She knew this woman as well as she knew herself. And knew from the look in her eyes, Dee didn’t believe what she was saying for one moment. But her dear friend was giving her a means of escape, a rational explanation for irrational behavior even Teddy herself couldn’t explain. She breathed a sigh of relief and nodded. “Yes, of course, you’re right.”
“I knew it.” Dee smiled. “You’re a very good friend, Theodosia Winslow, and I am most grateful to have you. However . . .” Dee plopped an egg onto her plate. “You shall have to put aside your dislike. The man is now a part of this family. And I must confess, the more I think about it, the more I like it. And I cannot have my dearest friend at odds with my father’s heir. It would be most distressing.”
“And we wouldn’t want to distress you.”
“No, we would not,” Dee said firmly.
“Then I shall just have to carry on.” It shouldn’t be at all difficult to be pleasant to the man. Once Teddy left Millworth, it might be months before she ran into him again. Surely by then this irrational annoyance he elicited would have eased.
“As do we all.” Dee glanced at the men at the table. “You do have to admit, he is rather handsome.”
Teddy shrugged. “I hadn’t noticed.”
“He looks very much like Uncle Basil and Father do in that portrait of them in the upstairs gallery. They were handsome devils.”
“Your uncle still is.”
“You’ve always thought so.”
“I know.” Teddy sighed. She’d been smitten with the dashing Colonel Channing since the first time she’d met him more than a decade ago. That he never saw her as anything other than a friend of his youngest niece was a source of great dismay in her youth. Fortunately, she had grown out of both the disappointment and the infatuation.
“His son seems pleasant enough.” Dee studied her cousin for a moment. “If a tiny bit lost. He strikes me as rather quiet as well.”
“It’s never easy to get a word in with your family,” Teddy murmured.
“Of course, it must be quite a shock to discover an entirely new family you never knew you had.”
“One would think so.”
“We should be as nice to him as possible.” Dee slanted her friend a sharp look. “All of us.”
“Why?” Teddy shrugged. “He’s not my cousin. I have a cousin of my own who has already laid claim to my family’s heritage. You should be grateful you have your own finances and your future is not dependent upon what happens to Millworth.”
“Oh I am, most grateful.” Dee had very nearly lost everything she had when a false claim was made against her late husband’s estate. “I thank God every day for that. Every day that I remember to do so, that is.” She nodded and crossed the room to the table.
Teddy wished she had waited a bit longer to come down for breakfast but there was nothing to be done about it now. Surely she could be nice to the man for the remainder of her stay. She adopted a pleasant smile and joined the others.
The gentlemen rose to their feet at once upon the ladies’ arrival.
“Teddy, my dear.” The colonel took her hand and raised it to his lips, in a manner romantically old-fashioned and completely enchanting. Just as he had the first time she’d met him when she’d been barely thirteen. The first man to ever do so. “You look lovely today.”
“And you, Colonel, are as charming as ever.” Teddy cast him a brilliant smile. “Fatherhood obviously agrees with you.”
“And no one is more surprised by that than I.” He chuckled and glanced at his son. “Jack, have you met Teddy?”
“I have had that pleasure.” Jack smiled.
“She is as brilliant and efficient as she is beautiful.” The colonel glanced at his son. “Beauty and brains is a rare combination, my boy.”
“Dare I ask what the three of you were so immersed in discussing?” Dee said and took her place at the table.
“I was just telling your uncle about my motorwagon.” Sam sat down as did the other gentlemen.
“That is a surprise.” Dee nodded knowingly at Teddy. “So what are your thoughts about it, U
ncle Basil?”
“I think it’s most intriguing.” the colonel said. “Sam has been explaining this German fellow’s—”
“Mr. Karl Benz,” Sam said.
“Yes, yes, Benz has made some remarkable advances regarding the—”
“No, no, Uncle Basil.” Dee thrust her hand out to quiet him. “I don’t want to know your assessment of the inner workings of the beast. I just want to know what you think about it.” She leaned forward and met her uncle’s gaze. “Sam thinks it’s the way of the future and I must say I agree with him.”
Teddy choked back a laugh. It wasn’t so long ago that Dee had called Sam’s horseless carriage a waste of time, money, effort, and energy. She certainly was embracing compromise wholeheartedly. Perhaps astonishing was the best word after all.
“I would take you for a ride in it, Colonel.” Sam shrugged apologetically. “But we’ve already moved it to London.”
“A ride shall have to wait then,” the older man said. “At least for a few days. I was thinking we should go to London. What do you think, Jack?”
“I’ve never been to London aside from our arrival,” Jack said slowly. “Besides, I’d like to see this horseless carriage myself.”
“Well, that’s that.” Lady Briston swept into the room trailed by her husband. “Everyone is finally on their way.”
“At last,” Lord Briston said under his breath.
“Do stay seated, gentlemen.” Lady Briston waved at the men at the table. “It’s only family left now. No need to stand on formalities. Teddy, my dear.” She cast the younger woman a brilliant smile and took a seat at the table. “You did a superb job, simply superb. Everyone said so.”
“I’m so glad you’re pleased.” Teddy smiled at the older woman. She wanted each and every event she planned to be as perfect as possible, of course, but this one was a little more special. Lady Briston had always made Teddy feel like one of the family.
“And I do hope you’ll agree to take on another event, even if it is on short notice.”
“I’d be delighted,” Teddy said cautiously.
“Excellent.” Lady Briston beamed. “Because I have had a brilliant idea.”
Chapter Six
Even to a newcomer, the faces around the table said it all. Delilah and Teddy shared a vague but distinct look of apprehension. His father and Uncle Nigel traded glances. Apparently, this was not Aunt Bernadette’s first brilliant idea.
Delilah smiled weakly. “What kind of brilliant idea?”
“Oh, don’t look at me like that.” Aunt Bernadette cast her daughter a chiding look. “It’s not the least bit odd, simply brilliant.” She glanced at the door. “I had hoped to bring this up with Camille and Beryl here but who knows when we’ll see the newlyweds. Lionel returned to London this morning and Beryl has always run on her own clock.”
“So tell us, what is this latest brilliant idea?” his uncle said.
“I think we should have a grand ball here at Millworth to introduce Jack to, well, to the world.” Aunt Bernadette beamed. “What do you think, Teddy?”
“It certainly is brilliant,” Teddy said with somewhat less enthusiasm. Although Jack might have been the only one to notice as he was probably the only one watching her.
He thought he and Teddy had gotten along quite well last night. In fact, there had been a moment . . . But of course that was absurd.
“Mother.” Delilah’s tone was similar to what one might use for a small child. “We just had a grand ball.”
“I know that, dear.” Aunt Bernadette waved off the objection. “But that was to celebrate Camille’s wedding. This is a different matter entirely.”
“I must say, my dear.” Uncle Nigel grinned at his wife. “I quite agree. That is brilliant.”
Still, Jack had thought she at least liked him. He had certainly liked her.
“Not a bad idea,” his father said slowly. “But I had planned to take Jack to London in a few days, and begin introductions there.”
“There’s no reason why we can’t do both,” his aunt said firmly. “But I would like it to be as soon as possible.” She turned to Teddy. “How quickly can you arrange it?”
“I don’t know.” Teddy shook her head. “I have a number of engagements already scheduled in London. I shall have to look at my book. And we will need to discuss exactly what you have in mind.”
Today, Jack had the distinct impression she didn’t like him at all.
“I’m not thinking of anything outrageous, mind you.”
“Simply, oh, grand?” Teddy said weakly.
“Exactly.” The older woman nodded. “Although a masked ball might be nice.”
How could she not like him? Granted, he wasn’t as, well, exciting as some other men might be. He was a banker after all.
“And we could play a guessing game and have guests try to pick out which among them is the new heir?” An innocent note sounded in Delilah’s voice.
Sam coughed, obviously to hide a laugh.
Aunt Bernadette narrowed her eyes at her daughter. “That was not amusing, dear.”
But people generally liked him. Women in particular had always liked him. He was a very likable kind of man.
“And I thought it was.” Delilah smiled sweetly and sipped her tea. “Whatever you do, it will have to be soon.”
“My thoughts exactly.” His aunt nodded. “I would hate for word of Jack’s existence to become fodder for gossip although a certain amount can’t be helped I suppose, unless we hid him under a rock or something of that nature.”
“I’d prefer not to hide under a rock, if it’s all the same to you, Aunt Bernadette,” Jack said.
Really, how could the woman know if she liked him or didn’t like him?
“And I’m not going to delay introducing my son around London until you have yet another social spectacle,” his father said in a firm tone.
“Nor do I expect you to, Basil.” Aunt Bernadette huffed. “This is simply on the order of, oh, a coming-out party one might say.”
His father had described Teddy as brilliant and efficient. It didn’t seem especially brilliant or efficient to dismiss someone on the basis of one brief conversation and a single dance.
“Still . . .” His father shook his head. “I’m not sure—”
“Let me put it to you this way, Basil.” Aunt Bernadette pinned his father with an unyielding look. “Word of your son is not going to be secret for long—”
“Nor do I wish it to be,” Father said staunchly. “I have no desire to hide him from the world.”
“And certainly not under a rock,” Delilah murmured.
“And,” Aunt Bernadette continued, “as the circumstances of his joining this family are unusual to say the least, gossips will have a field day. Why, they will say all sorts of things. At the very least they’ll question his legitimacy.”
“Can’t have that,” Uncle Nigel muttered.
“Don’t you think it’s better if we, as a family, publicly and formally embrace him?” Aunt Bernadette tapped her finger on the table to emphasize her words. “Show the world that he is not some sort of American usurper but that he is an accepted and welcome part of the family? That we aren’t the least bit upset at discovering this new heir but rather thrilled and delighted?” Challenge shone in his aunt’s eyes. “Well, Basil, tell me I’m wrong. Go on.”
“I would love to say exactly that,” his father said sharply, then sighed. “But I can’t. You may be right.”
“I know I’m right.” Satisfaction curved his aunt’s lips.
At the very least it wasn’t at all fair of Teddy.
“What about you, Jack?” His uncle studied him. “Are you ready to be introduced to the world as a future Earl of Briston.”
Was he going to allow her to dismiss him out of hand?
“Jack?”
“Absolutely not,” Jack said without thinking, then realized his mistake. His father threw him a sharp look. “What I mean is that this has all happened s
o fast.” Jack shook his head. “A mere two weeks ago, there were absolutely no questions in my life. My father was dead and my future was laid out for me. I was—I am—a vice-president of Graham, Merryweather and Lockwood Banking and Trust.”
“Youngest in the history of the bank,” his father said in an aside to his brother.
“I would expect nothing less,” Uncle Nigel said.
“I appreciate how warmly you’ve welcomed me.” The last thing he wanted was a grand announcement at a grand ball. “But I don’t know that I’m prepared to face the world, your world, as a member of this family yet. I can barely remember your names as it is. The last thing I want is to make some sort of embarrassing mistake. I can’t imagine society here is any more forgiving of that kind of thing than it is in New York. I think I’d like to feel more a member of this family before I’m presented as one. There’s a lot to consider here and well . . .” He wasn’t sure what else to say without coming straight out and telling them all that he didn’t know that this life they were expecting him to step right into was what he wanted. “I just don’t think I’m ready for that.”
“Of course not, dear. Perfectly understandable.” Aunt Bernadette smiled brightly. “When do you think you will be ready?”
“It will be at least a month before I manage something like this,” Teddy said quickly. “Possibly six weeks and then we’re perilously close to Christmas and I have several events already scheduled and—”
“Why not welcome the New Year and introduce Jack at the same time?” Delilah looked at him. “That gives you a little more than two months to accustom yourself to, well, everything.”
“That’s not a bad idea, dear.” Aunt Bernadette thought for a moment. “But as we have discarded the suggestion of hiding him under a rock, word will trickle out. It isn’t everyday a family discovers a new member, you know. There will certainly be rumor, speculation, innuendo, and more than a little gossip.”
“Goodness, Mother.” Beryl sauntered into the room and gestured for the men to stay seated. “I should think you would know how to handle gossip by now. Lord knows we’ve been the subject of enough of it. But never fear.” She leaned over and plucked a piece of toast from a rack on the table. “I shall take care of that part of it.”
The Shocking Secret of a Guest at the Wedding (Millworth Manor) Page 9