Below stairs, Georgiana could hear the sounds of the guests arriving. She was surprised at their earliness.
Her coiffure finished, she stole a quick glance towards the window. The curtains were shut, and she could not see the weather beyond. “Is it snowing?” She asked Meg.
The lady’s maid shuffled to the window and peeked through the curtains. Georgiana caught a glimpse of one of the streetlamps outside, casting a faint yellow glow from the candlelight.
“Not that I can see, Miss Darcy.”
Meg returned to the dressing table and helped Georgiana with the necklace and bracelet. Then Georgiana stood and admired her reflection in the mirror.
“Now it feels like Christmas has begun.” She beamed, her cheeks rosy from a little dab of rouge pomade. Her lips and eyes were also treated to a touch of makeup, prepared from natural ingredients by Meg. She moved her head from side to side, contenting herself that the little application of cosmetics was not overly done. Then she turned and slid her feet into little satin pumps that were comfortable enough for dancing. “There!” she declared triumphantly. “I believe I am ready.”
“Indeed, you are, Miss. I hope you have a grand evening.”
“Thank you, Meg,” Georgiana replied, heading towards the door.
Downstairs in the entrance hall, Georgiana found her cousin Richard and Alex in deep discussion as she descended the stairs. As soon as the pair caught sight of her, they stopped talking and stood in admiration.
Alex whistled. “My word!”
“Indeed,” Richard whispered, stepping forward and offering Georgiana his hand.
Georgiana blushed to the roots of her hair.
“You are looking decidedly beautiful this evening,” Richard cooed.
Georgiana could feel her blush deepening and her cheeks red hot. I needn’t have applied any rouge. “Thank you, Richard.” She took his hand, and he led her into the drawing room where she found everyone else was already assembled.
“Miss Darcy!” Lady Francesca’s voice rang out. “How absolutely delightful you look!” The lady in question made her way around the furniture and towards Georgiana. Once standing before her she leant forward and kissed her on the cheek.
Georgiana wondered when they had become so familiar as to greet one another with a kiss. “And you look as wonderful as you always do,” she responded in kind.
Without seeing him move, Lord Hugh appeared at his sister’s elbow. “I wholeheartedly agree with my sister. You look delightful this evening, Miss Darcy.” Lord Hugh bowed and reached out to kiss the back of her gloved hand.
Georgiana smiled shyly, basking in their compliments. “Thank you. You are too kind.”
As Lord Hugh straightened up, he held her gaze. “I assure you, I am most sincere.”
At the intensity of his gaze, Georgiana felt uncomfortable. She took a half-step towards Richard, who remained by her side. His compliments did not fill her with a warmth and excitement as Richard’s had. Suddenly she felt a little nauseated. Her smile lost some of its brilliance.
“Would you like a glass of sherry?” Richard asked her, tightening his grip on her hand.
His touch was reassuring. She nodded. “Please.”
As her cousin led her away, Georgiana wondered what had just happened. She realised with alacrity that it was Lord Hugh’s attentions which caused such unease. While she watched Richard pour the Spanish liqueur into the crystal glass, she pondered the sensation. Revelation hit her like a runaway horse. I am not in love with Lord Hugh. Her mouth fell open. I am not in love with him at all. She closed her mouth again and gratefully took the glass of sherry from Richard. She took a sip, not only enjoying the heat of the liquid as it slid down to her stomach, but also relishing the sense of relief that flooded her being. I have enjoyed his flirtations and nothing more. My heart is wholly untouched by Lord Hugh. She almost burst out laughing and her own thoughts.
“A penny for them.” Richard’s voice startled her.
“Sorry?” She blinked to clear her head.
“A penny for your thoughts,” Richard replied, searching her face. “You are in deep thought, cousin.”
“It is of no consequence, I assure you, but I have just realised something quite pleasing to myself.”
Richards eyebrows rose. “And am I permitted to ask what this realisation is?”
Georgiana giggled. “You are permitted to ask, but whether or not I shall furnish you with an answer is another matter.”
The couple laughed, drawing the attention of the DeVere siblings.
“What is so funny?” Lady Francesca approached, her brother in tow.
“Oh,” Richard replied quickly, “it is nothing. Just a family joke, really. It would take a long time to explain it.”
Georgiana watched Lady Francesca’s expression turn from affable to what she could only describe as quite put out.
“We were merely reminiscing about something that happened one Christmas when I was a young girl.”
Lady Francesca smiled, although it did not reach her eyes. “Oh, I see.” She turned to her brother and laid a perfect hand upon her brother’s arm. “My brother and I often indulge in such remembrances.”
Georgiana felt iciness emanate from the lady.
Richard deftly changed the subject. “Lady Francesca, do you and Lord Hugh often travel back home to Somerset?”
A look of disgust crossed Lady Francesca’s face. “Oh!” she fairly squawked. “Not at all! My brother and I despise the countryside.” She pulled a face that made her look as though she had eaten a particularly bitter lemon. “All those bugs, hardly any diversion at all, and such limited acquaintance! No, Colonel Fitzwilliam, we do not travel to our estate in Somerset often. In fact,” she grimaced, “we avoid it like the pox, preferring London or Bath.”
Georgiana watched on mutely as not a single muscle moved in Richard’s face.
“Oh, you do surprise me. I have heard tell that Somerset is one of England’s most beautiful counties,” he quipped.
“There is no doubt about it. It is beautiful.” Lady Francesca turned her body and surveyed the rest of the room as though bored with the conversation. “But other than Bath, the rest of the county is tedious beyond measure, I can assure you. I prefer to live in town.”
“And yet,” Richard continued, “it is such a relief to return home to the countryside after spending much time in a city, I find.”
Georgiana could barely keep her countenance. Richard slighted Lady Francesca with nary an attempt at disguising it. “Let us be seated,” she interjected before Lady Francesca could respond.
Georgiana joined Alex and his fiancée, Miss Hawkins, who were in conversation with Aunt Henrietta, and sat down beside the young lady.
Miss Hawkins turned towards her. “I believe we are acquainted somewhat,” she said.
“I thought so,” Georgiana shifted a little, moving her knees to the side. “Was it not the summer before last at Lord and Lady Matlock’s summer garden party?”
“Indeed, it was. You have a very good memory, Miss Darcy.”
“Did you accompany Mr Salisbury then?”
Miss Hawkins’ face mirrored the colour of Georgiana’s dress. “I did.”
“Excuse my impertinence in asking, but were you affianced to him then?”
“Yes, I was.” She took a deep juddering breath and suddenly the words came tumbling out. “It has been a long engagement. Not that Alex or I wanted such an arrangement. It’s my father, you see.”
Georgiana tilted her head. “Your father?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “Alex comes from a long line of some of the most eminent lawyers in the land. My father wishes dearly to be certain to give me away in marriage in a manner that is equal to Alex’s standing in society.”
Georgiana was taken aback by the confession. “Surely that is of little consequence,” she frowned. “If the families have agreed to the engagement, certainly they would be happy for the marriage to take place.”
“But my father was not.” She smiled weakly. “However, he has given his permission for us to finally wed this summer.” Her smile took on a new life and lit up her face. “He is taking a wonderful house for us not five miles from where I grew up.”
“How delightful! To be settled so close to one’s family must give you such comfort, Miss Hawkins”
Miss Hawkins nodded. “You cannot imagine how worried I was at the thought of having to come and live in London always. I grew up near Manchester, but my father built our home in the countryside. I am not accustomed to city living.”
Georgiana understood her perfectly.
“And please, Miss Darcy, do call me Rebecca. I believe we shall be good friends.”
Her smile was disarming, and Georgiana could not help but compare Rebecca with Lady Francesca. “I am sure we shall.” She returned the smile warmly. “And please call me Georgiana.”
She looked up at the sound of Lady Francesca’s laughter peeling through the air. It was not difficult to locate her; she had attached herself to Richard as soon Georgiana moved. The lady made no attempt at dissimulation of her intentions. It was evident she was flirting with him by the way she draped herself over his left arm and touched the buttons on his waistcoat. Richard, on the other hand, did not even look in her direction. She could see the colour rising in his neck. She knew from experience that only happened when he was irritated or frustrated.
She wished she could do something to help him, but Rebecca was already in the middle of telling her all about her wedding plans. Reluctantly, Georgiana looked away from her cousin and gave her new friend her full attention. As she listened on, she compared Rebecca and Alex’s wedding preparations with those of the two familial weddings she could remember—her cousin Thomas, now the Earl of Matlock, and her own brother, Fitzwilliam.
Despite the girl coming from new money, Georgiana found herself becoming excited as Rebecca described the extravagance which her father was lavishing upon her.
When dinner was called, the whole ensemble marched slowly towards the dining room. Once there, Georgiana discovered herself, according to Aunt Henrietta’s seating plan, to be between Lord Hugh and Louis. Inside she groaned. Since realising that she was not at all in love with Lord Hugh, Georgiana realised she had to do her best to distance herself from him.
As of now, she had to grin and bear it as best she could, as her brother would say. Thinking about him, her mind wandered to Hertfordshire while Lord Hugh hurried to her side and held her chair out for her.
Pulling herself away from the cosy, familial scene in her head, Georgiana smiled kindly at Lord Hugh. “Thank you.”
As dinner was served, Lord Hugh bellowed, “What a delightful spread your aunt puts on!”
Aunt Henrietta could not fail to have heard him. “Thank you, Lord Hugh. I am gratified that you think so,” she replied from the end of the table.
She caught Georgiana’s eye. At first, the latter thought her aunt had something in her eye, but when she continued to give a discrete nod and wink towards her and Lord Hugh, she caught her drift. She was encouraging her niece to engage Lord Hugh in conversation.
Georgiana took a deep breath, sighed, and then, believing it to be the safest option, addressed both Louis and Lord Hugh at the same time. “Do you believe the snow will continue to fall and we’ll have the horrendous winter the broadsheets are foretelling?”
She was grateful when Louis was the first to respond. “I was just talking to my sister on the way here about that very same thing, Miss Darcy. It does seem we are getting frightfully more snow here in London this year than we usually do. Wouldn’t you say, Lord Hugh?”
The baton was passed, and Georgiana wondered if Louis would ever get another word in for the remainder of the evening.
Lord Hugh’s face lit up like a thousand candles. He took a deep breath. “Interestingly enough, I have been reading an awful lot in the newspaper about the weather.” Lord Hugh put his fork down. “There was some discussion in the gentleman’s club last evening about some sort of volcano on the other side of the world.”
“A volcano?” Louis asked leaning forward past Georgiana to get a better view of Lord Hugh.
“Indeed!” Lord Hugh nodded picking up his wine glass.
Georgiana squinted. “Forgive me, Lord Hugh, but I am unable to fathom how a volcano on the other side of the world could possibly cause such snow here in England.”
Lord Hugh smiled patronisingly at her, then reached across and tapped her on the hand. “Of course I would not expect you to understand, my dear. How can a woman understand the sciences?”
Georgiana bit her lip and tasted blood.
“I shall endeavour to explain it as simply as I possibly can,” he chortled.
Thankfully, he removed his hand before Georgiana could snatch hers away.
“Evidently, the volcano spews rock, lava, and ash into the air which then travels via the weather system around the world. It’s quite fascinating.”
“And this has affected the weather here in England how?” Louis asked.
Lord Hugh waved his hand in the air vaguely as though dismissing the question. “You know, dust and the like in the air, blocking out the sun, one fellow said.”
“So no one rightly knows?” Louis asked.
Georgiana watched on as a little spark of satisfaction grew in her stomach when Lord Hugh’s face turned the colour of beetroot.
“Well, I’m not a scientist per se.” He cleared his throat. “Neither are most of the fellows in the gentleman’s club.” He swallowed while his eyes searched the ceiling for what to say. “But a lot of them are very intelligent chaps indeed. Old Oxford boys, a…and the like.”
Georgiana speared a mussel on her plate, popped it into her mouth, and chewed, giving herself something else to do other than giggle at what Lord Hugh said. He doesn’t understand it either.
“Well, it is terribly bad luck,” Louis replied. “I hear things are especially tough in Wales and Ireland right now.”
Georgiana swallowed and addressed Louis. “What do you mean?” She had never been one for reading the broadsheets. She would occasionally read an article or story that caught her attention, but she found most of the writing to be waffling and opinionated rather than dealing with cold, hard facts, which she preferred in a newspaper.
Louis explained, “I have heard tell that many people are going begging in the streets for food.”
Georgiana’s mouth fell open. She jumped, feeling Lord Hugh’s hand upon hers again.
“Do not worry your pretty little head, Miss Darcy. They are only poor people, after all. There is nothing one can do about their plight.”
Georgiana’s blood boiled. “There is much one can do about the plight of the poor, Lord Hugh. I would have thought you of all people would understand that. We privileged few are in a position to aid them, are we not?”
To Georgiana’s amazement Lord Hugh sat back in his chair and roared with laughter. She turned her head, looking between Louis and Lord Hugh. While the latter continued to laugh at her, the former’s eyes were filled with pity and apology.
“Oh, dear me!” Lord Hugh cried, dabbing at the corners of his eyes with a napkin. “The things these ladies do say! What notions! What would you have us do?” He twisted in his chair to face her, his elbow leaning on the tablecloth. “Would you have them feed from our own tables and our own harvests?”
Georgiana felt as though she had been doused in icy cold water. “Actually, Lord Hugh, that is precisely what I would suggest. While we live in plenty and they have nothing, surely it is logical that we share what we can.”
Lord Hugh sucked air in through his teeth. He lowered his voice conspiratorially. “I believe what you are saying is treasonous and revolutionary, Miss Darcy.”
Her eyebrows rose. “On the contrary, Lord Hugh. What I’m saying is full of compassion for those who are starving and, I believe, what I suggest would be the Christian thing to do.” Georgiana turned back to the pl
ate before her, determined she would not speak to him again for the remainder of the evening. As she did so, she caught the expression of astonishment on his face. Clearly, he did not expect such a retort.
For the rest of the meal, Georgiana satisfied herself by conversing with her aunt, Louis, and Alex, who sat opposite her. Alex and Aunt Henrietta were discussing Alex’s forthcoming nuptials. Louis and Georgiana, who were unmarried, had very little to add to the discussion. So, instead, they talked about the delights of London town in the winter.
Georgiana ate her meal in rapt fascination while Louis explained in more detail how his mother escaped revolutionary France. “I suppose your mother being French explains why you and your sister are called Louis and Nicolette,” Georgiana said.
“Indeed, it is. Mother, or maman as she prefers to be called, has injected a rather large flavour of France and the French way into our home.”
“How delightful! And where is home?”
“They live in Hertfordshire.”
“Hertfordshire! My brother is residing there at the moment with my sister-in-law, Elizabeth. They are staying at Netherfield Hall near to the little town of Meryton. Do you know it?” she asked.
Louis exclaimed excitedly, “Know it? I know it very well. It is not more than ten miles from our home, I am certain of it.”
The meal continued in much the same contented vein until the ladies rose and retired to the drawing room, leaving the men to their cigars and port.
The air in the drawing room was fresher than the heat and smells of the dining room. Georgiana fought a yawn as she and the ladies seated themselves around the fire.
Seventeen
Richard, now being left alone with Louis, Alex, and Lord Hugh, stretched out his legs underneath the table and relaxed a little. He had, of course, been on his best behaviour in deference to his mother, but spending the past two hours listening to the crooning and cooing of Lady Francesca was more than a little tiring.
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