Chapter 12 - MARK—BACK INTO THE FIRE WITH MUSIC

Chapter 12

MARK—BACK INTO THE FIRE WITH MUSIC

We held our breath in unison and reentered the duke’s study.

Her sister and the duke talked low but their odd bickering continued.

As his gaze took notice of us, the duke said, “You should be impressed, Lady Hampton. Sebastian possesses a lovely courtesy honorific. His connections are impeccable. That’s all that matters to you.”

“Can you be serious for at least a full moment?”

“I have a watch and a schedule, Lady Hampton, pick the time. Oh, look, the young lovers have returned.”

The duke stood with vigor next to the frowning viscountess. “Miss Wilcox, have you decided in Sebastian’s favor or have you fallen for me again? Must I best a new suitor once more with my cane?”

I offered him a smirk. “If I wasn’t in the wrong and didn’t respect my elders, I’m sure I could have given you a better fight.”

“Stop it,” the goddess said, “Your Grace, your lordship. I’m glad you didn’t hurt him or break that cane. It looks like an antique.”

“It is. Belonged to my grandfather.”

Truly? The cane didn’t seem Scottish or Russian. It must be something his father’s father acquired on his travels. Livingston mentioned something about him coming from a line of explorers. The faces carved into the cane looked African.

Sort of an odd thing to have in a room of Blackamoor women. I hated to think of the liberal duke possessing a relic of colonization or worse.

Torrance picked it up and hooked it under his arm. “Did you two have a nice chat?”

I thought so, but the lady who’d decide was quiet.

“Miss Wilcox, you haven’t kissed him again in the garden and changed your mind? If you have, I think that clears me of your sister’s charge that I’m your favorite.”

Lady Hampton groused. “Heaven help the next woman who’ll be sentenced to your love. But do continue telling us your plan. Tell us your gamble.”

“My plan? You mean my way of helping your family and Sebastian out of scandal.” He offered a hearty chortle, then made a softer expression at Georgina. “Lovely Miss Wilcox. I need to hear your thoughts. Though I begrudgingly think highly of Lady Hampton, I need your voice. I only want the best for you.”

The goddess wasn’t saying anything. She and Lady Hampton were glancing at each other on opposite sides of the massive desk as if it were some sort of ritual or they were commanding the opposing forces of his chest set.

The duke’s gaze swiveled between them, casting each a fretful look. “Well, Sebastian, looks as if you’ve dodged this entrapment.”

“Um. Ah, she didn’t.” My throat began closing up again, but I couldn’t be silent. This was for her and me. “We . . . I thought we’d decided to try.”

The goddess had become a statue, motionless and speechless. And I blithered. “Guess I’ll never be daring.”

Torrance shrugged. “I’m at a loss. And I should’ve bet the viscountess something very interesting to prove her sister wasn’t in love with me. But I don’t gamble anymore.”

“Sure you don’t.” Lady Hampton turned her fury back to the duke. “You and betting. I’m sick of all wagers.”

“You’re sick of losing, Lady Hampton. Your late husband probably made more faulty ones than anyone alive. What made him so desperate? I wonder what kind of married life your husband had? Did the joy of loving you add to his short life?”

The viscountess, maybe for the first time, seemed stunned, rendered breathless by this barb. Her cheeks went from fiery red to ash.

“Stop it,” Georgina said. “Lord Hampton is gone. He’d be so disappointed to know his dearest friend and my sister—his beloved, tireless widow—couldn’t get along. Your Grace, you don’t know all that my sister has done for him or our family. You’ve known us a year. I’ve watched her for years doing whatever was necessary for us. Please stop.”

“It’s all a jest, Miss Wilcox. I admire Lady Hampton. I truly do. She’s a survivor. Nothing is wrong with that.” The duke turned back to Lady Hampton as if to see if she agreed.

It was the viscountess’s turn to be wordless, standing statue-like with big black eyes looking close to breaking into tears. Then she blinked, and what seemed soft became stone. “No need to take up for me, Georgina. I don’t care for the duke at all. I don’t want him in our lives. He’s bothersome. Bothersome. And—”

“And manipulative. That’s usually one of your complaints.”

“Stop it. I wanted to see how long you two could go without bickering. Not even one minute.” Georgina’s voice rose. “It should be possible. But you two like conflict. You’re both forgetting our present concerns. The duke’s not well and I compromised Lord Mark Sebastian—”

“I obliged, ma’am,” I said and admired her more. The way she spoke held such life and strength.

“Thank you, sir . . . for adding that.”

“Lady Hampton,” the duke said, “those two strangers seem to get along after a kiss. Perhaps we should do the same and make up. On the lips, or on the forehead like a good little girl?”

The viscountess slunk back.

And the duke laughed. “I’m guessing you care nothing for strangers or me.”

“I know my sister. If his lordship is your friend, he’s not a good match for Georgina.”

“I agree with this, Lady Hampton,” the duke said, “and if I had my druthers, I’d find someone who’d be perfect and wealthy enough to help with the mounting debts.”

“You know how dire our finances are?” The older sister looked shaken.

The goddess became angrier. “Of course he does, I told him. Why do you think we’ve been given more time?”

“Georgina. You told him and he acted? And you, Your Grace, you both have kept this secret?”

“Wilcoxes are good at keeping secrets, Katherine. I suppose a duke is too. Yes, I told him, sister. We needed help. And he asks every time he visits on how to be of use. The Duke of Torrance comes to us every week. He pays attention to Scarlett and Lydia.”

“And he pays attention to you.” Lady Hampton’s voice quavered like that magpie, a jealous magpie.

“Yes, Katherine, because he cares. We chat about my fears, my interests. We take calm walks by the river, and he’ll not leave until he tries my biscuits.”

The biscuits were actual biscuits—I convinced myself of that. I kept reminding myself that she kissed me, not the kindly duke who could buy her and her family everything.

Lady Hampton went to her sister and grasped her shoulders like she’d shake her from her coat, but instead she hugged her. “You’re scared for us? I didn’t know. Why didn’t you come to me?”

“You don’t listen, Katherine. Sometimes it’s easier to speak to the duke.”

Torrance sat back in his chair. Did a wince come along with his growing smile? “I try to be of service. The girls have grown on me. I want them happy and protected, just as I promised Lord Hampton, my dear old friend.”

With a swipe at her eyes, the viscountess let go of her sister. Lady Hampton looked ill.

The duke ran a hand through his curly, sleek hair. “Shall we call a truce for the sake of the family we both love, Lady Hampton? May we begin an alliance?”

“Between us, Your Grace? I doubt it would last.”

This back-and-forth was spinning out of control. It was my symphony. I had to conduct all the warring instruments and amplify the lead violin. I needed to act with courage, to take control. Grasping Georgina’s hand, I dropped to my knee. “Miss Georgina Wilcox, will you fake-betroth me?”

She blushed again. Her cheeks became very bronzed on her sunny brown face.

The duke’s hazel eyes squinted at me, at her. Then he winced aloud and said, “Good. That seems to have worked out.”

The viscountess leaned over him, then she turned to the window to stare again at the beautiful maze. “What’s wrong with you anyway? You were unsteady in the music room.”

“The doctor said an earache, I believe. You know Mr. Carew. He’s now my personal physician.”

Why did it seem as if Lady Hampton’s fingers on the windowsill were looking for the latch to open the glass and leap to freedom?

The goddess wasn’t the only runner in the Wilcox Family.

“If we’d known you were busy or ill, we’d not have come and these events wouldn’t have happened.”

“Again blaming me, ma’am. You’d think we were married.”

She gasped, and he sort of grinned. “Well, Lady Hampton, all in all, your concern might be the first kind thought you’ve shared with me.”

“It’s polite to ask.”

Torrance closed his eyes for a moment. “Good to know we’re not beyond politeness.”

“Excuse me,” I said, with my leg starting to cramp. “I hate to interrupt, but I’m still kneeling. Miss Wilcox, and maybe all of you need to accept my faux proposal.”

The goddess drew me up and kept my hands. “Yes, I accept. These two will have to do their best to get along.”

“Thank you, Miss Wilcox.” I wanted to lean in and kiss her but stopped. The duke still had his cane handy, though I wondered if he had the strength to wield it again. He looked to be seriously pained.

“I suggest Miss Wilcox move in as my ward.” The duke stretched his palm along the desk. “That will make this faux courtship easier.”

“No. No. No.” The older sister’s tone became pitchy. “No splitting up. And here with your friends and meetings, you’ll have her completely ruined.”

The duke’s hand on his cane tightened. “Lady Hampton, a guardian who fails her charges should be dismissed. It was your wrong claims that caused this.”

Lady Hampton opened her mouth, but nothing was uttered. She stepped away, far away, and sank onto the sofa.

The careful duke winced and lowered his chin. I didn’t think he intended to offer a barb so sharp that it not only shredded her anger but her pride too.

Torrance sat back, twiddling his thumbs. “I’ll have a few small dinner parties to introduce the couple. That’s a good way to begin.”

“I’m not ready for any party,” Georgiana said. “Can we be less public?”

“Less public? It has to be public. He has to show you off to the world. Sebastian,” he said, “how do you suggest getting her comfortable?”

“Torrance, what if for the next few weeks Miss Wilcox meets me here for music lessons? I can raise her confidence.”

The duke pouted a little. “How does that help?”

The goddess made large eyes at me—a feat of wonderment in jet and gold.

Though I felt myself becoming flustered, I rushed to spit out my idea. “With her as my pupil and ‘fiancée,’ people would assume that our acquaintance came naturally through our lessons. Held here, they would be respectable. And let’s say she’ll exhibit, not at any dinner but at your ball.”

“Brilliant,” Torrance said. “Georgina Wilcox will garner attention. A connection to me will be a benefit. And if Lady Hampton can improve Wilcox Coal in enough time, she’ll have money for a dowry. That will be another inducement for a proper gentleman to make an offer and free you, Sebastian.”

The goddess looked hopeful, and her eyes lent me energy.

Lady Hampton nodded. “Then Georgina can break with Lord Mark Sebastian because of her new options. A woman who sings well and has the acquaintance of a duke will be noticed. The penniless third son of a marquess won’t stand a chance, and everyone will understand her decision.”

“Yes, because everyone thinks like you.” The duke’s tone sounded more heated. Then he smiled or remembered that he should be smiling. “Perhaps I will add something to a dowry. That will take the pressure from Lady Hampton fixing the family business.”

“No. We have enough debts.” The viscountess waved at him like he was an errant puppy, not a man being overly generous. “No, Your Grace.”

“When have I listened to you, especially when you are wrong? I can give money to whom I wish. If my sister Anya lived, I would dote on her. I will dote on Miss Wilcox, and Miss Scarlett Wilcox, and Lydia Wilcox too. They are as dear to me as anything.”

“Thank you, Your Grace,” Georgina said. “I trust you.”

“Then, it’s settled,” the duke said. “The pretend engagement between Sebastian and Miss Wilcox has begun. My ball will be after Easter. It will be the first of the season. After forty days of Lent, everyone will come out for decadence. You’ll have her ready, Sebastian. I’ll make sure Mr. Steele knows that you two will have exclusive use of the music room.”

“And we’ll brace for what the papers will say,” Lady Hampton said. “Hopefully, there will be no gossip at all.”

“Let’s pray for no scandal.” The duke stuck out his hand. “The Assyrian king Shalmaneser III in the ninth century pressed flesh, clasped palms with a Babylonian ruler to seal an alliance. He had the image carved in stone. Let’s put our hands together. Come now, you first, Lady Hampton.”

“No inappropriate Russian example?”

“None today, dorogaya, my friend.”

Georgiana and I shook his hand. The wide-eyed viscountess too. Then the duke looked at the goddess, my faux fiancée. “And you led them all to come see about me. I will never overlook kindness.”

“Are you implying that I can’t be kind?” Lady Hampton crossed her arms and Torrance said something in Russian that made her roll her eyes.

As those two descended into a new spiral of polite bickers, Georgina smiled at me.

My pulse fluttered.

No longer hesitating, I touched her hand. “It’s our Shalmaneser agreement too.”

Then notes came to my head. Da dadum . . .

“Quick.” Taking her with me, I returned to the duke’s desk. “Quick, man, a pen.”

“No contract or oaths are needed for a false engagement. I trust you.”

“The notes.” I could see the next stanza clearly. “Please.”

His Grace whipped open his drawer and searched through papers until he drew out his inkwell and a dull quill. “Here.”

Lady Hampton came near. “What’s he doing?”

“Finishing a sonata,” Georgina said. She understood and didn’t let go of my hand until I put down the pen.