Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Lydia ran into her bedchamber in Winstone House, rang the bell on the wall for Bridget, and collapsed onto her back on the pretty linens bearing the Winstone crest in dark purple.

Luckily, Eleanor and Charlotte were somewhere else, probably flirting from the terrace with Lord Arlington's eligible grown sons who had caught their eyes this past week. Lydia laid still to catch her breath from the exhilaration of finally getting the upper hand with Wilhelmina Underwood. She was cautiously optimistic that they would have no more trouble where that awful woman was concerned.

After Joseph and Benchley left the lounge earlier, Lydia had thoroughly enjoyed speaking freely with the wicked wench about what would happen from that moment on.

"When the bridge is repaired, you will leave this place and never receive another invitation from either the Winstone or Briarwood houses. And you will never speak to or try to harm anyone in our families again. We will not destroy your standing in society unless you do not abide by our conditions, Wilhelmina. Is that understood?"

"Our conditions? Oh, Lady Lydia, you are so na?ve. The moment that bridge is repaired, we will both be banished from this house for good. But I've seen the way the viscount looks at me. It won't take me long to earn his interest again."

Wilhelmina boldly dropped the blanket that had been covering her nakedness and grinned as Lydia's eyes widened with astonishment.

"Cover yourself this instant, Miss Underwood!" Lydia looked away, but not before she scanned Wilhelmina's stunning voluptuous body and felt pangs of jealousy fill her belly.

Has Joseph seen Miss Underwood naked? Does he desire her more than he does me? So many questions raced through Lydia's mind as Wilhelmina finally got fully dressed again.

"Maybe a few years from now you would have become woman enough for a man like Joseph Penton, but you can't possibly do for him what I could, Lydia. You are so inexperienced and far too uncivilized to satisfy the viscount for long. He'll tire of you and seek me out eventually, mark my words. And when he does, I will gladly make your life a living hell with his blessing." Wilhelmina pulled open the door that led into the hallway, but Lydia moved to stand in front of her to have the last word.

"Say what you will about me, but Joseph is far too smart and honorable to ever fall for your devious schemes. Or to ever fall for you!"

Lydia chewed her lip after saying that but stood her ground until Wilhelmina swerved around her and stomped away. Lydia waited a few minutes before sneaking back into the hallway and escaping to her bedchamber with new confidence and hope for the future.

Not that she knew for certain what her future had in store, but at least it wouldn't include a rushed wedding to Joseph or ruining her family's reputation at the hands of Wilhelmina Underwood. That woman wasn't fool enough to risk her own standing with the ton to do the same to Lydia, she was sure of it.

Lydia and the viscount could now resume their courtship, should Joseph be willing to continue getting closer at a slower pace. The idea of a slowly unfolding courtship with him made her happy and filled her with great relief.

Still, she needed to know that Joseph would be the kind of partner who supported her passions and pursuits. That he would be more than just the man of the house and father to her children. She had no interest in a marriage where she was simply expected to do a man's bidding and have no interests of her own.

Lydia would rather be a spinster the rest of her life than be a mere prop in a gentleman's life story. She wanted a life that mattered of her own. And that life would include fighting for the rights of tenant farmers so that their lives were much improved under her watch.

As for the other troublesome man on her mind, Lydia would deal with her brother William in her own way and her own time regarding his relationship with Sophia Penton.

Though that might be easier said than done. The few times she'd exchanged glances with her brother over the past week, Lydia had quickly looked away, too embarrassed and confused to even be near him for long.

"Are you quite well, sister? You haven't spoken to me in days." William had appeared again the day before as Lydia walked through the halls of Winstone House with her arms full of freshly picked blooms for the ball's decor.

"It's difficult to speak to a man who's nowhere to be found, William. I have barely seen you in days."

He had studied Lydia's eyes then as if he was trying to decide if she knew something she shouldn't. "You're right, I'm sorry. I haven't felt my best and didn't want to spread a possible virus around our host's estate."

Lydia shifted her focus from William's lying face to the flowers in her arms and nodded. "Then I wish you well, brother. I need to get these blooms to the vases in the ballroom before they wilt."

"Yes, of course. Good day, sister." William bowed and walked on.

"Good day, William."

As Lydia remembered their exchange from the day before, she squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. Is that how our relationship will be now? Secrets and forced cordiality?

Her relationship with Sophia, if you could even call it one, had remained unchanged. The two women had seen each other a few times over the past week and exchanged greetings, but little more than that. However, they both seemed to gravitate lately toward a secluded area of the Winstone gardens where a small gazebo provided the perfect shelter for reading or, as in Sophia's case, weeping, out from under the sun.

One afternoon when Lydia had been hiding from Joseph in the gazebo, Sophia came rushing through the dogwood trees with tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Oh, Lady Lydia! I'm sorry to interrupt your solitude." Sophia had wiped her eyes and backed away. "Don't pay me any attention; I am merely having an emotional spell as we ladies are prone to now and again."

Lydia had watched silently as Sophia curtsied and walked back into the trees again. She couldn't help but wonder if Sophia's tears had anything to do with wishing she weren't the wife of a Winstone anymore.

***

A light tapping on her bedchamber door interrupted Lydia's thoughts and brought her back to the present.

"Is that you, Bridget?"

"Yes! I have your new gown, m'lady. It's a beauty!"

Lydia hopped up from the bed and opened the door to find Bridget nearly buckling under the weight of the dresses for her and her sisters. She gave the maid some relief by pulling the gowns into her own arms to spread them out across the beds. Lydia knew immediately which dress was which, especially since she had helped Countess Winstone select the fabric.

Eleanor's dress had a pale green print with daisies and white irises. Charlotte's had a sky blue print with purple hydrangeas and bluebells. And Lydia's was a lavender print with pink peonies and roses.

Every dress was made from modern floral prints that Lady Winstone had been saving for a special occasion. A ball with a floral theme was the perfect chance to drape the dramatic fabric along the ballroom walls and windows, plus have new gowns made for the Winstone and Briarwood ladies.

Lady Winstone still kept a small selection of the floral muslin in storage just in case she was blessed with granddaughters someday.

"It's such a shame that we don't have children running through these halls anymore. And none of my sons have provided me with any grandchildren yet. Maybe you will change that someday soon, my dear." The Countess had suggested this when her four—yes, four!—resident seamstresses were helping Lydia and Lady Briarwood choose their dress fabric.

"My Lydia would be a wonderful mother, Lady Winstone, would she not?" Lydia's mother had beamed at her, so full of pride that Lydia was in such good graces with one of the most influential women in Mayfair.

"She would indeed, Lady Briarwood. I predict she'll have two boys and two girls!"

Lydia giggled while remembering those words from Lady Winstone as she and Bridget smoothed their hands over the silky fabric of the finished dresses.

Though she wanted to wait to get married until she and Joseph were more sure of each other, it was fun to imagine her children running through Winstone House as the countess called after them to slow down and behave.

"We are running late, my lady. And you are a host of the ball, so let's get you ready!" Bridget led Lydia into the sitting room that opened into the dressing room and adjoined Lady Briarwood's bedchamber. Lydia's mother was already dressed and admiring her gown as one of Lady Winstone's personal maids, Mary, assisted her.

"I dare say it's been far from a hardship being sequestered at Winstone House for nearly a fortnight! It just keeps getting better and better, thanks to your engagement to the viscount. I do hope you are happy, Lydia. It fills me with joy to see you so well matched. This grand house will soon be your home!" Lady Briarwood clapped her hands together in celebration as Mary attempted to clasp a pearl bracelet around her wrist.

Lydia and Bridget giggled as Lady Briarwood stood still so her maid could finish with the jewelry. "I'm sorry, Mary! I'm just so excited that the Winstones and Briarwoods will soon be one big family!"

"Well, not too soon, Mama. I hardly know the viscount yet, of course. But he is proving to be a worthy companion thus far and I am grateful for that."

"And a handsome one, too?" With her beautiful accessories in place, Lady Briarwood reached out to touch her daughter's cheek as Lydia blushed.

"I will admit that Viscount Winstone is as handsome as they come. But he still has more of my tests to pass." Lydia winked at her mother as Mary and Bridget broke into more giggles.

"Oh, Lydia! I never thought I would say this, but I will miss your bold sense of humor and proud determination. What will I do without you?" Lady Briarwood embraced her daughter, taking the lace-lined handkerchief Mary offered to dry her watery eyes. "Even Eleanor and Charlotte have suddenly charmed the likes of Lord Arlington's twin boys! Is it possible that all three of my daughters will be married and gone by this time next year?"

Lydia frowned as her mother eased herself into a soft chair in the corner of the room and dabbed her teary eyes again. "Mama, we will not all leave you at once. Besides, we would be fools to rush into marriage when there are so many things we still need to accomplish before leaving our Briarwood home."

Lady Briarwood blinked a few times and tipped her head to one side in confusion. "What could you possibly need to accomplish? I made sure that my daughters are quite accomplished, did I not? Eleanor is gifted with needlework and baking. Charlotte excels at the pianoforte and has such a lovely voice. And you, my darling, are perhaps the smartest and most reliable Briarwood of us all."

As Bridget helped Lydia into her dress and fastened the buttons down her spine, Lydia silently chided herself for saying too much. Especially mere moments before attending a ball, her mother would not want to hear that Lydia planned to make a difference in their tenant farmers' lives before having children.

"We are forever in your debt for our many accomplishments, Mama. I simply meant we'd want to make sure everyone at Briarwood was well taken care of before we traipsed off to start new lives."

Her mother's eyes glistened with tears again. "You have a heart of gold, Lydia. I could not be more proud of you."

Lydia felt her own eyes tear up, too. Moving away from her mother would break her heart, so that was all the more reason to be sure of her future before it happened.

Though the first order of business was to somehow prevent William's transgressions from causing the fall of them all.