Chapter 3

CHAPTER3

“Iknow you are not reading the newspaper,” Rose said quietly the following morning.

The sisters were the only ones in the Morning Room, for their mother had taken breakfast in her bedchamber, and Lady Finch had entered for just a moment before taking two pieces of toast and disappearing into the outdoors where she presumably chose to eat her breakfast. Agnes wondered if it was some kind of morning routine, but as they had only been there for one night, it remained to be seen.

Perhaps, she is angry with me for being so relentless with His Grace. Jester’s remorse was another bad habit of hers, often regretting her jibes and retorts long after they had been spoken. It was a pity that words could not be forced back into the mouth, forgotten by all who had heard.

“Pardon?” Agnes delicately balanced the broad newspaper, so the ironed edges would not fold in and reveal the smaller sheets within.

“I know you are not reading the newspaper,” Rose repeated.

Agnes raised an eyebrow. “Then what, pray tell, am I reading?”

“Those awful scandal sheets that you favor.” Rose shook her head, pushing her toast, thick with marmalade, to the other side of her plate. “Do you not know how they ruin lives?”

Agnes smiled at her sweet, beautiful sister. “Of course, I do, and that is why I read them so that I might prevent you from ever falling into an unfortunate fate.”

“You should not have behaved like that with His Grace,” Rose moved on, just as Agnes was about to begin an article about that selfsame wretch.

Apparently, the Duke of Crampton had been spotted stumbling out of a music hall in Soho with two young ladies of ill-repute upon his arms. Agnes did have to question the intent of the writer, for they described him as if they were in love with him and wished that they might be one of the girls upon his arm.

He is said to have cut a fine figure in the early morning of London, not a button out of place despite imbibing since the late afternoon. He was seen pausing to give a small purse of benevolence to a beggar in the street, remembering his manners and his generosity. How the other gentlemen did gaze at him in wonder, leaving in their own carriages, alone.

“Pardon?” Agnes feigned ignorance, coaxing a weary chuckle from her sister.

“I know you heard me. Ordinarily, I enjoy your amusing repartee, but you were rather mean-spirited last night. I should hate to offend anyone before I have even been introduced into society,” Rose explained, breaking off a corner of the abandoned toast. “And I am not sure that the Duke deserved the sharp end of your tongue. He was surprised by the company, that is all. He meant no unkindness toward us. How could he?”

Agnes slouched in her chair, folding the top of the newspaper into her chest to hide the scandal sheets. “What do you mean, how could he? You were there. You heard his tone. He did not want us here.”

“I do not think that is true, sister,” Rose insisted. “As I said, I think he was merely surprised. A gentleman so handsome could never be unkind, for beauty of face is always reflected in beauty of character.”

Agnes resisted the urge to ball up the newspaper and throw it at her sister, hoping to knock some sense into the naïve young woman. “Sometimes, dear thing, the most beautiful people are the cruelest. Yet, they are given leniency because they are divine to behold. Are you saying that those with unfortunate looks are innately terrible?”

“Goodness, no!” Rose’s eyes widened, her hand clasped to her chest.

“That is what it sounded like.”

“But I did not mean that,” Rose hurried to reply. “I meant… Oh, I do not know what I was saying. If I think of the Duke, I find I cannot think of anything else. Words fail me. Have you ever seen a gentleman so handsome? I assuredly have not though I suppose we have not yet encountered many gentlemen.”

Agnes folded up the newspaper and set it down on the table with pointed determination. She took up her cup of weak coffee, gulped down a cooled mouthful, and allowed herself a moment to calm the spike of panic that lanced through her chest.

“We may not have encountered many gentlemen, darling Rose, but I have made one observation that has decided something in my mind with absolute certainty,” she began, clasping her hands beneath the table to conceal their tremor. “You are to stay away from that Duke.”

Rose tilted her head to one side. “Because you quarreled last night?”

“No, because he would be ruinous for you,” Agnes replied.

“How so?”

Agnes did not know how much to tell her innocent sister. Rose herself had never picked up the scandal sheets to peruse the latest gossip and rumors, and with her debut imminent, Agnes did not wish to burst her sister’s bubble. It would serve no purpose for Agnes to reveal that all was not resplendent and beautiful and charming behind the well-crafted theater of high society. It was all a performance with everyone keeping secrets.

And I have done my best to delay your entrance, Agnes mused sadly. If I could have, I would have kept you from it indefinitely… but I pray that you will be one of the fortunate ones, finding happiness.

“Put your faith in me, Rosie, as you have always done, and trust that I will always have your best interests at heart,” Agnes finally replied. “That is why you must avoid that Duke, no matter how appealing he might seem.”

Rose’s eyes moved to the newspaper. “Have you seen his name in the scandal sheets? What is the nature of his disgrace?”

“I—” Agnes was saved from the struggle of coming up with a viable excuse by the reappearance of Lady Finch, striding in through the doors that led out into the gardens.

The old woman had a flush in her cheeks and a brightness in her eyes, making Agnes wonder if she ought to implement a morning routine that set her on a good course for the rest of the day. Lounging and reading scandal sheets while chewing on toast and sipping coffee usually served to make her crave her bed again.

“The dressmaker is coming today with a selection of gowns that I took the liberty of ordering,” Lady Finch announced. “Lady Agnes gave your measurements, but if they do not fit well, they can be altered. In the meantime, I thought we would venture to the main house, so you might challenge yourself in the art of conversation with my son and his wife. They have guests arriving before luncheon, so it shall be a ripe opportunity to learn and to, perhaps, make some new acquaintances before the season commences.”

All the blushing pink drained from Rose’s cheeks, her fingertips crushing the corner of toast until it disintegrated into crumbs, dropping down onto the plate.

“I shall be there, encouraging you,” Agnes said, her heart aching for her sister, for though she knew of Rose’s humor, intellect, and charm, Rose floundered in company.

She was chronically shy, and though Agnes wished for the best, she did not know if there was enough time to remedy that before they all went to London. After all, in eight-and-ten years, Agnes had not managed to fix her sister’s shyness though she had exhausted every possible solution.

“After we have visited my son,” Lady Finch continued, oblivious, “I thought we might discuss the details of your coming-out ball.”

Rose’s eyes widened to the whites, the cords of her neck standing out as she forgot to breathe. “A… ball, Lady Finch? I thought… I would be introduced… at a more general… gathering.”

“Inhale, dear sister,” Agnes whispered. “Breathe deeply. All will be well.”

Although, it was news to Agnes too.

“Goodness, no. You are under my guardianship now, dear Lady Rose,” Lady Finch said proudly. “A humble assembly is already arranged to take place in the arboretum at Kew Gardens. It shall be a grand affair to ensure that your entrance into society is remembered for decades to come. It was not easy to orchestrate such a thing, and I have had to pull every string, but it shall all be worthwhile. I am certain of it.”

Agnes cast Lady Finch a wary look. “So, is it to be a humble gathering or a grand affair? Forgive me, for I do not mean to be facetious.”

“It shall be both,” Lady Finch explained, furrowing her brow as she observed Rose panting quite hard. “A small, careful selection of guests while the venue shall be the grandest of them all, for who would not want to be introduced into society in the springtime in the beautiful midst of Kew?”

Rose’s trembling fingers suggested that she would not want to be the center of such a spectacle. In truth, it was part of the reason that Agnes had done her best to postpone her sister’s debut, fearing that Rose might withdraw into herself if she became overwhelmed.

“Goodness, has someone delivered bad tidings?” a most unwelcome voice sliced through the stifling air, drawing Agnes’ gaze for a fleeting second.

The Duke stood in the Morning Room doorway, leaning against the jamb as if he was still at a gentlemen’s club, his powerful arms folded across his chest as he flashed a wicked grin. The buttons of his waistcoat strained, prompting Agnes to look away again.

“I was just informing the girls about the ball,” Lady Finch said, her tone perplexed. “Now, I wonder if I have made a mistake.”

Agnes swallowed her concerns. “Not at all, Lady Finch. It is just a shock to us, for we did not expect you to go to such lengths. Indeed, my own coming-out into society was little more than an announcement by a Master of Ceremonies at the Assembly Rooms in Bath.” She put on her best smile. “It is not ingratitude or disapproval that you see upon our faces but absolute wonder!”

Rose managed to nod. “It is beyond anything I could have imagined, Lady Finch.”

“And that is without even seeing the gardens,” Agnes added, forcing a chuckle. “We have often talked of wandering in Kew Gardens with other fine ladies and gentlemen, so to have Rose’s debut there is more fitting than you could know. Why, now that I come to think of it, where else would a Rose be introduced?”

Lady Finch’s expression calmed, and a smile returned to her lips. “Thank heavens, I thought you were both horrified by the notion!”

“Never,” Agnes assured. “All that you are doing for us is eternally appreciated. I merely worry that I shall never be able to repay your kindness.”

Lady Finch waved a dismissive hand. “Seeing dear Rose make an excellent match will be payment enough.”

“The poor thing is shaking.” The Duke sauntered from his spot by the door, settling down in the chair beside Rose. He leaned over and took her hand. “Is an ostentatious debut truly what you desire?”

An odd spark of something hot and prickly ricocheted across Agnes’ chest as she watched the Duke lift Rose’s hand to his lips, pressing a dainty kiss to the kid gloves she wore.

“You know, we could dispense with it all, if you wanted?” he continued, setting Rose’s hand back on the lace tablecloth.

Rose swallowed loudly; her hand frozen where he had left it. “We could? What do you mean?”

The Duke fixed his steely blue eyes upon Agnes, sweeping his tongue lightly across his lower lip, coaxing the corner of his mouth into a smirk. Her heart sank like a stone as he turned his attention back to Rose and said for all to hear, “Why, we could arrange a proposal right this minute, and elope without delay.”