Chapter Eleven

C larity stayed well away from the three of them for the remainder of the reception, noting when Purity took them to exercise their legs by offering a tour of the house. Other guests joined the little group.

Alex could probably have been the guide if he'd desired, having at one time been over every square foot of Oak Grove Hall.

In any case, as soon as they were out of sight, all Clarity could think about was when they would return. Thus, with barely half her attention fixed upon the newlywed couple, the Baron and Baroness Marston with whom she was conversing, and the other half upon the open drawing-room door, she noticed the instant Alex returned. He was alone.

"You are correct about that," Clarity said to Lady Marston. "Our dinner has been delayed due to the lateness of the last train. I shall go determine the situation."

With that, she left the couple and intercepted Alex.

"Welcome again, my lord ."

He made a wry face at her sarcastic greeting, and she rushed into her apology that really ought to have been given to Miss Brambury.

"I apologize for earlier. I was not at all gracious."

"Duly noted," he said. "Having Miss Brambury thrust upon your family was a surprise to you, I take it."

Clarity waved his words away, hoping she appeared unbothered. Besides, she didn't want to speak about Emmeline anymore. Alex was there for the first time since they were children. It was rather momentous.

"Can you believe we are now invited to the main table," she asked, "instead of being fed early and told to stay out of sight?"

Alex frowned. "Is that why we used to eat before the main seating?"

She laughed, reaching out and touching his arm. "Of course. My parents and yours couldn't risk you bringing another stray Tom indoors as the centerpiece."

He was staring at her strangely.

"What is it?" She thought about her day, recalling the sandwiches she'd eaten with her siblings. "Dear God! Do I have a piece of watercress in my teeth?"

"What?" He shook his head as if to lift the cobwebs. "No! You simply laughed, and it was lovely."

Her heart ached. Clarity would vow there had been little laughter during his journey.

"I hope we shall share some amusing times over the next four days," she said.

He looked far too somber when he nodded in agreement.

"Where are your traveling companions?" she asked, albeit reluctant to bring them up. She could only hope Purity had sent them away for an infraction of civility.

He shrugged. "Your sister has taken them to the conservatory. I felt strange being shown around by someone who used to be eating pap and watery gruel while I was already riding horses and shooting arrows, so I begged off."

"Understandable," Clarity agreed, unable to stop staring at his firm lips, recalling the pleasurable heat that sizzled through her when his mouth pressed against hers. He would know of her feelings if she wasn't careful, and she couldn't bear the idea of him apologizing again for leading her on with a kiss.

"Lady Clarity," he said.

"Yes." How she longed to see his single dimple again when he smiled.

"Lady Clarity," he repeated.

"Yes, Alex," she said, lifting her gaze to his emerald eyes.

He frowned. "You mustn't call me that. And I asked you a question," he said.

"Did you?" She hadn't heard him, but she had seen those perfect lips moving. "What was it?"

"I asked what is first on the itinerary?"

She could think of far better things he might have asked her, such as "May I have your hand in marriage?" or "May I kiss you again?" or even "Would you help me toss Miss Brambury into the river?"

"My parents are the best of hosts," she said. "This will not be a party packed with endless activities, like a Michaelmas goose overly crammed with stuffing."

"A stuffed goose?" Alex nearly cracked a smile.

"I only meant tonight between dinner and supper. You may do absolutely nothing if you wish. Would you care for a beverage, by the way?"

"What are you having?" he asked, his green eyes dancing over her.

She would swear he looked as if he were relaxing already.

"Nothing as yet since I have to keep making trips outside to greet guests, but I recommend a glass of Father's splendid port."

"That's sounds perfect. As for doing nothing, I expect I will do whatever my aunt and Miss Brambury wish me to do for the next four days."

"Hen-pecked already?" Clarity asked before almost clamping her hand over her mouth and instantly wishing she could call back the words.

Alex merely raised an eyebrow, without looking too insulted on behalf of the women in his life.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "That wasn't a nice way for me to speak about your aunt and your ... your friend." She couldn't get herself to say fiancée . It was too final. Quite possibly, after his marriage, she would never see him again.

Just then, her mother nodded in her direction. "I'm being summoned outside again. The last of the guests must be arriving. I will make sure you are brought some port on my way out. Our butler's name is Mr. Dun —"

"Dunley," Alex finished. "Still? He seemed ancient when I was a youth. I vow he wanted to tan my hide a few times."

"He has a superb memory and may still want to. Thus, I suggest you keep your backside against the wall."

His eyes widened, and she felt her cheeks heat. Clarity could well imagine what Purity would say if her sister knew she'd been discussing a gentleman's backside.

What was wrong with her, especially around Alex?

With more a wince than a smile, she left him. Across the room, she asked Mr. Dunley to take a glass of port over to Lord Hollidge, and then she joined her family at the manor's entrance.

His backside! Alex stifled his laughter. Aunt Elizabeth would be appalled. Miss Brambury would wonder what type of household he had brought her to. In truth, he hadn't brought her at all. His aunt had insisted it would be good for him to experience Miss Brambury outside of London and in a different setting to better determine their compatibility.

It sounded like good advice until they arrived, and he could see the Diamonds had been unaware of the extra guest. He couldn't imagine why his aunt had behaved with such uncharacteristic impoliteness. But worse had been Clarity making mention of it.

Glancing around the elegant room, updated with a different paint color and new furnishings from when last he was there, it still had a welcoming familiarity. The only thing missing were his parents, enjoying the hospitality of the Diamonds.

Instantly, he felt sick to his stomach. Better they should be alive than him.

As he turned, thinking to retreat to his room until he could collect himself, his aunt appeared and with her, Miss Brambury.

Despite him not having personally asked her to accompany them, Emmeline had acted during the journey as if he had already proposed. Not that she had behaved in too familiar a manner, nor was she emotional or forward, but she'd had a calm certainty about her while discussing the latest interior fashion for his London home. Moreover, she had asked him pointed questions about his country estate.

Clearly, she was picturing herself in both settings.

Sighing, he moved to greet them as Mr. Dunley brought his drink on a silver tray, along with drinks for some of the other guests.

"May I bring you a refreshment, my ladies?" the aging butler asked.

"Tea is perfect for this time of day," his aunt declared while looking around to see what others might be imbibing. Then her gaze fastened on Alex's tawny plum-colored drink.

"Lady Clarity said it was very good," he told her, wishing he hadn't felt the need to defend himself like a child.

"How polite of you to go along with her suggestion," Miss Brambury praised. "It's always the best practice not to begin by insulting the host or the host's family, especially Lady Clarity who is erratic in her manners."

"A sensible statement," Aunt Elizabeth pronounced. "Still, I shall have tea," she told the butler who waited patiently.

"I shall as well," Miss Brambury said.

Alex thought Mr. Dunley was probably thrilled to be released. He undoubtedly had a hundred and one things to do, and hearing a discourse on manners or tea was not one of them.

"We're standing in an awkward spot," his aunt said. "Let's clear the entrance." She ushered them to a place near the hearth.

Alex sipped the port, closing his eyes a second as the fruity wine slid down his throat. And then he heard her laughter again. His eyes snapped open as Clarity entered with her arm linked through another woman's. For a second, he saw the lively girl who'd been his playmate and his friend, eyes sparkling, laughter bubbling easily from her lips.

Then she transformed before his eyes to the stunning woman he'd first seen at Devonshire House. Her hair was dressed into a soft chignon with curls hanging down behind her. A ribbon of blue to match her gown was threaded through her dark tresses like a silken coronet. She was breathtaking.

"Don't you?" Miss Brambury asked.

Egad! Fortunately, he was saved from answering a question he hadn't properly heard by a maid appearing with a tea tray. She set it upon the long table behind the sofa. The young woman poured and handed his aunt and Miss Brambury each a cup.

"It was an interesting tour. You missed the end of it," the latter said.

He didn't point out to Emmeline that he knew every inch of the house and every furlong of land around the house down to the river.

"I'm looking forward to seeing the grounds tomorrow," she said.

"I shall be happy to show you them myself," he told her, appreciating that she showed an interest. That was a good sign. She was not a retiring violet who had to remain indoors.

Emmeline nodded her agreement to this plan, but his aunt coughed and shook her head.

"I cannot show you around. Not without a chaperone. What was I thinking?"

Adam Diamond appeared as if on cue.

"Greetings, Hollidge," he said before clapping Alex on the shoulder. "Journey good? The trains running on time? Are you going to introduce me properly?"

"Of course. This is my aunt, Lady Aston." Alex didn't know where the desire to make the little jest came from, perhaps simply being back at Oak Grove Hall.

Adam laughed uproariously as if it was the funniest thing he'd heard, having known Lady Aston all his life.

Aunt Elizabeth broke in. "I believe he meant Miss Brambury." She spoke with utter seriousness, as if she thought Alex truly didn't understand.

"Yes, Auntie. I spoke in jest." He turned to the sole Diamond brother. "Lord Adam Diamond, this is Miss Brambury, the eldest daughter of Lord and Lady Brambury."

Adam didn't take her hand since she was holding her teacup in one and, most sensibly, a handkerchief in the other. He bowed toward her instead.

"Enchanted."

"I am pleased to meet you, my lord," she replied.

Alex listened to them chatting, hearing his aunt question the heir to the earldom on all matters of his upbringing over the past decade before he had to greet other guests.

"A nice young man," Aunt Elizabeth said, surprisingly. "He has turned out well for his age. I believe he will handle his responsibilities with astute capability one day."

Was Alex imagining some sort of comparison? His aunt's next words confirmed she was comparing, but not him and Adam, rather the siblings themselves.

"A good thing Lord Diamond has a mature nature, despite not being the eldest. One can only imagine the utter disarray of the Diamond earldom were Lady Clarity the heir."

Wisely, Miss Brambury said nothing to this remark, nor did Alex. Inside, he felt the wish to defend her but couldn't. Even then, he heard Clarity's voice, a little too loudly, across the room.

Alex glanced toward her and choked slightly upon his next sip. Clarity was leaning close to Brennon, her hand on his arm and gesticulating wildly with her glass of wine. Brennon appeared enchanted, nodding and smiling.

The lucky slag! He and Clarity must be on a path toward an engagement for Brennon to have been invited as one of the bachelors.

Over recent weeks, it had been impossible not to notice the two of them keeping close company. Brennon must think he could get away with having such a flighty and blithe wife to run his household. Probably her beauty was an acceptable trade. Or maybe the man cared nothing for safety, propriety, or sanity! He didn't appear to mind when she spilled a few drops of wine upon his shoes.

And when her laughter also spilled forth, Alex felt it — his heart squeezed and his groin tightened.

The devil take him!

His reaction was bloody inconvenient, especially when he wanted to leave Miss Brambury's side and join Clarity's discussion to find out what was eliciting her laughter. More than that, deep down in his gut, he knew a desperate desire to steal her away from the baron before it was too late.

As a dutiful member of the hosting family, Adam finished going around the room and returned to them.

"Tomorrow, some of us are going to do a bit of fishing," he said. "Would you care to add to our number?"

The last time Alex had fished at River Derwent, he'd done so with Clarity and their parents, but Adam had been too young to join them.

"Will it be only the men?" he asked.

"I definitely don't want to go fishing," Miss Brambury said.

Lady Purity happened by. "No one will force you," she assured her. "My mother, who is also not a fan of fishing, has devised many methods for our guests to entertain themselves during the day. If fishing isn't to your liking, then you may paint or sketch or stroll the grounds. We have every manner of instrument if you like to play, and there is a library at your disposal. And we have excellent horses if you enjoy riding."

"How kind of you," Miss Brambury said. She turned to Alex. "If you don't mind my begging off and doing something more suitable to the female nature, then I shall not join you."

"Nor I," said Aunt Elizabeth, as if Alex had thought for a single moment his aunt was going to pierce a worm on a hook and cast her line.

Clarity appeared at her brother's other elbow.

"Did you ask Alex about fishing?"

Both his aunt and Emmeline visibly startled, and Alex pierced her with what he hoped was a suitably disapproving look. Why did she insist on being outrageous?

Clarity didn't appear to notice. "I was telling Lord Brennon about our extraordinary haul of trout last year. The fish were as easy as picking apples."

She turned to Alex. "You would have loved it. Remember when we were fishing the summer those stray cats showed up?" Turning to Emmeline, she added, "Not that they have anything to do with the story."

Emmeline nodded, while wearing a censorious expression that she might have mastered from his aunt. Clarity either didn't notice or purposefully ignored it.

She continued her account. "Alex said, ‘I vow there aren't any fish in that stream,' and then I caught one directly." She glanced at him again. "You broke your rod in disgust over your knee and then tossed it into the water."

"I remember," he said tightly.

She chuckled with only Adam joining in. Even Purity pursed her lips in disapproval. Clarity was unpredictable, and Alex was beginning to wish she would find someone else to share stories with and about.

Where was that Brennon chap?

"Then you declared it must have been a faulty rod and took mine," she continued. "Still, you didn't catch anything that day." She beamed at him so genuinely, any annoyance at her embarrassing story slipped away.

"You gave your fish to the cats," he said, suddenly remembering her kindness. She hadn't wanted to show up at the house with a fish if he hadn't caught one, too.

Clarity clapped her hands. "I did, didn't I? I had forgotten." She turned to Aunt Elizabeth and Miss Brambury once more. "Then I was wrong. The cats are part of the tale."

"Lady Clarity," her sister said stiffly, attempting a modicum of formality in the midst of the chaos of her sister's familiarity. "I believe another carriage is pulling up."

"Excuse me," Clarity said. "I thought everyone had arrived. I must go greet the newcomers."

She offered a perfectly acceptable curtsy all around, regardless of rank and despite hers being higher than Miss Brambury's. Then Adam gave a shallow nod and followed her.

"Well!" was all Aunt Elizabeth said in their wake.

Miss Brambury locked gazes with him, widening hers and at the same time, giving a roll of her shoulders and a shake of her head as if to say, "How odd!"

On the surface, Alex agreed. Compared to the other women, Clarity might seem strange in her forwardness and her relentless insouciance. Beyond that, though, she was one-of-a-kind in all the right ways, too. He would scoop her up in an instant if she behaved the way he wanted a wife to, as Emmeline did.

On the other hand, then she would not be Clarity Diamond.