Chapter 22

The Families Come Together

Honeyfield House, London

Edwin, Beatrice, Modesty, and Elizabeth were greeted at the door by the butler. He had always been fond of Beatrice when she had lived at Honeyfield House, and he offered her a warm smile first before extending the smile to the rest of the family.

The four guests were shown in, and coats and other accessories were taken by the help. Beatrice had never seen so many servants in the house, and she was sure her father had hired extra help for the evening in an attempt to impress the Duke.

“Right this way,” the butler said.

He had only just turned around and stepped forward when Nathanial appeared, and the butler almost tripped over him.

“Lord Nathanial, where did you come from?” the butler asked.

“I would like to perform a magic trick for you!” Nathanial announced.

“Nathanial, we don’t have time for this,” Beatrice said.

She often grew tired of her younger brothers’ pranks, and she was sure her father did not envisage the night to begin like this. Phineas would want to welcome the Duke to his home and not have his son perform a magic trick in his stead.

“I am a great illusionist, and I will make your mind melt with my finest trick to date,” Nathanial continued, ignoring his sister.

“I would like to see it,” Edwin offered.

“You don’t have to do this,” Beatrice told him.

“I know, but now I am curious about this trick.” Edwin turned to Nathanial. “Let us see your trick.”

Nathanial nodded seriously. “Watch very closely, because I will only show you this one time. I might look like a mortal boy, but I can move through time and space. I am right here before you—you can see me with your eyes. I am not an illusion, but what you are about to see is.” He waved his hand in the air. “I am here one minute!” Then he ran into the room on his left.

Stephen jumped out from another room down the hallway. “And I am here the next!”

“Oh, my goodness!” Modesty gasped. She burst into maniacal laughter and placed a hand on her chest. “Did you see that?” She turned to the rest of the group, her eyes wide in astonishment. “It was truly magic, wasn’t it?”

Elizabeth knew there must be a logical explanation, but she couldn’t figure out what it was. “How is it possible?” she muttered.

“Very good!” the Duke boomed, clapping. “You are a very magical young boy. I look forward to seeing you on the stage in London when you are older. Now, you had better go off and play with… yourself.”

Phineas appeared from even further down the hallway. “What is going on out here? Stephen, stop bothering His Grace. I apologize, Your Grace. My sons have a tendency to bother our guests when they should not.”

“It is no trouble,” Edwin assured him. “They were very entertaining.”

“Ah,” Elizabeth said from beside Beatrice, realizing how the trick was done.

“How can he send him away?” Modesty asked. “Did he see the trick? Does your father also do magic?”

“No, he does not,” Beatrice replied. “It is only my younger brother who possesses that skill.”

She did not want to let on that her younger brothers were twins. Modesty was miffed at how the trick was done, but there was something childlike about her wonder, and Beatrice enjoyed her naivety.

“I had hoped to greet the four of you myself in the drawing room.” Phineas walked forward and smiled at his daughter. “It is so wonderful to have you back in our home again.”

“It is good to be back, Father.”

Beatrice smiled as she looked around the familiar home.

It feels like I have been away for an eternity, but everything remains unchanged. It is nice to be here again, but I do not look forward to the conversation to come.

“Your Grace, might I invite you into the drawing room for a glass of cognac and a cigar before supper?” Phineas asked.

“I would enjoy that very much, Lord Ramsbury,” Edwin replied.

“Beatrice, your mother and your sister are in the parlor. I assume you will see your brothers again at some point. They are very good at disappearing and reappearing at the most inopportune moments,” Phineas said.

Beatrice, Modesty, and Elizabeth went one way while the men went the other. Beatrice led them to the parlor, where her mother and her sister were waiting.

The parlor was one of the largest rooms in Honeyfield House for entertaining. It had a very high ceiling, with silver molding around the edges and floral detail in the corners. It had far too many tables and chairs, and they had not once filled them all. They did not fill it that evening either, with only five of them in the room.

“Oh, my dear, it is so good to have you back again!” Letitia gushed. “What a wonderful thing. We must celebrate.”

“Mother, we don’t need to celebrate. We are only here for supper,” Beatrice said.

“Any day is a good day for celebration,” Modesty agreed. “We should celebrate every day as if it is our first and last.”

Letitia had a habit of being dramatic but was outdone by Modesty.

“Mother, do you remember the Dowager Duchess of Walford?” Beatrice asked.

“Of course,” Letitia said. “It is a pleasure to see you again, Your Grace.”

“And it is a pleasure to see you again, Lady Ramsbury. We have been enjoying your daughter so much since she moved in with us.” Modesty placed a hand on her chest. “And your son! I did not know he could do magic.”

“Oh, yes,” Letitia sighed. “Which one?”

“Yes, quite,” Modesty said with a laugh.

Both women looked at each other in confusion.

“Mother, perhaps some refreshments?” Beatrice suggested.

“Yes, of course.” Letitia ordered the drinks to be poured. “I hope everyone enjoys sherry. I like a good cherry to increase my appetite before I eat.”

They exchanged pleasantries as the small glasses of sherry were handed out.

“Elizabeth, come over here,” Beatrice said, taking Elizabeth by the arm. “You must talk to Hannah while you have the chance.” She took her over to her youngest sister. “Hannah, you and Elizabeth will both be debuting this Season.”

“Oh, you must be so excited, Lady Elizabeth,” Hannah said.

“Very excited.” Elizabeth nodded. “My mother and my brother make such a big deal out of it, as if it will not be fun, but it will be the most fun in the world.”

Hannah’s eyes widened in agreement. “My mother and father are exactly the same. I want to talk about the dances and the gentlemen and what dress I will wear, and they only want to talk about where I will live when I am married. Old people love to talk about the future when there is so much to see and do right now.”

“Yes, exactly,” Elizabeth agreed. “Why can’t we just have fun?”

“Perhaps Beatrice can speak to both of our families and make it so we both attend the same events,” Hannah suggested. “It would be more fun if I had a friend there.”

Elizabeth took her new best friend’s arm. “Yes, we must find her and have her do that.”

“You both know that I am right here, don’t you?” Beatrice drawled.

Both ladies looked at her.

“You must—” Hannah started.

“I shall do what I can,” Beatrice assured them. “I am glad to see you both getting along so well. I had a feeling you would. I shall disappear like Nathanial this time.”

Hannah and Elizabeth turned to each other as if they had not heard her at all.

“Have you met the Diamond of the Season?” Hannah asked.

“Lady Penelope Penderson?” Elizabeth said. “I have not, but I have heard she is wonderful. Beautiful, kind, wealthy, and not a bit pretentious.”

“I met her once, but only for a minute. She was incredible. Maybe Beatrice can make sure we attend the same events as her, too,” Hannah replied.

Beatrice left the two young ladies to gossip about the upcoming Season and returned to her mother to ensure Modesty had not confused her more.

Nathanial and Stephen ran into the room and did a few laps before they ran back out again.

“Oh my!” Modesty laughed. “There are two of them. Are they both magicians or only the one?”

“Magicians?” Letitia echoed. “I am afraid I don’t quite understand.”

“I will explain it to you later, Mother,” Beatrice told her. “It is nice to be back here. How is Father doing? You know, with everything?”

“It is troubling, but I would prefer to let him discuss it with you,” Letitia replied.

“There is nothing to it,” Beatrice declared.

“Still, I will let him talk to you,” Letitia said. “Now, I see the butler coming to fetch us, so it must be time for supper.” She addressed the room. “Everyone, please follow me. We are ready to dine.”

The butler turned on his heels when he saw Letitia emerge from the room, leading the four other ladies.

They all followed him to the dining room, where Phineas and Edwin were already seated. Nathanial and Stephen were seated, too, and they looked thoroughly bored and devoid of energy. It was as if they were not the same two boys who had performed the theatrical magic trick and then ran around the house afterward.

Beatrice was shown to her seat beside Edwin, and there was some discussion when Elizabeth was seated beside her but far from Hannah. Some arrangements were made, and Beatrice kept her seat beside Edwin while Elizabeth was moved to a chair beside Hannah. As soon as she was, the two women began gossiping again.

As soon as everyone had an approved seat, the soup was served. A large tureen of seafood bisque was rolled in on a silver cart, and the bisque was ladled into delicate china bowls. A pinch of fresh herbs was sprinkled on top and finished with a drizzle of cream.

The cheesecloths were removed from the baskets on the table, revealing steaming, fresh, crusty baguettes. Small bowls of butter and olive oil sat beside them.

Phineas stood at the end of the table to say a short grace, and then everyone ate.

“You must give me this recipe!” Modesty exclaimed after taking her first spoonful. “I have tasted many bisques in my life, but this is simply the best!”

“I will pass it on,” Letitia said happily. “I find that a good soup really sets the atmosphere for the evening.”

“I have no idea what you mean, but I still understand it fully,” Modesty replied.

Beatrice looked down at her soup and could not help but smile. She knew Modesty well and loved her quirks, but it must be disarming to meet her for the first time.

Letitia did not know how to take her and looked to her husband. “Oh dear,” she sighed.

Phineas was spooning soup into his mouth as if he were afraid the bowl would be taken from him at any moment. He managed to get a good amount of it into his mouth, but another good amount slid down his chin and onto the napkin he had tucked into his shirt. He had learned to manage the spills instead of stopping them.

“Phineas!” Letitia scolded. “We have guests.” She proceeded to wipe the soup from his chin with her napkin.

Phineas tried to lean out of her reach as she wiped his chin. “I know we have guests, Letitia. I am sitting at the same table as them. They might not have noticed a small spill on my chin if you had not drawn attention to it.”

“You can’t not notice it,” Letitia moaned. “You are practically wasting a portion.”

“Then I will wring out my napkin back into my bowl,” he replied.

“You will not,” Letitia cried. She turned to their guests. “I must apologize for my husband. He must really like the soup.”

“Then he should eat it,” Modesty said solicitously.

Letitia looked shocked, but Phineas didn’t care. He continued to eat his soup, and after Letitia’s remark, everyone was now watching him.

“They don’t care,” he said, waving his spoon in the air. “We are family, after all.”

Letitia tried to put on a brave face, but it was killing her inside.

“I love the soup as much as Father,” Stephen announced.

“Me too,” Nathanial piped up.

“Oh, my goodness!” Letitia gasped as she looked over at the twins to see soup dribbling down their chins and onto the table.

“Oh, isn’t that funny,” Modesty commented, not laughing or smiling.

Elizabeth and Hannah were deep in conversation, neither having touched their soups, none the wiser to what was going on around them.

“Welcome to my family,” Beatrice whispered to her husband.

“I am beginning to see why you are the way you are,” Edwin replied in a hushed tone.

Beatrice playfully elbowed him in the ribs.

The commotion was soon brought to a halt when the soup bowls were removed from the table. The fish course was served immediately afterward.

Beatrice had experienced two suppers like this before, when her father was trying to impress his guests. He liked to serve up the soup and fish in quick succession before taking a break with refreshments, and then the main course would be served.

The maids brought out small plates of grilled sea bass in a lemon and butter sauce, with a sprinkling of fresh parsley. Wilted spinach provided a bed for the fish.

The smell was intoxicating, and even though it was a different fish, Beatrice’s mind was taken back to the smoked salmon she and the Duke had shared for breakfast, along with his comment about her moans.

This is not the place for such thoughts!

The plates were put down before all the guests, and then the maids retreated—some leaving the room and others retreating to the corners. Phineas waved his hand, and white wine was poured into the wine glasses.

“Lots for me,” Stephen said.

“And don’t forget about me,” Nathanial added.

“A mouthful each for the special occasion,” Phineas said.

Both boys gasped excitedly, having not expected to get any.

“I would like to make a toast,” Phineas announced, raising his glass. “To my beautiful daughter and her new family.”

“To the Duke and Duchess,” the others chorused.

“Now,” Phineas said, turning more serious. “Before our main course is served, we should deal with the very serious elephant in the room. The defamation campaign against my daughter.”