Chapter 22

CHAPTER 22

“ L avinia, everything is simply lovely,” Edwina enthused as she and Matthew stepped into the foyer of Loxburgh estate. “What a beautiful party this will be.”

“You’re to have your usual rooms, of course,” Lavinia said. “I can have the servants show you up to them if you’d like.”

“There’s no need,” Edwina assured her. “How many times have I stayed in the same rooms here? It must be dozens. I’m quite capable of finding my own way.”

“Do you wish to settle in?”

“Oh, no, I want to stay and help you greet your guests,” Edwina said.

“Not that Lavinia needs the help!” Matthew embraced his sister. “Who would have believed that my sister, who was once such a wallflower, would be the life of the party? If you’d told me years ago of these events, I would have insisted that it was a lie—and yet here we are. I’m very proud of you indeed, Lavinia.”

Lavinia beamed. “It really does mean so much to me to hear you say that,” she said. “And I hope you’ll enjoy the party, Matthew. I believe it’s going to be the event of the season. We’ve worked very hard to make that happen, so I hope it will.”

“I would say that we can count on your party being especially memorable if the unattainable spinster finds her match at last,” Matthew observed.

“And do we think such a thing is possible?”

“You two rarely seem to speak of anything else!” Edwina chastised. “Perhaps it would be best if you turned your attention to your own affairs, Matthew. I don’t see you with a lady on your arm.”

“Oh, all in good time.” Matthew smiled. “Right now, my concern is for the affairs of my sisters. And with Lavinia so satisfactorily taken care of, naturally my attention turns to you.”

He turned to Lavinia. “And to answer your question,” he added, “I most certainly do think it’s possible that her affairs will be settled this week. Viscount Kentrow has been favoring her with a great deal of attention lately—he’s come around to visit with her almost every day.”

“What?” Lavinia turned to stare at Edwina. “This is the first I’m hearing about you and Viscount Kentrow.”

“There hasn’t been anything to report,” Edwina said. “Our brother exaggerates.”

“Do I?” Matthew raised his eyebrows. “Are you saying that he hasn’t come to visit you every day?”

“Well, no, he has, of course. But you make it sound as if he’s on the verge of a proposal, and we both know that isn’t the case.”

“What’s going on, Matthew?” Lavinia asked. “Is Lord Kentrow intending to court Edwina?”

“He would be courting her already if she had given in. And regardless of what she may tell you, his mind is on marriage,” Matthew replied. “He would be a very fine match for our sister.”

“What about the Duke of Harbeck?”

“Oh, no one ever took that seriously as a match,” Matthew said. “Did they, Edwina?”

“Certainly not.” Edwina had no wish to talk about the Duke. She couldn’t confess to her brother and sister that a kiss had taken place, and she certainly didn’t want to let them know that she had been rejected.

Not that it was a rejection, she told herself fiercely. She was the one who had told him first that they shouldn’t see one another anymore. That was no rejection. All he had done was agree with her, and she couldn’t very well be disappointed in that unless she hadn’t meant it.

She had meant it. She did not want anything more to do with him, and she was glad that their time together was at an end.

“I must confess, I felt rather differently,” Lavinia said.

“Surely, you didn’t think those two would really end up together? He’s a rake, Lavinia, and you know it,” Matthew replied.

“He’s far too much for someone like me, I grant you,” Lavinia explained. “And yet I can’t help feeling that he might have been just right for our strong-willed sister. It will take a forceful personality to bring her to heel. You and I know that well enough.”

“You may stop speaking of me as if I wasn’t here,” Edwina said sourly. “Lavinia, do you really think the solution to your wish to see me married is to find the most rigid and controlling gentleman possible? One thing I will say for Lord Kentrow is that he’s quite the opposite. He’s always so agreeable, so easy to get along with. Never once has he made my life more difficult. And if he does intend to offer a proposal, as Matthew says, I feel very sure he won’t do it until he’s certain I’m ready to hear it.”

“In which case, we will all be waiting for the rest of our days,” Lavinia said. “We don’t need someone who is determined to wait until you’re ready. We need someone who will help you to reach that state of readiness.”

“Even if you’re right, Allan is hardly the man,” Matthew interjected. “He may be my friend, but I know him better than either of you. You know I’ve never been fond of the idea of the two of them together. I tolerated the five dates he was promised because it seemed I had no choice. But now, it seems as if they have decided to bring that arrangement to an end early, and I say it’s for the best.”

“Is it true, Edwina?” Lavinia asked. “Your arrangement with the Duke has come to an early end?”

“Neither of us is particularly fond of the other’s company,” Edwina stated, though she wasn’t sure she was describing the situation fairly. She had actually quite enjoyed the Duke’s company at times, and she suspected that he would say the same thing about her if he was asked the question. Whether or not they had enjoyed themselves was not the issue.

“This is for the best,” Matthew said firmly. “We’ve long wanted that arrangement to come to an end.”

“I haven’t wanted any such thing,” Lavinia protested.

“You want your sister’s happiness, don’t you?”

“Oh, don’t be silly, Matthew. Of course, I do.”

“This is the best way to ensure her happiness. Besides, she says herself that this is what she wants, doesn’t she? We can hardly argue with that. And I know you’re fond of the idea that Edwina doesn’t know what she wants?—”

“Don’t be unfair, Matthew. Edwina knows I don’t think that, but I can’t be blamed for wanting to help guide my younger sister, surely.”

“I don’t blame you,” Edwina spoke up quickly, wishing to head off the argument before it went any farther. “But I also agree with what Matthew is saying, Lavinia. He’s quite right to suggest that the Duke is not right for me, and both His Grace and I have wasted enough time on an endeavor that was going nowhere.”

“And so—Lord Kentrow? You truly have an interest in him?”

Oh, she was shrewd. Edwina couldn’t honestly claim anything of the kind, of course. “I find him pleasant enough,” she said. “I will be happy to spend my time with him this week. I don’t know that I believe we are destined for a marriage by the time the week is over, but even so, I would much rather pass the week in his company than with the Duke. It will be a more enjoyable time for everyone involved.”

“You know that you must think about more than just what’s enjoyable,” Lavinia warned. “The season will soon be at an end, and that means?—”

“I know what it means,” Edwina said. “It means you two will no longer be at such liberty to plague me about the question of marriage. Believe me, if I can make it through the season, I will feel much more at ease and able to return to pursuits of genuine interest to me.”

“I’m not so sure about that,” Matthew replied. “I’ve seen the way you are with Lord Kentrow, Edwina. I believe you genuinely like the man even if you aren’t yet ready to admit that to yourself.”

“I never said that I didn’t like him, Matthew, but it’s a very long way between liking someone and wishing to marry him. Perhaps that’s something you would do well to remember.” She turned away from her brother and sister. “In any case, the guests will be arriving soon,” she said. “We shouldn’t waste any more time on these discussions. Lavinia, where is your husband? Won’t he be joining us to greet the guests as they arrive?”

“Ah—yes, here he comes now.” Lavinia was suitably distracted by the Duke of Loxburgh’s arrival. She went to his side, and the two of them began to discuss their plans for their guests and the upcoming week.

Edwina turned to Matthew, with whom she had now been left alone. “I certainly hope you aren’t pinning your hopes on me marrying Lord Kentrow,” she said.

“I’d like you to keep an open mind about it, please, nothing more.”

“My mind is perfectly open. I like Lord Kentrow just fine, and his company is pleasant enough, but I will not marry him. I’m as determined as I ever was not to marry at all,” Edwina said.

“I rather thought your time with the Duke of Harbeck had changed your mind about that,” Matthew admitted.

“Why on Earth would you think so? You’ve said yourself, many times, that His Grace is not an ideal match. Did you think I would find him otherwise?” She knew her cheeks were flushed, and she hoped that her brother would mistake her embarrassment for anger. How much better it would be if he believed that she found the idea of a match with the Duke so foolish that the very act of discussing it enraged her. She certainly did not want him to know what she truly felt—humiliation because she did have feelings for the man and knew that she shouldn’t.

“I don’t know,” Matthew admitted. “But you’ve seemed different since your time with him began. I can’t help but feel that he has something to do with it, even if it’s not the case that you’ve actually come to care for him.”

“Well, you know I haven’t come to care for him,” Edwina snapped. “You know that better than anyone, Matthew—you’re the one who’s always reminding me how little he merits such a thing.”

“That’s true, and yet you’d hardly be the first young lady to be taken in. I’m sure you’re much too clever to fall for his charms, Edwina, but if he had managed to charm you, you could say something to me about it. I would deal with him.”

Of course, she couldn’t say anything to her brother—not when he put it like that. It would be as bad as coming out and admitting that she wasn’t as clever as he thought her, and she couldn’t let him see that. She took such pride in Matthew’s good opinion of her.

“I suppose I found him a challenge, that’s all,” she explained. “He’s quite the wit. I dislike him, but he was a fascinating conversationalist.”

“He certainly is that,” Matthew agreed. “And I’m sure he appreciated the same quality in you. I’m glad the two of you were able to spend time getting to know one another, then—and I’m glad, too, that you both had the sense to bring things to an end when you sensed it could go no further.”

Edwina nodded, wondering why she suddenly felt near to tears.

The truth was that, in spite of everything, she missed him. She knew he would be here this week and that she would have no choice but to avoid him—but a part of her wanted just the opposite. Stolen moments, stolen glances, perhaps even another kiss…

But she would have none of it. Those days were behind her.

It was time to forget about the Duke of Harbeck.