A Lord Rotheby's Holiday Bundle (81 page)

Chatham cast his eyes away, a faint
shimmer visible in the corner of one from the sun descending
outside the windows. “Oh, I’ve offered my apologies. And I believe
you’ll have your mother to thank, shortly.”

“
My mother?”

“
Yes. You see, the dowager
is the one who convinced me to have a change of heart toward
you.”

“
Mama did?” How on earth
could the woman have managed such a feat when he could not? And a
‘change of heart’ meant what exactly? Alex rubbed a hand against
his eyes, hoping to clear the fog settling over his
thoughts.

“
She did. Well, I should
clarify. It’s more Grace I have changed toward than you. I’ve been
a neglectful father. I hope to remedy that.”

“
Just how do you propose to
cease neglecting your daughter? And what, pray tell, does any of
this have to do with me?” He moved his hand from his eyes to his
temples and rubbed against the pounding blood there.

“
I…well, I insist you marry
my daughter.”

Chapter
Twenty-Two

Grace hated showing signs of weakness,
and the tears she was unable to push back would more than qualify.
Sitting in the salon of Hardwicke House near her aunt and uncle,
surrounded by Lord Alexander’s family and friends, she berated
herself for her vulnerability.

And then he walked into the
room.

Lord Alexander glanced about as the
door closed behind him. Grace stilled when his gaze settled upon
her, and wished more than ever that she was strong enough to hide
her tears.

His gaze remained on her for several
moments. He pulled in a deep breath of air. His eyes changed before
her, from frantic and bothered to relaxed and calm. And still, he
watched her.

After another long moment, he broke
his stare and included Aunt Dorothea and Uncle Laurence in his
gaze. “Lady Grace, Sir Laurence and Lady Kensington, it is
wonderful to see you in London.” He bowed to them and her aunt
spoke to him.

Grace paid no attention to her aunt’s
words. Without a doubt, the woman would effuse Lord Alexander with
a barrage of admonitions and unsubtle hints geared toward
accomplishing what Grace’s father had just informed her would
happen.

Hence, the reason for her
tears.

She had tried so hard over this time
since they first met each other to convince Lord Alexander to stay
away. However much she may love him, and she had now given up all
hope of convincing herself otherwise, he deserved better than her—a
ravished woman, due to give birth to another man’s
child.

He deserved a lady with her virtue
intact. A lady who felt at home in society. A lady he loved, not
one he was forced to wed for honor’s sake.

Honor be damned, alongside
myself
.

Another wave of tears threatened to
spill onto her cheeks. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught the
wave of Aunt Dorothea’s handkerchief through the air. “We are
delighted you are here, though. I know our Gracie has missed you
dreadfully.”

Grace blushed more fiercely than she
could ever remember blushing before at her aunt’s words, replacing
the tears she would have otherwise shed. How could Aunt Dorothea
embarrass her in such a way, and in front of his family, no less?
Lord Alexander’s eyes returned to hers and she looked away, unable
to face him.

Then her father cleared his throat.
“Pardon my interruption, Lord Alexander, but might it be possible
to have a private word with you? There is something I wish to
discuss.” She dared not look up to see Lord Alexander’s reaction.
Lady Charlotte had already informed her of the events at this
afternoon’s tea.

After several moments, the Duke of
Somerton spoke. “You may use my private library if you wish. I
believe that will suffice your needs, Lord Chatham.”

Nothing more was said, but Grace’s
father followed Lord Alexander from the room.

Minutes passed in silence, broken only
by the sounds of someone sniffling. Grace didn’t recognize the
sniffles as her own until the women of the Hardwicke family
surrounded her.

The dowager sat on the sofa next to
Grace and placed her arms around her as one of her daughters, Grace
was uncertain which, passed her a handkerchief.

“
There, there sweetheart,”
the dowager said. “Lie down and rest.”

The arms about her tugged gently until
she lay across the sofa with her head on the older woman’s lap. The
sisters patted her and held her hands, and someone brought a cold
compress to place against her head.

“
He’ll treat you well, Lady
Grace,” Lady Sophia said. “Our brother is a good man. Certainly
better than Lord Barrow.”

Lady Charlotte cut in. “But why are
you so distraught, Lady Grace? Don’t you want to marry
Alex?”

“
Leave her be, Char. Let
her cry until she’s finished. It’s never a good idea to interrupt a
good cry—you ought to know that as well as anyone.”

“
Girls, please be quiet,”
the dowager interrupted. “We’re overwhelming her, I’m
afraid.”

Gentle hands stroked her hair and
soothed her spirit. Somehow in her crying jag, the tears had become
sobs that bordered on hysterics, but now returned to simple tears.
And then Grace remembered where she was and who she was with. Dear
Lord, she had become a maudlin watering pot! She shot up from her
prone position to sit straight, and glanced around the
room.

The Duke of Somerton had left, along
with Lord Neil, Sir Jonas, Lord Sinclaire, Lord Rotheby, and even
Grace’s aunt and uncle. She was alone with the three Hardwicke
women—women over whom she had just bawled like a baby.

Women who would soon be her
family.

“
Oh goodness, I must
apologize for such unbecoming behavior. How terribly rude of me.”
She fumbled with her gown to straighten it and wiped her tears with
the handkerchief she had been given.

“
Nonsense,” said Lady
Sophia, the one with the reddish-blonde hair. “You’ll be our sister
soon, so we’ll treat you as our sister. And if you can’t cry with
your mother and sisters, who can you cry with?”

“
Oh, but I’m
mortified
because
you will be my family soon. We’ve hardly met, and I’m behaving
like a fool.” Her eyes cleared, and a rather large wet patch
appeared on the front of the dowager’s muslin. Grace eyes widened
to the point she thought they would pop out of her head. “Ma’am,
I’ve ruined your gown!” She tried to mop up the mess with her
handkerchief, but it was so full of her tears that she only made
the matter worse.

Lady Somerton placed her hands over
Grace’s to still them. “Never mind that, my dear. Now, Grace—may I
call you Grace?”

“
Of course,
ma’am.”

“
Now Grace, why don’t we
discuss what has you so upset? Don’t you love my son?”

“
Mama, what a silly
question,” said Lady Charlotte. “Of course she loves Alex. Didn’t
you see the way she looked at him?”

“
Charlotte, please allow
her to speak for herself.” The dowager squeezed Grace’s
hand.

She wanted to speak the words aloud to
someone, anyone. But she feared that once they were said, her heart
would break even further than it already had.

But fear had controlled her for far
too long.

“
I do love him, Your
Grace.” And the tears burst forward again like a broken
dam.

“
Of course you do,
sweetheart. So tell us, what is all this about?”

“
I can’t marry
him.”

“
Why ever not? Alex wants
to marry you, you love him. What’s the problem?”

Grace looked up at Lord Alexander’s
sisters before she answered. “I can’t answer that question in front
of your daughters. Your Grace, they would be scandalized. You would
be scandalized.” She took a calming breath. “No, I cannot answer at
all.”

Lady Sophia sat on Grace’s other side,
forcing her closer to the dowager, and reached up to smooth a few
escaped strands of hair behind her ear. “I can assure you that
living in Town during a Season is more than enough to guarantee
none of us shall be scandalized in the slightest. You can’t shock
the Hardwicke women.”

Grace looked around at the other
ladies who all nodded their heads in eager assent. “Very well. I
have—” She broke off when another tear fell down her face. Lady
Charlotte took one of her hands and held onto it.

She steeled herself to go on. “I have
been ruined, ma’am.”

The words were out. She couldn’t take
them back. Grace waited for shocked looks, expecting the women to
pull away in disgust. But none of that happened. They continued to
hold her, to stroke her, to comfort her.

The dowager spoke first. “And is Alex
aware of this?”

“
Yes, ma’am. He is
aware.”

“
Then it hardly signifies.
He still wants to marry you.” Lady Sophia held a stern look and
regarded her with knowing eyes. “But there’s more, isn’t there?
Something you haven’t told Alex, from the looks of it. What have
you not told us?”

How could Lady Sophia tell? Grace
wracked her mind to find something she could tell them so they
would stop asking questions. But she most certainly couldn’t tell
them the truth.

The dowager duchess held up a hand,
stopping the conversation. “That is enough for now, girls. Grace
has only just met us. She’ll have to learn to trust us, and we’ve
done nothing yet to earn her trust. Why, we’ve berated her while
she was in the midst of a crying spell.” She placed her hand over
one of Grace’s for just a moment. “Look at me, sweetheart. Whatever
it is, whatever is bothering you, it will be all right.”

“
I wish I could believe
you, ma’am.” But how could anything be all right?

~ * ~

“
You insist I do what?”
Alex asked, almost choking on the words.

“
Marry Grace. And
you
will
do it.
You admitted to me yesterday you had done more than merely
compromise her in public, so you have no alternative.” Chatham
looked more grim and determined than Alex had seen him in their few
meetings to that point.

“
I’m bewildered, my lord.
You’ve been so adamant against me. What did my mother say to you to
make this change?” Could this be happening?

“
Well, I apologized for my
deportment.” Chatham took a moment, seeming to consider how much he
should say. “She asked me about Grace, and before I knew what was
happening, she had me telling all about how my wife died when Grace
was a little girl.”

He paused here for several moments. “I
loved her mother, you know—at least at first. But she never wanted
me. She strayed from our marriage many times after Grace was born,
and then she contracted a disease and died.”

A single tear fell down Chatham’s
cheek. “I was devastated, and I took to drink. I’ve neglected Grace
far too long, and your mother helped me realize it. Grace deserves
to be happy, and I intend to see to it you make her happy. I can’t
do it myself. But I can see from your perseverance and from your
family you will do well by her. Far better than I have
done.”

Alex sat behind his brother’s heavy
desk and waited for lightening to strike. He must be dreaming.
Surely this was not real. It had all been far too easy.

But nothing else happened. “I assume
you would like to negotiate the terms now?” Perhaps the marquess
wanted even more money than he had already offered.

“
You shall marry by special
license, as soon as possible. Tomorrow, if you can arrange
it.”

“
Fine.” Better than fine.
Alex didn’t want to wait. The longer it took for them to marry, the
more likely scandal would follow.

“
His Grace has offered to
allow you to live at his estate in Somerton until you inherit your
own property from Rotheby. You’ll take Grace there, so she will be
close to her aunt and uncle.”

Peter had offered that? It would mean
he had already discussed some of the terms with Chatham. Alex bit
his lip to quell his frustration, but pushed it aside. He could
deal with Peter later. “That is acceptable as well.” When would the
man get to the financial arrangements? They, of all things, must
weigh heavily on his mind. He waited for the marquess’s next
provision, but it didn’t come. “Lord Chatham? What do you require
in terms of financial compensation? Will the sum I offered
yesterday suffice?”

Chatham flushed to a deep crimson. His
words were clipped, choppy. “I require no compensation.”

Alex shook his head, certain he had
misheard. “No compensation? Are you quite sure? I was sincere with
my offer yesterday.”

“
No compensation. Your
mother is very…convincing. She helped me to see how distasteful it
would be to take money from Grace’s future husband. It would be
like selling her, like making her into…well, into the word I called
her earlier.”

“
Very well. Do you have any
other requirements?” Alex was prepared to give the man just about
anything.