Courting Miss Vallois (14 page)

‘Well, well, it would seem we have a case of double
identity,' Mr Oberon murmured. ‘Perhaps we should give the young lady a chance to explain herself.'

Lady Chiswick drew herself up. ‘Well, Miss Vallois. What have you to say for yourself?'

Sophie pressed her hand to her stomach, feeling it pitch and roll a thousand times worse than when she'd been on board ship. ‘I—'

‘You don't have to answer that, Sophie,' Lavinia said. ‘It's nobody's business but your own.'

‘No, it's all right, Lavinia.' Sophie knew she had no recourse. She had to be honest. ‘Mrs Grant-Ogilvy is not mistaken. I
am
Sophie Vallois, but I was using the name Chantal Beaudoin when she hired me.'

‘Then you
did
work for my sister-in-law,' Lady Chiswick hissed. ‘And you admit to changing your name. Why?'

‘I really don't think that matters,' Robert said, stepping forward. ‘It is enough that Miss Vallois told you the truth.'

‘On the contrary, I should think the reasons for
pretending
to be someone else always matter,' Mr Oberon said silkily.

‘Stay out of this, Oberon,' Robert snapped. ‘You've already said quite enough. Miss Vallois, allow me to take you home.'

‘Not without answering my question!' Lady Chiswick barked.

Robert dismissed her with a glance. ‘With your permission, Lady Longworth?'

‘Thank you, Mr Silverton, but I think it's time we all left.' For once, Lavinia's eyes were as cold and as hard as ice. ‘I suddenly find the atmosphere oppressive and the company…suffocating.'

Lady Chiswick gasped. ‘Well, I
never
!'

Robert walked up to Sophie and held out his arm. ‘Miss Vallois?'

His voice was soft, the way it had been when they'd been alone in the garden. In silence, Sophie tucked her hand into the crook of his arm, feeling the much-needed strength of his body beneath her fingers. Warm. Firm. Reassuring. And with Lavinia on her other side, they walked across the terrace and into the house.

‘You're doing well,' Robert whispered as they passed through the crowds of milling guests. ‘Keep your head up and don't give them the satisfaction of seeing you break.'

Sophie nodded, reminding herself to keep breathing. Thankfully, the further they moved into the house, the fewer people turned to look. Obviously, Mrs Grant-Ogilvy's voice had only carried so far, but by the time they reached the street, Sophie was trembling. Nicholas was already there with the carriage and she let herself be bundled inside, felt a warm rug placed over her knees. As the carriage drew away, Sophie turned to see Robert standing alone on the street and felt her heart break at the expression on his face. It was all out now. Her make-believe castle was in ruins. The dragon had come—and he had come breathing fire.

 

Antoine and Lavinia were still in the breakfast parlour when Sophie finally came down the next morning. She had passed a restless night and barely touched the breakfast tray Lavinia had sent up. Her stomach was in knots, her mind spinning like a top. So much had happened. Mr Oberon's shocking revelations and equally disturbing proposal. Lady Chiswick's embarrassing
discovery of her and Robert on the terrace, followed by the nightmarish appearance of Mrs Grant-Ogilvy.

And Robert, kissing her hand in the garden. Robert, walking strong and confident beside her. How fiercely she clung to that memory. To the remembrance of him putting his hand over hers and squeezing it gently during that long, endless walk. If it hadn't been for him…

‘Sophie! Good morning,' Lavinia greeted her. ‘Banyon, fresh coffee and toast, if you please.'

‘No, just…coffee,' Sophie said. ‘Thank you.'

The elderly servant nodded and withdrew. Lavinia turned back and her expression was deeply concerned. ‘Did you get any sleep at all?'

‘Not much,' Sophie admitted. ‘But then I don't suppose any of us did.'

‘That wretched Lady Chiswick,' Lavinia said, fuming. ‘And that insufferable Mrs Grant-Ogilvy. I wanted to knock their heads together!'

Sophie managed a smile as she sank into a chair. Under normal circumstances, she would have laughed at seeing the usually unflappable Lavinia in a state of such high dudgeon. But given the situation, it was hard to imagine laughing at anything. ‘Thank you, Lavinia, but Mrs Grant-Ogilvy was perfectly within her rights to question me. I
was
Chantal Beaudoin when I worked for her, so her confusion is understandable. Imagine if you were to see Banyon dressed in formal attire, pretending to be someone else and hobnobbing with lords and ladies at a society gathering. I dare say you would have had something to say too.'

‘But you were there as our
guest
,' Lavinia said. ‘You weren't pretending to be someone else.'

‘Mrs Grant-Ogilvy thought I was.'

‘It's all my fault,' Antoine said unhappily. ‘After we left Bayencourt, I thought it would be safer if we changed our names. People were looking for Sophie and Antoine Vallois, not Chantal and Henri Beaudoin. And, when the months passed and nobody came, I saw no reason to change them back. I only did so after Sophie left Mrs Grant-Ogilvy's employ so it would be easier if she wanted to find work.'

Sophie closed her eyes, feeling a return of the headache that had plagued her for the past three hours. She couldn't help wondering how Robert was feeling this morning. He had been humiliated too. What he was thinking now? Was he remembering the events of last night and wishing he'd never met her? Or was he remembering, like her, the sweetness of that kiss…?

‘Is Nicholas home?' She pushed the memory away, aware that it hurt too much. ‘I should speak with him as soon as possible.'

‘He's in the library, but won't you have something to eat first?'

Sophie glanced at the plates of food set out along the sideboard and shook her head. Even if she had any appetite for food, it was more important that she speak to Nicholas. A piece of toast and a helping of eggs wasn't going to make explaining last night's débâcle any the more palatable.

 

Nicholas stood up as soon as she entered, the lines on his face reflecting the depth of his concern. ‘Sophie, dear girl. How are you?'

‘I've been better,' Sophie admitted as she closed the door. ‘You don't look to have slept much.'

‘What little sleep I did get was punctuated by uncharitable thoughts of those two dreadful women!' he growled. ‘I'm so sorry about what happened last night. I would have done anything in my power to have prevented it.'

‘There was nothing anyone
could
have done, Nicholas. Who was to know that Lady Chiswick was Mrs Grant-Ogilvy's sister-in-law?
And
Lady Mary Kelsey's godmother? Certainly not you or I.'

‘No, and I suppose we must be exceedingly grateful that Lady Annabelle Durst and a friend happened to be in the garden when you and Robert were discovered,' Nicholas said, ‘or the consequences would have been considerably worse.'

Sophie's brow furrowed. ‘Lady Annabelle was
in the garden
?'

‘Yes. Didn't you see her?'

‘No. And Rob—Mr Silverton made no mention of her being there.'

‘Perhaps he didn't know. But apparently, after we left Lady Chiswick's last night, Lady Annabelle made sure everyone knew that she had been in full sight of you and Mr Silverton the entire time, and that nothing inappropriate had taken place.'

It was almost too much to believe. Once again, the lady had come to her rescue. Sophie was beginning to wonder if Lady Annabelle wasn't some kind of…fairy godmother!

‘I don't care as much for myself,' she said, ‘but I do regret the embarrassment this will surely cause you and Lavinia. Soon all of London will know that I was employed by Mrs Grant-Ogilvy, pretending to be someone else, and that I had the audacity to mingle with
guests at the home of her sister-in-law. To say nothing of poor Mr Silverton's disgrace at the hands of that dreadful Lady Chiswick.'

Nicholas sighed. ‘Lady Chiswick has never been one of my favourite people, but she was perfectly within her rights to ask him to leave, Sophie. He should never have gone there in the first place.'

‘But if he wasn't aware of the relationship between Lady Chiswick and Lady Mary, he cannot be held to blame,' Sophie said, stung by Nicholas's unexpected criticism. ‘He is not the type of man who would knowingly offend anyone.'

‘Nevertheless, ignorance does not absolve him of guilt. What he did to Lady Mary put him beyond the pale.' Nicholas leaned back against the edge of the desk, propping his hands on either side of his hips. ‘Had he gone ahead and honoured his obligation to her—'

‘But if she was the cause of the rift—'

‘Had he gone ahead and married Lady Mary,' Nicholas repeated gently, ‘none of this would have happened. A man's word is his bond and a promise, once given, cannot be retracted.'

‘Not even if there is just cause?'

Nicholas sighed. ‘Sometimes, not even then. However, the important thing is that
you
did nothing wrong, and that you told the truth in the face of a very difficult situation. That took courage and I'm proud of you, Sophie. Lavinia and I both are.'

‘Then you're not sorry you invited me to come to London?'

‘Sorry? My dear girl, you've brought us nothing but joy and I know Lavinia is dreading the thought of you going home. Frankly, so am I, but I'm not supposed to
show it. Now, why don't you go and have something to eat? I'm sure you had nothing before you came to see me and you didn't have much last night. Then, later on, you and I will sit down and have a little talk about your future.'

‘My future?'

‘Yes. If it's not to be marriage, we must look at alternatives.' Nicholas put both hands on her shoulders. ‘We just want you to be happy, Sophie. And we're willing to do whatever it takes to make that happen.'

 

It was with decidedly mixed feelings that Sophie accompanied Lavinia to the drapers shortly after lunch. She had already received a note from Robert, saying that, under the circumstances, it was probably best they not go to the museum together, and she had quickly sent one back, saying how sorry she was that the excursion had to be postponed. She'd added a postscript that she deeply regretted
most
of what had taken place the previous evening, and hoped he would be able to read through the lines to see that the time they'd spent alone in the garden…and his kiss…were definitely
not
part of her regrets.

Now, as she wandered up and down the well-stocked aisles, trying to pretend an interest in the brightly coloured bolts of fabric, lethargically looking at lace, she was unable to order her thoughts—

‘…of course, it's not as though she ever
had
much of a chance of making a good marriage,' a lady standing with her back to Sophie said. ‘Her being crippled and all. But it's shocking behaviour all the same…'

Crippled.
Sophie's head slowly came up. Two ladies were chatting a few feet away from her. Neither one
was known to her, but the fact they were talking about a single, crippled lady made the idea of doing the polite thing and moving away unthinkable.

She edged a little closer, suddenly very interested in a roll of elegant Alençon lace…

‘Still, it's only speculation she went to his rooms,' the taller lady said. ‘No one's come forward to say they actually saw it happen.'

‘But if a gentleman's word can't be taken as truth, whose can? And when I was at Mrs Coldham's yesterday afternoon, three of the ladies were saying there was talk of her meeting that tall dark fellow in the park.'

Sophie's blood ran cold. Surely they weren't talking about
Jane
?

‘It will be the ruin of her, of course,' the first lady said. ‘She won't be accepted by good society now. Mrs Coldham said as much and no one disagreed with her. I dare say her brother will have no choice but to send her down to the country. And
if
he's fortunate enough to marry, which is doubtful given what he did to poor Lady Mary Kelsey, his wife will have the business of looking after her, and I don't envy her that.'

‘Still, it is very sad,' the second lady said. ‘I always thought so well of Miss Silverton. She seemed such a genteel young lady, and so well brought up. Certainly her mother was. But judging from the stories, she's not at all what we thought…'

The women carried on talking, but Sophie had heard more than enough. Forgetting her own concerns and dropping all pretence of shopping, she quickly went to find Lavinia, who had been standing too far away to hear any of it. ‘Lavinia, I've just overheard the most appalling conversation.'

‘Dear girl, whatever is the matter? You've gone as white as a sheet.'

‘Come outside. I have no wish to speak of it here.'

Lavinia dropped the bolt of cloth she had been studying and the two quickly made their way into the street. Once Sophie was sure the other ladies were still inside, she told Lavinia all she had learned—and watched Lavinia's face go white. ‘And you're sure you heard them say Jane's name?'

‘Quite sure. At first, when they spoke of the lady being crippled, I hoped they were talking about someone else. But once they mentioned her name, there certainly wasn't any doubt.'

‘This is very serious indeed,' Lavinia said. ‘They actually
said
Jane went to a gentleman's rooms?'

‘They did, though it was only speculation.' Sophie kept her voice low. ‘But apparently several people saw her talking to a gentleman in the park.'

‘Quite likely, for I know that Jane often takes the trap and drives out on her own. But she would
never
go to a gentleman's rooms. Even the rumour of such behaviour would be enough to ruin her.'