Laura Matthews (2 page)

Surprising that she had accepted him, when he came to think of it. The life he had offered her was one of continual absence, of meager means and no social position beyond his connection with the Hobarts at Lockwood, who completely ignored him. The reverse was likely to be true now, aside from the precarious financial position his cousin William had left. Would the transition from Captain Philip Hobart to Viscount Pontley indeed impress Miss Forbes? Why had she chosen to accept him when there were half a dozen men in her circle only too ready to carry her off as a bride? That was unusual enough in itself, considering her age and lack of fortune, but he knew for a fact that it was true. Had he not spoken with two of her rejected suitors before he, at twenty-eight years of age, had put his own case to the test?

Under his aunt’s attack, he had had little to say except that he did not intend to undertake the dishonorable course of breaking off his engagement. Her insinuations had left him nonplussed, and annoyed with his lack of knowledge of his prospective bride. He drew a hand wearily through his crop of straight brown hair. Everything had seemed so simple at the time. They would marry—a comfortable sort of arrangement whereby he would have someone to come home to from his duties at sea. She would bear him children and raise them, and he would spoil them when he was on leave. He had in fact been in the process of negotiating for a house in Hastings when his aunt had summoned him to Lockwood with the news that his cousin William was dead. Only a week after his arrival, the news of Keith’s death reached them, and his aunt had been seized with a frenzy such as he had never before seen. Her grief was not so much for the loss of her sons, but for the loss of the Pontley title to him, an outsider.

Under her storm of invective he had attempted to calm her agitation, and in time she had shifted the balance of rage to a premeditated assault on his choice of a bride. With deadly calm now she proceeded to undermine his purpose and propose her own niece as a far more fitting viscountess. Pontley could see that the thought of her niece in such a situation was a salve to her wounded sense of what was proper. And he could see that she hoped through her niece to maintain some of her fast-diminishing power. What he could not see was whether her intimations had any basis in fact and whether they would affect him if he married Miss Forbes. It seemed unlikely that she would pass on groundless rumors to him, knowing that sooner or later he would find out the truth of the matter. She had never met Miss Forbes, however, and information she had was doubtless on hearsay from old crones with whom she corresponded.

Nonetheless, the calm, uncomplicated life he had envisioned had been ruthlessly shattered during the past month and he saw no hopes of piecing it together with any semblance of pleasure to him. Would the Miss Forbes he had envisioned as his comfort on leave prove a satisfactory companion in the continuous setting of lady of the manor?

Chapter 2

Glenna Forbes was not even aware of the possibility of becoming a viscountess. Her last communication from Captain Philip Hobart had been a hurried note informing her that his cousin William had died and that he was setting out for the Lockwood estate. Aware that he was possessed of two cousins, though she knew little more of his family, she naturally assumed that the younger had assumed the peerage. Her own father had suffered from the influenza which had carried off Captain Hobart’s cousin, and her days were spent nursing him. With his gradual recovery she once again took up the threads of her life, surprised at not having word from Captain Hobart but not alarmed, considering the circumstance which had drawn him to Lockwood.

It was therefore most unexpected when a Viscount Pontley was announced to her as she sat in the morning room playing the harp. Puzzled, she agreed to receive the visitor, since he must certainly be her betrothed’s cousin. Her confusion made her miss the twinkle in the butler’s eye, and she stared at Pontley for some time when he entered, unable to decide how to greet him. When the door was closed behind him and he approached her, she became aware of his limp.

“You have hurt yourself.”

“Not much, I assure you, though it is possible I shall retain the limp.” Her concern appeared genuine and Pontley took her hand and pressed it. “I have not seen you since my ship was engaged in a slight skirmish and I carelessly stood in the way of a ball. It has been removed, but the wound heals too slowly.”

Glenna nodded and, taking a seat, motioned him to do likewise. Indicating his civilian dress she asked, “Have you resigned your commission in the Navy?”

“I have succeeded to my cousin’s title, Miss Forbes, and have responsibilities in that direction now."

“I see. I thought you had two cousins, Cap— Lord Pontley.”

The interview was not proceeding as he had expected and he replied stiffly, “While at Lockwood we received word that my cousin Keith who was serving in India under Lord Wellesley had been killed in the autumn.”

"Your poor aunt! How could she bear to lose two sons in so short a space of time? I offer you both my condolences.” Her blue eyes were troubled and the fair, smooth skin wrinkled into a frown. “Should you not have stayed with your aunt?”

“My presence only adds to her grief.”

Glenna was startled by his obvious lack of sympathy and found herself unable to reply. Under his scrutiny she felt uncomfortable, and rose to ring for refreshments. He politely rose with her and watched her cross to the pull. There was the same calm efficiency of movement he had noted and approved on previous visits. The blue muslin gown was becoming and modest, the white cap delightfully fantastic, almost as though it were a laughing reminder of her age. But where he was used to seeing the blue eyes lively with enthusiasm, now they were downcast and troubled. The reddish-blond hair curled about her face in a frame, and the nose was rather short and turned up perhaps too much for real beauty, but he thought once again that she was an attractive woman. And she had nothing to say to him. When she turned to find him studying her she made a small gesture of helplessness with her hands and remained silent.

“You have not congratulated me on my new title, Miss Forbes.”

“In the circumstances I find it difficult. It necessitated the deaths of two of your cousins, which must have caused your aunt untold grief, and I see no sign of sorrow in you.” She remained standing with her back against the wall, feeling almost at bay.

“I am not in the habit of exhibiting my emotions, Miss Forbes, and I had little acquaintance with my cousins. Nonetheless, I have agreed to my aunt’s wish that I postpone my marriage for a year in suitable mourning for them.”

“I commend you on the propriety of your decision, Lord Pontley, and appreciate that you had no time to consult me on such a matter. I shall call a halt to the preparations that are in progress, of course.” She turned to give instructions to the footman who had entered and then resumed her seat. “I cannot feel so sanguine, however, on your decision to abandon your career.”

“I cannot very well manage the running of three estates if I am at sea, Miss Forbes, to say nothing of the incapacity caused by my wound.” He unconsciously tapped this injured member with an angry finger. “My cousin has left his affairs in a sad state, I fear, which will require a great deal of my time to straighten out.”

“To say nothing of your lack of knowledge on the subject,” she murmured.

“What would you have me do, Miss Forbes? Leave matters to sort themselves out? Return to my ship and turn my back on those dependent on the estates?”

“Your decision may very well be the right one, sir, but I cannot feel that you will be comfortable being a country squire after your years at sea.”

“I shall hate it, Miss Forbes. And you? Does it make a difference to you?” His intent brown eyes held hers forcefully.

"Yes, it makes a vast difference to me, Lord Pontley. Not the life so much, you understand, but that you did not feel it necessary to speak with me before taking your decision.”

His eyes opened incredulously. “You are annoyed that I did not consult you, Miss Forbes, and perhaps allow you to make the decision?”

Glenna bit her lip to force back the retort she wished to make. How had she ever become engaged to this man? How could she have overlooked his insensitivity and autocratic manner? It did occur to her to wonder if she was refining too much on the matter, and she sat silent considering the possibility.

“You do not answer me, ma’am. Are you vexed that you did not have the opportunity to sway my mind? Had you rather have a husband who is away at sea the better part of the year?”

“Yes,” she flashed at him, “that is precisely what I wish.” Although it was not altogether true, there was enough truth in it to pique her.

Pontley rose abruptly and winced at the pain his swift movement caused him. With an elaborate bow, he muttered, “You must pardon me, ma’am. Had I known, of course I would have rejected the viscountcy and retained my position in the Royal Navy. There are some ladies, I believe, who would be delighted to find themselves engaged to a peer when all they had hoped for was a mere sailor. I see you are not one of them, though, and I offer you my most humble apology.” His burning eyes belied any humility; he stood poker straight, every fiber of his being awash with anger.

“Oh, pray sit down, for God’s sake, and let us discuss the matter rationally.” When he continued to tower over her, glaring all the more, she rubbed her eyes distractedly and attempted to calm herself. After a moment she said gently, “I did not mean to upset you, sir, by intimating that I wished to be rid of you when we were married, or by seeming to wish to order you about. I will grant that I am given to a certain measure of independence which is not perhaps acceptable to you in one of my sex.” She raised her eyes to meet his, and found them unyielding. “Would you like me to cry off?”

Stunned, he could not bring himself to speak. There was nothing he wished more at the moment, but it seemed wrong to him that she should suggest such a thing after attempting, however unsuccessfully, to apologize. He sat down.

Glenna smiled her appreciation of this move. “Perhaps I should tell you why I accepted your offer, Lord Pontley, so that you can understand my situation. My father’s health is indifferent and he lives in perpetual fear of dying and leaving me unprovided for. I cannot like the additional strain this worry puts on him and I had determined to marry to ease his mind. Not that I have anything against marriage in itself, you understand, but I am aware that my years of freedom have engendered in me an independence which does not perhaps bode well for marriage. Therefore it seemed wise to choose a man who...would not be continually harassed by my independence, and who would not be always about to keep too firm a hand on the reins, so to speak.”

Although his face had become a blank, Glenna saw the muscle at the corner of his mouth twitch. “I know several men who would not keep any rein on me at all, of course, but I would be just as unsatisfied with such an arrangement as with too heavy a hand. It seemed to me that you answered my situation very well. When you were on leave you could be in charge of the household, but for the most part you would be away and I would be free to run my own life as I saw fit.”

“You make it sound very practical.”

“I assure you it was. Do not think that I would not have done everything in my power to provide you with a comfortable home, for it seemed to me that that was precisely what you required. I know you are fond of the harp and are satisfied to be accepted into the circles in which I move, without making an effort to develop social contacts of your own. So you see, when you came here today in a rather belligerent frame of mind, and informed me that everything had changed..."

“I was not aware that I came to you in a belligerent frame of mind.”

“I may be mistaken about that, I grant you, though I cannot help but feel you were ill at ease to present me with your news. The impression you conveyed to me was that I could accept these changes willy-nilly or break the engagement, and that you would as soon have the latter as the former.”

"The necessity of a year’s wait did strike me as a possible point of annoyance to you, Miss Forbes.”

“It is, Lord Pontley, but I can accept the inevitability. My father would be happy to see me settled sooner, but for myself I cannot mind.”

“Another year of freedom for you,” he murmured.

“You might look at it that way,” she admitted with a grin which lit the blue eyes. “Now that you understand my situation a little better, I shall ask you again: would you like me to cry off?”

He regarded her ruefully. “How am I to answer such a question? It is apparent that you have grave doubts as to whether we could live together comfortably under the changed conditions, but on the other hand your father will have the same worry on his hands if you do not marry. From my small acquaintance with your circle of young people, I would say you have already rejected every eligible male you know.”

Her eyes danced appreciatively. “That does not preclude my meeting someone new."

"To be sure,” he said curtly, “but your age is a disadvantage."

“Do not let that hamper you in your decision, Lord Pontley. I do not.”

“It is not my decision. I stand by my offer for you. If you are willing to accept the change, then we will be married in a year.” His leg had begun to ache and he shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

“In that case I should like a month or two to make a decision. Perhaps during that time I could meet your aunt and see Lockwood, and we would have a chance to get to know one another better.”

"I fear my aunt would not welcome a visit from you at just this time,” he said stiffly, “and it will be necessary for me to spend the next few months visiting the estates in Gloucestershire and Somerset.”

“Very well. We will terminate the engagement now, then, and I thank you for your kindness in offering for me, Lord Pontley.” She rose and offered him her hand, her frank eyes never leaving his face.

“You misunderstand, Miss Forbes,” he protested, wincing as he rose rapidly to his feet. “I did not mean to put obstacles in the way of your suggestion, but my aunt will be looking for a companion preparatory to moving to the dower house and will be much occupied. She has convinced me of the necessity of seeing to the other estates, as they are in desperate need of some management. There is no need to make a hasty decision. I will call on you on my return for your answer.”