The Temptation of Lady Serena (10 page)

Serena nodded.

“Yes, for Beaumont, it’s a good choice. Henry is a very high stickler. He will insist you marry.” Ester pursed her lips. “We must think of a good reason to put off the wedding until Beaumont comes around.”

Aunt Catherine frowned. “I suppose escaping to your family’s home in Scotland is out of the question.”

Serena snorted with frustration. “My brother and sister-in-law would have me in the chapel bound, gagged, and waiting.”

Ester regarded Phoebe thoughtfully. “Phoebe, did you not tell me you and Marcus bought a house in France?”

Phoebe’s brow cleared. “Yes, in Paris. The agent just finished the renovations.” She smiled broadly. “Aunt Ester, you’re brilliant. We could take the
Lady Phoebe
over and travel up from Dieppe. Didn’t you tell me you were not able to visit France when Mama did?”

“I had the chicken pox. Phoebe, what a nacky idea. Do you think Marcus would mind?”

“Not if he’s allowed to accompany us. He’ll be very disappointed in Robert. I remember when he ripped up at Rutherford for not admitting he loved Anna.”

“Catherine,” Ester asked, “what think you?”

“I think,” Catherine said, with great emphasis, “that I have never been to France and would love to go.”

There was a burst of laughter. Serena’s heart lightened, and the knot in her stomach finally loosened.

Phoebe nodded with decision. “It’s settled then; when shall we meet to discuss our travel plans?”

Ester mused. “Do you mind if we meet at Dunwood House to-morrow for breakfast?”

“No, that is perfect. I shall ask François to make croissants.” Phoebe grinned at Serena. “Don’t worry, cousin, you will come out of this. Robert Beaumont will be made to admit he loves you, or you’ll have the longest engagement in history.”

S
t. Eth waved Lord Beaumont to a chair in front of St. Eth’s large mahogany desk, and offered refreshment. Beaumont accepted a glass of wine.

“Lord St. Eth, I have come to inform you that Lady Serena and I shall marry.”

Henry waited for an explanation. When Beaumont said nothing, he raised a brow. “This is sudden. What happened to bring it about?”

Robert didn’t meet Henry’s gaze, but brushed an imperceptible piece of lint off his sleeve, stalling. “We were at Merton in the bluebell wood and were seen in a compromising position. As I had already planned to propose to Serena while we were there, I informed the young people who came upon us we were merely celebrating our betrothal. I also told Lady Talgath, as she would hear it when the others returned to the villa.” Beaumont faced Henry. “I’ll send a notice to the
Morning Post
immediately. I expect the marriage to take place as soon as the banns can be read. Just over two weeks should be sufficient time.”

In a deceptively dulcet tone, Henry asked, “Have you discussed the date with Lady Serena?”

“No. I saw no reason to do so. We must marry. I will allow no hint of scandal to attach to my wife.”

Henry stiffened and stifled a curse. Beaumont should have thought about that before. “Send the notice,” Henry said, firmly. “
Do not
give a marriage date. I will discuss with the ladies what date best suits them.”

Lord Beaumont clenched his jaw and put his wine glass down with a snap. He rose. “Very well, my lord, it shall be as you wish. I do not plan to wait long.”

Henry walked Beaumont to the front hall. Once the door had closed behind him, Henry said, “Ferguson, find Lady St. Eth.”

“My lord, all the ladies are in Lady Serena’s chamber.”

“Ask her to attend to me, please.”

“Yes, my lord, of course.”

“Immediately.”

 

“There you have it, my love, that is the story and our solution in a nutshell.” As Ester studied her husband’s face, myriad emotions passed quickly through it.

“Damn . . . forgive me, my love. Are you certain your plan will work?”

“I think so.”

“How dare Beaumont purposely compromise her? It’s a trick I would have expected from a fortune hunter. Not a landed peer with great wealth.”

“Yes, well, we must work with what we have.”

A knock sounded on the door. Phoebe entered smiling, followed by Marcus carrying Arthur. Marcus and Phoebe were dressed in evening clothes.

Phoebe took Arthur and handed him to Henry. “Marcus believes we have too much planning to do to wait until morning to discuss the trip.”

Henry chuckled as he took the baby. “Marcus, what are you thinking?”

Evesham went to the sideboard and poured sherry. “That we should leave as soon as possible.” He lifted the glass in a toast. “Counter-attacks should be made with stealth and by surprise. Turnabout is only fair.”

 

Not long after leaving St. Eth House, Robert was ushered into his grandmother’s parlor. Lady Beaumont gave him a long look. “Something is wrong. What is it?”

Robert smiled, but his tone was hard. “Grandmama, the notice of my betrothal will be in the
Morning Post
—if not to-morrow, then the next day.”

Lady Beaumont regarded him suspiciously. “Lady Serena?”

“Naturally,” he said affronted.

“Robert, I want no fustian from you. What did you do to bring about your betrothal?”

“I made it impossible for her to refuse.”

“You did what?”
Lady Beaumont demanded angrily.

“Really m’dear, it’s no matter. She’s in love with me. I merely placed us in a position that demanded an immediate announcement of marriage.”

“Why was it necessary for you to compromise her?”

Robert ignored the question. “I told St. Eth I expect to marry in a little over two weeks. To-morrow, I’ll post to Haythrope Hall.” Beaumont took one of her hands and kissed it. “Adieu, Grandmama.”

He returned home and informed his staff of the pending change of his marital status. Charles was tasked to write the notice to the
Morning Post
and begin an invitation list. Robert changed and walked round to Brooks for dinner. To his satisfaction, word of his betrothal had already begun to circulate.

“That was fast, Beaumont.” Mr. Fotheringale took a pinch of snuff. “You were only given long odds in the betting. The real money was on Fairchild.”

Robert, who had frequently participated in the Marriage Mart wagers, observed his friend coldly. “Fotheringale, I would appreciate it if you would not mention my affianced wife in relation to betting.”

The man’s head snapped up. “Yes, yes, of course, m’boy. Not another word. When is the marriage to take place?”

“We’ve not yet set a date. Lady Serena must discuss it with her aunts. I’ve told them I wish to be married immediately.”

“You seem very determined,” Fotheringale commented.

“Yes,” Beaumont agreed. “I am indeed.”

 

Marcus sipped his sherry. “I’ll have the
Lady Phoebe
ready to sail in two days time.”

“Is your ship large enough for everyone?” Henry asked.

“Yes, sir. I sailed over from the West Indies on her. We’ll stay in Dieppe until the carriages and horses arrive, and then travel by easy stages to Paris. Phoebe has already written to our agent in France. He’ll arrange the lodging and insure the Paris house is ready.”

Phoebe glanced up from her lists. “If there is no objection, I’d like to invite the Rutherfords to join us. Rutherford, especially, has an insight into how Robert might behave, and Anna’s not had an opportunity to travel to France.”

Ester chuckled. “With all of us, the children, their maids and nurses, not to mention the valets and dressers, we shall need to hire an entire
hôtel
to hold us.”

“That’s something I’d not considered,” Marcus said. “Phoebe, did you . . . ?”

She tilted her head at him. “Of course, my love, for every stop we make we shall have the entire building.”

Marcus puffed his chest out with pride. “You could have been Quartermaster General, my darling. I don’t understand how Robert thought he’d be allowed to get away with this.”

Phoebe narrowed her eyes. “Overweening conceit and a dictatorial nature.”

 

The following morning, long before the fashionable made their visits, Ester was surprised to greet the Dowager Lady Beaumont and Freddy in her morning room. Ester welcomed them warmly and with a great deal of curiosity.

“Lady Beaumont, Freddy, to what do I owe this pleasure? I have not seen either of you for an age.”

“Ester, you owe our visit to my scapegrace nephew,” Freddy replied. “
We
had the dubious pleasure of receiving him yesterday afternoon, when he informed us he was to wed your niece, Lady Serena.” Freddy frowned. “It was not the news, which was welcome, but the fashion in which it was delivered that raised our suspicions that all may not be right.”

The look on Freddy’s face told Ester they hoped to be wrong about Beaumont’s actions.

Ester was sorry to disappoint them. “The betrothal is not as we would have wished it.”

“Drat the boy!” Lady Beaumont’s face turned red and she pounded her cane on the floor. “Why can’t he behave like a normal man, fall in love, admit it, and marry? I don’t know what ails him to act like a rascal. Don’t
you
tell me you are going to let him get away with this . . . this infamy?”

Ester laughed. “No, we will not. We are, the whole family and then some, leaving for France to-morrow. In our haste, we may have overlooked informing a certain person.”

Lady Beaumont chuckled. “I always knew you for a smart chit.”

“I have to give credit to my niece, Evesham.”

“Well, that doesn’t surprise me either. Gets her brains from her mother’s side, I’m sure. So tell me the worst. What did Robert do?”

Lady Beaumont’s frown deepened as Ester told her Serena’s story.

“What an idiot. He’s mad in love with the girl! Why, he practically flew out of my carriage when he saw her with another man driving in the Park. That I should live to see a grandchild of mine act without the least delicacy of mind!”

Freddy’s face took on an appearance of unholy delight. “Mama, would you like to visit France?”

Lady Beaumont scowled. “At my age? What a ridiculous . . .” Then her eyes twinkled with mischief. “Freddy, I’ve always said you had my brains. It’s just the thing to stop any gossip. All of us ladies traveling to Paris to buy Lady Serena’s bridal clothes. It’s perfect. Robert will be furious. I’ll see that young jackanapes admit he loves Lady Serena
and
be happy about it, if it is the last thing I do. Freddy, make the plans.”

Ester said, “I must ask Evesham, of course, but you might be able to travel with our party if you can be ready to-morrow.”

“If you have room for us, we can be ready. Freddy, let’s go. We’ve packing to do.”

Ester helped Lady Beaumont from the sofa. “I shall send you word as soon as possible.”

“We’ll wait to hear from you.” Freddy kissed Ester’s cheek. “What fun this will be. I’ve not been anywhere in years.”

Each lady told only one or two friends, in the strictest confidence, that they were traveling to Paris with Lady Serena to buy bridal clothes. To make sure word spread, Freddy made another visit to Lady Bellamny.

The betrothal announcement appeared in the next day’s
Morning Post
. Two days later, the
Morning Post’s
notices included the news that Lord and Lady St. Eth, Lady Serena Weir, and Lady Ware would visit France for an unspecified period of time. Farther down the page was a statement that Lord and Lady Evesham would be in residence in Paris for the immediate future. The notices also included Lord and Lady Rutherford’s visit to France.

Everyone in the party wondered how long it would take for the news to reach Robert.

 

Captain Jonathan Benedict, the
Lady Phoebe’s
captain, welcomed everyone aboard in the small hours of the morning, just in time to catch the morning tide. The stiff wind had them in Dieppe by noon.

The landlord of the Coq d’Or
,
an inn the Eveshams had used before, greeted the party warmly. Once they were all settled and dinner ordered to everyone’s satisfaction, the ladies found a nearby café to sample the local pastries.

While they were enjoying their repast, Lady Beaumont assumed a patently innocent expression. “Robert decided to post immediately to Yorkshire to ready the estate for Lady Serena’s arrival. For some reason—most likely because he left so quickly—I think I may have forgotten to tell him we were traveling to France when he came to see me, and I seemed to have neglected to send a notice to the
Post,
as well.” The matriarch grinned. “What a shame. The dear boy will not know where we are.”

Marcus gave a shout of laughter and leaned over to Phoebe. “You know, I’ve heard Beaumont describe his grandmother as irascible, but I didn’t fully appreciate what he meant until now. She really is a grand old lady.”

“Oh, Marcus, I will strive to be like her when I am old.” Phoebe succumbed to giggles.

Serena paled. “But Phoebe, Robert will be so angry with all of us for disappearing, especially me.”

“Serena, we are all here to protect you.”

The ladies drew her into a comfortable coze, and the gentlemen gathered together to converse.

Marcus glanced at Rutherford and St. Eth. “Serena is right. Beaumont is going to be in a towering passion to find no one in Town when he returns.”

Rutherford lowered his brows. “He has no one to blame but himself. By God! If I had to tell Anna I loved her before she’d marry me, he should be put through the same torture!”

St. Eth commiserated, “It’s never easy. I almost didn’t win Ester. Fortunately, a little bird told me what I needed to do.”

“We tried,” Rutherford said. “Our little bird would need the subtlety of a peacock in full feather to be understood.”

Marcus took a sip of wine. “How shall we handle it when Beaumont shows up, as he is bound to, since we have spirited his bride away?”

“We cannot allow him to be alone with her,” Henry said.

“No indeed,” Rutherford agreed. “The ladies will help with that as well. Just how susceptible is Serena?”

Marcus raised a brow. “Considering what happened at Merton, we must assume she’s
too
susceptible to take any risk at all.”

 

The next day, Serena gazed from the window of the inn’s first-floor parlor and wondered when Robert would arrive. She knew he’d follow and that he would be very angry. She told herself, with her family and his surrounding her, she had no reason to fear him, but her stomach twisted itself into knots. How could she have been so lost to propriety, so
wanton,
to have allowed him to kiss her like that? She covered her face with her hands.

A noise from below made her jump. The low rumble of masculine voices echoed up. She listened for a moment and sighed in relief, it was not Robert. Deep in reverie, she’d not been aware Lady Beaumont had entered the room until the dowager’s cane struck the wooden floor.

Serena hurried to the older woman. “Oh, Lady Beaumont, please allow me to help you.”

Serena assisted Robert’s grandmother to the small sofa.

“Well, my girl, I’ve heard from everyone but you regarding this affair. Tell me, do you love my mutton-headed grandson?”

Serena contemplated Lady Beaumont’s tight-lipped countenance and sensed the older lady’s concern for her. Even though Robert’s grandmother had accompanied them to France, Serena had not expected such kindness and understanding from Lady Beaumont. Surprisingly, Serena felt she could speak more freely with this woman, than she could with her aunts or Phoebe.