Wallflower (Old Maids' Club, Book 1) (16 page)

“
I don’t care how
fashionable it is. I can’t go out like this.” Especially not with
Lord Devonport. She already felt like he could see through her
clothing when she was properly covered. But this? She shuddered to
think how she could survive an hour in his company with her
décolletage on display in such a brazen way.

Hester huffed and continued her attack
on the bonnet, pushing pins here and there, and holding up various
ribbons against the fabric of the gown. “You’ll go out just as you
are, my lady, and you’ll be happy about it.” She finally selected a
single ribbon, a cream silk, and used it to thread around the
bonnet and tie beneath Tabitha’s chin, then pulled out another
length of it to tie at her waist, pulling a touch more tightly than
was necessary. “I’ll not have you wearing those frumpy gowns you’ve
become so accustomed to while you’re being courted. Do you know
what the other lady’s maids would say about me?”

Tabitha frowned. “I’m not being
courted.” She ignored Hester’s snort of derision. “And the other
maids ought to think you’re to be commended for doing the job
you’ve been asked to do, if you dress me in what I prefer to
wear.”

“
There’s no point in
arguing with me,” Hester said. “Now, down the stairs with you. We
can’t keep Lord Devonport waiting all day.” The maid turned to tidy
the room from their efforts, then stopped suddenly. “On second
thought, I’m going down with you. I don’t trust you not to try to
sneak back in and change your clothes.” She quickly returned the
extra hat pins and ribbons to the vanity and planted her hands on
her hips.

Had Father indoctrinated the entire
staff to do everything possible to ensure Tabitha’s cooperation?
First Livingston, and now Hester. Who would be next? Cook? Perhaps
Cook would feel the need to serve only those foods known to act as
aphrodisiacs the next time a gentleman was over for tea. Or maybe
Father would set the footmen on her next, sending them out to hunt
down stray gentlemen in the streets and drag them
inside.

When they reached the bottom of the
stairs, Tabitha slowed and put out a hand to hold Hester back. She
lifted a finger to her lips. Voices were coming from the drawing
room. Multiple voices. Male voices.

Owen’s muffled timbre came through the
half-closed doorway first, saying something about plans for a
wedding. Then Lord Devonport said something, but Tabitha couldn’t
make out any of his words. She tiptoed closer to the door, careful
not to step on the board that incessantly creaked. Not much came
through for the next several moments but the deep rumblings of
their masculine tones and the occasional shout of
laughter.

But then there was no need to strain
her ears to hear what Toby shouted. “Why in bloody hell would you
do something like that? You don’t exactly have an excess of coin
sitting around.”

Hester’s eyes widened, clearly aghast.
Tabitha gestured for her to stay back and remain silent. She
couldn’t worry about the maid’s delicate ears hearing her brother
curse. Not now. Instead, she needed to determine what he was
cursing about.

It couldn’t be Owen. Owen had plenty
of funds. Both her brothers did. Father had provided more than well
for all of his children.

It had to be Lord
Devonport.

More muffled sounds greeted Tabitha’s
ears. Damn and blast, she wished Jo was here. Her cousin had always
been the better eavesdropper. It was as though she’d been born to
it. For that matter, perhaps she had been. She’d been doing it as
long as Tabitha could remember.

Finally, Tabitha could make out real
words again. “I knew it was bad,” Toby said, “but I never imagined
it was quite that bad. All the more reason for you to marry Tabitha
as soon as you can.”

What?
But that could only mean...he wasn’t...Lord Devonport
had
lied
to her.
Despite all his promises, despite him swearing he would never tell
her a lie, that’s precisely what he’d done. Tabitha felt the fury
redden her face.

It was worse than just a simple
untruth. Worse still than him being in league with Toby (yet
another thing he’d lied to her about—this conversation clearly
demonstrated his culpability in that regard).

Lord Devonport was a fortune hunter,
just like Oglethorpe and all of his ilk. Just like every man who
had ever paid Tabitha court, save the one. Just like she knew they
all would be, because Father insisted on raising her dowry at every
turn.

And she’d allowed herself
to entertain the notion that he could truly have feelings for her.
She’d allowed herself to think she might have feelings for him in
return. It was enough to make her weak-kneed, to send waves of
nausea roiling through her body. This was why she should have
rejected Lord Devonport’s suit out of hand, like she had done with
so many others. Like Jo had always told her to do. They did not
want
Tabitha
.
They could never love her. They wanted her money.

He
wanted her money. Her dowry.

She couldn’t stay here any longer. She
could no longer listen to them discuss her like a prize stallion at
auction. The next thing she knew, they’d be talking about the
health of her teeth or the strength of her flanks.

The most lowering sensation she’d ever
experienced was fast overcoming her. She had to get out. Now.
Before she lost the ability to breathe.

Tabitha spun to face the other
direction and made for the front door. “I’ll not be seeing Lord
Devonport today,” she said to Hester once she was out of their
earshot.

Livingston held out a pelisse and she
took it from him.

“
But Lady Tabitha,” Hester
whispered urgently. “What are you doing?”

How was she bloody well supposed to
know that? “I’m going out,” Tabitha replied with as much dignity as
she could muster. She slipped her arms into the pelisse and marched
to the door.

“
I’m coming with you,”
Hester said.

“
You are not. You’re to
stay here.”

The maid wrung her hands in agitation.
“And what should I tell him? What should I tell your brothers? Your
father?”

“
Tell them whatever you
like.”

When Livingston failed to open the
door for her, she set her most imperious, scathing look upon
him.

“
Shall I order a carriage
for you, my lady?” he asked in dismay. “I can call some footmen to
assist you today.”

“
That won’t be necessary,
Livingston. Thank you.”

Finally, he opened the door. Tabitha
stomped down the stairs, slipping and missing the last step. She
wound up in a heap at the foot of the landing. When Livingston and
Hester started to rush to her aid, she deflected their assistance
with a glare and stood on her own.

She brushed herself off, waved at the
gentleman across the street who had stopped midstride to witness
her collapse, and resituated a stray hair. Then she was
off.

~ * ~

“
Has something held Lady
Tabitha up?” Noah asked Raynesford. He’d enjoyed spending time with
the two brothers, despite the fact that Shelton was determined to
see him made the fool. Granted, Noah had played into the younger
brother’s hand all too well.

But he really wanted to get on with
things. He wanted to see if he could coax her to ride with him.
He’d gone to the trouble of selecting a docile mare and fitting her
with a side-saddle, just to get Lady Tabitha alone for a bit. Just
to have a chance to propose if the opportunity presented
itself.

That wouldn’t happen if she never
appeared, though.

“
All the more reason I
never intend to get saddled to a woman, myself,” Shelton quipped.
“They’re always holding you up. How often do you sit waiting for
Lady Raynesford, Owen? At least once a day, I’d wager.”

“
Not at all,” Raynesford
said. “I request that she be ready half an hour before I want to
go. You might want to remember that one, Devonport. It could
certainly come into use for you. I’ve done that with Tabitha
several times lately, when I’ve taken her and Elaine
somewhere.”

Noah made note of it for future
use.

Raynesford stood and pulled the bell.
“We’ll just send someone to see what has caused the
delay.”

A maid hurried in and dipped a curtsey
in Raynesford’s direction. “My lord?”

“
Will you please see what
is keeping Lady Tabitha? Lord Devonport has been waiting for a good
while.”

She nodded and scurried out. Before
she’d been gone more than a few seconds, another maid returned in
her place. “Lord Raynesford, I regret to say that Lady Tabitha has
gone out.”

“
Out?” Raynesford
repeated, dumbfounded.

“
Yes. Out.”

Shelton stood and towered over the
girl. “Where did she go, Hester? She knew Lord Devonport would be
calling upon her.”

Noah had to give Hester her due. She
did not cower before Shelton, not even with him glowering down from
nearly a foot above her, despite the fact that he clearly
intimidated her.

“
I cannot say, Mr.
Shelton,” she replied, her voice tranquil as an autumn day even if
her eyes told another story.

Raynesford rose and positioned himself
next to his brother. “Why can’t you say? And why did you not go
with her?”

“
She told me to remain
here, my lord. I tried to go with her. Livingston wanted to call a
carriage or send a footman with her, but she refused that as
well.”

Now, Noah shared their concern. She’d
gone out on foot, with an already ailing ankle, completely and
utterly alone. Lady Tabitha had clearly taken leave of her
senses.

“
And she did not tell you
her destination?” Noah prodded. “Was she upset?”

“
No destination, my lord,”
Hester replied. “And yes, she was most assuredly upset. I can’t
imagine her behaving so rashly otherwise.”

“
You’ve not been her maid
long enough, then,” Shelton muttered, garnering a glower from
Raynesford.

“
Any idea what had her
upset this time?” Raynesford drawled.

The maid shifted her gaze back and
forth between the three of them for a few moments before finally
speaking. “I couldn’t say, my lord.”

Noah would have placed the
second bet of his life that she was lying to them outright. Hester
knew
exactly
why
her mistress was upset, but didn’t want them to know.

“
Thank you, Hester, that
will be all,” Raynesford said. The maid slipped out without a sound
and he followed behind her, pulling the door closed, before turning
to Noah and Shelton. “Tabitha overheard us. It has to be
that.”

Shelton cursed aloud. “You’re right.
We left the door ajar when we came in.”

“
You ought to learn to
keep your voice down,” Raynesford admonished his younger
brother.

Noah didn’t have time for the brothers
to get into one of their spats. He held up a hand for silence. “It
doesn’t matter why she left. What matters is that we find her
before she comes to harm.” Who knew what would happen to her if she
was in a state and Oglethorpe or Eggerley came upon her.

“
You’re right, of course,”
Raynesford said. “We should split up.”

Shelton nodded. “She could have gone
to see Jo. I’ll start there.”

“
Good,” Raynesford said.
“Glanville and Lavinia got into Town yesterday, so they are a
possibility as well. And their townhouse is near Pickford’s, so
I’ll try there as a precaution. You should stop by and see Uncle
Jasper and Aunt Vanessa. There is always a possibility she could
have sought solace there, however unlikely it may be with Gerald
and Isaac around. She doesn’t fancy their company much more than
yours, Toby.”

Goodness, they had a lot of relatives.
At least Noah assumed they were all relatives. At any rate, he
needed to get moving. There was no time to waste. “I’ll go to the
more public places—Hyde Park, Gunter’s, and the like. She couldn’t
have gotten much farther than there on foot, at least.” Especially
since she had a sore ankle. But if someone had collected her in a
carriage...

He couldn’t think like that. He’d
spend the remainder of his lifetime in Bedlam if he did.

Shelton nodded. “Excellent. Let’s be
off, then.”

Only as Noah mounted his horse and
took off toward Hyde Park did he fully realize the ramifications of
Lady Tabitha overhearing their conversation.

She knew he needed her money. She
would never marry him now.

Chapter Nine

Every step caused Tabitha more pain.
When she stepped down with the right foot, her ankle sobbed for a
moment before adjusting to the burden of her weight. That was still
better than the left; every time she shifted her weight to that
foot, her knee screamed out in protest. She’d done more than just
twinge it in the fall.

Which made going out for a
walk—alone—to an as yet undetermined destination one of the most
thoroughly idiotic things she’d ever done in her life.