A Lady Never Tells(37)
“Still, her feelings were wounded, and she seems a most headstrong girl.”
“She appears to be a shrewd one as well. She had the wit to come here and present her case to me, after all. She must be aware of the advantages of being acknowledged a Talbot. I am sorry that she overheard our comments—and even sorrier that I invited the aunts to meet them. I was hoping I could induce one of the aunts to take the girls on, but I should have had the foresight to realize what would result.”
“I doubt anyone could have envisioned the tale of standing guard against wild Indians along the frontier.”
A smile twitched at the corners of the earl’s mouth. “Indeed. I’m not sure which appalled Aunt Euphronia more—that or their living above a tavern.”
Fitz let out a crack of laughter. “God, yes. I’d have given a yellow boy just for the chance to see that look on Aunt Euphronia’s face.” He paused, then added meditatively, “I wonder if any of what they said was true.”
“Who knows? What I do know is that the majority of the ton would react as Aunt Euphronia did. And their clothes—I never dreamed that they did not know to dress for dinner. Or did not have the proper clothes. I would have expected them to be out of fashion, but … surely even Marigold Bascombe must see how inadequately prepared they are for society.”
“Still, one does not always like to hear the truth.”
“No, but I will make sure that she listens to reason.” Oliver sighed and swirled his brandy around in his snifter, looking thoughtful. “I wish I were as certain about my ability to deal with Royce.”
Fitz waved a negligent hand. “Don’t worry about Royce. He will be fine.”
“I have no doubt. But I will assuredly have another black mark against my name. Why is it that whatever I say to him strikes him the wrong way? I did not mean to offend him when I said he might marry one of the Bascombes. I was only joking—I would not try to saddle Royce with an unsuitable wife.”#p#分页标题#e#
“He knows that.”
“Although I would like the connection, really. I’ve always considered Royce a brother, but I know he does not feel the same. If he were married to our cousin, the tie would be stronger, more legal. Of course, I should have realized that Royce has little interest in being tied to me. Still … he was fond of Grandfather. I would have thought he might like the idea of being married to one of the old earl’s granddaughters.”
“He was very close to Grandfather. But this whole issue of family is, well, something of a sore spot with him. You know he’s always felt a bit of an outsider.”
“Then why wouldn’t he want a closer tie?”
Fitz shrugged. “People don’t always act logically. I know that must be a trial for you.”
His older brother rolled his eyes in response.
“It isn’t that he doesn’t want to be connected to you,” Fitz went on. “But he chafes at—well, you have always had a tendency to, um, arrange people’s lives.”
Oliver’s brows shot up, and he opened his mouth to speak.
Fitz added quickly, “For their own good, of course.” He cut his eyes toward his brother, mischief glinting in them.
Oliver had to chuckle. “Yes, so I have heard. Many times.” He sighed. “I do not mean to annoy Royce, you know. Or run his life. Yours either.”
“I know. I am sure Royce knows that, too. Deep down.”
“Very deep down,” Oliver added with a wry smile. “Ah, well. Enough of such gloomy talk.” He shrugged. “Let’s speak of something else. Tell me the gossip. I heard you shot out the lights at a gambling hell last Tuesday.”
“Untrue—untrue!” Fitz protested with a laugh. “It was not a hell, but a perfectly respectable club, and I shot out only one light. Fullingham bet me that I could not take out the central candle without hitting any of the others. I could hardly allow that to pass, could I?”
“Indeed not,” Oliver murmured.
And, pouring another drink, the two brothers settled down to convivial conversation.
Seething from her confrontation with Royce, Mary ran into her bedroom and barely kept from slamming the door after her. Casting a glance at her sister’s sleeping form on the bed, she pushed the door shut with a quiet snick. She did not want to have to talk to anyone at this moment, not even Rose, to whom she usually told everything. She was too embarrassed.
No, embarrassed wasn’t even the word for it—humiliated, that was what she was. To think she had believed Sir Royce liked her! He had not kissed her because he had been attracted to her particularly. No, it had been because he thought her a woman “of questionable origins”—too low in stature for a gentleman to have any concern for her reputation.