Lady Hope and the Duke of Darkness: The Baxendale Sisters Book 3 (11 page)

Hope smiled. “You are elegant and fashionable.”

“I’ve begun to feel more at home in London. Especially since I met a nice man, a Mr. Braithwaite.”

“I don’t believe I know him.”

“You wouldn’t. Without even meeting him, Daniel considers him unsuitable. He has warned me against associating with him. I believe if I saw more of Mr. Braithwaite, Daniel would have him investigated.”

“Daniel is right to do so. You are a duke’s daughter and considered fair game by fortune hunters.”

“But that’s nonsense. I have no personal fortune. In fact, I should feel more comfortable married to a man from the gentry. Or even a farmer.”

Horrified, Hope glanced around. “You must not say such things.”

“Why not? It’s true.” Sophie glanced to where Daniel stood, engaged in conversation at the far end of the room. “Will you come to my bedroom for a moment? I wish to show you my new hat.”

Surprised, Hope nodded.

Daniel watched them as they left the room. Hope was sure her parents also watched them. It was bad manners to leave the gathering, but she was not about to point it out to Sophie, whom she suspected was of a determined nature. They climbed the broad, sweeping staircase and entered Sophie’s bedroom, decorated in shades of pink from deep raspberry to the palest hue.

Hope ran an appreciative eye over the exquisite furnishings. Charity would approve of the color scheme.

“Come and sit here.” Sophie directed Hope to a satin-covered sofa. “I want to tell you a story.” Sophie sat beside her. “I grew up on a farm—” she began.

Stunned, Hope interrupted her. “A farm? But why?”

Hope listened with increasing dismay as Sophie related her life story: how her mother had died giving birth to her and her father had relinquished any claim to her. She bit back tears at the hurt in Sophie’s voice. “His Grace? What did he know of it?”

“He was away at school. The duke did not see fit to tell him.”

“I can hardly believe your father could be so cruel.”

She patted Hope’s hand. “I have shocked you. But in truth, I wasn’t unhappy as a child. My adopted parents were kind to me. I was fed and clothed, as the duke did send them money.”

“Still!”

Sophie shrugged. “I’m well educated for a farmer’s daughter. In a way, it was harder for me to fit into life in York than it is here.”

Hope thought that likely. Despite her humble upbringing, Sophie had the proud bearing of a French aristocrat. “Is that why you came to London?”

“After my parents died, I was alone. To find my only living relative seemed the right thing to do.”

“And so His Grace took you in.”

“As you see.” Sophie waved her arm to encompass the luxurious room. “He has been wonderful. And he has promised to settle me in London society before he returns to France.”

Hope’s breath caught in her lungs. Was Daniel returning to France without Sophie? How could he turn his back on her as his father had done? She could hardly believe it of him.

“I am telling you this, Hope, because I trust you.”

Disenchantment filled her mind with sour thoughts. “I am honored, Sophie. I shall keep your secret.”

“Daniel wanted you to know the truth.”

For a moment, Hope felt inordinately pleased, and then she swallowed the bitter taste of disappointment. Daniel seemed such an affectionate brother. How could he desert his newly found sister?

Sophie shrugged her slim shoulders. “The truth will be discovered sooner or later. The scandal sheets and gossipers will spread it through the
ton
. Now that I am here in London, it cannot remain secret.”

“There is nothing for you to fear or be ashamed of. Should it become common knowledge, I believe there will be a great deal of sympathy for you.”

Sophie’s laugh sounded bitter. “Do you think so? Hopefully, by then, I shall be married and it won’t bother me.”

“That would be best, certainly.” A wealthy husband’s protection would be the ideal thing for Sophie.

“But I may need your help,” Sophie said.

“Of course. What is it?”

“It’s about Mr. Braithwaite. Horace.” Sophie flushed as she said his given name. “We wish to meet, and for the moment, it must be in secret. I may need to use you as an excuse.” Her eyes glowed with determination.

Emotionally drained after learning about Sophie’s misfortune, Hope rushed to dissuade her. “But, Sophie…do you really think…?” She reached for Sophie’s hand and squeezed it. “Dan…His Grace, rather, is obviously fond of you. Can you really consider repaying him in this fashion?”

Sophie’s flush faded, leaving her face pale. “I can because it’s the best thing for him. Daniel is at a loss to know what to do with me. He plans to buy me property, settle a handsome dowry on me and marry me off to some lord or other. But I know I wouldn’t be happy.”

“Where did you meet Mr. Braithwaite?”

“In room four at the British Museum—the Egyptian exhibition. Mr. Braithwaite works there. Mrs. Crisp always settles in a chair in the foyer and promptly falls asleep while I wander the rooms. He approached me as I stared in awe at the bust of Ramesses II, the Younger Memnon. It quite mesmerizes, have you been there, Hope? Mr. Braithwaite was good enough to explain to me the history of such a splendid, virile king.” She blushed. “We discovered a shared interest in antiquities.”

Was he a guard or a cleaner? Horrified, Hope sucked in a breath. She could well see why Daniel would be against the union, but she had to remind herself that Sophie was not a girl straight out of the schoolroom. She had far more experience of life than Hope did.

“We shall talk more about it later.” Hope hated the idea of going behind Daniel’s back. “We must return to the drawing room. We’ll have been missed.”

They met Daniel on the stairs. “What have you two been up to?” he asked with a pleased smile.

Sophie took his arm. “Ladies enjoy a good natter. Now I shall go and charm your guests.”

Daniel chuckled. “You may certainly, but first, I shall try to persuade Lady Hope to play for us. The instrument was brought from France, and no one has stroked the keys in a long time. Say you will agree, Lady Hope.”

Hope clutched the cool banister rail. She had only played at family parties, never before such a large gathering of the upper aristocracy. Countess Lieven and her husband were there. With a rush of exhilaration coupled with nervous flutters, she consented.

Daniel led her to the pianoforte. “Do you have something in mind?” she asked him.

“You may choose from the music sheets if you wish. Shall I turn the pages for you?”

“I don’t require the music. I’ll play Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 16 in C major.” She’d played this piece recently. She massaged her trembling fingers.

Daniel turned to his guests. “Ladies and gentleman, Lady Hope has consented to play for us.”

He left her. Curtsying to acknowledge the polite applause, Hope took the seat and began to play. Her confidence grew. This was a favorite piece and sounded wonderful on the fine pianoforte. As the room quieted, she almost lost herself in the music.

****

Arms folded, Daniel stood watching Hope. She bent her golden head like a graceful lily, her yellow silk gown flowing around her slim body. Her clever fingers flew over the keys as she played. The music swelled through the room. Everyone was silent, captivated. Lady Baxendale sat flushed with justifiable pride for her beautiful, accomplished daughter. He smiled at Sophie, who raised her brows. Somewhere in the region of his heart a warm knot formed, as if Hope was his to be proud of. An unaccountable restlessness came over him. He straightened and took a glass of wine from the footman. At least his plan seemed to have succeeded. Sophie and Hope were friends. He was confident that his half-sister would settle into London society, and all that remained was for him to find a suitable husband for her.

The last chords died away as Hope finished the piece. Daniel put down his wineglass and joined the others’ warm applause. Hope, her pretty face flushed, returned to her parents’ side.
Que diable
, if he could wake up every morning with her beside him, would his life become as he’d once wished it to be? The very thought tightened his chest. He still didn’t trust his sensibilities. He forced his mind back to when he’d been cast so low that he could barely rise from his bed, to remind himself of how unsuitable a husband he would be. Not that it mattered. She’d be married soon.

He pushed himself away from the wall and went to Hope, where the guests surrounded her. They parted at his approach.

Daniel kissed her hand. “Lady Hope, my congratulations. I believe you hide your light under a bushel.”

“That’s praise indeed, for which I thank you, Your Grace.”

There was something in her expression and her voice that gave him pause. Of course, Sophie had told her about his father’s cruelty. Did she now believe him to be cut from the same cloth?

As the guests began to depart, it became imperative that he discover what troubled her. When a chance came to speak to Hope alone, while her parents took their leave of friends, he grabbed it, taking her arm and drawing her into the reception hall. “Lady Hope’s evening cape, Gresham.”

The footman hurried away.

Daniel looked down at her. “I am pleased that you and Sophie are friends.”

Her brow creased with worry. “She will certainly need friends in London. It can be a lonely place otherwise.”

“Sophie told you her story.”

“Yes. I could hardly believe it. I am devastated for her.”

“There’s little one can do about the past.” He knew he sounded bitter.

Her level glance unnerved him. “But one must consider one’s future.”

“Who can say what fate has in store for us?”

“But until proven otherwise, we need to make plans. Our dreams certainly won’t come true if we don’t.”

“And what do you wish for your future, Lady Hope?”

“I was thinking more of Sophie.”

“In what manner?”

She smoothed her gloves. “I shall say no more, Your Grace. Thank you for inviting me to play. I enjoyed it.”

His footman appeared with her evening cape. Daniel took it and dismissed him. He placed the cape around her, his hands lingering on her shoulders. “I’d begun to think that we too, were friends.”

“But of course, I trust we shall always remain so.”

Why what was this? Her words sounded absurdly formal, and lacked the warmth he’d grown used to—seemed to need like his life’s blood.

The urge to fight for her and make her his, caused his pulse to pound in his throat. His gaze settled on her lips with a powerful urge to kiss her, and put paid to the ridiculous assumption that all he wanted from her was friendship. He was foolish in the extreme to want so much more, for her to look at him with desire in her eyes. To be the light of his life, like a sunrise after a dark night. “Then perhaps you might tell me why it seems no longer so.”

“Will you leave Sophie here alone when you return to France?” she asked coolly.

“I have no intention of deserting Sophie,” he said, his voice a low rasp. That she would think him capable of the same cruelty as his father felt like a shaft of ice in his heart. “I first intend to see her settled and happy.”

Her brow creased with worry. “Sophie may have a different notion of what that is.”

“I suspect you know, however. Will you tell me what it is?”

“I cannot, I’m sorry,” she said in a choked voice.

Their conversation ended abruptly when Lord and Lady Baxendale came through the door. Moments later, they were gone.

Daniel cursed under his breath. As soon as the last guest left, he went to find Sophie. He knocked on her bedroom door. “Come to the library for a moment, will you?”

“What is it, Daniel?” she asked when they entered the book-filled room.

He waved her to a leather chair. “I want you to tell me what it is you want, Sophie.”

“I’m not a fading violet,” Sophie said with a faint smile. “I believe I’ve told you on several occasions.”

“Not really.” He sank onto a chair. “Not what you want of me.”

Sophie brown eyes softened. “My dearest Daniel. What more could I want from you? You’ve done so much for me.” A tiny frown creased her brow. “Better perhaps to consider what it is you want for yourself.”

He raked his hands through his hair. “If you refer to Hope, I thought we’d settled this. She is to marry Winslow. It’s in her best interests to do so.”

“Then I am disappointed. And sorry for Hope.”

He smiled. “You might be biased.”

“But I’m not. I think I know the man you are, better than most people. But you do not present your best side to the world always, Daniel.”

He sighed and looked at her. “How very lucky I am to have a sister.”

Her eyes filled with warmth. “And I a brother.” She rose from the chair with a yawn. “And now I must get some sleep. I’m still not used to city hours.” She turned to him in the corridor. “There is one thing you can do for me.”

“You have only to name it.”

“Please send Mrs. Crisp away.”