Summerset Abbey: Spring Awakening (Summerset Abbey Trilogy) (2 page)

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Victoria dressed for the evening with the lack of enthusiasm of someone who had done it all too many times before. There would be entertainment in the grand salon—a small quartet her aunt Charlotte had imported from London for the house party—a late supper that would take far too long, and then the usual games of bridge or whist in the drawing room.

Usually the Coterie begged out of the game playing, preferring their own amusements, but lately various and sundry relatives had been applying pressure, urging them to take their rightful place in society.

Fretfully, Victoria tossed the pearls onto her dressing table.
The walls of her lovely blue-and-white bedroom seemed to close in on her. Her uncle, the Earl of Summerset, had promised that she would be able to return to London as soon as she regained her health. Victoria leaned forward and stared into the mirror. Her face had filled out since her stint in prison. She was never going to be as healthy as Elaine and Rowena, but between Cook’s puddings and her friend Nanny Iris’s concoctions, she had improved a great deal. And she had always been small and pale—no amount of fattening up would change that. She would corner her uncle tonight.

Resolve buoyed her and she reached for her pearls again.

“Oh, you look lovely, poppet. Are you ready to go down?” Elaine came in behind her, ravishing in a rose silk gown with short, lacy sleeves. Her cousin, with her soft brown hair and pretty blue eyes, was a Coterie favorite, but to her mother, Victoria’s aunt Charlotte, her daughter was little more than an afterthought. Elaine had spent her childhood trying to please her mother and had been a ninny while constantly angling for the woman’s approval. It was funny what a year away in a Swiss boarding school could do for a girl.

“I will be in a moment.” Victoria struggled with her choker until Elaine intervened.

“Oh, let me do that.” Victoria’s blond hair was swept back with combs, and Elaine clasped the pearls around her neck. “That’s a lovely dress. Is that one of the ones we’d had made up before . . .”

“Before I went to Holloway Castle?” Victoria’s eyes met Elaine’s eyes in the mirror. “That’s what we called it, you know. The castle on the hill.”

Elaine looked away.

Victoria stood, sighing. “I’m not ashamed of going to prison,
you know. Many brave women have gone to Holloway Castle because they believe in the suffrage of women. I’m humiliated because I wasn’t incarcerated for bravery, but stupidity. I was duped like a child into being at the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“I’m so dreadfully sorry,” Elaine murmured.

“Oh, don’t be.” Victoria forced a cheerfulness she didn’t feel into her voice. “Because of my time in prison I can now quote the life works of Edgar Allan Poe and Walt Whitman. Would you like to hear?”

Elaine laughed. “Some other time, perhaps.” Her cousin leaned toward the mirror and fixed a curl in front of one of her small, delicate ears. “So what is going on between you and Kit?”

Victoria’s fingers fumbled, sending the pearl bracelet she was clasping around her wrist to the floor. Avoiding her cousin’s eyes, she knelt to retrieve it. “Whatever do you mean?”

Elaine laughed. “Oh, come now, Cousin, the man is besotted with you, and everyone knows it. Remember, we’ve known Kit longer than you have and have never seen him so completely infatuated. The both of you can natter on all you want about being friends, but we know better.”

Victoria’s face flamed. She hated being the focus of idle gossip. It was bad enough already with her colorful past. Besides, her relationship with Kit was too confusing and no one else’s business, though she did wish she could talk it over with someone. Rowena had been preoccupied with her own heartache and her flying lessons, and Prudence lived in London.

Elaine touched Victoria’s shoulder gently. “It’s all right. Not everyone is talking about it. Just those of us who love you. You can trust me, you know.”

Tears stung Victoria’s eyes and she turned and hugged her cousin. “I don’t know what to do with him,” she said, choking
a bit. “He wants to marry me. Thus far he has only mentioned it when teasing me, but I suspect he is serious, and it comes up more and more frequently.”

“Don’t you love him?”

“Of course I love him, but love has nothing to do with it!” Victoria whirled around, looking for something to vent her frustration on. She chose the footrest and gave it a satisfying kick. “Ouch!”

Elaine’s brows arched and she calmly bent to right the abused stool. “But I thought love had everything to do with it.”

Victoria hobbled over to a wingback chair and threw herself into it. “Oh, bother. That’s not what I mean at all.”

Elaine pulled up a footstool and sat in front of Victoria. “Then what do you mean, poppet?”

Elaine’s voice was gentle, and Victoria took a deep breath. “I don’t know if I love him in that particular way or not. I enjoy being with him, but I enjoy being with you and Colin, too, and I am certainly not going to marry either one of you. I miss him when he isn’t around, but I miss my father all the time, so what does that say?”

Elaine shook her head, setting her curls in motion.

Victoria leaned forward. “I’ll tell you what that says. I was not meant to get married. I’m not like other girls. I’ve never been like other girls. I don’t want to get married and have babies. I want to do something important. I want to travel and meet people and have adventures. Make a real change in the world. Have an impact in some way.”

“And you can’t see yourself doing that with Kit?”

“Kit is great fun, but he would change after marriage. All men do. He would want to have children, and it’s hard to have adventures with nappies and nannies. No.”

Elaine’s nose wrinkled. “I don’t see Kit changing all that much.”

Victoria snorted and stood up. “That shows how much you know. When I first met him, he was as set against marriage as I was; now it’s all he talks about. How can I even trust him? Shifty bastard.”

Elaine stood and linked arms with her. “Trust me, my dear cousin. I’m as against marriage as you are, but for very different reasons. We can become old spinsters together.”

Victoria felt a surge of relief at having confided in someone. “Why are you against marriage?” she asked as they walked down a hallway lined with the portraits of disapproving relatives.

Elaine waved her free hand. “It’s a long story, poppet. Remind me to tell you when we’re old and gray. Just know that I’m on your side.”

They entered the downstairs drawing room, laughing. A much subdued Coterie was in force, surrounded by their wealthy and eagle-eyed relatives. Most of the members of their strange little club were set to inherit large sums of money and property, but as most were well under thirty, they were dependent on the goodwill and the annual stipends of their elders. Though they were a randy, irreverent lot behind their benefactors’ backs, they attempted to keep up appearances in their presence.

Edward raised a glass in mock salute as Victoria moved to greet her aunt and uncle. She liked Edward, who was handsome and smart and, most important, completely in love with someone else. He was uncomplicated, unlike Kit, who was becoming more complicated by the day. “Good evening, Uncle. Good evening, Aunt. You’re looking smashing this evening.”

As always, Victoria resisted the urge to curtsy before her aunt
as if she were the Queen. The impulse made her voice brisker than it would have been with someone else of her aunt’s peerage and status. Aunt Charlotte rather intimidated her, and Victoria detested being intimidated by anyone. Even though she knew all too well that her aunt was a woman to be feared, Victoria couldn’t help the disrespectful edge in her voice whenever they conversed.

Her aunt offered a cheek, which Victoria kissed dutifully. “Really, darling, is that how you spoke to the wardress?” Aunt Charlotte asked in a whisper as Victoria leaned close.

Victoria stiffened, then whispered back, “No, Auntie, I reserve it just for you.” She drew away and her aunt Charlotte gave her a lovely smile. Those who didn’t know Charlotte would think her sincere. Those close to her knew that her genuine smiles were rare and reserved for her husband and son.

“Lucky me,” Aunt Charlotte answered, her eyes amused.

Aunt Charlotte unnerved Victoria, who hastily kissed her uncle’s cheek and joined the Coterie in front of the fireplace.

“Where’s Rowena?” Victoria asked, looking around.

“She has a headache,” Sebastian answered. “She won’t be joining us this evening.”

“If I had five glasses of champagne and ran about like a madwoman in the heat, I would have a headache too.” Annalisa grinned.

Victoria frowned. Rowena had good reason to want to drown her sorrows.

“Well, good for her,” Kit said, then drained his glass. “A body has to do something to dull the boredom.”

“If it’s so boring here, why do you even bother?” Victoria flashed.

“Sometimes I wonder,” Kit snapped back.

Stung, she stared up into his clever blue eyes, then tossed her head. “I know I certainly do.”

“Oh, stop it, you two,” Colin ordered. “You’re both becoming boring, and we have far, far better things to talk about.”

Victoria took a deep breath and let it go. “Like what, dear cousin?”

“How about . . . the fact that I’ve officially joined the army?” Colin answered quietly.

Next to her, Elaine gasped, and Victoria couldn’t believe that around them people continued drinking their tea and gossiping just as if the phrase he’d just uttered were completely commonplace.

“Mother’s going to kill you,” Elaine said flatly.

No mention of how their father would feel, but everyone knew that even though Lord Summerset could be a cold, hard man, it was Lady Summerset who could make a person wish she had never been born with a single disapproving glance.

“What the hell did you do that for?” Kit barked.

Colin glanced at the Dowager Countess of Kent, who had wandered near to the group. Everyone went still and smiled at her, which caused the old lady’s brows to fly upward toward the old-fashioned lace cap she wore on her graying head.

“Lovely day, isn’t it Lady Barrymore?” Victoria asked sweetly. “A perfect Little Red Hen day!”

Lady Barrymore’s pale eyes blinked rapidly. “You’re quite mad, child.”

“ ‘Oh, we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad . . . ’ ”

“ ‘How do you know I’m mad?’ ” Kit asked, his voice affronted.

“ ‘You must be or else you wouldn’t have come here,’ ” Victoria finished out the quote from their most treasured book. Apparently
Lady Barrymore hadn’t read Lewis Carroll because she merely shook her head and walked away, clucking her tongue.

“Old bat,” Annalisa giggled.

“Mind your manners,” Edward said. “The Dowager Barrymore is a paragon of virtue and too good for the likes of us, so sayeth my mother.”

“Never mind that!” Elaine snapped. “I want to know why my brother would do something so . . . absurd. Father will kill you. He’s been waiting for you to finish at the university so he can start training you to take over Summerset.”

Elaine’s normally mischievous eyes were as serious as Victoria had ever seen them.

Colin shrugged. “Perhaps that’s why I joined. Perhaps it was the boring years I have ahead of me playing lord of the manor instead of having fun like the rest of my peers.”

“Good grief, man, one doesn’t join the army to have fun,” Sebastian said.

Victoria shook her head. “When are you going to tell Auntie and Uncle? Because I want to return to London before you do.”

“You can take me with you,” Elaine murmured.

“You two ladies worry overmuch,” Colin said. “They will fuss a bit, but will no doubt give in. It’s not as though we’re at war.”

“We would be if the Germans had their way,” Sebastian said.

Victoria shook her head. “It won’t get that far. The Kaiser is related to the royal family, for goodness’ sake.”

The butler announced that dinner was now being served, and the ladies and gentlemen found their partners to go in for supper.

Victoria had been partnered with Kit so many times that she was surprised when Aunt Charlotte came up behind them in the line going out the door. “I’m so sorry, but because Rowena
is missing dinner, I had to juggle the order a bit. Victoria, you are going in with Colin. Kit, could you please escort Annalisa?”

“Aren’t I the lucky one,” Colin said, taking Victoria’s arm. “Shall we go in, Cousin?”

A frown crossed Kit’s handsome features for a moment, then he shrugged. “Actually, I think I’m the lucky one. Be careful of her tongue, Colin, old boy. It’s as sharp as an ax.”

Victoria waited until her aunt Charlotte had moved past them before sticking her tongue out at Kit. He winked back, and she couldn’t help but smile. He was such good fun. If only he would forget all that marriage nonsense.

“So do you really think they are going to take it badly?” Colin asked with a worried frown.

Victoria didn’t have to ask whom he was referring to. “You were in OTC all through university, weren’t you? And they didn’t object to that.”

“Every wellborn young man goes through the Officers’ Training Corp. It’s expected. That doesn’t mean they want me to actually become an officer.”

Victoria tried to give Colin a reassuring smile as they walked through the door to the massive, formal dining room with its long, shining mahogany table, which was actually several tables pushed together. She could see the burden of his secret in the tight, tense line of his shoulders. For a moment, she conjured up an image of her cousin as the tormenting tease that he had been so long ago. “Don’t worry so. I’m sure they’ll be reasonable.”

But even though her voice was carefully confident, neither of them believed it.