Sussex Summer (17 page)

Sir Howard shook his head sadly. "It's a sad commentary on us when the only ones to do an English commander justice are foreigners. At least the French give him credit for his accomplishments."

Edward's face looked bleak. "What can we do? I tried talking to Canning and Castlereagh with no success."

"You'll get nowhere with those two. I've given it a great deal of thought, and I believe the Prince is the only way to go. Do you know anyone with his ear?"

"The only person I know with the Prince's ear has no connection with the military," Edward said glumly, thinking of Lord Staplefield.

"Well, I have a slight acquaintance with HRH. If I cannot find anyone with more influence to approach him, I plan to place the case before the Prince myself." He took a sheet of paper and a pen from his pocket. "I shall need as much information as possible. Would you be willing to tell me what you know about the campaign?"

"Gladly," Edward replied. Happy to be able to do something, however little, Edward told Sir Howard of his experience with Sir John on the Peninsula.

"Do you know what Sir John said just before he died?" Edward finished bitterly. “‘I hope my country will do me justice.’”

The two men sat in silence a moment, thinking of Sir John's ironically prophetic words as he lay dying.

"Tremaine. What are you doing in Brighton?" a voice hailed. "I thought you'd be up in London."

Edward looked up in surprise to see Colonel Wentworth.

"London?" he asked after introducing Colonel Wentworth to Sir Howard. "Why London?"

"Did you not receive my letter telling you about James Moore and suggesting you make a trip to London to see him?"

"Sir John's brother?" Sir Howard asked.

"Yes," Colonel Wentworth answered, sitting down at their table. "He is also concerned about the defamatory things being said of his brother and plans to write a book to vindicate him. 1 thought you might be able to help—give him some information he might not otherwise obtain."

Edward looked puzzled. "I did not receive a letter. I thought you had been unable to assist me. How very odd."

"Advise you to question your servants, although it's possible it was lost. Well, no great harm done. Here," Colonel Wentworth said, borrowing Sir Howard's paper and pen, "I shall give you his direction now and you can write directly."

When Edward left the coffeehouse an hour later, James Moore's direction safe in his coat, he felt more optimistic about clearing Sir John's name than he had in weeks, but he was also mystified about the letter. Whatever could have happened to it?

* * * *

That afternoon as she sat in the drawing room of Lord Staplefield’s townhouse having tea, Jane was amused to see that Lady Juliette seated herself as far away as possible from Fanny. She wished to avoid any further accidents, Jane supposed.

While they were discussing the day's purchases with Jamie and Christopher, who were sporting their new trousers, Lord Staplefield returned. He was carrying two small parcels, which he handed to Jane and Fanny, smiling broadly.

“I spoke to the Prince and told him of your admiration of the Pavilion, Miss Hampton, Miss Fanny. HRH was highly gratified and insisted on sending you each a small token."

Curiously, Jane and Fanny opened their parcels. They contained exquisite fans of painted silk and ivory, identical except for their colour. The sticks of the fans were of delicately pierced ivory, and the ivory guards were beautifully inlaid with mother-of-pearl. Even the most particular could not deny they were in excellent taste, and Lady Juliette and her aunt had disgruntled expressions on their faces as the others admired the Prince's gifts.

Later that evening Lady Juliette, her aunt, Lord Blackwood and Edward departed to attend an assembly, but Jane and Fanny begged to be excused. The day's shopping had fatigued them, and they would need to rise early the next morning for their journey home.

They woke refreshed the next morning, ready to brave the long ride home in the presence of Lady Martin. When they all gathered after breakfast, waiting for the servants to load their luggage, Jane noticed the earl was once again clad in his old-fashioned clothes and wig.

“I wonder you do not wait and change into your old-style clothes at the village, rather than wearing them all the way home, Lord Staplefield,” Jamie bravely commented.

"By the mass, I find I am coming to prefer these styles," the earl proclaimed. "I'd as lief be comfortable, and loose is more comfortable than the new tight fashions."

"Is it truly necessary for you to speak as well as dress three-score years out of fashion?" asked Lady Juliette rather waspishly, by now suspecting the accent was put on for her benefit.

Jane looked at Lady Juliette in surprise. Lady Juliette was usually most circumspect in her behaviour around the earl, whatever she might have been thinking.

"Odd words and expressions, Lady Juliette, what do ye mean?" Lord Staplefield asked, an innocent expression on his face.

Lady Juliette bit her lip and walked to her carriage, clearly not trusting her temper. No doubt, Jane thought, she was tired from the late night and unhappy to be returning to the country. Edward and Perkins climbed into the carriage after her.

As the carriage rolled onto the busy street on their way back to Haverton Park, Edward stared out the window broodingly. He wished he were recovered enough to ride horseback instead of being forced to ride in a carriage, even if it was with Lady Juliette. The trip had been tiring even though he had been heartened to find there were others interested in clearing Sir John's name besides himself. And it was good to know Colonel Wentworth had not let him down. It was a puzzle about the missing letter, though, Edward mused. He would have to question Dawkins about it.

"What are you thinking of so seriously?" Lady Juliette asked, a trace of ill temper still evident in her voice. Perkins, recognizing the tone, tried to move farther into the seat corner, hoping her mistress’s irritation would not be directed to her.

Edward turned to Lady Juliette with a smile, recalling his manners.

"Please forgive my inattention, Lady Juliette. It is only that I am disturbed by something I found out in Brighton," he began, and went on to explain about the letter.

Hoping no trace of guilt showed in her face, Lady Juliette tried to persuade Edward to let the matter drop.

"Why do you not forget the whole thing? If it has turned out well, and it evidently has, what is the difference? Now you have learned the brother is going to vindicate Sir John, you may forget the matter. Leave it to him."

At first Edward was shocked at Lady Juliette’s seemingly unfeeling words. Then he realised that a woman could not be expected to understand how an officer would feel about his commander. Although, a voice in the back of his mind said, Jane had understood.

"It would not be honourable for me to do that, Lady Juliette," he explained gently. "Besides, I may be able to give James Moore information he would otherwise lack."

"Well, if you feel you must," Lady Juliette replied impatiently, sick to death of the subject. She thought that if it were not for the fact that she wished the earl to think Edward was still competition, she would rather ride with her aunt and leave Jane and Fanny to prosy Edward, whether the Hamptons had a chaperone or not. The captain was extremely poor company.

Juliette’s thoughts returned to the earl, and his reappearance in his old-style clothes this morning. When she married him she would insist he contest the will and stop wearing those outlandish old fashions.
She
was certainly not going to wear hoops, panniers and wigs.

On the seat across from Lady Juliette, Edward also wished he were riding with another. He thought again of Jane and how warm and understanding she was. Then he glanced guiltily at his travelling companion and forced himself to be more charitable to Lady Juliette. No doubt a great deal of Jane's compassion came from her upbringing as a vicar's daughter. He could not blame Lady Juliette for her different background. But there were certainly aspects of her personality he did not care for. Although, he told himself, there were probably things about any woman he would not like if he got to know her well enough. He sighed inaudibly and settled down for a long, boring journey home.

Chapter Eleven

One of the first things Edward did upon returning to Haverton Park was to question Dawkins about the letter.

"Dawkins," he asked the morning after his return, "do you remember a letter about two weeks ago that came from Colonel Wentworth?"

Dawkins, sensing the question was important, thought carefully before answering.

"Yes, Captain Tremaine, I do recall such a letter. It was with several others on the salver in the hall. I was just going to take them up when Lady Tremaine required my presence. When I went back, it was missing. I assumed you had seen it and taken it from the salver. I am sorry if I did wrong," he finished, looking stricken at the idea of having provided anything but the very best of service.

"No, it is of no consequence," Edward assured him. "Perhaps it fell behind a piece of furniture or was taken by accident," suggested Edward.

"I do recall passing her ladyship in the hall, Captain Tremaine, but no one else."

“Her ladyship?” Edward repeated.

“The Lady Juliette Blackwood,” Dawkins elaborated. “She was on her way upstairs.”

Edward thanked Dawkins and dismissed him. Lady Juliette, he mused. Could it be possible? But why would she take a letter from Colonel Wentworth? He dismissed the thought as unworthy, deciding it was a mystery that would remain unsolved, but his thoughts remained on Lady Juliette.

He sat in a wing-back chair upholstered in green brocade and leaned back into it thoughtfully. When he had invited Lady Juliette to Haverton Park in July, he had fully intended that her visit end in a proposal of marriage. Now—now he realised he did not wish to make her an offer. The past six weeks had brought out aspects of her character he did not care to see in one to be his wife.

He stared blindly at the book-lined wall. Lady Juliette was beautiful; no one could deny that. She was also a superb horsewoman, a talented musician and a witty conversationalist when she chose to be. But he was beginning to think she lacked what he felt was most important—a heart.

An accumulation of small incidents had disclosed her lack of compassion and kindness. There was her jealousy of other women, her impatience with anyone or anything not directly concerned with herself, and most of all, the way she allowed her aunt to make unkind comments to the Hamptons. There was also the mystery of the letter. He could not be certain, of course, but it was odd it had disappeared at a time Dawkins observed her in the hall. Nor was he blind to the way she flirted with the earl. At first he had thought it was just her nature, but he knew now that she would much rather receive an offer from Lord Staplefield than from him.

The question was, was he obliged to make an offer after inviting her to Haverton Park for the summer? There had been nothing that had passed between them that could not bear the closest scrutiny, and they had been well-chaperoned by her aunt, her maid, and his mother. But he would not wish to do as Jamie had done to Fanny. Although to tell the truth, he was not sure she would accept an offer if he
did
ask
.
Not if she thought she might receive one from the earl. The door opened, interrupting his train of thought, and Lady Tremaine entered.

"Dawkins said he thought I would find you here," she said. "I hope I am not disturbing you?"

"No, you are not disturbing me," Edward said, standing. Lady Tremaine sat down gracefully in a comfortable chair and Edward took the one next to her.

"In fact," he said, looking seriously into his mother's hazel eyes, "I have need of your counsel."

He paused a moment, and Lady Tremaine waited patiently for her son to speak.

"Do you think I must offer for Lady Juliette, Mother? I believe she suspects I asked her to Haverton Park with that intention, but I find on closer acquaintance with her that she is not the kind of woman I should like to have as my wife."

An expression he could only interpret as relief crossed his mother's face.

"No, I do not think you must offer. You have conducted yourself with the utmost propriety at all times. An invitation to an estate for the summer months does not constitute a betrothal," she said reassuringly.

"To tell the truth, I am glad you have decided not to offer," she continued. "I have some news I had feared might upset you, and now I suspect it will not. Lady Juliette told me this morning after breakfast that Lord Staplefield has invited her to remove to Bramleigh this week when his other guests begin to arrive for the masquerade. She said she plans to accept the invitation since it will give us more room with your sister Mary and her family coming to stay. There is no denying it will, for Haverton Park is not a large house, but I doubt it is Lady Juliette’s true reason," Lady Tremaine finished skeptically.

Edward smiled wryly. So Juliette's interest in the earl was plain for all to see. He wondered at Lord Staplefield's extending such an invitation. Odd, under the circumstances.

"I rather think Juliette is going to catch cold at that particular game," he said. "I believe I have detected a partiality for Miss Fanny in the earl."

"I have, as well," his mother continued, "but I suppose Lady Juliette does not fear competition from a simple country miss."

Feeling rather ashamed for being uncharitable to a guest in her home, Lady Tremaine flushed after making the last observation. Edward smiled at her understandingly, and with a laugh Lady Tremaine rose, ready to return downstairs to entertain Lady Martin while she remained a guest.

* * * *

Feeling as if an immeasurably great weight had been lifted from his shoulders, Edward went to his bedchamber to dress in his riding clothes and join the others on their customary morning ride. He rang for his valet, Ames, and as he did so his glance fell upon the book lying on the desk beneath the window.