The Desires of a Countess (22 page)

“Cordelia-” she whispered.

Her mother-in-law ignored Ginny’s
interruption and spun back on Sarah instead. “And as for Sarah, she
hasn’t been welcomed by the
ton
for a long while.” Her smile broadened as Sarah
flinched. “That wasn’t my doing, but your own father’s,
Simon.”

Except for his one warning, Simon had stood
curiously quiet for his aunt’s entire tirade, but Ginny felt the
fury growing in him with every one of her dreadful, pointed
words.

“Are you quite finished, madam?” he asked in that
strange, low voice again.

Cordelia turned to him with an ugly smile.
“Quite.”

“Then allow me to reply.”

Like a charging bull, he took two steps toward his
aunt. Cordelia jumped at his sudden advance and the absolute terror
that lit up in her eyes made Ginny laugh inside. It served the
witch right after all the pain she’d caused.

“You are a vicious,
gossip-mongering biddy who is bitter to her very core and not
nearly as important as she thinks she is. Although you are
obviously an idiot to talk to my mother and Virginia that way in
front of me, even a featherbrain such as yourself must realize the
power a man in my position yields, despite not being recognized by
the
ton
. If you
snub Virginia now or any time in the future, you
will
pay for it.” He
leaned in closer and Cordelia actually trembled. “And if you
ever
speak to or about my
mother in that fashion again, I will have you feel the full extent
of my wrath and you’ll wish you hadn’t a tongue to speak again. Do
you understand me?”

Cordelia nodded though her eyes were filled with
hatred.

“If Ginny allows you access to your grandson then
you should go down on your knees and thank her for letting you
anywhere near, because I wouldn’t be so kind if that boy were my
son.”

Cordelia sputtered and gasped, but she couldn’t seem
to find words of retort. Ginny could hardly breathe. She’d never
known someone who could silence her mother-in-law so easily.

Simon glared. “Now get out of this house and never
darken its doors again.”

He wrenched the parlor door open and motioned for
her to leave. As she did so, he called out, “Marsden, show Lady
Cordelia the door. And don’t let her back in here even if her very
life depends upon it.”

As the startled butler nodded, Simon slammed the
door and turned back to the two women with a grim expression.

Ginny’s heart felt like it was going to burst. Simon
had defended her against a person who’d made her life a hell for
years. He had brought Cordelia Blanchard to her knees, and Ginny
had to admit she had loved each and every moment of it.

“You were wonderful,” she said with a broad smile.
“I’ve never seen her at a loss for words before.”

Simon grimaced. “I only hope I haven’t made either
of your situations worse.”

Sarah smiled. “If you have, it was well worth the
consequences to see the look on her face.”

“I agree.” Ginny laughed as she examined Simon
closely. It had been years since anyone had defended her honor like
that and she’d forgotten how nice it felt.

With a start, she realized that Simon Webber was the
kind of man she could have fallen in love with long ago. But it was
too late for that now.

Wasn’t it?

Chapter Sixteen

Ginny stared at the front door to her sister’s home.
Why hadn’t she brought Harriet with her? Her friend would have
known what to say when the door opened. But since Harriet had
attended the ball with Adam Scott two days before her friend had
been distracted, and Ginny had yet to hear the reasons why.

She glanced down to smile at Jack who held her hand
and was swinging his opposite arm. Her little boy deserved this
chance to meet his relatives. If she was going to give a harpy like
Cordelia a place in his life, it was only fair to do the same for
her own flesh and blood.

She caught her breath as the door finally opened and
her sister’s butler stood on the other side, staid and comfortable
which made Ginny all the more aware of her own nervousness.

“Good morning madam and young sir,” he said,
glancing down at Jack with a brief smile. “May I help you?”

“Lady Westdale to see Lady Berenger, please.” She
held out her card and cursed the way her hand shook when she
extended it.

“Yes, madam. Why don’t you come into the parlor and
I will ascertain if Lady Berenger is in residence this
morning?”
Ginny nodded with a sinking stomach. This was a bad idea. She was
too afraid to face her sister.

“Waterston.”

The man turned and Ginny craned her neck around him
to see her sister standing in the foyer. Her face was pale as the
two locked eyes.

“Yes, my lady?”

“My sister may come with me now. Thank you.”

Her eyes never left Ginny as she spoke and the man
seemed to take the hint as he disappeared after a low bow. The two
women continued to stare at each other.

Ginny had to marvel at how wonderful her sister
looked, even at seven months of pregnancy. Her cheeks were full of
healthy color and her blue eyes sparkled with joy. She positively
glowed. It was a far cry from her own months carrying Jack. She’d
been very sick and had lived in constant fear of Henry’s shouts and
accusations. He’d made her feel so ugly.

“Are you coming in?” Audrey asked as she took a
hesitant step forward.

Ginny jumped as she realized she and her son were
still standing on the step. With a short nod she stepped inside and
bit her lip. “I-I should have sent word first. I’m intruding on
your luncheon with your husband.”

Audrey shook her head. “No, Griffin is on business
today. Even if he were here, we would both welcome you, anticipated
or not.”

Her sister took two more steps forward and gathered
her into a loose, warm embrace. Ginny stiffened under the
unexpected hug, but slowly she relaxed. How long had it been since
she felt the comfort of her sister’s arms around her?

“I’m so glad you came.” Audrey drew away with tears
sparkling in her eyes. Then she smiled down at Jack. “Well, James,
I didn’t get a good look at you when you first arrived in London.
I’m so pleased to see you. You’re such a big boy.”

“Say hello to your Aunt Audrey, Jack,” Ginny said
with a small nudge. Jack turned into her skirts with a burst of
shyness. Audrey straightened up with a grin.

“It’s all right if he’s hesitant. After all, he
doesn’t know me. I’d ask you to join me for luncheon but-”

Ginny flinched. It was too late. Her sister didn’t
want to see her. She’d been estranged from her family for too
long.

“-Mama is here. I-I don’t want you to feel like a
family meal has been sprung upon you. I told Noah we shouldn’t have
all appeared at your townhouse like we did the other night. Men.”
Audrey laughed, but her nervousness was clear. “Would you like to
stay anyway?”

The lump in Ginny’s throat returned and she had to
swallow it back to manage words. “Mama is here?”

Audrey nodded. “We often share meals when she’s in
London. Marion joins us most days, but she had another engagement
today. Perhaps that was meant to be so we could have time alone
together.”

Ginny sank her teeth into her trembling lip. “Yes,
perhaps so. I’ll admit I’m nervous. I almost ran down your drive
and back home when your butler answered the door.”

Audrey laughed again and the sound reminded Ginny of
her childhood. “I’m glad you didn’t.” She reached out to take
Ginny’s arm. “Small steps. It’s all about small steps. Come
on.”

The two women walked into the parlor. Their mother’s
back was to the door, but at the sound of their footsteps, she
turned. “Who was it at the door…” She began, but then her voice
trailed off and she dropped her napkin. “Ginny.”

“Hello, Mama,” she whispered.

It had been nearly three years since she’d seen her
mother. That brief moment a few days ago hardly counted since she’d
been too shocked to take a close look. Tabitha had aged well in
that time. Her hair was just a touch grayer, but her eyes still had
the vital, humor-filled spark Ginny had loved as a child.

Her mother seemed to gather her senses. “You’re
here. I’m so pleased.”

“Another setting for luncheon,” Audrey said to a
maid behind her. “And bring something special for young Jack,
too.”

Ginny took a deep breath. There was no turning back
now, no matter how much she wanted to gather her son up and run
away.

“And Jack,” Tabitha crouched down to grin at her
grandson. “My he’s gotten big, hasn’t he?”

Ginny mimicked her mother’s pose and hugged Jack,
who had grown quiet, as was his habit when he met a stranger. “This
lady is your Grandmama. Can you say hello?”

Jack eased a bit closer. Ginny could see the instant
connection between the two of them. The shyness he’d shown to her
sister vanished in an instant. Immediately, he sat down at his
grandmother’s knee and began jabbering in his garbled two-year-old
speak about horses and his toys and Simon.

Tabitha smiled and urged him on with her “Oh mys”
and “Reallys” until Jack was giggling with delight. Finally, her
mother looked up and their eyes met.

“Ginny, I’m so glad you brought him to see us. I’ve
wondered about him so many times over the years.”

Her mother’s eyes were misted with tears and she was
pricked by her own. She swallowed hard as she straightened up to
look first to her mother, then her sister. “I don’t know if we’ll
ever be as close as we once were. But I-I want to try again.”

Once she’d said the words, she was amazed at the
lifting in her heart, as if letting go of the anger and the pain of
the past four years had freed her in some way.

“That’s all we’d ask of you,” her mother said, then
opened her arms wide. “Welcome home, my love. My baby girl.”

With a quiet sob, Ginny took the steps and fell into
her mother’s embrace. She clung to her like she hadn’t since she
was a child, and for the first time in many years, she felt
complete.

She had blamed Simon for springing her family on her
like he had. But now, as she broke away from her mother to take her
sister’s hand and the three Jordan women looked at each other with
matching tear-filled eyes, she realized he had given her a gift.
And now it was her turn to do the same for him.

***

“So you’ll do this for me? You’ll help me?” Ginny
asked as she took a sip of her tea and craned her neck over the
terrace to watch Jack play with one of the maids down on the lawn
below.

“Of course,” Audrey said. “I think it’s a wonderful
plan. I won’t be of much help since Griffin insists on my only
remaining for short periods at balls and parties in my condition.
But I’ll do what I can while I’m there.”

Tabitha nodded her agreement. “And I’ll be there.
When I return home, I’ll tell Marion everything. Between us, there
won’t be anyone who dares to snub Sarah Webber.”

Ginny gave a happy smile. In the hour she’d spent
with her mother and sister, she’d caught up on family business.
She’d heard all about how Audrey had managed to marry their
brother’s best friend, and how Marion had performed the miracle of
training the rake out of Noah. Though her brother’s new wife wasn’t
there, Ginny already felt a kinship to her. There was no doubt in
her mind that she and her sister-in-law would be friends.

Though they hadn’t worked out all the awkwardness
between them, Ginny felt the closeness of her family returning.
That feeling, coupled with the delight that she was giving
something back to Simon, only added to the joy in her heart.

She could only imagine his reaction
when his mother was accepted by the
ton
. He’d been so upset when he’d
seen Sarah distressed. Now she could give them both some repayment
for their kindnesses.

“You look a bit flushed, my dear. Is this sun too
much for you?” Tabitha asked with a tilt of her head.

“No, Mama. Just excited about our plan, that’s
all.”

She smiled, but she was troubled.
Why
was
she so
excited about helping Simon’s mother? Yes, the woman was kind and
had been hurt by the Blanchards and Society as much as she had
been. But there was more.

It was Simon she wanted to please. She wanted to
make his eyes light up with pleasure at his mother’s happiness.
Why? She shivered as a powerful explanation ripped through her.

She’d fallen in love with him.

With a gasp that made her almost choke on her tea,
she considered the thought. Though they had argued in the
beginning, she’d felt an instant, passionate draw to the man who’d
turned her world so upside down. He’d shown her kindness and
tenderness and reminded her what it was to feel like a woman. And
slowly, bit-by-bit and day-by-day, she’d fallen in love with
him.

It was awful!

She rushed to her feet. She couldn’t love Simon. She
just couldn’t. Not only were there no promises between them to make
her believe he would return her love, but he longed for the life he
led on his ship. He had mentioned how much he missed the sea more
than once.

But worst of all, she had secrets
he could
never
know. Things about Henry, and the night of his death. Things
that would prove just how far she’d go to protect her son. Simon
might care for her, but even he wouldn’t be able to shield her from
the consequences if her actions were revealed. And once he learned
the truth, he probably wouldn’t want to.

Audrey stood up. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Ginny lied as she pushed away from the
table. “I simply forgot an appointment, that’s all. I’ll see you
both tomorrow, though.”