The Diabolical Baron (16 page)

If she were to fulfill her promise to work at the mar
riage, she must keep Jason and Jessica from being at
daggers drawn. She could feel the tension vibrating
whenever they were together. They were both too independent, too used to going their own way; in short,
they were too much alike to approve of each other.

But
she must make sure they stayed on terms; she would
be unable to bear it if Jason forbade her Jessica’s com
pany. If he did, that alone would very nearly constitute
grounds to leave him. Far better the situation never
arise.

She had earlier considered breaking the engagement
after Gina had married Gideon, but then Radford
asked for an early wedding. She might be married be
fore her sister. Besides, her sense of fairness rebelled at
such shabby treatment of a man who had done nothing but honor her with a marriage proposal.

Jason’s pride would be more injured by a jilt than his
emotions, but that pride was so integral a part of him
that the damage would be cruelly deep. He would nat
urally demand the return of the marriage settlement if
she cried off. Since her father had doubtless spent it,
Radford could have him thrown in debtors’ prison. At
the moment she wouldn’t mind seeing her father in
jail, but the disgrace would devastate the whole fam
ily.

Caroline sighed. She had been through all this be
fore, and had promised herself not to think of ways
out of the match—it wasn’t possible and would under
mine her resolve to make the best of the situation.

At this point a timid knock interrupted her unwel
come thoughts. The knock was followed by a young
maid no more than fifteen years old. “Mrs. Burke sent me up to help you dress, miss. Is it convenient now?”

Caroline smiled at the child. If she intended to work
on being a gracious lady, someone even shyer than
herself offered a good place to start. “Of course. You know that I am Caroline Hanscombe, but I fear I don’t
remember your name.”

“Betsy, miss,” she said, bobbing a curtsy.

“Well, Betsy, shall we see what we can find of my
wardrobe? The baggage carriage was delayed with a
broken axle, but there are several gowns in the one
trunk that came on our carriage.”

Betsy went to the trunk and opened it, making a small exclamation over the contents. “Oh, Miss
Hanscombe, such lovely things!” she said, stroking the
fine silks and muslins as she took them out.

“Have you never worked as a lady’s maid before,
Betsy?”

“No, miss. The only ladies that came here, Mrs.
Burke said it weren’t proper for a young lass like me to
wait on them.”

Caroline suppressed a smile at this artless informa
tion. It was fortunate she was neither in love with
Jason nor of a jealous disposition. If she were, there would be plenty of material to send her temperature soaring. Madame Arlette’s greeting implied that Lord Radford had been a frequent visitor, and her assumption that
Jessica was his in
tended made clear his lordship had a prefer
ence for beautiful dashers. Once more Caroline wondered once more
how he came to choose such an undramatic bride as
herself.

“I think I shall wear the apricot gown tonight, Betsy.
Could you have it pressed?”

“Of course, miss. And if you like, miss, there are
some lovely miniature roses in the garden just this
shade. Shall I bring some for your hair?”

“An excellent idea. I see you have a talent for this
work. We shall have to find more opportunities for
you.” Caroline smiled warmly at the little maid, who
blushed with pleasure.

“Oh, thank you, miss! I’ll just take this off for pressing. Shall I send a footman with hot water for a bath?”

“I should like it above all
things.”

The girl slipped out the door. Caroline was
pleased to have made a friend in the house. The rather
haughty dresser Lady Hanscombe had engaged h
ad been called to a sick relative just before they
left London. If Betsy was capable, she could
keep the position.

An hour later she was ready for her first dinner at
Wildehaven. The apricot dress was particularly be
coming, and Betsy had a knack for hairdressing. Most
of Caroline’s glossy dark blond hair was pulled into a
twist at the back of her head, with a few curls left at the
sides and front. The exquisite little apricot rosebuds
Betsy brought were carefully woven under the edge of
the twist and complemented her dress perfectly. A sin
gle strand of pearls was her only jewelry.

Betsy was justly proud of her handiwork. “Oh/ miss,
you do look ever so nice. Everyone is ever so pleased
the master is going to marry you.”

Caroline asked curiously, “Are they pleased he is
marrying me, or just that he is marrying?”

“Well, that he is marrying at all. But as soon as they
know you, they will be glad it is you. You look just like
a fairy-tale princess,” the little maid said.
And nice as
she can be, I’ll tell the others.

At this juncture a knock on the door was followed
by Jessica. Betsy’s mouth sagged in awe. If Caroline
looked like a princess, clearly the maid had no image
strong enough for Jessica’s auburn magnificence.

She
dressed in her favorite emerald green, bringing her
eyes to an improbable brilliance. The gown was simple
enough for a country dinner, but its masterful cut and
deep décolletage admirably displayed her superb fig
ure. Her green jade necklace was not particularly valu
able but it was beautifully crafted and perfectly
matched her eyes.

“Jessica, sometimes I think you exist to cut me to
size when I am in danger of getting a conceit of my
self,” Caroline said with a laugh. “Betsy, this is my
aunt, Mrs. Sterling.”

Jessica smiled at the maid. “If you are the one who
did Caroline’s hair, may I hope you will help me in the
future?”

“Oh, yes, ma’am!” the girl said fervently. She could
hardly believe how her luck had changed. Earlier
today she had been polishing silver with vague
dreams of someday becoming a lady’s maid; now
these two beautiful women were complimenting her
skills and asking for her services. As Caroline and Jessica left the room, she was sighing blissfully.

The butler, Burke, met them at the foot of the main
stairs with the announcement, “It is a custom of the
house to gather in the small salon before dining. If you will follow me?”

Since the small salon could have held two or three
dozen people without crowding, Caroline could only
be grateful the large one was not used. Burke gave them each a glass of ladylike ratafia and withdrew.
While Jessica examined a collection of china minia
tures, Caroline wandered to a window and admired
the velvety lawns lying warm in the early-evening
sun.

She tried to imagine children belonging to her and
Jason playing there, but without success—it looked as
if no one had ever taken that lawn in vain. The head gardener would probably have an apoplexy if some
one walked on it. It was even harder to imagine the
children. Lady Hanscombe had given her a blunt and
unappetizing lecture on A Woman’s Duty to Her Husband. While Caroline had had a general idea about the
process, she had almost perished of embarrassment
while her stepmother talked.

When the deep voice rumbled from behind her,
“Please forgive my lateness,” she started so violently that some of the ratafia spilled. She turned to her betrothed with a blush as deep as if he had been reading
her thoughts. So much for being a gracious lady, she
thought wryly. It was very hard to look him in the eye with A Woman’s Duty still on her mind.

“I have been admiring the grounds, my lord,” she
stammered.

The dark sardonic face obviously recognized pre
varication, but Jason answered readily enough, “The park is said to be one of the finest in England. If you are not too tired after dinner, perhaps we can take a
stroll in the formal gardens.”

“That would be very pleasant,” she answered, mak
ing a mental note to be tired later. She didn’t feel ready
to be alone in the shrubbery with her fiancé yet. Per
haps next week . . .

Jason glanced at Jessica; an appearance that would
have stunned most men called forth only a tightening
of the lips from him. She nodded her head in cool ac
knowledgment of his presence and they adjourned to the dining room.

The meal that followed was beautifully prepared and served, but very quiet. With only three people,
even the small family dining room seemed large, and no one was inclined to talk. Midway through the sec
ond remove, Jason announced, “I am afraid I must
leave you for a few days. My bailiff has informed me of a problem at my Suffolk property that requires my
personal attention. I will stay with you tomorrow but I
must leave the next morning for perhaps a week.”

He paused, unpleasantly aware that Caroline’s face
showed more relief than dismay. “You must make
yourselves completely at home. The staff are at your
command. Mrs. Sterling, perhaps you would like to
take advantage of the stables. I recall you were a horse
woman.”

The understatement drew a curious glance from Jessica, but she answered calmly, “It will be my pleasure.
Doubtless your lordship has a good eye for a horse.”

Jason looked her in the eye for the first time, won
dering if she was baiting him. It was univer
sally acknowledged in the
ton
that no one had better judgment
about horseflesh than Lord Radford. If she wasn’t
aware of his present reputation, surely her memory
would remind her. The innocent look that met his eyes
spoke of nothing but social blandness.

“I have also invited a few people to bear us com
pany. You know George Fitzwilliam, Caroline. And my
Aunt Honoria wishes to meet you.”

This occasioned a small sound from Jessica. “She is
known to you?” he said with a supercilious arch to his
brows.

“Very much so,” Jessica said dryly. “If you mean
Lady Edgeware, I met her during my come-out. I be
lieve she disapproved of me more than any other
woman in London.”

Now it was Jason’s turn to look bland. “Doubtless
she will be happy to see what a good douce matron
you’ve become.”

He was pleased to see Jessica grit her teeth at that. The girl he remembered would have preferred almost
any fate to that of staidness, but the woman she had
become refused to be drawn.

“I found that respectability is not inherently dis
tasteful, Lord Radford. In fact, used in moderation it
adds a certain savor to life. The contrast, you know.”

Caroline watched the conversation uncertainly, feel
ing that some sparring was taking place beyond her
understanding. “Will the guests arrive in your ab
sence, my lord?”

“I think not. Even if they do,
the Burkes can take care of all the details. Please
forgive me. I know it is very bad to leave you so soon.”

The dinner party broke up shortly thereafter as Caroline pleaded fatigue and Jessica withdrew with her.

Jason lingered over his port, wondering what the
devil he had done to himself.

* * * *

The promised house tour began the next morning
promptly after breakfast. Jessica considered crying off
but decided she had best learn her way around the
great house before she got lost. While Mrs. Burke ac
companied the party, it was Jason who provided the
commentary, forgetting himself in the history and
anecdotes of Wildehaven.

“Originally there was one very large royal hunting
preserve in this area. Henry II broke it into two manors
and gave them to favorites of his. Wildehaven and our neighbor, Wargrave Park, are the results. Both proper
ties have grown and shrunk with the family fortunes
over the years, but the manor houses are only about a
mile apart because of their common history.” He
paused, pleased by the genuine interest in Caroline’s
eyes.