The Trouble With Virtue: A Comfortable Wife\A Lady by Day (17 page)

No one had an answer. At Antonia’s suggestion, they strolled the path, all racking their brains for a solution.

“The museum!” Geoffrey halted; the others swung to face him. Eyes alight, he grinned at them. “I read somewhere that they have desks at the museum for scholars—you bring paper and pen and they provide the desk and inkwell for a small fee.”

Catriona beamed. “We can go there tomorrow—” She broke off; her smile faded. “No, we can’t. Aunt Ticehurst would insist on coming too.”

Geoffrey glanced at Antonia. “Perhaps...?”

Antonia read his look and inwardly sighed. Shifting her gaze to the scenery, she considered. “Not tomorrow—that would appear too precipitous. But perhaps we could arrange to make a party to visit the museum the day after tomorrow? I understand Lord Elgin’s marbles are a sight not to be missed.”

She looked at Catriona in time to be dazzled by the transformation her words had wrought. Smiling, Catriona was the most radiantly beautiful girl.

“Oh, Miss Mannering—I mean, Antonia!” Catriona caught Antonia’s hand and clasped it warmly. “I will be your dearest friend for life! That’s a brilliant suggestion.”

Geoffrey humphed.

“If we present the thing right,” Ambrose mused. “They’ll be sure to approve.” He turned to Catriona. “If we make it sound like I invited you and then asked Miss Mannering and Geoffrey to make up the party, it will allay their suspicions.”

“Indeed, yes! Nothing could be better.” Buoyed with purpose, Catriona flashed both Antonia and Geoffrey another stunning smile. “As I said, fate clearly intended us to meet. Nothing could have been more
fortuitous!
”

* * *

T
WO
DAYS
LATER
,
Philip strolled across Grosvenor Square, basking in the afternoon sunshine. Swinging his cane as he walked, he noted that the leaves still clinging to the trees were golden and brown. They had completely changed colour since his return to London, their altered hue a record of the passage of time. To his mind, somewhat unexpectedly, that time had been well spent.

Their first days, admittedly, had been a trifle strained, but once Antonia had found her feet, their interactions had run smoothly. The Little Season would commence tomorrow evening; the round of balls and parties would fill the coming weeks. Given Antonia would be introduced as Henrietta’s niece, no one would remark on his presence by her side. No eyebrows would be raised when he waltzed with her. A subtle smile curved his lips. Even more to his liking was what would happen every night when they returned to Ruthven House. He had been at pains to establish their nightly routine. At the end of every day, they would repair to his library, comfortable and at ease, she to drink her milk and favour him with her observations, he to sip his brandy and watch the firelight gild her face.

As he climbed the steep steps to his door, Philip realised he was smiling unrestrainedly. Abruptly sobering, he schooled his features to their usual impassive mien. Carring opened the door, bowing deeply before relieving him of his gloves and cane.

Philip glanced at the hall mirror, then frowned and straightened one fold of his cravat. Satisfied, he opened his lips.

“I believe Miss Mannering and Master Geoffrey have gone to the museum, m’lord.”

Philip shut his lips. Turning, he shot Carring a narrow-eyed glance, then headed for the library.

The museum? Philip wandered about the library, ultimately halting before his desk to idly flip through his mail. He glanced at the stack of invitations piled on the desk but felt no burning desire to examine them. What to do with the afternoon? He could go to Manton’s and hunt up some congenial company. Grimacing, he remained where he was. Long minutes passed as he stared unseeing out of the window, fingers tapping on the polished mahogany. Then his jaw firmed. Turning on his heel, he headed back into the hall.

Carring was waiting by the front door, Philip’s gloves and cane held ready in his hands.

Philip cast him a withering look, accepted both gloves and cane, then strode out.

He reached the museum to find it unexpectedly crowded; it took him some time to locate his stepmother’s niece. It was Geoffrey he found first, deep in examination of a group of artifacts purported to be Stone Age relics. Geoffrey’s absorption was so intense Philip had to clap him on the shoulder to get his attention.

Blinking, Geoffrey focused on Philip’s face, then smiled absentmindedly. “Didn’t expect to see you here. Antonia’s over there.” He pointed to the next room, a large alcove beyond one of the display cases, then promptly returned to the relics.

Exasperation growing, Philip left him to them and pushed through into the next room.

Only to discover his stepmother’s niece surrounded by no fewer than five gentlemen.

Antonia looked up to see Philip bearing down upon her. She smiled warmly. “Good day, my lord.”

“Good afternoon, my dear.”

As his fingers closed tightly about hers, Antonia registered the change from languid indolence to clipped abruptness. Rapidly whipping her wits to order, she turned a suddenly wary gaze on her companions. “Ah—I believe I have mentioned Sir Frederick Smallwood, my lord.”

Philip nodded stiffly in reply to Sir Frederick’s bow. “Smallwood.”

Disregarding the menace underlying his tone, Antonia doggedly introduced every last one of her court. “Mr Carruthers was about to favour us with the tale of the discovery of the stone implements displayed over there.” Antonia smiled encouragingly at Mr Carruthers.

A student of antiquities, Mr Carruthers promptly launched into his dissertation. As his tale unfolded, encompassing numerous tangents, all described in glowing detail, Antonia felt Philip shift impatiently. When Mr Dashwood asked a question, which led to a lively discussion involving all the other gentlemen, Philip leaned closer and whispered in her ear, “You can’t be so bored you consider
this
amusement?”

Antonia threw him a warning glance. “It’s an improvement over staring at the relics.”

“The trick is to keep strolling.” Philip caught her hand and placed it on his sleeve. “That way, you don’t end up collecting so much extraneous baggage.”

His hand closed over hers, his intention plain; Antonia held firm. “No!” she hissed. “I can’t leave here—I’m waiting for someone.”

Philip’s eyes locked on hers. The arrested look in them made Antonia’s heart skip a beat. “Oh?” he said. One brown brow slowly arched. “Who?”

Antonia cast a distracted glance at her companions; their discussion was slowly winding down. “I’ll explain it all later—but we have to stay here.” With that, she gave her attention to Sir Frederick.

“Tell me, my dear Miss Mannering.” Sir Frederick smiled engagingly. “What do you say to the age of these gold cups?” He gestured to a large display in the centre of the room. “Are we really to believe such workmanship dates from before Christ?”

Philip raised his eyes to the ceiling. Resisting the urge to simply haul Antonia away, he clenched his jaw and endured fifteen minutes of the most utterly inane discussions. Having very little to do with younger gentlemen, he had never before suffered any similar experience. By the time Antonia abruptly straightened, he was ready to admit that young ladies of the
ton
might have a cross to bear he had not hitherto appreciated.

Scanning the room, his gaze passed over a stunningly pretty girl strolling forward on the arm of a pasty-faced youth. Failing to discover any likely candidate for Antonia’s attention, he was rescanning their surroundings when Antonia broke off her conversation. “Ah—here’s Miss Dalling.”

Miss Dalling and her companion were well-known to the other gentlemen; introduced, Philip exchanged greetings. He did not need Antonia’s swift glance to realize it was Miss Dalling and the Marquess for whom she’d been waiting. Her reasons, however, remained a mystery.

Miss Dalling turned wide lavender-blue eyes upon the assembled company. “All these old things are quite fascinating, are they not?”

While Catriona chattered animatedly, Antonia, somewhat distractedly, considered her court. When she had planned this excursion, she had imagined strolling quietly about the displays on Geoffrey’s arm while Catriona with Ambrose in attendance composed her missive. But no sooner had she set foot in the museum than gentlemen had appeared as if sprouting from the woodwork, all intent on passing the time by her side. Luckily, Mr Broadside and Sir Eric Malley had had previous engagements which had forced them to leave; that still left her with five unexpected cavaliers to dismiss.

She had not the first idea how to accomplish the deed.

“Perhaps,” she said, smiling meaningfully at Catriona, “we should stroll about the rooms?”

“Oh, yes! I expect I should take particular note of some of the displays.” Eyes twinkling, Catriona took Ambrose’s arm. Antonia surmised the summons to Henry Fortescue had been successfully inscribed and handed into Ambrose’s care.

Her hand on Philip’s sleeve, Antonia smiled upon her court. “Gentlemen, I thank you for your company. Perchance we’ll meet tonight?”

“Yes, indeed—but no need to break up the party.” Sir Frederick gestured expansively.

“No—indeed no,” came from Mr Dashwood. “Haven’t actually
looked
at anything in the museum for years—only too pleased to take a squint around.”

“I’ll come too—just in case you need some information on the artifacts.” Mr Carruthers nodded benignly.

Antonia’s answering smile was weak. When they strolled from the room, all five gentlemen ambled in their wake. As they wended their way between the display cases, she bit her lip—then slanted a glance up at Philip. He met it with an expression she was coming to know well—pure cynicism combined with insufferable male superiority. He arched a distinctly supercilious brow at her. Antonia narrowed her eyes at him, then, head high, shifted her gaze forward.

Philip hid his smile. He saw Geoffrey and shot him a glance sharp enough to bring him to heel. When they reached the centre of the main room, he halted and pulled out his watch. Consulting it, he grimaced. “I’m afraid, my dear, that we’ve run out of time. If you want your surprise, we’ll have to leave now.”

Antonia stared at him, her lips forming a silent “Oh.”

“Surprise?” Geoffrey asked.

“The surprise I promised you all,” Philip glibly replied. “Remember?”

Geoffrey met his gaze. “Oh! That surprise.”

“Indeed.” Smoothly turning to Antonia’s trailing court, Philip raised a languid brow. “I’m afraid, gentlemen, that you’ll have to excuse us.”

“Oh—yes. Naturally!”

“Until next time, Miss Mannering. Miss Dalling.”

To Antonia’s inward disgust, amid a host of similar phrases, her five encumbrances obediently took themselves off. As the last bowed and withdrew, she glanced up at Philip, only to see his jaw firm.

“I suggest we get moving immediately.” Before any of them could question his intent, he had them all outside, Catriona and Ambrose included. A hackney was waiting at the kerb; Philip hailed it and bundled Catriona, Ambrose and Geoffrey aboard. Shutting the door on them, he slapped the side. “Gunters.”

The jarvey nodded and clicked his reins. The old coach lumbered away.

Left standing on the pavement, distinctly bemused, Antonia stared at Philip. “What about us?”

Exasperated, he looked down at her. “Do we have to follow?”

Antonia stiffened. “Yes!”

Philip narrowed his eyes at her, but she refused to retreat. Heaving a long-suffering sigh, he called up another hackney.

“Now,” he said, the instant the hackney’s door shut upon them. “You can explain what Miss Dalling and the Marquess are about.”

Antonia was perfectly willing to do so; by the time the hackney drew up outside Gunters, Philip was considering retreating himself. Unfortunately, the sight that met his eyes as he glanced out of the hackney window rendered that course of action impossible.

“Good God!” he said, sitting forward and reaching for the handle. “The silly clunches are standing outside.”

Predictably, Catriona Dalling had started to attract an audience. Gritting his teeth, Philip handed Antonia down, then deftly extricated Miss Dalling and, feeling very like a sheepdog with his sheep, ushered his little group into the shop.

It was hardly a venue at which he was well known. Nevertheless, the waitress took one look at him and immediately found a discreet booth big enough to accommodate the whole party. By the time he sank onto the bench beside Antonia, Philip found he was actually looking forward to an ice.

The waitress took their orders; the ices arrived before they had well caught their breaths. Catriona, Ambrose and Geoffrey attacked theirs in style; Philip and Antonia were rather more circumspect.

Catriona finished first and patted her lips with her napkin. “Ambrose will post my letter tomorrow,” she informed the table at large. “I know Henry will come posthaste to the rescue—just like the true knight he is.” She clasped her napkin to her bosom and affected a romantically distant gaze. Then she sighed. “He’ll know exactly what to do for the best. Everything will be right as a trivet once he arrives.”

When she and Ambrose fell to discussing their respective guardians’ likely plans, Philip caught Antonia’s eye. “I can only hope,” he murmured, “that Mr Fortescue is up to handling Miss Dalling’s dramatic flights. Don’t ever think I’m not grateful for your lack of histrionic tendencies.”

Antonia blinked, then smiled and looked down at her ice. As she took another mouthful, her smile grew. She had wondered if Philip would prove at all susceptible to Catriona’s undeniable beauty. Apparently not. His comment, indeed, suggested quite otherwise; she couldn’t help feeling pleased.

Watching her, Philip narrowed his eyes, astute enough to guess what lay behind her smug smile. He attacked his ice, inwardly humphing at the implied slight to his taste. To any with experience, certainly any of his ilk, Miss Dalling’s mere prettiness could not hold a candle to Antonia’s mature beauty. The heiress might be a handful in her own way but she was very definitely not the same sort of handful his bride-to-be obviously was. He glanced at Antonia, then, all but automatically, scanned the room.