His Lordship's Desire. Joan WolfЧитать онлайн книгу.
again, and he walked her off the floor.
A young man approached them.
“I say, Standish,” he said. “I haven’t seen you since Salamanca. Back home for good, I see?”
Alex replied and the young man, who was broadchested and broad-faced, said, “Aren’t you going to introduce me?”
Alex presented Lord Butler to Diana, who immediately asked her to dance. She accepted, thrilled that someone besides Alex wanted to dance with her. Together they went out onto the floor.
That was the way the evening went. Both Diana and Sally danced every dance.
Diana was radiant. Forgotten was the hurtful comment of Mrs. Drummond Burrell. She wasn’t going to be shunned. She could attract men in London just the way she had at home. Her London Season was going to be all right.
Alex watched Diana’s progress with mixed emotions. He certainly hadn’t wanted her to fail, but it hurt to watch her with other men. It hurt bitterly. He wanted to rush onto the floor, drag her away from her partner and claim her as his own.
No matter what she might say about never forgiving him, he wasn’t going to give up. He couldn’t give up. There was too much between them—there had always been too much between them—for him to believe that she could turn her back on him so easily.
Perhaps she wouldn’t get another marriage offer. Men liked to dance with a pretty girl, but marriage to a dowerless country girl was another thing altogether. If she had nobody else to marry, perhaps she would think differently about him. If she changed her mind out of necessity, that would be all right. He would take Dee any way he could get her.
He had missed her so much. He had missed her achingly. He had known she was hurt and angry when she hadn’t answered his letters, but in his heart he had always thought that he could make everything right when he came home.
He looked at her glowing smile as she danced with her tall, handsome partner, and his stomach clenched.
The following morning a variety of bouquets were delivered to Standish House for the girls. Most were for Sally, but there were a few for Diana, as well. Along with the flowers came invitations to drive in the park. The young men who had sent the flowers all turned up at Standish House at eleven o’clock, the official hour for making morning calls, and they all sat in the downstairs drawing room making conversation, attended by Lady Standish and Mrs. Sherwood.
Diana agreed to drive out with a lively young man who was the younger son of a baron. His name was Matthew Dunster and Diana found him very entertaining. He also was mad about horses, which immediately gave them something in common to talk about.
Sally chose a more matrimonially advantageous escort, the eldest son of an earl. Lady Standish was pleased to express her approval of both girls’ plans, and arrangements were made for them to be picked up at five o’clock that afternoon.
“We have a musicale to go to after lunch,” Lady Standish announced to the girls after their suitors had left. “It’s at the Countess of Morham’s. A very popular pianist is going to be there.”
Sally was thrilled. She was a very good musician herself and she loved music. Diana was less excited. She would have preferred to spend the afternoon outdoors.
“Is Alex coming?” she heard herself ask.
“No, I believe he is going to Tattersall’s to look at horses,” Lady Standish replied.
Horses! This sounded so much better than being cooped up inside all afternoon listening to music. “I believe I’ll go with Alex,” Diana said.
“You most certainly will not,” Lady Standish returned. “Ladies do not go to Tattersall’s. You would ruin your reputation were you to do such a thing.”
Diana stuck out her lip, just the way she had done when she was a child and was thwarted from doing something she wanted to do. “That’s ridiculous,” she said. “Why can’t I go to look at horses?”
“Tattersall’s is strictly a male domain,” Lady Standish explained. “Alex will tell you the same thing. Besides, it will look good for you to be seen at the musicale with us. Lady Morham is an important figure in society.”
So Diana dragged herself off to the musicale with Lady Standish, her mother and Sally. It wasn’t that she disliked music; she enjoyed listening to Sally play in the evening. But she would so much rather have been at Tattersall’s with Alex.
The next two weeks—the weeks before Lady Standish was due to have her official come-out ball for Sally and Diana—were crammed with activities. They went to balls, routs, Venetian breakfasts, musicales and drove in Hyde Park. Alex had been true to his word and sent for Diana’s dog, Freddie, to be sent to London. Diana walked her dog in Green Park twice every day. She and Sally had exactly the same schedule, except that Sally’s escorts were all highly born and had money, while Diana’s escorts tended to be younger sons with few prospects. They were all obviously smitten by Diana, but none could possibly be serious husband material. None of them had the money to marry a penniless girl like her.
One of Sally’s suitors was the heir to the Marquess of Norton. Sally was driving with Lord Morple in the area of Pall Mall, a neighborhood which, like so many good neighborhoods in London, bordered on a slum. As Sally’s carriage passed in front of Marlborough House, she saw an old cart pulled to the side of the road, with a man and a boy standing beside it. The boy looked to be about five and was dressed in filthy rags. As Sally watched in horror, the man raised his horse whip and laid it across the boy’s back.
“Disgusting,” Sally’s escort said, looking down his nose. “These people shouldn’t be allowed in this part of town.”
“Stop!” Sally shouted, reaching for the reins. She halted the horses, and Lord Morple looked at her in astonishment as she swung herself down from the carriage.
“Here, Lady Sarah! You can’t do that! Come back here!”
Sally ignored him and ran toward the man who had once more raised his whip and it hit the boy again. “Stop that!” she commanded.
Sally had a very soft voice and the man ignored her, raising his whip yet again. “Ye wretched little cur,” he said. “I’ll have ye obey me or else.”
At that, Sally dashed in to throw her arms protectively around the child and the whip came down upon her own shoulder. She flinched but didn’t cry out. The man cursed.
“How dare you beat this child?” she said fiercely, the boy gathered safely to her breast. “What has he done to deserve such barbaric treatment?”
“It’s none o’ yer business, young miss,” the man replied. “But he’s one of my climbing boys and he refused to go up the chimney in yon house. I’m beatin’ some sense into him, that’s wot I’m doin’.”
“You wretched man,” Sally said passionately. High color stained her cheeks. “Would you send a frightened child up a chimney? What kind of monster are you?”
The boy whimpered and pressed closer to Sally.
“Don’t worry, my dear,” she said to him. “You are safe with me.”
“Here, that’s my boy,” the man said loudly, and he began to advance upon Sally, evidently with the idea of ripping the boy from her arms.
A deep, resonant voice said, “Desist, you worm. Lay one hand on the lady and I shall be forced to kill you.”
For a brief moment, Sally thought her escort had come to her rescue but then she realized that the voice was different. She looked up to see a tall, blond man dressed in a many-caped riding coat standing next to the chimney sweeper. “You cannot beat your poor unfortunate boys on the city streets,” the blond man said. “At least you can’t while there is a lady of mercy in the vicinity. I suggest you go about your business before I have you arrested for vicious conduct.”
“That boy’s mine,” the man said