An Agreeable Arrangement (7 page)

Julian looked at Lady Cassandra. Had she been
filling Edward’s mind with lies?

“I want the two of you to come together-at least
be civil … for my benefit if nothing else.” Edward’s
stern tone kept their attention. “The two of you will
make an effort to behave in a well-mannered fashion
toward one another. Every morning you are to exchange a pleasantry over this very table” Edward
drove his index finger into its surface with a resounding thump. “Maxwell, you will bear witness to thisevery morning of my absence, I say!”

“Sir, I-” Maxwell did not have a chance to accept
or refuse.

“And Julian, as head of the family I expect you to
make the first overture.”

“As you wish. I will do as you ask” There was no
good reason he should refuse such a simple request.

“Good. My lady?” Edward looked at Lady Cassandra.

“Yes, of course. I shall comply” Her pleasant tone
might have gladly accepted Edward’s request but at
the same time the squire could hear the disdain she
held for him.

“If, upon my return, you two have developed an allconsuming affection for the other, well … it could not
please me more” Edward bid them farewell and kissed Lady Cassandra’s hand before leaving the squire in the
breakfast room with her.

The very next morning, Maxwell observed the
squire waiting at the breakfast table until Lady Cassandra’s arrival. He stood as she entered the room
and greeted her with, “Good morning, my lady”

“Good day to you, sir.”

With a polite bow, the squire left. Lady Cassandra
sat at the table after helping herself to a cup of coffee
and a piece of toast from the sideboard.

The butler thought the first exchange, although
strained, was a good beginning on both behalves.

The second morning of Mr. Edward’s absence,
Squire Stewart rose from the table as Lady Cassandra entered the room and said, “Good day to you, my
lady”

Lady Cassandra returned his sentiment with, “I
bid you good morning, sir.”

The squire then vacated the room, leaving Lady
Cassandra to breakfast with her coffee and toast.

On the third day, Maxwell noted a change. The
squire rose from the table as always when Lady Cassandra entered the room. In a cordial but unenthusiastic fashion, he said to her, “Good morning, Lady
Cassandra”

“Good day to you, sir.”

“I wish you a pleasant day.”

“How kind of you, sir. May you have a productive
day as well.”

The squire left and headed for the study. Lady
Cassandra remained, with her coffee and toast as her
only company.

After witnessing this morning’s tepid exchange,
Maxwell thought it might be beneficial for the family’s
welfare if they proceeded beyond simple conversation.

“Excuse me, sir.” Maxwell approached the squire
that evening in his study.

“What is it, Maxwell?” The squire did not look up
from the papers before him.

“Lady Cassandra, sir.”

Squire Stewart shot to his feet, dropping the pen
onto the desk. “Is she here?” He looked past the butler
to the doorway, where she might be waiting to have a
moment with him. The squire’s first encounter with
her, just outside this room, must have been as memorable for him as it had been for Maxwell.

“No, I believe she has retired for the night.”

At those words the squire seemed to relax and regained his seat. “Well, then, what is it … that concerns Lady Cassandra?”

“It was Mr. Edward’s wish that his new family
should-for lack of a better word-warm to one another. He asked that you begin by exchanging pleasantries.”

“It is no easy task for me, Maxwell. I can’t tell you how it feels to wake and know that I have to face her
every morning … the woman can’t abide me”

“I only wish to mention that Lady Cassandra has
no acquaintances here in town. Her only constant human companionship is that of Miss Lorna, who is not
quite, shall we say, an equal?”

“Loma’s a silly little thing.” The squire chuckled
with a smile. “I shouldn’t think anyone at that age
could cope with Lady Cassandra’s current difficulties.”
He eased back in his chair and reflected. “An arranged
marriage can be most challenging. It does not always
work out for the best. I was a most fortunate man”

Maxwell recalled the squire’s venture into matrimony which had him leg-shackled to a pleasant but
ordinary daughter of a viscount, a friend of the previous squire’s. Both were content with the match but
neither party was overjoyed to be with their chosen
spouse.

Such was the way of an arranged marriage.

“I believe Lady Cassandra has every intention of
respecting her father’s wishes and will marry Mr. Edward. Most couples in their position are somewhat
discontent. I do not believe this is the case here. From
what I have observed, she and Mr. Edward have an
understanding.”

The squire stared, with great interest, toward
Maxwell.

“Their difficulty lies with-I beg your pardon,
sir-you.”

“Me?” The squire looked affronted.

“Although she finds her betrothal amiable, it is quite
clear that Lady Cassandra harbors some residual resentment toward you.”

“It is my responsibility to carry out her father’s
wishes, whether it be tallying the quarterly expenses
or paying for her dancing slippers.”

“Yes, sir, and you have done so admirably since
the earl’s death. Nevertheless, she does not look upon
you kindly.” Maxwell tried his best to express his sympathy. “Before his absence, Mr. Edward made it clear
that he wishes to resolve the discord within his family.
Furthermore, I believe you have succeeded”

“Why, thank you, Maxwell.”

“What better reception could Mr. Edward have
than to see you and Lady Cassandra welcome him
home side by side?”

The squire’s eyes grew wide as he considered the
notion.

“To this end, if Lady Cassandra were to acquaint
herself with you”-Maxwell hoped the squire, who
was not a feckless man, would catch on-“spend time
with you and you with her, it may benefit you both.”

“What would we do, Maxwell?” The squire had,
clearly, spent too many years locked up in the study,
alone, busy with his work and correspondence. He
was far more comfortable with a full ink bottle and a
pile of work papers.

“I should not think it inappropriate if you, as her impending new family member, offered to accompany
her for a daily activity-such as a stroll through the
gardens, a drive through the park, or a morning ride.”

A light flared behind the squire’s eyes. “Brilliant
suggestion,” he shouted. “Maxwell, you’re a genius!”

“Thank you, sir.” The butler bowed and concealed
his smile.

The next morning, Julian sat at the breakfast table
as he had the three previous mornings, waiting for
Lady Cassandra’s arrival. He stood when she entered the room.

“Good morning, Lady Cassandra.”

“A good morning to you as well, Squire,” she returned with a ring of finality.

He did not move to leave. “Would you mind if I
remained and took coffee with you?”

She froze in the doorway. “I … that would be …
by all means, stay. I welcome your company.”

Julian returned to his seat.

“I thought”-Julian found that words were not
coming easily to him-“that is to say … you spend
a great deal of time with my sister.”

“Miss Lorna is excellent company as well as very
entertaining.”

“However, in the mornings you are-” He paused.

“Lorna does not wake until noon,” they said at the
same time.

Quiet mirth eased the tension between them and
they both offered shy, polite smiles.

He began again. “We have a fine stable.” Or so he
was told. Julian didn’t ride much.

“Lorna does not ride,” they said, again, at the same
time. It seemed they both knew Lorna’s habits quite
well.

“Exactly,” he said. “I thought that … well, since
you are an early riser, as I am”-he wondered what
he would say next-“and as we both are not occupied
at this hour of the morning, or so it would seem, except for taking coffee”-he glanced from his cup to
her-“I thought perhaps”-he paused again-“I
thought we might go out riding together one morning,” he blurted out at the same time she said, “I can’t
very well head out on my own”

“Excuse me?” Lady Cassandra set her cup and
saucer on the table.

“I said, I would be delighted to accompany you,”
he repeated more bravely this time. “If you would
care to do so” Then he added, “At the time of your
choosing, of course”

She blinked and turned her head, looking at him out of the corner of her eye as if she did not trust him. “I
shall think on the matter, if that is agreeable to you”

Julian stood, preparing himself to leave the room.
“You have only to ask, my lady” He bowed and left.

Cassie wondered what had come over the squire.
This morning’s conversation went beyond mere
pleasantries. Offering to accompany her on a morning ride? She had thought he was quite indifferent to
her. Then she thought that perhaps she ought to attempt to understand Squire Stewart, for Edward’s
sake.

It wasn’t until that afternoon, when she and Lorna
sat in the two tapestry-covered chairs by the hearth
with needlework in hand, that she was able to put those
disturbing thoughts aside. Mrs. Upton sat in the matching solid-colored sofa reading but not oblivious to the
younger ladies in the room.

“Whatever shall I do?” Lorna sighed. “I’ve received permission to waltz at Almack’s and I wanted
my first to be with Edward.”

“That is disappointing.” Cassie drew her needle
and pulled the thread taut. “I suppose in his absence
your other brother will have to do”

“Do? He won’t do at all, I’m afraid.” Lorna sighed,
disappointed with the situation.

“I admit that the squire is not Edward but I suppose you’ll just have to make the best of it.”

Lorna’s hands came to a stop and dropped the
needlework into her lap. She glared at Cassie with exasperation.

“Miss Lorna is despondent in losing her prestigious dance partner,” Mrs. Upton clarified. “It has always been her dream that her first waltz would be
with Mr. Edward.”

“You have little choice, Lorna. I’m sure the squire
will do his utmost to fill Edward’s shoes” Cassie did
not see any way around the problem.

“Fill his shoes? My dear, he can’t possibly!” The
governess chuckled, folding her book closed in her
lap. “Squire Stewart cannot dance!”

“What’s that you say?”

“Didn’t you know? Julian can’t dance.” Lorna repeated. “Did you not notice last evening at the Addisons’ ball? Not once did he step onto the dance floor.”

Cassie could not recall seeing the squire partake in
any of the dances. She smiled at the exposed minor
imperfection of Squire Stewart. “Imagine not knowing how to dance in this day and age”

“There’s no need really. It’s not as if he enjoys social affairs.” Mrs. Upton went on. “The squire learned
the minuet so he could dance at his wedding but that
was ages ago”

“I see” A hint of a smile threatened to betray her.
How very odd he is. Even in Yorkshire, most of the
farmers had the simple skill of leading a lady across
the floor to music.

“I wouldn’t worry, Lorna. I’m sure everything will
work out.”

“There will be plenty of young men there. You’ll
have your chance at a waltz.” Mrs. Upton saw no reason to panic. She opened the book to where she had
left off.

“I was really looking forward to waltzing with Edward first.” Lorna sighed heavily, deeply.

Cassie knew how much Lorna worshipped him and
could wholeheartedly sympathize with her. And truth
be told, Cassie missed Edward’s kindness and smiling
face too.

Edward had been gone for nearly a week. The exchange in the breakfast room between Cassie and the
squire that morning had been unremarkable. Why had
she ever agreed to this folly of Edward’s? It felt silly,
almost comical, that the start of every day should begin
with her and the squire trying to make meaningless
conversation.

Day after day he greeted her with a banal salutation. And day after day she countered with a polite
but equally absurd reply.

Cassie had promised to cooperate and so had the
squire. As much as she disliked it and no matter what
her opinion of this action, she understood they would
continue in this fashion until Edward’s return.

Cassie wondered, if only for a moment, if she ought
to have accepted the squire’s offer to accompany her for a morning ride. It would certainly be a pleasant
way to start the day.

At three o’clock in the afternoon, Cassie glanced
around, looking for Romeo. He was nowhere to be
found. She walked to the far side of her sitting room.
In one swift movement, she parted the sheers and her
eyes began to search for the slightest movement of
her terrier in the rear gardens. There was not a trace
of him.

She turned away from the window, allowing the
light panels to hang in their normal, softly pleated,
resting position. Cassie left her room, descended the
stairs and came upon Maxwell.