Lord Ilchester's Inheritance (5 page)

Her uncle pushed himself upright and walked across to greet their guest but they spoke too softly for her to overhear. They both seemed satisfied with the exchange and came to join them for the party luncheon.

The boys behaved impeccably, Uncle John and his lordship seemed to be the best of friends, and the conversation ebbed and flowed around the table as if they had been acquainted for years and not just met this day. When they were replete she expected Ilchester to depart, instead he suggested they play a game of rounders.

‘I believe we have the necessary equipment in the boathouse, my lord, but I have not the slightest notion exactly where. Boys, why don’t you take our guest and see if you can find what we need?’ Uncle John beckoned to Jarvis who had been sitting in the shade with his back to the boathouse. ‘Young man, see if you can round up some more lads to play this game; there must be stableboys and garden boys who can be spared from their duties for an hour or so.’

The boys skipped around his lordship in their eagerness to find the items necessary to play the game and she watched them vanish into the boathouse.

‘As long as I do not have to play, I shall be content. Uncle John, I am not sure this is a good idea, my brothers have never played the game and they are far too small to face a hard ball bowled by an adult.’

‘I am sure that Ilchester will devise a game that is suited to their age. You must join in, my dear, it would seem churlish not to.’

‘It would seem foolish to do so, in my opinion. I am severely disadvantaged by my gown, I cannot run and neither can I bat. I know that some intrepid young ladies play cricket, but I am not one of those and I shall sit out and watch.’

He accepted her decision with good grace. ‘I shall be the umpire. Good, half a dozen extra players are arriving. I think we should have some sort of competitive games at your party, Sapphire. You do not need to participate yourself, but I’m quite sure others will wish to do so. A tug of war is always popular.’

He wandered off to greet the youngsters and explain what was required of them. By the time he had done so Ilchester had emerged carrying an armful of wooden posts, Thomas and David had a bat each and were almost beside themselves with excitement.

With so many willing hands posts were soon placed correctly and a marker put where the bowler and the batsmen must stand. To her astonishment the gentleman she had thought arrogant and supercilious discarded his jacket and neckcloth and rolled up his shirtsleeves. He looked across at her sitting grimly at the table and instead of coming over he roared across the grass at her. ‘We insist that you join in, Miss Stanton, David and Thomas will be devastated if you do not. How can you refuse them on their anniversary?’

Although she was an excellent horsewoman and prepared to turn her hand to any sort of physical activity, she was hopeless at anything that required coordination. She was as likely to hit the ball as she was to fly to the moon – but he was quite right to chide her, she must put aside her imminent humiliation for the sake of her brothers’ enjoyment.

Reluctantly she stood up and went to join the eager throng of players. She had a horrible feeling this was not going to end well for her.

Chapter Five

The miscellany of participants joined in the game with gusto. Even though neither of the boys managed to catch or hit the ball, they had great fun running from base to base. Her attempts at scoring a rounder were pathetic and the first time she ran she put her slipper through the skirt of her dress and fell flat on her face.

His lordship had her back on her feet as if she weighed no more than a bag of feathers. ‘I can see why you had no wish to play, Miss Stanton. You have ruined your gown and it is entirely my fault.’ He looked so contrite she forgave him at once for his insistence that she join in.

‘For all your faults, sir, and I’m sure they are legion, I cannot hold you responsible for tearing my gown.’ Her brothers, who ran in tandem, were running round a post oblivious to her problems. ‘If you will excuse me, my lord, I shall return to the house and see what can be done to repair the damage.’

As Meg and Jenny, their skirts hitched up in a most unflattering way, had opted to play, she could depart knowing her brothers were well supervised. Uncle John had abandoned his position as umpire and was snoozing comfortably in his bath chair.

‘I have no wish to shout across the grass to my brothers, so would you be kind enough to tell them why I have gone inside?’

He grinned, making him look less austere and far more approachable. ‘It will be my absolute pleasure, Miss Stanton. I give you my word the boys will come to no harm in your absence.’

As he was presently the bowler the game could not proceed until he returned to his position. Billy was waiting patiently to receive the ball and she hurriedly removed herself from the field of play. On her return to the house she examined the tear in her gown and was relieved to see that a few stitches would be sufficient to repair it.

She had discarded her bonnet long ago, and the late afternoon sun warmed her back as she returned. She decided to visit the stables and check Lord Ilchester’s mount was ready for the long ride back.

Ned appeared from a loose box, his face concerned. ‘His lordship’s horse is lame, miss, he won’t be able to ride him for a day or two. I don’t reckon either of the horses we have will be up to his weight.’

‘Then he will have to remain here until Sultan is recovered. I expect somebody from Ilchester Abbey will arrive tomorrow to discover what has delayed him so there is no need for anyone to take a message today.’

Once inside she summoned the housekeeper and butler. She explained the problem to them. ‘Robinson, do you have a footman who could act as a valet for Lord Ilchester?’

‘I do, Miss Stanton, I shall send him to speak to the master’s man immediately. His lordship will require toiletries and a nightshirt and these can be borrowed from Mr Bishop.’

‘Mrs Banks, you must inform Cook that we will require a formal dinner to be served this evening. The boys will be exhausted after running about all day and they will require nothing else to eat. We shall use the small dining room, it would be ridiculous for the three of us to be marooned around the huge table in the grand dining room.’

‘I shall have a room prepared for him, miss. Shall I send you a maid to stitch your gown?’

‘Thank you, I must return and inform Lord Ilchester that his stallion’s lame as soon as possible.’

It took longer than she had hoped to restore her appearance, but fortunately the noisy ball game was still in full swing. Although it would not be dark for several hours already the shadows were lengthening and the nightingales had begun to sing.

As she approached the game ended amidst general applause. Jenny hurried towards her, her face wreathed in smiles and running with perspiration. ‘My word, that was a grand afternoon, and no mistake. We never thought to play rounders with a lord.’

‘I’m glad everyone enjoyed themselves. Lord Ilchester’s horse is lame and he will be unable to return tonight. Fortunately, as he has no luggage with him, I shall not have to wear an evening gown. However, I wish to bathe and put something more formal on. The boys must go to bed without joining us downstairs. Please make sure that Meg is aware of this.’

The matter of her brothers successfully arranged, she now had to speak to her uncle and his lordship. The stableboys and garden lads had dispersed and her brothers, with the help of their guest, were collecting up the paraphernalia associated with their game.

This gave her the opportunity to speak to her uncle before she was obliged to inform his lordship that, whether he liked it or not, he would have to stay the night at Canfield Hall.

‘I rather think he was angling for an invitation, my dear, I don’t think he has enjoyed himself so much for years.’

‘Are you feeling well enough to remain up for dinner, Uncle John?’

‘I had a splendid nap whilst they were playing, I am feeling better than I have for years. It will be enjoyable to dine formally after so long eating from a tray.’

Jarvis appeared and trundled her aged relative away. Meg and Jenny emerged from the boathouse each holding a grubby boy by the hand. Much to her consternation she found herself quite alone and for a moment was quite nervous.

Ilchester strolled across nonchalantly rolling his sleeves down his tanned and muscular arms. He flicked his coat from the back of a chair and shrugged it on. She had never seen a gentleman do this and made her feel rather peculiar. Indeed, the whole afternoon had been strange and unlike anything she had experienced before.

When she explained about his stallion he shrugged. ‘It seems that I must apologise yet again, Miss Stanton. I had no intention of foisting myself on you overnight, but I must own that I am not at all sorry I do not have to ride back this evening. I am quite exhausted after so much unaccustomed activity.’ He said this with a straight face but she knew he was jesting.

‘I had thought that maybe you would like to send a message to Ilchester, but on reflection I don’t believe anyone who works here would be able to find their way before dark.’

‘There is no need to worry, Miss Stanton, I doubt that my mother or sisters will even notice my absence. They are attending a soirée this evening and will be taken up with that.’

‘I cannot imagine any social event that could possibly take precedence over the well-being of my family.’ When he raised an eyebrow she giggled. ‘Actually, as I have never attended a social event of any sort I have no idea whether I would feel the same as Lady Ilchester and your sisters about the matter.’

‘Not even made morning calls?’

She shook her head, beginning to enjoy this light-hearted badinage. ‘Although my mama was from a wealthy family she was disowned when she eloped with my papa. When he died we lived in straitened circumstances until Mr Palmer arrived and took care of us. He was not a rich man either, but we managed very well.’ She gazed around the many acres of parkland and back to the palatial house in which she now resided. ‘We are fortunate indeed to have found a haven here with Mr Bishop. Although we have been here several weeks I am still not quite accustomed to being able to have whatever I want no matter what the cost.’

He had collected his mangled neckcloth and held it up with a rueful smile. ‘I fear this is past redemption, Miss Stanton, I hope that I might find a fresh one before we dine tonight.’ He offered his arm and without hesitation she placed her hand on it and together they ambled towards the house.

The silence was companionable, not oppressive in any way, he was a surprisingly easy gentleman to spend time with. Before she could prevent herself she had issued him and his family with an invitation to attend her birthday celebrations next month. To her astonishment his eyes blazed and the muscles beneath her hand tensed.

‘We should be delighted to come, there is nothing the ladies of my family like better than attending a house party. Will you have a ball in the evening, after the garden party?’

‘I had not thought of doing so, but if there are sufficient couples there is no reason why we should not dance after dinner. I shall be engaging musicians to entertain during the afternoon, so they might as well remain for the evening.’

‘No doubt Mr Bishop has a list of all the notable families in the area, but I should be happy to supply you with the names of my friends and neighbours who live within driving distance of this estate.’

‘Thank you, that is most kind of you. My uncle is determined that I shall become a social butterfly. I am not comfortable at the thought of mixing with dozens of strangers – I much prefer to spend my time with my family.’

They had now reached the elegant marble staircase that led to the terrace which ran along the front of the house. Abruptly she removed her hand and skipped up ahead of him. She glanced over her shoulder. ‘I shall see you at dinner, my lord, I must oversee my brothers as they get ready to retire.’ Being in such close proximity to him was making her feel quite dizzy.

Her brothers were already in their nightshirts and tucking into coddled eggs and slices of succulent, pink ham when she arrived in the nursery. They had moved to the upper floor when Meg had been appointed as the nursemaid and were perfectly happy having their own domain.

‘Have you enjoyed yourselves today, boys?’

Tom answered first. ‘We did, we did, Saffy. Lord Ilchester said he will give us our first riding lesson tomorrow if we go to bed with no argument.’

She had wondered why everything was so peaceful here. ‘That was kind of him. He is a cousin of ours, we share the same great-grandfather – that is to say our great-grandfather was his grandfather.’

‘We didn’t know we had a lord in the family – will we be lords like him one day?’ David said as he finished his mouthful.

‘No, I’m afraid not, sweetheart. Titles are passed down to a close member of the family, and although he has no sons of his own as yet, he has a younger brother. Also, in your case you are related to him through our mama, so would not be eligible anyway.’

This was a strange conversation to be having with a pair of five-year-olds. ‘Goodnight, boys, I must go and bathe and change as I can still smell lake water on my person.’

In her own apartment her maid was waiting for her and had already set out the hip bath behind the screen in her dressing room. There had been no necessity to light the fire as the room was south-facing and still warm from the sun.

Whilst she relaxed in the rose-scented water Jenny untangled her hair so it could be washed. Hopefully it would dry before she was obliged to put it up and dress for dinner, which was to be served at six o’clock tonight to allow Uncle John to rest after the activities of the day.

Although her hair was still a trifle damp, Sapphire decided she could wait no longer to put it up as it was already a quarter to six. ‘I had forgotten I had this gown, Jenny, I ordered so many when we first arrived here.’

‘It’s an unusual shade, miss, and no mistake. I reckon it’s the colour of a duck egg and very pretty it is too. Not too grand, but smart enough to make a good impression.’

‘I think the neckline rather low, but that is probably because I have never worn anything so formal before.’ She stood and viewed herself in the mirror. Who was this beautiful stranger who stared back at her? What a difference a lovely gown made to one’s appearance.

‘There is no need to wait up for me, Jenny, I can see myself to bed. Please leave out my habit as I shall be riding first thing tomorrow.’

She had no idea where their guest had been put for the night and had not thought to ask. She hesitated on the wide gallery and then crept forward to peer over the balustrade. There was no sound of voices coming from the drawing room so perhaps Lord Ilchester was not down yet.

Suddenly he was beside her and her knees all but gave way. ‘What are we looking at, Miss Stanton?’ He asked smoothly and leaned over the ornate railing.

‘I was looking for you, my lord, but obviously in quite the wrong place.’ She glared at him. ‘If there is one thing that I cannot abide, it is a gentleman who sneaks up on one.’

His eyes were laughing at her and his mouth was twitching. He bowed in a ridiculously overblown way. ‘I most humbly beg your pardon, Miss Stanton, for arriving unannounced.’

Her irritation vanished beneath the warmth of his smile. ‘You are a most annoying gentleman, I cannot think why my brothers are so taken with you.’

For a moment she thought he was going to stretch out and touch her face and a flash of anticipation held her rigid, then the moment passed. ‘I believe we are tardy, Miss Stanton, your uncle will be wondering what has become of us. And by the way, might I say how lovely you look in that exquisite ensemble?’

This time she did stumble and only his lightning fast reflexes prevented her from taking a nasty tumble down the stairs. He did not immediately release her hand and the warmth of his fingers was doing peculiar things to her pulse. When he released his hold she hastily placed her hand behind her back.

They continued their progress down the stairs and having him so close caused her to almost lose her footing for a second time but she was able to steady herself without assistance.

‘Forgive me for saying so,’ he said conversationally, ‘but I believe that you must be the clumsiest young lady of my acquaintance. I’m surprised you have not done yourself serious harm before now.’ The outrageous statement steadied her nerves and she was able to stop in order to fix him with her most icy stare.