Match For Melissa (22 page)

Henri patted her shoulder awkwardly. “There is no need to cry. Many hours remain until time for the ball to commence. Perhaps you could fashion another costume to wear.”

“No, Henri.” Lissa shook her head sadly. “My dream was sheer frivolity and I do not choose to indulge in it again. This sad day has served as a lesson for me. It is imprudent for me to aspire to put myself above my station.”

The Duchess of Oakwood broke the seal of the letter that had arrived in the morning’s post. It was from her old friend, Lady Jennings, who was visiting Lady Sarah in London.

“What is it, Mama?” Lucy looked up from the firescreen she was embroidering for Trelane Manor.

“A letter from Lady Jennings. No doubt it will be filled with all the latest
on-dits
from London, for she has always shown a fondness for gossip.”

Lucy peered over at the letter. “Why does the woman cross her lines so? It is devilishly difficult to read!”

“Indeed it is, and Lord Beckworth has franked the letter so there is no need for her to be frugal. It is a habit she developed in the schoolroom when she was used to correspond with an aunt who had little money for the post. It was a great kindness in that case, but now it is simply a nuisance.” The duchess gave a merry laugh. “Did you know, Lucy, that the cost of the post can be a useful weapon?”

Lucy’s eyes began to sparkle. Now that she was a married lady with twin boys of her own, her mother had begun to share more confidences with her. “No, indeed, I did not. Tell me about it, Mama.”

“When I was but a school girl, I developed a
tendre
for the older brother of a classmate. I was visiting her at her parents’ country estate at the time and I must admit that I was regrettably naïve. We kissed away several summer afternoons and I assumed
that he intended to declare for me when I was of an age. I mentioned this happily anticipated event to my classmate and she informed me that it was impossible for her brother was already engaged to another. It seemed that he had merely sought to relieve the boredom of a family visit by trifling with my affections.”

“Poor Mama! To endure a broken heart at such a tender age!” Lucy’s tone was teasing, once she had noted the sparkle in her mother’s eyes. “What did you do when you learned that the object of your young affections was a rake?”

“I made use of the post as my revenge. I knew that he had not yet come into his inheritance and was forced to live on a small allowance. I penned a letter to him containing but a single word and signed my name to it.”

“What was the word, Mama?”

“Cad
.” The dowager duchess laughed at the memory. “Then I wrapped my letter around several heavy stones and sent it off on the next post. I daresay he has not yet forgiven me as his sister reported that he paid a small fortune to retrieve it.”

“That is delightful, Mama!” Lucy laughed. “I shall keep it in mind if I have the need to seek revenge.”

“Perhaps I should not have told you.” The duchess looked slightly worried as she picked up her letter again.

“Do not fear, Mama. I was simply bamming you. I am happily married and well past that foolish age.” Lucy put her embroidery aside and smiled at her mother. “Please read Lady Jennings’s letter to me. A juicy bit of gossip is just what I need.”

The dowager duchess turned the letter and attempted to read the crossed lines. “Lady Jennings reports that we will miss the most important ball of the Season. It is to be a costume ball held at…I do not believe it, Lucy! Lady Jennings must be mistaken!”

“What is it, Mama?” Lucinda frowned as she glanced at her mother’s shocked expression.

“She says
Robert
is to host the ball!”

“Robert?” Lucinda appeared equally shocked. “But how is this possible, Mama? Robert is unmarried and has no hostess!”

The duchess read the next line with a frown on her face. “It seems that Jane Harrington is to be his hostess for the occasion!”

“But why would Robert choose Lady Harrington?”

The duchess seemed to hesitate for a moment and then she sighed. “Perhaps it is wrong in me to divulge a confidence, Lucy, but you will know soon enough. When Robert was here, he confided to me that he intended to declare for her eldest daughter.”

“Oh, dear.!” Lucy reached out to take her mother’s hand. “I have not made the acquaintance of her daughters, but I have heard distressing tales of Lady Harrington.”

The duchess narrowed her eyes. “You must tell me what you have heard, Lucy. It is best that I be informed.”

“It is said that she trapped Lord Harrington into marriage while he was still grieving for his first wife. I have also heard that the woman is an opportunist and she made her husband’s life a misery with her constant demands for money and jewelry.”

The dowager duchess frowned. This news did not bode well for her son. “I assume that Lady Harrington has not reformed in her ways, now that Lord Harrington is dead?”

“She is even more foolish, Mama. James knows of the family. His uncle and Lord Harrington were well acquainted and he is the source of the information I have given you. Uncle Frederick told James that she is living the life of a merry widow and has squandered the revenues from her portion of the estate for the past two years in an attempt to launch her daughters with the
ton”

“And has she succeeded?” The duchess searched her daughter’s face.

“Not yet, Mama. Her daughters were presented last Season, but they did not take. Uncle Frederick said that Lady Harrington is even more determined this Season. He claims that she will
stop at nothing to assure that her daughters marry titled noblemen with heavy purses.”

The dowager duchess nodded. “Of course. If she has light pockets, she must make certain that her daughters marry wealth. It is her only hope to continue in her extravagant ways.”

“And Robert told you that he intends to declare for one of Lady Harrington’s daughters?”

“Yes, indeed.” The duchess sighed as she nodded. “Tell me of these daughters, Lucy. Do they emulate their mother?”

“I have no knowledge of that, Mama. Uncle Frederick does not speak ill of them, but he has said that they follow their mother’s lead.”

“Like sheep.” There was derision in the dowager duchess’s voice.

“Exactly, Mama. Uncle Frederick says that Lady Harrington controls them completely and that they appear to obey her in all things.”

“Thank you for telling me of this, Lucy.” The dowager duchess sighed heavily. “Would James be overset were you to accompany me to London?”

Lucy shook her head. “Not at all, Mama. He would think it a capital idea, as he has been urging me to take a respite from the children. When shall we leave?”

“Within the hour. There is no time to waste.” The duchess rose to her feet. “We shall travel light and arrive in London on the morrow. If luck rides with us, Lucy, we will be in time to warn Robert of Lady Harrington’s scheme.”

Melissa’s heart was heavy as the carriage rolled away from Belgrave Square. She had assisted her stepmother, Dorothea, and Regina to dress in their costumes and they were now on their way to Lord Chadwick’s house. There they would meet the viscount’s sister and brother and partake of a light refreshment before forming a cortege for their brief journey to Oakwood House.

“You’d best hurry, miss.” Mary tapped her shoulder. “His grace’s carriage should arrive at any moment.”

“Thank you, Mary.” Melissa smiled at the girl and rushed up the stairs to change her dress for the ball. When she opened the door to her bedchamber, the sight of the empty clotheshorse brought moisture to her eyes. Melissa dashed it away with the back of her hand and busied herself with her preparations. Her dream was not to be and she would not waste her time on regrets.

She had helped her stepmother dress as Cleopatra in a thin silk gown that had displayed her figure to full advantage. Jane’s gown, itself, had been deceptively simple, but Melissa knew that the delicate gold sandals, the elaborate gold and jeweled headdress, and the gold filigree girdle that fit snugly around her waist had been very dear, indeed. Melissa had dressed Jane’s hair in a shining curtain that fell straight to her shoulders and Jane had declared, quite charitably, that Melissa’s effort was far superior to the wig that she had planned to don for the occasion.

Dorothea had chosen a lovely blue shepherdess costume with a frilly white underskirt. She had confided to Melissa that she had known the style would not be flattering when she had chosen it, but since Lord Chadwick had complimented her on her most delightfully rounded figure, she had indulged her passion for ruffles, flounces and furbelows to her heart’s content.

Regina had been a vision of loveliness in the costume that Melissa had fashioned. Melissa had dressed her hair in clusters of soft curls and added a touch of rouge to her cheeks. When she was finished, Regina had made a perfect Queen Guinevere and Melissa had wished her happy on this fateful night that would assure her future.

“Miss! The carriage is here!”

Mary’s excited voice floated up the staircase and Melissa grabbed her basket. She raced down the stairs and ran the length of the hallway to arrive at the door breathless.

“Oh!” Melissa gasped as she threw open the door and came
face to face with a stranger. His hand was raised, as if he had been surprised in the act of knocking for admittance.

“Excuse me, miss.” He gave her a friendly smile. “I have recently taken leave of the Reverend Mr. Watson and he has entrusted me to bring a letter to Miss Regina.”

Melissa returned his smile. “She will be most pleased, sir. But she is not here at present.”

The young man frowned. “But Mr. Watson has instructed me to deliver it to her hand and no other.”

“I do not think the gentleman would object if you gave it over to my keeping. I am Melissa, Miss Regina’s stepsister, and I shall present it to her this evening.”

The young man looked relieved as he reached out to hand her the letter. “I am certain Mr. Watson would approve. He has the highest opinion of your character.”

“And I, of his.” Melissa smiled and took the letter. “Miss Regina shall have his letter before the night is out. I promise you that, sir.”

After Melissa was ensconced in the duke’s carriage, she stared down at the letter for a moment. There was no doubt that Regina would be delighted to receive a communication from Mr. Watson. Her mother, however, would be most overset. Jane had often remarked that she did not approve of that gentleman’s influence on Regina, and Melissa was certain that her stepmother would regard his letter as a most unwelcome intrusion.

Melissa slipped the letter inside her basket and covered it securely it with a cloth. She would slip it to Regina in secret, when her stepmother was not present to object.

A blush rose to Regina’s cheeks as she hurried to the ladies’ withdrawing room. She had made her excuses to the duke and her mother, asking for their leave to repair a minor tear in the hem of her costume. The tear had been accomplished by Regina’s own hand, only moments before, in an attempt to gain a few moments of privacy. While one of the duke’s maids stitched
up the tear, she would read the letter Mr. Watson’s young colleague had so propitiously given to Lissa.

All went according to plan. A maid was summoned, needle and thread were duly fetched, and Regina broke the seal on the letter. Lissa had told her that the young man had been most cautious, lest the missive fall into the wrong hands.

“I shall have this repaired in a moment, miss.” The maid bobbed her head. “There is no need to remove it.”

“Thank you.” Regina smiled as the maid pulled up a stool and began to ply her needle. Then she unfolded the letter to the rhythm of a heart which was beating much too rapidly for comfort, and began to read the words.

“Oh, my!” Regina was not aware that she had spoken until the maid looked up at her inquiringly.

“Did I prick you, miss?” The maid’s voice was filled with distress.

“No, most certainly you did not.” Regina hastened to reassure her. “You may continue.”

As the maid bent over her work once more, a heated blush rose to Regina’s cheeks. Mr. Watson loved her! He had written as much in a decidedly frank and undeniably sincere manner. And he intended to declare for her the moment she returned from London!

What bliss it should be to be married to such a gentle and dedicated man! Regina sighed softly and considered the delight she should surely experience in regarding him as her husband. She had never permitted herself to think of Mr. Watson in such a manner before. Indeed, she had purposely banished all thoughts of the Reverend Mr. Watson, the man, from her mind. Perhaps once or twice, in the privacy of her bedchamber, she had entertained the notion that it should be rapturous, indeed, to touch his dear face, or to brush back the errant lock of hair that occasionally fell over his forehead. But Regina had attributed the source of those traitorous thoughts to the “temptations of the flesh” that Mr. Watson’s predecessor had been so fond
of sermonizing about and had roundly chided herself for giving way to them.

Mr. Watson loved her! A blissful smile spread across Regina’s countenance. And she loved him, with all her heart. It was all as clear as crystal to her now. Every aspect of her behavior that had so puzzled her in the past, was now explained. It was her love for Mr. Watson that had caused her hands to tremble whenever she was near him and her heart to race at several times its normal rate. Her love was responsible for the manner in which she could remember every word that he had ever spoken, and this same love had induced her to see his dear countenance in every one of her dreams. Of course she would marry him! Indeed, Regina could imagine being wed to no other.

Regina’s thoughts turned to the wonderful life she would be certain to share with the Reverend Mr. Watson and she sighed with supreme happiness. What joy it should be to stand at his side in the small church, greeting the parishioners after the conclusion of one of his excellent sermons. What satisfaction would be hers when they provided comfort to the sick and made life a bit less dreary for the more unfortunate members of his flock. She should not have to beg for his permission to continue her charity work for he embraced her same sensibilities, and had devoted his life to the enrichment of others, precisely as she wished to do.